We woke up to bright blue skies on Memorial Day. On the agenda- rent bikes and ride down the westside highway (along the Hudson river), go to Brooklyn for the "food truck festival", and finish the day with a picnic in the park.
The Westside highway is a bike path that borders the Hudson River from the bottom tip of Manhattan to 125th street. Allowing bikers, walkers, and joggers to ride without ever dealing with cars or busy crosswalks.We rode from the Upperwest side down to Battery Park and then over to Brooklyn. It was no easy fete dodging the crowds of people walking across the Brooklyn Bridge. Some walkers seemed to be oblivious to the the white line down the middle of the path that is suppose to separate the walking lane from the biking lane. A cyclist we ended up behind said it best when he yelled "You stupid people see a bike coming and still don't get out of the way". He may not have put it in the nicest terms (my mom taught me never to call anyone stupid) but Taber and I both agreed with him.
Once we arrived in Brooklyn we rode over to the Brooklyn Yard where a variety of food trucks were stationed. As you know from a previous post, I am a big fan of the food trucks here in NYC. Once inside the yard and surrounded by the trucks it was as if the happy fairy slapped a permanent smile on my face, I loved it. After much contemplation Taber decided on the taco truck stand and I settled on a "Hot Pink Limeade" from The Green Pirate truck. My Hot Pink Limeade consisted of freshly squeezed apple, cucumber, beet, lemon, and lime juice. Taber opted for the chicken taco which rivaled The Statue of Liberty in size. We were both satisfied with out choices.
With our bellies full and energy restored we rode back over the bridge to Manhattan and up the Westside highway. We passed skate parks, piers, basketball courts, volleyball courts, play grounds,tennis courts, and lush green grass where sun bathers were sprawled. The Hudson River Park is extremely well done. Taber and I were both very impressed with how well the space is utilized.

To add the icing on top to our perfect day we packed a picnic and took it down to the park. In our picnic basket (a fancy brown bag) was Korean marinated steak, maple glazed lotus root, and a large salad. At the beginning of the program I had mentioned to a friend of mine from class Tabers love for Korean food. To his delight she remembered this and brought him a large tupperware of authentic Korean marinated steak. He appreciated every bite of it.

I would love to post the recipe for Korean Marinated Steak, but doubt I can reciprocate the fabulousity of the dish Mia made us. Instead I will post a recipe for chicken tacos. Again, probably not as good as the tacos Taber ate from the Taco Truck. Unless you have a taco from the NYC Taco Truck you will never know.

ALMOST AS GOOD AS TACO TRUCK CHICKEN TACOS

INGREDIENTS
-8 corn tortillas
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
- 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
-1 large onion, sliced
- 1 large green bell pepper, seeded and sliced
- 3 large cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1/2 cup prepared hot salsa, plus more for garnish
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- Sliced scallions, chopped fresh tomatoes and sour cream, for garnish

DIRECTIONS
-Preheat oven to 300°F. Wrap tortillas in foil and bake until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, season chicken with salt. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat until very hot. Add chicken and cook, stirring until browned on all sides, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
- Reduce heat to medium and add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil to skillet. Add onion and cook, stirring, until they start to brown around the edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Add bell pepper, garlic, jalapeño and cumin. Cook, stirring, until peppers are bright green but still crisp, 2 to 3 minutes more.
- Stir in salsa and reserved chicken. Cook, stirring, until chicken is heated through, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro. Spoon into warmed tortillas and garnish with scallions, tomatoes and sour cream.