Buns of Steel

I can't get enough of steamed buns (mantou). Three recent favorites...
Momofuku Noodle Bar's shiitake buns (hold the pork fat!):photo via feministjulie
Graffiti's cumin eggplant buns: photo via jehangrimehta
Fatty Crab's veggie buns:photo via all things fancy

Gravy Train

Every weekend at the magical pancake restaurant, Shawn faces a quandary: order the egg and cheese biscuit sandwich or order the pancakes? (I face no such dilemma: the answer, my friends, is always the pancakes.) It turns out that Clinton Street Baking Company is known just as much for their gargantuan yet light and fluffy biscuits as they are for their gargantuan yet light and fluffy pancakes, hence the difficult decision.

Shawn's choice tomorrow will be easier, because it turns out that Food + Wine has (once again) come to the rescue with the recipe for those biscuits. I made them this morning and they were every bit as flaky and tender as the restaurant's.
photo via Shawn
Growing up on the east coast, I never so much as tasted biscuits and gravy. A few years ago, after considerable time in the midwest, it dawned on me that I could attempt this dish using my favorite Morningstar Farms product: delicious vegetarian "sausage" patties. I have absolutely no basis for comparison, but I've been told my meatless version is just as good as real sausage gravy. When paired with Clinton Street's biscuits, it's a surefire win. Here's the (inexact) recipe:

Microwave 4 to 5 Morningstar Farms "sausage" patties and then mash them with a fork and set aside. In a saucepan, make a roux by melting 2 tablespoons of butter and whisking in 2 tablespoons of flour. Whisk in a few tablespoons of milk at a time until you reach the consistency you desire. At this point, season with salt and pepper, then add the "sausage." Stir well over the heat. You can add a bit more milk if the gravy is too thick. Pour over homemade biscuits and enjoy! This can make anywhere between 2 servings (if your spouse has a bottomless pit of a stomach like mine does) to 4 meager portions.

I'll take you to the candy shop...

Economy Candy in the Lower East Side is a treasure trove of imported and old-time candy. We went to this gem of a store last night to coo at all the sweets:






all photos via my one and only Shawn

Anthropologie

Yesterday, I received this 15% off coupon in the mail from Anthropologie in honor of my birthday month:image via NOTCOT
The store often overwhelms me ("it's like a crazy librarian's closet exploded in here" a friend once said), but I've found that if I do my research on their website in advance, I can escape with a cute set of pastel latte bowls or some drawer knobs. Here's what I have my eye on currently:
1. Swathed Gingham Blouse ($78)
2. Graceful Point Cardigan ($88)
3. Sail-The-Seven V-Neck ($88)
4. Blooming Brillance Blouse ($88)
5. All Wrapped Up Cardigan ($98)
6. Torsade Tee ($48)

Wow. Just, wow.

I love lists, fashion, and being bossy more than anyone else I know, but I'd like to hope I would never resort to this:The other five pages can be found here.

Abraco

We've walked past the coffee shop Bon Appetit named one of the 10 best in the country countless times without realizing it. This morning, we finally got around to trying Abraco. Sadly, they were out of their homemade almond milk, but the slice of olive oil cake I had was deeply satisfying. In such close quarters (the place is tiny), you can't help but strike up a conversation with a stranger - we ended up chatting with a runner who lives quite close to my parents on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
photo via niallkennedy
photo via Premshree Pillaiphoto via kathyylchan

Sunbathing

It's cold outside, but between the radiator's heat and sun streaming through the window, Lucy and Chloe are none the wiser.

(DT) Works for me

The Dessert Truck tragically ceased existence soon after we moved to NYC (it has since reappeared on the streets on Manhattan). Last week, it was reborn as a brick and mortar store (DT Works) in the Lower East Side (right next door to the magical pancake restaurant). Since its inception, we have sampled four of their offerings.

DT Works has already established itself in our rotation alongside Dessert Club Chikalicious and Momofuku Milk Bar - with menu items like nutella-filled donut holes, how could it not? It has also renewed my faith in creme brulee, a dessert I tend to overlook. Theirs was creamy (not curdled like so many are) with a rock-solid layer of burnt sugar.

Eat It (Again): Hot Chocolate

Odds of visiting City Bakery are even higher on these days:
A full rundown of Hot Chocolate Festival flavors can be found here.

It's National Blueberry Pancake Day

photo via hist-fic chick
Just sayin'

Super Bowl Sunday

photo via Bethany L. King

I've posted about Yats, the $5-a-plate cajun/creole mini empire in Indianapolis, before. The city's love toward owner Joe Vuskovich (a New Orleans native) is definitely requited - he would often insist diners eat there on verbal IOUs if they arrived cashless. I miss Yats B&B (caramelized corn and black beans in a light cream sauce) with the burning fire of one thousand suns, so today I trolled the internet looking for a recipe to make on Super Bowl Sunday. (Why? Because Yats epitomizes both cities in my mind.) While I turned up empty-handed on the B&B front, my efforts were rewarded with the recipe for Yats' Chili Cheese Etouffee, a dish I often yearned for but never tried because it was always made with either chicken or crawfish. (I'll substitute vegetable broth for chicken and use Quorn for the protein).

O Canada

I've never been to Toronto, but it's on my short list of cities to visit. Their hip West Queen West district is home to the Drake Hotel, which, judging by these pictures, is right up my alley. Modern yet slightly grungy aesthetic? Check. Malin + Goetz toiletries? Check. Photo booth? Check. It might as well be an Ace Hotel (I can only dream!).
photo via basic framework
photo via The Drake Hotel
photo via The Drake Hotel
photo via wmcphail
photo via The Drake Hotelphoto via Sifu Renka

All Bark, All Bite

photo via jasonlam
Everything at Bark is made from scratch with care, from my chickpea-based vegetarian hotdog, to the fries with non-neon cheese sauce, to my this-could-have-turned-out-horribly-cloying-but-instead-it's-the-most-subtle-and-delicious butterscotch milkshake: photo via Shawn
I'll be back.

It's here!

Right before our next reported cold spell, my Mackage coat arrived from Canada (just in the nick of time!). I authorized Shawn to open it and email me pictures. To replicate the sense of anticipation I would feel had I unwrapped it myself, the first picture he sent was of the box:

Isn't it lovely? I hope it fits!

Currently Obsessed With...

photo via Refinery 29
photo via Miles Redd

photo via monicamuller
photo via thomasheylen

Trail Mix

On Saturday, I ran an easy thirteen miles with my childhood best friend along the Mount Vernon Trail. We met here:photo via artboredom
The forests, bogs, and lack of traffic were quite a change of pace for me. Our route culminated in lovely Old Town Alexandria, where our two good friends and a grilled muffin awaited us. (Yes, you read that correctly - a grilled muffin. Ours was chocolate chip. Why didn't I think of that?)

Blast from the past

This weekend, high school girlfriends and I reminisced about the snack that epitomized our junior year, the (sadly) discontinued Nesquik Cookies n Cream powder:

The One That Got Away

It was love at first sight when I spied this seafoam green Grecian Zac Posen number at Neiman Marcus Last Call today. In hindsight, I shouldn't have tried it on - the fit caused me to become even more enamored of it. Because of the still-hefty price tag, I wistfully turned it over to the dressing room sales clerk. Afterward, a sense of melancholy took hold - I was in a funk over the dress. I still can't get it out of my mind.