there is something about...

going home to the garden...picking some veggies;

and some herbs;

and making some pesto;

and calling it dinner.

There's nothing better.

eataly

Due to the heat wave, our plans to have another picnic at Madison Square Park were nixed and we lunched at Eataly's La Verdure.  In attendance was April, Lauren, Webmamma, and Ximena.  There was even a celebrity sighting...Sami from Days of Our Lives. Unfortunately, we were so enthralled by the scenery, the food and conversation that I never took any photos!  So unlike me.....I know.  

 La Birreria...eataly's rooftop.  

 signage.

 where beer is made at eataly.

 the only food photo of the day.

all stairs lead to a la birreria.

quite possibly the best little ice cream shop.

On one hot June day my co-worker brought me to her sister's new ice cream shop on Carmine Street.  The frozen yogurt is made from goat's milk and all of the ingredients are local.  I wasn't sure how the goat's milk aspect of this dessert would taste, but I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was. 

I ordered rose petal frozen yogurt with pistachios.  The taste was subtle and refreshing.   

Little goat prints leading me to the counter.....genius! 

Love this little guy!

If you are in the area, visit Sophia and Victory Garden on Carmine Street.  

Victory Garden

dips and sauces

The second meeting of teachers on summer vacation involved a picnic at Brooklyn Bridge Park with a theme...dips and sauces.  It was pretty hot outside, but we made it a point to sit on the green pasture that would provide a landscape for the outdoor opera later that evening.  Goldie serenaded April with a little happy birthday tune with a mic she borrowed for the opera men.  All in all it was a great afternoon that ended with taking the east river ferry home.  

 mango salsa, guacamole, dill dip and some sinful napkins.

the spread... equipped with graduation plates. 

 with Goldie comes the hula hoop.

 birthday cupcakes.

 birthday hugs.

everyone needs a little hoopin' once in a while.

For more culinary snapshots, please click here.

the 1st inaugural teacher cooking club

Teachers all across America have one thing in common right now. . . summer vacation.  Very few of us are actually away for the entire summer.  So in between short trips to the shore and our parent's home, we are left with a lot of time on our hands.

There was a lot of talk all year long by the 6th grade chair and resident baker to get together over the summer as a group with something else to talk about other than students and school . . . how about food and drink?  Her vision came through yesterday with the inaugural cooking club event hosted by Webmamma.  Although we all love Webmamma's roof, the heat kept us inside with air conditioning.  We had a civilized meal at the dining room table with amazing food and Blue Point Summer Ales.

the official sponsor.

 fresh, seasonal and delish.

eyes: vegan chocolate chip cookie dough (april)

mouth: mixed seasonal berries (maura)

1 o'clock: field of greens with chopped cucumber and avocado; dressed with a lemon vinaigrette (lauren)

5 o'clock: mixed grain bread (webmamma)

7 o'clock: blanched asparagus with an asian green onion & sesame seed sauce (ribods)

10 o'clock: fettucini with grilled zucchini/squash, chopped tomato, basil, and smoked mozzarella (webmamma)

For more culinary snapshots, please click here.

i've died and gone to...

...culinary heaven.  

Introducing the bacon waffle.

Thank you to magpie for bringing this amazing idea home. 

because sometimes you leave work...

...and feel like making fresh sauce, crumbling sausage, grilling mushrooms and rolling dough to make some pizza. 

Not Your Typical Lays Potato Chip

Potato Chips. Also known as just plain 'chips' or 'crisps' in other parts of the world.  Virtually a side dish to any meal, but can easily stand on it's own as a snack.  Originating in Saratoga Springs, New York...this snack accounts for over thirty-five percent of the global savory snack market.  And yet, with all the culinary treats prepared in 3D, no one has ever attempted to make them.

Until now.



She sliced (thinly). She fried (deeply in evoo). She peppered and salted (cracked and from the sea)....even made a magic fondu with truffle oil, bacon and blue cheese.

The chips were delicious on their own.  And for someone (me) who is not fond of cream sauces, fondu included....it wasn't so bad after all.  Then again, everything is better with bacon.

Credits: Roommate acted solely in the preparation and execution of this snack. 

the little things we tend to forget

It is hard to be at a beach destination wedding and take notice of something other than the blue ocean water, the infinity pool and the people around you.  In between the laughs, the drinks, the lotion re-applications and catching a football, I made it a point to walk around.....

...walk around and capture something interesting.  On my walk I could not help but fall in love with these little guys...

Sea turtles.  They hatched that first morning in Cabo in their little sanctuary on the beach.  They were brought from that little sanctuary to the shoreline.  I could not image how scared these two little reptiles were to face those strong waves...alone.  But instinct told them to head for the water...and they did just that.

And then there was this bottle of tequila that kept popping up everywhere we went.  The ceramic bottle that is hand painted and whether tequila is your thing or not, it is just beautiful.

Being the early bird and putting towels on the chairs in the morning, I was greeted with this breath-taking scene of the sun rising, the waves crashing and solitude on the beach. 

What would Mexico be without guacamole and fajitas?

I'm pretty sure this was the only life saving apparatus at the pool. 

I could not help but admire these fixtures every night at the hotel bar. 

Words cannot describe this molten chocolate tamal baked in a corn husk with ice cream.

I am not a shoe person, but these shoes resonated with me...maybe it was the big bows or perhaps the patent leather, but they were just stunning as they walked into room 4038. 

After looking through my photos, I was sad to not have captured more of the little things we tend to forget about when we are in a magical place.  Regardless, here is a small collection of snapshots...a few things my eye thought were special.

an eating tour, two legends, a new stadium, and a silent game

WHO: new york yankees, goldie & myself representing the 9-1-4

WHAT: a baseball game.  america's pass time.  a commemoration of yankees announcer bob sheppard and franchise owner george steinbrenner.  two new patches on the uniform and a silent game.  literally....silent.  all versus the tampa bay devil rays.

WHERE: the new yankee stadium...slightly offset from the former, non-existent yankee stadium.  161st street and river avenue...you can't miss it. upper deck

WHEN: 7.16.2010

WHY: goldie scored tickets. she asked me to join her.  i had never been to the new stadium.  we have a soft spot for cheap beer at the cost of premium beer + $3.  we appreciate concession stand vittles within the price range of gourmet food.  one can never "high-five" too many times.  there are bound to be some good characters sitting around us.  singing "new york, new york" like a fool is completely acceptable and highly encouraged.  i'm a met fan, but i find it perfectly okay to go to  yankee game and cheer for them.  pato gets in for free.

swisher hits a few runners in during the bottom of the ninth.  yankees win.  swisher gets a pie to the face.  everyone is high-fiving.  everyone is singing. if only the mets could do this.

the south rose again...for a few days anyway

There has always been something about the South. Maybe it is the mild winters and the early springs or that I don't feel guilty eating fried chicken and biscuits while there.  I have always been a sucker for the accents and continue to have a love hate relationship with the slower lifestyle. Regardless, after spending four years of college in North Carolina, I still find myself heading down there once in a while to visit friends, enjoying a lazy afternoon, and indulging in some fried chicken and carolina barbeque.

This particular trip was not planned ahead of time, nor did it need much thought. After a short conversation with Jason on gchat, a text sent to Lauri and a bbm to Kimberly the trip was set only a few days in advance.  I packed a lunch, some bottled water, a few snacks and went to bed. The alarm went off at 4:00am, I was in the car at 4:45am and driving past Newark Airport within an hour.  Speeding? Hardly.  By 9:30am, I had was past Washington, DC and for some unknown reason at 1:00pm my phone was dead with no way to communicate with anyone. I knew I was in the south when the billboards were sponsored by  Chick-fil-A and Bojangles. Getting directions to Lauri's was simply impossible at this point.  Luckily I knew the exit off the highway and found the local chamber of commerce to charge my phone for a little while before I was able to get Lauri to tell me proper directions.  

 The entire trip focused around eating.  Some of my favorites were the Chick-fil-A nugget platter, Bojangles supreme combo and Mac's barbeque. All of this going against my attempts to not eat fried food, but how can one pass this up?  .....we've gotten a little older, went from dorm rooms to houses, we are slightly more mature, added a few babies to the mix and can still laugh about the good old days. Not really much has changed...we just go to bed earlier. I am not sure when I will make my next visit, but I know this past visit was a great, spontaneous addition to summer-time fun. It's great to know that every time I go to this place I used to call home, it feels like I never left.  

It is always great to see this crew...

and this polo pup cooper marmaduke...

and some graffiti art....

all while eating and drinking this stuff. 

Check out just some of the fun we had here.