Tag Archives: dessert

A relaxing start

Posted on January 12, 2013 | Leave a comment

Happy Saturday! Hope your weekend is off to a great start. I just got back from yoga class and am getting some stuff done before a lunch outing. Last night I enjoyed a lovely home-cooked meal with a few of my fellow interns.

I brought wine and salad, and there was also delicious whole-wheat pasta with a tomato sauce that had a nice savory, smoky flavor thanks to the addition of a little bacon. IMG_1385

There was also a lovely apple crisp baked in the cutest little ramekins!  IMG_1387One great thing about my field is being friends with people who love to cook and enjoy food. The girl-talk was also much-needed. It was a relaxing way to start the weekend.

Do you and your friends ever get together for a home-cooked dinner? Who usually brings what? 

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This is what happens when they let me decorate the cookies…

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Posted on December 18, 2012 in Uncategorized

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Mother-Daughter Night

Posted on September 7, 2012 | 6 Comments

I like to joke that I get my workaholism from my mother. As you can imagine, this makes it hard for us to find time to get together. We finally managed to go out for dinner this week, though.

We explored the Upper West Side on foot, eventually settling at an outdoor table at Citrus Bar & Grill on Amsterdam. To start, we shared their shrimp quesadilla…

…and each ordered a different salad for our main course. I went with the seared yellowfin tuna salad, which also involved greens, seaweed, edamame, avocado, and a carrot-vinaigrette dressing.  

After that we walked around a bit more and made our way to Hells Kitchen for dessert at Kyotofu, a “whimsical Japanese dessert bar” my mom had heard about. I must have walked by it a thousand times in the 4 years I lived in that neighborhood but never stopped in, probably because it’s so close to Gazala Place, one of my favorite restaurants. I can’t remember the last time I went to a place specifically for an after-dinner sweet, and this did not disappoint. We shared the koru coma sweet tofu and the chocolate mocha cake. 

Both were outstanding. Totally worth the trip.

Do you have a hard time finding time to do dinner with your family? What was your last restaurant meal together like? 

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Frozen Yogurt Rules

Posted on July 27, 2012 | 1 Comment

Ok, I’ll ‘fess up—I totally went through a phase in college where I practically lived off of frozen yogurt. The dining hall sucked, I couldn’t cook to save my life, but I was really good at ordering frozen yogurt with cookie dough bites and sprinkles.

no f***ing contest

Just thinking about that makes my teeth hurt—I think it was going to Italy and trying gelato that turned me off to the stuff. I mean, honestly, what is the point of eating a giant  swirl of fake stuff when the real deal is out there and oh-so-good? Someone please stop me from extending this into a metaphor…Not that I claim to be above the occasional nostalgic craving for soft-serve fro-yo with sprinkles but that happens, like, once a year.

But I digress. The whole point of this post was to share with you Glamour magazine’s Do’s & Don’ts of Frozen Yogurt. While I can’t help rolling my eyes at phrases like “skinny treat,” it’s cute and informative.

Do you like frozen yogurt? Gelato? What’s your favorite flavor/topping combination? 

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Um, yay, Patriotism!

Posted on July 3, 2012 | Leave a comment

Does anyone else find it a bit unsettling that America celebrates its Independence Day by overeating and lighting stuff on fire? To be fair, though, I guess we do that to celebrate a lot of things—and we’re not exactly the only country known for its culinary holiday traditions or pyrotechnic displays…

Even though I have tomorrow off, it doesn’t really feel like a holiday to me. The past few years, I’ve gone down to the Jersey Shore, but I had to sit the trip out this year because of my schedule. I don’t even know yet if I have any plans, which is both sad and kind of all right with me. Whether I do something or nothing, it will be a good day. I’m just happy not to have to set an alarm for the morning!

One of these days, I tell myself, I’ll learn how to grill or at least make, like, pulled pork in a slow-cooker, but for now, I’ll leave that to the folks who know what the f*** they’re doing. Ditto desserts. While I may be an RD-in-training, I can still appreciate the intricacies of a cake that looks like a flag. Mad skills. Of course, it’s hard to go wrong with mixed berries and whipped cream to get your red-and-blue fix.

What are you up to this July 4th? Any favorite holiday recipes?  

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What your favorite ice cream flavor says about you…

Posted on June 24, 2012 | 4 Comments

courtesy of Turkey Hill

Confession: Though I don’t have an online dating profile (I made one once and took it down 10 minutes later because I got scared), I absolutely love HowAboutWe‘s blog, and I totally have a not-so-secret fantasy of writing a column there. It’s not that I go on so many dates that I’m any kind of authority—I just seem to have a lot of stories…I am told that “normal” people exist, but I can’t say I’ve had any sort of meaningful interaction with one. I should note, however, that in some cases, this should be taken as a compliment. Coming from me, anyway.

I could even just say snarky and/or tongue-in-cheek dietitian-in-training things about food choices, lifestyle habits and table manners. Or what about food allergy etiquette? Or what to eat before a date…Maybe one day I’ll talk about that month I was going out with someone who, like, never seemed to eat unless I said we should. This is why my sister and I have a rule never to date someone who eats less than we do—it only leads to hunger and crankiness.

I get a kick out of posts like this recent piece, which decodes what your ice cream flavor choice says about you on a date. As someone who likes chocolate chip cookie dough (dark chocolate gelato wasn’t on the list!), I was amused. The only thing that rings true is that I do take a “why not” approach to life. However, I can’t remember the last time I was drunk enough to forget something. For better or worse, I’m that person who wakes up clear-headed and says, “So, um, yeah. You probably don’t remember telling me you loved me last night but…”  Okay, so maybe that only happened once or twice, but like I said, stories…

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough: You are really indulgent and party your ass off. You do what you feel like doing basically all the time, regardless of what your work schedule is or what other people think. You plan stuff for your friends and get them psyched to follow your lead. Your philosophy is, “Why not?” And you’ll try anything once. Or twice, depending on how drunk you were the first time.

I also cracked up over this one…

Sorbet: You’re a liar. You don’t ‘like’ sorbet. You’re on a diet.

Or they could be lactose-intolerant!

You can read about other ice cream flavors on HowAboutWe’s blog.

What’s your favorite ice cream flavor? 

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Burger King Unveils Bacon Sundae

Posted on June 14, 2012 | 12 Comments

Burger King/AP

Oh dear. The bacon sundae is real and coming to a Burger King near you. Starting today and through September 3rd, you can purchase this 510-calorie sundae, which includes vanilla soft serve topped with fudge, caramel, bacon crumbles and a piece of bacon and—oh yeah—18 grams of fat and 61 grams of sugar. Good times for your arteries and blood glucose. My pancreas is crying just thinking about it.

What do you think of Burger King’s new bacon sundae? 

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Factory Girls

Posted on February 21, 2012 | 4 Comments

Pardon the silly title, but it was just too easy. Before heading back to NYC yesterday, I got an early lunch with my mom, sister, and aunt. We hadn’t planned on going to the Cheesecake Factory, but it was the only thing open near where we were staying, so why not? I was both amused and embarrassed that we opened the place.

This was news to me, but apparently the chain, which is notorious for its high-cal foods and huge portions, has been featuring a Skinnylicious menu since Fall 2011.

pardon the bad photo photo

While the menu doesnt list exact calorie counts, for each category, it says the maximum number of calories. For example, all the salads were 590 calories and under, the flatbreads were 490 and under, etc. I assume the sugar, fat and salt quantities were all still fairly high, but if nothing else, it seemed like a good PR move.  We all decided to try it out. My mom tried the ahi carpaccio, and my sister and aunt both got the soft tacos. I ordered the herb-crusted salmon salad.

We all enjoyed our food a lot more than we expected to.  Everything was super-fresh and the portions were generous but not overwhelming. I’d say I finished about three quarters of mine and felt really satisfied.

For dessert, we decided to go in the opposite direction and ordered a piece of red velvet cheesecake to split between the four of us. 

Not gonna lie—the first few bites were amazing. Especially with the cream cheese icing on top, these flavors were made to go together. However, after those first few tastes, the flavor just went away for me so I called it a day. Does that ever happen to anyone else? I mean, a few bites of something really decadent really is all you need most of the time, but it was crazy—four grown women with healthy appetites barely finished half of this slice of cheesecake that’s supposedly intended as a single serving for one person. I think that says more about the Cheesecake Factory than about us, though!

Have you tried anything off the Cheesecake Factory’s Skinnylicious menu? What did you think? If you haven’t, would you try it? 

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Happy & Sad

Posted on January 8, 2012 | 1 Comment

Yesterday was my mom’s birthday. She spent part of the morning and afternoon with me in the city. After years of her offering, I’d finally asked her a few weeks ago to show me some of her house-cleaning secrets, and Saturday was the day.

When I saw how much satisfaction she got from a sparkling floor, I understood where my craziness comes from. Only since I’ve started living alone again have I tapped into this side of myself that could contentedly spend a night scrubbing and mopping, but I’ll take it.

We took a lunch break at Dafni, a Greek restaurant in my neighborhood I don’t go to nearly enough. We split some appetizers and a salad with grilled calamari. 

I went back with her to New Jersey, where we took a 6:30 hot yoga class with my sister. One of the great things about doing hot yoga in NJ, I learned, is that I am not the only one in the room saying, “Holy sh!t” during half-pigeon.

Later, we went out for Vietnamese food (I had to order Pho, despite the warm temperature) and picked up cupcakes on the way home. 

Between the four of us, I don’t think we even finished half of these. So good but so sweet!

Today I’m catching up with some lady friends and giving a little extra TLC to Mick, my family’s 6-year-old golden retriever. We found out last week that he has a tumor on his heart and won’t be around much longer, so he’s relaxing at home, soaking up the love. 

Losing pets is always hard, but fortunately, Mick doesn’t seem to be in any pain, so we’re all hoping it stays that way. Everyone is happy to have him home for now, where he can be comfortable.

Have you ever dealt with a sick pet? What helped you cope? 

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Shortcut Apple Pie for One

Posted on October 15, 2011 | 3 Comments

So I know posted my mom’s apple pie recipe a few weeks ago, but sometimes baking a whole pie is just not in the cards.

First, you have to prep everything and wait while it bakes and cools. There’s also the fact that while apple pie makes a great once-in-a-while treat, the fat and calories in the crust don’t give you a whole lot of nutritional bang for your buck.

The other night I finally tried out something I’ve been meaning to get around to for freaking ever. This snack (which could stand in for breakfast as well) combines the good stuff about apple pie and bypasses the oven—and the crust. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 apple, chopped
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp raw oats

Directions:

  1. Mix ingredients in a small bowl. I did this in a mixing bowl but you can do it in the one you plan to cook it in.
  2. Place mixture into microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high 2-3 minutes or until apples are soft and oats have absorbed some of the liquid from the apples.
  3. Add granola or other toppings.

I topped mine with some cottage cheese (no-salt added) because I needed some protein, but this would be great on its own or eaten with yogurt or vanilla ice cream or even milk. I admit, this photo is super-ugly, but it tasted so good, I don’t care. I’ll definitely be making this again.

Do you have a favorite shortcut dessert? 

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