Slutty Brownies

Ever taste something so good you feel bad eating it? That's the feeling I get with each bite of "Slutty Brownies." These brownies live up to their scandalous name with chocolate chip cookies and oreos all in one brownie.

I got the idea from my promiscuous (ha! kidding) older sister to make these as she saw them on pinterest. The recipe is actually from The Londoner and it's really simple to follow.

For the Brownie layer:
10 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups white sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup AP flour

For the Oreo layer;
1 packs of Oreos (I used double stuffed)

For the Cookie Dough layer:
1 cup unsalted butter (at room temp)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cup AP flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350°F
Grease a baking tray (I used Pam baking spray). Follow the instructions on the cookie and brownie mix. Line the pan with the cookie dough


Cover it with a layer of oreos,


Pour the brownie mix on top


Bake for 30-35 minutes and voila!


Enjoy these with your favorite ice cream scooped on top, a trashy reality show and a glass of wine. What could top that?

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes

My best friend Devon is an amazingly talented baker. She uses recipes from The Hummingbird Bakery and The Primrose Bakery with her own creative fusion. The other night she made peanut butter and jelly cupcakes that were divine. Dev used a lemon cake recipe, scooped it out, put jelly in the middle and topped it with a peanut butter/nutella frosting. They were really satisfying and the perfect treat for peanut butter lovers!

Recipe to follow...

Chocolate Nutella Cupcakes

I've been on a cupcake kick lately and tonight I made the most delish chocolate nutella cupcakes. They were seriously out of this WORLD! I'm literally in chocolate hazelnut heaven right now, these are better than any cupcakes I've ever had (toot toot I know but they're really that good!)

I usually don't like chocolate on chocolate but these cupcakes are the exception. While making the cupcakes I had to restrain myself from eating the batter, which took a lot of willpower. I was psyched about how well the cupcakes turned out-the perfect consistency and height and the nutella buttercream icing is to die for. These rich cupcakes go perfect with a tall glass of milk.

If you're a fan of nutella these cupcakes are a MUST. They were a huge hit with my family and friends and my brother Howie called them "The best yet." I will definitely be showing off these cupcakes as often as I can.

Here's the recipe as adapted from ""Better Than Sex" Chocolate Nutella Cupcakes" Cupcake Project (and yes they are truly better than sex!)

Makes 15-16 cupcakes
1/2 C butter, room temperature
1 1/4 C sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 C flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1/2 C unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 C milk
1 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter until softened and smooth. Add sugar and beat for a few minutes, until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each until well combined.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder. In a separate small bowl, combine milk and vanilla.

Add about 1/3 of dry ingredients to butter and sugar and mix until combined. Add about 1/2 of wet ingredients to mixture and mix until combined. Continue alternating dry and wet, mixing in between (finish with the remaining dry ingredients).

Fill cupcake tins about 1/2 full (don’t overfill – you only need 1/2) and bake for around 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. They will come out flat.


Nutella Buttercream

1/2 C butter, room temperature
1 C Nutella
1 C powdered sugar, sifted
1-2 T milk

Beat butter until smooth. Add Nutella and beat together until thoroughly combined. Slowly add powdered sugar, mixing until combined. Add 1 tablespoon of milk. Add additional milk or powdered sugar as needed to reach desired consistency. (I used 1 1/2 tablespoons of milk).

Next I'll be making vanilla cupcakes with this nutella frosting...Recipe and review to follow!

Pasta Vino

It was love at first bite. It was beautiful, smelled good, tasted delicious, and was just what I was looking for. I'm talking about the lasagna I got from Pasta Vino in Mineola.

I instantly felt comforted by the mouth-watering menu and the warm atmosphere inside the small restaurant. Being that it was a Friday night, my boyfriend and I were pleasantly surprised that we were among the few customers in the place at 7pm. We didn't know whether this was a good thing or a bad thing.

The lasagna reminded me of Christmas day and made me feel like I was eating a home-cooked meal. The creamy sauce is phenomenal and the little meatballs are to die for. I'm literally drooling just thinking about it (don't judge me!).

The dish was baked individually and was the perfect size to clean my plate without having that regrettable gross feeling of being full.

My only complaint was that the bread was kind of stale, which we still ate regardless. I would totally go to this restaurant again and am not surprised to see that Pasta Vino is Zagat-Rated with 87% of reviewers who like the restaurant.

Pasta Vino's major perk is that it has an extensive wine menu that the waiter was happy to translate. There are over 20 wines on the list under $30 and you have the option to order by the glass or by the bottle.

I would definitely recommend checking out this quaint Italian restaurant. I'm excited to try something else besides the lasagna the next time I go to see just how promising this place is.

Pasta Vino is located at 149 Mineola Boulevard in Mineola.

The Melting Pot

As we know from my older post, I'm a chocolate fondue fanatic. When my sister raved to me about her recent experience at The Melting Pot I was practically drooling at the thought of chocolate-covered strawberries.

Unfortunately, this "fine dining fondue restaurant" didn't meet my expectations. There were seven cheese fondues to choose from and I ordered what the waiter told me was the most popular choice, the spinach-artichoke. This cheese fondue included fontina and butterkäse cheeses, spinach, artichoke hearts and garlic. It tasted really good but the food they offered with it made me feel like I was channeling a bunny.

With this small pot of fondue, they gave little pieces of bread, a small cup of vegetables (the bagged kind that you buy in grocery stores), and a small cup of apples for dipping. Had they offered more things to dip it in or at least a larger quantity, I might have been a little more satisfied. Then again, my boyfriend and I didn't eat dinner before which was probably foolish on our part.

For dessert, we ordered the Chocolate S'mores fondue which featured milk chocolate with marshmallow cream topped with bits of graham crackers. This delicious fondue came with a cup of fresh strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, Rice Krispies Treats, marshmallows, pound cake and brownies. This totally satisfied my sweet tooth, my only complaint is that I wish they offered pretzels to go along with it instead of marshmallows.

The menu seemed more focused on drinks and less on food. This could be their tactic to loosen people up to buying their high-priced food with no complaints. The reviews on Yelp.com were mixed with people either loving it or hating it and I can totally see why.

Lesson learned: skip the high prices on the dinner menu at The Melting Pot and go straight to dessert.

The Melting Pot is located on 2377 Broadhollow Road in Farmingdale, NY.

Soup Exchange

Photo Credit: Newsday

If you're ever looking for a delicious, healthy lunch Soup Exchange is the place to go. Located on 945 Franklin Avenue in Garden City, this place has the best soups in the world. No exaggeration everything there is amazing, and everyone who goes there agrees. Chef Ken Kaplan cooks a variety of homemade soups everyday (with the menu changing daily) and serves it with fresh bread and fruit of your choice.

Just when I thought this place couldn't get any better it did. They now offer smoothies (obviously my latest obsession). For $5 I got the 20 oz Phat Tuesday Smoothie which has fresh strawberries, mango, and pineapple juice blended to perfection. My sister got the Rejuvenation Smoothie the next day which has fresh raspberries, blueberries, and pineapple juice and my friend got the Ruiti Tutti Raifman Smoothie that has fresh strawberries, banana, and pineapple juice.

These were by far the best smoothies I've ever had. I felt completely energized after and decided I'm going to replace coffee with these smoothies as they're a much healthier, tastier alternative for an energy booster.

If you haven't tried this place yet, you're missing out and need to go ASAP! It was voted best soup on Long Island by Digg.com and Newsday recently named it one of the top places to "Chow Down on Chowder."
Check out this Feed Me Video to learn more about Soup Exchange.

Culinary Heights

Image Credit: Lori Indemaio

Hands down, the best chocolate chip cookies around come from Culinary Heights. They melt-in-your mouth cookies are simply made to perfection. Ask any resident of Garden City and they will likely reaffirm this.

Another dessert perfected by Culinary Heights is bread pudding which they freshly make each week. Culinary Heights, located on 174 7th Street in Garden City, has an impressive catering menu as well as a take-out menu. Their take-out menu consists of sandwiches, salads, and fresh-baked goods.

Emily S., a reviewer from yelp.com states, "The food in the store is perfect for a quick dinner to go and the cookies are delicious."

So what is it about these cookies that make them so good? Lucky for me I was able to find out what recipe they use since I have a few friends who worked at Culinary Heights. A well kept secret, they use the chocolate chip cookie recipe from the The Silver Palate Cookbook.

Upon finding this out, my sister and I have mastered the art of making chocolate chip cookies. The cookies are easy to make and always a favorite at family gatherings.

My next post will be a video of my younger sister giving a demonstration of how to make these delicious cookies.