Chili Cheese Fries Because It’s Still Chilly

by Emily

Seriously, why is it so chilly still?? Over the weekend I dry cleaned our winter coats, packed up our sweaters, swapped boots for sandals, etc, etc, and then Monday morning it was a balmy 30 degrees.

Freezer-burn aside, I had quite a nice week! Tuesday I took a personal day to spend time with Adam post-call and we tried some yummy spots in Bayside. And I’m off again today because I work this weekend.

Here were the highlights from the week…

Chocolate glazed doughnut (from Dough) and a maple iced latte at Browny.

Juicy watermelon wonder kombucha.

Chia pudding. Chia seeds / skim milk / maple syrup / vanilla bean powder / sliced banana.

Peanuts are my favorite snack at the moment.

Dinner out at Maria’s Mediterranean. We got some complimentary bites to start, including the best olives I’ve ever tasted.

Plus we ordered the chips and dip – housemade pita chips with tatziki / melitzanosalata, roasted eggplant puree / and tirokafteri, spicy feta spread.

I got the spanikopita for my entree.

And we tried something fun for dessert – ekmek, a bread pudding-baklava mash up with syrup-soaked shredded phyllo, custard, and whipped cream.

I leaned into the weather and made us big steamy bowls of chili. A loose version of this recipe from Iowa Girl Eats that is our favorite. The baked beans take it over the top.

I topped my bowl with sharp cheddar, plain Greek yogurt, and tons of Sriracha.

Our leftovers turned into cheese fries! Waffle fries / cheese – TJ’s 3 cheese blend / chili / ~~bacon~~ leftover duck. Plus green beans for something green.

And yesterday I made buffalo chicken meatballs. Ground chicken / panade / buffalo sauce / egg / cream cheese / cheddar. Plus sauteed carrots and celery to stay on theme.

It’s supposed to warm up this weekend, woo-hoo!

6Apr2018

Pepperoni Pizza

by Emily

The five best things I ate this week –

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

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

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

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

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

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.

30Mar2018

Open Toasted Sesame

by Emily

Highlights from the week…

Lemon shortbread Greek yogurt with a Jaffa mandarin and a coconut seltzer.

Coconut Chobani with Heritage Flakes and a sumo mandarin and a lemon seltzer.

Cookie butter cotton candy.

Sandwich night. Mock beef shaved tofu sauteed with red bell pepper and bbq sauce / served on a brioche bun / with mayo and provolone. Plus broccoli.

Barley bowls. Barley / roasted zucchini / crumbled seaweed snacks / canned mackerel and smoked sardines mashed together with some mayonnaise / Sriracha and gojuchang on top.

A knock-your-socks-off good dinner date at Gristmill.

The Ali Baba cocktail = gin, lemon, cream, egg white, and toasted sesame.

I went with the pre-fix option because I wanted too many things to choose!

Local greens salad with carrot, watermelon radish, and toasted sesame vinaigrette. This was delicious af and while we were eating it the owner came by and excitedly told us about sourcing his greens, so that was fun.

Chicken liver mousse with bread crackers, concord grape jam, and dulce de leche.

Best plain cheese pizza I’ve ever eaten. <– Gristmill is famous for their wood-fired oven.

Plus we had an affogato and that thing lurking in the back is the best chocolate cake I’ve ever eaten with caramelized white chocolate ganache and sourdough pretzel crumbs.

I work the weekend so I’m off today, woo hoo!

23Mar2018

Well There Goes Your Social Life

by Emily

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.

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

Protein cookie and a sumo.

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.

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

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.

With an Oreo milk tea with pudding.

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

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

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!

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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

And buttermilk and chive chips while I cooked.

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.

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

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

16Mar2018

And Now My Favorite Color is Zhough

by Emily

Highlights from the week…

Fancy shmancy coffee. I cold pressed espresso roast with vanilla bean powder, brown sugar, and clove.

Honestly though, my current favorite-favorite combo is espresso, ice, and chocolate milk.

Milkadamia sent me a box for review [no cash was exchanged, all opinions are my own, yadda yadda]. Their macadamia nut milk is vegan, dairy-free, soy-free, and gluten-free. The unsweetened vanilla has 50 calories, 1 gram of protein, and zero grams of sugar (1 gram carbohydrate) per 8 oz serving. The milk has almost no flavor, but that is pretty much what I’m looking for in my nut milks because I want them to make my coffee creamy without distracting from the coffee taste. The unsweetened vanilla went perfectly with a cup of iced coffee this week, no clumping or separation to be found.

I also used it in a smoothie with frozen blueberries and coconut chunks, vanilla, maple, and chia seeds.

My packed work eats were all about the Sumo mandarin and plain Greek yogurt combo. With maple or granola.

Snack attack. Peanut butter puffs.

Mexican marshmallow shortbread cookies.

Super sour soda and cola hard candies.

Mini sundae from Van Leeuwen. Cookies and cream topped with hot fudge, almond brittle, and sprinkles.

All of our dinners this week had a Middle Eastern bent, thanks to lots of zhough and copious amounts of olive oil. Like scrambled egg pita sandwiches. Scrambled eggs / sauteed orange bell pepper and red onion / whole wheat pita / zhough. With roasted zucchini.

Pita chip nachos! Sharp cheddar / red onion and cucumber / marinated chickpeas with lemon juice, olive oil, fresh parsley, oregano, cayenne, and paprika / zhough and tzatziki.

Veggie bowls. Sauteed red onion, yellow bell pepper, and roasted eggplant / tomato sauce / marinated chickpeas / zhough and tzatziki / fried egg.

Also pizza. Is there a better food on the planet than buffalo chicken pizza??

It’s almost the weekend! Who has green beer on their Saturday agenda?

9Mar2018

Popcorn And Poutine

by Emily

Random updates…

Both sets of excisional biopsy stitches are out and today I am finally allowed to go to the gym, woo-hoo! Also important – both biopsies came back clean.

We are finally catching up on Agents of Shield and LOVING it. Hilarious as always and just crazy touching. I’m not loving the “big bad” for this season but Fitz’s story-line is good enough that I don’t care.

I work this weekend but have super fun dinner date plans with the husband on Saturday.

Best bites from the week…

Coffee can and an Envy apple.

Vanilla yogurt with nougat halva from Seed + Mill and a sumo on the side. Halva mixed into yogurt is one of my favorite things. I also really like key lime pie in yogurt. Apparently I think you can improve dessert with Greek yogurt?!

Tamarind my parents sent me from home. I rode horses as a child and our stable had a patch of trees you could pluck tamarinds from and it’s one of my favorite memories.

No photo because I ate it while sitting in traffic but I had the most deliciously meta thing from Schmackary’s – a chocolate chip cookie topped with chocolate chip cookie dough frosting!

Piles of popcorn.

Spaghetti casserole with whole-wheat spaghetti, marinara, Trader Joe’s soy chorizo, and sharp cheddar. Growing up, I hated spaghetti but adored this casserole. This version was smokey and delicious. With roasted broccoli on the side.

Dinner at Mile End. The poutine of the month is Nashville hot chicken, so obviously we ordered that.

I also had a za’atar chicken salad with Boston lettuce, mint, Israeli salad, cucumber, and crispy chickpeas. Fresh mint in salad is so good, it genuinely makes me smile.

Happy almost weekend.

5Mar2018

Best Babka In Brooklyn

by Emily

Best bites from the weekend…

Best chocolate babka in Brooklyn, probably the world, at Oneg Bakery. It was so chewy! Yet crumbly and crisp too. And the chocolate was basically brownie batter! We were absolutely smitten and I ate too much and made myself sick.