Five favorites from the weekend…
New York Beanery s’mores iced latte.
Nectarines. Summer fruit is so good!
Giant double chocolate chip – white and milk! – cookies (this recipe).
Thai take-out! I got chicken Pad See Ew and Ma Khue Puang (stir-fried eggplant with chili sauce and lime leaves).
Mish-mash but it works salad. Baby kale with honey chipotle vinaigrette / leftover eggplant / baby bell pepper / cashews / crispy tofu – marinated in pickle juice, breaded in Cheez-Its, and baked.
Highlights from this week…
I took myself on a sunny coffee date to Wired on my day off. Espresso with marshmallow and Oreo cold foam.
Blackberries and a blood orange. So pretty!
Snack plate – corn nuts, smoked almonds, cacao almonds, blackberries, vegan jerky, and salmon jerky.
Loved both of these summer-y seltzers; the Polar was so pineapple-forward!
These marshmallows were so asthetically pleasing and so terrible (crumbly and very odd tasting).
But I used the vanilla ones to make homemade Snickers! This nougat recipe with salted peanuts and caramels folded in, topped with milk chocolate.
I was actively grocery shopping when I saw this week’s Roast specials and I changed my list to accomodate a night of take-out. Crunchwrap with honey Sriracha fried chicken, cheddar, coleslaw, french fries, and sweet chili aioli / buffalo chicken mac and cheese balls / roasted zucchini from home.
Filipino-ish dinner bowls. Ground turkey sauteed with tons of sisig seasoning, red and sweet onion, eggplant, and crispy baked shredded tofu. On a base of rice noodles tossed in chili crisp.
Bagel and lox inspired salad – romaine (with ranch, I was too lazy to figure out a cream cheese dressing), tons of fresh dill, quick-pickled red onion, hot smoked sockeye salmon, and everything seasoning roasted chickpeas.
I worked this weekend and things were pretty hectic but thankfully I finally made it to the grocery from vacation and we were able to enjoy some great dinners. Highlights from the past three days include…
I tried and loved the new layers Perfect Bars. The oat crisps on top were perfect.
Chewy doughnuts from Paris Baguette – mochi, lemon cronut, and cream cheese filled mochi. We have been very impressed by every item we have tried from PB.
A former intern brought us in goodies including baklava and halvah.
Onda‘s canned tequilla seltzers are solid, this strawberry flavor is quite drinkable.
I 12/10 loved this Social Hour Sunkissed Fizz canned cocktail with vodka, yuzu, peach, key lime, and jasmine. I carted this home from a liquor store in Midtown and it exceeded my expectations. Very smooth, very boozy, not too sweet.
I turned my leftover Pecking House chicken-seasoned fries into something amazing. Leftover fries crisped under the broiler / Kewpie mayo / baby broccoli sauted with tons of garlic / Trader Joe’s teriyaki baked tofu / chili crisp.
Cuban sandwich inspired salads. Romaine / leftover garlic broccoli / homemade yellow mustard vinaigrette (equal parts mustard, mayo, vinegar, olive oil, and lemon juice, plus a pinch of salt) / homemade croutons / Jarlsberg cheese and sliced pork for Adam and smoked turkey for me. I forgot the chopped pickles, which is devestating, but this was still a fantastic salad.
Reuben sandwich inspired okonomiyaki. Shredded yellow potato (squeezed as dry as possible and microwaved for three minutes) / shredded cabbage and chopped green onion (baked for 20 minutes) / in a batter with minced ginger, white pepper, salt, gochugaru, eggs, flour, and ginger seltzer / stuffed with sliced roast beef and Jarlsberg / then cooked in a wide pan in canola oil / topped with homemade Russian dressing.
Highlights from the week…
Dessert-y yogurt bowl. Vanilla skyr with condensed milk, strawberries, banana, cornflakes, and sprinkles.
These jelly beans really do taste like Froot Loops!
We got chips and quesadillas from Chipotle with their new chicken al pastor and it was actually pretty great.
We went to Long Island Pekin this week for duck (sans camera) and it blew our minds! I ate leftovers with other leftovers and it was a great meal.
Bibimbap-inspired veggie bowls. Riced broccoli sauteed with white pepper and sesame seeds / crispy tofu shreds – extra-firm tofu that I shredded, tossed with evoo and gojuchang, then baked / bean sprouts / gojuchang / cucumber / sauteed baby shitake mushrooms and green onion / fried egg.
Roasted cauliflower with crispy white beans – tossed in evoo, cornstarch, furikake, gochugaru, and ranch seasoning then baked.
It was a wonderful weekend! Adam and I had a ton of time together, the weather was gorgeous, and we took some great walks around the Lower East Side and Williamsburg and admired the spring flowers. Also we went on a million and one dates; our fridge is stuffed to the brim with leftovers – a very good problem to have!
Some highlights include…
Iced coffee with ube cold foam.
Dalgona iced latte with strawberry milk and and a dreamy packet of peaflower and edible glitter!
Iced matcha with ginger sparkling water and fresh-squeezed orange juice.
Pazazz apple – a good spring choice, sweet and crispy.
Butterdose. Cream puffs – yuzu, ube coconut, and an Easter special with Cadbury eggs, Oreo, whipped cream frosting, and cream cheese filling.
Levain. This dark chocolate chocolate chip cookie tastes exactly like brownie batter and was the #1 best thing I ate all weekend.
Lindens. This meal was pretty unforgettable; the space was gorgeous and it was hands-down the best service I have ever experienced at a restaurant. We will be going back!
Lavender Daisy – pisco, gin, lavender, concord grape jam, lemon, club soda, and egg white.
Rosemary spiced margarita with mezcal, habanero, grapefruit, and agave.
Parker house rolls with grilled ramp butter. Tempura artichoke, maitake, and broccolini with chili oil and a cilantro yogurt sauce.
Herbed shoestring fries with a truffle aioli. 3rd best thing I ate this weekend and easily the best fries I’ve eaten the past 5 years.
Cheeseburger with grilled onion and cherry pepper relish.
Ocean Code. We had a highball with kyoho grape syrup.
Oden – beef, black fungus, daikon, tofu, and an inari-wrapped mochi ball in a super flavorful broth.
I had the spicy tuna rice bowl.
Okka. Very good cortado and Turkish coffee, plus baklava.
OTB. My favorite bar food in Brooklyn. The fantastic cup on the left was a frozen mojito.
Nuggets and chili cheese fries.
Rule of Thirds. Chiba Surf Club – yuzu sake, lillet, strawberry, sparkling wine, and fresh chives.
Douglas Fir-Banks – sesame shochu, gin, peach, vetiver, lime, umeboshi, and douglas fir. Plus a hojicha iced latte that was the 2nd best thing I ate this weekend.
Souffle pancake.
Japanese omelette sandwich on milk bread with miso mayo and yuzu cucumbers.
Smashed potatoes with mushrooms, hatcho miso, and a poached egg.
Some highlights from this tasty week include butterscotch, butterfingers, and butternut squash…
I bought this Monin butterscotch syrup for coffees (and ocassionally Diet Cokes!) and have really been enjoying it.
I also made an ube Vietnamese iced coffee one day.
Another fun beverage – sparkling pomelo iced matcha.
Creamy peach smoothie; frozen peaches and banana with plain skyr and cottage cheese. I will definitely be adding cottage cheese to my shopping list more often.
Voodoo-seasoned pretzel sticks.
We made Butterfinger-inspired no bakes and they were 11/10. Just crushed corn flakes with salt, peanut butter, melted butter, honey, and melted chocolate.
Many of this week’s dinners paired perfectly with dipping sauces. Baked french fries / buffalo chicken meatballs – ground chicken, egg, panko, a splash of half and half, buffalo sauce, shredded gouda, sliced green onions / roasted zucchini tossed in smoked paprika and Trader Joe’s ranch seasoning blend.
Oven-fried extra-firm tofu – marinated in pickle juice and breaded with crushed voodoo pretzels. Plus roasted baby cauliflower.
I had some leftover restaurant/take-out veggies saved in the freezer – spicy baby cauliflower from a Chinese place and garlic Chinese broccoli from a Thai place – which reheated quickly. With Trader Joe’s chicken and cilantro mini wontons.
Smoky broccoli salad – it was so good I gave it a recipe page! – with roasted butternut squash.
Highlights from the weekend…
Passionfruit Coffee. This was a quad skim iced latte with caramelized milk chocolate sauce.
We are head over heels for these Nightingale ice cream sandwiches. Adam is a traditionalist but this cinnamon roll variety is my favorite.
We went to Food Bazaar recently (home of Rokstar Chicken) and brought home some great snacks. This weekend I enjoyed key lime grapefruit Polar seltzer,
honey butter chips,
Jom gummy candy,
and spicy beef ramen.
We waited in line two and a half hours for Cuts and Slices pizza — worth it! We got chopped cheese, chicken and wafles, jerk chicken, and stewed oxtail.
Lunch at For Five – I had a turkey Cuban.
Leftovers from a wonderful lunch at Mao Mao (I didn’t have my camera). Fried fish cakes with sweet chili sauce / steamed dumplings with chicken, shrimp, and mushroom / vegetarian rice rolls. We also had great poached chicken with chicken fat rice.
Roasted sheetpan hash. Fennel, bok choy, purple sweet potato, chicken pesto sausage, soy puffs, mint, and pesto.
Some highlights from the weekend…
Cherry cheesecake smoothie. Frozen cherries with Greek yogurt, cream cheese, maple, and cinnamon.
Soursop drinkable yogurt.
Candy cane hard seltzer; this was out of season but I loved it and would buy more in a heartbeat.
Bon Appetit’s sheet-pan orange tofu and broccoli. I added toasted cashews and we really enjoyed it.
Turkey chili with white beans, bell peppers, and poblano peppers. I cooked the ground turkey with toasted rice powder and fish sauce and this came out great. I topped my bowl with plain Greek yogurt, pickled jalopenos, and tons of hot sauce and sharp cheddar.
Eating Chalk 