Homemade Marshmallows

We were homebound last weekend, along with most of the northeast. It was perfect hot chocolate weather. We have some great, 100% chocolate from Peru that we use to make hot chocolate, and I wanted to up our game a little and try making fresh marshmallows. It's pretty easy! You need to make them a few hours before you want to eat them, though, so it's not a spur of the moment thing. They're so light and fluffy and definitely worth the effort (it's not that much effort - just cleaning is sticky). They melt so nicely into hot chocolate. Can't wait to try them for s'mores! They would also be a great hostess gift along with supplies for either hot chocolate or s'mores. If it's another cold weekend when you'll be holed up at home, I recommend trying these out! (Got the recipe from Martha and halved it.)

Invent your own ice cream

I've been trying to get down to Lulu and Mooky's for months. I was finally in the neighborhood last Thursday and after a delicious pork bun lunch at Baohaus, I indulged in some ice cream. It's a teeny hole in the wall on Allen Street (129, between Rivington and Delancey). When you walk in, you're met by two kitchen aids, a nice man behind the counter, and hand written signs on the wall filled with possible flavors. There are numerous kinds of fruits, then there are the go-to chocolates, vanillas, and staples of that ilk, and there are also herbs and spices like rosemary, cinnamon, and cardamom. You can invent your own, or you can pick from the Customer Combinations that others have already crafted. Once you pick your flavors, he mixes them into a little cup of cream and then pours the concoction into the kitchen aid. After all the flavors have blended, in goes liquid nitrogen, which causes the silver bowl to spill over with eerie Halloween fog. When the fog subsides and the potion seems done, you are presented with your own hand crafted cup of creamy, delicious (depending on your flavor combination) ice cream.
I mixed fresh cherries with almond extract and cinnamon, which resulted in an ice cream that tasted like cherry pie. My friend Pete got peanut butter, cardamom, and M&Ms. His tasted like a savory Indian treat with a nice sweet smattering of M&Ms.
You may not have the same obsession with ice cream that I do, but if you do get down there before this summer. They just opened in October and in the colder months, there's no wait, but I bet the summer will be lines out the door.

Also, I saw a sign that they cater and I would love to hire them for a summer cocktail party

High Line Hot Cocoa

Of course, strolling the new High Line this summer was nice. Flowers, warm breezes, and everyone at a leisurely pace enjoying the view. In the less flowery holiday season, I didn't see myself visiting the High Line, but now I want to go. November's been unseasonably warm so far, but I hear it's about to get colder. Now that it's almost Thanksgiving, I'm craving New York at Christmastime and hot chocolate and shopping. Apparently, now on the High Line they're serving up one of those--hot chocolate. It's an organic hot chocolate stand with cocoa made from sustainably grown cocoa and milk from local farmers. If you're doing some Christmas shopping in the West Village, maybe hitting up Marc Jacobs for some accessories or the apple store for a new iphone, take a break and linger above the city for a while with some hot chocolate--I know that's my plan for next weekend.

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