The Cupcake Truck

I have gone to the cupcake truck two nights in a row. If I wasn't driving to Maine tonight, I'd make it three. This is embarassing for a few reasons: first, cupcakes are a little trendy these days, and have been for long enough that the trend is getting old. Second, there is only one cupcake truck in the city, so its pretty obvious that I've gone out of my way to find the truck. Third, well, I really don't need to be eating cupcakes every night! But mmmmm... they are delicious. And that's what matters, right?

My first trip to the cupcake truck (locations are posted on twitter - yes, I twitter) was with Andrew. We were thrilled, and even found a "mention this post and get a free mini cupcake!" ad. So, stoked might be a better word than thrilled. Seeing the cupcake truck poised awkwardly on 23rd street was very exciting - I'm not afraid to admit that I upped my walking pace when it came into sight. I'd been following them on twitter since their premiere (the truck premiered last Wednesday) and was ready to try it for myself.

We pulled up to the truck cockily discussing flavor options, only to find out that they only had one cupcake left. On the whole truck. "What?? What about the free mini cupcakes?!" We panicked. Obviously, we got the last one and convinced the girl that it should count as our free minis, so we got it for free. It was banana chocolate chip (see above) and it was delicious. Homemade banana bread delicious.


So then last night, Lea and I had some time to kill before dinner with Tim and Wright, and when we found ourselves in the vicinity of the cupcake truck, it was a no-brainer. (OK, I'll admit, we weren't that close, but we booked it over there anyway.) Though I tried to convince Lea that we could get minis and have them as an appetizer, she played the grown-up and insisted we get a case of four and have them for dessert. I pretended I was happy with the plan, but really I wanted to eat a cupcake. Oh well, our dinner was so good I'm glad she enforced the dessert rule.

The case of four was pre-packed, so we didn't get to choose flavors, but it was a mix so we were happy. The case included 1 key lime cupcake (poor Wright got stuck with this one, because he is from Florida), 2 white chocolate raspberry cupcakes (see below - Tim and I had these), and a Vanilla-Vanilla (above). Though we were tempted to ask if there was a dessert corking fee at the restaurant, we ended up just eating them outside, since it turned out to be pretty warm out.

Again, they were delicious. The only low point was Wright's, which he claimed was a little plain. The thing I love about the cupcakes from the cupcake truck is that they have that special icing that you can't really make at home, but they don't put 2 pounds of it on, like some bakeries. And the cake part really tastes homemade - it is soft and moist, not crumbly at all. Heaven, I tell you.


If you want to find the cupcake truck yourself, follow them on twitter ("cupcakestop") or check out their website. These days they've been doing Union Square for the day and Chelsea in the evening. And look for free mini cupcake deals. And let me know if you're going because I'll come.

Boy Cooking/Girl Cooking

I don't mean to be sexist, but there is a major difference in the meals that I cook and the meals that Wright cooks. And the difference is sooo typical. Take, for example, my previous post on using fresh lettuce to make a salad. I was in heaven eating the salad for dinner. Wright smiled during dinner but gobbled down pizza later.

Another example: my obsession with soups. Easy, simple, healthy - a perfect dinner, I think. Again, Wright smiles. He usually just makes sure there is a large enough cheese plate to avoid binge eating pizza when he finds himself starving around 11pm.

When Wright cooks, however, things are very different. First I should explain that he loves to cook, and would do so every night if he wasn't at work so late. When he's out of work in time, or if it's the weekend, though, he's all over it. And no, I have never seen him make a soup or salad.

Last night, for example, I was exhausted so he took over the cooking. He decided to make an entire Pork Tenderloin. On a Monday night. Just for the two of us. If I hadn't been so tired/confused about his thought process, I would have objected, but alas, he went on his merry way.

Wright has a gigantic cast-iron pan (seriously, it is about 2 feet in diameter) that he tends to use for what he calls "one pot meals." The basic pattern: he heats up the giant pan on the stove, sears a large piece of meat, usually covered in garlic and herbs (Pork Tenderloin, in last night's case), adds the vegetables (butternut squash and figs) and puts the whole thing in the oven to roast. Everything comes out steamy and delicious. The flavors all meld together and make a wonderful meal - I really have never seen him fail.



The meal, though, is SO different from what I usually cook. For one, there is always an enormous piece of meat. And, it is all rich, hot vegetables. Rarely are greens used (unless I insist on a light salad, which he usually avoids eating; note the addition of thyme sprigs for "greens" last night). We like to call it boy cooking. It's delicious and always elegantly plated (see last night's meal above), but boy is it different from girl cooking!

I love to laugh at him when his meals particularly boy-ish, just as he laughs at me when I put a salad in front of him. As embarrassing as it is to say, gender stereotypes always win in our kitchen.

For the Love of Lettuce

This week, my mom replanted her vegetable garden for the summer. Yes, a little on the late end, but up here there wouldn't be much growing at this point anyway. Except...


Lettuce! Last year's crop has sprung up again, and in great abundance, so mom sent me into the city with bags full of fresh lettuce this week. For an easy dinner on a rainy Friday night, I decided to use the lettuce. As you can see in the above picture, it was very much fresh from the garden, dirt and all. So I had a little bit of a project ahead of me. First, I tore up the lettuce into acceptable pieces.


The nice thing about having so much lettuce (and tearing up every piece by hand...) is that I could be very particular. Anything slightly wilted or brown was not going into my salad!


So after tearing, I washed everything down. Since Wright doesn't have a salad spinner (ha) I went ahead and set the lettuce piece in layers of paper towels. A hassle, but after trying a couple of the pieces, I knew it would be worth it. The lettuce was fresh, crisp and full of flavor.


Since the lettuce had a little more bite to it than non-backyard lettuce, I decided to make a fairly sweet salad. I made a vinaigrette with sauteed shallots, red wine vinegar, oil and honey. Then I mixed in some fresh goat cheese, dried cranberries, and toasted walnuts. I tossed it together and even Wright, who tends to laugh at salads, ate it for dinner. He did eat 3 slices of pizza later on in the evening, but I was pleased none the less! The salad was full of flavor and just sooo melt in your mouth, it was worth hand washing every piece. Never underestimate fresh lettuce!

The Search is on!

This weekend I'm ready to begin to hunt for an apartment. I'm looking for a studio in the gramercy/flatiron/east village area and would love to hear from you with any leads or advice! I'm hoping it has a dishwasher. And a closet.


This is a picture of my old apartment in Charlottesville. It was amazing, if I do say so myself, and I reeeaaaally wish apartments like that were the same price in New York. They definitely aren't. Oh, and please ignore the awkward picture of me in the middle of a conversation--I think with Andrew--and my enormous glass of wine. Thanks.

Soup = the new Cupcake?

One of my favorite blogs, Big Girls Small Kitchen, recently did a similar post about the wonders of making soup! Quotes by Rocco DiSpirito included! Their recipe is a bit more complicated, but it definitely follows the same basic pattern for soup-making. Check it out here.