Lunchtime Links for May 29th, 2015

• Damn Delicious: Shrimp Fajitas in foil.
• Brown Eyed Baker: Chocolate pound cake.
• Kirbie's Cravings: Biscuit beignets.
• Handle the Heat: Nutella stuffed churros.
• The First Year Blog: Layered mocha mousse brownies.

NYC Visit - Doughnuts

I spent Memorial Day Weekend up in NYC to visit friends, and had a great time with some great weather!  I honestly wasn't planning on it being so doughnut-centric, but hey, not complaining.

On Saturday we took the ferry out to Smorgasburg in Williamsburg, where there were TONS of food lovers checking out all of the different vendors.  There's a lot of different foods to choose from, but I definitely wanted to get a doughnut from Dough.

I took this beautiful Cafe au Lait doughnut back with us from Smorgasburg, and we tucked into it as a late afternoon snack. This was - AMAZINGGGGGGGGGGGGGG.  So, so delicious.  The hours of being carried around outside in a paper bag still left the doughnut tasting fresh and really tasty.  This flavor is "A blend of fresh roasted coffee beans and pecan brown sugar tops our signature glaze."  The topping was crunchy, sugary, and amazing, but the doughnut itself was fantastic too, it was sturdy without feeling heavy, and not greasy tasting at all.  I definitely want to try more of their doughnuts again! 

Then, the morning of my departure, my friends and I hit up Doughnut Plant, which I LOVE.  As you can see there were lots of flavors to choose from that morning! 

Here we have from top to bottom - Vanilla Bean and Strawberry Jam, Tres Leches, and the Coffee Cake doughnut.  They were all delicious, but my heart might belong to the Coffee Cake doughnut - it's got such an intense coffee flavor, and the crunchy topping is awesome. 

Of course I couldn't just buy one doughnut - I had to get two more to bring home, haha.  Here we have the Chocolate Chip Cookie doughnut and Chocolate Hazelnut Doughseed.  I loved the Chocolate Chip Cookie doughnut both for the flavor and texture, it's perfect for any chocolate fans.  The Chocolate Hazelnut Doughseed was good too, but I think I preferred the doughnut base of the other ones moreso than the lighter Doughseed base.  As you can see, I had a delicious and fun weekend with friends!

Lunchtime Links for May 28th, 2015

• I Heart Naptime: Pepperoni meatballs.
• Crazy for Crust: Peanut butter cookie gooey bars.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Easy grilled chicken.
• The Kitchn: Funfetti mug cake.
• Damn Delicious: Parmesan corn on the cob.

Kit Kat - Orange

I'm the first to admit that I'm not a huge fan of fruit-based sweets, but of course curiosity beats actual preferences for me in most cases, haha.  

I got these Japanese Orange Kit Kats a while back and was surprised that they were not white chocolate based.  I guess I assumed that the fruit flavored Kit Kats would automatically have a white chocolate base, but as you can see on the box, these look like the regular milk chocolate Kit Kats on the outside.  The orange smell isn't too strong, but you can definitely taste it once you take a bite.  They reminded me a lot of those chocolate oranges that stores sell during the holidays - the ones where you smack the "orange" on a table to crack it open into segments.  I like oranges, and chocolate, but more so separately than together like this, haha.  But, if you already like those chocolate oranges, you will definitely like this Kit Kat flavor :o) 

Lunchtime Links for May 27th, 2015

• Warm Vanilla Sugar: Guacamole.
• Averie Cooks: Chocolate peanut butter dream bars.
• Creme de la Crumb: Chicken lo mein.
• I Heart Naptime: Homemade tortilla chips.
• Love Swah: Nutella stuffed chocolate chip cookies with sea salt.

Georgetown Cupcake - Raspberry Peach Cupcake

This recent free secret flavor was a fun variation on Georgetown Cupcake's regular fruit-based cupcakes! This consists of a raspberry cake topped with peach frosting.  As you can see, there's plenty of fruit throughout, especially in the peach frosting with the little orange-ish bits.  The combination of raspberry and peach reminded me of both fruit iced tea and Popsicles, haha.  The flavors work really well together, and since it's fruit-based this is totally healthy, right? 

Lunchtime Links for May 26th, 2015

• How Sweet It Is: Grilled kale BLT dip.
• Serious Eats: Light and fluffy pancakes.
• Creme de la Crumb: Tomatillo avocado salsa.
• Cookies & Cups: Soft peanut butter cookies. 
• Bake at 350: Twix brownies.

IKEA - Spring Designs

I recently went to my local IKEA to check out the new spring items.  I mainly focused on the kitchen and accessory sections, which had lots of fun designs and new items!  

These fruit trays are around the size of a small notebook, and add a punch of color to any space.  The raspberry tray is currently holding my sunglasses, and the fruit tray is being used in the kitchen to hold smaller items.  The glass tealight holder's dots and rounded shape reminded me of an old ice cream bowl actually, haha - and will be a cute addition to my other candle holders.  If you have a patio/deck or like to entertain outside, I think IKEA's spring items would be a perfect addition to your home! 

Shake Shack - Memorial Day Weekend Specials

It's Memorial Day Weekend here in the US, which also means Shake Shack specials this weekend!

"In addition to our beloved Shack classics, we’ll be serving up two seasonal specials this Friday, May 22nd through Monday, May 25th: the epic yet elusive Shack Corn Dog (Vienna all-beef hot dog dipped in Shack-made corn batter, cooked golden brown and served with Rick’s Picks sweet corn relish; $4.50) and fan favorite Red Velvet Cake Concrete (vanilla frozen custard blended with a slice of delicious Shack-made red velvet cake; Single: $4.75/Double: $6.75)."

The corn dog is awesome, and I imagine the Red Velvet Cake Concrete to be similar to their Red Velvet Custard, but with even more cake blended in, haha. Be sure to head on over to Shake Shack if you've got one near by and check out these specials! 

Lunchtime Links for May 21st, 2015

• Brown Eyed Baker: Classic pound cake.
• Serious Eats: Seafood recipes.
• Buzzfeed: S'mores Oreos.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Rosemary and roasted garlic whipped butter.
• Crazy for Crust: Red velvet fruit pizza.

Georgetown Cupcake - Banana Caramel Cupcake

Bananas and caramel might not seem like a natural match at first, but of course the good folks at Georgetown Cupcake manage to make it work, haha.  

This free secret flavor consisted of their delicious banana cake topped with a generous amount of caramel frosting.  Thinking about it now, I've seen recipes online before for banana bread with caramel glaze, so it probably isn't too much of a stretch to put the two together.  This worked really well as a cupcake flavor, with the banana and caramel flavors balancing each other out nicely.  This was a fun flavor to try out! 

Lunchtime Links for May 20th, 2015

• Handle the Heat: Chocolate brownie peanut butter swirl ice cream.
• The Kitchn: Spaghetti with turkey Bolognese.
• Two Peas and Their Pod: Chocolate cupcakes. 
• Smitten Kitchen: Fake Shackburger.
• Weelicious: Microwave mug double chocolate brownie.

Shake Shack - Cookies n' Chocolatey Cream Custard

The Cookies n' Chocolatey Cream custard that was recently offered at Shake Shack is an cookies and cream lovers' dream, mmmmmmm.  As you can see it was stuffed to the brim with "cookies and cream cookies" - I say it that way because they don't specify that it's a certain brand, that might start and end with an "O", haha. 

Regardless of what brand the cookies are, this cup was AWESOME.  Lots of smooth custard mixed with a generous heap of cookie crumbles - what more could you ask for? Anyone that loves cookies and cream ice cream would definitely love this one! 

Lunchtime Links for May 19th, 2015

• A Spicy Perspective: One pot chicken pasta with light basil cream sauce.
• Kirbie's Cravings: French toast donuts.
• The Pioneer Woman: Homemade chicken nuggets.
• Creme de la Crumb: Pepperoni pizza lasagna roll ups.
• Table for Two: Curry chicken salad.

Georgetown Cupcake - Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake

This Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake might be one of my favorite cheesecake flavors yet! This May flavor from Georgetown Cupcake is a Creamy peanut butter cheesecake cupcake studded with Callebaut chocolate chips and baked with an Oreo crust, dipped in a rich chocolate ganache icing and topped with a peanut butter swirl.

The Oreo crust on the bottom is a great addition to the rich chocolate and peanut butter flavors.  It's like a Reese's Oreo in cheesecake form, and really delicious! I would highly recommend this cupcake flavor if you also love peanut butter and chocolate together - this one is an instant classic! 

Lunchtime Links for May 18th, 2015

• The First Year Blog: Chocolate cupcakes with chocolate buttercream.
• Just Bento: Ekiben (train station bento).
• Smitten Kitchen: Toasted marshmallow milkshake.
• Averie Cooks: Stovetop macaroni and cheese.
• Two Peas and Their Pod: Fettuccine Alfredo.

Doughnut Flip Flops

I don't normally shop at Kohl's, but I recently received a $10 coupon in the mail and figured I'd go check out what they have.  I did have my eye on some of Lauren Conrad's spring/summer clothes, but didn't find anything that I loved.  As I was meandering around, a colorful display of flip flops caught my eye.  I mean, how could I NOT own a pair of doughnut flip flops, right?  These also happened to be on sale, so I knew that it was meant to be.  I look forward to wearing these around all summer! 

Lunchtime Links for May 15th, 2015

• Seasons and Suppers: S'mores brownie bars.
• Two Peas and Their Pod: Salted caramel butterscotch blondies.
• Kirbie's Cravings: Roasted honey garlic cauliflower.
• Handle the Heat: Soft batch cookies.
• Picky Palate: Triple chip blondies.

Shake Shack Baltimore - Salty Balty Concrete

Now THAT is a perfectly crafted Concrete!  This photo is from my recent visit to the Shake Shack in Baltimore, MD.  It's basically across the street from the Baltimore Aquarium, so it's very easy to find if you are in that area.  Of course I had to try one of the location-specific Concretes, so I went with the Salty Balty: Chocolate and vanilla custard, chocolate truffle cookie dough, cheesecake blondie and sea salt.   As you can see, the Concrete looked perfect, with an even distribution of both cookie dough and blondie cubes.  This was AMAZING, especially the chocolate truffle cookie dough cubes,  and I highly recommend that everyone tries this out if they're in Baltimore! 

Lunchtime Links for May 14th, 2015

• Kirbie's Cravings: 4 ingredient cookie butter muffins.
• A Kitchen Addiction: Banana chocolate chip snack cake with peanut butter frosting.
• Picky Palate: Chocolate chip cookie for one.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Garlic Parmesan fry bread.
• Cookies & Cups: Chocolate marshmallow pie.

Georgetown Cupcake - May Flavors

We have another fun month of May cupcake flavors at Georgetown Cupcake in May!

- Lavender Earl Grey Teacake: Classic Madagascar Bourbon vanilla cupcake infused with lavender sugar and Earl Grey tea, topped with an Earl Grey tea-infused buttercream frosting, a sprinkling of lavender sugar, and a pink fondant flower

- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake: Creamy peanut butter cheesecake cupcake studded with Callebaut chocolate chips and baked with an Oreo crust, dipped in a rich chocolate ganache icing and topped with a peanut butter swirl

- White Chocolate Raspberry: Classic madagascar bourbon vanilla cupcake baked with fresh raspberries and white chocolate chips, topped with a white chocolate buttercream frosting and a fondant flower

- Mother's Day Chocolate: Sunshine vanilla frosting on a valrhona chocolate cupcake topped with a pink MOM heart fondant

- Mother's Day Vanilla: Sunshine vanilla frosting on a classic madagascar bourbon vanilla cupcake topped with a pink MOM heart fondant

Lunchtime Links for May 13th, 2015

• A Kitchen Addiction: Salted chocolate peanut butter chip cookies.
• Kirbie's Cravings: Coffee jelly.
• Two Peas and Their Pod: Asian cucumber noodle salad.
• Brown Eyed Baker: Peanut butter lover's icebox cake.
• Serious Eats: Japanese bottled iced teas.

Pinkberry - Salted Caramel Frozen Yogurt

I tend to stick with the delicious Original Tart flavor frozen yogurt whenever I go to Pinkberry, but the Salted Caramel intrigued me enough to switch up my order, haha.  

Here we have the Salted Caramel frozen yogurt with sliced almonds and the chocolate crispy things - do they have an official name? - that I love, they are so tasty!  I loved that the caramel flavor was strong, but not overwhelming.  It went perfectly with the chocolate and crunchy almond slices- it was a perfect combination!  With summer fast approaching I anticipate a lot of frozen yogurt in my near future :o) 

Lunchtime Links for May 12th, 2015

• Brown Eyed Baker: Chunky, chewy peanut butter cookies.
• Creme de la Crumb: Tomato spinach Tortellini soup.
• Warm Vanilla Sugar: Nutella swirled banana bread.
• Two Peas and Their Pod: Garlic bread avocado toast.
• Handle the Heat: Banana hazelnut cake.

Starbucks - S'mores Frappuccino

Recently, Starbucks came out with quite possibly one of the best Frappuccino flavors ever invented - S'mores!! This delicious concoction consists of  "Marshmallow-infused whipped cream, milk chocolate sauce, a creamy blend of graham, coffee, milk and ice finished off with more marshmallowy whipped cream and a graham cracker crumble."

And, to top it all off, the S'mores Frappuccino was available during a recent Frappuccino Happy Hour, which meant I could try it out at 1/2 price :o)  The layers of marshmallow, chocolate, graham crackers, and coffee was awesome! This will definitely be a delicious way to celebrate summer, and I'm sure it'll be a big hit with anyone that loves S'mores flavors.  Starbucks also recently announced that they will have Mini Frappuccino sizes available until July - so you can feel SLIGHTLY less guilty about having one of these, haha. 

Lunchtime Links for May 11th, 2015

• My Baking Addiction: Snickers chocolate chip cookie bars.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Cafe Rio copycat sweet pork quesadilla.
• Brown Eyed Baker: Guacamole.
• Cookies & Cups: Ritz s'mores bars.
• Damn Delicious: Baked Caprese chicken.

Georgetown Cupcake - "I Love Mom" Chocolate Ganache Cupcake

Yesterday was Mother's Day, and while my mom and I celebrated last week when she came to visit, I was able to enjoy this cupcake on her behalf, haha.  This free secret flavor is Georgetown Cupcake's classic chocolate cake with chocolate ganache frosting, topped off with a Mom fondant heart.  It was a super cute cupcake, and rich with chocolate flavor.  I hope other moms everywhere celebrated with cupcakes, or another equally sweet dessert on Sunday! 

Lunchtime Links for May 8th, 2015

• The Kitchn: Super-thin brownies.
• My Baking Addiction: Ghiradelli stuffed brownie sundaes.
• Love & Olive Oil: Double chocolate peanut butter stuffed cookies with sea salt.
• Creme de la Crumb: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Bundt cake.
• A Beautiful Mess: Green tea and white chocolate Tiramisu.

Shake Shack - May Custard Calendar

Happy May everyone!  We have another month of fun custard flavors at Shake Shack:

May 1-3: Oatmeal Creme Pie
May 4-10: Red Velvet
May 11-17: Cookies n' Chocolatey Cream
May 18-24: Caramel Walnut Cake
May 25-31: Strawberry Cheesecake

Lunchtime Links for May 7th, 2015

• Gimme Some Oven: Buffalo chicken tacos.
• Handle the Heat: Chocolate covered cheesecake bites.
• Averie Cooks: M&Ms chocolate chip cookie bars.
• The Comfort of Cooking: Thomas Keller's roasted chicken.
• How Sweet It Is: Tres Leches cake doughnuts.

Ben & Jerry's Salted Caramel Core Ice Cream

This blog post comes a little later than the other Core flavors, but this one is also definitely worth mentioning!  The Salted Caramel Core ice cream by Ben & Jerry's consists of "Sweet cream ice cream with blonde brownies & a salted caramel core."

If you're a fan of caramel, you will LOVE this ice cream! There's plenty of caramel throughout the ice cream thanks to the thick core down the middle of the pint.  The blonde brownie pieces are also delicious, and there's plenty of them mixed in to the ice cream.  There have been lots of new Core ice creams that have come out recently, but this one is definitely worth a try! 

Starbucks - Frappuccino Happy Hour

From today through May 10th between 3-5pm, head on over to Starbucks for their Frappuccino Happy Hour and enjoy 1/2 priced Frappuccinos, woo!  

I usually try to stay away from ordering Frappuccinos because they're not exactly... the healthiest... but, I usually like to get one during these special 1/2 price times, especially if there's a new flavor.  This year, there's a new S'mores flavor that I definitely have my eye on - it looks delicious!  If you're looking for an excuse to get a Frappuccino for an afternoon treat, I would definitely recommend heading over before the 10th!