Han + Diana Eats! A Food Blog: October 2013

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Madison Square Eats ! Doughnuttery, TacoTown & Stuffed Artisan Cannolis

Man.

I have been swamped. Life has been moving so fast, and in just another day, I leave for three weeks (! !!) for a long vacation in Southeast Asia - so you can only imagine the wonderful food photos I'll have in store for you next month ! Because...

Not only am I going to Southeast Asia...I'm meeting Diana in Taiwan ! Han + Diana + Night Markets. Seriously. Who knows what can happen? (Besides us gaining lots of weight!)

But before I go. Can I share with you long overdue photos of my tasty little discovery at Madison Square Eats called Doughnuttery?

They're usually found in Chelsea Market if you can't make it to Madison Square Eats, but either way, you'll definitely want to check them out sometime, JUST to watch the tiny baby donuts being made. But also hopefully to eat them too!

Similar to the machine at The Daily Dozen in Seattle's Pike Place Market, the automated donut maker releases dough into a lazy river of hot oil.

The donuts glide along, getting flipped halfway to ensure both sides are a beautiful golden brown.

And then they cascade into a wired rack bin (though I would've much preferred just to put my mouth under there). What a beautiful process !

Different than The Daily Dozen (which is plenty delicious in its own right), the Doughnuttery offers a variety of gourmet flavored and spiced sugars in which to toss the doughnuts.

We chose the cacaoboy for my chocolate-loving boytoy, and enjoyed the earthy combination of cacao nibs, chocolate cookie crumbs and mesquite. It was rich but not too sweet.

I went with mulled apple cider, drawn to its description of green apple, fall spices and orange zest. Naturally it tasted bright and fresh, and I sopped up every bit of the excess sugars at the bottom of the bag with the mini doughnuts. I have a feeling you can't go wrong with any of the sugars, but I'll definitely be back for more to confirm that hunch (the things I do for you!).

In addition, we stopped by Delaney BBQ's stand to check out their taco offering. I know what you think I got based on this picture.

And I know you'll question everything in life when you find out we got the brussel sprouts taco ! (Oh how I was staring down that fried chicken hard though !)

But it really was good. Surprisingly. Brussel sprouts ! In a taco ! The brussels were cooked perfectly - tender without a hint of bitterness. And add in those picked red onions and dressing - dang, it made a nice (unguilty!) bite...

...to make up for the two cannolis we had to get from Stuffed Artisan Cannolis. Since I love them. And I never have any clue where to get them.

Tried the peanut butter and the pumpkin this time. The peanut butter was meh (again, I astound you!), but the pumpkin was light and lovely - crisp, not too sweet, and just a perfect way to round out your Madison Square meal.

Welp! That's it ! Will post soon when I return from all the adventures ! Have a great fall !

Han's Nonsensical Rating: I'm nuts for Doughnuttery. Pricey little buggers at 6 for $4 (especially when I can easily eat a dozen), but a cute, fun treat.

Doughnuttery
425 W 15th St New York, NY 10011

Delaney's TacoTown
Madison Square Eats @ Madison Square Park

Stuffed Artisan Cannolis

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Whisky Live Boston 2013

We were thrilled to be invited to Whisky Live's Boston event this past week, and now - after hours of drinking and eating - we can't wait to incorporate more whisky into our lives!

It was an amazing tasting event at the beautiful Park Plaza Castle.

Jesse is looking super suave with his crystal tasting glass and press badge.

Our first stop was Lagavulin. Jesse had the 16, I believe.

It was delightfully smokey - so yes, the peatiness was apparent. I loved that they brought along a little "Peat" with them.

We then tried the Oban 14.

We were told to take a sip and then take a bite of the ginger candy. This was, in fact, a genius suggestion, as the gingery sweetness really brought out the flavor of the whisky.

Our favorite stop was the Hudson whisky stop. We loved the bottles, the single malt, and the man in charge was most awesome.

He's a like a whisky superhero.

I also loved the Old Ipswich stand, because of these four words: golden marsh spiced rum.

It smelled heavenly before I even tasted it. At first sip, you immediately think of a crisp fall evening... the hints of nutmeg and cinnamon were to die for.

We were also intrigued by Japanese whisky.

I tried the Hakushu, which was pleasantly earthy and had a lightness to it.

Throughout the event, we were treated to entertainment on high from bagpipers.

Too awesome? Indeed.

The event organizers realized that limitless whisky without some grub would be a dangerous combo. And so, behold, there was a delicious buffet before us.

There was an amazing beef dish, butternut squash ravioli, all kinds of tapenades, and lots of other things I didn't eat because I was too focused on the aforementioned.

I ate three different versions of this plate. (Y'know, going back and forth between more rounds of whisky-tasting. 'Twas only necessary.)

That. butternut. squash. ravioli. Thank you, The Catered Affair, for catering this magical dinner!

But yes, back to whisky. We also tried Parker's Heritage Collection bourbon - a limited edition. We loved that $20 of each $90 bottle will go toward ALS research.

The label includes the phrase "Promise of Hope." Just lovely.

My absolute favorite drink of the evening came next at the Koval stand.

The ginger liqueur was absolutely divine. It tasted so fresh, so gingery... I could taste all the 60 pounds of ginger that the nice lady said they peel for every bottle. Just perfect. Koval also happened to have the best swag of the evening, but we missed out! Next time, next time.

Our last stop was The Balvenie. I asked, "Which one is the most delicious?" And within .5 milliseconds, the guy poured me a sample of the 21 year single malt. (Which was, in fact, delicious.)