Queens County Market

Last Sunday the Queens County Market was popped up over at Sac's Place in Astoria. I've been to quite a few by now! - It's always a great way to try out food vendors that aren't sold at your generic supermarket down the street. And they are always at different venues which is part of the fun.

Lots of goodies were being sold! Coffee, boozy cake pops, the Food Lovers' Guide to Queens book (that my friend Iris bought), olive oil, spices, pizza, and my returning favorite...

Malu! - An ice cream shop located in Long Island City. They have some of the most delicious and special ice cream flavors I've ever tasted! At the last Queens County Market, I got Lemon Ricotta flavor and it was delicious. This time I had Lavender Mascarpone. Also amazing. It looks blue in my photo, but it was surely a lavender hue. When it gets a bit warmer, I will definitely be going to their storefront to try out some other flavors! 

The one thing I took home with me was this vegan spicy sesame sauce from Peartree Pantry. I must say, I was very impressed by this sauce and it was made the night before the market - super fresh! It's spicy but that doesn't override the sesame taste. I love dipping everything in it, including a grilled cheese sandwich...because I don't know what I'm doing with food most of the time.  Since they are Brooklyn based, they only currently sell within Brooklyn for now. I knew I had to scoop it up before I regret it later! 

Have you discovered any new favorite spots in Queens lately? I want to know! 

Momofuku Milk Bar Perfect 10 Kookies!

I work in this Midtown bubble that is Herald Square and live/hide out in Queens when I'm not working. Combined with winter, my mobility these days is very limited. Sweets are great, but I'm way too lazy to go to a Momofuku Milk Bar location just to try their much talked about cookie collab with Karlie Kloss: the Perfect 10 Kookie.

While I'm already a huge fan of the Corn and Confetti Cookies, I've been dying to try this so-called "wholesome" option. It's dairy-free, gluten-free and sweetened with agave sugar. Perfect for your inner wannabe vegan. For me, any excuse to go a healthier route in the sweets department is always welcome!

There are a few variations of the recipe floating around, depending on how many cookies you wanted to make, so I settled on this one. It makes about 30 cookies. Unlike some of the Momofuku Milk Bar recipes I've seen, this one looked surprisingly simple. Hours later (my apartment is cursed with a baby-sized oven and can only bake like 6 cookies at one time), I finally have these delicious cookies at my reach! They are incredibly tasty and I don't feel as guilty eating a whole bunch at once. Then again, I never feel guilty eating a bunch of anything so I'm not sure where I was going with that...

The turnout is like a really yummy protein bar in cookie form that has good density and chew. My boyfriend and I can't stop snacking on them. Mine might be a bit darker than the original, but do I care? No way! Addiction in the making!

Pretty Prabal

Just the other day I received my Prabal Gurung for Target order in the mail. There was no way I was going to set foot in the store on a Sunday morning so I did some late night shopping and scored!

I was a bit hesitant to order but I really really really wanted that fun sweatshirt (which was the first item to sell out online - phew!) and the shirt dress is one of those good belt-it-and-go kind of pieces. These two have the best patterns in the collection. Overall a very exciting purchase! I wore the sweatshirt yesterday and it's super soft inside. If I could spend the rest of my life wearing weird, loud patterns I'd be totally cool with that.

Did you get anything from the Prabal for Target line? Share with me!

Homemade Cheez-Its

While browsing through my Google Reader the other day, I noticed that Emily from Cupcakes and Cashmere made Homemade Cheez-Its and stopped dead in my tracks. Cheez-Its are, in fact, one of my favorite cheesy, processed, boxed up snacks. Guilty, yes, but I can't get enough. I actually have a box of them in my cupboard right now, as well as Cheddar Rocket Crackers from Trader Joe's.

Looking at the recipe list, it was extremely basic - just how I like my baking. There is nothing complex to this recipe which is great because the whole baking process right up to the final result is nothing short of easy and AMAZING! Most of the items on the list are things you probably have at home already so the final cost of this could possibly break even with the retail value of Cheez-Its in the store...at least, my overpriced local supermarket.

They taste absolutely delicious. So sharp and cheesy, so crispy and - dare I say - better than Cheez-Its. I'm in love. Recipe behind the cut!