Roosevelt Island

by Emily

My three favorite things this weekend…

{1} Really good coffee

Like maple iced lattes from Bittersweet, with nonfat milk and an extra shot.

Or iced lattes from Birch, with nonfat milk and an extra shot.

Birch is currently our favorite coffee in the city.

{2} Our first trip to Roosevelt Island

We were completely smitten and now I want to move there. You can walk along the water and the views of the city are fantastic. We spent an afternoon walking around the island.

We stopped at a farmer’s market and bought an almond croissant.

And swooned over Four Freedoms Park.

{3} Bona Bona at Smorgasburg

I had a cone of key lime pie ice cream with toasted marshmallow fluff on top!!

Have a great week!

22Sep2017

Law And Order SVU (Spectacular Vittles Unit)

by Emily

I still don’t want to talk about anything important. I’d rather think something else than the fact that my hometown was just ravaged by yet another hurricane. St. Thomas – and the devastated Caribbean as a whole – is pretty much all I’ve been thinking about for the past 2 weeks. Let’s talk about yummy food instead.

Three facts before we get into the meat of this post –

{1} I just learned that vittles is actually an outdated spelling of the word “victuals.”

{2} I was serving on the jury for a criminal case for the past 5 days. I don’t dread my civic duty at all, and it was a very positive experience. Deciding a verdict is an awesome responsibility and I feel like I got a learn a lot about our legal system over the past week.

{3} I have added to my apple stash! Gum, kombucha, and gummy bears, all of which I highly recommend, by the way.

Plus Noosa Yoghurt sent me a fun package of fall flavors, including one of their newest flavors – Apple!

The highlights…

This week’s coffee – Campfire Blend. Plus I purchased a latte every day on my lunch break.

Since I couldn’t have my camera with me in court, I’m missing a lot of my day-time eats this week, but I do have shots of my packed snacks (including a full lunch for my Thursday back at work). Maple Chobani with Heritage Flakes and a gingergold apple.

Apple Noosa with an apple bar. This Noosa really does taste like pie filling! The yogurt is soooo creamy and sweet and the apples are just a bit cinnamon-y.

Pink lady apple kombucha, cinnamon apple sauce, cinnamon apple oatmeal, and sour caramel apple gummy bears.

Snacks worth mentioning include: this 365 brand popcorn. It’s low sodium but totally not bland; I loved it and I usually won’t even eat bagged popcorn.

A yogurt bowl with chocolate Siggi’s yogurt, chopped plucot, granola, and a few caramel chips.

Trader Joe’s new peanut butter roundels. They are basically supersized peanut cups, so obviously we are obsessed.

It’s not officially fall until today, but we still made some cold weather comfort foods for dinners.

Grilled cheese sandwich on whole-wheat sourdough with labneh, sharp white cheddar, and a sprinkle of sumac.

Dipped in tomato soup (a low-sodium boxed variety from TJ’s that was good but not great).

With roasted squash.

I also made a ridiculously delicious Mac and Cheese and Greens casserole.

Make a roux with 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp flour // whisk in 1 cup skim milk and 8 cups baby spinach food processed until smooth with 3 Tbsp pesto and salt and pepper to taste // stir in 9 oz shredded sharp white cheddar and a healthy sprinkle of cayenne and smoked paprika // fold in 8 oz whole wheat shell pasta cooked according to package directions // pour into a casserole and top with 1 oz cheese // bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.

On the agenda this weekend? We’re hoping the weather holds out for a final trip to Smorgasburg and a first-time visit to Roosevelt Island.

18Sep2017

How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria

by Emily

My title is a tongue in cheek joke about how the weather channel is turning me into a crazy person this month. I was having such a good week too. The VI was finally getting some desperately needed federal assistance and national news coverage and my parents got cell service back and I was able to talk to my mom. But now, Maria is expected to hit the Virgin Islands as a category 3 hurricane this week. Fantastic.

I’m still not really feeling up to prattling on about my days, but I did have some fun this week so I’m posting a top five…

{1} favorite work bites

{a} coffee coffee coffee

{b} I am still obsessed with that Trader Joe’s nut and seed mix

{c} I also packed a nice tasting plate – dried apples, TJ’s crispy cheese bites, and a maple salmon bar.

{d} This cafeteria wrap was on point. Chicken / pinto beans / tomato / bell peppers / banana pepper / cheddar.

{2} apple eatventures

{a} I made caramel apple bread from scratch! Basically just pumpkin bread made with apple sauce instead of pumpkin puree and totally just an excuse to use these caramel chips.

{b} Caramel apple oatmeal. Rolled oats / caramel chips / cinnamon / chia seeds / dried apples.

{c} Caramel apple Twizzlers.

{d} Apple pie milkshake. Vanilla ice cream / Greek yogurt / applesauce/ cinnamon and gingerbread spice.

{3} cobb salad pasta salad

Whole wheat bowtie pasta / crumbled fancy aged blue cheese / turkey bacon / chopped chicken breast / hard-boiled eggs / diced avocado / shredded spinach / roasted baby tomatoes.

{4} a Mile End meal recreation

Mile End Deli has a Brussel sprouts dish on their menu that we were over the moon for, so I recreated it at home. Our version was roasted brussel sprouts / tossed with crispy turkey bacon / plus olive oil and honey / sprinkled with sumac / on a base of labne.

While we cooked – which took no time at all – we sipped on Switchel.

Up Mountain Switchel sent me a box for review. The lemon flavor was too spicy ginger for me, but I loved the Yerba Mate. The ingredients list is short and simple (the four things listed on the front of the bottle plus water) and a serving has 54 calories and 10 grams of sugar. It paired nicely with our meal and would be a good alternative option to booze or soda with dinner.

{5} a trip to the South Fork of the Hamptons

{a} Doughnuts and coffee at Grindstone.

I had a Nutella s’mores brioche doughnut and a vanilla latte.

{b} La Colombe black and tan (draft latte and cold brew) at Sag Town Coffee. P.S. Apparently I am obsessed with Sag Harbor, it is so cute!

{c} Lunch at Lunch. Instead of a lobster roll I went with the seafood chili – with a bloody mary – and was quite pleased with my choice.

{d} A cup of birthday cake ice cream at Scoop Du Jour.

{e} And best of all, we got to stick our toes in the sand at the beach.

It was a super foggy day and the crashing waves were gorgeous. Plus we saw about a million seagulls. <– best beach day ever

5Sep2017

Cinnamon And Marshmallow In My Coffee

by Emily

I have eaten some very yummy things over the past four days! Adam and I both worked the holiday, but first we got to spend almost two full weekend days together!!! Good times.

Things [literal things] that made me happy this weekend…

Thanks to all of Target’s cheap “back to school” goodies, we have a jazzy new shower curtain and bedspread.

The sheets underneath are pretty happy-making too.

A Saturday trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Such a fun way to spend a morning. We were expecting things to be sparse due to the season but there was still a ton of beauty to admire.

As of last Friday, it’s Apple Month.

This spiced apple bourbon hand soap is currently the best smelling thing in our house!

Culinary highlights…

I haven’t eaten anything apple yet but I did cram some pretty fall-forward flavors into my coffees. Cinnamon.

And toasted marshmallow.

Though I also had a very summer-y Australian iced coffee with Wandering Bear cold brew and vanilla Curious Creamery ice cream.

Cheddar-chive biscuit and a matcha iced latte at Annex.

Brunch at Maison Premiere. We had a pastry assortment that was out of this world.

Maison Jungle Bird – Hamilton Black Rum, Cruzan Black Strap Rum, pineapple, Campari, and sugar cane.

I had the duck confit hash with bell pepper and poached egg. <– not as good as Colonie, sadly

While at the Garden, we had lunch at the Yellow Magnolia Café. (<– newest venture from the chef/owner of Wilma Jean)

I had wonderfully crispy, lemony fried chicken. Served with habanero honey, collard green slaw, and delicious wild rice. I suspect that there was honey butter in the rice because I don’t even like wild rice.

We took a long post-lunch walk for coffee and ended up also getting ice cream for dessert – blueberry with blue velvet cake from Little Cupcake Bakeshop.

Friday night I met a girlfriend in the Lower East Side for dinner and drinks. Sizzling noodles at The Tang.

I ended up with way too much food because I also couldn’t resist the Chungking Express salad – romaine, soft-boiled egg, honey, black vinegar, and chili oil.

How fantastically ridiculous are the drinks at Mother of Pearl?! My daiquiri – with Campari, grapefruit, and rosemary tincture – was tasty to boot.

We made an oldie but a goodie – buffalo blue cheese black bean burgers. Served with raw carrots and celery the first night.

Our citrus-y sip-while-you-cook line up did not contain any winners, we hated both of these drinks! <– normally I wouldn’t include this in a “highlights” section but they both sound so good in theory that I wanted to make sure I warned you

Sunday night I got fancy with a Southern dinner.

Pan-fried catfish! I made a spice rub with salt, pepper, cayenne, cumin, brown sugar, and smoked paprika and cooked the fish for 3.5 minutes on each side. Drizzled with a lemon butter pan sauce.

Plus sautéed collard greens with shallots, toasted coconut, and avocado (plus lemon, rice vinegar, and liquid smoke).

Flavor themes of the weekend – Campari / eggs / coffee / collard greens.

2Sep2017

Buffalo Chicken Ballyhoo

by Emily

Is it seriously September already?? Actually, don’t answer that; if I think about how fast this year seems to be going it makes my head spin. At least now it’s Apple Month.

Here were eight things from the end of the eighth month…

{1} coffee excitement

A match made in heaven? I put creamy pecan popsicle in my iced coffee.

The lattes at Black Brick are roasty and delicious.

{2} brunch at Loosie’s Café

This space was gorgeous! I had a grains bowl with shitake and king oyster mushrooms, purple kale, quinoa, roasted beets, cucumber raita, mint, and a soft egg.

{3} “milk and cookies” at The Bedford

Adam and I split a The Dude’s Caucasian – house-made vanilla bean espresso vodka on the rocks with a drizzle of cream.

And a Drunken Cookie – underbaked chocolate chip cookie dough stuffed injected with white chocolate. <– omg

{4} lime, mint, and elderflower sparkling water

{5} Curious Creamery ice cream mix

Please note – this product was given to me free of charge to review. I was not provided further compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.

It is mix that doesn’t require an ice cream maker, all you have to do is beat it with the milk of your choice and freeze. It takes about 15 minutes of hands-on time, and we found the ice cream consistency to be enjoyable after 5 hours (and it continued to be good 48 hours later too).

I used 2% cow’s milk but you can also use full-fat, skim, almond, etc – the mixes themselves are lactose-free and have no trans or saturated fat. I made the vanilla packet plain – Adam thinks it tastes like marshmallows! – and the chocolate I mixed with dulce de leche and roasted pecans for a turtle sundae.

We didn’t love the final product, but did quite like it. I’d say the ice cream is better than 7-11 brand, Turkey Hill, or the no-name stuff at cafeterias; on par with most store-bought ice creams; and not as good as Ben and Jerry’s or the ice cream we can get at places like Ample Hills or Ice and Vice in the city. If I’m living somewhere that isn’t NYC in the future I would definitely make it again.

{6} the last of the seasonal summer beers

These ended up being two of my all-time favorite strawberry beers. Shiner Strawberry Blonde / Saranac Strawberry Tart.

{7} out-of-this-world good buffalo chicken tenders

I base all of my “oven-fried” chicken on this recipe from A Cozy Kitchen. I used skinless, boneless chicken breast tenders and baked for 24 minutes at 425 degrees. I mixed smoked paprika and cayenne in with my flour and used panko as my bread crumb.

The final product was tossed with a mix of buffalo sauce, butter, and brown sugar.

Paired with carrots and celery – steam/sautéed and finished with thyme honey balsamic vinaigrette – to keep the theme going.

{8} buffalo chicken and blue cheese cheese fries

Our leftover chicken got to participate in something magical – waffle fries baked with cheddar, blue cheese, and buffalo chicken on top.

Have a great weekend.

21Aug2017

Stuffed (With) Ice Cream

by Emily

Yummiest bites from the weekend…

Maple iced latte at Otha’s.

Ice cream stuffed doughnut at Stuffed. With Vietnamese coffee ice cream and Oreos. Afters Ice Cream in LA was better.

Okonomiyaki fries at 375 Fries. Triple-fried spuds / Kewpie mayo / okonomi sauce / bonito flakes / nori furikake / pickled ginger / scallions.

Rachel Ray’s toasted penne alla vodka.

Other than using whole-wheat orecchiette pasta, I actually followed the recipe for once. I did upgrade to baby heirloom tomatoes though.

With roasted zucchini.

Time for the work week.

19Aug2017

Couch Potato, Twice Baked

by Emily

This past week I came home from vacation and went back to work. It wasn’t all bad, the end of vacation means I get to see this face –

We made it home in time to celebrate his Buyday. With steak!

Here are the highlights of what the humans ate this week…

Coffee (coffee! coffee!). Wicked Joe Coffee sent me some samples. WJC is a sustainable, family-owned company producing certified organic, fair trade coffees. They offered to let me try out the goods in celebration of the fact that they are available in 247 Sprouts Farmers Markets nationwide.

I tried both blends (cooked in our drip coffee maker than cooled and served iced) black and with skim milk to taste-test and give them two thumbs up! I also did some fun, sugary coffee pairings based on the tasting notes to jazz up my return to work mornings. Wicked French says “bakers chocolate with an unexpected hint of sweetness” so I used fancy chocolate milk.

Big House has “sweet notes of caramel and citrus” so I swirled in dulce de leche.

Yogurt bowls. Vanilla almond granola / cloudberry peach skyr / and three(!) colors of plucots.

Passion fruit Fage / an apple / and an Rx Kids chocolate chip bar.

I snuck in one last day of midweek vacation with Adam on Wednesday and we went on a lunch date at the gorgeously cool Chaan Teng in Hell’s Kitchen.

I had shrimp and chicken dumplings to start.

And a sweet and spicy cocktail with tequila, tamarind, basil, Szechuan peppercorns, mango juice, lime, and chili.

They had kung pow duck! With chilis , peppers, peanuts, and jicama.

Snack attack. We finally got to Astoria to try Chip. My s’mores cookie was gooey perfection and now I can’t wait to go back.

Cola candies.

Korean Chili KIND bar. <– I like their savory flavors even better than the sweet

These dried mangos from TJ’s are out of this world good.

If you stretch the definition of “cooked” to its limit, I made five nights of home-cooked dinners! Turkey and sharp cheddar sandwich on a toasted whole-wheat croissant.

BBQ chicken salad. Local greens / ranch / baby heirloom tomatoes / pulled chicken breast with Korean bbq sauce / smoked cheddar.

An assortment of freezer items, and eggplant that I actually cooked myself.

TJ’s Thai sweet chili veggie burgers.

Crinkle cut fries (with ketchup and mayo).

Steamed/sautéed eggplant cooked with canola oil, fish sauce, gojuchang, honey, and garlic scapes.

I made pimento cheese twice baked potatoes!

This was my first time making twice backed spuds (or even eating them for that matter) but they came out great. The filling was a mix of potato / extra-sharp cheddar / diced pimentos / mayo / smoked paprika and cayenne.

Served with baked tofu.

And beautiful roasted purple and orange cauliflower.

The potatoes were great leftover too.

With leftover duck that I chopped up and reheated in a skillet.

And oven-baked okra fries.

Have a great weekend!

Eating Chalk

Tag Archives: sweet

Roosevelt Island

Law And Order SVU (Spectacular Vittles Unit)

How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria

Cinnamon And Marshmallow In My Coffee

Buffalo Chicken Ballyhoo

Please note – this product was given to me free of charge to review. I was not provided further compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.

Stuffed (With) Ice Cream

Couch Potato, Twice Baked