Giada's Farmer's Pasta (aka Bacon Mac n Cheese)

Savory Eats

Yes, Bacon Mac n Cheese is out of this world. No, it's not a dish I typically cook. So, why was I whipping up three F-ing pounds of Giada's Farmer's Pasta (aka Bacon Mac n Cheese) on Sunday night? Well, my younger brother Jack is on the soccer team at Brown...

Yay Jack!!

When Jack asked if he and a friend from school could stay at my apartment Columbus Day weekend, I gladly accepted. On top of that, I agreed to make them a home-cooked meal (considering this is something you're deprived of in college). To my surprise, Jack showed up to NYC with not one, but FOUR friends.

 And these are no ordinary friends...they are large, hungry Brown soccer players.

Because I love my brother, I followed through with my promise: a homemade meal...What can I cook in one or two pots that won't take more than an hour and is both filling and delicious for collegiate athletes?...

BACON MAC N CHEESE!

Giada's Farmer's Pasta was the perfect fix...

Cheesy-gredients:

• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 6 ounces of bacon, chopped (I bought the Trader Joe's precooked bacon)
• 4 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/3 cup flour
• 7 cups whole milk
• 8 ounces Fontina cheese, grated
• 4 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 6 ounces provolone cheese, grated
• 1 pound rigatoni pasta (or any pasta you like)
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• 2 cups Italian bread crumbs
• Salt and pepper

Recipe:

THE BACON and CHEESE

-Heat 2 tablespoon of butter in a large pot and add the chopped bacon. Saute until crisp for about 5 minutes.

-Transfer the bacon to a bowl and set aside (leaving the residual butter in the pot). Reduce the heat and add the garlic. Saute for about 30 seconds.

-Add the flour to the garlic and whisk for 2 minutes.

-Gradually whisk in the milk. When all the milk is added, bring the liquid to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer until the sauce thickens (whisking for about 5 minutes).

-Gradually whisk in all four cheeses.

Yes, that's SEVEN cups of milk.

THE PASTA

-Cook the pasta (whichever type you choose) until al dente (the pasta will continue to cook in the oven).

-Drain the pasta and add it directly into the cheese.

-Add the parsley, basil, and bacon and toss all together.

-Season with salt and pepper.

THE PARMESAN CRUST

-Transfer the pasta into a baking dish.

-In a separate bowl, mix the breadcrumbs with a tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the pasta. Drizzle the top with some olive oil.

-Bake at 375 degrees until the breadcrumbs are golden brown and the cheese sauce is bubbly (about 20 minutes).

-SERVE IMMEDIATELY!!

Since I was cooking for an army, I tripled the recipe and it was a hit!!

The High Line to Eataly: Funtivities in Chelsea with Mom

Funtivities

After a perfect weekend with my mom, I was dragging ass back to work this morning. I should have sprinted to the office considering the pounds and pounds of food we inhaled Thursday through Sunday. Now it's time to recollect the weekend's food and funtivities. Today I'll be blabbing about The High Line and Eataly...

The High Line

Can you believe there's grass in New York City?

I have visited the High Line quite a few times now. It's the perfect place to go on a walk, alone or with friends.

Cute moms like the High Line too!

As of recent, the walk is a cluster fuck of tourists on the weekends, but it's still one of my favorite funtivities. You can enter on 30th St. and 10th Ave. in Chelsea and walk all the way down to the Meatpacking district.

Along the path there are cute food carts and lots of spots to sit down.

The best part? The High Line ends right near Chelsea Market, which we all know has plenty of tasty treat and savory eats: my Chelsea Market post.

Eataly

The mecca of amazing Italian food.

Eataly can be stressful. But once you get past the hundreds of people fighting over reservations, it is sooooo worth it. Due to the confusion that overcomes you when you first walk into Eataly, I'll give you a few pointers...

How To Eataly:

• There are five "restaurants" that are on a first come first serve basis: Birreria (the rooftop Beer Garden), La Piazza (the salami, cheese, and wine waiting station), Il Pesce (seafood), Le Verdure (vegetables...some of the best vegetable dishes I've ever tasted), and La Pizza & Pasta (Pizza and Pasta, obviously).
• There is one restaurant that requires a reservation:

Manzo Ristorante.

• I suggest picking one of the five first come first serve restaurants, putting your name in, and walking around to the various markets (Eataly's Dolci, Fruit/Vegetable stands, and kitchenware section). You can also post up at La Piazza at one of the high tables for apps while you wait...

This is the emptiest I have ever seen La Piazza.

At popular times and on weekends, Eataly is crowded (to say the least). But once you learn "How To Eataly" it's a fun-filled activity with fantastic food. I am also dying to try one of their cooking classes.

Jean-Georges's ABC Kitchen

Big Apple Bites

My mom is in town this weekend! So naturally, we are eating and exploring our way through the city all four days.

Meet my beautiful mom!

Our food itinerary for the weekend involves ABC Kitchen (dinner), Lady M Confections (dessert, obviously), Momofuku Milk Bar (more desserts, duh), Eataly (lunch), Tamarind (dinner), and Penelope (Sunday brunch). Details to come later. For now, I want to describe our impeccable feast at ABC Kitchen last night.

I give the relaxed atmosphere and fabulous waiters an A+

I was blown away before we even started eating. Our waiter was very nice and attentive, but not to the point of annoyance. The decor is perfect in every way - it wholly embodies the "farm-to-table" vibe.

One word: Fresh.

Now, onto the food...

I could have ordered anything on the menu.

What we chose...

-Appetizers-

Roasted beets with housemade yogurt.

Roasted squash with caramelized onions on grilled bread.

Shaved squash salad with Parmesan dressing and herbs.

-Entrees-

Sea bass with chilies and herbs, served with spinach and potatoes.

Roasted organic chicken, corn, favas, english peas (served with these tiny, salty, delicious fries).

I loved every bite and highly recommend ABC Kitchen. I have one tip: you must make your reservation at least a month in advanced if you want a reservation time that isn't 5:00 or 11:00.

Oreo Buttercream Triple Chocolate Cake

Sweet Treats

A few days ago, I got a call from my friend Nick. His boss asked him to bring in a cake for a coworker's birthday. To help him gain some popularity around the office, I baked him a very moist and decadent triple chocolate cake with Oreo buttercream frosting.

All great things come from Pinterest.

What makes this cake so special? The addition of pudding mix and lots and lots of semisweet chocolate chips in the batter creates an extremely moist and light tasting cake with melted chocolate chunks scattered throughout. Let's get down to business...

Cake-gredients:

• 1 box Devil's Food Cake mix
• 1 (5.9 ounce) package of instant chocolate pudding mix (I used Devil's food flavor)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Frostin'gredients:

• 1 stick salted butter, room temperature
• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 pounds confectioner's sugar
• 3-4 tablespoons of cold milk
• 25 Oreo cookies, smashed to pieces

Recipe:

FOR THE CAKE

-Line the bottom of 2, 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and grease.

-Mix the cake mix, pudding mix, salt, vanilla, sour cream, oil, eggs, and water in a bowl. Then stir in the chocolate chips.

-Divide the batter into the two pans and bake at 350 degrees for 25-35 minutes (until the top of the cake is springy and a fork inserted comes out clean).

FYI: the batter won't be very sticky and it will slide right into the pans.

-Cool the cake layers for at least 30 minutes before assembling and frosting the cake!

FOR THE FROSTING

-Cream all the butter in a bowl with a mixer. Add vanilla extract and mix well.

-Add sugar slowly and mix thoroughly after each addition.

-Once all the sugar is added, add the cold milk one tablespoon at a time and mix well after each addition.

-Fold in the crushed Oreo cookies.

Nom Nom Nom.

DECORATING THE CAKE

This is the fun part...I frosted the top of one cake layer...

...then plopped the second cake layer on top and frosted that too.

Looks like a GIANT Oreo.

Then I simply embellished the top of the cake with a few whole Oreo cookies!

A tip to remember: I needed a way to transport my cake. So, I went to a bakery on my street and bought a box from them for $1.00

Cafe Habana's Grilled Corn on the Cob

Big Apple Bites

Corn on the cob is a personal fave...especially when its buttered-up, coated in fresh Cotija cheese, and topped with chili powder and lime juice.

Warning: You won't stop at one cob.

Cafe Habana's fame is well-deserved. This little Cuban restaurant is packed at all hours of the day. It is the perfect blend of Mexican and Cuban street food (and it doesn't break the bank). If you're looking to dip in quickly for their famous Mexican-style crack-corn, there's a takeout shop next to the main restaurant for that exact purpose. Did I mention the corn is only $2.00?

If you can't find it, just follow the crowds of people eating corn on the street.

Cafe Habana is in the adorable "neighborhood" of NoLita (just east of SoHo). Although the corn is the most memorable item on the menu, I've also had the "Sloppy Jose BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich" and the "Mango and Jicama Salad," both very yummy.

Straight up delicious.

To sum it up, if you're looking for a casual, cheap, and quick meal that will blow you away with flavor, I highly recommend Cafe Habana. And for an added bonus, it's likely you will run into some celebs like...

Mila Kunis...

Matthew McConaughey...

The Jo Bros...

or Justin Timberlake!

Rent the Runway Sample Sale

City Style

Being on a budget is quite tricky when you have a shopping addiction (I can speak from first-hand experience). If you suffer from this problem and you love designer clothes, get your ass to the Rent the Runway Sample Sale before it ends on Saturday.

You can OWN these dresses for 90% off the original price - this is no joke.

The longer you take to get there, the more you're missing out on some fabulous purchases. So, here's how it works...Rent the Runway (RTR) is a website where you can rent very expensive dresses for a night for a fraction of the cost. Pretty ingenious idea. I don't love spending money on a dress then having to give it back, but I have friends who are big fans. After these dresses are rented and worn a few times, RTR holds a semi-annual sample sale...now you're talkin'.

Herve and Proenza and Tibi, oh my!

I went to the sale yesterday and did some serious damage. A few things I should warn you about: 1) you can only bring 5 items into the dressing room (chafe), 2) it's not your standard "dressing room" - more like a room with a bunch of naked girls and no privacy, 3) there is a large chance that you will get into a bitch-fight with another shopper over a dress. But, I promise it is worth it...

Here is your invitation. Now GO!

Parm NYC

Big Apple Bites

I've been to Parm three times now and always leave very satisfied. Walking into this run-down hole-in-the-wall that desperately needs a makeover, you don't expect hearty and delicious Italian subs.

The sandwiches are epic, despite the heinous wall paper.

Parm is the BEST lunch spot. Why? You can be in and out of there in 20 minutes. The menu is simple, the waiters are fast, and the sandwiches are so F-ing yummy that you won't even breathe between bites. The items I've been lucky enough to try are...

Honey Roasted Turkey: fluffy sesame roll with thick slices of turkey and loaded with veggies.

Italian Combo: thinly sliced deli meats, provolone cheese, and Parm's AMAZING special sauce.

Parm's famous Saratoga Club: stacked with zesty chicken salad, bacon, and potato chips.

Eggplant Parm: perfect blend of sweet and savory stuffed into a toasted Italian hero.

You owe it to yourself to try these incredible sandwiches. Head over to 248 Mulberry in NoHo as soon as possible.