>Cafe Habana, NYC

6 Jan

>
Grilled Corn, Mexican Style. Served with chili powder lime and cheese.
This corn was featured on the Food Network’s The Best Thing I Ever Ate a la Tyler Florence. This corn is worth the crowd, is worth the tight spaces, is worth the narrow tables. It’s worth it. Go.


Sincronizada. Small black bean and sun-dried tomato tortillas with mozzarella cheese and avocado. Basically it’s a quesadilla with a fancy name.


Meet Carolyn. She’s the fine lady who brought me to Cafe Habana. She also has been living in a darling flat with burgundy floors. This was her last New York meal before moving back to L.A. Carolyn tells me that the brunch at Cafe Habana is great. Chilaquiles here I come…

Cafe Habana
17 Prince Street
New York, NY 10012
(212) 625-2002

Banana Crumb Muffins

24 Dec

Tender muffins made with bananas and a sweet crumb top.

Bananas are delicious in baked goods, in smoothies, in pancakes and with nut butter.

Bananas, why do you sometimes attract little fruit flies? Why do the flies love you so?


Banana Crumb Muffins
from pipandebby

serves 12

Ingredients:

Muffins:
1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
2 large ripened bananas, mashed
3⁄4 cup white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup butter, melted

Crumb top:
2/3 cup packed (light or golden) brown sugar
4 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 Tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease 12 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers.

2. In a large bowl, mix together 11⁄2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and 1/3 cup melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

3. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 4 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Pour in the butter, one tablespoon at a time, just until moistened. It will resemble coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.

4. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

>Chocolate Truffles: 5th Avenue Chocolatiere New York

24 Dec

>


Love.

5th Avenue Chocolatiere
693 Third Avenue at 43rd Street
New York, NY 10017
(212) 935-5454

>Oh Cappuccino, You Have My Heart

22 Dec

>
I’m in bed at 10pm on a rainy Tuesday night.
I’m already fantasizing about waking up tomorrow.
I’m fantasizing about sipping my morning cup of coffee.


I like strong coffee. I like Americanos. But on a day when I need a little extra love and joy, I go for a cappuccino. Oh cappuccino, you have my heart.

Caffe Strada
2300 College Ave
(between Bancroft Way & Durant Ave)
Berkeley, CA 94704

R.I.P. Purple Pumpkin, HELLO Pumpkin Mac n’ Cheese

19 Dec

So we’ve had this ridged purple pumpkin living with us since October. Today was the day that I transformed our dear purple pumpkin into some precious puree.

Before

After

This dear purple pumpkin made a TON of puree.

The 1/2 cup of puree that I used tonight in my pumpkin mac n’ cheese barely made a dent in the sea of puree that is left.

But the mac n’ cheese sure was thick, creamy, and…bright orange!

Pumpkin Mac n’ Cheese
from neverhomemaker.com

  • 1-1/2 cups elbow macaroni
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon flour (any kind will work, I used all-purpose)
  • 1/2 cup skim milk
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (unsweetened)
  • 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1/4 cup pureed garbanzo beans (or hummus or cream cheese)
  • 1/8 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • OPTIONAL: flaky sea salt, breadcrumbs, fried sage/rosemary
  1. Cook the pasta to the package directions.
  2. While you wait for it to finish: Pour the olive oil into a large sauce-pot and cook over medium heat. Then stir in the flour and keep stirring until the mixture is thick — but not browned. (About 1 minute)
  3. Add the milk and stir constantly for about 3 minutes or so. Until thick.
  4. Add the pumpkin puree, cheese, and pureed garbanzo beans (or hummus or cream cheese), paprika, and pepper. Stir until everything is melted. Add more seasonings to taste.
  5. When you pasta is done, just drain and add to the cheese mixture. Stir for a minute or two, then turn off the heat and serve.
  6. Adding some flaky sea salt, breadcrumbs and/or fried sage or rosemary gives this dish a leg up.

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