Tag Archives: booze

Snowday Sley

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The 1st week of December has been fantastically festive!

Highlights include…

Red and green yogurt bowl; plain skyr with frosted bran flakes, strawberries, and pumpkin seed butter.

One of Blue Bottle‘s winter specials is a chocolate mint Nola.

I was not a fan of either of these “winter” energy drinks.

But I loved this Target brand eggnog in iced coffees.

Also with iced matcha.

Leftover brownies from Thanksgiving. I make the Baker’s Chocolate recipe – with the addition of chocolate chips and espresso powder! – and they always get rave reviews.

White chocolate peppermint ice cream from Jeni’s; it is pink!

Malai‘s ice cream has the perfect texture and their nutmeg flavor tastes exactly like eggnog.

Coquito cupcake from Brooklyn Cupcake.

Taco salads. Spinach / baby bell peppers / homemade dressing with Greek yogurt, mayo, lime, and ranch seasoning / sharp cheddar / Love Corn sour cream and onion corn nuts <– 10/10 / ground turkey and sweet onion sauteed with fajita seasoning / Frontera double roasted tomato salsa.

Nachos with baby bell peppers instead of chips (plus leftover turkey, salsa, and tons of sharp cheddar). I know this sounds like a bad TikTok trend but these were delicious.

Chilaquiles casserole. A spin on this recipe with shredded chicken; roasted bell pepper, poblano pepper, zucchini, and scallion; crushed tortilla chips; sharp cheddar; salsa; and eggs and chicken broth.

We’ve been to TWO holiday pop-ups already. Both were fabulously decorated and unflatteringly lit. Sunday – Sunday in Brooklyn‘s Snowday in Brooklyn.

We thought their themed drinks were great/better than last year. Noggin’ Toboggan – Australian whiskey, allspice, eggnog soft-serve, and Thai tea soda / Yule Shoot Yer Rye Out! – NY Distilling Jaywalk rye, Japanese whiskey, pawpaw fruit, pineapple, artichoke amaro, and curry leaf.

Polar Bear Club –  frozen rum, Aquavit, coconut, pineapple, banana, and coffee bean.

North Pole Dancer – Haku vodka, passionfruit, popcorn tea, saffron, and sparkling sake. This was my favorite of the night and not just because it came with caramel corn.

We also had some really wonderful food. Wood-fired pita topped with spinach, artichoke, white cheddar, and bechamel.

Roasted honeynut squash with coffee tahini, brown butter, and a watercress salad.

Wood-roasted brussel sprouts with toasted pistachio, golden raisins, and lemon gremolata. <– these were 10/10 leftover

French Dip – grilled brisket, provolone, Gold’s mustard, and beef jus.

Wood-roasted chicken with Herb De Provence, roasted garlic jus, and seasoned fries.

Wednesday – Leyenda‘s Sleyenda. I am not a talented enough photographer to deal with their low lighting but they were decked to the nines.

I also only took a single food photo even though we great drinks and dinner. We shared fried plantains and I had the Panuchos – fried corn tortillas topped with coconut habanero shrimp, refried black beans, avocado, and pickled onions. Once again the themed drinks were great and better than last year! My favorite (always) was the frozen Candy Striper – Diplomatico planas rum, cachaca, coconut, maple, vanilla, peppermint, and cardamom.

Turkey Tour

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We had great weather for long city walks this weekend (Williamsburg and Midtown) and ate so many good things…

Maple caramel mochi donut from Bear Donut.

Our favorite Pekin place in Long Island sadly closed but opened a new dumpling spot in Manhattan. We had steamed veggie and pan-fried chicken and corn dumplings and they were fantastic.

We tried a plethora of Thanksgiving turkey themed pastries. Trader Joe’s – cornbread stuffing, turkey, and Neufchatel cheese in a tortilla.

Starbucks – turkey sage sausage with Bechamel sauce in a danish.

Milk Bar – turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce in a herbed croissant.

Dinner at the newly reopened Kellogg’s Diner. The service/atmosphere and alcoholic drinks were meh but the food was worth it! Pimento cheese with saltines.

Short rib hash. This was great but Adam’s fried chicken and waffles was the best dish on the menu.

Desserts were the standout. Strawberry jell-o pretzel salad and passionfruit icebox pie.

Dinner at Sweetbriar. American Beauty cocktail (Rose Hip Luksosowa Vodka, lemon, rose water, egg white, and rose buds) and The Elixir (chamomile tea-infused Fords Gin, honey-ginger syrup, lemon, apricot preserves, and Laphroaig.

Cornbread with honey butter.

Wood-fired carrots with stracciatella, and salsa macha.

Roasted beets with shiso cream, green apple, avocado, and wasabi crumble.

Duck ham crostini with fig and gorgonzola.

Pistachio-crusted grilled chicken with snap peas, and red pepper pesto.

Croissant bread pudding with ice cream. This was crusted in cocoa nibs like a peppercorn steak and it was amazing.

Girl Dinner

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Five things from the weekend…

Iced espresso with maple cinnamon cold foam at Wired Coffee House.

Pumpkin croissant from Buttercooky Bakery.

These Pop Daddy dill pickle pretzel sticks are delightful; savory but not too sour.

Dinner at Mekelburg’s. I ordered girl dinner – kale salad (with carrots, green apple, and candied sesame croutons) and curly fries with honey mustard.

Plus I stole half of Adam’s giant, wonderful tuna melt.

And had a spicy passionfruit mezcal margarita.

Baked buffalo chicken meatballs. Ground chicken with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, panko, Franks, half and half, green onions, sharp cheddar, and cream cheese. Plus roasted cauliflower.

All Hallows’ Eats

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It was a yummy Halloween week!

Highlights…

You already know I had a cache of on-theme snacks.

Dunkin Donuts’ potion macchiato is marshmallow and ube flavored; obviously a great idea but unfortunately it was fairly underwhelming.

Skyr bowl with Cara Cara orange and double chocolate granola.

Pumpkin smoothie. Pumpkin puree, cottage cheese, frozen banana, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla bean powder, and water and ice.

I saved my best pumpkin beers for last. Blue Point Big Mother Pumpkin (10/10) / Fat Orange Cat Pumpkin Patch Kittens (9.5/10) / Abomination Forbidden Pumpkin (10/10).

Served with a brown sugar cinnamon rim!

Veggie rice bowls. Jasberry rice and riced cauliflower / Whole Food’s sesame seaweed cashews / avocado / chopped kimchi crisped up with a bit of butter and sugar.

Mac and three cheese muffins with baked chicken and roasted brussels sprouts.

Pumpkin pasta. Whole-wheat rotini topped with ground turkey sauteed with pumpkin puree, chili crisp, and cream cheese. Plus roasted orange cauliflower.

Black and orange big salads! Local lettuce / cucumber / homemade dressing – pumpkin butter, brown sugar, evoo, sesame oil, rice vinegar, and fish sauce / roasted kabocha squash / crispy rice – leftover rice tossed with chili crisp and black sesame paste and baked. We loved this.

Pimento Protein Pumpkin

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I have family in town and we are going to meet up today and do fun city stuff!

Some things from the 1st half of the weekend…

People rave about Clean Simple Eats so I snagged a mint chocolate cookie to try in coffee but unfortunately I thought it’s flavor was too fake sugar forward (as in I am not excited about the eggnog packet I obviously also bought).

Drowned Lands Scythe Pumpkin Ale. I was not a fan but Adam loved it.

Kettle’s spicy pimento cheese chips were just begging to be a huge pile of nachos. With sharp cheddar, Trader Joe’s sweet and spicy pecans, and super-firm tofu that we shredded, baked, and tossed in homemade bbq sauce. Plus roasted rainbow cauliflower.

King

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Highlights from the weekend…

Homemade breakfast. A sandwich with scrambled eggs, sharp cheddar, and Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter. Plus wonderful berries and a Vietnamese iced latte.

Trader Joe’s jalopeno and cream cheese wontons. These are good, better and spicier than I was expecting.

Pumpkin beers! Southern Tier Caramel Pumpking (9.5/10 – this was so sweet and creamy, my favorite so far this year) and Schlafly vanilla pumpkin ale (8/10 – very nice for a pumpkin beer but not something I would reach for year round).

I got bar food take-out on Friday. Popcorn chicken bites with Memphis bbq dry rub and Cajun fries. Plus roasted broccoli from home. <– yes, we accidentally made too much broccoli last week

So that Saturday I had leftover fries available for chili cheese fries! Fries topped with leftover pumpkin turkey chili and tons of Trader Joe’s unexpected cheddar. Plus pickled jalopenos on top and Trader Joe’s buffalo chicken dip on the side. Plus more broccoli.

I am showing you Sunday’s dinner both to prove that I occasionally eat grown-up food and to remind me of how wonderfully this salad kept. Leftover kale salad with leftover roasted squash that I sauteed with a peanut butter gochujang sauce.

Cardamom, Maple, Pumpkin

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Things from this week…

This maple chocolate instant coffee did not have nearly enough flavor (maple nor coffee) but it did mix instantly.

This new Trader Joe’s vanilla cardamom cold brew was more successful.

Pumpkin Noosa (best in the game) topped with blueberries, blackberries, and Purely Elizabeth double chocolate cookie granola.

Pumpkin beers! Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin was one of our favorites years past but it was too syrupy for us this year. Meanwhile, Great South Bay’s Baked pumpkin pie ale was a new hit; it was very well balanced between beer, pumpkin, and pie.

This isn’t a flattering picture but it serves as a reminder PSA – if you live near a Nuts Factory you NEED to go get their viral Dubai pistachio chocolate bar.

Peanut butter noodles. Udon stir-fried with eggs, peanut sauce (chunky peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, Sriracha, sesame oil, and water) and sesame seeds. Plus spicy green beans – steamed and then sauteed with honey, rice vinegar, yellow mustard, and chili crisp.

Thai basil chicken. I used chicken breasts instead of thighs and added red bell pepper and baby corn. Served on a bed of roasted riced cauliflower.

Korean-ish tofu plates. Shirakiku frozen kimchi pancake / super-firm tofu that I shredded, baked, then tossed in a skillet with Trader Joe’s green tea yuzu jelly, gochujang, sesame oil, and rice vinegar / bok choy, asparagus, and green onions sauteed with ginger and sesame seeds.

Portland To Pickles

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We were on vacation for the past week and it was glorious! First we met up with my parents for a trip to Portland, Maine and next we did a little staycation with Webster.

I did not pack my camera to Portland but we had a fabulous time. Some highlights included… taking a ferry to and then golf-carting around Peaks Island / the Museum of Art / a toasted sesame bagel with horseradish cream cheese and white fish salad from Rose Foods / a kimchi cheddar scone from Tandem / the fried fish at Eventide / lobster rolls (<– hard note on the plural there) from Bite Into Maine / the spicy cabbage salad at Crispy Gai + their pandan margarita was the best drink of the trip / a cachaça, guanabana, cane sugar, mint, lime, and clarified yogurt cocktail at Papi

Some highlights from our time back at home…

A pistachio cold-foamed iced espresso at NY Caffeine.

We went to Edith’s for their frozen Diet Coke, obviously, and brought home a slice of their wonderfully chewy chocolate babka.

Cheesecake Factory sells a pumpkin cheesecake with pecan pie in it so I clearly had to try the most seasonal item on Earth.

Trader Joe’s strawberry jalapeño crisps with Whole Food’s caramelized onion dip is the perfect pairing.

Lunch at Greywind. I had a Greywind Collins with tea infused gin and lemonade.

We had their exceptional cornbread with sumac molasses butter.

I had the cheeseburger which came smothered in mayo, cheddar, and rosemary potato chips.

And for dessert we visited their bakery and brought home a wonderful black currant and pistachio brown butter cake.

Pickle chicken sandwiches. Baked chicken breasts that I marinated in Greek yogurt and pickle juice served on King’s Hawaiian rolls with Kewpie, pickles, sharp cheddar, and steakhouse onion Funyuns. Plus roasted cauliflower.