Working Weekend Wrap-Up

by Emily

No traditional weekend for me, my only day off was Thursday. I’m actually working straight through this Thursday – 7 days in a row – which means next weekend will be a three-day extravaganza! It’s hard to complain about 7 days anyway, my last year at Buff State when I was doing school/internship/part-time job there were a few stretches where I went 30 days plus without a true day off.

The past 4 days in numbers –

glasses of iced coffee – 7
packed lunches – 0
product reviews* – 2
desserts – 10 billion
books read start to finish** – 1

notes: *the products were both sent to me free of charge and neither company gave me additional compensation for this post; **the book was a murder mystery that I actually hated but needed to know the ending to

Here are the highlights…

Key lime cookie from Schmackary’s.

With white chocolate, pistachios, and cream cheese icing. The middle is the best part.

Three new dark chocolate flavors of Nonni’s Almond THINaddictives* – Dark Chocolate Banana Almond, Dark Chocolate Cherry Almond, and Double Dark Chocolate Almond. FYI – hit up their Facebook page for a new flavors giveaway.

They are 70-80 calories per pack (2 thins) and crisp but not too crumbly. I though the double chocolate flavor was a bit plain but the cherry and banana had great notes of tart and sweet. This week I paired them with my coffee but I’m also looking forward to crumbling them into yogurts.

That combo is killer, Grady’s is thick and sweet and it makes my heart sing.

Traditional breakfast.

Potatoes, scrambled eggs, and (turkey) bacon. Covered in ketchup because I grew up in St. Thomas and we put ketchup on everything. <– real talk, I didn’t know that ketchup wasn’t an automatic pairing for chicken wings until I went to college; now I mostly use other condiments but scrambled eggs always get ketchup

The cafeteria is pretty grim over the weekend but Friday I did eat this seafood feast.

Fried shrimp, potato wedges, and vinegar-based cole slaw. We had leftover ice cream from our birthday party and I taught my coworkers about Australian iced coffees.

They loved it!

Since I didn’t have my yogurt lunches I got my probiotics in the form of Health-Ade Kombucha*.

Their small-batch (2.5 gallons) fizz is organic, vegan, kosher, and gluten-free. They do their fermenting in glass containers only and the bottles are fantastic and just begging to house a handful of wildflowers. Health-Ade generously sent me a case of Ginger Lemon.

I have to confess here that I actually kind of hate ginger. Nonetheless, I found the kombucha to be very enjoyable. The flavor behind the spice was very “clean” and just sweet enough. I still wouldn’t buy this flavor once I finish my samples but I will damn sure scoop up Pink Lady Apple or California Grape the minute I spot them. P.S. I brought a bottle to a ginger loving friend and she said it was hands down the best kombucha she’s ever tasted.

Date night in Hell’s Kitchen. My NCIS obsession finally paid off for Adam – I took us to Donna Bella Bake Shop because it’s co-owned by Pauley Perrette (aka lab tech Abby). We had a dreamy lemon bar and this delectable brownie with a cookie crust and ganache on top.

We walked past Room Service and decided to do Thai for dinner.

That guava mojito was terrible and weak. But the crispy duck salad wasn’t half bad.

I ordered the Pad Noh Mai for dinner, shrimps, minced chicken, fresh basils, Thai chili, and bamboo shoots with herbs chili paste garlic sauce.

The menu promised spice and it delivered. I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant though, Hell’s Kitchen is a bastion of excellent, authentic Thai restaurants and you can do better.

I cooked! A real dinner, a stew, made of vegetables no less. I put the crock pot to work for me, filled to its brim. Onion / garlic / carrot / kale / red bell pepper / white beans / red lentils / diced tomato / veggie broth.

I didn’t bother to season or brown anything so the end result was a little bland, but topped with melted cheese it was hearty and satisfying.

Three down, four to go.

28Jul2016

Birthday Staycation

by Emily

I’m running late posting but my birthday weekend was absolutely worth sharing. My parents were visiting, we spent time with one of my oldest childhood friends which feels very appropriate for a birthday, I had four days off of work (and Adam was free a bit too!), and we spent our days walking and eating.

I love when people visit because showing them around lets you take a vacation in your own town. Alphabetically, some of our stops included – Brookfield Place, Bushwick, Chelsea, Chelsea Piers, Greenwich Village, the Highline, the Mayorville petting zoo, Montauk, the Narrows botanical garden, Park Slope, Smorgasburg, and Williamsburg.

Here were the food highlights…

Terremoto Coffee.

Winter rose latte in a complimentary cup.

Bluestone Lane.

My Australian iced latte – with cocoa powder and ice cream – was deeply enjoyed as the days were hot, hot hot.

Corner of Vermont sells the best maple candies I’ve ever had.

And their maple soft serve is delightful.

Lunch in Montauk.

They are famous for lobster rolls but I went with the seafood chili this visit.

Chickpea & Olive at Smorgasburg.

Pulled BBQ jackfruit with Carolina slaw, bread & butter pickles, fried shallots, and horseradish aioli, on a potato bun. This was my first time trying jackfruit and I’m definitely a fan.

Chuko Ramen.

My parents both loved their chicken miso ramen. I topped mine with drippy egg and tons of chili garlic oil.

Montana Trail House.

I had a drink with hibiscus-infused rum! And another with Aperol and grapefruit.

We shared fried green tomato sliders and switchel glazed carrots.

And I stuck with veggies for my entrée and ordered the broccoli gratin.

Mostly because it came covered in pimento cheese.

Mile End Deli.

We started with the peppers and baba ghanoush. When you’re at ME you have to order poutine.

And I always order a turkey reuben.

I love New York.

22Jul2016

Birthday Week Eats

by Emily

I turn 31 this Sunday so this week is my birthday week. My parents timed their summer visit for this weekend so I’m off of work today and Monday and I’m pretty sure the four-day weekend will be the best gift I’ve ever given myself. I also pulled out this stash of cake flavored stuff I’ve been hoarding all year –

The Airhead wins as my favorite, it has sprinkles in it!

My other eats included…

Coffee.

We’ve had some big changes at work – that squeezed even more work into each day – and on top of them one of my coworkers has been out all week and I’ve been responsible for covering both intensive care units. <– I have needed so much coffee.

I didn’t have time to pack lunch one day and I cobbled together a pretty great reuben-ish wrap sandwich in the cafeteria – sliced turkey, swiss, cole slaw, pickles, and thousand island.

Yogurt lunches reign supreme. Plain Siggi’s with blackberries and coconut butter.

Cake yogurt with KIND maple granola and blackberries.

Have you done Chobani’s “Find Your Flavor Soulmate” flow chart?

What combo does your heart sing for? My answers lead me to sweet and spicy but as much as I love some sweet with my heat spiced yogurt just doesn’t appeal to me. Sweet with sweet is much more my speed. Like this Almond Coco Loco Flip that knocked my socks off with how fantastically creamy it was.

Speaking of sweet… I am still completely obsessed with Justin’s peanut butter cups, in all forms.

And I made the David Lebowitz chocolate chip cookies so my parents could try them, not that there are many left!

Best meal of the week – I made a variation on this recipe with turkey bacon, chopped spinach, and fresh mint. It was still delicious as cold leftovers.

Salad night. Romaine with ranch / turkey bacon / shrimp / carrots / tomato / fresh mint / swiss.

Paired with chips and dip because I’m fancy.

I picked my parents up from the airport last night. JFK is a nightmare so we stayed in Long Island afterwards and grabbed dinner at a little diner near their hotel. I actually got a pretty yummy Greek meal.

Salad with spinach pie.

Have a great weekend!

11Jul2016

A Bunch Of Brunch

by Emily

Chameleon’s Mexican coffee was delightful with a bit of milk. Related – I am in physical pain that I can’t find the Texas pecan near me.

Iced coffee is always good though.

This cup from Colonie was knock-your-socks-off good. There must have been a nitro tap somewhere because it was crazy velvety.

I went for brunch with a girlfriend and we were both blown away by my duck hash. With poached egg, red potatoes, roasted onion puree, and aioli. I’m usually not that excited by potatoes but these were crispy perfection.

Afterwards we went to Grand Army and had {too many!} drinks. We practically tried the whole cocktail menu and everything was fantastic!

Brunch numero dos at Tocolo Cantina. I had the mushroom taquitos – crispy tacos filled with roasted mushroom, corn, and Chihuahua cheese.

This cafeteria lunch wasn’t too bad either. My wrap sandwich had grilled chicken, cheddar, veggies, and cilantro.

Date shake smoothie. Plain Greek yogurt, vanilla almond milk, ice, dulce de leche, and fresh dates.

Lavender caramel. I brought these back from my Philly trip and I wish I’d bought more!

These leftovers eggs were better than they look. With chicken hot dog, baby spinach, yellow bell pepper, and gouda cheese.

A 2nd home-cooked dinner in one weekend?

These – only ok – salmon patties came from the freezer, but I did make the tartar sauce. Mayo, mustard, pickle relish, and dill.

And I assembled the salads myself. Romaine, ranch, heirloom baby tomatoes, pistachios, and an amazing blue cheese from Trader Joe’s.

1Jul2016

Weekly Wrap-Up

by Emily

Loves of Late

Family time: My parents were taking a quick vacation in Philadelphia this week and I took a mini road trip and drove up to spend the day with them! I love the Magic Garden mosaics.

TV: Rizzoli and Isles is on it’s final season and we have been loving it. It is the most unrealistic of the cop shows that I enjoy but it’s also very funny and heartwarming. All seasons are streaming on Hulu and I highly recommend going back to the beginning and giving it a watch. Also, the first three episodes of Documentary Now. Adam and I thought the 1st season went quickly downhill but the very first episodes are comedy gold.

Coffee: the beans we bought at Birch are fantastic, even when brewed in our crappy coffee pot at home.

Every time I go to Reading Terminal I hit Old City Coffee.

Also in Philly, I finally tried La Columbe.

Stuff: My new planner! I love new planners in general because I’m a dork but this one has shiny cut outs on the front. (from Blue Sky, fyi, but I couldn’t find it listed on the website)

I also just bought a shirt with cut outs on it, apparently that’s my summer trend.

The day I visited my parents we walked around the city all day and it was just so darn hot that we ended up buying me a new outfit so I could take the world’s most refreshing shower before dinner.

Eats

Coffee, duh! More cups than were shown above, obviously.

Terrible picture of the yummy pecan pastries a coworker brought it. She cut back on sugar which can leave baked goods overly tough but these ended up tasting like a pastry-scone hybrid.

Yogurt bowl – plain Greek with chopped red plum, granola, chia, and sprinkles.

Oatmeal bowl – with dark chocolate cacao nibs, chia, and coconut butter. Plus an apple on the side.

Chia pudding. The fizzy coconut water was horrible, btw.

When in Philly, (chicken) cheesesteak.

Pocky stick snack.

Turkey cheese roll ups.

Dinner at Devon Seafood with my parents.

I had the bouillabaisse.

Chipotle night, midweek road trips tire you out. My burrito was stuffed with chicken, pinto beans, peppers, cheese, sour cream, corn salsa, and lettuce.

Best for last, the one thing I actually cooked myself!

White quinoa / red lentils with lemon, tomato paste, and ginger / roasted zucchini and garlic sautéed mushrooms.

Have a great weekend!

27Jun2016

Queens International

by Emily

NYC readers – did you march/attend Pride Parade yesterday?? It was my weekend to cover work but I did manage to snag some on-theme treats (x2). And we didn’t have the energy to do much dinner cooking but we did have amazing Asian food in Queens (x2!).

Thursday through Sunday I worked every day but one so I’ve been drinking all of the coffee. Thanks to caffeine, this post is mostly a complete recap, I think I’m only missing one meal from each category. Here’s what I’ve got…

Seriously, all of the coffee. Always in the morning and a few times as an afternoon snack as well. Highlights include a latte from Hungry Ghost and a cold brew from Starbucks that I ordered full-strength (usually they add water).

With yummy bars. Coconut Chocolate Chip.

Caramel Almond.

A creamy tropical smoothie. Frozen mango, guava paste, avocado, and vanilla almond milk. I used a whole avocado (split into two servings) and I think next time I’d only use half, the creaminess was great but the flavor was a bit much for me.

Doughnut Plant‘s Pride doughnut = yeast with raspberry glaze.

Yogurt bowl. Strawberry lingonberry with real berries and Heritage Flakes.

Trail mix bags. The standout ingredient was cinnamon roasted chickpeas.

Mini peanut butter cups (x ten thousand) make the afternoons seem less lengthy.

Sandwich and fries on a busy day. I was worried about mealy tomatoes when I bought this but they ended up being roasted and the chew and smokiness totally made the sandwich. There was a nice layer of spinach on there too, it was actually a pretty sandwich.

Salad / mac and cheese / hardboiled eggs.

Another Pride treat, from Ample Hills. In a cone with oatmeal lace.

The Queens International Night Market was fun, like a smaller, more focused Smorgasburg.

We split a taro shaved ice with mango, scm, boba, and mochi.

I had a very disappointing duck bao.

And Filipino tacos that were absolutely one of the best dishes we’ve ever tasted. Chicken sigsig, crispy shells, and lemon mayo. They were such a pleasing mix of textures and flavors!

The Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens is basically just the storefront version of the market. I want to try something in practically ever window we walked by! I loved what I had too. Bahn Mi at JoJu.

My “Hot Chicken” had grilled lemongrass chicken with spicy mayo and kimchi, plus pickled vegetables, and a soft cooked egg. And for $5.99 it was giant, that picture only shows one half!

And afterwards we walked to Red Ribbon Bakeshop. The Ube Overload cake was gorgeous but bland and the Halo Halo was fantasmic. Shaved ice with various sweetened beans and fruits, milk , leche flan, and whipped mango topping.

My only “homecooked” meal was basically an assembly of parts but I ate chips and dips and three day old roasted broccoli for dinner while I wrote this post so I’ll pat myself on the back for it. Plus it was delicious.

Potato and onion pierogis with tons of roasted zucchini, tossed in a sauce made of cream cheese and chicken stock, topped with hot smoked salmon.

I only work four days this week thanks to the weekend shift, woo-hoo!

23Jun2016

Similar To Cake By The Ocean

by Emily

I’m mashing last weekend’s post into this week’s – and we’ve done a lot of good eating! – so I had to filter down to only the most delicious things. Here are the best bites from the top five categories…

{1} all the coffee!

We ordered The Unicorn at Box Kite, obviously.

We went to Birch Coffee and loved it so much that we went back at the end of the day to buy a bag of beans.

Then went back again a few days later for another latte!

Locally roasted coffee that comes in cups with trees on them is just too exciting. And there were birch trees etched into the sidewalk out front!

{2} protein-packed salads

Beans, eggs, and lots of fish. At Whole Foods – spring mix with tangerine vinaigrette / salmon / two kinds of bean salads / parmesan / and a hard-boiled egg.

At the cafeteria – romaine with blue cheese / veggies / corn / kidney beans / cheddar / egg. Plus my coworker brought me a giant piece of baked salmon and I tossed that on top too.

At the cafeteria when I worked last Sunday and pickings were getting slim – I did the best I could with fried fish and a steamed vegetable mix.

It wasn’t bad, but I did buy a train snack that night.

{3} killer sandwiches

Breakfast: egg and cheese on a croissant with turkey bacon.

Lunch: do taquitos count as sandwiches? I’m including them either way, because this lunch was too good not to share. Tortaria knocked our socks off. Adam and I split a platter with mahi and cauliflower (and pork for him). Plus spicy fries and tons of guacamole. And a tamarind agua fresca.

The sauces sitting on the tables – green salsa, blended salsa, and something creamy and smoky – were astonishingly good. And that ridiculous quantity of food (why include chips and fries in the same deal?!) cost less than twenty dollars.

Dinner: cod bahn mi at a new Vietnamese/taco spot in Park Slope.

Don’t question it, the combo worked, I went with a girlfriend who got tacos and we were both very pleased.

{4} sweet stuff

~~Cake by the ocean.~~ Cookies by the Hudson. We got giant chocolate chip walnut cookies from Levain and enjoyed them in Riverside Park.

Tropical smoothie at home. Frozen mango and soursop with guava paste and vanilla almond milk.

Ben & Jerry’s Empower-Mint flavor is yummy and it supports an important cause.

Siggi’s yogurt with berries and shredded halvah.

Birthday cake croissant from Union Fare. It’s topped with ground sprinkle dust and filled with sprinkle-studded pastry cream!

It was also just one of the best croissant we’ve ever tasted.

{5} hearty homemade dinners

Spanish flavors reigned supreme on the home front this week. Tomato garlic crock pot chicken served with brown rice tossed with garlic, tomato paste, raisins, and chopped olives. Plus roasted broccoli.

I also made fantastic enchiladas.

Whole Foods’ roasted garlic green chile enchilada sauce costs a ridiculous $4+ per can and it is soooo good. Our filling was ground turkey breast cooked with TJ’s vegan chorizo and tons of roasted yellow squash and zucchini. Plus cheese galore.

17Jun2016

Wrap Up, Guava Cheese Week

by Emily

Important things first, check out this fantastic photo I snapped of the dog:

He is my favorite!

This week’s meals were themed around one of my culinary favorites – guava and cheese. We put this carton of guava paste to very good use.

There’s some leftover and we have big plans for tropical smoothies.

I didn’t do the best job of taking photos this week – there’s at least one day missing from each meal category – but I did capture the really yummy stuff…

I didn’t make coffee at home so I had to get my fix from Starbucks and the coffee shop at work. We had a freebie ready on our registered Starbucks card so I got to go a little crazy.

Have you registered your Starbucks card yet? Do it! Even if you only stop in occasionally the rewards and perks add up quickly.

With an eggtastic sandwich.

With cheddar and turkey bacon on toasted whole-wheat.

And a really fantastic Larabar.

Hazelnut, hemp, and crunchy bits of cacao

This kombucha and seltzer were both on top of their game.

Sadly the mango coconut chia pudding from Trader Joe’s was not to my taste at all. I threw it out two bites in and headed to the cafeteria instead.

Oatmeal day. Chia, cashews, freeze-dried berries, and cookie butter on top.

Plus a sweet and juicy Smitten apple.

I even brought guava for lunch one day.

With white nectarine, granola, and the last of some plain Greek yogurt.

It was a very snacky week but the only thing I managed a picture of were these mini pb cups.

I recommend them highly.

Guava cheese week win – quesadillas!

We spread flour tortillas with guava pasta, smothered them in low-fat shredded mozzarella, and pan cooked them with a bit of evoo.

Plus roasted green beans.

These were basically the un-fried version of the empanada I’m obsessed with from the truck in downtown Brooklyn.

We also made pizza.

On TJ’s frozen thin crust (our favorite) with turkey summer sausage on top. Amazing.

Yesterday we happily skipped guava and cheese in favor of a date night dinner at Pig & Khao. This Burmese eggplant salad was one of the best dishes we’ve ever put in our faces.

Grilled eggplant, peanuts, dried shrimp, and mint, scooped with shrimp chips. Umami. Neither of us could stop raving about it.

My Khao Soi wasn’t bad either. Red curry, coconut milk, chicken, egg noodles, pickled mustard greens, and red onions.

Slurping long noodles meant I ended up head to toe covered in red curry but it was worth it.

I cooled down my mouth with the Ginpo.

Gin, grapefruit, cinnamon, and prosecco.

While we were in the neighborhood, we finally checked out the Magnum store. It’s the famous ice cream bars hand-dipped in chocolate and sprinkled and drizzled with your 3 choices from the toppings bar.

We got vanilla / dipped in milk chocolate / topped with gold flake, rose petals, and espresso sugar / drizzled with dark chocolate. It was good, the shell was wonderfully thick, but I was definitely glad Adam was there to share with me.

Eating Chalk

Tag Archives: seafood

Working Weekend Wrap-Up

Birthday Staycation

Birthday Week Eats

A Bunch Of Brunch

Weekly Wrap-Up

Loves of Late

Eats

Queens International

Similar To Cake By The Ocean

Wrap Up, Guava Cheese Week