Tag Archives: tofu

Pierogi, Calzone, Hot Pockets

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This week’s dinner theme has to be my most unhinged — foods in an edible package. I am mentally categorizing “edible packages” as packets, by the way (i.e. no turducken!).

Mochi-wrapped ice cream. This milk tea flavor from Bubbies was fantastic and these are possibly the best ice cream mochi I’ve ever eaten.

Gummy mangos in an edible candy peel. The peelable gummies from Walgreens are top tier. It was a yummy week!

Rice noodle rolls with shrimp. From Trader Joe’s.

Soup dumplings. We went to Nan Xiang to try their chicken soup dumplings and thought they were great.

We also had their mustard greens with tofu skin and edamame which were good.

And their stir-fried rice cakes with shredded beef which were only ok.

And ube bao stuffed with red bean paste (more packets!).

Potstickers. Trader Joe’s chicken and vegetables. Paired with roasted broccoli and a dumpling salsa inspired by Leah Cohen (crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, gochugaru, sugar, Fly by Jing Sichuan chili oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, Shaoxing wine, garlic, ginger, and green onions).

Tortellini. Whole Foods kale and cheese. We tossed them with orange baby tomatoes, roasted zucchini, baked chicken, sharp cheddar cubes, and a green sauce (fresh baby spinach food-processed with evoo, chili oil, sesame oil, salt, garlic, and walnuts).

Samosas. Trader Joe’s mini vegetable ones. Paired with curry cauliflower (roasted cauliflower sauteed with evoo, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and Jamaican curry powder) with pickled red onions and fried eggs.

P.S. We’re going to Queens for empanadas tonight. Other than the other thousand varieties of things stuffed into pastas, did I miss any??

Word Salad

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We don’t always have a weekly dinner theme (often!) but I do have several queued up in a row. This week was SALAD…

Fruit salad skyr bowl. Plain Siggi’s with blueberries, blackberries, mango, and kiwi.

Candy salad! A mix of Nerds Easter items and sour tropical Mike and Ike’s (<– wonderful).

Dinners are listed from least to most favorite (though we quite enjoyed them all). Shredded tofu salad. Super firm tofu (shredded and tossed with evoo, hoisin, and gochujang and then baked until crispy) with roasted cabbage, scallions, bell peppers, and peanut sauce (chunky peanut butter, lime juice, rice vinegar, horseradish Sriracha aioli, sugar, and a bit of water).

Lox bagel inspired salad. Romaine, roasted garlic dijon dressing, hot-smoked sockeye salmon, Biena everything chickpea snacks, capers, cucumber, and pickled red onion.

Nacho chicken salad. Baked chicken, poblano pepper, tomato, scallion, black beans, sharp cheddar, Quest nacho cheese and loaded taco flavored protein chips, plain skyr, mayo, lemon, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Plus roasted cauliflower.

Loaded tuna salad. Canned tuna and smoked trout with mayo, dijon, salt and pepper kettle chips, scallions, sweet baby gherkins, and Trader Joe’s hot and sweet pickled jalapenos. Plus a big pile of roasted green beans.

Hoppy Easter

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Somethings from this week, mostly on-theme and/or coffee…

No one is surprised that I’ve been buying Easter candies for months.

I also have been saving up lemon and coconut bars. The Melo bars are all 10/10 but the lemon flavor is actually my favorite. I also was very pleased with how lemony the 88 Acres one was.

Buzz’d Express Coffee‘s marshmallow Peep cold foam cold brew is maybe my favorite coffee of 2025.

I also made my own version with toasted birthday cake Peeps blended into an iced coffee with cream, sugar, vanilla bean powder, and vanilla extract.

Coconut water with dalgona-style espresso (9/10).

A spring-y cottage cheese bowl with leftover fermented banana cake, kiwi, blackberries, and edible flowers.

Trader Joe’s dried baby pineapples. These are nicely sweet and chewy.

We tried the rice paper noodles hack with brown rice spring roll wrappers (loved it, the chew was perfect). Stir-fried with Pad See Ew sauce, baked chicken, green onion, broccolini, and egg.

Buffalo chicken cabbage bowls. I made a cole slaw with green cabbage, green onion, tomato, Greek yogurt, mayo, dijon mustard, vinegar, white pepper, sugar, and blue cheese. Topped with baked chicken that I tossed in a skillet with butter, dijon, and Frank’s buffalo sauce.

Sheet-pan hash. Sprouted extra-firm tofu baked with brussels sprouts, yam, green onion, blue cheese, and Trader Joe’s sweet and spicy pecans. I topped my bowl with honey and chili crisp.

Pizza night! Two-ingredient crust plus two ingredients (garlic and onion powder) / Trader Joe’s pizza sauce zhuzhed up with tomato sauce, roasted garlic, and urfa pepper / pizza-blend shredded cheese / sauteed mushrooms (a frozen blend with white, crimini, portobello, and shiitake) with green onions, gochugaru, and butter. Plus roasted yellow cauliflower.

Almond, Peanut, Pecan, Pistachio

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Some favorites from this week…

Fun syrups from El Guapo, pecan and almond. They were good in iced coffees, okay in an iced matcha, and fantastic in an iced diet coke!

Obviously the best coffee of the week was the Dubai bar monthly special latte from Buzz’d.

My favorite skyr bowl this week had honey, salted peanuts, blackberries, and blueberries. I have been head over heels for the Driscoll’s “sweetest batch” blueberries.

I think I have tried and loved every flavor of these peelable gummies from Duane Reade. Peach was lovely and floral.

I’ll buy pretty much any new product Ben & Jerry’s puts out and this sundae style pint did not disappoint. It had butter toffee pecans!

I love a good egg salad. This one had chopped cornichons, poblano pepper, tons of mayo, and dijon mustard. Plus roasted broccoli on the side.

This dinner looks horrible but it really was good; brown rice and roasted riced cauliflower / baked eggplant sauteed with gochujang, black sesame paste, and sesame oil / a take on Korean steamed eggs / topped with chili crisp and peanuts.

I used leftover cauliflower/rice in kimchi fried rice. With poblano peppers, peas, green onions, eggs, soy sauce, fish sauce, and rice vinegar. Topped with surprisingly great grilled shrimp from Whole Foods.

Creamy gochujang pasta. Brown rice noodles tossed with cream cheese, gochujang, and sauteed dinosaur kale and green onions. Topped with sesame seeds and gochugaru and served next to some baked turkey meatballs.

Our favorite dinner of the week (month!) was savory oatmeal bowls. Trader Joe’s rolled oats with ancient grains and seeds / bok choy sauteed with ginger / TJ’s frozen tofu sheets / chili crisp / six-minute egg / candied peanuts with gochugaru.

Chop Chop

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Things from this week…

Two types of blueberry drinks. We adore the Once Upon a Coconut blueberry, it is my favorite coconut water.

I bought a box of Melo bars without tasting them (flavor untasted?) and fortunately the 1st two kinds I tried were great.

I obviously bought this Slice soda because of it’s font/branding but I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor.

Gigantic dessert yogurt bowl – plain skyr, Ben and Jerry’s s’mores bites (this was a fantastic idea!), cereal, granola, and tons of blueberries and blackberries.

Chopped chicken sandwiches. I am so glad we started making these! Chopped together on the cutting board – baked chicken, sharp cheddar, Kewpie, garlicy sauteed broccoli rabe, kimchi sauteed with scallions and butter and sugar. Plus a side of roasted green bell pepper and purple cauliflower with curry powder, sweet and spicy pecans, and dried cranberries.

Big salads. Romaine with ponzu vinaigrette, bell pepper, scallions, bean sprouts, sharp cheddar, packaged fried tofu, and Trader Joe’s crispy mochi nuggets (10/10).

Chicken salad. I put so many things in here I don’t think I remember them all but this was definitely baked chicken with skyr, mayo, dijon, hoisin, lemon juice, scallions, celery, and toasted slivered almonds. Plus a Bibigo kimchi and cheese rice ball, buttered toasted baguette, and roasted zucchini.

A take on chicken laab. I loosely followed this recipe but used ground chicken, doubled the onion, swapped guava jelly for tamarind, and added bean sprouts. Plus a quick cucumber salad (sugar, rice vinegar, Sriracha, and yuzu ponzu).

Chili, Congee, Cookie, Chewy

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It’s March tomorrow, thank goodness! Did February feel even longer than January this year? Some things from the last week…

I searched for months for this chocolate chip cookie Nesquik to add to iced coffees and it ended up being very lackluster.

Meanwhile these Smash Bites are perfectly satisfying.

This pre-dinner snack was brought to you by the word “chewy.”

Yogurt bowl mix of the week – plain skyr with blueberries, blackberries, and granola and All Bran buds.

Dinners this week were all about comforting meals (and an excessive amount of unphotographed take-out!). Congee – brown rice slow cooked in chicken broth, topped with garlicy sauteed collard greens, silken tofu, chili crisp, and green onion. I loved the silken tofu texture/temperature contrasts in this.

Chili when it’s chilly! We made a huge batch with ground turkey, pinto beans, sweet onion, zucchini, yellow bell pepper, poblano pepper, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and a ton of seasoning. I pre-cooked my veggies by roasting them in the oven and it worked out great. We always add fish sauce and dark soy sauce to our chili. Topped with tons of cheese, hot sauce, and plain skry. With beer bread on the side!

B-A-N-A-N-A-S

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Some fun weekend things…

Fantastic Doosra snack mix. Caramelized white chocolate belongs in all savory snack mixes.

Peelerz peelable gummy banana candy. These were repulsive in a delightful way; the centers were the exact consistency of mushy banana!


See also – Banana, Banana, Banana sundae — thick-sliced warmed banana bread, scoop of banana ice cream (the vegan Ben & Jerry’s one!), bruléed banana slices.

Buldak Korean black bean sauce ramen. I added an egg, sesame seeds, and scoop of peanut butter.

Roasted broccoli and super-firm tofu with a spicy peanut butter sauce (chunky peanut butter, gojuchang, gochugaru, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, and water).

Saucy chickpeas. Yellow onion sauteed with grape tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, harissa, smoked paprika, cinnamon, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper, and butter.

Long/Mom Weekend

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My mom was in New York this weekend! She came up to see our condo and celebrate her birthday next weekend. We had a fabulous time and did all sorts of NYC things like – admiring the ceiling at Grand Central Station / admiring the ceiling at Albertine Bookstore / admiring the ceiling at Chelsea Market / admiring the snow in Central Park / shopping in Greenpoint / getting a flight of fruity milkshake beers at Evil Twin.

Here were some food highlights…

Morning coffees at home with this power duo (brown butter cookie cold foam!!?).

Egg foam Vietnamese coffee from Larry’s Ca Phe.


Brunch at Empire Dinner. The roasted broccolini was a standout. And I had the perfect bite of mac and cheese, egg yolk, and Calabrian chili.

Luke’s Lobster roll flight with original, honey butter, and truffle.

Tofu sandwich with cabbage, scallion tahini sauce, and chili crisp from Radio Bakery.

Tuna melt slider at Twenty Grams Cafe.

The best dinner at Hellbender. We ended with every dessert on the menu (chocolate mousse, churros, coffee tres leches, strawberry chamoy jello).