Hungry...Why Wait?

In case you don't have time to travel to any of these delicious places right now, I suggest a quick snack fix: Snickers peanut butter. It comes in 2 little tasty squares that the packaging suggests, "Save one for later." Ha! I don't know who has the self restraint to save one for later, I know I don't. The snickers/peanut butter is the perfect combination of salty and sweet. It almost tastes like a Take5 except I'd rather have the take 5, pretzel and all. With only 250 calories I'd say it's a tasty, satisfying treat.

Magnolia Bakery

Can you guess what I'm craving? Just saw this video of Bobbie Lloyd from New York City's Magnolia Bakery demonstrating how to make red velvet cupcakes...Yum. Magnolia Bakery may sound familiar as it's the bakery that was often featured on "Sex and the City." Though Carrie and friends considered the bakery one of their favorites, I've been to it once a few years ago and wasn't impressed. After seeing this video I think I'll have to give it a second shot and try out this recipe for red velvet cupcakes.

Smoothie King

I stopped by Smoothie King on 225A Glen Cove Road in Carle Place for the first time today. I was surprised to learn that they offer 38 smoothies under 300 calories. I ordered the MangoFest while my friend Devon got Angel Food. Upon ordering, the guy behind the counter asked if we wanted an enhancer with our drinks. Options include antioxidant, caffeine charge, diet down, energy, immune, joint and tissue repair, multi-vitamin, muscle builder, stress relief, and fiber blend for an extra 99 cents.

My friend Devon got what the guy referred to as the most popular choice, Angel Food which is a low-fat blend of banana and strawberries with a joint and tissue repair enhancer added to it. Other ingredients include soy protein, non-fat milk, vanilla, turbinado, and honey. Devon hates the taste of protein but approves the smoothie as the fruit masks that nasty protein taste.

I ordered the MangoFest, a tropical blend of mango, pineapples, and orange juice with a shot of antioxidant. Though it has 69 grams of sugar in the 20oz. size I got, it's only 285 calories and is 100% fruit juice sweetened. Every sip took me to a tropical island and I enjoyed every bit of it. The smooth consistency was perfect and it had just the right blend.

Together, our small smoothies cost $12.13, which we considered to be a pretty good deal considering the quality of our drinks. The store also offers a variety of protein bars and other healthy snacks. I would definitely go back to Smoothie King and recommend that you go out and try it for a little pick me up.

Cold Stone Creamery

Photo by Coldstone Creamery

There's nothing better than a smoothie on a warm, sunny, spring day. Ok, so it may not be spring and it's not that warm out, but 50 degrees is warm enough to catch spring fever in March.

After class today I rushed to Cold Stone Creamery on Franklin Avenue in Garden City to get what I thought would be the perfect thirst quencher, a Berry Trinity smoothie which is made with fresh raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries.

Cold Stone prides itself in giving its customers "The Ultimate Ice Cream Experience." They offer many creative creations such as birthday cake remix, apple pie a la mode, and coffee lovers only. The servers mix up the ice cream and candy bars (or whatever topping you like) and are known for singing when you leave a tip.

I've never been a huge fan of Cold Stone as the ice cream's overpriced, too heavy, and overrated. I have, however, enjoyed their smoothies the few times I've been there. Unfortunately, today I just wasn't feeling it. For $6 I got a "Love It" size (a medium) and it most certainly did not hit the spot. There was way too much ice, which gave it a watered-down bland taste. Disappointing to say the least.

The smoothies were the only thing that captivated my taste buds but after today's disappointment, this will be the last time I spend my money at Cold Stone Creamery. Based of the high prices and long lines I wouldn't recommend this place. I know I can find a cheaper, tastier place with smoothies around here. To be continued....

Chocolate Fondue

Last night my little sister Lili and I ventured to the city to watch the Oscars at my older sister Reina's apartment. We were having hardcore cravings for dessert and the pigs that we are spent about an hour on yelp.com looking up dessert places around Union Square, which is right around the block from my sister's apartment. After realizing we didn't feel like going out my sister remembered she had won a Hershey's chocolate fondue set over the summer so we were in luck.

It only took about 10 minutes to heat up the chocolate chips in the pot to the right texture. We had pineapples, strawberries, pretzels, marshmallows, and rice krispies treats to dip in the chocolate fondue. It was AMAZING.

The picture I posted is of my sisters Lili and Reina, clearly they were enjoying the fondue a little too much ;) As I was taking the picture Reina yelled, "hurry take the picture before we get cavities!" We got a real kick out of that.

What the Oscars lacked in entertainment, this fondue set made up for! I was pretty much in a food coma afterwards but it was well worth it and totally satisfied my sweet tooth.

If you ever find yourself craving dessert on a rainy day or just wanting to avoid going out all together, I would definitely recommend buying a chocolate fondue set. Amazon has sets starting at $10. It's great entertainment and makes for a fun night with friends and family. Also makes a good gift if you're ever at a loss.

The Cupcake Corner

I think I've died and gone to cupcake heaven...That's how I feel everytime I take a bite of The Cupcake Corner's melt in your mouth cupcakes. The small bakery, conveniently located on 61 New Hyde Park Road in Garden City, never fails to disappoint.

From the strawberry shortcake to the hot chocolate float to the red velvet cupcake, I can't rave enough about the place. The bakery prides itself in baked fresh goods every morning by their chefs and using the highest quality ingredients and eco-friendly disposables.

Every week they feature a new flavor of cupcake. The mini cupcakes go for $1.25, while the larger ones go for $2.50. I recommend getting two minis rather than one large one so as not to over do it. I have had their red velvet, cotton candy, canolli cupcake, chocolate with vanilla frosting, strawberry cupcake, lemon coconut cupcake, french toast cupcake, strawberry shortcake and tiramasu. So I guess you could call me a somewhat cupcake conisseur of this bakery.

My favorite is the red velvet and strawberry shortcake. They are out of this world! The most interesting choice of cupcake is the french toast one which features bacon on top...Though it sounds daring it's a fan favorite. If you love cupcakes as much as I do check out the website here.

Cheesecake made with love

As we all know, yesterday, February 14 was Valentine's Day. A day typically known for hallmark cards along with generic roses and chocolate. I, on the other hand, received a strawberry cheesecake from Eileen's Special Cheesecake in New York City. Eileen's, known for it's cheesecakes has been rated the best all around cheesecake by many food critics.

Clearly, my boyfriend knows just the way to my heart as strawberry cheesecake is one of my all time favorite desserts. Visually, it's very appealing with the heart-shaped cut out and carefully placed strawberries. The strawberry glaze is delicious and the strawberries taste amazingly fresh. The melt-in-your mouth cheesecake has the perfect texture (which is very important to me when it comes to cheesecake). This is by far the best cheesecake I've ever had. My only complaint is that I can't stop eating it!

I've never had Eileen's Special Cheesecake before yesterday, but I must say I'm definitely a loyal fan already. After looking at the menu I'm debating whether or not to take a trip there this weekend. Check out the menu here. If you have any special occasion coming up, I would definitely recommend ordering from Eileen's which has an overnight express to anywhere in the U.S. in case you can't make the trip to the city.

Eileen's Special Cheesecake is located in the city at 17 Cleveland Place, opposite Spring and Lafeyette Street. The bakery is open every day Monday-Friday from 8am till 9pm; Saturday and Sunday from 10am till 7pm.