trendsetter

one of my favorite bloggers, carrie (aka adam's wife), tipped me off to a hot new food trend a few months back - whole wheat.



well look what i stumbled across at the store the other day. i don't usually fall victim to short lived cooking fads, but i figured i'd give this one a whirl.



trendy peanut butter & jelly sandwich

• 2 slices whole wheat bread
• one heaping tablespoon of crunchy peanut butter
  
• one heaping tablesoon of jelly

spread peanut butter evenly on one slice of bread. repeat with jelly on the other slice. combine bread slices (jelly side to peanut butter side) to form a sandwich.



i'm sure this trend won't be around for long - but it sure is fun to play around with in the meantime! thanks carrie!!

tastes like chicken

here's a great dish introduced to me by my friend nicole about a month ago.



goat cheese cranberry quorn goodness (by nicole)

• 1 quorn cranberry & goat cheese chik'n cutlet

place cutlet on a pre-heated cookie sheet and bake for 18 minutes at 425°

i vary this recipe slightly by skipping the baking step and instead microwaving the cutlet on high for 2 minutes. although the quorn packaging warns that microwaving is not recommended, i'm convinced that if they truly meant that they wouldn't have gone so far as to provide microwave heating instructions on the box. besides which, i could stand to cut down on some of the B12 content in that goat cheese.



i paired the cutlet with a gorgonzola and walnut salad. i prepared this by purchasing a premade gorgonzola & walnut salad from trader joe's, removing the lid, and dumping it on my plate. i did however substitute annie's natural low fat gingerly vinaigrette for the balsamic provided since i simply don't understand the concept of a salad dressing with more than 10 grams of fat. pre-made salads like this are really fantastic as they eliminate all the pesky busy work like removing leaves of lettuce from the head and washing them. the time i save frees up the rest of my evening to concentrate on my more serious gastronomical masterworks. i was concerned for a brief moment that there only appeared to be one tomato in the salad when the packaging clearly advertised "gorgonzola cheese, walnuts, and grape tomatoes on salad greens," but thankfully i found the second tomato hiding in there as well.

feed a cold

i've been a bit under the weather these last few days, and when i woke up this morning i just knew i wouldn't be up to fixing any sort of respectable breakfast. luckily the boyfriend came to the rescue, putting my well being ahead of his, and taking me out for the best possible brunch to get me back on the road to wellness. nothing says you care like taking your sick significant other to the cheapest, greasiest dive in the neighborhood (aka the odessa diner).



seriously, is there anything classier than a place that charges 50 cents extra for cheese on their cheese omelette sandwich?




he and i shared a tomato, mushroom, and swiss omelette (with a side of fries) along with an order of french toast. i have to say that he really knows his remedies, because after consuming the sort of fare that should only ever be touched between 12 and 4 AM while under the influence, i found myself so filled with an overpowering urge to vomit that my cold was the furthest thing from my mind.

i really owe the boy big time since he went so above and beyond with this one. any suggestions how i could pay him back??

obligatory post

while my parents were in town my mother was insistent that we partake in some chocolate by the bald man. unfortunately max brenner falls a bit below my usual dining standards, so i feel i'd be doing my readers a disservice by devoting too much time to them. i'll do my best to spare you all and keep this brief.




i started off with a not-quite-caesar salad (romaine, croutons, and parmesan with citrus vinaigrette instead of caesar dressing). my dressing was served on the side in a miniature erlenmeyer flask - which i think was a sad attempt to convince me that there were some scientific methods behind their food preparation.




for dessert we shared the melting marshmallow crepe (melted chocolate chunks and marshmallows, vanilla ice cream, gummy bears, warm chocolate sauce, white chocolate chunks) and melting chocolate heart cake (warm chocolate cake with melted dark and white chocolate heart, fresh strawberries, vanilla ice cream and warm chocolate sauce). i think they like to name their desserts "melting" to distract customers from the fact that they're clearly unable to serve things in their proper frozen state. thankfully though, since i'd just eaten a salad, any and all calories in the chocolate were thereby completely negated.

if you're in search of light and savory eats paired with rich and decadent sweets then go here if you must. but don't say i didn't warn you.

all in the family

this morning i was treated to a family breakfast out in brooklyn. i probably shouldn't be posting this, but i just couldn't resist sharing one of my grandmother's secret recipes with all of you.





bagels and appetizing (by grandma pearl)

• one dozen bagels
• two plum tomatoes
• three eggs
• several large leaves of romaine lettuce

walk to the corner store and purchase 12 assorted fresh bagels (you may substitue a baker's dozen if your local bagel store allows). upon returning home, remove from paper bag and place in serving bowl. on a separate plate lay down three or four large romaine leaves. hardboil three eggs, remove shells, and place on one side of the lettuce plate. wash and slice plum tomatoes and arrange opposite eggs. serve with a side of cream cheese.



i like to make what my grandmother refers to as a dagwood sandwich. this one is made up of a cinnamon raisin bagel schmeared with cream cheese and layered with sliced egg, tomato, and lettuce.

i know my grandma would be angry with me if she saw this post, but i thought this meal was just far too special not to share. luckily, good old g-ma doesn't have a clue what a blog is.

perks of the job

one of the great things about working in the entertainment industry is that i'm always being wined and dined. it's definitely one of the things that has helped me refine my sophisticated palate.

tonight, compliments of live nation, i was treated to the following epicurean delights:




the salad de la casa and veggie burger from chat 'n' chew. i consider it both an honor and a privilege to be able to partake in some of the finest takeout under $15 that union square has to offer.

to drink, i paired this meal with both a diet coke (a freebie from the bar) and a teany green tea with ginseng (a gift from the local deli). this combination of aspartame-ridden carbonation and Moby-esque goodness provided the perfect bouquet to compliment my meal.



and of course, no rock and roll evening would be complete without a night cap. once home i indulged in a glass of mint chocolate baileys (sample provided by the local liquor store) with soy milk.



to make this cocktail i mixed equal parts baileys and unsweetened soymilk. serve chilled over a single ice cube.

i know not everyone gets to experience such A-list treatment. but i'd definitely recommend saving up to treat yourself to a night like tonight at least once or twice a year.

breakfast for the busy gal

cooking while on the run can be tricky, but luckily i've perfected this quick and easy meal.



nature's path organic frosted toaster pastries are just like pop tarts, only less trashy and more expensive (therefore perfect for the hip urban dweller like myself). even though their nutritional info is nearly identical to that of actual pop tarts, their minimalist packaging and frou frou status tells me i'm clearly starting the day off right.

most recipes will call for you to remove the pastry from the pouch then warm it in your toaster at the lowest heat setting for one heating cycle. i've simplified this even further by omitting the toasting step and placing the pastry directly into my mouth (after removing the it from the pouch).



i also like to double the amount of pastries called for in the recipe. this makes clean up a snap (always important for a girl on the go) since there isn't a pesky second pastry to wrap up and put away.

think pink

sometimes i simply don't have time to practice my culinary arts. but anyone can still eat healthy with a quick trip to the corner deli.



diet cranberry ginger ale and a japanese red bean cake are rich with almost all of the major food groups.

the rice flour on the outside of the mochi is your serving of grains, fruit is obviously fulfilled by the cranberry in the ginger ale, and red beans count as both a vegetable and a meat believe it or not.

the only food group missing is dairy. so perhaps next time, i'll supplement this all pink picture of health with some individually packaged strawberry cream cheese spread (courtesy of dunkin donuts).

dinner delicacy

living alone doesn't mean i have to skimp on the gourmet entrees.

tonight i fixed myself this timeless classic.



i certainly wouldn't recommend it for the novice chef as it takes a bit of practice to get this dish just right. however, the end result is certainly worth the extra work.

optimum zen cranberry ginger

• 3/4 cup cereal
• 125 ml skim milk

i substituted unsweetened soy milk for the skim milk. i also prefer to increase the cereal portion, either filling the bowl nearly to the top or completely emptying the box (whichever comes first).



allow cereal to soak in milk until dried cranberries become soft (or else risk losing a filling) and milk takes on a slight beige-ish hue.