To Eat or To Shop?

Looks like my excitement and the deliciousness of 202's french toast got the best of me. By the time I remembered to take a picture for the blog...it was gone. Sorry readers, however, the clean plate should speak for itself.

202 is a hidden gem tucked away in Chelsea Market. Uniquely, the restaurant is located within a clothing store. My advice is to save your money for the food since for every 50 french toasts you could have purchased one sweater. Next time you are in the Chelsea neighborhood definitely check out this restaurant on 9th Ave b/t 15th & 16th street.

I had an amazing tuna burger with guacamole and then topped it off with the rest of my colleagues' french toast. Oh, but I wasn't done there. We ordered deserts. The table favorite was the sticky granola w/fruit and ice cream. Sounds simple but the flavors were bold.

Bloody Marys are Bloody Good

I have never been a fan of Bloody Marys. It's probably because mixing a depressant with vegetables seems to defeat a depressants purpose in the first place. Well on this particular Sunday, I went to a bar in the Lower East Side called Welcome to the Johnsons with my friend, Chris Berry. He was the same guy that introduced me to the bacon vodka, so I figured I would keep him around a while. After much persistence (one sip of his drink), Chris convinced me to get one of their Bloody Marys. He had heard they were one of the best in the city.

Holy crap that thing was good and only $7. Feast your eyes on the list of ingredients in this veggielicious libation. I am not sure the exact quantities as I was trying to be discrete when staring at the bartender in order to steal his special concoction. So, you will have to play around with the ingredients.

Wasabi

Saracha Sauce

Pickle Juice

Thai Chili Pepper Juice

Morton Hot Sauce Powder

Tabasco

Texas Pete

Horseradish

Worcestershire

Salt and Pepper

Lime and Lemon Juice

Canned Tomato Juice

Vodka

Guinness

It's Bacon

I have heard of infusing vodka with fruits, mint, and vanilla...but BACON, that was a new one for me. This past weekend I ventured out to Greenpoint, Brooklyn for Sunday Funday with some friends. We started off at a place called 68. They had been infusing vodka with bacon as an expirement for the past few weeks. The day we arrived happend to be the day they were testing it out. We tried bacon martinis and bacon bloody marys. I think the vodka worked better in the bloody mary because it wasn't too overpowering. It just had a hint of bacon flavor; where the bacon martini was extreemly potent. I am not sure if my palet could stomach more than one bacon infused beverage.

How to Infuse Vodka:

http://www.infused-vodka.com/vodkainfusionstep-by-step.aspx

Toasty Tip: Put green olives stuffed with bacon and blue cheese into your martinis and pickeled snap peas into your bloody marys. They did it and I loved it!

Chip On This

IT'S NATIONAL GUACAMOLE DAY!!!

Everyone go grab your mortar, pestle, and magic bullet and make some killer guac and margs to celebrate this special day.

I give this two toasted buns!

Toasty Treat

Kristin made me dinner last night. What a great roomie.

To make it a little healthier she used lean turkey meat, light sour cream, and black beans. However, I think the three helpings I had took the "lite" right out of the dish.

Oh well, it still was delicious. Thanks Kristin!

GOOP

I am secretly in love with Gwyneth Paltrow. I think she is so freaking cute, is a wonderful mother, and always involves herself in things that make the world a better place. Oh and of course...she is a foodie like me!

Anyway moving on...Gwyneth has a blog/website called GOOP that I am obsessed with. She blogs about six categories (make, see, do, get, be, see). She discuss anything from what she is wearing this fall to her favorite organic baby food. The cool part is, being that she has a lot of celebrity friends she frequently gets them to chime in on their ideas.

Obviously my favorite category is MAKE where she posts recipes from famous chefs and "how to" videos. Check out her most recent MAKE post.

http://goop.com/newsletter/47/

Toasty Tip: Sign up for her weekly newsletter and get goopin!

Eating Out Recession Style

My Mom is always looking for a deal. Whether buying microwaves on Ebay or getting triple skymiles points on Delta, her eye is always on the "never pay full price" prize. Being that we are in a recession, she has stepped up her game moving from deals to steals. Something constitutes as a "steal" when you walk out of the store worried the clerk is going to run after you saying she made a mistake in ringing you up. It was so cheap you feel as though you stole it from the store.

My Mom's most recent steal was on http://www.restaurant.com/. If you register online, you can purchase restaurant gift certificates at a fraction of the cost. (i.e. $25 gift card for $10). If you can believe it, she found a promotional code "NINETY" that takes 90% off your total order. So, I just got 13 $25 gift cards to New York City restaurants for a total of $14. Now that's a steal!

Your "Cup" Cakes Look "Double D" Licious

I am in my friend, KD's, wedding and she had a lingerie shower last weekend. What looked like a regular cake turned out to be a cake made from vanilla and chocolate cupcakes. What a cute idea and a great way for people to serve themselves.

Toasty Tip: Don't eat Fondant icing (the purple bows above). It it edible but tastes like rubber. It is used for decorating cakes as it is extremely pliable. Ever seen Ace of Cakes?

Scalloping

My Dad and Mom went scalloping with their friends the other weekend. Thanks to my parents' support for their crazy daughter who blogs about food, they created a post for me. I think they secretly enjoyed putting it together!

Here is what they had to say:

It is like an adult Easter Egg Hunter under water. A scallop is a fan shaped shell creature found in oceans the world over. You search for them to harvest the muscle that holds the two sides of the shell together as they make a scrumptious meal.

We scalloped in the shallow edge waters of the Gulf near Steinhatchee, Florida... this is “old” Florida. You feel what it must have been like for the Olds, Vanderbilt and Astor families as they began wintering in Florida. We stayed in a beautiful 3 bedroom cottage at Steinhatchee Landing.

To be legal, a Florida saltwater fishing license for $17.50 is required as well as hunting in season (July 1 – Sept 10). Some areas are banned due to “over scalloping”. Waters were two to four feet deep and the bottom was mix of sand and sea grasses. We arrived at our happy hunting ground by boat supplied by Captain Jim and Cindy Seletos.

Using a mask, fins and snorkel, you float lazily around looking for scallops just inches above the sand or sea grass, collecting them in a mesh bag. You periodically return to the boat to deposit your catch and swill down the libation of your choice.

Those who don’t get in the water find themselves in the boat cleaning the scallops. This is done with a spoon used to pry the scallop open followed by scraping the inside to loosen and discard a bunch of yuckie stuff. The muscle is collected and the shells go back into the water to become beach sand in a couple of million years.

It took about 6 hours for 8 adults to collect and clean scallops yielding 64 oz., the limit for our boat. It might have been a thousand scallops. The more you clean the larger the number gets. While the scallop is about 1.5-2 inches in diameter, the harvested scallop muscle is slightly smaller than the size of a piece of double bubble gum.

The collection process is extremely relaxing but remember your sunscreen or your will become a lobster! Relaxing is aided by the fact that cell phones rarely work there! We cooked our harvest the following day.

Scallop Recipe:

Just sautée the scallops in some olive oil, minced garlic, sea salt and ground pepper for approximately 5 minutes. Once cooked, remove the scallops from the pan. To the liquid in the pan, add white wine, a bit of half and half and a cornstarch/water mixture to thicken the sauce. Return the scallops to the pan. Color with some chopped parsley. Ladle over al dente linguini along with a green or tomato salad. Quantities of white wine of choice should also accompany… helping with digestion or mental acuity I am sure!

Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun

Remember my previous post about In-N-Out Burger's "secret menu"? Well look what my new roomie, Kristin, sent me. This is a clogged arteries dream! This list comes from another blogger who loves food.

10 Secret Menu Items from Fast Food Restaurants

1. In-N-Out Burger’s “secret menu” isn’t so secret these days – in fact, they’ve posted it on their website. But in case you’re not in the habit of surfing fast food sites, here’s the skinny on the rather un-skinny items: ordering something “Animal Style” at In-N-Out means you’re going to get it with lettuce, tomato, a mustard-cooked beef patty, pickles, extra spread (it’s sort of Thousand-Islandy) and grilled onions. You can even get your fries Animal Style. “Protein Style” is a burger wrapped in a lettuce leaf instead of a bun. A Grilled Cheese is two slices of American cheese, lettuce, tomato and spread on a bun (grilled onions if you so choose). And you can get just about any combo of meat and cheese that you want if you order it like you’re ordering lumber: 3×3 gets you three beef patties and three slices of cheese, 4×4 gets you four of each, and so on. It doesn’t stop there – one gluttonous patron requested a 100×100 at an Las Vegas store a couple of years ago. One item not listed on the website secret menu: the Flying Dutchman, which is two slices of cheese sandwiched between two patties, hold the bun.

2. If you’re at Starbucks and in need of just a little caffeine, don’t worry – there’s a tiny option for you. It’s the Short size, and they don’t advertise it. It’s like a little baby cup of coffee.

3. It’s a good thing we don’t have Jamba Juice here in Iowa, because I would be all over candy-inspired smoothies. Because it’s considered a health-food chain, Jamba Juice doesn’t officially list these on their in-store menus, but Mighty Foods assures us that the secret flavors exist. The ones they confirmed with the company’s headquarters include Strawberry Shortcake, White Gummy Bear, PB&J, Various flavors of Starbursts, Fruity Pebbles, Push-Up Pops, and Skittles. Other tantalizing flavors that are rumored to exist: Chocolate Gummi Bear, Apple Pie, Sourpatch Kid, Tootsie Roll, Chocolate-covered strawberries, and Now and Later.

4. Chipotle has a whole secret menu that is limited only by your imagination – they have a store policy that says that if they have the item available, they will make it for you. Things that have been tested include nachos, quesadillas, taco salads and single tacos.

5. If you’re at Wendy’s and you’re really hungry – like, three-patties-just-won’t-cut-it hungry, go ahead and order the Grand Slam, which is four patties stacked on a bun. It’s also known as the Meat Cube.

6. Several places, including McDonald’s and In-N-Out, will serve you the Neapolitan milkshake. It’s just what it sounds like – chocolate, vanilla and strawberry shakes layered in a cup.

7. Feeling a little health-conscious at Popeye’s? If you are, you really should have gone somewhere else. But there’s a little hope for you – ordering “naked chicken” will get you breading-free poultry. The word is that this is on the menu at some Popeye’s, but not all of them, although it is an option at all of them.

8. FAVORITE: Like Chipotle, Taco Bell will make you just about anything within reason as long as they have the ingredients for it. Since most of the food at Taco Bell is made out of the same basic items, that means you can probably ask for most discontinued items and get them. One “secret,” though, is that they have a not-advertised green chili sauce at most locations, and apparently it’s excellent.

9. Some Subways will still make you the popular pizza sub from the ‘90s. Once the chain decided to make their focus healthy eating, the pizza sub disappeared from most menus. Just make sure Jared isn't standing behind you in line when you order.

10. At Fatburger, you can order a Hypocrite – a veggie burger topped with crispy strips of bacon.

What Eactly is Tofu?

I have always wondered what tofu really is. So, I figured you guys would want to know too. The word "tofu" means bean curd. It is made by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into blocks.

Tofu is low in calories and contains a relatively little amount of fat.

Speakeasy Celebration

Emily officially became damaged goods/past her prime/shriveled up yesterday when she turned 26th. Her wonderful and sneaky friends (aka Leslie and I) surprised her with dinner at "must give your right arm to get into" La Esquina in Soho to celebrate. Though hard to get a reservation and hard to find, it is NOT hard to fall in love with this Mexican speakeasy. La Esquina is located underground. You have to go into a diner, downstairs, and through a kitchen before you end up in a warm, cozy, and dark restaurant that is full of people who look like they must be important, but you have know idea who they are. Someone must have been pretty important...MTV was interviewing them at the bar.

I had Emily rank the dishes we got in order of best to worst. She did so reluctantly as she said, quote "It's as if you are asking me to compare Miu Miu to Jimmy Choo or Balenciaga to Gucci; they are all so different yet so amazing." Well said Em!

Emily's Ranking:

1. Chicken Tostadas

2. Tuna Tostadas

3. Plantains

4. Steak Tacos

5. Chocolate lava cake

*Personally, I liked the tuna over the chicken and the lava cake over the steak tacos. I give it two toasted buns!

Leslie, Emily, and I left La Esquina comfortably full, extremely satisfied, and with a clear vision that we were not half as cool as everyone in the restaurant. However, we walked back through that kitchen and out of the diner with our heads held high and our bellies low and onto the next out of our league destination...230 Fifth rooftop bar.

Frank's Last Column

My friend Bennett teed up this post perfectly, so I will let the email he sent me speak for itself.

"Hey Laur,

I don’t know if you know, but Frank Bruni, the famous food critic from the NYTimes is stepping down as food critic and wrote his last column yesterday. He answers questions he’s never had a chance to address and gives some final suggestions of his favorite meals and restaurants. Thought you would be interested…"

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/26/dining/reviews/26rest.html?_r=1&ref=dining

This is my favorite segment of Frank's last column:

IS THERE ANY BEST, SAFEST WAY TO NAVIGATE A MENU?
Scratch off the appetizers and entrees that are most like dishes you’ve seen in many other restaurants, because they represent this one at its most dutiful, conservative and profit-minded. The chef’s heart isn’t in them.

Scratch off the dishes that look the most aggressively fanciful. The chef’s vanity — possibly too much of it — spawned these.

Then scratch off anything that mentions truffle oil.

Choose among the remaining dishes.

Thanks to my wonderful friends who keep me in the loop on the latest foodie news!

Yours foodly,
Toasty Buns

Guac Off

While in San Fran I stumbled upon this book which must have been made for me. It consists of two of my favorite things, guacamole and competition. Guac Off has 30 guac recipes and teaches you how to start you own guacamole competition. I can't wait to give the recipes a try. Get ready friends, I could be organizing a little guac competition of my own!

On a side note, when googling "Guac Off" to find out more about the book, the top website that came up was http://www.guacoff.org/. I can't believe I never knew about this. Too bad I missed this years competition. However, I have 9 months to perfect a guac recipe!

Toasty Tip: When picking a ripe avocado, look for ones that are dark green or a brownish color. Then, press you thumb gently into the avocado and make sure it gives. Also, make sure there aren't any air pockets where the skin has separated from the inside, as those tend to create mold pockets. Ripe avocados will only last about a day or two, so pick greener ones if you will not be using it right away.

Boardwalk Binge Eating

I experienced my first trip to the Jersey Shore this weekend...destination Ocean City, NJ! I thought I was in for a weekend of fist pumping, binge drinking, and muscle shirts. Not that there's anything wrong with that. However, to my surprise it was the perfect mix of pizza, catch phrase, ladder golf, drinking, relaxing, and getting to know new people.

After two days of replacing physical activity with sangria and bud heavy, we thought it would be a great idea to top it off with a Gastro Tour. This was our made up word for trying anything and everything edible on the boardwalk. Step in my sandals as I walk you through our boardwalk binge eating Gastro Tour.

STOP 1: Mack & Manco's Pizza

So delicious even the flying rats couldn't get enough

STOP 2: Curly's Fries

All you need is a little ketchup

STOP 3: Fried Oreos

Can't go wrong...anything fried is "phenomenal"

STOP 4: Rita's

Layeres of custard and flavored water ice

STOP 5: Hospital

For a stomach pump

Aside from my new muffin top I wouldn't take anything back. I recommend everyone partake in a Gastro Tour at some point in their life!

Yours foodly,

Toasty Buns

My First Meal

I set a goal for myself to cook more and experiment with food in my new apartment. Enough talking...the walk has begun! My first meal consisted of grilled chicken, summer squash, and brussel sprouts. Simple, easy, delicious.

A Toasty Tip: Only dress the veggies with olive oil, sea salt, and pepper. Cook the summer squash in a skillet on low with a lid on top for 10 minutes to get them nice and soft.

Plane Food Ain't So "Plain" Anymore

I could not sleep on the plane home from LA, so I splurged $5 of my companies money for Delta's "travel treats". At first, I was hesitant about the non-refrigerated salami and cheese. However, with some Top Chef Masters and a little chair reclining all my worries seemed to fade away. Half way through my Milano cookie, I realized I was actually enjoying my box of goodies. Next Delta flight I am going for the "flight delights" box with hummus and pita chips...yum!

Call me crazy, but the day after I got home from LA, I turned right around and headed back West to San Fran to visit a friend. As I was boarding my third 5hr flight in three days, I knew I had to go straight for the good stuff....mojitos. I was on vacation after all. Virgin America is the way to travel. Aside from the purple mood lighting, the ability to create your own music playlist, and chatting on your TV with people in other seats, you also order your food from your TV. Richard Branson knows what's up.

In-N-Out Burger...How Does It Measure Up?

One cannot make a trip out to the West Coast without giving this much talked about burger joint a try. Even though I was in LA for work, I easily convinced my collegues to join me for my fast food feast. My first philosopy on where their name "In-N-Out Burger" came from, was that their food is so cheap it goes right in...and right out, if you know what I mean. My whole meal with a vanilla milkshake was only $7. Not to shabby for a fast food restaurant that has been compared to 5 Guys where a burger and fries costs around $12. It seems that my second philosophy was correct...it's fast food...you're in-n-out with your burger faster than you can look up their "secret menu" on your iphone.

I heard about In-N-Out's "secret menu" (well not so secret anymore, but they still don't post it at their locations) but shied away from getting the animal fries (w/cheese, bacon, & secret sauce). My waist line says thank you.

I have to be honest and say that I prefer 5 Guys to In-N-Out. However, for the price I think it's pretty darn fantastic. Oh, and not to mention, they toast their buns!!! On a side note, I am not sure if I will ever find a fast food burger place better than Braums, which I will blog about on another day.

Yours foodly,

Toasty Buns

Thanks to Lisa

My friends and I were lucky enough to be invited to the Weissler's home in Waccabuc, NY this past Saturday. Whenever I hop on the Metro-North train bound for the Katonah stop, I start getting butterflies in my stomach. You would think it's because I am about to get my own room in the guest house, or the freedom to play tennis without making a reservation, or listening to Frank Sinatra while lounging by the pool. However, the butterflies come from the fact that I skipped breakfast to save up for the mouth watering food that I am about to receive. Lisa is the personal chef for the Weissler's (grandparents of my friend Daryn in picture). Typically, I over stuff my face with her delightful dishes and let it marinate in my tummy while bobbing on a noodle right before I kick Brett's butt in tennis. This time I decided to pick Lisa's brain on her "can't live without" kitchen gadgets and two recipes from my favorite items she made that day.

THANKS LISA!!!

BREAD STICKS

"One Is Never Enough" Bread Sticks:

(makes 12 bread sticks)

1 lb Pizza Dough
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Oregano chopped
1 Tbsp Rosemary chopped
1 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1 1/2 tsp Pepper
1 1/2 tsp Granulated Garlic

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients aside from dough in a bowl. Roll dough flat and brush herbs and oil mixture on top. Cut dough into 1/2 inch strips (easiest with ravioli or pizza roller). Pick up both ends of a strip and twist...repeat with other strips. Place on baking sheet with parchment paper so they don't stick. Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown. Make sure to rotate pan a few times during baking.

ICED TEA

Too Easy Tea:

Crystal Light iced tea powder mix with lemon
Orange Juice (pulp free) or frozen orange juice
Water

Directions:

For whatever amount of crystal light mix you decide to make, add 1/3 the amount of regular or frozen orange juice. Add ice and an orange slice and serve; that's it!


Aside from the usual tongs, baking sheets, etc. that are kitchen staples, Lisa can't live without the culinary gadgets shown above. You can get most of these items at any kitchen supply store.

Listed from left to right:

High temp spatula- will not melt when left in a hot pot or pan
Madeline- slices vegetables with ease
Pepper grinder- used in most dishes
Olive Pitter- takes the seeds out of olives
Peeler- no explanation needed
Round cutters- cuts pizza, cake, cookie dough into various round shapes
Reamer- releases the juice out of lemons, limes, oranges, etc.
Microplane- grates Parmesan, garlic, zests lemons