Tag: dessert

Do you have plans for the leftovers?

36 Comments

Such a simple question … yet one that has worked like a charm time and time again for this lady on a mission to save good food from a dumpster destiny.

I received a last-minute email yesterday afternoon inviting me to attend a fancy schmancy event featuring Chef Brad Steelman of Brooklyn’s famed River Cafe. (The spot opened up because poor HangryPants Heather was still too sick to attend, so go give her some love … after you read this post!)

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Chef Steelman’s demonstration took place at the Desiron Gallery in SoHo using the Electrolux ICON line of dream-material kitchen appliances (think magnet-triggered stovetop ranges that reach your desired temperature in seconds — whether hotter or colder — and somehow stay cool to the touch).

When I arrived, I grabbed a goblet of sparkling water to keep me company as I took in the scene. Right off the bat, I met some fun new foodie friends — Michelle from Taste As You Go, Mike from Man Eat Food (no kidding, a rare male food blogger live and in person?!), and Elizabeth from The Kitchn — and we settled in at a table together to watch Chef Steelman work some culinary magic.

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(I promise the sparkling water was not spiked. WordPress is the lush that won’t let my picture upload correctly.)

The event kicked off with a glorious round of hors d’oeuvres. I had two lentil wafers with lobster salad:

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One giant spoonful of seared tuna on bed of avocado-sesame-wasabi puree:

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Proof:

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(I also took the most hilarious photo series of Michelle in similar poses. I hope she posts a slideshow … but I think she might delete them all instead!)

And two pieces of roast duck with rhubard sauce (yesssssss, yum is right!):

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But that was only the beginning! Before our very eyes, the chef whipped up a Spring Asparagus Risotto with mascarpone, parmigiana reggiano, and crispy trumpet mushrooms:

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Which we enjoyed as first course (or 5th course if you live in expansion world like I do):

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The main meal was Colorado Lamb Roast with carmelized spring onions, potato puree, and roasting juices. In process:

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Moments pre-disappearance:

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And finally, the classic gourmet dessert of classic gourmet desserts: Melt Away Cake (aka molten chocolate lava cake). Chocolate magic:

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Pre-belly:

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Topped with gold dust (told you it was magical!):

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Just because:img_7089

Lava:

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(And if you are in the market for new kitchen appliances and have money to burn, the chef managed to cook all of this food in front of us and have it plated and served in what was likely less than a half hour. This kitchen was not messing around! And neither were the phenomenal sioux chefs …)

So, as I was savoring my cake, I noticed that some kitchen clean-up had begun and wondered aloud (as I am wont to do) where the leftovers were headed. My curiosity (or misplaced survival instinct) was so strong that I actually left the table mid-cake to go and ask the chef, Do you have a plan for the leftovers?

The following exchange ensued:

Chef: No, would you like to take some with you?

Me: That would be LOVELY!!!!! But I do not have any containers (sad face).

Chef: I’m sure we have something around (finds tupperwares and Ziplock baggies). What would you like? Lamb?

Me: Anything you’re willing to give me, really!

[Chef scurries around collecting. I follow behind.]

Me: Ummm, you can totally send me away if I’m being obnoxious … but what about your display asparagus and mushrooms?

Chef: Really? Of course! [tries to dispose of spinach and asparagus peelings to make room in a container for asparagus]

Me, intercepting spinach and peelings before they hit the trash can: No, really, I’ll use it all!!

Chef, doubtful: You’re sure?

Me: Absolutely.

Chef puts sioux chefs on the job. Sioux chefs help me pack up some of everything and even come and bring me more food as they find it while cleaning out the fridge … and give me tips for how to reheat and cook it all! Here they are at work, my new best friends:

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Expandable bag out:

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Inventory at home. Asparagus, portobello mushrooms, spinach, and veggie scraps:

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(Scraps are for my frozen veggie broth bag.)

Seared tuna, carmelized spring onions (omgsogood), lamb, and risotto:

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(I’ve got the risotto and the lamb at work today to share since we’re all having an April Fools lunch together. Gotta give back! I’m going to have to do some research on how best to store the tuna, aside from in the fridge, obviously. I wonder how it freezes?)

Two melt away cakes and … wait for it … the melt away cake batter left from the demo!!!!!!

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The batter is in my freezer now, waiting for the perfect occasion.

Moral of the story? Always ask.

When were you glad you asked?

P.S. Enter my Bob’s Red Mill giveaway!!!

    Scrump-dip-liumptious

    17 Comments

    Woohoo, the Bob’s Red Mill giveaway is off to a great start! Keep those entries coming!

    In other exciting news, I am back safe and sound from the doctor. While waiting to go in for my appointment, I took this beauty out of the candy jar:

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    The outside was a white mint candy, and the inside was a real chocolate surprise, mmm.

    The doctor pressed a lot of muscles in my back and in my leg, but nothing she did caused extra pain, so she thinks I had a big muscle spasm that resulted in some sort of enzyme explosion that is now causing me discomfort (or this is at least what I gathered from the broken English). She prescribed me an anti-inflammatory (which I’m debating about even fulfilling since I can just use ibuprofen) and sent me on my way with instructions to wait three more days before exercise and to try some stretching in the meantime. So I have big gentle yoga plans for tomorrow morning.

    On the way home from the doctor, I stopped into my favorite beauty salon hair hackery, aka Supercuts, for a discount trim that turned into OMG, I have no hair left. Whatev, it will grow back in a month! I also snacked on three Newman’s Own Organics cinnamon mints. I’m actually enjoying these mints because (1) I don’t go through them the way I go through gum since they don’t have the addictive chew and (2) I’m not loading my body with weird chemicals and sugar-free sugars.

    Also, in typical “expansion” style, I stopped into two gourmet markets on my way home (it was my first foray outside in over 48 hours!!) for samples: cotswald, gruyere, and fontina cheese cubes; roast chicken on a toothpick; and a tomato and mozzarella wrap sliver :D.

    Dinner tonight was more snackiness since I haven’t been doing so much food prep the past couple of days:

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    img_6948Doesn’t it kind of look like a head, with wild soy crisp hair on top, guac and salsa eyes, and crazy apple teeth?

    Those soy crisps are the Newman’s white cheddar kind … and they’re super tasty! I generally don’t buy snack foods like this, but if you do, these won’t let you down. They were especially delicious dipped into the salsa and homemade guac:

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    The other dinner component involved two slices of pumpernickel baguette toast topped with about 1 tbsp of super-dark cashew-almond butter (told you I roasted the nuts too long!) and some apple slivers for color:

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    Dessert was the stuff dreams (or my dreams, at least!) are made of: the rest of the apple slices dipped in leftover cheesecake batter (!!!!) from a roommate project and crumbled graham sticks.

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    I have two questions for you tonight:

    1. What is your favorite dip concoction?

    2. Did you get any good news today?

    And remember to enter the Bob’s Red Mill giveaway if you have not done so already!


    Gratitude

    24 Comments

    I have so many thank yous to give today!

    First, thank you all for your support and advice regarding yesterday’s injury. I feel much better after reading about your advice and experiences with similar situations!

    Second, a huuuuuge thank you to Mara who very generously offered her time and serious photoshop skills to help me come up with a new header! After lots of emailing back and forth between Mara and my dad (who will forever be my ultimate artistic director :P), we came up with something I really like (for now). Hope you like it, too!

    Onto breakfast:
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    I was still thinking I might be able to go to brunch with Gina and Kate, so I made a light breakfast when I got hungry around 9:30 in case I was going to need to be eating two hours later. This is a cup of fruit salad topped with 2 tbsp PB2 (mixed with 2 tbsp healthy cream cheese icing) and trail mix/granola:
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    I soon realized, however, that I was not going to be able to go anywhere. I woke up this morning in no less agony than when I went to bed last night!

    I considered going to the ER, but I also figured that I would probably end up waiting for hours and paying an arm and a leg to be sent somewhere else (not to mention that I might get stuck for good going down my apartment steps). I decided to keep sitting on my ice pack for the rest of the day and call my regular doctor tomorrow to see what she recommends. I think this was a good idea, as the occasional journey from room to room has gotten slightly less excruciating than it was earlier today. I feel like a giant slug, though — I had so many plans for the weekend that involved actually leaving my apartment.

    I stayed in bed and felt sorry for myself a little bit longer … but things soon turned around. I felt a lot better after Kate emailed and offered her escort services if I needed assistance with anything. And then I read this super helpful comment from reader Alexa:

    I’m recovering from this injury. Hurts more than anything to start putting weight on and taking weight off that foot, right? I had to stop running completely for a week and a half, and I’ve been slowly adding it back (it’s been 2 weeks now). Definitely see a doctor if you can, but otherwise:

    • stop running for 8-10 days. (And seriously stop. I tried to do a little too early and made it a lot worse.) Do other kinds or exercise and consider it cross-training. I’ve been fine with walking, elliptical, biking/spinning, yoga and pilates.
    • stretch…down dog and a butterfly stretch pushing down on my knees with my elbows has worked.
    • ice packs will remain your best friend.
    • And smack anyone who laughs at you for pulling your groin. Such an unattractive sounding injury name, right?

    Thanks, Alexa! The symptoms she described sounded just like mine, and I sent her a follow-up email for some more info. She was so helpful! I’m going to take her advice and stop running completely for at least two weeks. I really don’t want to take any more risks, especially with the half marathon coming at the end of May.

    I’m going to stay away from the gym for at least the first few days of this week and, depending on how I feel, I may do some Gentle Hatha Yoga the next couple of mornings. In the meantime, like I said, I will call my doctor tomorrow to see if she has any extra recommendations for me or if she thinks I should come in for a visit.

    With all of that taken care of, it was time to move on to lunch:

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    I haven’t been able to get to the grocery store, so I’m running low on fresh veggies and had to get creative! I had the rest of the delicious chicken lasagna that Myrna gave me at work on Friday:

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    How lucky, right? Who knew I’d be chair-bound and unable to get out or really even make new food?! This lasagna came in so handy. Thanks, Myrna!

    On the side, I made a Mexican-ish layer sort of deal: thawed frozen corn on the bottom, homemade guac in the middle (about 1/3 an avocado’s worth), and salsa from Friday’s work meeting on the top.

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    I covered the whole thing in a sprinkling of freshly grated homemade parmesan 😀

    I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to be productive within the confines of my limitations! I had about three cups of whey from Greek yogurt-making that needed to get used, so I put that in the crockpot with two eggs, 1 cup dry chickpeas, 1/2 cup millet, 1/2 cup quinoa, 1/2 cup lentils, and 1/2 cup raw wheat germ (that I toasted first, making it no longer raw). I’m low on oats, so I figured that I would make a giant batch of wholesome protein-filled whole grain deliciousness that could be converted to sweet or savory this week for the purpose of breakfasts, snacky dips, and who knows what else. I’m pretty sure I’m going to blend it all once the chickpeas finally finish cooking, so we’ll see what it turns into.

    I used one avocado to make guacamole (obviously). The other, I used to make more chocolate mousse (1 avocado + 1.5 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder + 2 tsp molasses), my favorite thing in the world. I roasted the rest of my cashews and a few almonds a little bit too long and made some very dark roasted cashew-almond butter. I added a teeny drizzle of molasses to that, too, to try to offset the burnt flavor, and it worked quite well!

    I organized some textbooks and paper avalanches in my bedroom and hand-swept the dust off my shelves. I took care of blog tasks. I checked in with both mom and dad. I tried to log in to the discussion board for my class. I got hungry again and scavenged some dinner:

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    The last Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Black Bean-Salmon Patty with a smear of goat cheese, two sliced radishes (from work), and freshly ground black pepper:

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    Grape tomatoes:

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    And the last 1/3 toasted blueberry bagel spread with lemon curd + ricotta and topped with sliced strawberries:

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    For dessert, I heated up the last 1/2 cup of Sylvia’s banana bread pudding from work and arranged it with more sliced strawberries, a dollop of the above-mentioned chocolate mousse, and a sprinkling of unsweetened coconut:

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    Potentially the best dessert ever.

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    And because I wanted more comfort, I whipped up some fancy hot cocoa: 2 cups boiling water, sugar cookie sleigh ride tea bag, splash unsweetened soymilk, 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, cinnamon, cayenne, 1/2 tsp honey, 1/2 tsp cashew-almond butter. I may have also dropped in a couple Hershey’s kisses 😀

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    As of now, I’m planning on going to work tomorrow, but I’ll have to see how my mobility is when I wake up in the morning. I’ll probably have to cancel my visit because I’m pretty sure I can’t handle crawling on the floor and holding babies (unfortunate since that’s the best part of my job)!

    So, in conclusion, thank you to everyone — and especially to mom, dad, Mara, Alexa, Kate, and Myrna — because I would have spent the entire day buried under a mountain of self-pity if not for your help!

    What are you thankful for today?

    A club, a review, and a trash can

    15 Comments

    Ohhhh dear, it’s going to be another one of those still-full-from-yesterday days…

    On the way to the book club last night, I tested a piece of organic sugar-on-the-go from the package I received yesterday:

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    Who knew Neman’s made breath mints? I certainly did not. Anyway, as far as cinna-mints go, it tasted like a cinna-mint.

    img_6834When I arrived, Amanda set me right up with a delicious pear martini.

    We actually discussed the book — something that has never ended up happening in any book club I’ve attended before! I think it helped that (1) this book, Those Who Save Us, was really intense, moving, and thought-provoking and (2) Amanda, Meghan, and I were the only ones there for the discussion portion. (P.S. Amanda and Meghan live there, so I was actually the only one there :P)

    Amanda and Meghan had prepared a substantial spread of goodies to get us through the chat.

    A port-wine cheese ball with melba toasties:

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    (I think I ate about five of these over the course of the night.)

    Baby carrots:

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    (Probably ate about 20 of these.)

    Jelly Bellies:

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    (Errr, the jar was full when I arrived and empty when I left Sorry, Meghan!)

    Peanut m&ms:

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    (See comment above about jelly bellies.)

    And peanuts:

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    (Ditto. Yup, I mindlessly housed about two cups of peanuts in the space of three hours. Was I hungry for any of it? Nope. At least my body is now swimming in healthy fat …)

    We also went to town on the snacks I brought. The last single-serve bag of kettle corn from the pack I found at work:

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    And, the star combo of the night, Newman’s protein-infused pretzels (a close examination of the ingredients list seemed to indicate that the protein comes from pea flour?) with Nutella for dipping:

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    Demonstration:

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    (I might have repeated this action 12 or more times.)

    Willie arrived in the midst of all this and had never tried protein-infused pretzels or nutella, so we peer-pressured him. Game face on:

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    The aftermath:

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    (You may not be able to tell, but that’s a look of pure pleasure. Really.)

    Willie is also very thoughtful and aware of my compulsion to eat everything in sight, so he brought us a six-pack of Dunkin Donuts:

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    Left to right, top: powdered chocolate frosting-filled, Boston Cream, powdered cinnamon-apple-filled; bottom: chocolate-frosted with sprinkles, jelly-filled, strawberry-frosted cream-filled.

    I had the winning idea of cutting all the donuts into fourths so we could try little tastes. Which led us (or me at least) to try many tastes:

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    Soon after the donut demolition incident, Damon, Laura, and Owl arrived. And things start to get fuzzy.

    It started out innocently enough, with Owl boldly getting the ball rolling on the still-unopened Newman’s bite-sized chocolate chip cookies:

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    Everyone loved these. I had two:

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    The innocence continued with a simple pass-around-the-pretzels-so-I-can-try activity:

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    Amanda somehow noticed a striking difference between these pretzels and all those that had come before. Her evaluation was poetic and beautifully-phrased, but I can’t remember it.

    Things kind of deteriorated from there as everyone got carried away with the idea of doing a product review. Meghan and Amanda administered a blind taste test on Willie:

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    And on Damon:

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    The boys took it seriously:

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    Interestingly enough, even in the blind taste test, everyone preferred — and noticed a striking difference between — the regular store-brand pretzels and the extra crunchy and subtly salty protein pretzels. Perhaps even more interesting, both Willie and Damon guessed that the store-brand pretzels (the non-preferred product) were actually Newman’s because they assumed that an organic and protein-infused pretzel could not possibly taste as good as a less-healthy and no-regard-for-nutrition-or-the-environment brand.

    Amanda said it best:

    I will definitely buy Newman’s Own Organic protein pretzels next time.

    Newman’s should hire her.

    In conclusion, my tummy hurts this morning. And my planned 10-mile-run (as opposed to accidental) with Kate is imminent. And I am hoping that the run will leave me feeling rejuvenated and refreshed and like I ate whole grains and produce last night instead of a trash can.

    How are you faring this morning?


    La bomba

    12 Comments

    OK, confession time: I was prematurely harsh in my comments about this afternoon’s pizza and “staff development” event! I should have known that my perfect internship would not let me down 🙂

    But first things first. The second I arrived at my desk, Beryl popped over with the last bite of her coconut rum cake (she let me photograph the banana version on Monday) that she’s been devotedly saving for me:

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    Whooooooeeee, was this cake something! The coconut flavor was definitely there, but so was the rum. Nothing like a shot of hard liquor to get the Friday started …

    Before I went into my two-hour meeting with Heather, I snacked on the same best-ever yogurt/fruit salad/golean crunch combo I’ve been eating all week:

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    After the meeting, I chowed down on this yummy stick of nutrition that Melissa passed out at the blogger brunch last Sunday:

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    Even though I knew lunch was imminent (the event was about to start), I wanted to pad my stomach so I didn’t end up eating half a pizza (or a whole one) by “accident.”

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    I was a fan of this bar — it tasted dense and healthy and was definitely satisfying. BUT, it does have sugar added … something I always think is so unnecessary when dates are involved!

    The event started at 12:30, and here’s what was waiting when we arrived downstairs. Five boxes of pizza:

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    Salad:

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    Cookies (store-bought trio and homemade-by-Heather chocolate chip) and lemon squares (also homemade by Heather):

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    Strawberries and cool whip:

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    Here’s how I began:

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    Round two:

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    Yes, that is a second slice of pizza hiding underneath the salad (which is topped with salsa and tortilla chips) 😀 This pizza was surprisingly tasty, if quite a bit chewy. I patted down the grease with napkins and ate every bite except for the big pieces of plain crust on the end (I wasn’t sure my jaw would be able to handle them!). The best part was the crispy cheese:

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    I followed the pizza with two of Heather’s delectable lemon squares:

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    They were like perfectly buttery shortbread cookies topped with a thick layer of lemon curd … and we all know how I feel about lemon curd after this past week 😀

    I also had a big bowl of strawberries with a heaping mound of lemon-square-crumb-topped cool whip:

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    Plus another bowl just like it … except this time I topped the cool whip with a crumbled chocolate chip cookie:

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    And then I had a homemade chocolate chip cookie straight up.

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    Throughout the rest of the workshop, I snacked on loads more strawberries dipped in cool whip. Then, I made myself a giant bowl of just strawberries to munch on so that I could be distracted from eating all the cookies:

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    Interspersed through all the eating was a great workshop! A group called YerbaBuena came to teach us about Bomba, one of the oldest musical traditions of Puerto Rico. The workshop still related to the theme of the book we had to read, but it was much more fun than the breakout groups and role-plays I had expected.

    Mildred and Deborah danced while Jessica drummed:

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    Vianni, Belkis, the workshop leader, Jessica, and Maria went wild on the drums:

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    MORE dancing … Myrna, Mildred, Deborah, Inginia, and Jessica:

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    Yes, clapping is the best dance move I can pull off.

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    The day was pretty much over when the workshop ended. I celebrated with these candies (plus another mint):

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    As Mildred, Pura, and I were leaving (Mildred drives me to my subway station downtown), I spotted this squirrel after my own heart through the windshield:

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    That squirrel was literally clinging to the tree by his toenails so that he could use both hands to eat the cookie he found on the ground!

    I came home to (and brought home with me) a LOT of excitement! A dozen roses from Myrna as a thank you for the help I give her with her papers (AWWWWW!); a cup of strawberries, 4 cookies, and leftover salsa from the workshop; a fun Stonyfield bag filled with yogurt coupons; and a lifetime supply (or close to it) of Newman’s Own Organics products for later review:

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    I’m not even going to show you the inside of that box because it is just TOO overwhelming (in a good way) … but rest assured that you’ll be seeing everything as I get to it over the next 10 years.

    I’m off to discuss yet another book at the book club my friend Amanda is starting — and I’m obviously bringing some Newman’s to contribute to the snacks of the night!

    Now that I have so many snackss, I need ideas! How do you or would you use a million pretzels if you had them?? Any favorite pretzel snacks/meals you can suggest?