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Lazy Sausage Meatballs with Eggplant
I'm still getting over the cold, or whatever I have, so I'm still doing lazy dishes. Thankfully, I had half a box of sausages in the fridge left-over, since it was a BJ's box of meat, exactly 1 pound 13 ounces, so that's what's in the recipe. Don't be alarmed by large amount of food this makes. It's the perfect thing to have left-over, easily re-heatable in the microwave, or easily packed as a lunch.... -
Chocolate Banana Ice Cream Sandwiches
I've never really been interested in plain chocolate cookies. I like chocolate chip, oatmeal, ones with nuts and cranberries, chocolate dipped butter cookies, the list goes on. So why would I make them? Because soft chocolate cookies are exactly what you need for a killer ice cream sandwich. You need them to be soft and easy to bite through so that the ice cream doesn't squeeze out. Plain chocolate works well with lots... -
Sausage, Peppers, and Onions
I almost didn't write this post because making Sausage, Peppers, and Onions is so little work, I don't even consider it cooking. Then, it occurred to me that this could really benefit some busy moms out there. As I prepared this meal, while not feeling so well today, I reminisced about how my mom always managed to put a balanced meal on the table, even when she had a fever. (My dad was so clueless in the kitchen. He can barely use the microwave correctly.)Sausage, Peppers, and onions... -
Inside the Despana Basket: Sweet Olive Oil Tortas
I've been staring at the Ines Rosales Sweet Olive Oil Tortas in our Despana Basket, thinking that they would probably just be a standard cracker-like bread. I'm feeling a little bit under the weather, and that's when I want crackers. When I opened the package up, the wrapping of each in wax paper made sense. It was oily, but only to your fingers, not in your mouth.... -
Glad Corn
Yesterday, I spent the day at Carol's apartment, and she handed me some Glad Corn. It looks like large corn kernels that partially exploded, tastes like a cr... -
Van Leeuwen Ice Cream Truck
Thanks to Ice (our Jack Russell Terrier), who took us for a walk, we came across a new ice cream truck (locations on their website). It's obviously not your standard Good Humor truck. Van Leeuwen Ice Cream is gourmet ice cream, being green where possible, and the prices to match it. -
Banana Cookies 'N' Cream
I love cookies and cream! It has always been one of favorite ice cream flavors. When I was a teenie bopper, I think it was Turkey Hill that had a Coffee Cookies 'N' Cream flavor, that I ate tons of. I could never understand why ice cream companies didn't put out more versions of Cookies 'N' Cream. Oh, the possibilities!...
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Beef and Poblano Empanadas
I had exactly 1 pound and 7 ounces of ground beef left from Lon's birthday BBQ. It was just as good a time as any to practice making Empanadas, which Lon loves. I tried an empanada dough recipe from epicurious.com and made-up my own filling....
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Sushi Family
Like a standard Chinese mom, my mom gets unreasonably excited about bargains. Her friend gave her a coupon from a Chinese newspaper, granting a large sushi party platter to-go for $45 (almost $50 with tax, cash only) at Sushi Family Sushi Family. -
Lon's Birthday Cake
For Lon's 30th birthday, he wanted a Cookie Monster Cake. He remembered a cake that Angie got for Scott 2 years ago, which he loved, so I placed the order with Sugar Sweet Sunshine Sugar Sweet Sunshine, hoping it would be just as we remembered. -
Sunday Cherry Pancakes
This recipe is an adaptation from Kelly's Blueberry Pancake recipe on her site Eat Make Read. It is a fabulous idea, adding honey, cinnamon, and vanilla to pancake batter. When I read the post, I saved the page to use this weekend. I halved the recipe to suit two people and I used cherries because that's what I had on hand, now calling these Sunday Cherry Pancakes because pitting cherries one by one takes time. Pay c... -
Birthday Revisit to Wildwood Barbecue
Do you remember our visit to Wildwood BBQ a few months ago? Well for Steve and my birthday today, a few of us went back again (after watching The Dark Knight, which was exceptional, albeit ridiculously long). Except for me and Jessica, it was everyone's first visit. The food got the same solid reviews as last time. The ribs are good, perhaps best most have had in NYC (although Stev... -
Maeda-en Matcha (Green Tea Powder)
Last week, I picked up some Maeda-en Matcha (Green Tea Powder) from M2M for $10, thinking this container would be full. Surprise, surprise, there was a little bag inside with roughly 3 tablespoons of powder. Granted, it smelled so good, I wanted to snort it and the color was magnetic (with any food coloring). But dang, it's expensive. -
The Redhead
My friend Angie, always reading up on the latest noteworthy openings in NYC, instant messaged me this week. She read about The Redhead The Redhead and had to go. Skimming through the publicity they've had, the food sounded interesting, but it was a bar. I think you can tell, Lon and I are not bar people. Yea, we're no fun.I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at ... -
Grass Jelly
Grass Jelly is a popular dessert and/or drink with Asians, made from the leaves of Mesona Chinensis (in the mint family). The dark brown to black jello-like cubes are not the most attractive option to have, but Chinese people believe in its cooling powers. I used to hate it as a kid and remember my mom trying to force me to eat it in the summer to prevent nose bleeds and other hot weather ailments. It is a slightly bitter and almost medicina... -
Lay's Enitika Olive Oil Chips
This is the last of our chips from Greece. I was saving the best for last, thinking the olive oil chips must be amazing. So anti-climactic! These looked and tasted no different from regular chips, not even a hint or...
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Inside the Despana Basket: Egg Cream
Last night I was incredibly thirsty, so I started poking around the fridge and remembered the bottle of Fuensanta, a sparkling, natural mineral water that was Inside the Despana Basket. -
Sushi Yasuda #16
You may have noticed that we missed Sushi Yasuda last week. We tried to make reservations and it was too late. Our Chef Mitsuru was all boooked. We learned our lesson and made reservations for next week before leaving the restaurant today. I apologize for terrible pictures. I only brought the point-and-shoot because there was a thunderstorm forecast.We loved the Sanma... -
Bacon Wrapped Asparagus
Bacon Wrapped Asparagus is a real quick and easy crowd pleaser. I've made it for several parties and it's always one of the hits. The key is to use thin asparagus. It will cook more evenly and 3 to 4 thin stalks looks better then 1 or 2 fat ones.After you break the asparagus at it's natural point, wash and dry. I use half a length of bacon for each asparagus bundle. (Here that means 1 slice of bacon makes 2 bundles, which for me is 8 thin stalks of asparagus.) You just wrap it around... -
Inside the Despana Basket: Vinagre de Jerez
The Vinagre de Jerez, a sherry vinegar included in our Despana Basket, is awesome. This is a definite step up in taste a... -
New Kitchen Toys from Zabar's
Lon's co-workers got us a gift certificate for Zabar's Zabar's, one of my favorite stores. They have an awesome cheese selection, the best smoked fish counter, and knowledgeable staff in the second floor housewares section. I miss living nearby so much!!Last night, we went to Zabar's like a ... -
Inside the Despana Basket: Mojo Verde Suave
Last night, we opened a jar of Mojo Verde Suave from our Despana Basket. Also known as Canary Sauce (originating in the Canary Islands), this combination of ingredients is impressive, being somewhat creamy without any dairy, only green pepper, olive oil, garlic, parsley, wine vinegar, cumin, pepper, and salt. -
Batch Bakery
We had Sarah and Tim over for brunch and the sweethearts brought us some sweets. The cupcakes from Batch Bakery Batch Bakery were enticing. I couldn't wait to dig in. -
Inside the Despana Basket: Chistorra
I had assumed that Chistorra would be just like all the different shapes of Chorizo in our Despana basket. It looked similar except longer and narrower in shape, and I didn't pay attention to the name on the package till writing this post. It's funny because I was thinking how it was very much a chorizo but just a bit spicier and a bit smokier. I loved it and it seemed to go perfectly in our brunch. I just looked it up and it ... -
Chocolate Zucchini Cake in a Time Crunch
We were heading to Sara's for dinner and the plan was to bring dessert, but we ended up really short on time. I searched for a quick cake recipe and saw this interesting recipe for a Chocolate Zucchini Cake. It wasn't the best cake ever but had several strong points: It's made with 3 cups of grated zucchini making it a bit healthier. It wasn't too sweet. The inside is really moist, reminiscent of cake mix chocola... -
16 Handles - Ehh...
I was excited that 16 Handles was opening near us since I like the pay-by-weight concept for froz... -
Lan Japanese Restaurant
Jessie, Lon, and I arrived at Lan Japanese Restaurant Lan Japanese Restaurant first, all very hungry, so we had an appetizer while waiting for Olivia. None of us cared for the Home-made Prawn Dumplings. We didn't know they would have water chestnuts in them, and it so happens, all three of us hate water chestnuts. Aside, the shrimp were a bit over-cooked, the wrapper had dry spots, but luck... -
16 Handles Open Tomorrow
I can't believe the frozen yogurt explosion in NY! Every time I turn around, there seems to be another one. As we pranced around the city tonight, showing my cousin a... -
Inside the Despana Basket: Valencianos Artisinal Crackers
I don't think we're even half-way through our Despana Basket yet. It's been... -
Blueberry Banana Crumb Muffins
Last week, I posted a great recipe for Banana Crumb Muffins with Dried Cranberries. I told you I would likely make a blueberry variation this week and here it is. I imagine chocolate chips would be great too! -
Balsamic Drenched Portobellos
This is one of my first dishes. I remember being so proud of myself the first time I made dinner for my family and my mom raved about these mushrooms. Through the years, I've really expanded my repertoire but this one is still my mom's favorite. Even more impressively, these are the first mushrooms Lon has ever admitted to liking. (He just started to eat mushrooms.) He even took the left-overs for lunch today.Balsamic Drenched Portobellos... -
Andrew, the Smoke Master
Lon's cousin Andrew asked for a smoker as his graduation present. What a smart guy! He's been practicing for weeks, many hours at a time, honing his smoking skills and was finally ready to show it off... and we were lucky enough to be called in as taste testers.
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Girlie Pie
Making this pie made me feel ultra feminine so I decided to call it Girlie Pie. There's something about peaches and strawberries; they belong with pink bows and ponies. (Maybe it's just me.) The first time I made this pie, the flavor was great but I felt like it needed a lot more filling so this time, I doubled it, and it was wonderful. My brother claims, it's the best pie he's ever had. Just don't tell him what I named it.*This pic is taken before baking -
Gala Manor
Today was another one of those bulk shopping days in Queens. The reward is lunch with mom, who is so into our blog these days, every time I see her, she feels like she needs to show me a new place. Gala Manor Gala Manor is a pretty large restaurant and yet I had never noticed it before somehow. Generally the dim sum wasn't that memorable but I have two little notes to g... -
Big Bev' Biz a Brewin'
We're not big drinkers, but we follow all things food. And, dang if this is not big news. The 14.5 billion dollar a year, Belgian brewer InBev has acquired -
Blend Your Own Cereal
Lon likes the cereals with dried fruits and nuts in them but have you noticed how expensive these are? On top of that, there usually isn't enough "stuff" in it, more just the cheap filler. We recently started blending our own cereals. This gives you complete control over which dried fruits are used, which nuts (and how they are cut), and which flake or filler.Our most recent mix had Special K as the base. -
Yuka
We've been hearing about Yuka Yuka lately, people raving about the amazingly cheap and fresh sushi, legends about the long lines. We had to see for ourselves, but chose to go for an early dinner at 6PM on a Sunday to avoid too much of a wait (about 5 minutes).The All-You-Can-Eat at $18.95, which Lon ordered, is not ... -
Bar Stuzzichini
To celebrate a visit from our West Coast Sales Manager, Rob, some folks from the Linkstorm team headed over to Bar Stuzzichini Bar Stuzzichini last week, after work....
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Asian Pear Beet Salad (with or without Feta)
My friend Sheryl loves beets so I prepared some last time she came over. In a daring mood, I tried a pairing I had never seen or heard of before, beets with Asian pear. Hooray, it was a fabulous discovery and will forever be in my repertoire. I worked on a recipe and came up with a unique, refreshing, and eye-catching salad.In this recipe, I microwave beets, which I had no idea I could do until seeing it in ... -
Pitaya (Dragon Fruit)
The other day, I was reminiscing about the wonderful fruit in Taiwan, a tropical island where fruit is amazing. I remembered that I haven't eaten Pitaya, or dragon fruit, since my las...
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Sushi Yasuda #15
We didn't get to go to Sushi Yasuda last week since we were busy with weddings and they were closed July 4th-6th so by this week I was missing my sushi meals. The familiar pieces were glorious as always and they still had new pieces to offer.We've had Kuchiko several times before but always the red one, which we learned last night, is the female. ... -
Pitsinia Bacon Chips
We picked up these Pitsinia Bacon Chips while we were in Greece. Of course, Lon buys anything bacon, but when we opened the bag last night, eve...
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Basil-Lime Sorbet Turned Cocktail
Again, driven by the excess of an ingredient, I made Basil Lime Sorbet. Whenever I buy basil, I get way more than I need, but I hate wasting the beautiful and aromatic herbs. I found this recipe and it seemed like fate. I had an abundance of limes too....
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Inside the Despana Basket: Chorizo and Taco Fun
Our Despana basket included several packages of chorizo. You've seen the little ones. Tonight, we had the fat ones, the size of bratwurst. I think all the different shapes and sizes probably taste the same, just made for different uses, all yummy. -
Mangia
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Lamarca
Lamarca Lamarca is my friend Hilary's favorite restaurant. She wanted us, her running buddies, to try the place she goes to for her carb-loading dinners. Aside from a couple of eccentricities, Lamarca has a certain charm. The tip cannot be paid on credit card. They're not open on the weekends a... -
Inside the Despana Basket: Spanish Peanut Butter Cups?
Our Despana basket included two chocolates wrapped in gold foil. It was something like a peanut butter cup, except it... -
Banana Crumb Muffins with Cranberries
I decided to make banana muffins for the same reason as most, because I had extra bananas that now had brown spots on them. (I actually like eating bananas slightly under-ripe when eating them raw.) My first thoughts were banana blueberry muffins. Doesn't that sound good? Yes, but there had been a forecast of thunderstorms coming and I was afraid to go out. I am very afraid of rain, as if the wicked witch of the West, I apparently think I'm going to perish every time it more than drizzles.... -
Olive Oil: Ta Mylelia
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Lollyphile Maple-Bacon Lollipops
As a sort-of joke gift, Kasi and Stephen got me some maple-bacon lollipops from Lollyphile. As a concept I totally approve of this type of gift. First, it's food. Second, it's got bacon. Third, it's something I haven't seen or tasted before! -
Butterfish, Bringing Back an Old Favorite
Good things come in small packages, like Butterfish. I ate these a lot as a kid. My mom would deep fry them and serve them with sweet and sour sauce. It's been years though since I've eaten Butterfish and I had forgotten them till I saw these cute fishes in the Chinese market on Thursday.Chimichurri Flank Steak
Chimichurri is one of my favorite flavors. I have made it with different types of vinegars and gone back and forth between cilantro and parsley, but all versions come out wonderful. If you have extra sauce left-over, save-it. It goes well on chicken, fish, almost anything. I wrote down the recipe we used for our July 4th barbecue yesterday. Hope you had a fun and yummy one!Hua Rong
At least once a month, I go to Queens to stock up on food. We usually hit BJ's or Costco, and a Chinese supermarket. On top of saving loads of money, it also means I get to have lunch with my mom. She's always got ideas for where to take me and Queens is where Chinese food is at these days.Yesterday, my mom took me to Hua Rong Hua Rong, a ...Steve & Yael's Rehearsal Dinner at Friedman's
Steve, Lon's best friend, is getting married tonight. The rehearsal dinner was held last night at Friedman's Delicatessen Friedman's Delicatessen. I absolutely loved the idea. Rehearsal dinners are predominately for out-of-town guests and what better way to greet out-of-towners than with a real NYC-style meal: kosher-style deli!Lon enjoyed the potato latke...Inside the Despana Basket: Paella de Mariscos
Most foodies would never go near boxed paella, but for the good of the world, I went in fast and furious. It was a box of Marin...
Lesina Olive Oil from Croatia
We picked up Lesina Olive Oil in Dubrovnik, Croatia. While it is more flavorful than most olive oils here, it has a bitterness to it that I find unpleasant. I should have stuck to buying o...Inside the Despana Basket: Campofrio Lomo and Chorizo, Manchego, and Morcilla
Last night, we sampled quite a few items from our Despana basket. With some bread and olive oil, nibbling on meats and cheese is my idea of a fun evening. T...
Spicy Baba Ganouj
I decided to make Baba Ganouj today and a light bulb went off - I should add harissa (that I bought at SOS Chefs) to it. It just made sense in my head so I was hoping the result would be as good. For me, the harissa was a hit! It brought out a smokiness and added a tang, and of course some heat. Unfortunately, Lon didn't like it. We do occasionally differ on taste. Oh well.I ...Taiwanese Sun Pastries - Tai Yang Bing
My cousin Olivia brought some Tai Yang Bing (Taiwanese Sun Pastry) back from Houston. Oddly, I had never tried these before, probably because my paren...
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