Happy Friday :)

I'm heading home to Ohio for a week over Easter and I couldn't be much more excited!! I've made a list of all the foods I want while I'm there, have appointments made, tickets bought, list of things I need to take there and bring back with me, lists of what I've just gotta do while I'm there..

Today I stocked up on some travel-snack-junk food (buy one, get one free mini boxes of Cheez-It and Oreos, say what?!) I also went to the library and stocked up on new books for the trip as well as my time at home since I'll probably be getting my wisdom teeth taken out and have plenty of down time. All I need is one of those travel neck pillows (something I've been wanting for the last couple years and need to just hurry up and buy!) and I'll be all set!

In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy New York and all it offers :) Tonight I'm going out for a late supper with a friend. I said I was craving mac n cheese and she suggested a couple places that specialize in and only serve mac n cheese, because stuff like that happens in the city! (Hehe, it still kindof amazes and ahhs me). And later meeting up with some friends at a ping pong lounge place.. Should be a fun night :)

Snow, Cafeteria, and Singles Awareness Day

Hello all!

It was a snowy weekend here in NYC, we got about a foot up in my area of the Bronx. I'm not a fan of snow or cold weather in general. But I do feel that if it's going to be freezing cold it should at least have the decency to snow as well. And snow is pretty. I'm always in favor of a good photo op and walking to the subway Friday night after work provided just that. It's a nice walk anyway, right by the Flatiron Building and through Madison Square Park, and with snow coating everything and more coming down it was lovely.

Monday, I went out for supper with a friend from HC for a birthday celebration! My birthday was at the end of January and she wanted to take me out so we went to Cafeteria in Chelsea. I hadn't been before and it was de-lish! 

Cheesy Macaroni and Cheese Spring Rolls, Spicy Pork Meatball Sliders, and White Chocolate Raspberry Bread Pudding to finish it off! A-mazing!

Last night I made banana muffins to take into WeSell today. We had a huge discussion last week about muffins versus cupcakes and what was the definition of a "plain muffin." It was very inspiring. In the sense that it made me want to make some delicious banana muffins which I must say wowed the office and brought everyone together like only food can do :)

Tomorrow is the day of truth. I'm supposed to finally have my evaluation and find out where this internship is leading. I've been there almost 4 1/2 months and am a little anxious about it all but will be happy to have a definite answer, whether good or bad. Wish me luck!

Oh, and since it's after midnight Happy Valentine's Day! Or Singles Awareness Day as I secretly like to refer to it as ;)

XO Ash

Mmm Pasta

How great is it that you can cook pasta in the microwave?! So much more handy than having to get a pot of water boiling on the stove and wait for the pasta to cook. And especially if you're only making one serving, like me :)

It's been forever but here again is Mug Monday:

Pesto Pasta

1 serving of your favorite pasta

Enough water to cover the pasta

Dash salt

1-1 1/2 Tablespoon pesto (to taste)

One slice of tomato

Mozzarella cheese (I use string cheese and chop one of them)

Pour water over pasta in a mug and add salt. Cook in microwave until pasta is tender (my microwave isn't very powerful and it takes about 7 minutes for rotini). 

While pasta is cooking, chop up the tomato and cheese. When pasta is fully cooked, drain the water off of it and stir in pesto (it's super easy to make! So if you can do it! But right now I'm just using store bought) until noodles are coated then add tomatoes and cheese. Enjoy :)

Munchkins on the Counter Make My Day

Back to work today! Buses were "partially running," what that meant exactly I wasn't sure but I set out at 9:45 to catch the 10:01 BxM4 Xpress bus into Midtown, hoping to make it to work by 12. There were other people at the bus stop which I saw as promising and took to mean that they probably knew the bus was indeed running. They did not actually know this, I found. Everyone was on the same page, not knowing for sure when or even if this bus was coming. And it didn't, not the 10:01 AM bus at least. Around 10:30 we saw a BxM4 driving in the opposite direction, towards Yonkers instead of Manhattan. We all grew hopeful then, knowing that the bus was at least running! 

It was interesting to see the little community that built as we all waited. A British man helped out a dog walker by informing him that the buses honestly were free today and that he didn't need to keep counting that pile of change and making sure he had $5. The dog walker then opened up to him about his latest bout of struggles and how everything happens at once. An Irish couple "here for a fortnight" nervously joked with anyone who talked to them that yes, this was the stop for the BxM4... if it ever showed up.

Finally, the bus did show up! We saw it there on the horizon, squinted to see the numbers, and all exclaimed with joy (no really, we did) when, at last!, they were the combination of numbers and letters we were all hoping for. We all piled in at about 11:20, happy to get out of the cold and be on our way. We even all got seats! 

It was about a 2 hour bus ride, hitting bad traffic once we got into Harlem. I enjoyed being above ground the whole time and seeing the sites of the route I usually am traveling underneath. Surprisingly, I didn't see a whole lot of destruction, not as much as I thought I'd see at least. There were some trees down and some caution tape and some windows/storefronts were boarded up. I suppose everything along the road had been cleaned up though, so the buses could actually run, understandable. 

I got to work around 1:10 and found only a handful of people in the office. There's probably 35-40 people who work there and today there were maybe 12 of us. There were also Munchkins sitting on the kitchen counter.... as in donut holes from Dunkin Donuts :) They seemed to be fall flavors (like pumpkin!) and they honestly made me feel that going into the office was worth it. 

It was a pretty good day at the office too. With so few people it seemed like I got to chat with more people. I also got to create the flier for an upcoming pubcrawl which makes me feel like a real designer! 

Getting home was another experience. I decided to take the same bus as in the morning so that I didn't have to make any transfers. I left work a half hour early in order to catch the 7:55 bus. Wellllll, just like the morning version, it did not come. Once again there was a little community built as a group of us waited for the bus to arrive. A man told us how he was glad that the bus was free today because $5.50! He could easily buy some rolling paper and weed to fill it with for that money. A guy from Peurto Rico told me about his first experience with a hurricane and how the sky had turned red. I also noticed the oddity of looking to my left and seeing the city full of light while to my left side the only lights were headlights, the lower many streets still being without power.

It was pretty chilly, mostly due to the wind and, once again, it was a long wait for the bus. Another hour and 20 minutes, actually. The trip home was shorter, thanks to less traffic. Plus, when I arrived I found a lovely package of popcorn and goodies waiting for me! (Thank you Grandma!!)

Overall a successful day! I'm very happy that the subways are open (at least the trains and stations that I use) tomorrow! The bus might be a nice change every once in awhile but I don't understand it well enough (and neither does ANY other New Yorker) to have the stress of HAVING to use it. 

A Post with Lots of Pictures of Yummy Food

Sorry all! I know I've been really bad about posting lately. I worked 57 hours last week and had a lot of late nights which resulted in my time at home going towards cleaning or doing laundry or trying to plan out how I'm getting places for the holidays, rather than to writing blog posts. I even missed Mug Monday :/ I didn't get home from the office until around 11 and I'm pretty sure all I could do at that point was eat a Salted Caramel Cupcake I'd brought home from Hill Country over the weekend and called it good hehe.

Mmmm rich, gooey caramel

I had a good weekend, mostly just worked at Hill Country but I did go out for brunch on Friday with a friend from Resource. We went to a French Cafe that's pretty new and had some yummy frittatas.

Tea, bread, and frittata

It was really fun to catch up with her and see how things are going at Resource, as well as get a copy of the Fall issue which actually has my name in it! She lives in Williamsburg so I met her there and had my first Williamsburg experience. Except it was raining so it wasn't the full experience of that hipster mecca. Don't worry though, I'll be back to visit her again and have a better report :)

Other highlights from the weekend... I knocked out a few Pinterest projects including cleaning the tray in my toaster oven and trying out what I'm dubbing the most painful mask in the world. It seemed like such a great idea and I was told later in the day that I looked "gorgeous! Did you do something different? To your face or hair or something?" So I guess it was worth something. But wow, I was nearly in tears peeling that thing off. If I use it again I would not put it on my entire face. Be warned!!

Oh! After brunch I stopped by this Italian Bakery that's really near my subway stop home and totally delicious! A treat for the Bronx, I must say. My dad got us pastries from there for breakfast one morning when my parents were moving me out here and he was exploring the area. I've been meaning to go back but waiting on money and finally felt like I could spurge a little. This is what I got there:

It was delicious and a nice sweet treat since my brunch had been so savory.

In case you can't tell, I really like taking pictures of my food :)

Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake

It's Mug Monday!!

I've been making recipes in mugs like crazy- partially to find new ones but mostly because they're just so easy! Breakfast, lunch, dessert... Mostly dessert :) I'm getting quite a collection though and it's difficult to only post them once a week! Maybe I'll have to start sharing them more often... but would that take away from Mug Mondays?!

Anyways, I had a request for this recipe after I'd told my mom about it and she mentioned it to a family friend. I found it (where else?) on Pinterest and it's originally from The Family Kitchen.

I've only added caramels but this makes an awesome, basic chocolate cake that would be equally delcious with chocolate chips, crushed up Andes mints, or a variety of additives. Feel free to be creative :)

Salted Caramel Chocolate Mug Cake

4 Tablespoons flour

4 Tablespoons sugar

3 Tablespoons cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg--beaten

3 Tablespoons milk

1 Tablespoon oil

3-4 caramels

In a large mug, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Add the wet ingredients and stir until smooth. *Optional: The original recipe calls for salted caramels but I didn't know such a thing existed. I usually just unwrap the caramels and sprinkle them with some salt to give it the salty-sweet combo.* 

Drop the caramels into the batter. (I usually spread them throughout, rather than dropping them all in the middle, because they tend to sink to the bottom.) You could also sprinkle some salt on top of the cake to add to the salty-sweet. 

Microwave the cake for about 1 minute and 30 seconds or until it is done. If I had caramel ice cream topping I would probably add that and sea salt on the top after it had cooked.

It might look like regular chocolate cake, but it has a secret!

Enjoy!!

Happy Days at Hill Country

One really cool thing about working at Hill Country is that celebrities are frequent visitors! 

Living in New York, I could, and probably do, walk by celebrities on the sidewalk every day and have no idea-- there's just so many people and honestly, they usually look just like anyone else. I can pick models out of the crowd but television stars, musicians, and actors are a little trickier. 

Which is why working in a nicer restaurant is great! Celebrities often eat there (Idina Menzel, Neil Diamond, Jesse Jackson, John Legend are just a few I've heard about in the last couple weeks) and someone is bound to recognize them and spread the word that so-and-so is sitting at table 43. 

I'd been working at HC about 3 weeks before my first celeb sighting. It was Jaclyn Smith, one of the original Charlie's Angels. I was at the cash register and had no idea who she was or that she was even famous as I searched for a Small tank top she was buying for her daughter. Luckily, she was more in the other cashier's era and he urgently whispered "Do you know who that is?!" 

I've been waiting for another celebrity to come in and, hopefully, to actually know who they were and recognize them. This weekend I got my wish! 

I worked a double Saturday and while I was on my break and eating downstairs, a server came over to tell Ebony and I that The Fonz was there! Honestly, I've never seen Happy Days, but I do know who The Fonz is and have seen some of Harry Winkler's movies. I happened to end my break and get back to work right as he was leaving which led to me being the one to check him out at the cash register! I was pretty stoked to actually talk to him a little. 

He was super nice and shorter in person than I would have thought (although I hear they always are!)-- I had a good 4 inches on him in my cowgirl boots! Here Comes the Boom is his latest movie coming out soon and he was recommending that to everyone. He also said he loved the place and will be back so maybe I'll get to see him again!

It definitely added some excitement to the evening and is a fun fact to tell people!

Day 2 and Cafe R

Today was my second day at my new internship and it went really well! Maybe even better than yesterday because I was past the first day and already knew what I was supposed to be doing.

It's amazing the differences between the two places already. Everything from the atmosphere, to the work, to the style and setup, the office itself, the size of the operation, the hours and people... I'm thankful for my time at Resource, I had a good experience there and definitely learned a lot, but I'm happy to be in a new environment.

Now, because I love food and am completely in love with the food opportunities open to me in New York, I have to talk about my lunch today. At Resource I packed my lunch pretty much every day to save money, and I'll probably do that a lot at WeSell as well. But this morning time got away from me and there was no time to pack. So, come lunch time (which was actually more like early suppertime), I explored a little and found that there's this awesome deli/cafe, Cafe R, right across the street from my building!

I was always impressed by Bridge Fresh, the deli we frequented in DUMBO, but this, this was ridiculous. Literally any food you could imagine or want was at this place. The sign for a sushi special attracted me and at first all I saw was sushi and Chinese food, which you could order at counters and have made right in front of you. Then I noticed how big the place was and how many more counters and signs there were. Then I noticed the buffet of food ($6.65 per pound) in the middle. Then I saw the little grocery area. Then the packaged foods under the counters (like Easy Mac and Chef Boyardee). Then I realized there was a whole other side lined with counters. And these counters where you could order food were in addition to the coolers and cases in the middle where you could grab ready-made sandwiches and sushi and fruit salads and cookies and wraps and... well you get the idea.

Basically this place was overwhelming, but in a very good way. After glancing at the menus for sushi, Chinese, soup, Teriyaki, and Korean I decided on some orange chicken with lo mein. It was prepared right in front of me and delicious! Plus I could only eat about half and had leftovers-yay!

They had seating at both ends of the place, so I stayed there to eat and gawked at all the food options. Pizza, a bakery, "American grill", Mediterranean, hot sandwiches, cold sandwiches (both having pitas, paninis, and wraps), Mexican, Philly Steak, breakfast bar, pasta bar, beverage bar, salad bar, smoothie bar... I, of course, looked them up online later and, although they don't have a website (guess they need a good web designer's help ;), I did find their Facebook page which even shows their specials for every week! 

Maybe no one else finds this interesting and I'm sorry if that's the case but I am a lover of food--places like this amaze me and are just another fantastic thing about New York :)

If I don't post for a few days it's because I'm crazy busy working at HC. Pulling a double tomorrow and Saturday plus working normally Friday and Sunday. Gotta make the money to buy these new clothes I want so bad! Haha, or at least to buy lunch for myself every once and awhile ;)