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.

Flaws & First Love

I am a self admitted bad driver.

I get scared in the car when other people are driving (and always have).

That being said, when it became my turn to learn to drive, I was terrified. Not only did I get my license later than almost all of my friends but now that I'm living in New York I have no reason to EVER drive.

Even though I am a terrible, irresponsible and scary driver - I love to drive.

Since I got my license in very early 20s (in fact, I think I was 20 haha), I still get that rush of being free and getting to go wherever I want. Living in New York City doesn't allow me to keep a car - parking is way too expensive and I would crash into a taxi or a person or worse, a puppy.

In my last year of school, I was fortunate enough to be given a 1993 Mazda Miata from my aunt and uncle. They are very generous people and no longer needed the car but knew I needed one (and whats more, needed to learn how to properly drive).

I introduce to you, the best car ever....I named her Kelly Kapowski. I LOVE this car.

Driving around in this little 2 seater made me feel super cool.

The only problem when they gave me the car? I didn't know how to drive a standard car, let alone how to properly drive an automatic.

I feel like this car and I learned how to drive together!

We went on so many adventures (a lot of them irresponsible) and I just love this lady so much.

In fact, even though I moved to New York over 2 years ago and I have no use for this car at the time in my life, I REFUSE to sell it. It's a race car for girls! I love it too much.

Kelly Kapowski sits happily in my parents garage where it is taking up space. Is it a bit rude that I am taking up my parent's 1 car garage with my unused car? Yes, and I feel ultra guilty! BUT, I just can't bear the thought of someone else driving my car. It is mine and I want it waiting for me when I return to Canada / finished in New York which could be 1 year, 2 years even 3-4 years from now.

Well there you have it - my totally irrational and embarrassing obsession with my 1993 red car.

I hope I still know how to drive when I leave Manhattan!

After work tomorrow I am going to an event I bought tickets to on Gilt City. Here is the description:

General admission for one to Bliss Spa & Crunch Cel"AB"ration event with hosts Ashley Hebert & J.P. Rosenbaum from "The Bachelorette" on Wednesday August 15, 2012 from 7 - 10 PM at Crunch Gym• Five-day pass to Crunch• All drinks sponsored by Skinnygirl• Best Abs contest and Ab Brag photo booth• Mini treatments from Bliss Spa• Chats and tips from Crunch trainers• Pole-dancing and belly-dancing demonstrations• Dating tips from Wise Matchmaking

Should be fun - I am obsessed with The Bachelor / The Bachelorette!! I'll let you know how it goes!

Night.

It's all good

Hi There!! 

Happy Tuesday (if there is such a thing)... 

This week already seems very, very long - at 3pm both yesterday and today, the clock started to move at a glacial pace. You know how that thrills me. Extra points for you if you got that reference.

That being said, there is definitely good news this week:

• I did pilates yesterday and yoga today. I hope to focus on cardio and the below activities for the rest of the week.
• I discovered that I get 24 free channels by plugging a unnoticed cable in to my almost never used television. My life will be changed forever haha. 
• These newly discovered channels have allowed me to watch not only Bachelor Pad but the Olympics! There is such a HUGE difference between Olympic coverage here in the US compared to back home in Canada. Craziness! Observations:
•  I'm super into gymnastics right now! Teeny little people doing wild flips, spins, bounces and kicks = entertainment at its best. 
• Poor Michael Phelps has lost just a teensy bit of his mojo :( but he is still pretty rad
• My aunt & uncle were here this past weekend and they took my to Costco while they were here (yes, in Harlem). That means that my freezer is stocked with scallops, salmon, halibut and coffee. That means my fridge is full of very cool cheese. That means that I have enough bottles of wine to last me at least until Sunday ;)
• Thursday is my company's annual employee summer party. We are going to a country club in NJ. I've signed up for 2 activities: cooking class & wine tasting class. Should be a co-workertastic time.
• Friday, BF and I are going to go see Mike Tyson on Broadway. Seriously. I'll let you know how it goes.

Since I have been bad at taking pictures lately, here are a few things that have been going on in my kitchen:

street cherries - $2/lb . Loves it.

leftover chili + salad

I'm off to bed. Night Night!

Jenna Lyons & Locanda Verde

Happy Friday!

I took today off of work and have been enjoying every minute - particularly the sleeping until 10 part :)

This week, I went out for a friend's birthday at Locanda Verde. It is a gorgeous, very cool restaurant in Tribeca. The menu was amazing - we shared just about everything: 2 crostinis and 4 antipasti dishes. For my entree, I ordered the sea scallops (my fave!).

We started our meal with a bottle of Prosecco. Right after clinking our glasses, one of my friends noticed that Jenna Lyons (creative director / prez of J Crew) was in the restaurant. Such a cool celeb sighting. I wish I was brave enough to introduce myself! Gotta love New York :)

Check out what we ordered:

Sheep’s Milk Ricotta with sea salt and herbs - this was insane

complimentary foccacia bread for the table with pesto & tomato - soo good

blue crab crostini w/ jalapeno & tomato and the grilled octapus

Roasted Sea Scallops with spring peas, almond gazpacho and pancetta mostarda 

I love restaurants in Tribeca because they're usually simple, clean and have more space than places in my neighborhood.

  

yes, i took a picture of the tap in the bathroom

If you're in the area and are feeling fancy, go!

This weekend, my aunt and uncle are visiting me from Toronto. I'm very excited to see them!

Since I will definitely be skipping the gym this weekend, I plan on taking a total body conditioning class later today. These classes kick my butt - I have a tough time doing strength training and will do more squats than I have all week BUT I can't deny the benefits of dropping it low! Here in the city, its about to thunderstorm. I hope it lightens up before I have to walk to the gym!

Have a good weekend!

Weekend fun

This weekend felt way too fast!

On Friday, I went to The Delancy in the Lower East Side for a good friend's birthday party. I like this place because they have a very pretty rooftop BUT I found the crowd a bit too hipster-y for my liking, it was crowded, and the neighborhood is a bit sketchy (right by the Brooklyn bridge) Even with those flaws, I still had lots and lots of fun!

pretty palm trees :)

outside of the front door of the bar. see? sketchy

pretty

Today I went to the gym and took a Total Body Condition class. So tough. The instructor combined lots of cardio with what seemed like a bah-zillion squats. After the class I did 30 minutes on the elliptical to flush things out. 

When I left the gym, I wandered into the grocery store because I had a craving for chocolate milk. I found something even better:

I can't wait to put in coffee tomorrow morning.

I can't believe tomorrow is Monday. I don't wannnna go!!! 

How was your weekend?

A Coney Island Adventure

My glorious roommate and I decided to take a trip to Coney Island to get out of the unbearable Manhattan heat. 

It was a very cool place! Super retro with the old carnival rides and freak shows, famous Nathan's Hot Dogs where they host the annual hot dog eating contest (barf - veggie dog for me plz), a not too shabby beach (meaning cleanish, cold water and cool breezes), and a very long boardwalk! Originally, I had planned on venturing out on the E train all by myself and I'm definitely glad I brought a friend. It turned out to be a slightly sketchy borderline ghetto hood. 

Overall, well worth the trip! I'm glad I got to see it at least once while I'm living here.

arriving off the subway! so happy we made it.

Nathan's hot dog - complete with countdown board

Roommate and I enjoyed Bud Light Limes, Snyders Honey & Onion Pretzels (the bestest) and strawberries I packed in my beach bag. Yum!

very cool

The weekend we were visiting was the 86th berf-day of the world famous Cyclone! 

sideways pic because I felt pretty wacky afterwards

 We had to try it out. For $8 per person, I had high hopes and boy oh boy were they met! This was the bounciest, bumpiest, most terrifying wooden roller coaster I've ever been on. After the wild ride, my legs were numb, I was sweating and could barely speak. All signs of a good time ;) 


I love old wooden rides (blush) even more than the ones at Canada's Wonderland! For all you Americans out there - please educate yourself on one of my homeland's treasures - http://www.canadaswonderland.com/

Have you been to Coney Island? Do any crazy areas like this exist where you live?

Along the Hudson River

I'm lucky to have an office that is a 15 minute walk to the Hudson Pier boardwalk. It's so pretty and is a really interesting place to explore, especially in the summer. This walk is definitely one of the ways that I escape reality during the day. 

Here are a few things I saw at lunch today...

a building on the west side highway

An old body shop by the west side highway

tugboats on Hudson Pier

My dream apartment - right along the water

From a lounge chair on the pier

I brought a notebook to attempt a sketch at the above. no laughing ;)

Cool right? I felt like I took a mini vacation on my lunch break. A bit of fresh salty air and sparkling water will do the trick! I used my new photo editing BFF PicMonkey for these. 

Do you take walks at lunch? 

Where do you escape to?

East Village Saturday

This past Saturday, BF and I decided to enjoy the nice weather by exploring Alphabet City.

He lives in the area and I absolutely love the neighborhood. We picked up lunch, a couple beers and set out for Thompson Square Park for a picnic & quality people watching time!

A little live music makes everything 10x better

Yummy veggie wrap, a pickle and chips! 

Perfect Bud light lime weather!

 After we ate lunch, we were caught a few rays and then decided to explore a street art competition surrounding the park. The participants hung huge canvases on the outer fence and did their thing while spectators watched. Very cool!

 

He was using a zillion different spray paint colors

Holes cut in the fingernails so the trees behind showed through!

Add caption

A nice little getaway without actually leaving :)

How was your weekend?

i.love.it.here.

I love living in New York – when you’re stressed out, you can just walk around the city and see amazing things. Here are some cool things I’ve seen lately J

30 Rock :)

The New York Public Library

From the Empire State Building

St Patrick's Cathedral 

view from my friend's rooftop in Brooklyn

At night.. 

I haven’t posted in a loooong time but I started a new position at my company, it didn’t end up working out and I’m moving onto a new role. Basically, I’ve been busy! I’ll be posting more often over the next few weeks – promise. 

Spring is in the air :)

Thanks so much for your 'kicking it into gear' tips - I really appreciate the advice :)

Although it's rainy & gloomy in New York today, I noticed something exciting on my way to the subway:

Flowers are coming!

Soul Cycle was just as I expected it to be - extra intense. I had a new instructor named Matt and he wasn't messing around. Needless to say, I'm a little sore today. Maybe a little yoga is in order this evening.

Whats the weather like where you are? Any other words of advice for my bikini body goals?

Why I love Vienna, part 2

 The food.

As a pescatarian, I was a little worried about finding things that I could eat in Austria. I had mental images of schnitzel, beef stews and sausages being serves by large angry waitresses.

To my delight, there were a number of excellent traditional options for me throughout the city and almost all of the waitresses / waiters I encountered were absolutely lovely. The best part of these options? Cheese was almost always involved.

my favorite - garlic soup with homemade croutons! i will dream of this soup.

vegetable bake with really good cheese

 One thing I really liked about restaurants in Vienna: almost every menu has friend Camembert with cranberry. Talk about a match made in thunder thigh heaven!

 I even had the chance to try traditional goulash at "The Goulash Museum" - the fish was not good, I didn't eat it. But the veggies & sauce = amazing.

Fish goulash.

Lunch at Palmenhaus. An amazing salad ^ Check out all of that feta.

 The cheese plates in Vienna kick NYC's butt in the cheese plate dept.

crazy. crazy. crazy.

I love how lattes come with a little glass of water everywhere in Europe. Why yes, I would love a bit of water with my coffee :)

More food to come in my next post.

For the long weekend I am going to Florida to visit my aunt and uncle. I am SO EXCITED to have  some warm sunshine beat down on me!

What are your plans for the long weekend?