Archive | December, 2009

Joe- The Art of Coffee (and Dirty Chai)

18 Dec

Just a quickie for today.  While in Grand Central Station, we went down the wrong hall looking for a Starbucks and stumbled upon Joe- The Art of Coffee.  I have recently become incredibly addicted to Dirty Chai (A chai tea latte with a shot of espresso. Also called a Red Eye Chai. And two shots is called a Filthy Chai.) I asked them to make this for me and the barista behind the registered commended me on my drink selection.  They also offered great, friendly, prompt customer service that felt much more like New England than Grand Central Station Manhattan.  The final touch of awesomeness was the beautiful job they did on the traditional leaf pattern with the steamed milk/foam.

Best of all? It was probably the best one I’ve ever had!

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I loves me some toffee

16 Dec

I am a HUGE fan of English toffee.  Heath/Score bars are some of my favorite candy, however, nothing beats a fresh batch from a candy store.  When I saw a recipe online for Gramercy Tavern’s homemade toffee that seamed very easy and included sea salt, I was in.  I first made this one random night at home and I just could not stop eating it.  I proceeded to make it again one night when my sister was visiting, then again for my housewarming party, and then yet again for Thanksgiving.  It was a hit every time and I honestly have to stop myself from making it out of fear of impending weight gain in massive quantities.  I have no self control for homemade toffee!

The key to good candy making is a good thermometer.  Mine was just okay.  This toffee has the love/hate quality of getting totally stuck in your teeth as you eat it (great for sucking, terrible for fillings).  I am going to try to make it with a wee bit less water next time to see if that helps with the tacky factor.

The sea salt really takes this toffee to a whole nother level.  My dad was NOT a fan but I think he’s out of his mind.  The salt is what most people loved most about the toffee. 

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RECIPE
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Chocolate-Covered Toffee With Pumpkin Seeds and Sea Salt

Ingredients

  • 6 oz. (1 1/2 sticks) butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tbsp. water
  • 1/2 tsp. table salt
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • about 6 oz. semisweet or milk chocolate (works best if tempered)
  • 1 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted  (I had none so I went without)
  • sea salt to taste

Instructions

Stir butter, sugar, and water over low heat to dissolve sugar. Raise heat to medium and stir constantly. Cook until a beautiful toffee color (candy thermometer should read about 295 degrees F).

Add salt and vanilla extract, carefully; the toffee sputters. Pour onto one lightly buttered sheet of parchment paper. Allow to cool.

Wipe off excess oil from the surface of the toffee with a paper towel (the excess butter fat may keep the chocolate from adhering properly).

Spread tempered chocolate over completely cooled toffee.

Sprinkle with toasted pumpkin seeds and sea salt while chocolate is still tacky (so that the seeds and salt can adhere).

Break toffee into desired-size pieces.

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Soho Eats: Crepes and Cupcakes

14 Dec

One day while running all over SoHo looking for new office space, I decided to take a side road until I found a place for lunch.  I have a soft spot for crepes, so once I saw a little place that specialized in crepes, I couldn’t help but go in.  I was confused about the name since there were little stickers that covered part of it on their crepe cones, so I decided not to photograph the ugly side.  Turns out it’s in the news! I guess I will refer to this as the crepe place formerly known as La Crepe Parisienne.  Turns out I had also left SoHo for NoHo.  Who knew!

I ordered the prosciutto, raclette cheese, and sliced potato crepe since potato just sounded splendid. It was… fair.  Kinda boring actually.  The potatoes should be a wee bit crisped or something… it just tasted like mushy nothing really.  The cheese and prosciutto wasn’t anything special either.  Disappointing.  I did enjoy the handy holder though.

I left the creperie feeling as though I really wanted something sweet but was too full to get a sweet crepe.  That’s when I happened on just the right thing…

I’ve read about these a few times, but the Baked by Melissa miniature cupcakes being sold out of a “store” the size of a closet was too amusing to pass up.

When they say miniature… they mean it.  They were about the diameter of a quarter.  Three for $3 sounded worthwhile and I went with PB&J, S’Mores, and Peanut Butter Cup.  The chocolate cakes were excellent, though the PB&J one was somehow lackluster.  A great little snack if you’re in the area (Spring between Mercer and Broadway).

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