Bloody Finger….. so free meal at Giginos at Wagner Park

Remember this meal?

Just simple minced beef with onion, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil and some  chili pepper if you wanna spice it up.  Baked int he oven at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes and let rest for 5.

That turned into a late night dinner since I sliced almost the whole tip of my ring finger off while prepping in the kitchen? Yep, J and I were happily partying it up with drunk people in the ER for an ill minute.

Thankfully this baby is feeling up quite well now…

Anyways mama felt bad for me and our night being ruined so to cheer me up she offered to treat J and I to a lovely dinner of our choice, anything under $200.

See poor finger? :[ Need yummy food

Besides. J wouldn't let me go near a knife for awhile....

I found an ear cuff to hide my "alien bump" ahhahaha....

We played around with food ideas but really just wanted to stay in the neighborhood. It was beautiful out so we decided on Italian or Tapas... and we wanted to dine outside. So J immediately suggested Giginos At Wagner Park and we got a beautiful seat outside with a gorgeous view of the Statue of Liberty.

J picked out two wines we could try and I chose the one with a cooler name that I liked.

And he let me pick out the food :] As long as he got his olives!!!!

[ps they have yummie bread which you get to dip in EVOO and Balsamic Vin.]

The olives come in a mezze trio or whatever of also cured meats and other stuff but we only wanted olives. J <3 Olives hehe Olive Monster…. so they let us just order that.

As an appetizer we got the simple Mussels with white wine, garlic, black pepper and…. basil I think it was. DEEEELISH!

There were a ton of mussel dishes to choose from, and just saying, the menu was HUGE… HUUUUGE… intimidatingly so which is why I ended up choosing the simplest items.

Grilled Monkfish with Broccoli Rabe and Baby Bok Choy

This was a special…. it was between this and the branzino but since I had gotten the branzino last time I had Italian, when J’s parents were in town, I wanted some tender juicy Monkfish.  Need to spice things up a bit, y’kno?!

Pappardelle San Marzano - Fresh pappardelle with San Marzano tomato, garlic, olive oil and basil AND a beautiful fresh shavings of parm all over it. YUM.

SUPER SUPER FRESH TENDER AMAZING NOODLES.  Perfectly al dente. OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG.. pasta made so simple and delicious with my favorite type of pasta. HEAVEN.

We opted out of dessert… and I think we ended up back home watching tv and probably having a scotch or whiskey  on the rocks. It was a beautiful walk around FiDi even tho it started to get a bit chilly. MMM MMMM MMMMM I would love to come back during the day and when it’s a tad bit warmer to see the day time view.

The Spotted Pig

So ya’ll know about the book… WHICH IS AMAZING, I got it as soon as it got out. GET IT.

Now let’s talk about her food.. it was a beautiful Saturday so after walking all the way from the edge of FiDi…. all the way to almost Times Sq..

First by the waters… and then we decided to walk on the HighLine since I’ve never been…. We walked all the way to the end… and then went down to Gastro Market for a few beers. Ahhh beergardens.

I don’t remember what they were except they were in caskets and red ales.

We ended up walking to the The Spotted Pig RIGHT before the big dinner rush. Phew. Last two seats at the bar. Booyeah!

I was surprised at how little pork items were actually ON the menu. Come on.. Spotted Pig? We need a full on all out pigged out menu….

Pork Rillette with Pickles & Mustard

What could go wrong with pork topped off with lardo?!.. You don’t even need the grainy mustard on the side….. just a huge scoop of the lardo and pork from the rillette on top of the perfectly grilled crostini… toasty fresh… and you’re good.  The pickled gherkins and pearl onions were a nice touch…

Crispy Pig’s Ear Salad with Lemon Caper Dressing

This was the first thing I saw on the menu and I KNEW I had to get it.  I was surprised that it was a whole pig’s ear… unless it’s connected to the head still, I’m used to eating it cut into thin strips.  The pig’s ear was crispy, not greasy at all, and paired lovely with the refreshing salad of mixed greens, endive and italian parsley underneath.

Grilled Skirt Steak with Roasted Beets & Horseradish Cream

J shared this with me. AMAZING horseradish butter and simple braised beets and beet greens. Delicious. We weren’t asked how we wanted it to be cooked but it was cooked to a beautiful medium rare, on the rare side. YUM. Buttery meat.

Prosciutto & Ricotta Tart with Marjoram

This was an appetizer but I got it as my main to share with J.  A flakey crisp tart topped with prosciutto, risotto, greens and shavings of parm. DELICIOUS.

And of course, a very much needed – and always necessary side dish

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

These literally melted in your mouth.  Most definitely NOT good for you but sooooo delicious.

I kinda wish we got the burger as well, it’s supposed to be awesome and I saw a TON of people order it.

Afterwards we ended up at Proletariat for beers….. and PRETZEL BREAD

The stout cheese dip was meh….. it was all about the curry mustard sauce!!!!

Met up with a few friends and ended up at Dive Bar Lucy’s..

Great times.

Heading Home…… to NYC… FIRST CLASS BITCHES… MIA to LGA

First class bitches. Yeah I basically slept the whole way back to pick up our luggage and to the airport cuz of the margaritas….

We had some beers at the Sam Adams at the MIA Airport

And I was ready… in LGA I couldn’t find ANY word search books at the airport…. here I found a good one :]

Gorgeous sunset

You’re gona love my [warm] nuts

Champagne and Red Wine

Dinner was Salad, Salmon w/ Rice and Broccolini… and a yummy Cheesecake

J finished his.. but I didn’t like my salmon, WAYYYY overcooked and dry..  but I inhaled everything else. DUH. Loved the rice… so chewy.. the salad was overdressed… but still, I love my veggies…. cheesecake was creamy and sweet and delish! I think the sauce it came with was some crazy butter sauce which I dared not touch. I just watched Modern Family and giggled and ate rice.

#ALWAYSHUNGRY

I love you Miami see you soon, very soon.

Miami Day 4 & Joe’s Stone Crabs… and 72oz of Margaritas at Primetime

It’s our last day in Miami…. I don’t wanna leave…

Neither does J.

Time to say bye bye to our beloved free amazing gourmet breakfast buffet at Eden Roc

Note: See all of J’s beloved donuts. Yes he’s a donut fanatic. :]

My last free omelette and bacon

Bye Bye Bye :[

Sad Good Bye

Had the most AMAZING time with the most amazing person.

Bye bye Lobby Bar [Bartender Tommy haha J's new friend]

SO OFF WE WENT… hiked the beach… first stop, nostalgia…. Wet Willie’s…. we got some blue shocker mixed margarita. SO sweet…. but hey I felt 18 again.

We continued our long walk on the beach… a nice long walk from Eden Roc [Miami Beach] to the end of South Beach at Joe’s Stone Crabs

Woot woot finally got to sit INSIDE. Last time I was REJECTED cuz of dress code. UH. Tube Top and skirt was a NO-NO.

AMAZING BREAD. Pretzel bread and the flatbread crips were the SHIT!!!

One again I was in charge of food and J was in charge of wines….

Delish!…. he got a Chard… I got… uhhhhhh…….. something spicier?!… I don’t remember..

Crab Nicoise
shaken with jumbo lump crab, locally grown tomatoes,
olives, green beans, eggs, potatoes, red onion & herb vinaigrette

Chock full of fresh sexy crab…. amazing crisps… and just UGH delish!.. Even the dressing was SOOOOOOOO divine!!!!….. I loved how they served this in a cup and shook it out in front of us. HOOKED.

We got the SELECT Stone Crab Claws… I’ve had the medium and I’ve had the jumbo [bigger isn't only better] which were ok, so select was definitely the best choice.

Best last lunch in Miami.

And of course their famous Key Lime Pie.

Demolished. LOVE.

But our day wasn’t over yet. We were determined to get a GIANT margarita on Ocean Drive. So where do we end up? Primetime. Of course :] We could’ve gotten smaller ones but it was 2 for the price of one and I wanted the giant one… so we both got 32oz ones…..

J got the
Aperol Spritz
Aperol Liqueur, Astoria Prosecco and splash soda

And  I got the
Champagne Kiss:
Champagne, Chambord raspberry liqueur blended  to perfection

I was taking pics of us so the waitress offered to help…

Much better..

Bigger than my head.

Tipsy tipsy weeeeeeee… time to head to the airport to drink more….

I’ve been cooking a lot more lately….

My trips to NYC has been inspiring me to cook more lately.  I’ve been able to experiment more and more with different foods.  I’m sure I’ve mentioned some of these from previous trips:

The dangerous habanero chicken pizza… which was delicious but deadly.

My famous meatballs…

My Short Ribs over Mushrooms and Chard

But here are some more recent things I’ve made in NYC

OK this isn’t really “made” but J and I decided to have a simple wine, cheese and meats night…. with steamed artichokes and baked Yam fries..

Iberico, Chorizo, Duck Salumi and Coppa

So many cheeses…

Half of these are chili/cinnamon rubbed, the other half are truffle butter rubbed..

And then the next night I made a warm grilled brussel sprouts salad with different peppers and veggies… topped with habanero vindaloo chicken…

And some Kale Chips and Fresh Avocado

STOP BEING USELESS
AND START BEING A CHEESEBURGER

So these were the peppers…

That cause me to split my finger open…

and go to the ER :[ WAAA

And then the day before Miami.. uh... night before, we had a a dinner party

I forgot to take pics of the panko pan fried quail I made [marinated in Honey , Orange, Habanero] which each person got a whole quail, cut in half on top of mixed greens as an App]

and I made Duck Breast “Confit style”

Jonathan brought Capri Sun BEER!!!!!!! <3

Oh back to the duck… slow cooked for like 2-3 hours… and then popped into oven with some balsamic vinegar, red wine, pear, raspberries, shallots and fig jam,

See… demolished the salad already… I served with truffled broccolini and mushrooms and baked chili/cinnamon yam fries.

And then the night after we got back from Miami I made bunny curry. YES. Rabbit Curry. And it was actually NOT overpowering on the bunny as some people said it would be.  You could taste the bunny cuz I left them in big chunks…the legs were kept whole, etc…..  just celery, carrots, potatoes, yams, onions, a whole rabbit [I butchered a rabbit for the first time] 

Some steamed okra on the side…

And then I put it all on a bed of mixed greens, freshly made sushi rice, topped off with rabbit meat and curry sauce. DELISH!

OK, now that we’re caught up on that I feel a bit better and will continue onto more NYC eats and Miami posts.

Today…… and last week’s breakfast

I had the most shitty day.

And then I had the best ending to the night…. my bf gave me frownies that looked so cartoonish and comical… I couldn’t stop giggling… I fell over in giggles……

It’s insane and ridic to explain the whole thing that happened tonight… today…. yesterday…. but ok I admit it’s been a shitty few days since my crash.  I’m still not done figuring out my insurance/police reports and my anxiety/panic attack medication……. my psychiatrist is on VACA. WTF. Part of the reason I had the crash WAS cuz of it, I’m sure.

BUT… I wanna say, I got a lot of stuff done the past two days… and I had full support from friends and mostly my wonderful bf J.

Thanks for your cute little frownie faces that make me giggle and laugh like crazy.  See you soon.

You are just another blessing in my life. Thank you. Love you.

And I’m glad you loved the food I made the last time you visited me……….

BLACK Truffle… this thing was worth like over 90$

Dinner… Rose Champagne and Wine [brought by J]

Red Wine Braised Short Ribs with Swiss Chard, Habaneros, Celery, Carrots and Onion…. 

a WHOLE Fresh Black Truffle Whipped Cauliflower with white truffle salt and oil…. 

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Wild Mixed Mushrooms…. 

My first plate….. of many…

And then we decided I should get this… we had a glass of wine and then……. DID IT…

Didi was jealous cuz J was in her spot

The next morning J made me food… I helped with peeling bacon and mixing eggs…

So much bacon and so much bacon fat….. we fried the WHOLE packet!!!!!!

And then we scrambled like 8 eggs in the bacon fat…. just added some pepper to it… thiS WAS AMAZING…

Obviously I made the mimosas and some black coffee… and we had fresh pineapple to gnaw on…..

BEST. BREAKFAST.

Brunch at Kitchenette, more Kaffe 1668 and homemade pizza

No need for words. Just pictures. And happiness….

Meh Bloody Mary

Food Coma? Or thinking about Coffee….

Kaffe 1668 that is…

Which I like to call Sheepy Coffee…

We ended up making pizza before I left…

And we used the leftovers again on the next trip…

Best Worst Idea sort of Pizza on a Sunday Night: Habaneros Part 1 of 4

… we had leftovers of pizza dough from the last time I was in town so after getting some fresh vegetables at a local market in Brooklyn.. [after J's weekly Bocce game]

so after tons of crap beer and a delicious brunch at Colonie before the game [which I'll blog about later] we set out to make another pizza… and Tuscan Kale chips [the non-curly kind]

Kale chips, successful. Just EVOO and sea salt baked in a tray til almost burnt and crisp.

[sorry no picture]

The pizza was another story.  Successful, but the best worst idea.

Stroke stroke stroke

I took the biggest habanero and minced it up with a few garlic cloves… chopped up a chicken breast and threw it in a skillet.

Within a few minutes.. I know how to make pepper bombs. J was just asking me what wine to drink when he started coughing and I started gagging.

“On the floor the air is fresher” no it wasn’t.

We opened his giant window in his living room and screamed out the window.  We opened his apt door and ran screaming into the hallway gagging.

Half hour later when we were ready to assemble the pizza, his roommate and roommate’s gf came home saying they were gagging off the elevator hahahaha… we said it wasn’t even that bad anymore.

So much pain, but so much to gain.

Super spicy habanero garlic chicken [oh we also diced in a thai chili pepper, green one for color] on a Margherita pizza on whole wheat crust.

Worth it.

Oh and we ended up finding a good wine to go with the pizza :]

范家 Fun Time: Restaurant Jun [pictures]

After the fun 范家 Party Bus for the day… we went to a REAL lunch at Jun

Mango Beer..

SASHIMI

Deep Fried Lobster Sandwich

Oisiiyo Ramen with……. uh, Cheese?

Late Night Ramen at Oisiiyo

After a nice 2 hour massage.. and no dinner…  I had amazing dinner at Oisiiyo…. while the veggies and ramen and broth… oh yeah and pork – were amazing… there was a huge chunk of some sort of American Cheese on it. Uh. Ew. Done and done. Next time you go, it’s definitely delicious ramen, just ask for NO CHEESE.