Tag Archives: banana

Two Coffees

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We had a fantastic weekend! We ran on the Long Beach Boardwalk and got dinner at Lil Al’s and had a sunset burger picnic. We drove to Robert Moses Beach in a beautiful sunrise and did the walk to Fire Island (and saw so many deer, including a buck that was less than three feet from us!). We hung out just outside of the Blues Traveler and Gin Blossoms concert in Central Park and heard “Follow You Down” live (plus, even more excitingly, Spin Doctors performing “Two Princes!”).

Some food/drink highlights…

We had a fun time making mini lattes to taste-test these Bizzy espresso shots. I much preferred the dark roast but both were nice in milk.

Kismet Coffee served us the my favorite sweetened latte of the summer – with blueberry syrup and a coconut cold foam. We also had a banana bread cold brew.

This mint coconut cold brew from Bluestone Lane was so sweet that we had to throw it out after a couple of sips (but it was delicious!).

We loved (and finished) our coffees from Kora. Mint julep cold brew with oat milk (delicious!!) and iced espresso with leche fan cold foam.

We also loved our treats. Ensaymada croissant with buttered sugar and edam, kouign amann, FFG cookie with Medjool dates, pecans, toffee, and sea salt. These were all mind-blowing.

Mini black sesame bingsu with espresso from Seoul Sweets. This was tasty but not worth the hassle of the location for us.

The Greek yogurt frozen yogurt from Kostantina is the best froyo I’ve ever had. I got plain with stewed blueberries and peanut butter kataifi.

Fun drinks at Terrace including a trio of jello shots!

The best drinks of the weekend were consumed with dinner at Wang Lang. Adam had a satay old fashioned that was a 100% scent match for satay! And I get the hype around the mango sticky rice cocktail (Tito’s, mango puree, mango syrup, and lime with a toasted rice cream).

I also had their summer special – pandan-infused rice rum with ginger and green chili syrup and clarified lime. Delicious.

My entree – beef pad se ew – was also delicious.

And we shared the chicken larb spring rolls to start.

We ordered a lot from Masani Pizza but my favorites were the chicken roll and the swoon-worthy (literally!) cacio e pepe slice.

I made my Lil Al’s leftovers into something even better – macaroni and cheese (theirs was good but it was American-style and I much prefer baked) shaken up with a hot chicken tender from Dave’s Hot Chicken, Trader Joe’s ranch seasoning, and leftover roasted broccoli.

Super Duper

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Weekend highlights (mostly snacks!)…

My favorite Long Island coffee spot hopped on the fridge cigarette trend. Their version is diet coke with espresso, vanilla almond syrup, and a sweet cream cold foam. <– delicious

We also loved the tiramisu ice latte from MOTW. The espresso here had fantastic body.

We did not like this ube iced coffee with pandan cold foam (that’s on us, I really just don’t care for iced coffee with milk; I am mentioning it so maybe I stop trying it).

Meanwhile we adored our assortment of sweets from Fern and Aurora. Ube coffee cake swirl muffin / blueberry pop tart / pandan coconut butter mochi (the best butter mochi I’ve ever eaten, including in HI!) / ube krispie treat. We needed excellent snacks because we went to see Super Troopers at the movie theatre (I liked it! Not as good as the original but I preferred it to the 2nd one).

I also made a super duper homemade snack mix. Wheat Chex cereal and honey mustard protein pretzels baked with butter, ranch seasoning, and gochugaru plus peanuts, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds candied in a skillet with brown sugar.

Haribo bananas are a 9.9/10 for me.

Tori T’s is my favorite Long Island pizza. The texture on the square slices is unbeatable.

Red curry salmon cakes with a complementary dipping sauce. The cakes were a baked mix of canned salmon, red curry paste, lime zest, panko and egg. The sauce was Duke’s, red curry paste, Sriracha, honey, lime juice, and sesame oil. Plus roasted cauliflower.

Frozen dumplings (Bibigo chicken and vegetable mandu) plus frozen spinach, kale, and cauliflower rice sauteed with garlic, sesame seeds, gochugaru, rice seasoning, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Served in one bowl so I could easily top everything with chili crisp.

Open Sesame

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Things from the week…

More fun drinks. All good/would buy agains. Pineapple yuzu kombucha / pandan coconut soda / banana water (this was our favorite!).

A summer watermelon date. It was kind of disappointing, but fun to eat in the kitchen as a whole family.

This black sesame bar was nice; not roasty enough for me but also not too sweet.

Guac Shop take-out. They crammed so much food into this food! My go-to order – a rice bowl with tofu, sweet potato, roasted cabbage, corn, pico, jalapeño mango salsa, cheese, and cilantro aioli. Plus chips with guac.

Hetty McKinnon‘s hoisin garlic noodles for the New York Times (recipe). As I write this post I am realizing that I completely left out the garlic — but they were still great! Paired with roasted sprouted tofu and snap peas sauteed with garlic, sunflower seeds, and parmesan.

Spicy maple miso chicken with a maple miso tahini salad. The best meal of the week! Baked chicken thighs sauteed with maple syrup, white miso, rice wine, soy sauce, and gochujang. Plus roasted broccoli, raw fennel, and green onions tossed with maple, miso, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, and tahini.

Sips, Sweets, Sandwiches

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It was another great weekend! We stayed local this time, but enjoyed longish walks in Manhattan and Brooklyn. And shared so many sweet treats and sweet treat drinks! I considered including slushes in the title! Like I said, a great weekend! Highlights…

Bean Monger ube biko iced latte.

Moon Coffee Lab salted caramel iced latte with banana milk. Banana is the best coffee milk.

Levain cookie milk iced latte. The cold foam was delicious but my favorite part was the espresso; I had never tried coffee from here before but I definitely will get it again!

The very best coffee of the weekend came from Smiley Coffee – espresso with coconut slushie.

We happened across a street fair that had red sorrel. The spot was serving it with mint which was lovely.

Speaking of things that tasted like home, this soursop infused coconut water was nice and not too sweet.

Tender Crush frozen Diet Coke with vanilla soft serve!

Red Gate Bakery Fudgenutter cookie.

Comfortland + Donut Diva never miss; this guava cheese Linzer tart was exceptional

Perfect frozen drinks at Antojitos BK. 2nd best texture in the city (only beaten by Connolly’s). We had an espresso martini and a Nutcracker.

Sandwich Board duck tsangwich was a 10/10 – bolo bao with roast duck, crispy duck skin, cucumber, scallion, hoisin sauce, and house chili oil.

We didn’t love our ribeye sandwich at Sanwits.

But my Halo Halo was excellent. Not exactly what I am usually used to but so creamy and I loved the caramelized plantain.

We were blown away by our meal at La Fleur Rouge. Really thoughtful, beautiful dishes in a great environment. Guava Plum – tequilla Empirical Ayuuk, pink guava, plum, and salt.

Peking duck bao.

Morel duck soup.

Crispy Chinese eggplant with pineapple, bell pepper, and sweet and sour. These were a can’t miss.

The cheeseburger, which came with pickled cucumbers and seasoned fries. This sounds mean but it is in fact the highest compliment — this tasted exactly like the breakfast sausages you used to get on planes! Doesn’t break my top five but I did love it.

Tai Chi Fried Rice with confit duck, shrimp, and squid ink. This tasted even better than it looked and kept wonderfully leftover.

Finally molten chocolate cake with rum raisin ice cream and Golden Graham crumble.

And egg yolk beignets with apricot marmalade.

The best thing we ate all weekend was the fried rice I made with our James‘ leftovers. White rice and eggs from home plus short rib ragu and charred broccolini with Waygu beef bacon.

Crunch Wrap (Reigns) Supreme

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Posting a day early because it’s my birthday tomorrow and we have fun dinner reservations tonight (Rolos – I am hoping to snag a burger!). Things from this week included…

A bunch of weird birthday cake flavored things. My mom also gave me cake-scented hand soap, body wash, hand sanitizer, and a candle!

Creamy mango smoothie. Frozen mango and banana with water, milk, vanilla protein powder, and malted milk powder.

Two new favors of Wilde chicken chips. Both were good but maple waffle remains my favorite.

More Roast; I obviously had to try their crab rangoon crunchwrap (with crab rangoon spread, jasmine rice, sweet chili cucumber slaw, crispy wontons, and pepper jack cheese — my version was better!). We also shared a buffalo chicken sub and had baby carrots from home.

The best meal of the week was this chicken jalapeño popper dip – cream cheese, skyr, Duke’s, Kewpie, Trader Joe’s sweet and spicy pickled jalapeños (plus brine!), baked chicken breast, and sharp cheddar. Scooped with roasted broccoli and Trader Joe’s new sweet chili black eyed pea tempeh crisps (which are fantastic).

Bean salad. I sauteed onion, orange bell pepper, poblano pepper, baby tomatoes, and black beans with lime juice and more brine; added diced avocado and sharp cheddar once it cooled; and added Love Corn corn nuts just before serving. We made this in advance and ate it cold and it was delightful.

Chicken Salad JCT

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Highlights from an extra-yummy week…

Brunch date at Twisted Fork. We had a surprisingly good blueberry pancake iced latte (with maple syrup and blueberry cold foam).

A breakfast martini with gin, triple sec, lemon juice, and orange marmalade.

A bloody mary.

And I had a chicken sandwich on ciabatta with avocado, housemade pickles, and sweet chili aioli.

Dessert yogurt bowls. Plain skyr with granola, honey sunflower butter, and red plum and banana cooked down with butter, brown sugar, and vanilla sugar.

Plain skyr with (microwaved frozen) blueberries, peanut butter, and brownies (THE brownie recipe with the addition of espresso powder, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips).

I also blended brownies into a shake with vanilla ice cream and coconut syrup.

See also – this iced matcha latte with coconut syrup was lovely.

It’s my birthday this week and my parents sent me a plethora of on-theme snacks that my coworkers and I have been taste-testing.

Speaking of themes, we did another Sandwich Week for dinners! Chicken salad JCT, ie a BLT but with jerky, chips, and tomato. My chicken salad was shredded baked chicken breast with Duke’s, plain skyr, pickled jalapeño brine, and chopped pickles. We mixed in butter mesquite beef jerky (we brought home several bags of jerky from New Mexico and we are obsessed with it) and bbq potato chips and topped with fresh tomato; on sliced whole-wheat. Plus sauteed baby bok choy with green onion, salt, onion powder, and garlic powder.

Takeout from the OG – Roast. Half a fried chicken sandwich – with pickles, Mike’s hot honey, and cheddar / half a filet mignon special – with chimichurri, onion jam, potato straws, mozzarella, and roasted garlic butter / unphotographed fries / and homecooked veggies – sauteed zucchini with tomato, dried basil, sumac, salt and pepper.

Meatball wrap. Mission tortilla / baked turkey meatballs – ground turkey, panade, egg, hoisin, pepper, urfa, and shredded cheese / cream cheese mixed with confit garlic / crispy fried garlic and onions. Plus roasted green beans.

Tofu wrap. Roasted Trader Joe’s Cruciferous Crunch mixed with plain skyr, Kewpie, white miso, lime juice, and cotija / crunchy cheese bites / roasted super-firm tofu tossed in a skillet with honey, lime juice, soy sauce, chili crisp, gochujang, and ginger. Plus sauteed asparagus.

Hot pepper peach chicken bagelwich. One of my most important childhood taste memories is eating hot pepper peach jelly on cream cheese with my Ohio family and that informs this bagel. A leftover Apollo bagel, toasted and topped with a mix of cream cheese, baked chicken, Trader Joe’s sweet and spicy pickled jalapeños, and sauteed peaches. Plus baby broccoli sauteed with baby tomatoes, confit garlic, salt, pepper, and gochugaru.

A very important postscript – the 7-11 egg salad sandwich is a 10/10.

Blueberries And/Or Breakfast Foods

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On-theme things from the week, all delicious…

Smoothies! Strawberry malted – frozen strawberries blended with water, malted milk powder, and chocolate protein powder.

Blueberry cheesecake – frozen blueberries blended with water, vanilla bean powder, vanilla protein powder, and cottage cheese.

A breakfast-y, dessert-y, waffle yogurt bowl situation. Fage with blueberry topped with blueberries, Evergreen peanut butter banana bread waffles, and maple syrup.

Nightingale lemon blueberry pound cake ice cream sandwich.

Bagels with cream cheese and lox, chopped. We did a mix of cream cheese, Kewpie, smoked salmon, Trader Joe’s pickled onions, chili crisp, and honey. Plus roasted broccoli.

Egg tacos, chopped. Our filling was a mix of chopped together scrambled egg with extra-sharp cheddar, fried plantains, sauteed poblano pepper and green onion, avocado, and Cholula chipotle cremosa sauce. Plus roasted zucchini.

Savory oatmeal bowls. Our favorite oatmeal (Trader Joe’s rolled oats with ancient grains and seeds) topped with sauteed kale, crispy baked shredded tofu, a fried egg, and chili crisp.

Blueberry cottage cheese pancakes. I used this recipe but added vanilla bean powder, lemon zest, lemon juice, and some blueberries. Plus sauteed kale and homemade turkey sausage (ground turkey with sharp cheddar, maple syrup, fish sauce, smoked paprika, urfa, gochugaru, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper). I coved the whole plate in maple syrup and Cholula chili garlic hot sauce!

Best Of The Best

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It was a perfect New York summer weekend! Including great food (several of my top favorites and lots of sweet treats!), a couple of long walks, brunch on the water in Roslyn, a trip to Rockaway Beach, and a visit to the mall! The best things I ate were…

Rockaway Beach Bakery. Guava cheese danish. We also had a yummy slice of croissant bread. Their new location is great.

From Lucie. They make my favorite cake in the city. This was a (super duper moist) vanilla cake with Earl Gray frosting and blackberry jam.

Culture Espresso makes our 2nd favorite chocolate chip cookie in the city. This was the corn cookie and we also enjoyed a frozen maple coffee.

Pavlo Mochi. My favorite was the banana milk jam with a dulce de leche center.

Connolly’s Bar pina colada is my current favorite frozen cocktail.

I didn’t actually love my brunch burger at Naks but their wonderful vinegar fries were fantastic dipped in egg and gravy.

My cocktail was also a win; I got the Zesto – a milk punch with coconut, soursop, and rum (and that’s a pandan coconut rum jello shot!).

Roberta’s house-made bread + stracciatella + sugar snap peas with pea shoots and green garlic.

Best meal of the weekend = lunch at Rippers. Cheeseburgers and seasoned fries. This is Adam’s favorite burger.

Their cocktails were magical too! Lychee soju martini and a frozen sangria (we ate spoons of sangria with soft-serve and swooned).

P.S. No photos but I had a kale salad with salmon at Daily Provisions that knocked my socks off.