Maison Kayser

Last summer, I had read about a new bakery opening on the UES.  Similar to Laduree, Maison Kayser is a well-regarded French bakery/cafe with branches around the world and they've finally opened a NYC branch.  If you need to know anything about me, its my love for bread and baked goods (mostly bread though heee).  So of course I was super interested in scoping out this new bakery known for its bread.

A friend suggested we meet for dinner at Maison Kayser and I was super surprised to find out that they offer full meals at the cafe!

As I rolled myself in, I was immediately greeted with a beautiful display of tarts, pastries, desserts, breads, rolls, croissants, and all sorts of goodies. 

Front area with bakery goods on display

Then when I looked to the right, I saw the large and spacious dining area:

Cafe and dining area

As I dragged myself away from the display cases, my attention was next attracted to the big windows showing the bakery in the back.  Where bread is born!!!  Fresh baguettes were still coming out of the oven even at 6:30pm.  

Windows in the back of the dining area showing the bakery areas

Wafels & Dinges

Friday, unsurprisingly, is a favorite day of the week for many people, but at my office its an even more exciting day: the Wafels & Dinges truck is on our corner!  Yippeeeeeee!!!

Wafel & Dinges truck outside!!

While the truck does offer some savory waffle options (pulled pork wafel, chili con corne etc), my team and I really love stopping for for a little post-lunch sweet treat!

Take a look at their menu which is located above the truck:

Menu above the truck

Close-up of the menu

Each wafel order comes with your first dinges (toppings) free with each additional for an extra $1 and scoop of ice cream for $2.  Here are your dinges / topping choices:

Dinges (toppings)

Lady M Confections

In anticipation of its Midtown East location opening, I went to pay homage to Lady M Confection's flagship boutique in the Upper East Side.

Lady M's UES shop

I can see the cakes!

Having tasted Lady M cakes at different restaurants in the city (Gyu Kaku and Ippudo both serve the Lady M green tea crepe cake!), I was definitely excited to finally visit the shop and try more cake.  Caaaaaaake!

It's a small space with only a few tables, so there may be a bit of a wait if you go during peak afternoon times.  I was so surprised by how white and simple the space was - barely any decoration and definitely not much color other than white!  But your attention definitely goes towards their gorgeous cakes so I guess the decorators knew what they were doing...

Spotted: Another LadyM location coming soon!

I was walking around Bryant Park today and look what I saw coming soon on the 40th Street side of the park (next to Bryant Park Hotel):

LadyM Confections!  And it'll be only 3 blocks away from my office!  I hope it opens soon so I can enjoy cake (slice of green tea mille crepe pleaseeee!) and Bryant Park together while the weather is still gorgeous. 

Yay!!  I can't wait!

Thanks for reading - Piggy KK

Spot Dessert Bar

After passing by Spot Dessert Bar on St. Marks for the past couple years, I finally went in and gave it a try!

Located below Pho 32, it may be a little tricky to find Spot Dessert Bar.  But keep a look out for the bright orange sign and follow the stairs down to dessert land!

Look for their orange sign and go down the stairs

It's not a big space, but if you are lucky you'll manage to snag a table without too long of a wait!

Inside of Spot Dessert Bar

Rice to Riches

Just this past weekend, I happened to be in SoHo / Nolita for dinner with a friend (post to come soon on my dinner at The Pan American!) and we decided to stop by Rice to Riches for a little dessert.  Turns out my friend, who also went to NYU with me, had never been to Rice to Riches before although she had heard of it.  So it made me think...have you been before?

I know I know...Rice to Riches is an oldie and has been around for a while now.  But have you been??  Last year, I thought I was the only one who had never tried and so I secretly took the subway to Spring Street and bought myself a rice pudding from Rice to Riches.  After the events of last weekend, there must be more Rice to Riches newbies out there!

While I'm not really a big rice pudding fan, there is something about Rice to Riches that I enjoy. Maybe it's the fun atmosphere.  Maybe it's the fancy containers and spoons that come with your order.  Whatever it is, I keep coming back for more!

Looking bright and totally out of place on Spring St, Rice to Riches just calls your attention - especially if its at night.

As you enter, you'll see entertaining phrases placed all over the walls.  Here are some of my favorites:

Minetta Tavern

Oh Minetta Tavern...why do you make it so hard for us to meet?  It's a good thing I enjoy eating dinner early, especially since a friend of mine managed to snag a 5:30pm dinner reservation.  And so, at 5:30pm with the sun still bright and shining, I entered into the hush hush world of Minetta Tavern.

Surprisingly, its not what you would expect inside Minetta Tavern.  From the outside, all the windows are covered with heavy curtains so you can't look in.  When you step in, it's a retro yet classy old-school feel with its checkered floors, red leather booths, and wood bar (which, interestingly, is the original bar from when the restaurant first opened in 1937 and refinished by Keith McNally when he took over). 

Bar area when you enter (pic from http://minettatavernny.com/)

Since it was so early, I'm pretty sure it was still officially cocktail hour so who could resist order a cocktail?!  There were a couple unique cocktails on the menu so I was excited to try.  And I was pleasantly surprised at how great they were!

Baking: Paula Deen's Not Yo Mama's Banana Pudding

On a quiet Friday night, I decided to have Paula Deen keep me company.  A friend recently posted a delicious looking picture of homemade banana pudding so I decided to follow suit and make one of my own. 

Paula Deen's recipe for Not Yo' Mama's Banana Pudding came highly rated so I gave it a go. Wow!  Not only was this easy to make, but it goes down like crack!  DE-LI-CIOUS and get this - I don't even like bananas! 

I only had half the cream cheese called for in the recipe at home, so I just cut the whole recipe in half.  But next go around, I'm definitely making the full recipe.  Its just so tasty!  I hope you give this quick and easy recipe a try.

Not Yo' Mama's Banana Pudding
Recipe from Paula Deen via Food Network

Ingredients
2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream

Baking: Red Velvet Cherry Cake Roll

Lately, I've been into everything cherry.  I ran across a recipe from Food Network for a Red Velvet Cherry Cake Roll and just HAD to give it a go!  

Food Network's version of the cake (Pic from Food Network)

While my first batch wasn't exactly flawless, it definitely tasted delicious!  And my coworkers thought so too and obligingly polished it all off.  

My version of the cake - not bad for a first attempt!

The ingredient listing may look impressive, but since I was able to finish a completed cake roll (and on a weeknight!) I know you can do it!  I couldn't wait to share this recipe with you all...

Cha-An Tea House - Part II (Tea and Desserts)

Happy Valentine's Day to my fellow Piggys!  

In my last post yesterday, I took you through my meal experience at Cha-An Tea House which had me walking away disappointed.  However, what really did blow me away at Cha-An was their tea and desserts!  If you are still thinking of last minute V-day plans, I think this is the perfect answer for you!

Cha-An has a pretty extensive tea list that goes beyond your standard black tea and green tea.  In fact, they offer five kinds of black tea, eleven types of green tea, three types of Oolong tea, two types of Pu-erh tea, two white teas, six herbal teas, and two special latte teas!  You can take a look at their full tea menu here. 

During peak times, there is a one order per person rule  However, this does not mean one tea order per person.  They are perfectly ok with you sharing orders of tea and dessert and Cha-An is VERY good about refilling your tea pot with hot water so that you maximize your pot.

Almond Tofu

One of my favorite desserts from childhood is Almond Tofu.  A surprising fact that I recently learned about it - there is actually no tofu in Almond Tofu!  Second fact I learned?  It's super easy to make!

While my mom was able to tell me what ingredients I would need and directions on how to make, she's pretty old school in terms of giving measurements (just a pinch here, swirl or two there...).  Sooooo, I pulled up a basic recipe from allrecipes.com and incorporated a few alterations based on user reviews and my own trial-and-error.

Also, as I'm not a huge milk fan, I substituted the milk (which gives the Almond Tofu its opaque-y white color) with soymilk!  The end result is a great blend of almond flavor with a touch of soymilk and the combo is surprisingly wonderful!

Yao's Dragon Beard Candy

I was already on a high from my lucky find of Osmanthus candy in Chinatown, putting an end to a 5 year long search.  My luck continued that day as I was wandering around aimlessly.  I stumbled upon a little cart on the corner of Chrystie and Grand Street, right by the B/D subway entrance, called Yao's Dragon Beard Candy.  It's not a well-known Chinese dessert.  In fact, the first and last time I had it was in the Vancouver Chinatown over 10 years ago!

There was a man making candy inside the cart as I approached, and I noticed a write up by the Village Voice posted on their window.  They wrote a good review of it here.

Chinese New Year and Dragon Cupcakes!

It's the year of the Dragon!

I'm hoping that this new year will bring good tidings to you all [and a change of luck to those of us who need it!].  It doesn't hurt to follow the usual Chinese traditions to start the new year off on the right foot.  Hey, I need all the help I can get!

Here's my checklist:

• Get together with family [check]
• Have a new year's feast [check]
• Clean the house apartment [check]
• Clean myself! [check]
• Wear red [eh... I'm hoping pink counts! Red just didn't match today's suit]
• Wish friends and family a happy new year! [check and check]

As my family gathered over the weekend to celebrate the new year, we ate lots of traditional food like fish (to wish for a plentiful new year), noodles (longevity), meat balls with strings of seaweed (prosperity), and oysters (good tidings).

Chinese New Year feast cooked by my Dad!

My contribution to the feast was dessert - hoping to put my skills from cake decorating class to good use! I wanted to do cupcakes this time and wound up honoring the new year of the dragon.  I got the idea from Hoosier Homemade's blog and was so impressed/inspired by her dragon cupcakes!  Here is how I put my own spin on it...

Osmanthus Candy

I'm so excited to share this amazing find with you!

When I was vacationing in China 5 years ago, I visited a beautiful city called Guilin.  I traveled there along the Li River and it truly was one of the most pristine places I've ever had the honor of seeing.  I even sailed past water buffaloes in the river!

Beautiful scenery along the Li River

Water Buffalo!  I waved hello but they were busy drinking water...

Guilin is known for its gorgeous scenery and its name translates to "forest of sweet osmanthus".  (Osmanthus is a fragrant flowering plant).  One fond memory of my visit to Guilin was having a very delicate candy called Osmanthus cake.  The airport at Guilin was the last place I had found it.  Ever since then, I have perused the candy aisle at Asian grocery stores hoping to find Osmanthus candy again, with no luck. I felt like I won the lottery when I found it at a newly opened grocery store in Chinatown called New York Mart!

Osmanthus Candy

Dragonfly Cakes' Petits Fours

For my birthday last month, I was surprised when a little box arrived in the mail for me.  It wasn't anything I would expect like clothes, a bag, household trinkets... basically anything non-perishable!  It was a box of adorable petits fours from Dragonfly Cakes!  I was a little wary upon opening it, wondering how in the world it stayed fresh (they're based in California).  Even if it was edible, I figured it probably suffered a bit in transit.  It did come packaged with refrigerant to keep it cool in transit.

They are so pretty though that I was intrigued and couldn't resist biting into one as soon as I opened the box (and even before I remembered to snap a picture!).

From L to R: Chocolate, Vanilla-Orange, Apricot Petits Fours (12 for $36.95)

Boy was I wrong! They tasted soo good! My pretty little box came with three different flavors: Chocolate, Vanilla-Orange, and Apricot.  I bit into a green one (apricot) - the shell was made of chocolate and the inside was three little layers of cake.  It was moist, and not too sweet.  It was the perfect bite-size piece of cake.  All three flavors were delicious, but my favorite was probably the Vanilla-Orange (with the Apricot a very close second!).

Baking: Andes Creme de Menthe Cookies

I've recently gotten into the habit of walking up and down the baking supply aisle in every grocery store I go into.  Most aisles are pretty basic here in the city so when I took a trip to Target in Brooklyn, I was awed at all the goodies they have there!

One thing that caught my eye - Andes Creme De Menthe Baking Chips!

Andes Creme De Menthe Baking Chips (pic from amazon)

I've always been a fan of the Andes Chocolate Mints when I was little, so why not make cookies using these baking chips!  I went on the Andes parent company website (www.tootsie.com) and pulled down a recipe for their Andes Creme De Menthe Cookies.  Its a basic cookie recipe with a minty twist - perfect for you all to try!

Andes Creme De Menthe Cookies 
Recipe from http://www.tootsie.com/rec_cdmcookies.php 

Inegredients
1/2 cup salted butter - softened
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 package (10 oz.) Andes Crème de Menthe Baking Chips
2-2/3 cups sifted all-purpose flour

Amorino

A couple years back I decided to try and keep only “wholesome” foods in my kitchen.  That sad day I sobbed while throwing out all the ice cream from my freezer.  But let’s be honest…this ice cream lover would never make such a crazed decision without some kind of loophole!  And here it is: if I feel like having ice cream, I better really want it enough to get off my bum, go out, and purchase a scoop (and notice I said scoop – no pint sigh).  Not a problem for me as I have several ice cream shops surrounding my apartment mhuahaha! 

On this particular night, I couldn’t pinpoint which flavor ice cream I was craving.  So I headed to Amorino where you can get as many flavors as you can fit onto your cone (doesn’t matter the size of your cone, as long as it fits)!  Not only does this gelato shop allow you to choose as many flavors as you want, but they also shape your creation into a unique flower design.   

My gelato shaped into a flower!

Coolhaus

Ice cream trucks are a childhood favorite of mine.  And by ice cream truck, I mean all ice cream (truck or not).  I love it all!  When I first moved to the city, Mr. Softee trucks were on almost every corner and I was ecstatic.  No more waiting and hoping for the truck to go down my block - I can choose when I want it!  Sadly, each time I went to Mr. Softee I walked away disappointed - just didn't quite hit the spot for me. 

Lucky for me, the recent explosion of food trucks has brought in lots of new and different ice cream options yay!  One that I recently got to try was Coolhaus.  Known for eccentric all-natural handmade ice cream flavors and various cookie options, you can pick an ice cream and pair it with two cookies to make your own ice cream sandwich!  Each sandwich is $6 and comes in its signature slanty shape (similar to the roof of the truck!) wrapped in edible paper.

Knowing that I've been meaning to try Coolhaus, an old colleague of mine messaged me during lunch one day at work to tell me that Coolhaus was in the area!  Upon arrival, I quickly realized that I had underestimated the number of options and possible combinations there could be...

Coolhaus truck - with its roof in its signature shape!

Sprinkles

Earlier this year, Sprinkles opened its first outpost in NYC.  I was a big fan of the tv show Girls Next Door and Bridget Marquardt, one of the stars of the show, often talked about how Sprinkles cupcakes were her favorite.  When this LA-based cupcakery finally set up shop on the Upper East Side I was excited to finally have a taste!

Its location across the street from Bloomingdale's is definitely convenient (and deadly).  The outside of the store is decorated with colorful cascading sprinkles.  The inside, while not spacious, is bright and clean with strategically placed display cases filled with their different cupcake options - your eyes just can't help but be drawn towards it!  My friend R and I ordered three (yes that's right...I said three!) cupcakes to share: one red velvet, one vanilla, and one salted caramel.

Cupcakes on display!

Dropping by: ABC Kitchen

I’ve recently been blessed with two excuses to go to ABC Kitchen: the first was for a dinner with out-of-towners and the second was for brunch.  One of Jean-Gorges newest restaurants, this local and organic food focused eatery won Best New Restaurant at the 2011 James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards.  After giving ABC Kitchen a go myself, I can see why it has garnered so much attention in the last year.  Both times I ate there I was so absorbed by my meal that I neglected to write anything down or take any pictures (by the time I remembered we were on dessert!).  For that reason, I won’t go into details of what I ordered as I’m sure I’ll be back but I did want to pass along my two-cents thus far on ABC Kitchen.

Salted caramel ice cream sundae - comes with caramel popcorn, peanuts, chocolate sauce and whipped cream on top (ignore the donuts on the side...they were disappointing)

.

Delicious crab toast!  (pic from http://www.seriouseats.com)

I really enjoyed both of my experiences there and loved the gorgeous setting inside (it’s attached to ABC Carpet and Home…can’t go wrong on decoration there!).  And while not my style, I appreciated the mismatching silverware and dishes and felt that it really added to the shabby-chic/vintage yet still elegant vibe.  Regarding the food, you’ll have to wait for me to go back and write things down next time.  But if you have a chance to give it a go before I finish a full post on ABC Kitchen, you MUST MUST MUST get the crab toast and the ice cream sundae.  Both shareable.  Both unbelievable.  Trust me – you will not regret it. 

Piggy says yes!

Thanks for reading - Piggy KK