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Written by Ray Cooper

Category: The Goods

Published: 14 October 2019

On a cloudy morning on Saturday October 12, the Scarsdale Raiders Field Hockey looked to defend their home turf against their eternal antagonists, the Mamaroneck Tigers. The teams had battled earlier in the season with the Tigers coming out on top 3-2. In another tightly contested affair, marked by stingy defenses on both sides, the Raiders won what was probably their best game of the season and earned an exciting 1-0 victory. Coach Lauren Barton remarked: “The guys were fired up for this one…. We had prepared for a competitive and intense game.”

Sophie Carroll blows by the Tigers defense.Both teams sat atop their conference 1 and 2 with the Tigers boasting an 8-1-1 record and Scarsdale at 9-3-1. The Raiders were coming off a tough week marked by a 3-0 loss to the number 1 rated Lakeland and a 3-3 tie against unheralded John Jay. The Raiders were sporting their home “pink” uniforms (marking Breast Cancer Awareness) and showed no ill effects from the tough week.

Andie Novenstein and Haley Matusz trying to knock this ball home in the first half.The first six minutes of the match had most of the action in the mid-field with the teams alternating possessions and looking for an early advantage. At this point in the game Scarsdale had its first opportunity as attacker co-captain Sophia Franco sent a ball toward the Tigers goal that the Raiders couldn’t convert to a score. Mamaroneck then took the ball down the field – only to be repelled by Sophia’s sister – defensemen Olivia. Olivia made multiple key stops all morning long and, combined with Emily Felder, kept the Tigers away from the Raider’s cage. Fellow co-captain Liz Scarcella also made strong contributions to the defense from her middie position, as well as Andie Novenstein from her attack position early in the first half and throughout the match.

The next 10 minutes saw much of the same with the teams moving the ball largely in the middle of the field. The Tigers Ava Gristina, who scored twice in the first game between the teams, almost teamed up with fellow Sophomore Laine Pearson for a quality drive, but they were stopped by Scarsdale Freshmen defender MJ Callahan.

GOAL!! Raiders celebrate what proved to be the game winner.At the 13 minute mark, the Raiders were awarded their first corner. After a flurry in front of the Tiger’s goal off the corner – Mamaroneck goalie Samantha Maresca had to come way out of her cage to clear the ball. At that point controversy struck. Scarsdale appeared to have scored a fantastic goal to break the deadlock off a long pass from the Raiders to a teammate who converted the ball into what would have been a beautiful goal. However, after much cajoling from Mamaroneck Coach John Savage the referee ruled that the goal came from a shot that took place outside of the circle – and disallowed the goal. Scarsdale kept the pressure on the rest of the half – with co-captain Sophie Carroll’s shot stopped by Maresca, but with Novenstein nearly knocking in the rebound with five minutes left in half. The last two minutes of the half saw a lot of action as Scarsdale’s second corner of the game almost led to fantastic scoring opportunity if not for the stop by the Tigers Sophie Showers with 1:30 left. The half ended with the Tigers first corner being easily stopped by Scarsdale and the contest deadlocked in a scoreless tie. The half saw a sharp reversal in what has been Scarsdale’s biggest problem – giving up corners which have led to several goals throughout the season. In fact, the Tigers did not have a shot on goal off a corner (or any other reason) all half.

Coach Barton exhorted her team during the halftime break and the Raiders took the field for the second half with much enthusiasm. With only 2:30 gone in the second half, Carroll passed the ball near the Tiger goal and the Raiders almost had their first tally of the game. Carroll continued to put pressure on, leading to another Scarsdale Corner with four minutes gone. Two minutes later, Scarcella led a corner that presented a golden opportunity but Maresca came way out of the goal to clear the ball.

Raiders celebrate their victory.Scarsdale controlled much of the tempo for the next six minutes of the match – with a few chances causing Maresca to make multiple saves. At around the midpoint of second half, Novenstein had a shot that just missed the goal. Mamaroneck had its best chance to score a few minutes later – with eight minutes left in the game – but Scarsdale goalie Angela Hoey made a kick save, preserving the scoreless tie.

A few minutes later the tigers had a corner – but Carroll took the ball away and drove downfield – leading to a Scarsdale corner with just under four minutes left in the affair. At this point, the play of the game took place – as Sophie Carroll took a Scarcella pass and banged it home with 3:45 to play. The Raiders celebrated en mass – pouring onto the field – as they realized that this was probably the most important goal they have scored to date during the season. The series of events was recognized by Franco as she said, “I was very excited to score that goal. We’ve been working very hard all season to get better on offensive corners.” Both teams were mentally and physically spent from such a fast paced intense game at this point – but Scarsdale did not fall into a defensive posture - keeping the pressure on for the remainder of the game. Novenstein drove the ball down the field and the game ended with the ball on the Mamaroneck side of the field. The team exploded onto the field in celebration and the general feeling was summarized by Scarcella: “The last few weeks we put in a lot of time and the team is so happy to have won here.”

The win serves as a major message to the rest of the conference that the Raiders are a major threat going into the later part of the season and the playoffs. When asked the differences between Saturday’s and the previous game against the Tigers, Barton was quick to say: “We were much more patient on defense and more composed throughout the game. We gave up a lot fewer corners.” The Coach also praised her team’s ability to thrive against teams that may be over the line on physicality by saying: “I’m proud of how our team receives praise for our sportsmanship. The referees remarked to me about this after our game against Lakeland and it helped today. Our team plays the game the way it should be played.”

The win against Mamaroneck was the Raiders first against this foe since the 2016 conference championship team accomplished the feat. The Raiders hope to continue their winning ways as they take on Fox Lane on Monday Oc

Photos by Jon Thaler - see more and buy yours here: 

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Written by Judie Dweck

Category: The Goods

Published: 21 October 2019

Inside out meatballsThe charming village of Bronxville has recently become the home of Tredici Social. With its convenient location across from the train station and steps away from the Bronxville Cinema, this cheerful sister restaurant of Tredici in Purchase is a welcome and unique addition to the Bronxville restaurant scene.

I chatted with co-owner Michael Colucci who described Tredici as, “A contemporary Italian restaurant serving dishes based on tradition with a most interesting modern flair. We serve superior Italian food that is creative and uniquely our own. Our guests enjoy a formal dining experience in a casual atmosphere.” Colucci loves Bronxville because it is quaint and community oriented. “We hope to become a part of the fabric of the community and get to know our guests. The best part of the business is the people. Our goal is to have everyone who dines here exits in a better mood than when they entered. “If Colucci could invite anyone to Tredici Social it would include his grandfather who loved food and wine and was his best friend, as well as Anthony Bourdain who had an adventurer’s spirit.
Heading the kitchen is Executive Chef Giuseppe Fanelli who hails from Puglia. His wide experience ranges from culinary school to the kitchens of many well known New York restaurants such as Felidia, and Rao’s, as well as appearances on the Food Network. He was winner on Chopped where he contributed his expertise on meatball madness. He and Colucci owned Tredici and Tredici Steak in Manhattan until the building was demolished. They are the proud owners of Tredici North in Purchase and are excited about their new venture Tredici Social in Bronxville.

The décor has a modern edge which compliments the fascinating food. The space has been transformed from Kraft that preceded it. Seating about 50 guests inside and just a couple of tables outside, sets an intimate feeling. The color scheme of black, white and red is striking. A very friendly bar is at the front of Tredici Social, which fills up quickly on a Sunday afternoon when the movie theater empties out. An elaborate silver framed mirror hangs behind the bar and geometric red, white and black lighting fixtures illuminate the room. One wall displays black and white drawings by Banksy, cleverly mounted on large red acoustic sound absorbing mats which serve the double purpose of art display and helping with the noise level. Bravo to the owners who payed attention to comments of early guests about the noise level. Two glass checkerboard style screens add interest to the room. Black flocked wallpaper and a silver tin ceiling add to the eclectic atmosphere.

We sampled 3 of the 6 appetizer choices. Tuna Tartar appears on so many menus. Here, the chef prepares a truly creative variation of the dish. The sushi grade ahi tuna combines with soy sauce, sour cream, chopped charred jalapenos, wasabi oil, and black Himalayan salt. Sprinkled with mustard seeds, this mixture rests atop a puree of avocado and cucumber slices. Housemade waffle potato chips are the perfect “utensil” to scoop up the beautifully seasoned tartar mixture. One of the signature appetizers here are the “Inside Out” meatballs. Veal, pork and beef are combined for the large meatballs which are stuffed with ricotta, mozzarella and fontina chesses. They are sealed and rolled in panko crumbs and fried to form a crisp crust. The large meatballs are garnished with a chunky plum tomato sauce, housemade, of course. This was quite filling and could easily have been served as an entrée or a shared dish. Bang Bang Shrimp is another popular appetizer. Here, several jumbo tail on shrimp are awaiting to awaken your taste buds. They are sautéed with gigante beans and flavored with Meyer lemon and roasted sliced garlic. An abundance of red pepper flakes heat up this dish. Toasted bread triangles tone down the spiciness of the sauce and serve to balance this appetite wake up dish. Upon future visits I look forward to sampling Chef Fanelli’s version of wild mushroom arrancini, artichoke salad and super greens Caesar salad with organic spinach, kale and Swiss chard.

Moving on to the entrees, there are several pasta choices. We chose the lobster ravioli and it proved to be a fine choice. The homemade burrata filled raviolis wereSpaghetti Carbonara presented in the center of a black and white contemporary plate. Surrounding the pasta was a mélange of chopped Maine Lobster, hence the name lobster ravioli, sweet corn, caramelized onions, English peas, baby spinach and yellow and red grape tomatoes in a light creamy sauce. This colorful dish was one I would order again…it was soooo good. Spaghetti carbonara, linguini vongole, garganelli ubriaco are each homemade and I look forward to seeing the innovative touches that Chef Fanelli adds to each of them. Salmon is often my fish of choice. I have enjoyed it prepared many ways. At Tredici Social the presentation was quite unique and tasty. A large portion of organic salmon was topped with a browned crust of breadcrumbs, smoked salmon and horseradish. It was surrounded by roasted fregola in tomato sauce and garnished with haricots verts and heirloom grape tomatoes. Free range chicken scarpariello style, grilled prime hanger steak and veal t bone parmigiana claimed to be, “ the best in the city” are each prepared with Chef Fanelli’s creative touches. He certainly has the skill of transforming a simple ingredient into a memorable dish. The menu is concise and each dish I tried had Chef Fanelli’s signature on it.

Complete your meal with one of their sweets. They are homemade and would appeal to sweet lovers of any age. For the chocolate lover, try the Bronxville Blackout Cake. For the classic enthusiast there are tiramisu and vanilla panna cotta. Very popular is the Nutella semi freddo, a chilled Nutella mousse with vanilla gelato, whipped cream, toasted almonds and mixed berries. For the child in you try the cookies and cream, a vanilla milkshake with oreo cookie crumble and a black and white cookie.

Organic SalmonOn Saturday and Sunday, Tredici Social serves brunch with over a dozen choices. There is a dish to please every taste. With the Bronxville Cinema a few doors away, brunch would be a fine choice before a late afternoon film or after a morning performance. Among the tempting possibilities are a lobster club, a fat bastard brunch burger with bacon, cheese, mushrooms, caramelized onions, beer battered onion ring, avocado and fried egg. Steak and eggs, several pasta choices, chicken and waffles, potato pancakes, each in unusual preparations, eggs Benny over Maryland crab cake, tiramisu French toast and classic buttermilk pancakes…..Quite a selection of dishes. Original “Bubbly and Bloody” choices are offered to complete your brunch.
Enjoy brunch or dinner and socialize ate the friendly, welcoming Tredici Social in Bronxville soon.

Tredici Social
104 Kraft Avenue
Bronxville
914 793 1313

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Written by Joanne Wallenstein

Category: The Goods

Published: 09 October 2019

Mowing your leaves - also known as mulch mowing - into tiny pieces on your lawn, is healthier for your lawn and soil than piling or bagging them to be removed. As the shredded leaves settle between grass blades and decompose, their nutrients enhance the soil. Leaf-mulched lawns often need less fertilizer and water. Excess mulch can be blown into garden beds to help prevent weed growth, to conserve moisture and sprinkler usage, and to provide a protective layer in winter. The pollutants from leaf blowers and trucks that must haul away the leaves are avoided. And, leaves piled in the streets can be a thing of the past! Homeowners around Scarsdale have been mulch mowing leaves for many years with great results.

Mulch mowing can be done with any standard homeowner or commercial lawn mower. Simply mow over the fallen leaves. All types of leaves can be mulch mowed. (Pine needles, which are acidic, may change the ph balance of your lawn if mulch mowed in large quantities so consider using pine needles as a mulch around the base of pine trees.) To help shred the leaves into smaller pieces, it’s recommended that a mulching blade be used. This type of blade, which has grooves to shred the leaves, is inexpensive and available for any type of mower.

All landscapers have the equipment to mulch mow, and it is just as easy (or easier) to mulch mow than it is to blow the leaves to the curb. If you have a landscaper, ask them to mulch mow your leaves. Many, but not all, landscapers have experience mulch mowing leaves. If your landscaper is new to mulch mowing, the following are key points for them to know:

• Equipment: They should use a mulching blade at a minimum, but a mulching kit will provide even better results. Mulching kits, which include additional attachments beyond just a mulching blade, are available at any mower distributor and can be fitted to commercial mowers.

• Mulching Technique: Mowing the leaves in a circular pattern, rather than back and forth in lines, will result in smaller pieces of leaves which decompose more quickly and will avoid “striping lines.”

• Time: It should take your landscaper no additional time to mulch mow leaves rather than blowing them to the curb. In many cases it actually saves time.

• Cost: Mulch mowing leaves should not cost more than having leaves blown to the curb or bagged. There are many landscapers in Scarsdale who have been mulch mowing properties for years at no additional cost. If your landscaper claims it will be more time consuming, ask them to try it for a few weeks. They should see it takes no additional time.

If you mow your own lawn, use a mulching blade which you can install yourself or bring to any local mower shop (there is one in downtown Scarsdale) to install. Make sure to have the blade sharpened as needed. Try to mulch leaves once a week so the piles don’t build up too high for your mower, especially during the heavy drop of leaves. For larger amounts of leaves, you may want to raise the height of the mower deck.

If you think that there are too many leaves to mulch mow, shredding piles of leaves reduces the volume of leaves significantly! What looks like a huge leaf pile will shred into tiny pieces and quickly settle into your lawn. If you are concerned about the quantity of leaves, try mulch mowing for a few weeks when leaves first begin to fall and there is less leaf volume. Even if you need to put some leaves to the curb during the heavy leaf drop, any reduction in leaves put to the curb is a benefit.

Excess mulched leaves can be placed in your garden beds. They look great, are a healthy addition to your yard and will save you the cost of buying wood mulch. Remember, to avoid damaging trees and plants, never place mulch directly against a tree trunk or shrub and never pile mulch more than 2”- 3” high in a garden bed.

The shredded leaves resulting from mulch mowing will not harm your lawn. In fact, the shredded leaves are beneficial to your lawn. Decomposing leaves cover the soil between the individual blades of grass where weeds can germinate. Once the small bits of leaves settle in, microbes and worms start breaking them down. It is important that the leaves are shredded because whole leaves left on a lawn can smother the grass. The shredded leaves quickly settle into the lawn and your lawn should not look messy.

Leaf mulch mowing benefits our local landscape, reduces the number of truck trips in our community and gets large piles of leaves off our streets.