Every year, I swear I'm going to take part in the annual New Year's Day Polar Bear Dip at Coney Island, and every year, I don't. But this year, I finally mustered up the will power and dove into the freezing Atlantic. I had no idea what to expect going in so wanted to write up a few tips for fellow first-timers. It's absolutely awesome, by the way, and everyone should do it at least once. 

Before the Swim

Most importantly, register in advance! Seriously, do this.  

To swim, there's a suggested $20 donation to Camp Sunshine, a retreat in Maine for kids with life-threatening illnesses and their families. You can choose either to register online or show up and pay on New Year's day.

If you register online, you'll save tons of time on the day of the swim; we signed in without any real line at the express registration table, while the day of folks stood in a seemingly endless line. In addition, if you're the type (like me) who is likely to bail at the last minute, signing up ahead of time is a great way to ensure you actually make it down to Coney Island.

Line up some friends! I was planning on doing the dip alone, but it was way, way better to have a bunch of people to get psyched with. If you can, try and bribe someone to be your beach buddy and hang out while you're in the corral before the swim; they'll make sure your bag and towel don't disappear and also be able to take pictures of you running like an idiot into the ocean.

New Year's Day Prep

Wear lots of layers! 

Our registration email suggested arriving at 11am for a 1pm swim, but even if you get there closer to 12pm, like we did, you'll still be hanging around on the boardwalk for a good long while. While you're waiting, there're plenty of places to grab coffee and hot chocolate to keep you warm along with lots of amazing costumes, so you won't be bored. 

For me, the worst part was starting to take off those many layers on the beach. It's windy down there, and you go from being cozy to numb almost instantly. The Polar Bear Club recommends you bring a pair of shoes to wear in the water because your feet numb up so quickly that you won't know if you've stepped on something terrible. I wasn't really in the water long enough for that to matter, but it's a good tip. 

Like most things that involve anticipated physical pain, the actual experience is way easier than you think it will be. We lined up in the corral around 12:50, and after lots of group jumping and clapping, we were in the water. It was over before we even knew it. The water wasn't nearly as cold as I thought it might be (water temp was 41 degrees, air temp around 30). 

Then you're back on the beach, where everyone is taking a photo of you, and you're desperately trying to find your towel. We stumbled back up to the boardwalk to get changed as quickly as possible, so it's fair to say I don't remember a whole lot from this point. 

A couple tips though: Keep your towel on top of your bag, so you can access it immediately after getting out of the water. That probably seems obvious, but mine was buried and I wasted far too much time trying to find it. 

Also keep in mind that your hands and feet might be super numb at this point. I had the worst time trying to untie my sneakers afterwards. 

Lastly, if you're on the fence about participating, don't be. It's impossible to regret doing, and I promise the hardest part is getting out of your post-swim shower.

We're super psyched to be back in January with a brand new Masters of Social Gastronomy lecture. As always, we'll be exploring the history and science behind some of your favorite foods and celebrating two years of MSG. 

This month, MSG takes to the high seas to explore the culinary world of pirates, sailors, and the ports that loved (or hated) them. What's so tough about hard tack, and how exactly you come down with a case of scurvy?

And, to celebrate our return to an alcohol-serving establishment, we'll be trumpeting the salty secrets of maritime alcohol: the legendary rum rations of the Royal Navy, the invention of the gin and tonic, and the mythic history of IPA's!

And if all that knowledge isn't enough to entice you, this month's MSG is taking place at the brand spanking new Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club (514 Union Street) in Gowanus. We recommend making a night of it, because you'll be able to hang out after the lecture for FREE SHUFFLEBOARD (until 11pm!) and plenty of libations from the bar.

Very Important Details
What: MSG Presents: Food of the High Seas
When: Tuesday, January 21
Doors at 6:30pm, talks at 7pm and free shuffleboard until 11pm! 
Where: The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club (514 Union Street, R to Union)
Cash bar, 21+

Very important note: You must RSVP!

We're looking for someone to help out around the Brainery. It's a part-time gig (approximately 24 hours a week), and involves all kinds of super glamorous and not-so-glamorous things. A partial list might be:

• Teacher outreach and class scheduling
• Working three nights a week in Prospect Heights during classes, ~4:30-10:30pm
• Writing blog posts and taking/posting photos of classes
• Keeping the space clean and organized - setting up, material prep, cleaning
• Helping out with various projects around the Brainery

In return, yes, you'll be getting paid (around $18/hour), get to hang out during all sorts of awesome classes, and maybe learn a thing or two about running a tiny business in New York.

Our deal: We're just two people who thought taking classes in NYC was way too expensive. So now, a zillion years later, we're hunkered down in Prospect Heights storefront, dedicated to helping people learn kombucha-brewing, essay-writing, star-gazing, tree-identifying, soap-making, picture-taking, tapestry-weaving, and pretty much anything else that exists, all from people in their communities. You can read more about how we roll over here. 

To apply: Send us an email to jobs@brooklynbrainery.com. Attach a resume if you want (pdf please!), a link to anything you've written online would be awesome, but most importantly tell us why you want to work here and why you're awesome! We're looking to start interviewing people by this Thursday (1/9) so the sooner you get your app in the better!

I found this recipe for Avocado Pie while searching through What's Cooking America's Regional recipe archive and immediately wanted to make it. I loved it for its great 70's color and its simplicity: it's no bake and has only a few ingredients, most of which you can pick up pre-made at the grocery store. It also whips up in about 10 minutes with very few dishes. 

The Process

How easy is it? All you need is a graham cracker crust, which is then filled with a whipped mixture of three avocados (very ripe!), 1/2 cup of citrus juice, 1 packet of gelatin, and 1 can of sweetened condensed milk. The recipe recommends mixing the filling in the food processor, and while I did it by hand with a whisk, I can see how the food processor would lead to a smoother filling. No matter how hard you whisk, a few avocado lumps are still going to make it through. Then you put it in the fridge to chill for two hours. 

For me, all of these shortcuts made the recipe feel distinctly not modern. I liked that and find easy, time-saving deserts really appealing, although they're perhaps somewhat out of favor these days. What's Cooking America dates this particular recipe to the 1970's, though I found it interesting and surprising that avocados were especially popular in English language books around 1920 and 1950, actually dipping in popularity just before this recipe appears. 

Taste Testing

Most importantly, how does it taste? Well, it's pretty good, even without the suggested whipped cream topping. I didn't find the filling too sweet, and more than anything, it reminded me of a key lime pie mixed with an avocado milkshake. The texture was pleasant, but I found myself wanting it to be even more citrusy. Soma actively disliked it, but he's not much of an avocado fan to begin with. 

I'd also love to hear suggestions for how to make the pie feel a little more 2014. Flavor additions? Different toppings? 

Last night we were lucky to host a talk on New York City's food history with Andrew F. Smith, author of more than 25(!) books on just about any food-related topic you can imagine. Andrew's new book,New York City: A Food Biography, just came out, and we decided to pick up an extra copy for a giveaway. 

Leave a comment below by Wednesday, January 22, at 5pm EST mentioning your favorite New York City food. We'll select the winner at random and let you know via email/facebook. You have to be 18 and live in the US, btw. 

If you hate FB but still want to participate, just shoot us an email at books@brooklynbrainery.com

More about the book: 

New York City’s first food biography showcases all the vibrancy, innovation, diversity, influence, and taste of this most-celebrated American metropolis. Its cuisine has developed as a lively potluck supper, where discrete culinary traditions have survived, thrived, and interacted. For almost 400 years New York’s culinary influence has been felt in other cities and communities worldwide. New York’s restaurants, such as Delmonico’s, created and sustained haute cuisine in this country. Grocery stores and supermarkets that were launched here became models for national food distribution. More cookbooks have been published in New York than in all other American cities combined. Foreign and “fancy” foods, including hamburgers, pizza, hot dogs, Waldorf salad, and baked Alaska, were introduced to Americans through New York’s colorful street vendors, cooks, and restaurateurs. As Smith shows here, the city’s ever-changing culinary life continues to fascinate and satiate both natives and visitors alike.

Boring legalese rules? We've got them right here.

If you're looking for a way to learn something without breaking the bank, check out February's lectures at the Brainery. They tend to sell out, so click the link and register in advance! 

Serial Killers - January 27, 6:30pm

Giving Up the Ghost: Dispelling Common Myths of Contemporary African Politics - February 3, 8:30pm

Orientalism in Music - February 3, 6:30pm

A Histoy of Royal Scotland - February 17, 6:30pm

Great New York City Buildings Few Guidebooks Will Ever Mention - February 24, 6:30pm

Made in NYC: The Reinvention of Local Manufacturing - February 24, 8:30pm

The Newtown Creek Magic Lantern Show - February 27, 8pm

And lastly, if you like planning waaaaay in advance, we're excited to be partnering with the Brooklyn Historical Society to bring The History of the Gowanus Canal to their beautiful space on March 19th. Be sure to grab your tickets.  

If, like us, you don't work a normal 9-5 job, you might find it hard to make it to our evening or weekend classes. Presenting daytime classes, for your daylight-learning pleasure:

Learn to Knit: Hand Warmers - Thursday, January 30

Storytelling 101 - Wednesday, February 5

Lo-fi Printing: Block Carving - Wednesday, February 12

Presentation Skills - Thursday, February 13

Introduction to Stranded Knitting - Tuesday, February 18

Storytelling for Business - Thursday, February 20

The Fermented Magic of Kimchi - Friday, February 21

All classes 18+!

Back in the 1949, a new product called "Friday Franks" appeared on supermarket shelves. You might be able to guess from the name that this was a meat replacement aimed at Catholics for a particular day of the week, but they weren't vegetarian. Nope, "Friday Franks" were made of tuna fish. 

Can you imagine? Maybe this excerpt from the Wall Street Journal can help: 

Friday Franks are composed of 100% tuna meat with a small amount of vegetable oil and spices for flavoring. No filler is added. The franks can be eaten either hot or cold. The tuna now being used is caught in New England waters. 

The original Friday Franks don't seem to have been all that popular, but that didn't stop another company, Bounty of the Sea, from attempting to produce a whole line of "hot dogs and assorted cold cuts made from tuna fish" in 1987. This time around, they were targeting dieters and other health-conscious folks, and the founder was optimistic: "We have the makings of a great new industry. I can see this being a $300-million company within five years."

Perphaps predictably, the trend never caught on, and the company went out of business by 1990. If you want to be the next chapter in this story and bring the trend back, you can purchase tuna franks on Alibaba. 

All of this history is from the great folks over at foodtimeline.org! I searched for ages trying to find some photos, but the internet is pretty dry for these sorts of things. 

This month, the Masters of Social Gastronomy break into the secret world ofhot peppers to pull back the curtain on everyone's favorite Rooster-branded hot sauce and the worldwide affection for spicy, spicy food.

Follow sriracha from its humble baby-food-jar beginnings to its current status as a Tabasco-challenging juggernaut. We'll take a behind-the-scenes look at its California factory and see how sriracha just might be as American as apple pie.

Once you escape the potatoes-and-cream tyranny of European cuisine, a culinary dedication to heat can be found everywhere. We'll examine what makes Thai food tick and where Indian vindaloo gets its muscle. From mild jalapeños to record-holders like the Ghost Pepper and Trinidad Moruga Scorpion, find out what makes a veggie pack such a powerful punch! 

All the details:

We're psyched to be at Littlefield (622 Degraw Street, in Gowanus) this month! 
RSVP here!
Doors at 7:30, talks at 8:00pm.
21+ 

About MSG:

Food + history + science = this is a great thing.

Each month, Sarah Lohman of Four Pounds Flour and Jonathan Soma of the Brooklyn Brainery take on a curious food topic and break down the history, science, and stories behind it.

Looking for a way to get into the spirit of the season, or just forget that it's still winter? We can help! 

Sex on the Brain Valentine’s Party at Babeland

Friday, February 7, free!

Join us for a free mini-workshop at Babeland's Park Slope store, including cocktails, snacks and the chance to win $100 worth of toys and free tickets to more Babeland classes. First come, first served! 

Lo-fi Block Printing

Wednesday, February 12

Because there's no better Valentine than one you carved and printed up yourself. While you're in Prospect Heights, swing on over to Vanderbilt Avenue and pick up an ice cream heart from the awesome Ample Hills (pre-order required!). 

The Design Gym Weekend Workout

Friday, February 14 - Sunday, February 16

Okay, so maybe design thinking isn't the most romantic thing in the world, but we think spending the weekend with your loved one while learning super useful skills is still pretty good. 

As somone that grew up in the 80s, board games will always have a special place in my heart. Maybe it is because family game night was a regular occurence (and still is when I am back home). Maybe video games hadn't quite sunk their claws into our free time quite like they have for kids today (wow, I just wrote the phrase "kids today," scary!).

Whatever the reason, I get a little nostalgic smile when I think about a group of friends or family sitting around a table, pulling out a board game box and settling in for a night of laughs and fierce competition.

With the Modern Board Game Open Play at 61 Local coming up I got thinking about my favorites from when I was a kid. One game jumped to mind almost immediately and I wondered if it was as big a deal for anyone else.

Who remembers Fireball Island? This game was the cream of the crop as far as my brothers and I were concerned. We spent hours playing it and then hours more just using the awesome game board as a playset for our various G.I. Joes or MicroMachines. 

What were your favorite board games growing up? Were you a sucker for the big elaborate games with all the fancy bells and whistles like Fireball Island? Or did you go in for the more high minded diversions like Operation? Yes, I called Operation high minded, you were performing surgery for crying out loud!

Leave a comment with your favorites and be sure to join us as we take on some modern classics at the Modern Board Game Open Play at 61 Local. 

We're super lucky to have a permanent space, but we can only run one class at a time, which means slots on the calendar fill up toooo quickly. We also love hosting events in other parts of the city, and we wanted to open up the possibilty of hosting Brainery classes at some lovely venues around Brooklyn, Queens, and the whole city. If you have a spot you're looking to put to use on evenings or weekends, fill out the form below and we'll get things rolling. 

Thank you, thank you! 

P.S. - if the embedded form gives you any trouble, use this link instead! 

Inspired by our upcoming Tree Identification walks, along with my overwhelming desire for winter to be over, I wanted to write a quick post on our most plentiful New York City street tree, and a personal favorite, the London Plane. 

The London Plane is a hybrid tree, closely related to the American Sycamore. They're mostly planted in urban locations because they're super pollution resistant and able to withstand heat, cold, and root compaction. When you think about the small beds most street trees are planted in, you can see why root compaction is a huge issue. 

During the warmer months, one of the ways you can identify a London Plane is by their leaf (below), which looks a bit like a maple leaf and happens to be the logo of the New York City Parks Department. But since there isn't a leaf in site these days, here are a couple other ways to identify London Planes as you're walking around the city. 

London Plane Leaf and Seed Balls, courtesy The Tree Seen

Seed Balls

Another helpful identifying characteristic, especially when there's a bit less snow around, is the London Plane's seed ball. It's spiky and hard to miss (pictured above).  

Bark 

image courtesy mwms1916

My favorite characteristic of the tree is its amazing bark. It peels off, seemingly exfoliating itself, to reveal a multi-colored pattern that resembles camoflage, and once you start noticing it on the streets of New York, you won't be able to quit. (Lucky for you, they're approximately 10% of the city's street trees.)

Here's a particularly gorgeous slice of bark: 

 Keep any eye out! Spotting trees is a great way to make a long, cold walk a bit less painful. 

Listen, we get it, you spent all of your hard-earned scratch on your number one squeeze for Valentine's Day. Believe me, I feel your pain, my wife's birthday is the 15th! How is that for pressure? 

Fair warning, these classes tend to sell out, so if you're interested, grab a spot now!

A History of Royal Scotland- Monday, February 17

The Newtown Creek "Magic Lantern" Show- Thursday, February 27

The Brooklyn Waterfront: Past and Present - Monday, March 10

The Secret Life of Flags- Monday, March 10

Grime and Glory: A History of Prospect Park - Tuesday, March 11

The History of Landscape Design from Adam and Eve to Vertical Gardens- Thursday, March 13

Tax Savings- Saturday, March 15

The History of The Gowanus Canal at the Brooklyn Historical Society - Wednesday, March 19

Tex-Mex Demystified - Wednesday, April 2

Join us for a sneak peek inside the process of launching a food business, with Stef Ferrari of Hay Rosie Ice Cream. From distribution to branding, and from navigating state regulations to finding capital, we’ll get a glimpse at what it takes to bring your product to the public.

The event takes place on Sunday, March 16 at 6:30pm and is a fundraiser for Hay Rosie's Indiegogo campaign, which is raising funds to build a tasting room(!) at their forthcoming Carroll Gardens production location. In order to attend, you'll need to make a minimum $5 donation to the campaign before the deadline on March 7th. You'll also get the other perks, like ice cream, so think of it as a bonus reward! 

This month our Masters of Social Gastronomy lectures tackles the world's most popular candy: chocolate!

We'll track the history of chocolate from its roots as an ancient Mesoamerican beverage to its current world-championship status. You'll learn how a yellow, football-shaped tropical fruit transforms into something Whole Foods can charge you $10 for, and what "Mexican Hot Chocolate" actually has in common with what Montezuma drank.

Peek at Europe's decades-long war about British chocolate and uncover why the whole continent seems to have it out for its American counterpart. Burning questions of modern confectionery will be answered: What's better, milk or dark? Why does Hershey's have its own theme park? Do M&M's actually melt in your hand?

And of course, it wouldn't be spring without a discussion of Easter candy, including everyone's favorite, the Cadbury Mini Egg. 

Very Important Details
When: Tuesday, March 25, doors at 7:30 sharp
Where: Littlefield, 622 Degraw Street, Brooklyn
Free, 21+
Totally optional RSVP

Here's your handy monthly list of classes that don't cost all that much cash:

Obamacare and Me in NYC - Wednesday, March 26

A History of Royal Scotland - Monday, March 31

Tex-Mex: Demystified - Wednesday, April 2

ABCs of IRAs - Saturday, April 5

MADE IN NYC - Thursday, April 10

A Guide to the College Admissions Timeline - FREE! - Saturday, April 12

Sounding the Planet: Ecomusicology and Advocacy - Wednesday, April 16

The Biology of Mental Illness - Monday, April 21

Grime and Glory: A History of Prospect Park - Monday, April 28

Superfund: A Citizen's Guide - Tuesday, April 29

Join us on Saturday, April 12, at 9:30am for a look at the college admissions process with Dr. Joie Jager-Hyman. 

RSVP here. 

More details: 

When should you or your student begin preparing for college admissions, and what, exactly, needs to be done? This class will offer a comprehensive timeline, spanning freshman to senior year, of how to best prepare your student to apply to college.

Topics covered within this timeline include college visits, course selection, standardized testing, extracurricular activities, summer programs and internships, essays and more. We’ll cover all of your questions, from “When should I start prepping for the SAT?” to “How should I be spending my time outside of school?” within this informative lecture. Reduce stress on your student and family through organization, knowledge, and planning.

It might not be prime ice cream eating weather quite yet, but for this month's Masters of Social Gastronomy lecture, we're bringing summertime to Brooklyn no matter what the thermometer says. 

Hear the tale of vanilla ice cream, a commonplace flavor with a rare and exotic past. We'll take a hard look at the science that makes ice cream tick and see if we can harness the DIY spirit to craft up astronaut ice cream in your very own kitchen.

The wide range of curious flavors will be on full display, with 19th-century artichoke-and-tomato ice cream and other adventuresome (and masochistic) creations.

Very Important Details: 
Tuesday, April 29
Free, 21+
Doors at 7:30pm, talks start at 8pm
Littlefield, 622 Degraw Street in Gowanus

Totally optional RSVP

We picked up a bottle of tarkhun, or tarragon soda, while shopping in Brighton Beach the other day--I couldn't resist the color, an incredibly bright shade of green that manages to mimic the color of grass while appearing  unnatural when captured in a glass bottle. I loved it and couldn't wait to give it a try.

In contrast to the intense color, the flavor of the soda is pleasantly understated. We all picked up on the vaguely licorice flavor and the light, herbal smell of tarragon, but it didn't come on too strong, which was actually kind of nice. Three of the four of us thought it was pretty good, if kind of unremarkable, while our fourth drinker loved it and drank the rest of the bottle in a couple minutes. 

A look at the label shows there's also some vanilla vanilla flavoring added in addition to the tarragon extract, along with some blue and yellow coloring in order to get that awesome color. 

Tarkhun was invented by a Georgian pharmacist in 1887, but didn't appear commercially until 1981, when it became very popular in the former Soviet Union. Tarragon has long been used to treat digestive issues, so you're welcome to think of this soda as medicine rather than a delicious sugary drink. 

If you're looking to DIY your own version, check out this recipe from Food Perestroika. Be warned though that without the addition of food coloring, you'll probably end up with a more yellow syrup. Let us know how it turns out!