Tag Archives: berries

Marshmallow Snowman

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This week’s coffee combo was a winner.

This week’s yogurt bowels were dessert-y. Trader Joe’s eggnog Greek yogurt with creme brulee granola and persimmon.

Plain skyr with chopped egg yolk nougat (it was amazing, like a marzipan cake) and blueberries.

Giant mango peelable gummy. 100/10. This was a perfect mango representation in gummy form.

Tuna salad. Canned tuna with bell pepper, water chestnuts, peanuts, ginger, Duke’s mayo, plain skyr, red curry paste, and lemon juice. Plus roasted cauliflower with a labne hot honey dipping sauce (labne, chili oil, gochugaru, and honey).

Pasta salad. Brami Protein Pasta curly mac / sharp cheddar / smoked turkey / roasted Bahama Bomb tomatoes and zucchini with evoo, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder.

Creamy tomato pasta. My sauce was blended then cooked sweet canned tomatoes, tomato paste, pepper, gochugaru, roasted garlic, evoo, fish sauce, dark soy sauce, parmesan cheese, and silken tofu. Plus sauteed asparagus with bell pepper, water chestnuts, and sweet and spicy pecans.

P.S. My post is a day early because my work-week is ending a day early; I am off tomorrow to show my parents all of the NYC seasonal fun!

December 1st!

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It was a wonderful long holiday weekend! We spent time with family, took a very cold long walk in Manhattan, and had a million weird drinks and delicious desserts…

Pull Tab Coffee. We quite liked our banana aerofoam.

Homemade frozen coffee. Coffee, ice, chocolate milk, vanilla protein powder, vanilla bean powder, cinnamon, and frozen banana.

Barebells wild strawberry protein soda. This was yummy, it tasted like a creamy strawberry soda.

No sugar mojito Pepsi. It had no mint flavor but was tasty.

Comfortland‘s Kerrygold butter doughnut.

Birdee‘s brigadeiro cake and excellent guava cheese tart.

Milk Bar‘s marshmallow brownie is their second all-time best item (after the anniversary cake).

Fantastic brunch at Win Son. Their Bloody Mary had so much umami. I also really enjoyed their green tea shot.

We came for the boba pancakes and were not disappointed.

Three pepper lamb with cabbage, rice, and egg.

Soft-scrambled eggs.

The pea shoots were my favorite dish of the weekend; with bean paste, sesame, and fried garlic.

Mommy Pai was a hit for us. This concord grape salty coconut frozen drink blew our minds.

We did fried fingers with Muy Thai sauce. I, of course, got extra dipping sauces. Sweet soy mustard was my favorite. The fries were great! And I loved the taro tapioca doughnuts with pandan custard.

Leftover stuffing fried rice with cranberry sauce and pimento cheese.

P.S. It’s December 1st tomorrow!

Cranberry, Sweet Potato, Sage

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I have so much to be thankful for, the least of which is a very exciting cache of Thanksgiving-themed foods! All were great but the stand-out was the sweet potato peeling candy; it was delightfully strange!

See also – cranberry hot sauce my parents sent me from home. I added this to every plate this week.

And hot honey flavored Uglies sweet potato chips. These were surprisingly great, definitely the best sweet potato chips I’ve ever tried.

One of the best yogurt bowls of the year – plain skyr with cranberry sauce and Tom’s Perfect 10 creme brulee granola. Plus a very exciting bowl of berries – Super Jumbo and Sweetest Batch blueberries and Lolliberry strawberries.

Chicken salad with miso honey sweet potatoes. Shredded baked chicken tossed with celery, green onions, diced cucumber, Sichuan pepper salt, white sugar, minced garlic, onion chili crunch, peanuts, and sesame seeds. The potatoes were roasted then sauteed with honey, white miso, gochugang, and rice vinegar.

Stuffing-style fried rice. Brown rice seasoned with rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil / roasted riced cauliflower / sauteed mushrooms with butter and smoked paprika / sauteed yellow onion and celery with salt, pepper, and celery seed / sage / Trader Joe’s sweet and spicy pecans / dried cranberries / maple pecan smoked turkey / stir-fried with egg.

Roast‘s Thanksgiving crunchwrap is one of their best specials – with roasted turkey, white cheddar, cranberry jam, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, and crispy onions. Plus a French onion grilled cheese for good measure – sourdough with short rib, gruyere, caramelized onions, mustard aioli, and garlic butter. And fries and wonderful homemade green beans – steamed then sauteed with toasted pecans, rice vinegar, brown sugar, horseradish, onion chili crunch, and cranberry sauce.

Thanksgiving nachos are our favorite holiday tradition! This year we did Trader Joe’s stuffing seasoned kettle chips / extra-sharp white cheddar / smoked turkey / green onion / sweet and spicy pecans / topped with cranberry sauce (and cranberry hot sauce!) / and fried sage. Plus sauteed brussels sprouts with a spicy fish sauce caramel (brown sugar, Sriracha, soy sauce, fish sauce, water, and cornstarch).

Pecan Pumpkin

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This week was very long. Also the 2nd to last week in the 2nd to last month of 2025??! Some things…

Yogurt bowls. Plain skyr with cinnamon granola and blueberries. We buy Sweetest Batch and Super Jumbos every week now and I am hooked.

French onion dip. Speaking of things we buy every week, we have both been having a dip obsession lately!

Juicy chewy candies. The Nerds are a 100/10, even better than the original gummy clusters.

Also in chewy things – these grape, green tea, and cheese ice cream bars.

Cheesecake Factory’s pecan pie pumpkin cheesecake is obviously going to be my Pie Month peak.

Take out dinner from Shanghai You Garden in 99 Ranch. Red bean sesame ball (and a pork floss mochi for Adam) / rice cakes with shredded chicken / fantastic scallion pancake / edamame with pickled cabbage and tofu // beef and rice from the Vietnamese spot next door

Fast-food style chicken sandwich. Brioche buns / house sauce – mayo, skyr, honey, yellow mustard, Dijon mustard, dill pickle mustard, roasted poblano bbq sauce, and lemon juice / baked chicken marinated in skyr, hot sauce, and dill pickle mustard / tons of pickles. Plus roasted yellow cauliflower and broccoli.

Double egg sandwich. More brioche and house sauce with a fried egg and a cheesy soft-scrambled egg.

Tuna salad with an Eastern European vibe. Canned tuna and smoked trout / mayo, skyr, Dijon, and tons of horseradish / green onion / pickled beets / hard-boiled eggs. Plus sauteed asparagus and Trader Joe’s cornbread crackers.

Wouldn’t It Be Rice

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Things from the week…

Horchata-ish iced latte. I blended leftover brown rice, milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla bean powder in the blender. Unstrained, with ice, half and half, and espresso.

Berry smoothie. Frozen strawberries and blueberries, with chocolate protein powder, milk, and water. And a strawberry gummy.

These Kissabel apples have rose colored flesh.

I enjoyed these Quin maple almond butter filled pretzels much more than I was expecting to.

Chip City’s caramel apple cider donut cookie is hands-down the best thing they make. The cookie has the perfect amount of apple tang and the cider donut cinnamon sugar spice rub is divine.

10/10 dessert skyr bowl. Plain skyr, salty peanuts, leftover pecan pie toffee candy, and TWO KINDS of blueberries (Sweetest Batch and Super Jumbo!).

Braised tofu bowls. Brown rice with roasted cauliflower rice / sauteed bok choy with green onion / firm tofu cooked in butter and braised in chicken broth, rice vinegar, gochujang, gochugaru, Sichuan pepper, sugar, and sesame seeds / cashews.

Greek-ish salad. Romaine, Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing, baby tomatoes, roasted zucchini, and roasted chickpeas (baked until crispy with evoo, salt, pepper, sumac, onion powder, and garlic powder). Plus Trader Joe’s dolmas.

Crispy rice omelet. Eggs steamed on top of crisped-up leftover brown rice, kimchi, and extra-sharp cheddar. Plus roasted broccoli and baked chicken on the side.

I can’t skip a seasonal special; even if it’s from Arby’s. Their Gobbler sandwich was great though – deep-fried turkey, crispy onion, Swiss, stuffing, cranberry spread, and mayo on a toasted sub.

For The Graham

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It was a nice fall weekend! Some highlights…

Homemade s’mores iced latte. Marshmallow creme / Trader Joe’s chocolate shell / Trader Joe’s maple pecan cold brew concentrate / milk infused with graham cracker, cinnamon, vanilla bean powder, and salt.

I had the graham crackers in the house for the fantastic pecan pie cookies I made. Tollhouse chocolate chip cookies but with chopped up homemade chocolate pecan graham cracker toffee candy in place of chips.

The best dessert of the weekend was hands-down Librae‘s halvah chocolate croissant.

I am not a big juice person but I very much enjoyed this Alldae passionfruit and guava cascara drink.

The perfect walking snack from an Asian grocery in Manhattan – spicy tuna onigiri and crab meat inari.

Mimi Cheng‘s makes my current favorite dumplings in the city and their seasonal/collaborative options are always awesome. Three cup chicken scallion pancake melt with mozzarella and fresno peppers.

Thanksgiving dinner dumplings with local turkey, cranberry herb stuffing, housemade gravy, thyme, and a side of housemade cranberry sauce.

Dinner at The Cuban. I couldn’t take pictures because the lighting was insane but we had an excellent meal. That drink was a coquito mojito!!

Kitchen sink salads. Romaine with Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing, jalapeno hummus, cucumber, raisins, walnuts, crispy broad beans, extra-sharp cheddar, and baked sprouted tofu.

Spooky Snacks

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Things from the week before Halloween…

On-theme candy, obviously.

And pumpkin beers! Southern Tier’s Maple Warlock imperial pumpkin stout and Caramel Pumpkin imperial pumpkin ale were both excellent.

Pumpkin smoothie. Canned pumpkin puree, frozen banana, brown sugar, vanilla protein powder, and water.

Boo-berry smoothie. Frozen blueberries, cherries, and strawberries with vanilla protein powder and water (with a marshmallow ghost!).

Halloween candy week seemed like a fitting time to open this Bonne Maman chocolate peanut spread. I enjoyed it in a few iced coffees and am eagerly anticipating a yogurt bowl.

Another new to me pear – Gem. It was delicious, but I prefer the Happis.

This Wella Crispy Treat did not taste like ube to me but it was yummy; good salty-sweet balance. Adam hated it, however, so your milage may vary.

Oyakadon-inspired dinner. Eggs soft-scrambled in leftover Rose Marie whipped garlic parsley butter / roasted broccoli / Bell and Evans breaded chicken patties / horseradish Sriracha aioli / leftover Rose Marie sourdough.

Pumpkin chili. Ground turkey, Whole Food’s canned bean trio, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, canned pumpkin puree, fish sauce, yellow onion, red bell pepper, poblano pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, urfa chili, and salt and pepper. Plus leftover Rose Marie cheese curds and Trader Joe’s pumpkin tortilla chips.

Two types of leftover pizza reheated in a skillet with leftover butter and an egg cooked on top.

These crispy roasted beans were the best dinner of the week. Labne / roasted shredded brussels sprouts / Great Northern beans tossed with evoo, cornstarch, panko, gochugaru, and furikake and roasted / Roland’s spicy chili onion crisp / crispy numbing broad beans I found at 99 Ranch but can’t read the label for.

A Rose By Any Other Name

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It was a great weekend! We got in a final run on the Long Beach Boardwalk and spent some time in Brooklyn. Some of what we ate…

Witches Brew from Rose Wolf. Cold brew with oat milk, cinnamon, maple, and caramel. We actually didn’t love this – too milky and too sweet.

Cookies and Scream iced latte from The Barn. We didn’t like this coffee either(!!) but we loved the Shmackary’s cookie on top.

Spooky yogurt bowl. Plain skyr with golden kiwi, blueberries, and candy eyes.

Beers at Grimm. Love a spot with small pours! My stand-out favorite was the Maximum Boogie triple IPA.

More importantly, we had food from Lala’s Apizza on their upper level. A 10/10 kale salad with cheese and sweet and spicy nuts.

And a Funghi Pie – mozzarella, fontina, tarragon oyster mushrooms, and lemon zest.

We had an exceptional dinner at Rose Marie. The space was cute, the service was great, and my cocktail was perfect. Goin’ to Alcapulco – lime, guava, white rum, dark rum, and lime bitters. Adam also had stunning pickled green tomato martini.

Sourdough bread and focaccia with radishes and whipped garlic parsley butter. <– this was the best butter I’ve ever tasted

Cranberry beans with paprika vinaigrette, croutons, and baby cauliflower.

Fried cheddar cheese curds with a burnt olive ranch.

And a patty melt on a homemade Pullman with grilled onion, white cheddar, and pickled green tomatoes.