The last days of fall in Central Park...

Pretty, pretty, pretty :)

Hope you have a great Thanksgiving!

Trader Joe's Times

Hi There!

Happy Sunday :) I hope you had a great weekend. 

Last night, BF and I went to the Comic Strip comedy club near my apartment and had a great time. There was a 2 drink minimum and having been before, I knew that the Long Island Iced Tea was the best bang for our buck - its basically a glass of pure alcohol and makes even unfunny jokes extra funny. If you're on the UES and looking for a different night out, I definitely recommend it. 

A little while ago, I made BF and I special Trader Joe's dinner. I bought their Goat Cheese and Sun dried Tomato fresh ravioli, some vodka sauce, a beautiful aged Parmesan cheese and some spinach. 

 I have tried TJ's lobster ravioli and wasn't really impressed, but this stuff was awesome. It turned out to be a relatively cheap and easy / fast meal. Both BF and I loved it.

Check it out if you can!

Tomorrow my office is finally going to reopen. After a whole week off doing absolutely nothing, I'm super excited to get back and get my work done. It feels so weird not being able to get back to my clients and more than anything, its weird not having a weekday routine. I like getting up and having breakfast, getting to work, gymming if time allows and then going home! It makes the weekend that much more exciting!

I am off to do some laundry and maybe a little shopping! Hope you have a super Sunday!

Butternut Squash Mac n Cheese

Hi There!

As all of you (assuming) know, New York was hit very hard by Sandy. I hope all of you are safe and unharmed after the storm.

The night that the storm hit really hard, Monday, I was down at BF's place in the East Village. Very scary stuff. The power and water were knocked out. There were trees down everywhere and just a block or so away cars that were parked on the street were flooded. I feel terrible for the small businesses and residents that were hit badly... :(
Luckily, we were able to make our way to the Upper East Side to my place to find power + glorious hot water. My office has been closed this week as it is  down in SoHo where the damage is severe. The past few days BF and I have been attempting to work remotely, drinking wine and watching tv. Fun stuff.

In lighter news, I have been meaning to post this dish for a while. Mac n cheese is one of my favorite things in the whole wide world. Luckily, I found a lighter recipe that uses butternut squash to cut out the majority of  fatness. I copied it based on what I had and pure guess work - so no measurements will be listed below haha.

Here is what I used (sorry for the lack of measurements):

- Fresh Sage
- 1 butternut squash
- shell pasta
- vegetable broth
- garlic
- skim milk
- whole wheat crackers
- sharp Parmesan cheese

Step 1 – Cook the bag of pasta so it is al dente or with a bit of a bite to it. Set aside.

Step 2 - Peel & chop butternut squash. Maybe I have been doing this wrong all my life, but this is really, really hard. Any tips?

Step 3 – In a big pot, heat onion, garlic and butternut squash in olive oil over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the onions are sort of clear. Add vegetable broth and sage sprigs. Cook for about 20 minutes, add milk.

Step 4 - Cook until squash is tender. Let the pot cool until you can put your hand in it & not burn yourself. Have fun testing it! I burnt myself at least twice.

Step 5 - Blend butternut squash mixture in your food processor and add to pasta in a large baking dish. 

Step 6 - Top with a handful of crush crackers + a bit of cheese. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes.

Step 6 - Eat.

Again, I hope all of you are safe and dry after the storm. Sandy turned out to be a huge bitch and will not be forgotten - my thoughts go out to all who are still dealing with the aftermath. So thankful to be okay

ttfn.