No one is surprised that I am at an 11/10 for the new Starlight Diet Coke. It is pink and it tastes like space if space tastes like marshmallows!
Cookie dough remains my favorite perfect bar flavor.
An eclectic but wonderful yogurt bowl. Plain skyr, strawberries, dried hibiscus, Luxardo cherries, chia seeds, nut butter, and cookies and cream granola.
No one is surprised that I had a stash of on-theme goodies and declared a Valentine’s Week flavor. Here were the things I stockpiled (the kombucha was a standout!).
Related note – Adam bought me an egregious amount of fancy chocolate. And surprised me with beautiful flowers and gigantic brisket sandwiches.
Flavor of the week – chocolate covered cherry! Coffee – iced with Luxardo cherries and chocolate milk.
Chia pudding – chia seeds with chocolate almond milk, brown sugar, and dried cherries. Topped with dried hibiscus, Luxardos, and a chocolate peanut butter protein bar.
Smoothie – frozen cherries with Greek yogurt and chocolate milk. This was fantastic and I need to make it all the time.
Not on theme, but I loved this dinner too much not to document it – a soft-scrambled egg sandwich with peso mayo on toasted sourdough with roasted cauliflower.
For a week of easing back into real life from vacation the past 5 days weren’t too bad! I even managed to cook a few dinners. That said, work has been insane and I am not sad that I’m heading into a three day weekend!
Highlights from the past week include…
Coffee combo – Hudson Roastery with sweetened condensed milk.
Layered halvah. P.S. We also bought halvah-crusted pecans and they were insane.
Leftovers and lettuce wraps converged for the perfect dinner. We used butterhead lettuce to wrap ground turkey sautéed with gojuchang with celery, peanuts, quick pickled cucumber and carrot salad, and pickled radish. Plus leftovers from great take-out we got over the weekend – kimbap and Korean fried chicken.
It’s possible we over-purchased fried chicken… we snacked on it all week long!
A quick and easy dinner – chicken burgers from the freezer with sautéed bell peppers and green onion, mashed avocado, a fried egg, and fantastic hot sauce from back home.
The best dinner of the week/month/new year! I made buffalo chicken meatballs (with ground turkey since we were shopping during a winter storm, hot sauce, cream cheese, and blue cheese) with sautéed carrot and celery, and homemade garlic bread (garlic, butter, spices, and tons of parmesan baked on everything ciabatta rolls).
…And we made the most of it with tons of decadent and/or on theme snacks! I worked the holiday weekend but Adam and I were both off Christmas Eve so we got to spend time cuddling the dog, took a trip into the city to enjoy the light display at Hudson Yards, and drove around our area in the evening admiring decorations. Highlights included…
Peppermint cold brew with eggnog.
Stumptown’s salted maple iced latte.
This layered red and green smoothie was more successful in flavor than artistry. Ube, strawberry, grape layered with matcha banana.
The fanciest yogurt bowl – plain skyr with cinnamon, chia seeds, strawberries, nougat halvah, and chestnut paste!
Green juice and a candy cane.
Mint sparkling matcha.
Eggnog iced matcha latte.
Is there anything more luxurious than freshly made fruit salad? This was golden pinepple, strawberries, and mandarins.
This crab dip was a 6.5/10 but these crackers were a 9.5/10.
Peppermint chocolate crinkle cookie from Chip.
Repeat of my two new favorite beers. Cinnamon marshmallow cola sour ale from Evil Twin and an eggnog double IPA from Abomination Brewing.
Lunch at Dante in the West Village. It was worth sitting outside on one of the coldest days of this month! We split steak with salbitxada and a baby kale salad with beats, butternut squash, goat cheese, and hazelnuts. Plus fancy cocktails.
Avocado toast plus a quick pickled cucumber salad. Toasted sourdough, mashed avocado, a fried egg, and chili flakes.
Sautéed cabbage with peanut lime sauce and five spice candied peanuts (very loosely based on this recipe).
Roasted brussel sprouts (with chili flakes and smoked paprika) plus Christmas nachos! Kettle chips with extra-sharp cheddar, green onion, and duck sausage.
Fries with spicy tuna salad, chili flakes, green onion, and furikake.
We have a loaf of Trader Joe’s sliced sourdough in the house so I, of course, planned sandwiches for every dinner! Maple smoked turkey with cheddar and honey mustard. Plus lemon mustard roasted green beans (roasted green beans tossed in honey mustard, garlic oil, and lemon juice).
Roast beef with cheddar and horseradish mayo. Plus roasted zucchini and smashed potatoes with garlic oil, cheddar, and paprika.
I didn’t mean for this plate to be so yellow, but it was the best meal of the week! Golden pineapple / roasted orange cauliflower / soft scrambled egg sandwich with tons of smoked salmon salad.
Highlights from this week included – Trader Joe’s sourdough sliced bread, Apple Month stuff, vegan junk food, end of summer veggies…
Cinnamon apple chia oats. <– I also had a(n unphotographed) bar with chia seeds this week, I need to remember to eat more chia, it’s delicious!
Cinnamon apple Over Easy bar.
Zestar apple with a salted caramel Noosa yogurt.
Salted maple kettle corn and freeze-dried fuji apples. P.S. The Trader Joe’s freeze-dried fruits are superior to all others.
Not apple-themed but still amazing – these Snacklins vegan pork rinds. I scooped crab dip with them and it was my favorite snack of the week!
Bacon egg and cheese sandwich for brinner. Toasted sourdough with mayo, yellow mustard, honey-maple sliced turkey, sharp cheddar, turkey bacon, and a fried egg. Plus yellow peach and heirloom tomatoes. Plus on-theme chocolates.
This was supposed to be a roast beef sandwich but our stores were all out?! Sourdough with pastrami-style turkey (probably better than my original plan!), black garlic and horseradish mayo, and sharp cheddar. With roasted orange and purple cauliflower.
Vegan chicken nuggets and roasted zucchini and yellow squash dipped in Bitchin’ Sauce.
Highlights from the weekend include – amazing coffees, gooey marshmallow desserts, and some of the best Vietnamese food we’ve ever eaten. Also we – went to a Farmers’ Market on the water in Garvies Point, drove up to the tip of the North Fork for a picnic at Orient Point, stopped at several farm stands, walked around an apple orchard, visited a few LI craft breweries, took strolls around Greenport and Greenpoint…
We took Korean fried rice with duck (from Ellen’s) on a picnic at Orient Point.
An Apple Month toasted cheese sandwich – sharp cheddar, smoked turkey, and tons of apple butter on sourdough. With cotton candy grapes and roasted broccoli.
Best dinner of the month at Falansai – a great Vietnamese spot with a koi pond in the back garden! Beef dumplings.
Eggplant with fermented tofu bbq sauce and crispy shallots. Plus a housemade salted plum drink and Vietnamese iced coffee.
Spicy green curry with seasonal veggies and silken tofu. Broken rice on the side.
Coconut chia pudding with plums, peanuts, and hibiscus ice.
Eating Chalk 