Things from the weekend…
Sparkling coffee soda (4/10).
Orange Squeeze Ollipop (5/10).
Arizona Lemon Hard Iced Tea (8/10).
Delicious crab dip with baby cucumbers. Also chips and bell pepper.
Veggie bowls. Roasted Trader Joe’s Cruciferous Crunch mix and red onion / red bell pepper, chopped baby cucumber, and edamame / chopped smoked almonds / sauce – crunchy peanut butter, miso paste, soy sauce, maple, lemon juice.
See also – leftovers stir-fried with ramen, eggs, sesame seeds, and Sriracha.
The year’s been good so far! I started my 1/1/23 with a quick run before work to get things started on the right foot and had cold brew with sweetened condensed milk next for a sweet year. <– I made those traditions up but I love them. I also worked several lucky-for-the-new-year foods into our meals this week – cabbage, greens, noodles, and black eyed peas.
Highlights from the 1st week of the year included…
Coffee from Hawaii.
Surprisingly wonderful mochi doughnuts from Paris Baguette. The cinnamon one was stuffed with red bean.
Homemade popcorn with butter, furikake, togarashi, white sesame seeds, and salt/sugar.
Another hit from my favorite beer company (Abomination Brewing). This marshmallow IPA was great, though not as good as Fog Nog. I drank it on a date walk with Adam to get froyo topped with marshmallows, so that was perfect.
We also enjoyed this Mai Tai inspired sour from Mast Landing.
We celebrated New Year’s Eve by eating tons of Chinese take-out and falling asleep before 10pm (my very favorite way to spend NYE!). Zouji Dumpling House is my new favorite Chinese spot – we ordered a million things and loved it all. This leftovers dinner plate was scallion pancake / house chili oil / pan-fried lamb dumplings / veggie dumplings with cabbage, radish, and rice noodles / dry stir-fried cauliflower with onion, pepper, and garlic / Kung Pow chicken / and a scoop of sourkraut for luck.
Our favorite black-eyed-pea salad. With Kerrygold Dubliner cheese, Crystal hot sauce, and diced green bell pepper. Plus some roasted baby cauliflower.
Whole-wheat vermicelli noodles with zoodles, shredded chicken, and nước chấm. Topped with Sriracha.
Congee (brown rice cooked for an hour and a half in turkey stock) / layered with collard greens sauteed with green onion and ginger / and ground turkey sauteed with white onion, garlic, and Korean pepper / topped with chili crisp and green onions.
Popeye’s take-out with roasted broccoli from home. Biscuit, fries, nuggets with great sauces, and some of the best mac and cheese I’ve eaten in the States! Is Popeye’s my favorite restaurant? I want to be embarassed to be considering that but I probably should be more embarassed by the fact that this wasn’t the only time I ordered this this week!! The nuggets are shockingly good leftover.
A few highlights from the weekend…
Apple snacks at work. Freeze-dried Fuiji apples and an apple ginger bar. Both were wins.
Apple pie matcha! I will definitely make this combination again.
We finally made it to Zaab Zaab, a very well-loved Isaan Thai spot in Elmhurst. Everything we got was fantastic. The spice level was exactly to my liking and I was glad I ordered the creamy cold brew with condensed milk. Green papaya salad.
Prawn Pad Thai.
Rib eye Pad Krapow.
I made the world’s most decadent bowl of leftovers. Basil beef / shredded duck (leftovers from a fun meal Adam had without me) / sauteed spinach and onion / fried egg / smashed avocado.
I work all this weekend but we do have some fun Long Island dinners planned. Highlights from this past week included – lots of take-out and homecooked meals better suited for fall!
Smoothie time – plain Greek yogurt, frozen strawberries, chocolate almond milk, and taro powder.
I made beer bread, which meant I spent the week very happily snacking on beer bread with cheese.
Adam and I were both fans of this kettle corn.
Chinese take-out leftovers – sesame noodles and fried tofu.
Wednesday Adam and I both worked exceptionally long days and we salvaged the evening with a cocktail walk and an agressive amount of Mighty Quinn take-out. The leftovers made a great lunch. Burnt end fries, corn fritters, and mac and cheese fritters.
Homemade soup. Chicken, broth, tomato paste, urfa chili paste, diced tomatoes, kidney beans, and zucchini.
Sheet pan hash. Japanese sweet potato, zucchini, fennel bulb, sweet onion, chicken kale pesto sausage, sharp cheddar, and pesto.
Weekend highlights include…
A ridiculous coffee daily. This was phin-brew with espresso powder, caramel, and half and half. I also made an iced coffee with fluff(!) and had a great Oreo cold foam cold brew from Wired.
Strawberry cheesecake smoothie bowl! Plain Greek yogurt, almond milk, cream cheese, brown sugar, chia seeds, and frozen strawberries; topped with maple pecan granola.
Fluffernutter dessert smoothie. Plain Greek yogurt, almond milk, frozen banana, peanut butter, and toasted marshmallows.
P.S. This Fix and Fogg super crunchy is the best peanut butter I’ve ever tried.
Also, the Half Day green tea with honey and ginsing is the best canned tea I’ve ever tried.
So excited about summer fruits. Green plucot + a blood orange.
We ordered crystal candies from Silky Gem and were big fans. We actually tried to make these ourselves a few weeks ago and they did not work out. The crunchy outside and chewy/soft interior make a great contrast.
Hash leftovers with roast sauce.
I made jalopeno popper turkey meatloaf! It was amazing and Adam and I both went back for seconds. Ground turkey, panko bread crumbs, ketchup, diced pickled jalopenos, jalopeno juice, chopped white onion, egg, and diced sharp cheddar. With roasted orange and purple cauliflower on the side.
Highlights from this past week include…
I made my first ever loaf of banana bread! I added tons of coconut caramel jam to a traditional recipe and we loved it.
See also – banana bread cubes on a Greek yogurt bowl with nectarine, cinnamon, and honey.
This bar + coffee combo was a 10/10. I also ate a mini York with it – perfection.
See also – I made a mint syrup for my iced coffees this week and it was great in this iced matcha latte.
Sooo many snacks! The highlight of which was these crab roe flavored broad beans. They were the perfect amount of crunchy and the perfect balance of sweet and savory.
See also – aloe drink and my two favorite seltzers.
Tyger leftovers (sauteed water spinach and pad see ew) stir-fried with eggs and peanuts. The leftovers were mind-blowing so we clearly need to go back ASAP.
I made fantastic brown rice chicken congee. Filled with chopped chicken thighs and spicy chopped kale and red chard. We topped our bowls with peanuts, green onions, and chili crisp.
Highlights from the week…
Smoothie A – frozen cherries with plain skyr and chocolate milk.
Smoothie B – frozen mango and blueberries with plain Greek yogurt, key lime juice, and honey.
I 100% topped skyr with a chopped-up Reese’s cup. Plus nectarine, chia seeds, and honey.
The Flowers of Life Kombucha did not impress – vaguely tasted like ginger and was not at all floral – but Adam and I both enjoyed the Concord Grape.
Sparkling yuzu matcha. I still can’t beleive that I only started liking matcha in the past few years.
I made egg casserole with shredded mozarella, roasted zuccini, and chives. And I made homemade dumb bread! Served with golden nugget madarin.
Leftovers (topped with chili crisp) with yellow heirloom tomato with salt and Korean chili flake.
Whole-wheat spaghetti with a homemade spinach and pesto sauce plus shredded chicken and extra parmesan and pine nuts.
Trader Joe’s frozen Tteok Bokki (rice cakes in spicy sauce) with chicken, zuccini, and mozarella.
Some highlights from this week include…
This week’s coffee combo – Chamberlain espresso roast and homemade rose syrup.
This seed and oat bar was great; it reminded me of one of those old-fashioned sesame bar candies.
Yogurt bowl – plain yogurt with golden nugget mandarin, red plum, honey, Heritage Flakes, and chia seeds.
A taro and salted egg yolk cake from 99 Ranch Market; overall we weren’t impressed with their prepared foods selection but this was fantastic.
Chewy, fruity Japanese candies. The grape ones were the best.
Leftovers of our duck two ways from Glasserie – honey and spice crusted duck breast and braised duck thigh with nuts and raisins in phyllo dough. Plus veggies from home – roasted cauliflower and gojuchang cabbage.
Chicken salad loosely inspired by Waldorf Salad. Shredded chicken with dressing (plain yogurt, mayo, salt, lemon, honey, and horseradish), apple, green onion, celery, toasted cashews, and dried cherries.
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.
See also – we are head over heels for this dulce de leche instant coffee.
Really enjoyed this energy tea; I’ve been loving mint drinks since December.
See also – we made green Thai tea iced lattes.
We also made fruity matcha spritzers. Matcha with key lime La Croix and fresh lime and orange juice.
Berry (beary!) milkshake – Thai tea ice cream mochi blended with vanilla almond milk and frozen strawberries and grapes.
Yogurt bowl – vanilla yogurt with peanut butter, chia, and granola.
These apple pie rice cakes have milk powder in them and a great sweet/savory thing going.
Vegan pepperoni-inspired jerky + everything seasoning chickpea snacks. Both were good but not my favorite. But a nice snack paired together.
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).
This post includes highlights back through last weekend; it was Adam’s birthday and I didn’t want to waste his time blogging. We had a wonderful weekend including great weather for two days of long walks in Brooklyn, lots of delicious meals, a trip to Sundays in Brooklyn’s Snow Days in Brooklyn winter pop up (which included egg nog soft serve and a Dark and Snowy cocktail, among other things), and a drive-through holiday light show.
Highlights…
Breakfast at Ursula. We split a pine needle mocha(!!).
And a cream cheese frosting stuffed cinnamon roll(!!!).
And I had a sandwich with scrambled egg, cheddar, and green chile on housemade brioche.
Chestnut and vanilla iced latte from Nerd Be Cool.
A Christmas yogurt bowl – Trader Joe’s eggnog Greek yogurt with kiwi, pomegranate, and granola.
See also – plain Greek yogurt with honey, cinnamon, granola, kiwi, pomegranate, and fresh mandarin.
We went to Oddfellows for a scoop of coquito ice cream.
And Brooklyn Cupcake for a coquito cupcake. Plus flan and guava cheese, since it was a birthday!
We really loved this chocolate mint sparkling water.
Trader Joe’s Thai tea mini ice cream mochi.
These chip-stuffed Reese’s cups were just as good as I thought they would be! Completely worth the months of gas station stops to search for them.
We were also pretty pleased with these Dove truffles.
I ate an obscene amount of take-out this week but here were two really good “homemade” dinners. Chili cheese fries plus roasted romanesco.
Cold silken tofu with chili oil (I used urfa pepper paste with garlic oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, white sugar, and scallions) plus sautéed eggplant, bok choy, and red bell pepper with ginger and peanuts.
Eating Chalk 