Coffee, Doughnuts, And Quinoa

by Emily

Adam and I had the morning off together on Friday and we used the time for another sunrise bridge walk – Queensboro Bridge.

3 down {Williamsburg Bridge} {Brooklyn Bridge}, and 1 to go {Manhattan Bridge}. Perhaps in the summer we’ll reverse it and walk out of Manhattan at sunset.

After the bridge, we wandered around the Upper East Side and in and out of Central Park and ended up walking more than 8 miles (<–awesome). The weather was so gorgeous I wore flip flops for the first time in months (again, awesome) and unfortunately now my calves are killing me (<– not awesome). I’ve been limping for the past two days!

On the food front, here were my top three favorites…

#1 – breakfast pastries

We tried new treats at two new spots and they were reeeeeeally good! At Padoca Bakery, brioche – chocolate and dulce de leche swirl and guava and cheese swirl.

At Orwashers, we had a doughnut injected with strawberry preserves, which was good, and a chocolate almond croissant which was the single-best pastry I’ve ever eaten.

You have to have coffee with doughnuts.

The lattes at Bluestone Lane are divine. We went to the UES location that shares space with a stunning church.

#2 – a new snack

I pack Adam crunchy chickpeas for work all the time and this Korean BBQ flavor is my new favorite thing.

Related – Sumo Mandarins are officially my favorite fruit of the year. They are always juicy and tart, and so easy to eat – they’re a snap to peel and have no seeds!

#3 – quinoa ~~soup~~ stoup

I got the idea from Cooking Light; you cook the quinoa in the broth with the other components so it comes together very quickly.

For my version I used carrots, red bell pepper, celery, onion // s&p, turmeric, smoked paprika, celery seed // shredded turkey breast // 1 cup quinoa // low sodium chicken broth.

Since I used more veggies and quinoa mine came out thicker like a stew.

This upcoming week I’m looking forward to: a fancy coffee combo this morning, watching the newest undercover episode of “Bones,” and having Thursday off of work.

20Feb2017

Channeling Leslie Knope, Ron Swanson, and Christopher Turk

by Emily

Questions about my title? They’re all characters who love breakfast foods. This weekend we were all about breakfasts, brunches, and brinners. In fact, we ate enough “breakfast” foods to fill this whole post…

Thompkin’s Square Bagels. We had a perfectly chewy poppy seed bagel with birthday cake(!!) cream cheese. Plus wonderful chocolate milk and coffee.

Vanilla-berry smoothie. Vanilla almond milk, vanilla pudding mix, chia seeds, frozen strawberries and dark sweet cherries.

Pistachio pastry at Maman.

I also had a lavender hot chocolate. Their cups/wallpaper/whole aesthetic pretty much kill me.

Nickel and Dinner.

I had roasted maitake mushrooms with provolone, ratatouille, garlic butter, and poached eggs. I didn’t love the ratatouille, but cheese and mushroom just might be my new favorite combo.

Off-theme but worth mentioning: we had rolled ice cream for dessert and it was wonderful. I CE NY for the win. Coffee latte ice cream with Oreo mixed in and mochi, marshmallow, and condensed milk on top.

Egg empanada at Butler. Local eggs, arugula, and cheddar, plus a divine cilantro dipping sauce.

Breakfast for dinner.

Coffee ale since Shiner collaborated with my favorite cold brew. This was very drinkable.

I made scrambled eggs with cheese, browned mushrooms, and turkey ham. Roasted green beans for me and asparagus for Adam.

Other fun stuff? We started rewatching “Parks and Recreation” (shocker), we spent an afternoon at the mall, and Saturday morning we headed into the city before dawn to walk across the Williamsburg Bridge at sunrise.

17Feb2017

♥♥♥

by Emily

Did everyone have a happy / romantic / chocolate-coated Valentine’s Day? Mine was good; Adam and I don’t do gifts but we went out of a yummy dinner on the 13th, and some of my coworkers brought in candy.

Top five tastes from the week…

{1♥} chocolate-covered cherry <– one of this month’s theme flavors!

CCC smoothie – chocolate milk, frozen dark cherries, plain Greek yogurt.

CCC coffee – cold brew, chocolate milk, Luxardo cherries with juice.

The coffee seriously made me swoon with happiness.

{2♥} best Mexican food in Brooklyn

I read two different places that El Atoradero had the best nachos in New York, so clearly we had to go there immediately. They were delicious, though not as good as the nachos I bake at home.

This was the best chicken burrito I’ve ever eaten though. The chicken tinga was smoky and roasty and there were peas and carrot in it giving little pops of sweetness.

Ample Hills for dessert!

{3♥} yogurt bowls

Toasted marshmallow yogurt(!!) with vanilla granola and chocolate tahini/Biscoff.

Siggi’s raspberry with mixed nut butter.

{4♥} deep-dish pepperoni pizza

I used TJ’s whole-wheat dough and cooked it in a casserole dish. With mozzarella, pizza sauce, and turkey pepperoni that I apparently did not have the skill to cut into hearts.

{5♥} English butter fudge

I love you, Trader Joe’s; this was the single best candy I’ve ever eaten. If you’re a fan of penuche/praline/brown sugar I recommend you buy this immediately.

Have a nice weekend!

13Feb2017

Bubbles And Bagels

by Emily

Highlights from this weekend…

I finally used my new milk foamer!

Valentine’s goodies from Doughnut Plant, honey with bee pollen and a rose doughseed with fantasmic rose cream.

Poppy seed bagel with jalapeño-cheddar cream cheese.

Cheddar scrambled eggs with quinoa bread toast and coffee.

Lunch at Wilma Jean.

Pimento cheese dip with tortilla chips.

Fried chicken tacos with cilantro and buttermilk dressing // shaved collard green salad with pecans and lemon vinaigrette.

Then we spent the afternoon wandering around Cobble Hill drinking coffee and eating dessert.

Coffee éclair.

Cookie butter rolled ice cream with mochi, toasted marshmallow, and sprinkles.

A quick and cheap version of salmon niçoise salad – greens with honey mustard dressing, canned salmon, roasted green beans, and crispy potatoes.

Have a happy Valentine’s tomorrow!

6Feb2017

Walking Weekend

by Emily

I didn’t watch any of the game, but my weekend sure was super. Saturday morning Adam and I woke up extra early and went into the city to watch the sunrise. We parked in Dumbo, walked across the Brooklyn Bridge, wandered around lower Manhattan, and then walked around Chelsea. Then we took the subway to Park Slope, did a long loop through our old neighborhood, and walked back through Fort Greene to our car in Dumbo. Throughout the day we ended up walking >11 miles.

Of course, the minute the sunrise started getting gorgeous my camera started dying/getting too cold to function.

We punctuated our walk with stops for coffees and desserts, but most of it went unphotographed due to my technical difficulties. Highlights included a dulce de leche iced coffee from Terremoto turned into an affogato with a scoop of goat milk tahini ice cream from Seed + Mill.

I did manage to get a shot of breakfast #1, at the Oculus. We split a “hell of a nerve” from Joe and the Juice – banana, elderflower, and strawberry juice.

Plus pastries and lattes at Eataly (with sips of Italian cola). I got a cream filled croissant; the pastry wasn’t flaky enough for me but the cream was fantastic and I ate it out with a spoon!

And I had to Instagram breakfast #2 at Santina.

I had a fantasmic egg sandwich. Fluffy egg on a soft bun with tons of fontina cheese and green chiles. I pretty much swooned after every bite.

Friday’s breakfast was a smoothie. Frozen strawberries with plain Greek yogurt and chocolate-mint soy milk.

And Sunday I made an egg sandwich at home. Smoked gouda and a fried egg on a brioche bun.

Another highlight was dinner at Pig Beach. We loved their vibe and their great 90’s music playlist <== we listened to “Pony” by Ginuwine! There weren’t a ton of menu options for me so I ordered some sides and then got some from Whole Food’s hot bar later on.

Macaroni and cheese, yummy purple cole slaw, and buckeyes for dessert. Plus a 10/10 vodka soda and an amazing drink with vodka, honey, and rosé.

I may not have watched the Super Bowl, but I definitely spent Sunday making and eating on-themed foods! We had nachos with buffalo chicken on TJ’s honey butter chips.

Muddy Buddies – made with Biscoff cookie butter instead of peanut butter because I’m bringing them into work at there’s a nut allergy.

And I used a fun product sample from Moore’s Marinades to make my buffalo chicken baked pasta.

I used their Blue Cheese Buffalo Wing Sauce – instead of putting in hot sauce and blue cheese separately – and my pasta came out great. P.S. heat haters, this sauce is more tangy than spicy and I recommend it for wimps too.

Have a super week!

23Jan2017

Warm Weekend Winners

by Emily

It was 50 degrees outside this weekend! Twice!! I had an absolute blast pulling out my flip flops and spring jacket.

Conveniently, my favorite things from the past three days make one complete day’s worth of meals…

{coffee}

Maple Shay, a nonfat iced latte with maple syrup from Brooklyn Roasting Company. I need to put maple into more of my lattes, it really is fantastic.

{breakfast}

Brunch at Colonie. I had the dandelion greens salad – with walnut, anchovy, tarragon, parsley, and a poached egg. It was actually kind of terrible, beyond bitter, but thankfully Adam shared his duck hash with me.

And dessert was good! Eggnog panna cotta with bourbon and blood orange.

{lunch}

Whole Food’s hot bar. Clockwise from the bottom left – macaroni and cheese, buffalo-style seitan, roasted squash, roasted carrots, and honey Sriracha brussel sprouts. Whenever I hit a hot bar I try to pick a protein, mostly veggies, and the cheesiest starch available.

{dinner}

Tandoor Chef recently offered to send me some free-product coupons so I could try their frozen entrees. I’ve loved their Pad Thai for years so I readily accepted.

Adam reports that his chicken tikka masala was loaded with meat and that the sauce was creamy and well seasoned. My channa masala was tasty as well, and quite filling; there were 10 grams of protein and 14 grams of fiber for a 380 calorie serving.

I served our meals with roasted broccoli with green onion, gojuchang, and black sesame seeds.

{dessert}

Cake batter Cookie DŌ. Ready-to-eat dough with white chocolate chips and sprinkles.

{I love New York}

20Jan2017

Chocolate Strawberry And Banana Date

by Emily

A short post for a short week; here were my top five tastes…

Snack-pack lunch at work. Crispy broccoli, jerky(1), baby carrots, and a Cara Cara Orange.

I am a sucker for limited edition Oreos(2). I always eat them by splitting two in half to make one double-stuffed cookie.

Homemade dinner, chicken with bbq sauce, roasted asparagus, and another killer potato(3) recipe from Serious Eats.

Dinner out with a friend, I finally made it to Taïm and I loved it. We had sandwiches(4) and smoothies(5).

Smoked Salmon Maple Stick from EPIC
chocolate-covered strawberry limited edition Oreos
cheesy onion, bacon, and potato gratin
pita with balaganoush, tahini, Moroccan carrots, and pickled cabbage
date, lime, banana, and soy milk

17Jan2017

Long Weekend Top Five

by Emily

I had a very enjoyable weekend, including two fancy brunches and one entire day spent watching tv and eating nachos with a dog lounging in my lap. There have been some very enjoyable eats over the past four days too.

Here were the top five…

{1} The final serving of my new favorite coffee combo.

Texas pecan cold brew + sweet buttercream creamer + ice + a straw = a very happy Emily. Adam loved it too.

{2} Brunch at Gristmill in Park Slope.

We adored it and will definitely be back for dinner. They are known for their garlic knots and that morning they had an everything garlic knot for The Loxness Knotster – with pastrami smoked salmon from ACME, cream cheese, ricotta, and dill.

I got a Brunch Punch – with rum, lemon-lime shrub, grenadine, cinnamon, and clove. It was so pink!

Plus spicy potato hash with carrots, arugula, and poached egg. This dish was soooo balanced and just a joy to eat.

{3} Brunch at Sunday in Brooklyn in Williamsburg.

I had an egg sandwich on brioche with gochujang aioli, crispy potatoes, and cheddar. Plus a toasted oak soda with a shot of vodka. <– such a genius idea that the owner came by and nodded his approval.

{4} Super soup.

Served with ridiculously cheesy buttered toast.

Yellow onion, celery, green bell pepper, and carrot sautéed in evoo / white miso / low-sodium chicken broth / shredded turkey breast / pesto tortellini. The soup was super easy since I already had the cooked meat in my freezer. I boiled the pasta in my broth and it came out great.

{5} Okonomiyaki aka Japanese cabbage pancake.

Thank you, Serious Eats, for introducing me to another new yummy thing.

Served with quick salads of celery, red bell pepper, basil, and green onion, in a mustard vinaigrette.

My pans stick so my okonomiyaki came out in pieces, but you could hardly tell once I smothered it in toppings! Cabbage and Japanese sweet potato pancake / fish sauce aioli / gochujang / roasted seaweed / black sesame seeds / green onion.

Next week is going to be less exotic but more cheesy, I’m making a gratin!

Eating Chalk

Tag Archives: restaurant food

Coffee, Doughnuts, And Quinoa

Channeling Leslie Knope, Ron Swanson, and Christopher Turk

♥♥♥

Bubbles And Bagels

Walking Weekend

Warm Weekend Winners

Chocolate Strawberry And Banana Date

Long Weekend Top Five