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.

Witches Brew

Appropriately called Witches Brew, this place isn't your ordinary coffee house. The quirky coffee house has a gothic feel to it with decorations such as antique chandeliers, skulls, a piano, and fine china cups. An intimate and comfortable atmosphere is created with dim lighting and vintage chairs and couches.

The menu is so big that it takes a few minutes to read the whole thing. Added bonus: the menu looks like a ransom note to add to the gothic feel. There are over 70 choices on the espresso menu alone, as well as a variety of different teas to choose from with names like Moulin Rouge and Black Velvet. Desserts include my personal favorite, frozen hot chocolate, as well as customer-favorites tiramisu and brownies. Vegan options such as mixed berry tarts are also on the menu.

One reviewer, Bianca L. from yelp.com testifies, "They have anything and everything, and some really inventive little creations. Their desserts are fantastic, and they have a lot of things that are natural and organic."

Though reviewers on yelp.com gave the coffee house 4 out of 5 stars, some reviews include people's complaints about the high prices. I have to agree with them that it's a little ridiculous to spend $5 on a slice of cake and $3 for a large coffee but I guess that's the price you pay for the quirky atmosphere.

I recommend going to Witches Brew on weeknights or early afternoon as it is usually crowded Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, with lines out the door.

Witches Brew is located on 311 Hempstead Turnpike in West Hempstead, NY.

Ben & Jerry's New Flavors

After trying Ben & Jerry's new flavors, my favorite by far is their Boston Cream Pie ice cream.

Boston Cream Pie features yellow cake pieces, fudge flakes, and swirls of pastry ice cream. Every bite will be savored as this ice cream consists of the perfect cake to fudge ratio.

The only problem is it's so good you'll want to eat it all in one day. At 250 calories a serving and 13g of fat, this is not the ideal ice cream for bikini season.

Another new flavor by Ben & Jerry's is Red Velvet Cake. Though I love red velvet cake, I would advise against this ice cream as it has a strong taste of cream cheese which completely overpowers any goodness of red velvet cake.

A new flavor that I would recommend trying is Late Night Snack inspired by Jimmy Fallon. This new edition features vanilla bean ice cream with a salty caramel swirl and fudge covered potato chip clusters. It tastes exactly as it sounds and is actually pretty good. Like Boston Cream Pie, my only criticism is that it has 15g of fat per serving.

I'll have to sample Ben & Jerry's low fat flavors and see if they're as good as the calorie packed flavors.

Carvel

Ever have a dessert you loved when you were younger and find your disappointed that it's not quite as good as you remembered? That was my sad feeling tonight when I went to Carvel and got a vanilla ice cream topped with their famous chocolate crunchies.

I don't know if it's from recently having Haagen-Dazs or trying Edy's Samoas ice cream, but Carvel's ice cream tasted just so...dull. Sure I got vanilla ice cream but there was absolutely no flavor what so ever. There beloved chocolate crunchies didn't even have the same appeal as it used to.

In all fairness, I must admit I got a boring flavor to begin with and Carvel's new cookie trio sundae dashers featured on their website look pretty good. The featured flavors are Nilla wafers, Oreo, and Nutter Butter.

Carvel is located on 80 Covert Avenue in Garden City, NY. You can find other locations here.

Haagen-Dazs

If you've never tried Haagen Dazs ice cream, you don't know what you're missing. Today I went to Haagen Dazs in the Roosevelt Field Mall and got a dulce de leche shake.

Dulce de leche is a delicious combination of caramel and sweet cream, swirled with ribbons of caramel. The shake consists of dulce de leche blended with milk and topped with homemade whip cream and warm caramel.

As a caramel lover, this ice cream is my absolute favorite. Though I enjoyed the shake I prefer the ice cream by itself on a sugar cone, which are out of this world. My other favorite flavors are pineapple coconut, strawberry and caramel cone.

Their website boasts, "being anti-artificial is just our natural way of doing things." Haagen-Dazs gets my vote for best ice cream.

Tuesday, May 10, is free cone day at Haagen-Dazs from 4-8pm. Stop by any Haagen-Dazs location and enjoy!

The Ultimate Fruit Ninja, King's

I must admit the best "dessert" of all is fruit. Unlike processed cookies and cakes, fruit is au naturale and a delicious healthy snack that provides essential vitamins and minerals. I've been on a fruit kick since I've noticed it gives me an energy boost without the sugar crash that I get from junk food.

Though I haven't been to a farmers market yet this spring, I've been going to King's Supermarket where they have amazingly fresh fruit. I swear it's as if they have a magical fruit ninja on hand with only the best fruit.

Unlike other grocery stores, King's has proved itself to be reliable in always having freshly sliced fruit in prepared containers. For students like myself cramming in long hours of work these last few weeks of school, King's packaged fruit is the perfect snack.

Pineapples, strawberries, and mangoes, are all in season right now. If you have the time and energy to pick out your own fruit here's a couple of tips to tell when its ripe:
1. Pineapple should have a bright yellowgold color on the skin and visible on the eyes around the base and a sweet smell at its base.
2. Buy strawberries that are bright red, as a dark red color is a sign that they're overripe and a green color indicates they are under-ripe.
3. A mango is ripe when it has a fruity aroma and you can slightly indent it with your thumb.

King's Supermarket is located on 870 Avenue in Garden City.

Cheesecake Recipe

Graham Cracker Crust:
1 cup graham crackers crumbs
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
2 cups sour cream
3 pkgs. (8 oz. each) cream cheese, room temp.
3 eggs, lightly beten
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Finely grated zest of 1 large orange

Toppings:
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
2 cups fresh blackberries


Preheat oven to 375F.

To make crust, combine the crumbs, walnuts, brown sugar and cinnamon. Add butter and toss to combine. Reserve 3 tablespoons of graham cracker mixture for the top of cheesecake and press the remaining evenly into the bottom and 1 1/2-inches up the side of a 9-inch springform pan.

To make the filling, process the sour cream, cream cheese, eggs, sugar, and salt in a food processor or blender until very smooth (I just use my hand mixer). Add vanilla and orange zest and process just to blend.

Bake the cheesecake for 50 minutes. Sprinkle the reserved topping over the cake and bake until the filing is firm and top is lightly golden, 10-15 mintues more (I also put a pan of boiling water in the oven to simmer so that the top will not crack).

In a large bowl, whip cream until almost stiff. Add sugar and vanilla and beat until cream holds peaks.

Let cool completely. Remove side of pan, top with whipped cream and blackberries and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Key Lime Pie Recipe

My aunt's delicious key lime pie recipe:

Graham Cracker Crust:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (she uses Honey Maid)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped almonds
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Pie Filling:
6 large egg yolks
One 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons grated lime zest
3/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 6 limes)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F
2. To make the crust, combine the crumbs sugar, almonds, and butter in a bowl. Blend well. Use the mixture to line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate.
3. Bake for 8 to ten minutes. Remove the crust and let it cool on a rack. Reduce the oven heat to 350 degrees.
2. Combine the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk and lime zest and uice. Mix well.
3. Pour the mixture into graham cracker crust.
3. Bake in preheated over for 15 minutes. Allow to cool. Top with whipped cream and garnish with lime slices.

Key Lime Pie and Cheesecake

Recipes to follow....

The Chocolate Duck

For Easter, my family received a basket of assorted baked goods including cookies, jelly beans and a beautifully decorated giant chocolate egg from The Chocolate Duck.


Just by looking at the display, I knew The Chocolate Duck was my kind of bakery. The chocolate egg is creatively adorned with flowers, butterflies, ladybugs and bumblebees. Even the "grass" inside of the egg was edible, made out of chocolate covered coconut. Inside the shell was even more chocolate, from milk chocolate to peanut butter eggs.

My family has been raving about the melt-in-your-mouth sugar cookies while I've been keeping it my little secret that the chocolate chip cookies are to die for. They almost taste like Entenmann's chocolate chip cookies except bigger and better.

If you have a special event coming up or in need of a thoughtful gift, I would definitely recommend The Chocolate Duck. I've never been to the actual store but members of citysearch.com give it 4 out of 5 stars and say that it has a huge selection of candy making and cake decorating supplies.

Newsday calls The Chocolate Duck, located at 310 Main Street in Farmingdale, one of the best in the metropolitan region.

Edy's Samoas Ice Cream

Image by Edy's

As you can tell, I was pretty devastated when I realized the Girl Scouts skipped my house this year. Every spring my cabinets are usually stocked with my two favorites, thin mints and samoas. Fortunately I got my thin mint fix with the Cupcake Corner's cupcake. How, I thought, would I ever satisfy my craving for samoas?

Edy's read my mind. Available for a limited time only, Edy's offers Girl Scouts Samoas ice cream. Samoas are out of this world, for those of you who aren't familiar, this cookie consists of caramel, coconut, and chocolate.

This limited edition item features Samoas cookie pieces and fudge swirls in caramel flavor ice cream. When I heard about this ice cream, I couldn't wait to try it out. I bought it from Stop and Shop in the Glen Cove shopping center on Old Country Road, after finding out the grocery stores on Seventh Street in Garden City don't stock this ice cream.

I love Samoas and ice cream and I couldn't think of a better combination. This ice cream is amazing and I recommend anyone who's a Samoas lover to try it out.

In addition to this ice cream, I'm pleased to know that Edy's also offers Thin Mint ice cream as well. I'll let you know if it's as much of a hit as the Samoas flavor.

Thin Mint Cupcakes

If you missed out on Girl Scout cookies this year, head to the Cupcake Corner in Garden City to try out their cupcake of the week, thin mint cupcakes.

I love thin mints and couldn't wait to get to the Cupcake Corner to try them out. For $2.50, you get a large cupcake that tastes just like the cookie. A minty/chocolate cake with a delicious chocolate icing sprinkled with thin mints on top.

The cupcake was even better than I had expected it to be as this place never seems to disappoint. The only recommendation I have is to eat half of the cupcake and save the rest for later since it's a bit of a chocolate overload.

If you're interested in the Cupcake Corners weekly specials check out their facebook page, call 516-328-2253, or just head to the bakery located at 61 New Hyde Park Road in Garden City.

Ralph's Famous Italian Ices

Ralph's is known as the home of the world's finest Italian ices. With locations all over Long Island, it's usually a debate between Ralph's and Rita's, I personally like Ralph's the best.

I was introduced to this place by one of my childhood friends when I was 10-years-old and it was love at first sight. With an overwhelming amount of flavors to choose from, this place has something for everybody.

My favorite flavor of all time is the Milky Way Ice which consists of chocolate Italian ice with little bits of milky way and caramel; it's simply out of this world.

With 60 degree weather today, I knew it was time to kick start the warm breeze with a delicious summer treat. My sister Lili and I went to Ralph's in Franklin Square on 531 Franklin Avenue for sundaes, something we've never tried from here before.

I got a chocolate chip cookie sundae that had a warm jumbo cookie split in half on top of vanilla ice cream and hot fudge topped with homemade whipped cream and chocolate chips.

My eyes were way bigger than my stomach and I couldn't even get through half of the cup. Though the ice cream and whipped cream was really good, the cookie was a little too hard for my liking.

Unfortunately, my sister was disappointed with her choice as well. She got a toasted marshmallow sundae that had vanilla ice cream, mini marshmallows, hot fudge and whipped cream.

"I think they call it toasted marshmallow sundae because the marshmallows are so old and hard that they taste toasted," Lili said adding, "But that doesn't stop me from eating it."


Ralph's is closed throughout winter and just recently opened for the season. I recommend to go get it while the lines are still short since there's lines down the block during the summer. Try out the creme flavors: milky way, canoli, and rocky road as well as class flavors: rainbow, strawberry, mango, and lemon.

Though today was a disappointment I took it as a lesson to stick to what Ralph's knows best, Italian ices. After all, you wouldn't go to Baskin Robbins for an Italian ice would you?

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.

Honey, ah, sugar sugar

"Lo que no mata engorda." "What doesn't kill you makes you fat."

If there's one thing I can tell you, it's that I LOVE sweets. When it comes to sweets I just can't get enough, which is funny because I'm actually a picky eater.

When I was two-years-old I snuck away from friends and family at my sisters "First Communion" party to sneak in some cake. Unfortunately I was caught red handed. There I was, pigtails and all, digging my dirty little hands into my sisters cake. Since then, the rest is history. I've been in love ever since.

I love trying new desserts and finding delicious bakeries. Through this blog, I'll introduce you to some of my favorite treats and local spots, and discover new places on the way.