Brodards

My friend, Sweet P, took me to Brodard's for some tasty Vietnamese takeout--notably their famous spring rolls.  I didn't even know what kind I'm eating but I LOVED the crunchy goodness inside and their killer sauce.  Honestly, I could have eaten a dozen of these:

I also enjoyed their Banh Khot--these crispy little rice cakes that are wrapped in lettuce and dipped in a light sauce. So tasty and savory. Again, bummed that I only got one order.

Another treat Brodard's are known for--macarons!

And I had to get one of each flavor of the macarons they had: chocolate, coffee, pistachio, mango-passion fruit, raspberry, coconut, hazelnut, salted caramel, orange, taro, green tea, lemon, strawberry, and durian:

They were all tasty, but my favorites were mango-passion fruit, salted caramel, and orange. I will confess that the durian may be an acquired taste if you're not used to it. A slight digression: I remember a long, long time ago, a co-worker told me that I had to try durian fruit--how it was once of the best tasting fruits BUT, she warned me that the smell of the fruit when you cut it open can be off-putting. Her description? Cat litter, she whispered. So yeah, I guess it's an acquired taste, for sure.

Next time I think I'll want to eat here so I can keep stuffing my face with various tasty rolls. I definitely recommend stopping here if making a visit to Orange County.

Rice Krispies Treats

While visiting California, I was fortunate to meet with two friends for lunch who both were celebrating a birthday. For one, I made a clutch. For another, I wanted to also give something homemade and went with good ol' Rice Krispies treats that I wrapped individually in waxed paper:

Two stacks of Rice Krispies treats all prettified in baker's twine that Linda had:

Holy cow, has anyone had Rice Krispies treats in a while? I hadn't eaten one in a long time, and yeesh, it was sooo good straight out of the pot! Kind of want to make a batch when I get home...

Linda's bread

I'm visiting California for my friend's baby shower and I got to stay with my friend Linda, who baked this delicious cheese bread:

I remember she posted about a no-knead bread recipe that came out perfect because it was baked in a Dutch Oven.

And it WAS. The crust was perfectly crispy, and well, crusty. And then on top of that, the inside was perfectly holey and chewy. The recipe is for a plain loaf, but she added asiago and other hard cheeses, inside and out. So good.

I have GOT to get a dutch oven!

BabyCakes

Yesterday I took Augie to check out another famous New York bakery, BabyCakes, a vegan bakery where a lot of the baked goods are also gluten-free, soy-free, and refined sugar-free. Currently Augie is allergic to wheat and eggs so I was excited to try a place where he could enjoy a little baked goodness.

We picked out a healthy assortment--mini donuts, chocolate chip cookies, a red velvet cupcake, a banana cinnamon cupcake, and a slice of corn bread:

Side note:  around the corner from the bakery, they were shooting scenes from an upcoming film, Now You See Me.

But this guy just wanted to head home and check out the treats.

Sigh. We are so related.

Augie loved it all.  It was all pretty tasty and you certainly don't miss the gluten, eggs, and dairy.  It wasn't as sweet as typical cupcake fare which, frankly, was actually pleasant.  I highly recommend the banana cinnamon cupcake and mini donuts.

I hope to take Augie back there next time I'm in New York and make it "our place" where his auntie gets him sweet treats!

Milk bar

After dinner last night, we headed to Milk Bar to grab some sweet snacks:

They're famous for their Corn and Compost cookies:

As well as their addictive Crack Pie:

We sampled their soft serve, both cereal milk (which is astonishing exactly like cereal milk and was awesome with corn crunchies) and fried apple pie, which was really, really good.  We brought back a selection of baked goods to enjoy as late night snacks.

First up, the cornflake-chocolate chip-marshmallow cookie:

This was our favorite--it had a toffee like flavor from the corn flakes, balanced by the chocolate chips and had a great chewy texture from the marshmallow. I'd get this again.  And again.

Then we tried their famous Crack Pie:

It was delicious but with all the butter and sugar, the richness is a bit overwhelming, though I have to say the oat crust was delightful and grounded the dessert as whole a bit.

Next was the Corn Cookie.  A really pleasant surprise.  Very "corny" in a surprisingly refreshing way.  Balanced sweetly, it was a unique cookie experience.

The next morning we started out the day with coffee and their famous Compost Cookie:

Presumably named for having a lot of stuff in it, including chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and coffee grounds, it was a delicious cookie where you couldn't quite put your finger on why it was so tasty. Definitely wouldn't turn down one of these if offered to me.

Overall, Milk Bar is a definite treat and I would highly recommend trying one of their unique offerings if you're in New York.

Upstate

Tonight my sister, cute nephew Augie, and I enjoyed a visit to Upstate, where she is hooked (HOOKED I say) on their fettuccine with fresh clams.  Pasta? Fresh clams?  I'm in.

We enjoyed their happy hour special which included our choice of 6 fresh oysters and a beer.  I'm more of cocktail girl myself but a cold beer can greatly enhance good food, especially seafood.  And when I do drink beer, I tend to go for wheat beers.  Upstate did not have any but the waiter steered me towards Captain's Kolsch, which was ice-cold and crisp--perfect for me and the oysters.  They had this fairly enormous list of choices from the East Coast and West Coast and frankly we kind of just picked ones from places we'd heard of, been to, or would like to visit.  They varied from briny to sweet but we enjoyed each one.  With Captain's Kolsch to spare, I'm pretty sure I could have done another plate.

See that toy car in the background?

My sister: (sighs) The battery's dying.
Me: All these adults here are going to be so bummed to hear that.

Augie: (too busy adorably reading a board book anyway)

The fettuccine arrived shortly after:

Yes--it tasted as good as it looked.  The clams were cooked just tender, the garlic cooked with presence but not overwhelming, tender noodles, and a sauce that I want to say was rich without being creamy and heavy. The first thing I remembered thinking was that I wouldn't be able to finish such a big bowl.  The next thing I remembered was staring at an empty bowl.

And what I consider a classy and brilliant move by smart restaurants--automatic dessert.  I love it when there is just one dessert and it's done so well, like this whiskey cake made by the owner's wife:

So good. It was just the perfect sweet ending to this superb meal. I hope the next time I go back to New York, my sister wants to eat there again.

Big Gay Ice Cream

While my sister still lives down the block from Big Gay Ice Cream, I manage to hit it every time I visit.

Real ice cream (vs. frozen yogurt or "light" versions I'll grab at the store) is obviously a treat for me so when I indulge, I really like to go for the unique and flavorful.

Combos that feature dulce de leche, chocolate dip and sea salt (Salty Pimp)? Yes please. Curried coconut (CocoCone)? Out there, but yes, I'm curious. Pretzels, sea salt, chocolate dip (American Globs)? I never would have guessed it would be so tasty. And for what it's worth, I kind of doubt I could recreate this combo at home.

Guess I'll have to keep coming back. Man, I can't wait to eat another cone from there soon.