February 9 Bagels

It’s also National bagel and Lox day but I didn’t have time to go in search of that this morning. This National food day thing would be much easier if I actually worked right in a city. Today did make me think of two things. One being that my work said we would be getting bagels every Friday but I have yet to see a single bagel. This makes me sad. Second, when interning in New York City, our work would get THE best bagels every Thursday.

Ess-a-Bagel, with two locations in NYC, has the best bagels I’ve ever tasted. Started in 1976, they eventually opened up in midtown.  The line is usually out the door and around the corner during the morning rush. They are served hot and extremely fresh. How can you beat New York style bagels. The water up there really does make a difference.

Inside the Ess-a-Bagel on 3rd Ave., it’s as if you are still in a 1980’s establishment. But if they continue to serve bagels that are out of this world, you should be OK with it.

Also, all of their bagels are certified kosher. Mazel Tov!

Tomorrow: Brownies

February National Macadamia Nut Month

I’m focusing entirely on the month of February today. If you’re interested, today is National Fettuccine Alfredo day, and while I love me some creamy pasta, I just don’t know if I have the time to go out and eat a dish.

Even better than one day of alfredo though, is an entire month of macadamia nuts! And, how nice is it for me that my dad just got back from Hawaii with boxes of chocolate covered macadamia nuts in tow.

First, I have been munching on an entire box of macadamia nuts covered with chocolate and caramel.

Another addiction is Hershey’s Chocolate macadamia kisses that you can only get in Hawaii (or online for about $9 not including S&H). I never even knew this type of kiss existed!

I’m trying to make these last as long as possible — so probably till Thursday. Each Aloha Hershey kisses  has a piece of macadamia nut hidden in the center of the candy. The chocolate  is wrapped with turquoise blue foil that says Macadamia Nuts in yellow, and the streamer from the top says “Aloha.” Aloha to you, Hershey’s Kiss. Aloha, to you.

February 5 Nutella

It is also National Frozen Yogurt day, which I love, but come on, how can you not love Nutella? A chocolate hazelnut spread that you can put on bread and say you’re having a sandwich for lunch? It’s the perfect disguise.

Since I’m not creative in the cooking department, I took to other sites to find what sounds like a delicious Nutella concoction. My winner was the Nutella stuffed French toast. As if french toast weren’t already sweet enough, let’s add some chocolate filling in there. Yes, please!

This site had my favorite version, mainly because of the picture.

I should say, my runner-up recipe was Nutella Banana bread. If you want more Nutella ideas, go here.

February 4 Homemade Soup

For lunch today I had homemade goulash soup. It’s originally a Hungarian soup with  meat, onions, potatoes, paprika and peppers. You’d think homemade soup day would entail me actually making the soup, but I found a loophole. Instead, the Swiss Bakery makes their own. Hooray!

When I ordered my soup one of the employees suggested I go for the mushroom soup. I explained that I work 5 minutes down the street and would probably be here at least once a week. Since the goulash is made only on Fridays and Saturdays I felt inclined to pick a soup I grew up on in Germany.

While this soup is not exactly what I remember from my past, it was still delicious. It reminded me more of a beef stew rather than the Hungarian dish. Then again, there are multiple versions of this European dish. One thing that did bring me back to my childhood was the brotchen rolls. Served hot, the outside was crisp and the middle was soft and still steaming.

I’m glad homemade soup day came on such a cold day. It was the perfect lunch, but the highlight was the roll. Then again, I’d be happy having homemade European breads for every meal. But, I’ve taken a lesson from Scott Pilgrim on that one: