in a jiffy.

in which i convinced yelena to come to my neighborhood for dinner with me and keith. we cannot eat all the vegetables fast enough.

• roasted kohlrabi with parmesan
• green beans with italian bread crumbs
• sauteed baby kale with mushrooms, scapes, and baby squash
• salad of boston and red lettuces, blueberries, radish, cucumber, and roasted beets
• grilled cheese: scarmozza on ciabatta

i am in love with this cheese, by the way. it's lightly smoky and, apparently, only slightly aged. it is really incredible. i could eat blocks of it.

omg.

the best csa share so far: boston lettuce, red lettuce, kohlrabi, baby kale, radishes, baby squash, the BIGGEST BEETS EVER, spring onions, wax beans. and! the fruit share: 1/2 peck of peaches so awesome i had to eat mine over the sink, blueberries, raspberries.

i thinking i am forgetting some things, too. this summer rocks.

oldie but goodie.

in which i eat and grade papers at the same time.

independence.

on the 4th, i had park plans with babies (and their parents). i had planned to make patriotic snacks, which didn't really pan out, but i did have a breakfast in a bowl early in the morning.

a HARD-BOILED egg with black-eyed peas and chives, bok choy with turnips, apricots, strawberries, and a piece of sourdough toast.
and then i introduced miss jordan to good headphones and an ipod. love.

minetta tavern.

i knew about the black label burger at minetta tavern months and months ago. i had heard some pretty awesome things. i have been a vegetarian for over 18 years.

the black label burger is a 1/2 pound mix of prime dry-aged ribeye, brisket, and skirt steak. the exact combination is a closely-guarded secret. it comes on a brioche-style bun with caramelized onions. it needs nothing else. no condiments, no other vegetables.

so i feel like leaving new york is like dying, like there are things i have to do before i go. eating this burger is one of those things. and my friends got really excited about the prospects of it all.

we made a plan. and went last night. and i ordered a drink called the josephine, which had an entire apricot in it. and then we ate. appetizers to start and then half of a burger.

yelena filmed it:



it was buttery, and a bit bloody, and tasty. decadent and spectacular.

everything is better on a stick.

tracy and i had been talking for months about visiting steve's authentic key lime pies in red hook. we had to make a date to make it happen. and it was worth it.

we ate swingles, which are 4 inch key lime pies on a stick and covered in chocolate.
they were incredible.
we probably could have shared one but i was not sad about eating the whole thing.
neither was tracy.
i was a mess. covered in chocolate. and happy.

closer to now.

june 30th: leftover white rice sauteed with black-eyed peas and onions, topped with garlicky potatoes and a fried egg. the starchiest meal ever.
july 1st: curly red lettuce with strawberries, chickpeas, tomatoes, and goat cheese. and a teeny, tiny green squiggly bug from the csa lettuce. wonder how many of those i ate before i caught the runaway.