My Year Is Off To A Good Start

by Emily

enjoyed all week

Coffees. Also naps.

Apparently my parents wore us out; I had a to take a nap before I could make dinner the first three nights of the week.

Diet chocolate soda from Polar.

I know it sounds a little strange but we were fans.

Our leftovers from The Smith. Eaten cold while standing in front of the open fridge.

My mac and cheese was fantastic leftover and so was my mom’s Mexican corn.

A big box of free samples {free as in provided free of charge / no other compensation for this post / yada, yada } from Super Seedz.

I wouldn’t have thought of pumpkin seeds as a favorite of mine but I’ve loved all of the flavors we’ve tried so far. Flavor options include: Really Naked, Sea Salt, Cinnamon & Sugar, Coco Joe, Tomato Italiano, Curious Curry, Somewhat Spicy and Super Spicy. They pack a nutritional punch – see the infographic (provided by the company) below – and Super Seedz are allergen friendly – peanut-free, tree nut-free, egg-free, dairy-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free and made with gluten-free ingredients.

breakfast

After we dropped my parents at the airport on Monday, Adam and I went on a doughnut(plant) and coffee date before work. Because apparently we hadn’t eaten enough crap over my birthday weekend.

My strawberry-filled vanilla got two thumbs up.

As did my maple latte from Gorilla.

Coco pumpkin seeds and cold-pressed watermelon juice.

TJ’s came through on this juice, it was wonderfully refreshing.

Chocolate-cherry smoothie.

Vanilla almond milk with coco powder, frozen cherries, and dates. I enjoyed this combo and want to make it again soon.

Snack plate.

A cheese stick, cinnamon sugar pumpkin seeds, and a medley of grapes.

lunch

Chocolate chip cookie oats.

With an apple and coco pumpkin seeds.

Sweet and spicy tuna salad.

With grapes and cinnamon sugar pumpkin seeds.

I didn’t have to provide my own lunch the rest of the week! I attended a lunch-and-learn on malnutrition in surgical patients on Tuesday.

They gave us education, salad, and yummy sandwiches with hummus and roasted eggplant. And I mainlined coffee (with tons of milk and cream) when I got back to my desk.

On Thursday the hospital threw an employee appreciation bbq.

Very sweet!

dinner

Pizza, pizza.

We used TJ’s frozen crusts and were so impressed with how they turned out. Topped with marinara, mozzarella, and tons of garlic and onion sautéed mushrooms.

Plus super simple salads on the side.

Just arugula blend with ranch dressing. They were a bit depressing. But we also had beer.

I carried this Southern Tier Compass all the way back home from Buffalo but unfortunately it was a bit hoppy for our tastes.

Burger night.

I made my Buffalo Blue Bean Burgers. They don’t look like much but this is one of my best recipes!

With a trio of roasted veggies: Brussels sprouts, green beans, and broccoli.

Served with maple bacon kettle chips, aka my favorite chips because they are the best chips of all time.

They were doing a promotion and handing out mini bags at my railroad station and it was very exciting.

Last night I met up with a girlfriend for dinner in Brooklyn. We checked out Elbow Room, the mac and cheese window at Morgan’s BBQ.

Milk stout.

Old School Mac – NY state sharp cheddar, béchamel, and garlic breadcrumbs.

With collard greens that were spicy and vegetarian. Dinner was good but dessert was better.

Salted crack caramel and honey peanut butter ice creams from Ample Hills. But they were supposed to have key lime pie ice cream available and they didn’t so now I need to go back immediately and it’s a problem.

29Jul2015

Birthday Weekend Wrap-Up {I’m 30!}

by Emily

My parents came to visit last weekend and Adam had two full days off so we were able to have lots of family fun. My mom and dad technically didn’t come for my birthday, the dates just worked out, but we spent the weekend doing all of my favorite city things – walking, and eating, and eating while walking! – and hanging out with good childhood friends so it was pretty perfect. And I’m 30 now, whomp, whomp.

Here are some highlights of the best places we walked and things we ate from the weekend…

Thursday night we walked around Williamsburg and had dinner at Pies ‘n Thighs. I had hibiscus iced tea.

And a chicken biscuit with hot sauce and honey butter.

Instead of pie we did dessert at Milk Bar.

Cereal milk soft-serve with cornflakes and hot fudge.

Friday we drove up to Montauk to explore. We checked out the beachfront towns and hiked along this very cool stone pathway near the lighthouse.

We stopped at the Long Island Levain and fell in love with the giant walnut chocolate chip cookies.

And had lunch at Lunch.

The seafood bisque was good.

But lobster rolls were better. They give you a big pile of buttered hot lobster meat and let you assemble your sandwich yourself.

We stopped at a random restaurant late that night on our drive back and ended up having an amazing meal but I have no pictures because I wrongly assumed it would be terrible. Adam and I plan on going back very soon for the flourless chocolate cake (though next time it won’t come with a birthday candle!).

Saturday was spent in Park Slope and Midtown. We started with Doughnut Plant.

Everyone loved their doughnuts (minus the beignets which just aren’t up to Plant standards) but tres leches are clearly the best.

Then trained to Grand Central Station.

Cold brew from Café Grumpy.

We shopped a bit, then explored Chelsea Market and The Highline.

Watermelon juice from Num Pang was refreshing.

And so was the mint seltzer from Brooklyn Soda Works.

We headed back to Brooklyn for dinner. Drinks at Pork Slope, aka my favorite bar. And hibiscus vodka is definitely a favorite drink option.

We got tater tots and spicy chicken nuggets – meh and yum! respectively – for appetizers which was good because I actually hadn’t tried any of the food at PS prior to that.

Dinner was Luke’s for round 2 of lobster rolls.

Best in the city, I think. And they had cans of Downeats, the tasty cider I tried last weekend in Buffalo.

I didn’t take a photo of the maple soft-serve at Corner of Vermont but it was worth a mention.

Sunday was our SoHo/Lower East Side Day.

We started in DUMBO to park near the F train.

And had to get coffees at Brooklyn Roasting Co.

Then we had amazing brunch at Russ & Daughter’s.

My “Lower Sunny Side” came with sunny side up eggs, Nova lox, and latkes.

Ice cream at Morganstern’s.

Omg. Vietnamese coffee and raw milk ice creams topped with fudge sauce and double Luxardo cherries. I assumed everyone would share with me and they did not but I still managed to take this down.

We ended our weekend with dinner at The Smith. The drink menu was on point; my “East Village Passion” had rum, lime, passionfruit, and fresh mint.

We had ridiculously good fried green beans to start.

I saw photos of the mac and cheese on instagram and had no choice to order that for my meal.

With a watermelon and feta salad.

So good. We ordered the s’mores jar for dessert, obviously.

Sadly I didn’t love it, but Adam was more than happy to eat my share. Since he did not eat a giant ice cream after lunch that’s probably fair! We will definitely go back again.

I left some things out because this post is already a bit lengthy, but I seriously did almost everything I love. With the people I love. <– aww!

22Jul2015

Honey Chipotle Chicken And Vegetable Quinoa Bowls {Recipe Redux}

by Emily

From the Redux team –

Fresh from the Garden

The season of bountiful produce has arrived. Whether your produce comes from the Farmers Market, a CSA share, or a plot of dirt out back, show how you are using fresh July fruits or veggies.

Bowls of grains and protein topped with big piles of roasted vegetables are a dinner favorite in our house year-round, but in the summer-time it’s nice to be able to count on in-season produce that’s both fresh and locally grown.

For these bowls I used both veggies and fruits – zucchini, grape tomatoes, and yellow peaches. Plus some slightly out of season fresh lime juice.

Honey, chipotle, garlic, and lime marinated chicken strips. Roasted zucchini. And white quinoa with tomato, peach, honey, chipotle sauce.

Honey Chipotle Chicken and Vegetable Quinoa Bowls; makes 4 hearty servings

1/2 tsp and 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp ground garlic
2 limes, juiced
1 Tbsp and 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp and 1.5 Tbsp honey
7.5 oz can chipotle peppers in adobe
1.5 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
4 cups sliced zucchini, sliced in 1/8 inch thick circles
10 oz grape tomatoes
medium sweet onion, cut in half and then sliced into 1/4 inch thick half circles
2 cups chopped yellow peaches
2.25 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup white quinoa
1/2 Tbsp canola oil

{In advance} In a large, durable baggie, combine 1/2 tsp salt, pepper, paprika, garlic, lime juice, 1 Tbsp evoo, and 1 Tbsp honey. Remove six chipotle peppers from the can (be sure to keep them!) and then dump the rest of the peppers and sauce into the bag. Stir marinade until well-combined. Add chicken breasts and toss to coat. Marinate for at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.

{When you’re ready to get cooking} Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Prep two baking sheets with baking spray (and aluminum foil if desired for easy clean up). On one tray, place the zucchini in an even layer; they can be bunched but try not to overlap. On the other tray, place tomatoes, onion, and peaches in an even layer. Drizzle the remaining 2 Tbsp of evoo evenly over the vegetables, then sprinkle with remaining 1/2 tsp salt.

Roast the tomatoes, onions, and peaches for 20 – 25 minutes, until the tomato skins have begun to blister but not brown. Remove that tray from the oven and set aside to cool. Bake the zucchini for an additional 15 – 20 minutes, 40 – 45 minutes total.

{While the vegetables are roasting} Stir together chicken broth and quinoa in a medium pot on high heat. Bring to a rolling boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15 – 20 minutes, until all of the liquid has been absorbed, stirring occasionally.

Pour the canola oil into a large, lidded pan over medium-high heat, turning the pan to coat. Working in batches as needed so as not to overcrowd the pan, cover the pan and cook chicken breasts 5 – 7 minutes on each side until cooked through. Set aside cooked chicken until cool enough to handle then slice into thin strips.

{Once the quinoa is cooked} Allow the cooked tomatoes, onion, and peaches to cool for at least 5 minutes. Place them in your food processor and process 5 – 10 seconds until homogenous. Add the remaining 6 chipotle peppers and the remaining 1.5 Tbsp honey and process until combined. Stir the sauce into the cooked quinoa. Note – you most likely will have more sauce than you need, we used about 3/4 of our batch and then saved the rest for turkey sandwiches and tortilla chip dip.

{When you are ready to serve} Divide the quinoa evenly among four bowls, topping with additional sauce if desired. Top with cooked chicken and zucchini slices. Serve outdoors, if possible.

Click the link below to see what other Redux members cooked up. I’m hoping someone tackled watermelon!

20Jul2015

Buffalove

by Emily

This weekend some friends and I traveled (many hours!) back to Buffalo for a quick visit. It was fantabulous! We got lucky with good weather, caught up with great friends, and hit up almost every place that we’d been missing. We didn’t take even a single group photo because apparently we’re old, but a good time was had by all.

I didn’t get any people pictures and I didn’t take many food shots either. Here are a few things I did capture…

Mike’s sandwich – a toasted bagel with cheese, cream cheese, and a fried egg – at SPoT Coffee.

Plus we got coffee there every morning because it was roasty and delicious. Clearly I can get amazing coffee in NYC but SPoT is still one of the main places I miss.

Green juice at Ashker’s.

Spinach, kale, cucumber, pineapple, and mint.

Drinks at Blue Monk which now offers 5 oz pours.

Shown is a very tasty Downeast Cider.

Crepes at Sweetness 7.

Mine was topped with syrup and a fried egg.

Hot bar at Wegman’s, of course.

We actually went to Wegman’s twice!

We also went to the Co-op, walked up and down Elmwood Ave, and did a round of lemon drop shots for my upcoming birthday ♥

13Jul2015

I’d Have To Say April 25th

by Emily

This was the most boring week of the month (July includes my trip to Maryland, a trip to Buffalo, a visit from my parents, and my 30th birthday!) but Adam and I kept things fun with lots of little dates. Honestly, I have more fun going to the grocery store with my husband than I would have doing almost anything with someone else, so grabbing donuts before work with him is pretty thrilling.