As I went to prepare dinner last night, I wanted to keep up my vegetable streak and decided to center dinner around an eggplant we had sitting in the fridge.
I made my favorite eggplant medallions, served on a bed of arugula and topped with ricotta cheese, spinach, spices, turkey pepperoni and marinara sauce.
Any time I cook with ricotta cheese, I swear I end up eating a cup of the creamy cheese during the preparation process. It’s so darn delicious!
After dinner, we took Sadie on a wet walk (it rained all day yesterday) before heading home to hang out and enjoy a relaxing night on the couch.
Workout
Today’s workout was a cardio hodgepodge!
I began with 30 minutes of incline walking/running that resembled last Wednesday’s incline walking workout, but with more running thrown in the mix.
Then I did 10 minutes on the elliptical before picking up a jump rope to jump it out for the remainder of my time at the gym.
I jump roped for one minute straight before resting for 30 seconds, repeating the sequence 10 times through.
Jumping rope is such a humbling experience. It’s tough!
Breakfast
The highlight of today’s breakfast was almond butter.
Last week, Justin’s sent me some of their nut butters to sample and this morning I polished off the remainder of the maple almond butter.
I spread the almond butter on top of a toasted whole wheat bagel, topped with bananas and chia seeds and served with a side of fresh strawberries.
One thing I really like about the maple almond butter is that it only has three grams of sugar, yet it still tastes slightly sweet. Its been hard to keep my fingers out of this jar!
New York City Bound
Over the weekend I spent a lot of time with one of my best friends, Merri.
Some of you may remember when she moved to New York from Orlando. I’ve been wanting to visit her ever since she moved to the city and finally bit the bullet and bought a ticket to fly up there next Friday to spend the weekend with her and our good friend Ashley who will be flying in from Chicago.
I am pumped!
Merri has been there for several months and has a grasp on the city, but we’d love to hear any recommendations you guys might have for “must dos” while we’re visiting The Big Apple.
NYC, here I come! 
![\"Quantcast\"/](\"//pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-1e3-7hOJ_U8Bg.gif\")
I LOVE NYC! I’m super jealous! You obviously must get your hands on some cupcakes and if you’re interested in a Broadway show while you’re there, you can stand in the crazy Times Square line for tickets. We did that as kids and got amazing seats for Beauty and the Beast. People thought we must have known someone in the show. 🙂
Go to Dylan’s Candy Bar…and get a drink at Eataly! You won’t be disappointed!
I live in NYC so pumped that you get to enjoy the city!
One place that I love if you want a really good cocktail is PDT. Check out their website—www.pdtnyc.com. Its a speakeasy feel and you enter by pressing in a code in an old telephone booth the hostess gives you. the telephone booth is in crif dog’s (which serves up multiple varieties of awesome hot dogs that are also served in PDT because it’s attached!) The only catch is you have to call THAT day to get a reservation but for an unbelievable cocktail in a cool space….totally worth it!
as far as italian—some of my favorites are apizz and the frankie sputinos in the west village. If you’re going fancy, SD26 in flatiron has an unbelievable ravioli filled with egg yolk drizzled with truffle butter.
and i haven’t even started on the bars! You’ll have such a blast and the best part is just walking around and experiencing it 🙂
Well, this may be a given, but you have to go shopping! Check out the huge Macy’s, H&M, and Forever 21! Plus they have a ton others!
Chelsea Market is a MUST do for food!
Central Park is the best place for exercise/ people watching.
oh my gosh there is SO much to do in nyc! i can’t wait, i’m going with 3 of my best friends from high school this weekend (only for a night).
definitely go to the wax museum and/or dylans candy bar! both so fun!
Oh my FUN!!! NYC is awesome! I love H&M anywhere there….oh and you must eat some pizza!
Your b-fast does look awesome 🙂
You should definitely walk along the high line and go to Chelsea Market. Also, you HAVE to go to Mario Batali’s on 5th ave!
Justin’s Maple Almond Butter is HEAVENLY! Love that stuff.
You’re going to LOVE New York! If you can make it to the wax museum, definitely go. It’s the PERFECT girls outing. Especially snapping pics with Justin Timberlake.Just sayin’! 😉 If you can make it out to Physique 57 to take an exercise class, I would recommend going there too. It’s an incredible workout.
Hi Julie! As an NYC girl, I have tonnssss of recommendations for your trip! Frozen Yogurt at Sixteen Handles… Cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery… Dinner at Market Table or Stanton Social.. Central Park… and you can never go wrong with Brunch in NYC on a Sunday!
BAGELS! Like from Murrays or Pick a Bagel on 3rd- you won’t be disappointed!
OH – and get some pizza, either Lombardi’s in Little Italy.. or John’s in the west village/Bleecker St. Central Park is amaaazing too. Can you tell I miss living in NYC?
If you are a fan of dim sum, you MUST go here: http://www.jingfongny.com/
I went a couple of weekends ago with my boyfriend and younger brothers–and we all loved it. It was such a crazy experience and fit for absolutely everyone.
Maple almond butter sounds amazing! I wish it was available in Canada.
I love weekend trips to NYC – my favourite thing to do is just wander around Central Park and get lost in all of the different neighbourhoods.
My first comment ever! I live in NYC and have so many suggestions, many of which have already been called out here. I totally recommend going to Eataly (the pasta place in the back is delish too), Grimaldi’s (I prefer the original Brooklyn location over the one in Chelsea), Levain (def recommend the dark chocolate pb cookie, size of a hockey puck!), burgers and concretes at Shake Shack, Russ & Daugthers (awesome lox), Katz’s (When Harry met Sally spot for pastrami sandwiches), fancy decadent brunch at Norma’s, fun place for a girls night out would be Beauty & Essex.
You should definitely walk the High Line and walk through Central Park, walk across the Brooklyn bridge if you have time…there’s a lot of walking in the city but it helps to burn off all the food! =P.
Oh and I remember you loving Amorino on your trip to Italy… They opened one up here last year near Union Square! Not sure if it tastes exactly the same but I love the petals of gelato.
Are you going to host a blogger meet-up? I live in NYC and would love to meet you?!
You must go to Eataly, Chelsea Market, and Union Square for the gorgeous food. As it’s going to be cold, make sure to try the hot chocolate at Bouchon Bakery.
For shopping, I highly recommend the West Village for style inspiration. Then try Beacon’s Closet and Buffalo Exchange, awesome second hand stores where you can use your new style ideas to craft outfits at half the price!
have fun!
-Sarah
If you have time definitely go to Serendipity 3 for the frozen hot chocolate! It’s such a classic NYC spot and so delicious! Everyone should go at least one time in their life!
I hope you have a blast in NYC! Go see Wicked!!!
I went recently for a bachelorette party and we ate at La Mela (www.lamelarestaurant.com) in Little Italy. We ordered from the ‘family style’ menu and it was SO good!
Justin’s maple almond is my favorite!! But my whole foods back in stl was always out of the little packets I bought for work:(
definitely go to chelsea market! Also, Sugar Sweet Sunshine has delicious cupcakes and banana pudding (a must try). It’s cheaper and yummier than Magnolia or Crumbs. Try a Shake Shack concrete and a donut from Doughnut Plant. And if you like rice pudding, definitely go to Rice to Riches. Have fun!
totally agree with lots of the recommendations on here…John’s pizza and pb co in the village (def go shopping in the village and soho is also great for shopping and next to the village), serendipity for frozen hot chocolate (and right next to bloomie’s :)), stanton social is amaz tapas on the LES-just had the goat cheese pierogis last weekend (YUM!). Libation is a fun bar around the corner from it. Norma’s at the parker meridien may be the BEST brunch spot ever, def need to make a res in advance. other rest’s…gabriel’s (columbus circle) has delish homemade pasta’s, blt prime-worth it just for their popovers!, atlantic grill has great seafood. oh and hot dogs from greys papaya! and their papaya juice!
i saw jersey boys last weekend and people sitting next to me got their tix at the booth, so def be on the lookout! also LOVE rock of ages! you pretty much can’t go wrong, i would def suggest a musical over a play.
as far as bars, anywhere in the meatpacking district if you are looking for fun/trendy! the gansevoort hotel has a rooftop bar (with heaters), griffin, SL, the Standard hotel has a couple of fun bars and has a pop up ice skating rink as well (barside).
230 fifth also a rooftop has heat lamps and gives you robes to wear!
I don’t ever eat donuts but Donut Planet is the most mouth watering donuts in amazing flavors! It’s a must anytime we go to NYC. Also, Crumbs, their cupcakes are to die for!
I am going to jump on the Levain bandwagon…it’s a great way to check out the upper west side too. I definitely recommend seeing a Broadway or off-Broadway play, esp if this is your first time in NYC. I recently saw Avenue Q and it was awesome. It’s hilarious…I was laughing the entire time. Also, starting your day with a NY bagel is a MUST. Everyone has their favorites but after trying nearly every popular bagel shop here (yes, really), I am partial to Absolute bagels. It’s very far on the upper west side though…on 108th street, near Columbia Univ. Second place would go to Murray’s bagels in Chelsea. Hope you have a great time in NYC!
hiya Julie! Are you planning on shopping, eating or going to see the ballet or a Broadway show!? have you heard of the Wicked lottery? you go there at 8 am and put your name in, wait around while you grab a cup of hot coffee and go shopping in Fossil and then they draw names for $25 tickets for front row seats! be there at 8 am any morning on 41st and Broadway that’s where the Wicked Theater is! you’ll win, ill bet!
You definitely need to hit up Serendipity3! The best freakin ice cream (and the size of your face) you’ll ever have!
For Food:
Definitely Katz’s Deli for pastrami sandwiches in the LES
Chinese: Jin Fong for Dim Sum (go early on the weekend. Lines are crazy on Sunday late-morning afternoon). If you want more of a sit down feel go to Joe’s shanghai. One word: SOUP DUMPLINGS!
Japanese: Ise in midtown east for a crazy good lunch special for sushi/japanese bento box sets. There’s also Ippudo for Ramen. It’s crowded, but other good finds are Minca, R
Mary’s Fish Camp or Pearl for Lobster Rolls (DON”T do Luke’s Lobsters. It’s cheap, but horrible)
Italian: I like John’s of Bleeker too or Bleeker Street Pizza nearby for their Grandma pie (It’s so saucy with lots of fresh basil) I also like Gorgionne’s in soho for fresh italian. lots of seafood, Meatball Shop for Meatyballs and HUGE icecream sandwiches
Tapas: El Quinto Pino
Dessert: Max Brenner is a very touristy experience. It’s crowded and it’s just chocolate. I think DessertTruck/Work’s has Chocolate Bread pudding with Bacon or Vanilla Glaze that is bomb. Try checking out the Doughnut Plant, Lula’s Sweet Apothecary for vegan but tasty ice cream, Milk Bar for Cereal Milk Softserve and crack cake, or Jaques Torres for hot chocolate/ ice cream with a fresh waffle cone. There’s always PB&Co that would probably tickle your fancy
There’s Shake Shack and Eataly by Madison Square Park that are always fun also.
Central Park for a Run or stroll.
NYU/ Washington Square Park to pretend your every teen on a tv sitcom: Felicity, Gossip Girl, etc..
My favorite things to do are walk around soho or shop on 5th ave at all the flagship stores, lol. There’s lots of museums to go to also. Some are free if you work at certain companies/go to school. Others are donation based. Sex museum is fun with a bunch of girlfriends.
You could enter lotteries to see some broadway shoes or buy it day of at a cheaper rate.
There’s always something going on depending upon the weekend.
If you need more suggestions on places to grab a drink or places to go at night let me know.
I’d say exploring brooklyn also!
Perhaps Milk &Honey for drinks with the girls. They make specialty drinks!
Oh and if you’re going to do cupcakes, go to Crumbs! Magnolia is overrated
So I live in Chelsea so I am a little bit biased but I think a great thing to do with you girlfriends would be to go to Chelsea Market – Sarabeth’s there is delicious for breakfast or Amy’s Bread which is pretty much a stable in NY. Also then you are right in Meatpacking and near the Highline which is great to walk around. Some amazing restaurants around there are Cookshop or Westville. love love. Aaaand, if you want to grab a drink later on, there is a coffee shop on 9th avenue called Stone Street. At night, there is a red light lit above a hidden door in the wall and you walk into a speakeasy called the Gin Bucket. It’s $$ for nice for a cocktail with some lady friends! Let me know if you need any other recommendations. I spend my weekends finding nice hole-in-the-wall/great atmosphere places 🙂
How exciting!!! I hope you have a great time in NY! And I LOVE almond butter, so far my favorite is the Trader Joe’s brand!
Your dinner and bfast plates look awesome- stacked with flavor! I loveee trips to NYC 😀 Something about the city always wants me to just pick up and move there… Have a blast! Shopping, sightseeing, eating, girl time- sounds like the ingredients for a fab trip!
You MUST go to Pipa! It is my favorite restaurant in all of New York. BEST tapas I’ve ever had and the environment is so amazing. Make sure you make a reservation though, or you will never get a table. http://www.pipa-nyc.com/
I live in NJ and so I often venture into the city for the night. My recommendations:
-Eataly – Mario Battali’s brand new Italian food market/building full of gourmet Italian restaurants and food stands
-Artichoke (couple locations; google it) delicious pizza! if you like spinach dip or alfredo sauce, i’m telling you, the spinach artichoke pizza here will floor you. it’s that good.
-Little Italy: Il Fornaio. Cute little place with some of the best and most authentic Italian food I’ve ever eaten. It’s one of the only restaurants I eat at in Little Italy because we can never pass up going there! And Ferrara’s Bakery for their famous (chocolate-dipped!) cannolis or gelato.
-Could be fun to get a CityPass for the day if you haven’t done much sightseeing there. For around $80 you can go to the top of the Empire State Building, go to Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island, and do a bunch of museums (art and history).
-Food tour: These are really fun! A guide leads you around a certain part of the city and for a set price you get to taste samples from each of the food places on the tour and hear about the food and its history in the city.
PS if you want tickets to The Chew or Live with Kelly let me know! I can probably get you on the tasting table for the Chew if you want…YUM!
Lenvain bakery for the best chocolate chip cookie EVER!!! Or if you are in the village- Momofuku milk bar- Chocolate cookie dough truffles- amazing. And candle cafe on the Upper east side for some nutritious vegan food 🙂
Chelsea is fun for vintage shopping and obviously soho for top shop, lululemon, all saints, h&m, etc. Have fun!!
OH! and the breakfast here is awesome: http://bubbys.com/bubbys-tribeca/
I have been meaning to ask you for some time now… where can i find chia seeds?? I am quite intrigued and have been wanting to try them but haven’t been able to find them in my local grocery store!
they sell them in the bulk bins at whole foods and trader joe’s!
New York is the best place ever! You must walk around Greenwich Village, eat cupcakes, maybe go to a comedy show? I love the Comedy Cellar near NYU. Fab museums and Broadway shows (of course…my favorites are Jersey Boys & Avenue Q). Central Park, if it’s not too cold!
Oh man, Justin’s maple-almond is my FAVORITE, but it’s completely impossible to get a jar of that flavor in stores and if you buy from their site, it ends up being a $15 jar of nut butter. Can you please talk to them?????
I second the blogger meetup (even though i’ve been slacking on the blogging lately!). My favorite places in the city that have already been mentioned are Bubby’s, Dos Caminos or Rosa Mexicana, and Magnolia. Ferrara in Little Italy for desserts is a must. And my all time favorite bar is a Hidden Gem in the West Village called Little Branch. It’s cash only and a bit pricey but they have live jazz every night starting at 10:30.
The High Line is a scenic trail(Free!). It is an old train track that was made into a garden walkway near the Harbor!You have so many pretty views! Not a lot of people know about it so its a hidden treasure! There are restaurants that you can eat at, annnnnd its in the west village so you NEED to stop at the PB&Co. store to of course 😉
Here’s a link because its hard to explain how neat it is:
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/JION8hhg7q6zyayHYwhxIw?select=8p9AkGGFMNPyG9hEXp2cAQ
If you want to see a show, I recommend Follies (for the all star cast and because it is supposed to be absolutely incredible) or Book of Mormon (for something funny) if you don’t mind spending the money and can get tickets. If you still have a student ID, you can probably student rush almost any show you’d want to see for $20! Also, I recommend eating at La Bota in Greenwich Village. It’s Spanish food and tapas. I went there on my recent trip and it was fantastic. Also, the black and white cookie at Junior’s. And there is a place called Blockheads in the theatre district that has $4 margaritas!
I don’t know where Merri lives in NYC, but most of my recs are going to be in Brooklyn.
For a brunch/lunch you should check you Fabiane’s in Williamsburg. The place is super cute and they have the BEST creme brulee I’ve ever had! It’s the kind of place where you want to sit for hours with a cup of coffee and talk each others ears off. http://www.fabianescafeandpastry.com/
I agree with all the recommendation for Max Brenner. That man is a chocolate genius!
If you want to try out an old fashioned coffee shop go to Peter Pan Bakery. Their decor is all original stuff from the 1950s. Super cute and not to mention the donuts are the size of my head.http://www.yelp.com/biz/peter-pan-bakery-brooklyn
Have an amazing trip!! 🙂
What a coincidence, I’ll be there, too! I’m leaving next Wednesday and coming back the following Tuesday. We vacation there as often as we can, (when the tickets are cheap, we got them half price from Southwest). In fact, I just got engaged there last Christmas Eve. My now finance proposed in Central Park – he said he felt like he was in a Hugh Grant movie but I loved EVERY minute! ha okay, back to the reccomendation: MONSTER SUSHI on 46th is the best I’ve ever had. And the best part? Generous potions at a very reasonable price. Also WAVERLY DINER on the lower east end is hard to beat. Great homestlye food for a reasonable price. It’s also just a block from Washington Square Park which is full of history and neat stories!
It really is overwhelming, hopefully the weather is mild so you can do a lot of walking, I think that really is the best way to see the city. Have a great time and although highly doubtful, maybe we’ll cross paths!
Grimaldi’s for pizza, in Brooklyn, but expect a bit of a wait, so dress warmly. I think everyone else did a good job covering food. 🙂
Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, if it’s not too cold. Take the Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty, for free. Check out Central Park, Union Square, Canal St, the Empire State Bldg, Rockefeller Center (that skating rink is SO much smaller in person than on TV), Grand Central Station. Walk down to the 9/11 memorial- I don’t think you can go into the memorial without a reservation – they only allow 10,000 people a day, but just being near it is amazing.
If you like museums, check out the Museum of Natural History (near Central Park). It’s free to visit the NY Public Library, and that’s near Grand Central Station.
Have fun – there’s so much to do, depending on what interests you. 🙂
Definitely go on a walk through Greenwich/ West Village. Don’t pay to do one of the tourist tours (i.e Sex and the City tour), but you can walk by really cool spots on your own like the Friends building (it’s on bedford and grove) or Carrie’s stoop, located on Perry Street in the West Village. Even though it’s touristy to go visit those buildings, you’ll find so many cute little whole in the wall restaurants and shops along the way, which is the best part about NYC.
Great local spots in the village – Little Owl & Cafe Cluny
Dos Caminos is good, however, it’s super overpriced. You can find so many great Mexican places in the village as well (try Agave).
If you want great Thai, go to Hell’s Kitchen.
Oh, and definitely check out PB & Co. It’s so cute and I love their sandwiches!
Just watched Man v Food when Adam was in his hometown of Brooklyn and he went to 2 places that looked delish!
Brennan & Carr for scrumptous looking roast beef sandwiches dipped in aus jus, family run and apparently the best roast beef in NYC since 1938!
L&B Spumoni Gardens for Sicilian pizza, cheese on dough sauce on top, looked so good!
Go to “The Smith” for brunch. You’ll definitely have to wait, but it will be well worth it. Might I recommend the Vanilla Bean French Toast!!!!
And of course, run in Central Park!!
I’m so excited for you 🙂
Happy Thursday!
YESSSS I’m excited for you!
and you must go to the rooftop bar I visited my first night in NYC. must, must, must. all the info is in this post:
http://www.lifeofblyss.com/2011/12/wordless-wednesday-scenes-from-nyc/
and if you like vodka, hit this bulgarian bar. they have some sweet dance beats, too (no, but really.. they do).
When you’re in chelsea market, make sure to stop at Amy’s bread…i love the whole wheat irish soda bread and all of their other whole grain bread varieities
Ahh New York is so much fun! We got engaged there, and it will always be one of my fave places to visit. When we went it was my first time so we did some touristy stuff like going to the Statue of Liberty (which was pretty darn cool even just for the incredible views of the city) and lots of shopping and eating yummy food. You have to go for a run in Central Park! Museum wise we loved the Morgan Library, the Met, and MOMA. We stayed at the Ace Hotel which has an amazing restaurant there, The Breslin. We were blown away, everything there was incredible!! For a more casual/less expensive dining experience I recommend Anthony Bourdain’s restaurant Les Halles. Delicious casual French food, we loved it so much we went back for brunch! And our favorite meal was at Gnocco, a beautiful Italian restaurant on the Lower East Side that was just incredible. I’m sure people who actually live in NY will give you lots of good ideas but this is just my 2 cents!