Monday, May 11, 2009

Cheese Rice with Spam and Eggs

My brunch go-to when I am craving comfort food, or am just plain hungover (that’s how easy it is to make)!

All you need are eggs, spam, cheese, and of course rice. I like to add a bit of sesame oil to it as well.

First, cook your rice - it's the easiest if you have a rice cooker, if not, you can buy the microwaveable kind (the one pictured above is Korean, but I hear they also sell them at Trader Joe's), or you can add a one to one cup of rice to water ratio in a boiling pot, until all of the water evaporates and the rice is cooked and fluffy.

Then cut the spam into little cubes (you can use diced ham if you think spam is disgusting, but I think it’s delicious) and fry it in a pan. When it slowly starts to brown, push it to the side and crack an egg on top of the leftover grease - it's best if it's overeasy, so that the yolk isn't completely cooked and is slightly runny.

Next, put a layer of rice in the bottom of a bowl. Then place two Kraft singles on top, and add another layer of rice, so that you're sandwiching the cheese between the rice. The cheese will slowly start to melt.
Then take the cooked spam and add it on top, drizzle a bit of sesame oil, finishing it off with the egg. You can also added shredded cheese as garnish, or scallions/green onions and even sesame seeds work well.
For an extra kick, you can also mix it with ketchup, or hot sauce. I like to use siracha, or have it with a side of kimchi.
Half way through my bowl!

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Baked By Melissa

I was walking around Soho the other day and came across these ador-a-ble miniature stuffed cupcakes! I've never heard of Baked by Melissa but they have super cute flavors like cookie dough, peanut butter cup and smores.

It was hard narrowing it down, but my boyfriend and I ended up choosing peanut butter & jelly, red velvet and tie-dye. Handed to us on an over-sized paper cupcake liner (or a coffee filter), they weren't joking about the size. The cupcakes, each a dollar, were roughly the same size as a quarter! Overpriced, but still worth trying.

Despite all of the artificial food coloring, the tie-dye was both of our favorites, and the cream cheese frosting with rainbow sprinkles was perfect. The cake itself was moist, and the icing wasn't too sweet. Surprisingly, the red velvet wasn't very memorable, and was quickly forgotten when we tried the next one - pbj. Topped with peanut butter and jelly, it was filled with a burst of even more peanut butter inside!

***Baked by Melissa: 592 Broadway, New York, NY 10012 nr. Spring and Mercer

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Dovetail

My boyfriend took me to Dovetail for my birthday a few weeks ago. It was a complete surprise and he wouldn't tell me where we were going until just a few hours before dinner. Very risky as the past few restaurants he’s chosen have all been FAILURES hehe. Lo and behold he had a table for two at one of the 2009 top dinning destinations according to New York Magazine’s Adam Platt!

Even with rezzies we had to wait over an hour. We almost left (the UWS Shake Shack was right next door) but I’m so glad we stayed! We started off with the fluke ceviche that came with pears, lime, and tomatillos, and they served us warm mini-loaves of cornbread, which my boyfriend inhaled. I ordered the Pistachio Crusted Duck with endive, dates, and apples (though I could barely taste the apples), and my boyfriend ordered the Buffalo with salsify, brussels sprouts, and spicy parsnips.

I have to say the best part of the meal, was the dessert which came compliments of the chef (probably because it took us for-ever to be seated). Brioche Bread Pudding with bananas and bacon brittle, topped with rum ice cream! Whoever thought of adding bacon to a dessert, is genius just genius!

Sorry I don't have any pictures of the food :(

***Dovetail: 103 W. 77th St., New York, NY 10024 nr. Columbus Ave.
http://www.dovetailnyc.com/

- Picture courtesy of New York Magazine

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

The Smith & Sundaes and Cones

Went to The Smith in the East Village with my gay-bestfriend-who's-not-gay after work a few weeks ago. The food wasn’t too memorable but I hear they're big on brunch. I want to go back and try the Chicken Sausage + Eggs on a spicy corn bread, with black pepper gravy. Drool.

The Steak Salad with Goat Cheese
And the Orecchiette with chicken sausage, broccoli, and hot chiles

*** The Smith: 55 Third Ave., New York, NY 10003 nr. 11th St. http://www.ctrnyc.com/THESMITH/index.html

Afterwards I took him across the street to one of my favorite ice cream spots - Sundaes and Cones. They have the best homemade ice cream with flavors you won't find anywhere else.

They range from the classics of Vanilla and Chocolate to Wasabi, Ginger, Corn, Tiramisu and Black. My personal favorite? The Banana or Taro!

***Sundaes and Cones: 95 E 10th St., New York, NY 10003 nr. Third Ave.
http://www.sundaescones.com/home.htm

- Pictures courtesy of Hong Choi