Any Given Sunday

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What's better than fresh figs drizzled with honey for a midday snack?

Maybe homemade bbq chicken and cole slaw for dinner....And homemade chocolate cupcakes with Nutella for dessert (plus one for breakfast and a midday snack).

Photo by chockylit

I used this recipe for the cupcakes but was lazy didn't have time to make the buttercream frosting so I just spread Nutella on top.  It was still delicious to say the least.  The recipe was super easy and the cake comes out ridiculously moist and spongey.  Warm these bad boys up in the microwave for a few seconds and it's even more mouth-watering.  Believe me.

Devil’s Food Chocolate Cake (makes 24 cupcakes / 350 degree oven)
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1-1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Measure out everything but the eggs directly into your mixer bowl.
3. Mix on low speed just until incorporated.
4. Beat on high speed for 2 minutes.
5. Add eggs, beat on high speed again for 2 minutes.
6. Measure out into cupcake pan lined with cupcake papers. A 2″ ice cream scoop works great for this. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Let cool slightly in the pan then transfer to a rack to cool completely before frosting.

Chocolate Buttercream (enough to lightly frost 24 cupcakes)
1 stick butter
1/2 cup cocoa
4 cups confectioner’s sugar
~1/4 cup milk

1. Beat butter on high for about 30 seconds until soft.
2. Add cocoa and 1 cup of sugar and beat until incorporated
3. Add half of the milk and the remainder of sugar and beat until incorporated.
4. Continue to add milk until you get to the consistency you want.

Any Given Sunday

Pin It now! Michael and I took advantage of the beautiful spring weather to walk around the neighborhood.  It was really crowded near the Brooklyn Flea so we headed north and east and just wandered around.  We had brunch at Fada, an adorable French Bistro, and had the most delicious asparagus, fennel and gorgonzola quiche.  It was light and cream and the portion was perfect.  We were able to snag a table by the front and people-watched as we ate.  Lots of people out with their dogs.  Lots of pugs and French bulldogs.  We also wandered into a warehouse with second-hand goods.  For some reason we found a lot of things that were good for vampire-hunting: long railroad nails, some wooden tool that looked like a giant fruit juicer, and old rusty hammers.  Yes, it's scary that both of our first reactions were to hunt vampires, but being prepared might be useful one day.

We headed towards home and hubby dropped me off at the Brooklyn Flea.  Although the Flea opened up in Williamsburg a few weeks ago, I finally made it there today.  There were a lot of fun items, but it was way too crowded.  I didn't do my research on who was there today so I was just wandering around aimlessly snapping pictures without being productive on who was actually there and what they were selling.  I got yelled at by one vendor who said I should have asked before photographing (oops!) so I thought it best to take that as my exit signal.  I'll stop by again in a few weeks with more direction and try some of the food stalls (by the way, Smorgasburg opens May 21).  Today though, here are some random pictures (sorry, I can't attribute which vendors these are from).

I'm not sure what wore me out today (too much quiche!), but I closed my eyes for what was supposed to be a 30 minute nap and didn't get off the couch for 3 hours! I vaguely remember Michael saying he was cleaning the bathroom and the Angry Birds music playing in the background. I didn't even feel tired, but I guess my body thought otherwise. I'm sure I won't be able to sleep tonight. How was your weekend?

Any Given Sunday

Pin It now! i'm at starbucks (yes, it's sunday) and i've been listening to two college grads who i'm guessing are investment bankers at deutsche bank. i'm not eavesdropping because that would involve actively trying to listen. no, these two guys are SO loud that you can't help but hear what they say. i feel old...i remember just graduating college and being excited about my first job and talking about what life would be when i grew up. i definitely don't feel grown up yet, but i'm at that age that i'm supposed to be "grown up". are we always going to feel young even though we're adults now? what makes us grown up?

Any Given Sunday

Pin It now! while hubby was away in philadelphia for the weekend, i stayed over my brother's place in jersey city. this is how we started our sunday morning...with delicious coffee brewed in a coffee press and half & half from an udder creamer. yes, that creamer has udders. my brother has the most unique, almost kitschy, things. loved it though!

then i made fish tacos for dinner when hubby got home. from scratch! with no recipe!

i breaded cut pieces of cod and pan friend them. then i put together the tacos using the smaller tortillas, layered the fish, some salsa and lettuce, and voila! super delicous.