The Bay.

Around when I graduated from college, my parents moved to the Chesapeake Bay to a small town called St Michaels, Maryland. They've lived there ever since and couldn't love it more.

When I first came down to visit, I couldn't help but feel stir-crazy, confused about what to do, and just in shock from the slow pace of the little town. However, in more recent visits, I've come to embrace the small community and the beautiful nature that abounds there. I love to take Sadie on long walks by the water and through the woods.

They have the most beautiful farmers market every Saturday at Muskrat Park. It's right on the water and it has such a lovely hum of neighbors checking in. People are buying croissants and fruit to go home and enjoy with their families or eat outside as they watch the boats pass by. It's a pretty special way to spend a Saturday morning.

Lizzy and Teacake will be making the trip down with me next weekend and I'm so excited to be able to spend time with my family and oldest, dearest friend in a peaceful place where we can just BE. :)

Breakfast By Yellow.

Sometimes the seasons tells us exactly what we should be eating to feel good. By now you all know I love breakfast, and yesterday morning, I couldn't help but notice that my breakfast had a very orange-yellow theme. I figured I would share the beauty of this fresh, color-themed produce with you all!

I had a handful of mixed red and yellow cherries. I couldn't choose just one at the store, but it turned out the yellows were sweeter!

I also had a juicy apricot. These guys are like candy in the summer, and such a pretty color. I want a dress this shade.

Then the most complicated part of this easy-peasy breakfast was a slice of Whole Foods' 12 grain bread, topped with a slathering of Trader Joes' edamame hummus, sliced yellow grape tomatoes and finely shredded mint.

No cooking required, but such a bundle of great flavors! It was hard to eat just one slice....

I hope you're going out to your local farmers' market and finding the adventures they offer at this time of year. Colorful produce makes for not only a delicious meal, but one that's also healthy and as beautiful as a piece of art! Go yellow! :)

Summer Reading.

Looking for a new book? If you're like me, you're always on the lookout for a great recommendation. This is what I'm reading right now. I won't butcher it by trying to explain what it's about, but it's a memoir that somehow manages to balance being heart-wrenching, hysterically funny, authentic, poignant and addictive all in one. Pick it up if you're in need of a good summer book! Hope you're enjoying the weekend. :)

How To Make A Great Salad (without cheese!)

This summer I've set a few goals for myself. Most of them are around getting and staying healthier. I've been actually enjoying yoga for the first time in my life, trying to cut back on sweets and trying very hard to eliminate cheese from my diet for the summer.
Why cheese? Cheese is delicious, right? Well, that's the problem. I treat cheese like chocolate and coffee, I think they are so delicious that I can really go overboard. If it were up to me, I'd have cheese at every meal and then more before bed :)
However, I realize all that cheese can't be good for a girl. So, just as a test of willpower, I've been trying to cut cheese almost entirely out of my diet. I'm not going nuts over it, but where I'd usually top my scrambled eggs with sprinkled cheddar, I'm using salsa or sliced avocado. When I want pepper-jack in a sandwich, I'm trying to replace with extra veggies like beets or shredded carrots. It's nowhere near as delicious, but I am losing my taste for it, or rather, my need for it in my food.
However, the place where I have struggled the most has been in salads. I love a creamy goat cheese crumble or chunks of salty feta in my salads, so I've had to find satisfying replacements to make my salads delicious. I think I've done okay, so I'll share with you, the anatomy of a delicious salad, with no cheese!

First, start with your favorite lettuce. I usually gravitate towards the arugula or baby spinach, but I also think adding shreds of endive or radicchio can be great for contrast!

Then, add a protein

I like hard boiled eggs, cooked just barely hard. I do this by putting the eggs in cold water, turning the water on until it comes to a boil, and then turning it off and letting the eggs sit in the water until it returns to room temperature. I find this helps prevent the eggs from becoming rubbery or gray. Instead of or in addition to eggs, you could add chick peas too for your vegetarian protein kick!

Next, add something creamy

I like avocado, because it crumbles and coats the lettuce, almost like a cheese would. It also has folates, healthy fats and Vitamin E that are great for your overall health. Mostly, it tastes indulgent every time, even though we know it's good for us!

Then, you'll need something sweet

I like a little palm-full of dried cranberries and walnuts. You could of course substitute any fruit though: grapefruit, orange segments, figs, pomegranate seeds, strawberries, the list goes on. I think the nuts help add crunch and flavor too.

Finally, you need flavor

I love the punchy, strong flavor of red onion. I think its sweetness along with its intensity really makes the salad. If you hate onion, try beets, carrots, jicama or roasted eggplant to jazz things up.

My last secret ingredient is something seedy

You may have wondered what the little black dots were on all my salad photos above. They were chia seeds! If you don't know about the benefits of these little powerhouses, check this website for details. However, in addition to all the wonderful health benefits of sprinkling these in your salads, I also love the added texture of a seed. Some of my other favorites include flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, sunflower seeds or poppy seeds!

Your final step, once you've chosen your favorite ingredients is assembly

In terms of presentation, I like to separate each ingredient into its own little section, so whoever is eating it (even if it's just me) can see exactly what they are eating, and toss it together themselves. On this particular night, I also added roasted chicken breast that I baked in lemon juice with olive oil, garlic, shallot and adobo seasoning.

And just for kicks, I tossed the roasted shallot and garlic in with the salad for extra flavor!

So whatever it is you're trying to kick....whether it's cheese or coffee or chocolate or cursing...there's always something you can replace it with. Maybe it won't be as good as the original, but the body is amazingly resilient, and we can get used to lots of things, if we just give them a chance. (Lizzy's been trying to tell me this for years and I'm just starting to get it). So from one imperfect, cheese-lover to a reader, I hope you stick with whatever your current goals are! Even on those tricky weekends :) Have a good one!

Take me away...to Rockaway!

It was a while ago when Lizzy posted photos of a place called Rockaway Taco in a post here on Puddin' Pie. She captured me with the images and then I watched a clip of the film about this place, and ever since then I have had it in my mind that I must go to Far Rockaway and visit this place!
It was so hard for me to really believe that there was a place on the end of the A train that really existed where people surf, eat tacos and have bee hives on their roofs. So yesterday Alana and I adventured out on the subway to seek what was out there at the very end of the line, 2 hours away. I knew it was good when this was the view out the subway window when we got close:

Seeing water is never a bad sign.
However, when we got there, we truly felt transported. The beach was nearly empty and yes! People really do surf there! It is a super mellow beach where you really can't imagine the rush and bustle of midtown being accessible by public transportation. We relaxed, took a dip in the water and really took in the beauty of where we were!

After a day of sunshine, we were dehydrated and of course HAD to check out rockaway taco, so we headed a few blocks over to see what it was all about. The first thing I noticed and fell in love with was the vegetables and fruits they were growing on the roof! Amazing.... and they use their own veggies in their tacos and their own fruits in the juices they blend.

Anyone who knows me well already knows that I have a strange love affair with growing plants and veggies, so this warmed my heart. Alana and I were too stuffed from our beach picnic to squeeze in a taco (I realize this makes no sense and trust me, I was dissapointed in myself)... but we did get a carrot-apple-ginger juice, squeezed fresh over a cup of ice and the perfect end to a beautiful day. I highly recommend a day trip to Rockaway if you can manage it. It's our new favorite place, and we already have plans to go back this week! And I can promise you, I'll be going hungry next time :)

3 photos above courtesty of http://chalk-jenny.blogspot.com/2010/10/shop-love-rockaway-tacos.html

NYC Cheapeats for Cheapskates.

The only thing worse than not being able to afford all the beautiful, delicious food available to us here in NYC is when New York Magazine comes out with their "Cheap Eats" edition. I don't know about you guys, but I often find that their idea of "cheap" is slightly different than mine.
With this being said, there are a few places I've either tried in the past few weeks of summer freedom OR staples that I go back to again and again that I feel I simply must share with my reader community. Now it's hard to narrow it down, there are so many cuisines and neighborhoods to cover, but these are my top five of cheap eats in Manhattan at the moment. SO in no particular order, here are my picks!

1. Taqueria Y Fonda on Amsterdam between 107th & 108th Streets.
This place is amazing for so many reasons. They serve a delicious burrito that's about the size of your head, the people who work there are actually Mexican and cook like Mexicans (sounds simple, but strangely difficult to find), and the environment transports you immediately to a small joint you might actually walk into in Mexico. You can sit down at one of their tables at any time of day & order a Pacifico or a Negro Modelo, or 12 and no one looks twice at you (even if it's 3pm...trust me, I've done it). Seriously though, the prices are ridiculously reasonable ($5.95 for a quesadilla & $9.50 for their "giant burrito") and you don't have to worry about how fast you're eating, how much you're spending or how many beers you've thrown back. You're surrounded by friendly, mellow people and awesome food. What more could you ask for in a neighborhood spot?

2. Acapulco Caliente on Broadway between 143rd and 144th streets. I can hear you now... "Another Mexican place? So far uptown?" Well don't even think about questioning this choice my loyal, new blog-reading friends. This place is KILLER. It is simple in its decor, and truly strange in its music volume and taste....but there are so many things I love about it. First, they are BYOB. I don't think I need to speak more on that point. Second, they have one of the best enchiladas this side of...well, Mexico. The green sauce is garlicky, fresh and perfect. Plus, they open up their doors and you can sit in the window, eating chips and salsa with your own icy beers and great company. I don't ever stop craving this place & it's always worth the trip. Trust me on this one.


3. Hummus Place at various locations including East Village, West Village & 2 Upper West Side spots. I don't usually grow such an affinity for chain restaurants. They often feel impersonal and the food seems to lack in character and flavor. The Hummus Place refuses to fit those ugly chain-restaurant stereotypes. They are dirt cheap and taste like a small Israeli Grandma made me my tahini herself. Some of my must-haves at this restaurant include their creamy fava bean hummus and their shakshuka halumi, a tomato stew topped with oozy cheese and 2 over-easy eggs. Oh and don't even get me started on their delicious health salad which tastes like you're eating a garden in a bowl. My absolute favorite part about this place is that they have a dinner special at all their locations, that allows you and your dinner partner to get 2 appetizers, 2 entrees and a bottle of house wine for only $39.95. Do I enjoy the flavor of the house wine? Nope. Do I mind when I have delicious shakshuka halumi melting in my mouth? Not a bit.

4. Terakawa Ramen on Lexington Ave between 22nd & 23rd streets. Oh how do I begin to explain the love affair I share with Terakawa? Well let me begin with this: $1.50 gyoza. Yes, you heard me correctly my thrifty followers, for only $1.50 you are served 5 plump, little gingery delights on Sunday nights for half price (they're usually $3.00. So outrageous huh). Anyway, this place is totally unassuming and tucked away, easy to miss for sure. However their soup bowls warm you from the inside out with pungent pork flavors and soft boiled eggs that must have been laid in heaven. All for about 10 bucks, you can choose a soup that fits your perfect flavor profile, and then if you're anything like me, you'll then smother that deliciousness in the fried garlic flakes that abound at the table along with the hot sauce and other mystery condiments lined up for your dousing delight. This is comfort food at it's best, and you'll walk out of this place stuffed, satisfied and feeling like ramen in a microwave is blasphemy.

5. Ottos Burger Bar on 5th avenue at 111th Street. A great burger is like a God-given gift. It must be a divine combination of being juicy, plump, flavorful, appropriately priced and of course decorated in only the finest combination of condiment perfection. It is for all these reasons that I am addicted to my neighborhood spot, Ottos. During the school year when I'm having a bad week, there's nothing like coming here for a margarita and a texas burger. What makes the texas burger my "ultimate" you may ask? Well it is high quality meat, cooked to that slightly bloody, medium rare (on the rarer side), and it's topped with cheddar cheese, crispy bacon and a generous dollop of BBQ sauce. Sounds simple, but something about the way they assemble this gem, paired with a sprinkling of waffle fries hits the spot every time. This meal of champions will cost you a mere $9.95 and the staff there is so friendly and kind, you really feel like your business is appreciated, which is pretty rare these days. They also have a bench outside where you can sit, try to digest that hefty burger and still see Central Park on the horizon with the company of your choice. For me, it doesn't get much better than that.

Please feel free to comment with your own favorite cheap eats... a good, cheap restaurant is a gift indeed! :)

Something To Make You Laugh.

Back in the days of high school it was hard to find peers who had a similarly sick sense of humor to myself. However, one of the few things that helped me find "the ones" was the Jerry Seinfeld stand up C.D. (this was of course, back when people listened to C.D.'s). I have distinct memories of Allison, Lizzy, Stephanie and I listening to it, the whole way through, never tiring of it....we would roar with laughter in the car or repeat the lines out loud to each other at all times, one of our favorites being the airport skit... "I turned it on on fullll blassssst"

Since then, that whole series of skits still remains hysterically funny to me, and I can still recite chunks of the C.D. verbatim.
However, I have also become more discerning with my taste in stand-up comedy. I compare everybody to Jerry, and quite frankly--few compare.
However, recently Noah introduced me to this guy Louis C.K., insisting that even my dry, cruel sense of humor could find joy in his jokes. Of course, I was immediately skeptical, but I gave him a chance. After watching him a few times, this strange red-headed bearded man had me hooked. I laughed like I haven't in a while... maybe since the days of listening to Jerry Seinfeld in the car with my girls.
Below is a clip of one of his shows. Hopefully you'll all excuse the slightly crude language... it's so funny I think you'll forgive me & chuckle your way through your Tuesdays!