Curly Adventures

My Trip To Baltimore

2012-05-10T23:14:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, my awesome anthropologist friend presented her master's thesis at a conference in Baltimore. I would never do it, but she's way cooler than I am. The conference was at the Sheraton City Center, and that's where we stayed. Of course, being in an unfamiliar city, I would have to find interesting food. My friend is vegan, which makes it even more interesting. Before I arrived, my friend was unaware of nearby restaurants catering to her needs. So I pull out my iPhone (sorry, not trying to be pretentious) and find a vegan restaurant in about a minute. It's called The Land of Kush. Since I have no idea what that means, I had trouble remembering the name and kept calling it Land of Tush. My friend called it Land of "Koosh". It's about a mile from City Center, and we walked all the way there and back. And I was wearing heels. Yeah, ouch.

Curry chick-un with rice and beans. Yes, fake chicken. It tasted so good, but the texture of the chicken was so.... mushy. I couldn't take it. It made me lose my appetite. I really wanted to finish it, but I have a thing about textures. It was too much. I need tofu to be firmer.

My friend had fake bbq ribs with yams. Real bbq, fake ribs. Her yams were fantastic, but I didn't try the "ribs". I was afraid it would have weird texture.

Breakfast the next morning was at Peace & A Cup of Joe. They have tofu scramble, which I didn't even know existed.

It looks harmless enough when it's inside bread. I'm still a little creeped out, though. I think I actually need to see the tofu getting scrambled to be okay with this.

I forget what this was called, something with "hash" in the name. I think it's potatoes with vegetables? It was good. I remember that much. This place has good lattes, too.

Vegans eat sushi? Okay. I like sushi.

I think this is Geisha Sushi Bar. Eel and avocado. I wonder if I'll ever go to a sushi restaurant and not get eel. Probably not. Should I feel badly because they're going extinct?

Vegetable tempura. Yay. Take something healthy and deep-fry it beyond recognition. That's my kind of appetizer.

Dumplings, of course. It's not a sushi dinner without dumplings. Not to me, at least.

Breakfast near the harbor at Miss Shirley's Cafe. This seemed to be a pretty popular spot. You can add crab to almost everything. I guess crab is special in Maryland?

Breakfast cocktails. Crab cakes and fried pickles/ okra for breakfast. Nice.

Okay, how many different types of Eggs Benedict do you need? Also, market price? If I don't know the price, I'm not buying.

I had Eggs Benedict with pulled pork and collard greens. It was so weird having that for breakfast. Once I got over having dinner foods at 8 AM, I really enjoyed it.

My vegan friend's fruit plate and hash brown. And her hands playing with her phone.

I also had my first ever mimosa. This place makes VERY strong drinks. Being drunk at 8 AM is so not okay. Never again. It didn't even taste good. Why would anyone want to drink a mimosa?

Surprise, we went back to Peace & A Cup of Joe for lunch after meeting up with a friend from Fairfax.

Something like a BLT with clam chowder. They ran out of all the other soups. I'm not really a clam chowder person, but this one was okay.

Roast beef? I'm just guessing because they don't have their menu online right now and I don't remember what my friends ordered. I wish I could see the menu because all the sandwiches have cool regional names like The Edgar Allan Poe.

Oh yeah, I remember this one. It's peanut butter and jelly. I always think it's so funny when people order than in restaurants, like ordering cereal. It just amuses me. I don't know why.

For dinner, I took my friend to this tourist trap near the hotel: B&O Brasserie. Every time we walked past, we mentioned how it looked like they were advertising body odor. According to Yelp, this place has some awesome duck fat fries. According to the employees, they've never heard of such a thing. I was so disappointed.

The butter you get with the bread is so AMAZING. Seriously, I wanted to eat it with a spoon. It was fantastic. I almost stole it, except we didn't have any bread in the hotel room for me to put it on. Instead, I put at much as possible on my bread.

Tofu scallops. So I guess that means tofu made into scallop shapes and pan-seared?

Lobster gnocchi with pesto.

Alright, where's the rest of our food? When the server put our plates down, we both stared. After a minute I said "THAT'S IT?!" I can't believe these ridiculous portions for over $20 each. These people are crazy. I guess I should have expected this from a tourist trap.

Sorbet for my friend.

Strawberry shortcake for me. The desserts were great. It's a shame when your desserts are more filling than your entrees. The desserts were even reasonably priced.

One thing I really like was the exposed cooking area. We could see the chefs and the fires and all the magic happening. I didn't like seeing them flirting with each other with their tongues out and being completely unprofessional. I think if a restaurant wants to be a certain caliber, they should hire people who will help them get to that level instead of bringing their image down. I don't know if having servers in skimpy black dresses helps the image or not. I guess some people like that.

Of all the restaurants I visited, I really recommend Miss Shirley's Cafe and Peace & A Cup of Joe. At the Cafe, we heard this lady say she didn't like her pancakes, and she was a real jerk about it. They brought her new food within a few minutes. With a smile. I would have given her a death glare. When my friend lost an envelope full of money, the nice people at Peace, etc. kept it for her. Good food, nice people.

Derek Visits NYC

2012-05-10T22:03:00.000-07:00

My friend Derek lives in Saratoga Springs, NY (near Albany), and sometimes I convince him to come all the way to NYC to hang out with me. I wish I could post pictures of him, but he always hides from the camera. I'll just post pictures of food instead.

Derek usually arrives in NYC around lunchtime, and I try to find interesting places for us to eat. After all, what's the point of going to NYC and then eating at McDonald's or Five Guys or something. I was really craving something Spanish. I don't mean some American interpretation like Taco Bell or Chipotle. I mean something like Dominican or South American. With my trusty Yelp app, I was able to find a Peruvian restaurant not too far from Times Square where we met up.

It's called Pio Pio and it's at 604 10th Ave. I've been to a place called Pio Pio in DC where the food was cheap and it was really loud and you had to order your food at the counter. This place was totally different from that. They both specialize in rotisserie chicken, but the NYC version has a more extensive menu, including some $30 entrees. However, we lucked out with a $10 lunch special and an outdoor table.

Okay, let me just say this plate is awesome. I wanted to steal it. On the fantastic plate, we have a quarter chicken with salad and a side dish. I chose maduros, of course, also known as fried (sweet) plantains. I love them. I eat them at every available opportunity. The salad is awesome because it comes with avocado, but I almost ordered extra avocado, anyway. I love avocado. I think Derek had rice and beans as his side, but he kept stealing my maduros. I didn't mind because I can't eat this much food. Oh, I forgot to mention the lunch special comes with a soda. Awesome! I hate those places that charge you a ridiculous amount for a cup of ice with a little bit of soda in it.

For dinner, we went to Heartland Brewery (5th Ave & 34th St). I figured it's probably just an overpriced tourist trap, but I wanted to try it, anyway.

Butternut squash ravioli? I think? Only a tiny amount, though. Totally not worth the money. There was way too much nasty nut garnish all over it. Actually, I feel like there was more garnish than actually ravioli. Yep, definitely a trap.

Derek had lentil soup. He said it was ok. I'm glad I caught his arm in this picture, because otherwise it would seem like he doesn't exist. There's nothing wrong with going to restaurants alone, but I don't do it. I usually need someone to eat half of my food. USUALLY, but not in this case. We were still hungry afterwards, so we went across the street to McDonald's.

Of course, no trip to visit me is complete without a trip to Pinkberry (58th & Columbus).

Derek's is the baby one in the middle. Apparently they gave him the wrong size. We stopped at the K-town Pinkberry (32nd & 5th) so he could get another. I think mine is the prettiest with the Cap'n Crunch and Fruity Pebbles. Next time, we're going to Max Brenner.

Homemade Microdermabrasion Scrub

2012-03-12T22:20:00.002-07:00

It's so hard to find a good microdermabrasion scrub that doesn't cost a ridiculous amount. I found a great one by St. Ives once, but it has since been discontinued. My skin looked so good while I was using it. I've been researching treatments for acne and dark spots, and sugar and salt scrubs seem to be a good alternative. Lucky for me, the recipe is pretty simple.

Combine one cup of sugar, half a cup extra virgin olive oil and one teaspoon of lemon juice.

Add several drops of essential oils, such as lavender or citrus. Add one tablespoon of baking soda, which will soften the skin.

I'm using tea tree oil for the essential oil. I couldn't find anything pretty like lavender or citrus. I found coconut, but I don't know about coconut oil being beneficial to the skin.

I added the vanilla and cinnamon mainly in an attempt to improve the smells. It still smells pretty weird. Not bad, though.

Finished product. I wish I had gotten some food coloring so it can be pretty. Oh well. It's probably best to keep it as natural as possible.

Here is a great site listing the benefits of sugar scrubs. I chose sugar over salt because sugar produces glycolic acid, which is a common treatment for acne scars. Yes, I'm still fighting them. You might think they don't show up because I'm brown, but they do. I chose tea tree oil because it's supposed to kill bacteria on the skin and treat acne as well as benzoyl peroxide but without the side effects. Unfortunately, it's also supposed to work more slowly. I'm still using benzoyl peroxide, so I guess I'll have the benefits of both. I hope I will.

After using the scrub, I'm thinking it would be better to go for an oil-free version next time. My skin is oily enough on its own, and it felt really oily after I rinsed my face. I hardly scrubbed at all, and it was almost painful. This will definitely take some getting used to. I know this can be used on the whole body, so I'm betting it'll work wonders for my feet and my itchy legs. They could use some scrubbing.

Dallas BBQ

2012-03-12T21:48:00.001-07:00

My mother enjoys having dinner at Dallas BBQ, and I let her convince me to go with her and a friend. To the one in downtown Brooklyn.

My mom and her friend decided to share this monstrosity. It's three different drinks: margarita, appletini and something else, I think. Then there was an extra shot of something on top. I thought they were crazy for drinking that thing.

Veggie burger! Black bean veggie burger, to be exact, with salsa and shredded cheese. And it turns out I really like the fries in this place. They're even good when you microwave them the next day. McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's can't say that.

My mom and her friend told the waiter they were ready to order food and then sat there looking at the menu like "umm...." So annoying. The place was so packed that we had to wait 45 minutes to get in, and they think he has time to stand there and wait for them. Just call him back when you're ready. Geez.

This one is cool. It's shrimp, steak AND chicken. I think the third thing is chicken. If I had a bigger capacity for food in my stomach, I might have ordered this.

My mom's catfish. I hate catfish. And cole slaw. Gross.

I thought the food was great, but the atmosphere.... It was just really ghetto. I won't get started on the half-naked girls because I wouldn't be able to stop. I guess cold weather isn't reason enough to cover yourself, or Dallas BBQ is a club. I've heard some of their other locations have a dress code, but not this one. Everyone was so loud. There was hardly a moment without some customer flipping out on one of the employees. Kids were running amok and throwing things and their parents just watched. ALSO this place doesn't have dessert. I was so mad, but it's ok because we went to Red Mango afterwards.

Kunjip

2012-03-12T21:31:00.001-07:00

Kunjip is the same place where I had dinner on my birthday. It's on that Koreatown block on 32nd St between 5th and 6th Aves.We were lucky enough not to wait in a line going out the door. That happens a lot with this place.

They brought us some weird egg thing, still cooking, of course. We didn't order it, but maybe they're just giving this to everyone now. I don't remember it from past visits. Not my favorite egg dish, but it wasn't bad.

Some sort of bone soup. My friend was having some wild urge to suck bones. I don't know why. And that's practically all she ate, the little bit of meat from the bones. And I was supposed to eat everything else.

Rice and vegetables and spicy pork. REALLY spicy pork. Ok, maybe it was just my wussiness coming out. It was good, though. Spicy pork is always a win.

This tofu soup came with my rice bowl, but I didn't really like it. My friend really like the radishes (on the left), so we had to ask for more.

Of course I also ordered dumplings and my friend ordered that rice cake/ fish cake thing that she never finishes. Everything was mostly fine except for the random 15-minute stretch when no server came near our section. Maybe someone farted. I don't know. Also, the Mexican busboys kept coming out and staring at me. I really hate that, and I don't know what their deal is. It happens everywhere I go. I must be some sort of magnet. I just don't understand why they have to be so creepy.

Tumulty's Pub

2012-03-12T20:51:00.000-07:00

Tumulty's is one of the many restaurants on New Brunswick's main street. One night, my friend and I were looking for a place to have a drink, but they had already closed. So we decided to try again.

This is their version of potato skins. Ok, Tumulty's, this is called potato wedges. It's different. At least they tasted good.

Calamari. I haven't had it in years, since that time I got food poisoning. I didn't get sick this time, so I guess it was ok. A little harder to chew than I remember, though. I don't know anything about the preparation or if that can be controlled.

Buffalo wings. They were ok. We decided we're definitely going to Buffalo Wild Wings next time.

The food wasn't anything special, but the service was a bigger issue. When we walked in, we stood there for at least three minutes while the employees talked and laughed while periodically glancing at us. Also, it got pretty busy, and it felt like they were rushing us out. That's never good. We didn't really feel obligated to leave since they didn't feel obligated to provide quality service. Just so you know, Harvest Moon Brewery across the street is much better.

Oven Pear Pancake

2012-03-12T20:01:00.001-07:00

I have pretty frequent pancake cravings, but I'm not always in the mood to smoke up the whole house. We just happened to have some pears laying around, and I was afraid they would go bad if I didn't hurry and do something with them. That's when I found out you can make pancakes in the oven, and I managed to find a recipe that uses pears.

Lightly coat a 9-inch pie plate with vegetable cooking spray. Peel, core, and cut into eighths and arrange them in the pie plate.

I didn't have a pie plate, so I just used a square pan.

Combine 1/2 cup minus 2 tablespoons sugar, flour, eggs, whole milk, vanilla, unsalted butter, and a pinch of salt in a blender. Pulse until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pour over the pears.

Place in the oven and bake until springy to the touch, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven.

I didn't do the broiler thing. I just sprinkled the sugar on top and stuck it back in the oven for a little bit. It didn't brown. Oh well.

Ok, this is not pancake. This is custard. I was sorely disappointed. I do not like custard or pretty much anything with that type of texture. I was wondering why the recipe asked for so many eggs. Never again. NEVER AGAIN.

Sushi Palace

2012-03-12T19:31:00.000-07:00

In case it wasn't obvious, I really like sushi. My friend from Rutgers introduced me to this place called Sushi Palace in Edison, NJ when we met for dinner and the university's opera performance. (I hate opera. I fell asleep. I only went because my friend played piano in the pit and my ticket was free.) Sushi Palace is a buffet, but not the kind where you go up to the counter and get your own food. It's the type where you fill out a form indicating the quantities of everything you want and then the chefs make it and bring it to you. Interesting.. The only problem is my friend has this bad habit of ordering way too much food. She says "I could eat all this myself!" and then she eats a tiny bit and says she full. And then she expects me to finish it all.

I don't remember if this was octopus or squid, but it was really good.. It wasn't overly chewy like you would expect.

I don't know what most of this stuff is. Sorry. I didn't order it. I ordered the eel/ avocado roll and the mackerel sashimi. For some reason, I really enjoy eating the white stringy stuff even though it tastes like nothing. I guess I'm just weird.

Shrimp tempura. Honestly, it made me nauseous because there was too much grease. I had to force it down when my friend decided to stop eating.

Right side: fish katsu. Left side: fish something else. Yum for both.

Right side: eggplant and sweet potato tempura. It turns out I don't really like eggplant. I picked one up thinking it was sweet potato, and I was SO disappointed. Then when I picked up the right one, I started grinning like an idiot because it tasted so good and my friend laughed at me for five minutes straight. Left side: gyoza/ dumplings. Always have to get them.

This place is awesome. If I lived closer, I'd go at least once a week. It's only $25 for the dinner buffet, and that includes ice cream. Unfortunately, fried ice cream costs extra, but we were too full for dessert and had to get to the opera.

New York Pao de Queijo

2012-03-12T18:58:00.000-07:00

I once had a chicken salad sandwich with potato sticks at a random deli in Kearny, NJ, and I've been looking for that kind of thing ever since. I'd never had Brazilian food before Pao de Queijo, but I'm glad I stopped to read the menu when I walked by. Almost all of their sandwiches have potato sticks. (^_^)

I love paper menus that I can take home and add to my collection.

Very interesting combinations.

This is my veggie burger. It looks crazy, I know, but it might be the best one I've ever had. Maybe that's because the burger has corn on it as well as potato sticks. It was awesomeness. Seriously.

I decided to try one of these little desserts because they looked so yummy in the display case. The menu called it "Brigadeiro, Docinho de Milho, Beijinho, Bicho de pé"

I tried to break it in half because I didn't want to stick the whole thing in my mouth. Well, it wouldn't break. It was very, very sticky. It stuck to my teeth A LOT. It took me awhile to eat it, maybe 15 minutes, but I was just kind of nibbling and people-watching out the window. I'm a slow eater under the best of circumstances, anyway.


Besides the awesome food, I really appreciated the decor. That little window goes to the kitchen, so it's like your food is coming from Rio.

I didn't know they had dark-skinned people in Brazil or that they carry food on their heads, but ok. Whatever. It's pretty.

Cream Cheese Cranberry Muffins

2012-03-12T18:17:00.000-07:00

These were the best muffins ever. I don't remember why I chose them because it was 2-3 months ago. Maybe I was just eager to try something else with cranberries. Here's the recipe.

In a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese, sugar until light and fluffy.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir into creamed mixture just until moistened.

Fold in cranberries.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

The best part about this recipe was the whole cranberries. Cutting them up is tedious and ridiculous. Cleaning the blender irritates me a little. The cream cheese was great with the sourness of the cranberries and made the muffins really moist. Also, eff drizzled topping. I took these to work, and since they weren't getting served warm, anyway, I just decided to skip that part. I skipped the pecans, too. Gross. These muffins were awesome without all that drama.

Hayashi Sushi

2012-03-12T17:37:00.001-07:00

Wow, it's been awhile. I kinda forgot about writing stuff when life got complicated. Quite a long time ago, I had lunch at a sushi restaurant called Hayashi in the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn. I hated every day I had to be in that neighborhood, but this dining experience made one day bearable.


I like the font on the menu.

I don't know what it is about dumplings. I order them at every single Asian restaurant I go to. I just have to have them. You would think I'd be making my own, but no. Never thought about it until just now. There might be an upcoming entry about my first attempt at homemade dumplings. I'm sure I'll screw it up. I should get lessons from my friend's dad.

Another thing I always order: eel. This is an eel lover's platter with a roll, sashimi and whatever that other thing is with the square of rice. I forced ALL OF IT into my tiny stomach. No way I'm letting eel go to waste.

Fried green tea ice cream. I had no idea what to expect with this. I've had fried ice cream in Mexican restaurants, and it's horrifying. This stuff, however, was fantastic. The outside had just the right amount of crunchiness, and the ice cream seem fresh from the freezer. I'd like to know how they did that. Must be magic.

I'd love to go back to Hayashi if it wasn't in Sheepshead Bay. I can just imagine all the bad memories that will resurface as soon as I see the surrounding neighborhood. Maybe I can convince them to deliver to my house all the way in Flatlandss.

Irish Breakfast at Baker St

2011-12-15T17:56:00.000-08:00

What's cooler than having lunch in a dark Irish pub? Having breakfast for lunch in a dark Irish pub? Yes, I think so. I've never had an Irish breakfast, but one of my facebook friends keeps posting pictures of breakfasts from different cultures. Now I want to try all of them.

I guess they like Sherlock Holmes? It's definitely a cool logo.

I don't really like sausage, and there were two different types on this plate. I didn't eat much of that. Of course, I substituted sweet potato fries for regular fries. Then the whole thing was balanced out with toast, eggs, and baked beans. So much food! I felt like I would explode. Seriously, who eats this much? Well.... me, I guess. I'll totally eat it again if I have another chance.

My lunch buddy had sliders with cottage fries. When I saw that in the menu, I thought "wtf are cottage fries?" Now I know, but I don't think I'll be trying them anytime soon. I like shoestring fries and sweet potato fries best.
My buddy and I had an awesome waitress named Hilary. Ask for her if you decide to go. You won't have to wait a long time for her to bring more coffee. I need my coffee. We also had a chance to speak with the manager. She's super nice, and her accent is fantastic. I like Irish pubs so much better when they're run by actual Irish people and not just Ireland enthusiasts.

Irresistible Double Chocolate Muffins/ Christmas Cranberry Muffins

2011-12-14T21:22:00.000-08:00

Chocolate always seems safe. In my entire life, I think I've met less than five people who don't like chocolate. I've been trying to get into flax seed and wheat germ, but I've only used them in smoothies so far. So, of course, I found a recipe incorporating all three of those things.

Combine flour, flax seed, wheat germ, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder, cinnamon, and chocolate chips in a large bowl.

Chocolate and chocolate chips. That's such an awesome site. I already knew it would turn out well.

In another bowl, beat the buttermilk, pumpkin puree, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla until smooth.

Yeah, buttermilk. Now I have a container of buttermilk in my fridge not getting used. I guess I'll have to find a way to get rid of it soon.
I really don't know why they always say to mix the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients in separate bowls. It's all getting mixed in one big bowl eventually.

Gently stir the wet ingredients into the dry, mixing just until combined.

The texture isn't what I would like it to be, but there's nothing I can do about that. It's probably caused by the grainy ingredients.

Spoon equal amounts of batter into muffin cups.

The batter is very thick, so the muffins will probably be dense after baking.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 to 30 minutes.

I left them in the oven a little too long, so the tops were a little hard. I don't think anyone minded because they got eaten. Maybe my consumers were extra forgiving because it's double chocolate.

I wanted to bake something for the holiday season, so I searched for "Christmas muffin recipes". I got lots recipes involving cranberries, but I have no idea what cranberries have to do with Christmas. I decided to make Christmas cranberry muffins since I had all of the ingredients except one.

Chop 1 cup cranberries coarsely

I've never used cranberries before except for that once time a couple years ago when I made cranberry sauce. What? They expect me to cut them up?

Place them in a small bowl, stir in 2 tablespoons of sugar and let them sit for 30 minutes.

I threw them in the blender. Some of them are still mostly whole, so I fished those out and cut them up.

In a large bowl mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a second bowl beat together milk, vanilla, melted butter and eggs. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix with a few strokes, only enough to blend.
Fold in the cranberries (and their juice, if any)

And at this point, I started eating it. The batter was extremely sweet, which was great for balancing the sourness of the cranberries.

Fill greased muffin cups 3/4 full and bake at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes.

Everyone loved these muffins, except one girl who doesn't particularly care for healthy-type things. She tasted a chocolate one and said "EW!" It was pretty hilarious.

Coney Island Taste

2011-12-14T20:54:00.000-08:00

In my mind, I've created a category of food I refer to as "Spanish". I realize this isn't a good term to use because it covers everything from Mexican to Dominican to Ecuadoran, but everyone around me keeps using it and making it more ingrained. The food in this restaurant is actually Peruvian, but when I saw it, my brain went "Ooh! Spanish food!"

Peruvian American? Well obviously I'm not going into an exotic restaurant to get American food.

Maduros! Also known as fried sweet plantains. I love these and I eat them as much as possible. I always get them at "Spanish" restaurants and Chinese restaurants. Yeah, those guys have it, too, oddly enough.

This is something like a tamale, but they called it something else. You can choose which meat you want inside. I chose pork. I don't know why. It's not that I love pork. It's just that I tend to default to pork when I can't make a decision. Chicken in "Spanish" restaurants is often too dry and stringy for me and it gets stuck in every single gap in my teeth.

I guess that's an olive? I tried to eat it. It was unpleasant. I don't know why I tried to eat it when I don't like olives. I must have been tired. I loved the rest of it, probably because the outside is cornmeal. I'm assuming. I'll eat just about anything with corn.

The little things. They bring your silverware in a little basket. That's so cool. I'd love to be eating at this place right now. I'll probably go back if I'm ever in the area again.

Ellen's Stardust Diner

2011-12-14T20:41:00.000-08:00

I found a diner with singer waiters and waitresses. Yes, they actually exist. Ellen's Stardust Diner is located at Broadway and W 51st St. Whenever I pass a restaurant, I tend to stop and read the menu. I was drawn into this diner by the breakfast offerings. Then when I got inside, they told me they don't serve breakfast all day. What kind of diner doesn't serve breakfast all day? Isn't that the main reason people go to diners? I know it isn't just me.

It looks normal enough from the outside.

The interior of the restaurant is full of flashing lights that wreaked havoc with my picture quality. I know I don't take good pictures, mainly because I'm too lazy, but these are worse than usual.

I was already seated when I found out I couldn't have breakfast, so I decided to just try something else. I read the entire menu a few times because I'm that indecisive. Eventually I decided on the "Carl Perkins Pork 'n Beans". The menu says "12 hour slow-cooked braised pork with white bean cassoulet, chorizo and corn bread."

I really like the presentation. Beans and chorizo in the middle with corn bread and pork triangles on the outside. At first, I thought the pork triangles were just fat, but then I decided to try and eat one. I'm glad I did because it was fantastic. I cut the fat part off, though. Yeah, I'm that person. I do the same thing with pork chops and steak and I soak up the grease from my pizza with napkins before I eat it.
The corn bread could have been a little sweeter, but that's just a personal preference. I'm definitely more used to canned pork and beans, and it was interesting trying something fresher and of better quality. I could definitely get used to it.
I also had an egg cream. If you don't know, that's milk with seltzer water, and it also comes in chocolate. At this diner, they make it at your table. Apparently that's how it's traditionally done. I think that's a little bit much. I'd rather have it brought to me already mixed so I can just drink it and not have it overflowing the cup and on the table.

The singers kept walking on this narrow platform that was right behind me. It was a little weird looking up and having someone right there or just feeling them behind me. The wait staff is composed of aspiring musical theater stars, a bunch of Rachel Berrys and Kurt Hummels, I guess. They send around a container for donations, and they're required to use the money to take a lesson in acting, dancing or singing. I guess they're really serious about making it. If you want to be in a musical, it's probably better to have your resume say "singing waiter" than just "waiter," and most of them are really good. Way too many Disney songs, though, and it was very, very loud. Even so, I wouldn't mind going back with a friend some time. I know some people who would really enjoy the experience.

Updated Acne Regimen

2011-11-27T21:03:00.000-08:00

This is an update to my earlier entry about my personal skin care regimen. Back then, I was using 5 different products, and I added a sixth shortly after. I'm using 4 for acne and the rest for spots. It's been working quite well. Most of the time, I have no pimples, and when I do get some, it's only a few.

This cream is the first step in the process, when I remember to use it. I wrote an entry about it when I first started using it. It still burns as much now as it did then. I actually tried exfoliating before applying the cream; it doesn't cause more intense burning, but it does cause peeling. Yeah, don't do that. Aside from that, this stuff has really been helping my face. I'm almost out, which saddens me. I'm looking for something else new to try, but I might just buy more of this.

This scrub is currently the second step in the process. I've used it before and I remember positive results. I haven't had any problems with dry skin since I started using it, and I have noticed brighter skin. The microbeads are much gentler than the ones in apricot scrubs, and since I haven't experienced any irritation, I don't think this scrub contains harsh chemicals. There are no active ingredients, but that's fine because I use so many different things.

Third step. I haven't quite finished the bottle of L'oreal cleanser, but I'll be using this one next. I've been extremely stressed, and I'd like to keep that from busting out of my face. If washing my face with this stuff can help prevent that, then I'll try it. Active ingredient: salicylic acid 2%

Fourth step. I always use a cleanser with benzoyl peroxide for this step. This one has a whopping 10%. Before this, I'd never seen one with such a high concentration. I love the way it makes my skin tingle.

Fifth step. I was always afraid of lightening products because I don't want to end up with an abnormally pale face. Fortunately, this one isn't doing much. Sure, my skin is brighter, but that could also be from the scrub, and I'm not satisfied with how this cream treats the spots. Since the container is pretty much empty, I can move on to something else. It was too expensive, anyway. $20 is too much for only 1 oz, especially if it doesn't work.

Future fifth step. I've been waiting to use this No Marks stuff until I finished with the dark spot corrector. It came with a sample of face wash, which was nice. I really have no idea what to expect with this, so I'll just have to use it for a few weeks and see.

I like this astringent because it isn't as harsh as most others, but I feel like it cleans just as well. It claims to reduce the appearance of spots, but I haven't been seeing that. However, it definitely reduces breakouts quickly and does so without causing irritation. In my experience, that's very rare. Active ingredient: salicylic acid 2%

Seventh step. Yes, there are seven steps. Yes, I know it's crazy. I always try to use a cream with 10% benzoyl peroxide for the last step. I've found that any time I omit this step, I break out horribly. It's more than my skin reacting to a change in the regimen; my skin needs this stuff to be kept in line, kinda the same way my hair needs oil-based products. I'm just weird, I guess.

For a long time, I only used Terminator 10 by Acne Free, and it worked great. I always saw Persa-Gel by Clean and Clear commercials on tv and thought the stuff was garbage. Well, one problem with the Terminator 10 is I can't always find it when I need a refill, or I can only find it in a lower concentration. Obviously that's not helpful. The last time I need a refill, I decided to try the Persa-Gel. It's the same concentration and it's been around longer, so why not? Turns out it actually works better, so I decided to try the generic brand to save a little money. And that might be why I'm breaking out a little now. The CVS brand cream is great, but I just need something stronger. I'll be going back to the Persa-Gel as soon as possible. As far as the spots go, maybe I'll be shelling out a lot of money to try that Clinique stuff.

New Haircut!

2011-11-26T22:42:00.000-08:00

I know I keep saying I'll get my bangs fixed and then I keep not doing it. Well, I finally did it. I decided the best time to get my hair cut is before my roots start growing out, so I treated myself to a wash and set before the cut. For those of you who are unfamiliar with a wash and set, here's a quick summary. Wash hair and rinse, condition hair and rinse, add deep conditioner and sit under the dryer, rinse, put rollers in hair with some sort of moisturizer, get back under the dryer until hair is completely dry, comb or blow dry to get desired style.

This was my first time under one of the big dryers. My rollers were so big that my head could hardly fit in there. Then I could hardly get out. I've found I don't like the big dryers because it's way too hot under there. The little metal clips used to secure the rollers got really hot, and I had a nasty burn on my scalp. From now on, regular dryers for me.

Here's the end result. Honestly, I'm not completely satisfied with the bangs. They need to be shorter next time and less to the side, but they're definitely better than last time. Also, there's some nice face framing stuff happening. Of course, there's now way I'm going through all the work of putting rollers in my hair.

I borrowed my mom's InStyler just to see how it would turn out. It's nice, but I'll probably use a curling iron a little if I'm going out.

Thanksgiving Pies - Part 2

2011-11-26T22:22:00.000-08:00

I wanted to make a pumpkin pie, but I knew the oven would be occupied by the apple pie. Then I discovered the world of no-bake pumpkin pies. I'm not making it up. This really exists. I chose a double-layer recipe with cream cheese on the bottom and pumpkin on the top.

In a large bowl, whisk together 4 oz cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of milk, and 1 tbsp sugar until smooth.

Gently stir in 1 1/2 cups whipped topping.

Spread into bottom of crust.

First layer finished. Time for some pumpkin-y awesomeness.

Pour 1 cup of milk into large bowl, and thoroughly mix in 7 oz instant vanilla pudding mix, 15 oz pumpkin, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger, and 1/4 tsp cloves.

When thickened, spread over cream cheese layer.

Refrigerate 4 hours, or until set.

This pie was so heavy. My arms got so tired carrying it to the party. It's too bad I didn't get to taste it. I guess I'll have to make it again.

Thanksgiving Pies - Part 1

2011-11-26T21:59:00.000-08:00

I actually made these pies a couple weeks ago for an early Thanksgiving dinner with a bunch of co-workers. I didn't have a good time and ended up leaving early, so I didn't actually get to try any of these pies. I've still got almost an entire bottle of tequila from when I made the trifle, so I wanted to make something that would help me get rid of it. I found this list of alcoholic pie recipes and made two black russian pies and one whiskey apple pie.

Melt 24 lg. marshmallows (or 2 ½ cups small marshmallows) with milk in microwave, stirring occasionally. Place in freezer to thicken.

These marshmallows are more like medium size, so I just estimated how much I would need.

Stir in 1/3 cup Kahlua.

Beat 1 cup whipping cream until stiff and fold into mixture.

Pour into pie crust.
Chill 30 minutes. Freeze, if need be.

That one turned out pretty well, I think. I'm not so sure about the apple pie, especially since I haven't made one in about 10 years.

First, I used the wrong kind of apples. These were labeled as Golden Delicious, but they're definitely Red Delicious. I know everyone says to use Granny Smiths, but those are kinda nasty. The recipe says to use 6-7 apples, but I only did 4 before I got tired of peeling and cutting.

In a saucepan, mix 1/3 cup sugar, 2 tbsp flour, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, and 1/4 tsp salt.
Add the 1/2 cup bourbon and 2 tbsp lemon juice, and whisk until evenly blended.
Cook over medium-high heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture boils and thickens slightly.

Add the apples and stir and toss them until evenly coated with the mixture.
Set aside for about 20 minutes, stirring twice.

Pour the apple mixture into the pie crust, mounding slightly in the center.
Cover with top crust and seal the edges. Cut several steam vents.
Bake for 25 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 45 minutes.

I remember I was in the grocery store looking at the deep dish pie crusts and thinking "I don't need all that drama!" Well, apparently I did need it. I didn't even use all the apples. I forgot to take a picture of the finished pie with the top and everything, but that's probably a good thing since it was kinda ugly, all lumpy and creepy-looking. I think maybe apple pie just isn't my thing. Maybe I'll try again at Christmas.

Death By Chocolate Trifle! Finally!

2011-11-26T21:16:00.000-08:00

I've been waiting months to make death by chocolate trifle. I needed a large gathering of people to make sure it would all get eaten, but it had to be outside of work because there's alcohol. I ended up serving it near the end of work. Whatever. No one minded having alcohol-laced dessert in the office while there was still work to be done.

After baking the brownies, I poked a LOT of holes so I could pour in the Kahlua.

This recipe didn't say how much Kahlua to use, so I looked at a few other recipes that use alcohol. Most of them used around 1/3 cup. I ended up using around 1 1/3 cups. After I used the first 1/3 cup, I felt like the brownies could hold more. I was right. I just kept pouring until the Kahlua started to leak out.

Then I cut the soaked brownies into very small squares while trying not to eat too much of it.

The recipe says to use Heath or Skor bar bits, but I don't want to kill any nut allergy folks. I decided to try out these nifty things instead. Obviously, the dairy free doesn't matter since I'll be using chocolate mousse and Cool Whip, but I might keep using these in the future. I know vegan cheese doesn't melt well, so I'm not sure how I feel about vegan chocolate, but I'll just have to wait and see.

I didn't feel like making chocolate mousse, so I just bought a couple packs for these. It turned out not to be enough. I should have gotten 4 packs. Next time I'll probably just make the mousse myself.

Fat free Cool Whip. This thing seems like it'll have plenty of calories and fat, so I thought it would be a good idea to try and cut down on that wherever possible.

First, a layer of brownie clumps on the bottom, and then a layer of chocolate mousse on top of that. Spreading the mousse was a lot harder than I anticipated. I really have no idea what I can do to make it easier. I'm open to suggestions.

Then layers of Cool Whip and chocolate chips. I considered using chocolate Cool Whip, but I thought that might be too much. I also considered making Kahlua-flavored Cool Whip, but I was afraid of over-beating it.

Keep layering.

I ran out of the chocolate mousse, but I found a few of these things in the fridge. They're strawberry flavored, so it made the trifle less chocolate chocolate chocolate.

Finished product. Everyone said they loved it, and that always makes me feel good. The next time I make trifle, it'll be one with fruit, and maybe pound cake or angel food cake. I just have to find people to eat it.

Yucatan Mexican Restaurant

2011-11-26T20:41:00.000-08:00

I find the best restaurants during my lunch breaks. I think the Bronx has the best Mexican food, and this Yucatan place had really nice decor. Of course, I didn't take a picture of that because I wasn't thinking.

At least I got an address, right?

As with any Mexican restaurant, there were free chips with awesome sauce. Seriously, I wanted to take the sauce home with me.

Ah, the good stuff. I think it's a masterpiece, but this was a few weeks ago and I don't remember exactly what it was. Chicken mole something. And the mole sauce had chocolate in it. That's really the only reason I ordered it. That and I'll eat anything with avocado. This restaurant also has tacos and burritos and those kinds of things, but that's boring. If I want American Mexican food, I'll go to Taco Bell. If I go to a Mexican restaurant, it's because I want something interesting. And chips with yummy salsa verde.

Baked Corn Casserole

2011-11-07T00:55:00.000-08:00

I absolutely love corn, and I've always thought cornbread is better with actual corn in it. I'd never heard of corn casserole before, but it sounds like heaven.

1 can cream-style corn, 1 can whole kernel corn

So much corn! It took at lot of will power to keep from eating it all.

1/3 cup vegetable oil, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 8 oz sour cream

I was planning to substitute plain yogurt for the sour cream, but I just happened to pass by a grocery store on my way home to make this. I don't normally like sour cream, though, so I'll probably use yogurt next time. A lot of people add a little baking soda to the yogurt in baking recipes.

Add 1 box corn muffin mix

It kinda looks like oatmeal now. I wonder if I could put corn in oatmeal? No, that's probably not a good idea. Let's skip that one.

Bake at 350 for 35 minutes

I used an 11x7 pan instead of a 9x9, but I still had to bake it for the full 35 minutes. Actually, I think I should have left it in a little longer. The middle was a little mushy.

I originally planned to make other stuff to go with this, like some sort of protein maybe, but then I just kept eating and eating. I think I ate more than a third of the pan today. I feel like such a fatty. I've seen similar recipes including pork, so I'll probably do that next time just to balance it out a little.

Sky Restaurant

2011-11-06T02:31:00.000-08:00

On Friday, I spent most of the day in Astoria, Queens. I'd never been there before, but it turns out they have great food. I found one called Sky; I think the food is Ecuadoran.

For once, I got an address. They weren't that crowded for lunch, but I think they get really crowded at night. They have a great selection of alcohol and good music. I might go back on a Friday night to have a good time.

I love when places have cool cups. It shows imagination and keeps things interesting.

Free stuff is always a good thing. I wasn't sure about the creepy unidentified sauce, though.

It was spicy and onion-y, but really good. It only made my nose run a little.

The menu said panini, so I was not expecting this thing. I don't know what it is, but it was fantastic. Mushrooms, mozzarella cheese, roasted peppers.... other stuff. Oh, blood orange vinaigrette. Most of the "paninis" had that dressing. I guess someone who runs this place really likes it.

Any restaurant that offers fried plantains is my kind of restaurant. I'm used to seeing them cut up, but they were still good. Unfortunately, I was so full that I could only get halfway through. In the future, I'll have to make sure there's someone who can finish my food with me.

Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal!

2011-11-06T02:18:00.000-08:00

It's November, so that means everyone is making everything with pumpkin. I love pumpkin pie and I love oatmeal, so when I found out the two could be combined, I was extremely excited. I used this recipe, but I had to leave out the cardamom. The stuff was just too expensive at the store I was in. I hear it's cheaper in Indian stores, so I'll have to check that out.

1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal, 1/2 cup canned pumpkin, 1 cup nonfat milk, pinch of ground cardamom, 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice, 1 tbsp sugar

Yeah, I've got quite a bit of heavy cream sitting around in my fridge. It needs to go away, so I substituted this magic weight gain serum for nonfat milk. Who uses nonfat milk, anyway?

Combine ingredients and cook for 20 minutes or until thick

I usually make oatmeal in the microwave instead of on the stove, but I didn't want to mess with the instructions too much.

This recipe supposedly makes two servings. I could have eaten it all, but I started to get nauseous near the end of the first serving. Note to self: heavy cream requires a lactase pill. Or maybe two. I'll try to remember for next time so I'm not sick for the whole day. The 1/2 cup of pumpkin was only about 1/4 of the can, so I'll be making this a few more times to use it all up.
I keep hearing about flax seed and flax meal and how it's good and oatmeal and good for you. I don't know anything about that, but once I find out, maybe I'll start using it. We'll see.

Easiest Dinner Ever

2011-11-02T20:32:00.000-07:00

I spent quite a bit of time looking through some recipes today. At first, I was just a little hungry and wanted a snack. Then I looked at the clock and realized it was dinner time. Since my hands were shaky and I was getting dizzy, I knew I didn't have a lot of time to find some food. In one of the kitchen cabinets, I found a whole lot of rice. I mean A LOT. So I looked for recipes with Minute Rice and Uncle Ben's rice. I found a recipe for chicken and rice casserole that only requires 4 ingredients.

1 can peas, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 28 oz chicken in water, 1 pouch original long grain rice

Yeah, this is all I need. Pretty awesome, right? I mean, except for the Milano cookies, Ritz crackers, Rice Krispies and Mrs. Field's truffles....

Combine all ingredients and microwave 4 minutes

The recipe didn't say if I should cook the rice first. I didn't even think about that until I put the rice in the bowl. I couldn't break up all the clumps, but I've seen how this rice works. It should be ok after it cooks.
I didn't know whether or not to drain the peas and chicken, so I just did it. I don't like when things are too watery. I figured the creamy soup would make the mixture wet enough.
It doesn't look too appetizing, but that could change in 4 minutes.

Yeah, it looks a little better now. It's tasty, too. A little salty, but I really don't like salt. I think it would probably be better with more vegetables, so I'll try that next time.