My New Favorite Thing

This weekend was all about fancy coffees, restaurant brunches, and yummy home-cooked dinners.

I took a vacation day on Friday – just for funsies – and had lunch with one of my favorite former co-workers and her new baby!  Plus I took myself on a long walk: Penn Station down to Chelsea Market, over to Gramercy Park, and back up to Penn Station.  Saturday I had a literal every cloud has a silver lining situation – the gloomy weather gave me an excuse to wear my snazzy new rain boots!

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Here were the highlights…

Fancy coffees –  Iced latte from Seven Point Espresso.

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Rose iced latte from Terremoto.  <– best coffee of the weekend

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Crack pie latte from Milk Bar.

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Restaurant brunches – MeMe’s Diner.

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The O.C. = cara cara and blood orange, tequila, and Tang.

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I ordered the greens with chili oil and a fried chicken biscuit sandwich with spicy maple syrup and root vegetable slaw.  The picture does not do justice to just how gigantic that sandwich is.

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Cake!  I wish I had more photos because this cake is officially my new favorite thing I’ve ever eaten.  Vietnamese iced coffee cake with condensed milk frosting and cocoa cardamom fudge.  Moist cake, fluffy icing, perfectly balanced.

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Midwinter Kitchen.  I had a salad with pistachio crusted goat cheese, frisée, watercress, a sunny side up egg, and sherry vinaigrette.  Those goat cheese balls were out of this world.

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Home-cooked dinners –  Trout salad melts.  Trader Joe’s canned smoked trout with mayo and gojuchang on toast with sharp cheddar.  Plus roasted zucchini with sumac.

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And I had this killer drink line-up while I cooked – creamy mango soda and key lime pie gose.

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Eat Live Run’s green chile crock pot chicken.  I subbed in cauliflower rice to get some more veggies in there.

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Gojuchang turkey burgers on toast, smothered in a tasty sauce – kewpie mayonnaise, honey, dijon, and miso.  With a side of pear slices and chips – gojuchang kettle chips from Whole Foods and kettle popcorn chips from Trader Joe’s.

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Have a great work-week, guys!

 

Three Things

Three things I liked this week:

{1}  Mint iced coffee!  Irving Farms espresso roast / half and half / homemade vanilla mint simple syrup.

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{2}  Kefir and apple work snacks.

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{3}  Starbucks’ prepared sandwiches that I’m weirdly obsessed with.  Chicken and artichoke flatbread with provolone and sun-dried tomato pesto.

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Three things I loved this week:

{1}  Homemade turkey cheeseburger fried rice.

Leftover brown rice stir-fried with soy sauce and liquid smoke / sauteed onions / roasted cherry tomatoes / ground turkey sauteed with fish sauce, ketchup, and mayo / eggs / cheddar cheese.

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{2}  Dinner at Pig and Khao.  I went with a girlfriend for her first visit and she loved it!

I ordered not one, but two, new to me dishes that were amazing.  Mushroom salad with shrimp and fried garlic and green papaya salad with chicken and crispy taro.

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{3}  Dinner at Freeks Mill that knocked our socks off.

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We started with roasted baby carrots with marcona almonds and herbed goat cheese.

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And we ordered all the poultry on the menu for dinner.  Chicken for Adam, smoked Poulet Rouge with wild mushrooms and spinach.

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Duck for me, dry aged duck with fried cranberry beans, fennel, and rosemary honey.  <– this was the singe best thing I've ever eaten!

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Three things I’m obsessing about that you don’t know about yet:

{1}  Nonfat quad iced lattes from Hungry Ghost.  There are three HGs on my walk to work and it is becoming a problem.

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{2}  Stolen Dance by Milky Chance.  This song is basically magic – I listened to it on a run and I swear my legs moved 50% more quickly than usual.

{3}  Moving??!  I’m not sure how I haven’t blogged about this yet, but yes, we’re moving!  Adam is doing his Surgical Critical Care Fellowship at UVA next year.  So we’re moving to Charlottesville.  In 50 days.  !!!

Sandwich x4

I don’t have much to share this week, when your vacation is unexpectedly extended by two days your return home plan for a massive grocery haul turns into a five item mini trip and then you end up eating sandwiches two meals a day for two days straight.

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I also took myself on a fun breakfast date in Dekalb Market Hall, and enjoyed an everything bagel with scallion cream cheese and an amazing iced latte.

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I do have a few leftover island photos to share!

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P.S. I adored being home, but oh man, do I love Brooklyn.

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P.P.S. I am off from work today (all I could handle post-vacation was a two day work-week!) and I have exciting plans to eat all the things.

 

Pepperoni Pizza

The five best things I ate this week –

This week’s coffee combo.  Trader Joe’s espresso blend.

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A protein-packed yogurt bowl.  Plain Greek with vanilla protein almond butter and an apple on the side.

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A spring-y snack.  Candied lemon slices and dark chocolate violet marshmallows.

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Fancy toast.  Topped with strawberry jam, Kerrygold Dubliner cheese, and a hard-boiled egg.

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The highlight: pepperoni pizza with buttery roasted green beans on the side.

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Trader Joe’s garlic crust / cooked in a casserole dish with olive oil on the bottom / topped with sliced mozzarella / tomato sauce with anchovy / turkey pepperoni / and Parmesan cheese.

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Well There Goes Your Social Life

Another New York snowstorm?!  Can it be Spring already??!  I shouldn’t complain, Adam and I both were off from work on Wednesday and I already drink enough coffee to power a small city so it’s not like the few minutes I had to wake up earlier on Thursday to deal with the snow were a big deal. <– I should note that I literally mean that I only need a few extra minutes, I don’t have to dig out my own car because I’m married to the kindest man on earth!

Highlight bites this week…

Coffee, coffee!  Cafe Bustelo.

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Cold brew with coconut palm sugar (and skim milk).

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Protein cookie and a sumo.

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Coffee Greek yogurt with coconut butter, red walnuts, and granola, plus a Pink Lady apple on the side.  The coconut/coffee combo is 10/10.

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These 7-11 bites are super cute, and I love anything that tastes like cake batter.

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It seemed like half of Queens had closed up shop on Wednesday but Adam and I still managed to find a good lunch.  Chicken and udon soup.

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With an Oreo milk tea with pudding.

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Plus we went to Coffee Factory for a ridiculously adorned coffee shave ice.

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It’s a testament to how good Stumptown is that I was equally excited about my iced latte.

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Do you remember last year when I declared that the spring holidays deserve theme flavors too?  Easter gets lemon, coconut, and anything in the shape of an egg!

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I snacked on coconut shortbread cookies and candied lemon slices to welcome the first day of Spring.

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The Trader Joe’s eggs were cute, but the chocolate to caramel ratio was too large for my liking.  I much prefer a thinner, softer shell, so the Godiva eggs were absolutely perfect.

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Godiva actually sent me the eggstra special chocolates to review on the blog {I received no additional compensation / all opinions are my own}.  The box includes solid milk chocolate, dark chocolate ganache (3rd favorite), dark chocolate with raspberry, milk chocolate with almond butter (my favorite), and milk chocolate caramel (2nd favorite).  There’s 60 calories per egg, which feels more than fair because these are definitely a two-to-three-bite candy.

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Important note – Godiva also has an assorted gift-box special for Spring that includes both cookie dough truffles and white chocolate pralines – among other flavors – and I’m having a very hard time not buying it immediately.

My dinners were darn impressive this week.  Spicy Cajun shrimp pasta bowls on whole wheat linguine with tons of roasted zucchini and sun-dried tomato.

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Homemade turkey Reuben burgers / roasted green beans / french fries / with ketchup and thousand island.

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Chicken sandwiches.  Boneless skinless breasts marinated in lemon juice, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, Sriracha, fish sauce, and ginger; breaded in panko; and baked / on brioche buns / with mayo and provolone.

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Plus we had sauteed bok choy and leeks on the side.

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And buttermilk and chive chips while I cooked.

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Last night a girlfriend and I went on a balls tasting tour of the Lower East Side for dinner.  Boba Guys for Hong Kong milk tea with tapioca balls and almond jelly.

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Meatball Shop for chicken meatballs with pesto.  Plus a Dead Flowers & Red Bottoms cocktail – mezcal, tequila, lime, honey, and hibiscus.

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p.s. who is 1990’s enough to get the joke in my title??

Green With Fun

We had a great weekend!  My aunt and uncle came into the city and we had a wonderful time showing them around.  I even caught some of the parade.

Top three best things I ate…

{1} local beers

Greenpoint Brewery.

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Brooklyn Brewery.

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Iconyc‘s saison with soursop!

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{2} homemade turkey reuben cheese fries

Fries / swiss and gouda cheese blend / sliced smoked turkey / sauerkraut / 1000 island dressing / parsely.

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With broccoli on the side for green.

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{3} brunch at Sunday in Brooklyn

How adorable is my aunt’s cocktail?

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And my Care Bear Stare was one of the best drinks I’ve ever had.  With Aperol, cream sherry, redeemed fruit, and cinnamon.

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We shared the pancakes, which are a must-order if you visit SiB, but my flatbread was still my favorite.  Ramp kimchi, mushrooms, fried eggs, and toasted spices on top of the most wonderfully chewy flatbread.

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Have a great week!

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געשמאַק

Adam is post-call this morning and I am taking my weekend day off so we get to share the same space for a bit, woo-hoo!  We have some really exciting date options to chose from, like a grocery trip and maybe the gym.

I worked Saturday and Sunday – and was off on Friday but spent the entire day reading and/or watching tv – so I don’t have too much excitement to share this recap.  We did go on a very delicious dinner date Saturday night though.

weekend highlights…

Coffee coffee.

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Cinnamon chocolate pudding.

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Snowdays shaved ice!  Black sesame with grass jelly, mochi, and strawberry sauce.

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Yesterday I made a dish that was moussaka-adjacent.  No potatoes but the other layers were there.  Roasted eggplant / sauteed turkey with tons of onions, spices, and tomato / mornay sauce with parmesan.

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And Saturday we did an awesome Israeli dinner at Timna.  You select an entree and then the table gets all of the appetizers tapas-style.  Also we ordered two desserts because we just couldn’t choose!  It was one of our best meals to date.  Falafel with pickled mango.

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Kubneh bread baked in a flower pot served with crushed tomato, creme-fraiche, and jalapeño salsa.

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Grilled beet salad with beluga lentils // tuna sashimi with green tabouli, tatziki, and ponzu // grilled cauliflower and artichoke with curried yogurt, homemade raisins, and pickled onion // smoked eggplant with feta cheese and sumac.

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I had “the fish,” striped bass with cherry tomato confit, grilled zucchini, grilled fennel, fried eggplant, Greek yogurt, and bread crumbs.  We loved the meal from start to finish but the fried eggplant was my favorite bite of the night.

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Kubneh bread with creme patisserie, white chocolate, and honey and sage ice cream.

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Sicilian pistachio ice cream with tahini, silan, and shredded halva.  swoon 

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Back to the grind we go!

Smoked Cheddar To Chocolate Almond

Flavor themes of the week: coffee, cauliflower, seltzer, croissants.

White Noise.  Iced latte and black sesame and milk frozen yogurt swirl fantasticness.

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Home coffee for the week.  Starbucks espresso roast with chocolate milk.

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Breads Bakery.  Smoked cheddar croissant.

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Orwashers.  Almond and chocolate croissant.

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Yogurt bowl.  2% Fage with pomegranate, golden raisins, and luxardo cherries.

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Snack time.  Soursop yogurt drink / red walnuts and marcona almonds with rosemary / pinata apple.

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Kakigōri from a pop-up at Canal Street Market.  Japanese-style shave ice with black currant chocolate sauce, smoked almonds, and torched meringue.  Toasted meringue is one of my all-time favorite flavors.

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Luke’s Lobster.  Lobster rolls taste like butter squared.

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Pelicana.  Korean fried chicken is the best fried chicken, period.

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Not a winner dinner.  Cauliflower rice / sauteed bok choy with rice vinegar / ground turkey sauteed with chopped kimchi and gojuchang / soft boiled egg.  This had so much potential but I ended up stopping halfway through and eating fried chicken leftovers instead.

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Another night we were supposed to have cauliflower soup for dinner but I couldn’t deal with the blender so at the last minute I ended up making… whatever the hell this is.  At least it was tasty!  Sauteed yellow onion and leeks with celery seed and smoked paprika / roasted cauliflower / turkey bacon / sharp cheddar.

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Have a great weekend!

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