Dean and Deluca is one of my favorite specialty grocery stores in NYC to wander around in. The displays are always beautiful and although it’s a bit on the pricey end the products there are top notch.

D&D has a great website- for anyone not near a store- and I was scrolling around today looking for a few gifts and wanted to share some of my findings with you. Plus, I’ve been a bit too healthy around here lately and need to shake things up a bit- oh, except for the waffle cupcakes on Monday, right.

Some of my faves on their site now? The above marshmallow box, a heart shaped s’mores gift, the Parisian Creams, and lastly those beautiful chocolate covered strawberries. Such pretty gifts, no?

Find them all here on the D&D site- and if you can, wander into a store. They are also doing a fabulous popcorn feature right now, if I needed another reason to sway you.

I don’t always highlight all different types of cuisine here on YMC- so I’m attempting to be better at that. I remember the first time I tried a raw food restaurant with my lovely friend Filippa (of the fab website Raw Clarity) I was a bit hesitant. I had visions of that Sex and the City episode where Samantha takes the girls to a raw food place and they all end up taking those horrible green shots.

Boy was I wrong- the place that we went in NYC had the most amazing food I have ever eaten. I had this amazing falafel salad that tasted like the real thing, sushi rolls that didn’t involve any rice or fish, and a raw gingersnap with cashew cream that rocked my world.

I wouldn’t have known it was “raw” if Filippa didn’t tell me. So now, whenever we travel I make it a point to try to hunt down a raw food or vegetarian place. I don’t eat like that often, so it’s a nice treat to try out something new. Here are a few that I’ve tried throughout our travels.

New York City
Pure Food and Wine- where I had the above magical meal. A must try- my favorite menu items are the falafel salad, raw tacos, “sushi” rolls, and any any any of the desserts

One Lucky Duck- same owners as the above, more smoothies and to go items. You absolutely have to try the raw rosemary or cheezy “quackers.” Oh, and the cookies- eat the cookies

GOBO- My favorite place vegetarian place in NYC. The seitan skewers with green tea mustard sauce are heavenly, scallion pancakes with mango salsa are a must,  and the shitake caps with mashed sweet potatoes and raisins are..the..best.

Lifethyme Natural Market. The best vegan and raw desserts in town. Hands down.

Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida

No one was more shocked than me this week (I’m was down filming for Daytime TV) to discover that St. Pete has an amazing raw food restaurant tucked away on Central Avenue. Leafy Greens is such a gem. You must try the coconut macaroons and the spiraled raw pasta. Holy yum- The spiraled raw pasta and raw macaroons pictured above are both from there.

Rolling Oats is a health food store with an assortment of great vegan and vegetarian options. Also nearby? Spinnergy, the best Spin classes.. right up there with Soulcycle.

Los Angeles

I didn’t have much time to check out the raw food assortment in LA- but there is a lot of it. What I did have time for was M Cafe.. a macrobiotic restaurant in Beverly Hills. I have no clue what macrobiotic means, but I do know that I had the best cauliflower couscous there and a salmon bowl that was out of this world.

Salt Lake City

Oasis Cafe, vegan and vegetarian options- with some fish/meat items too. This was hands down my favorite place to eat in Salt Lake. Zucchini wrapped tofu in a tomato basil sauce and the honey lavender polenta (omg- that polenta) were two of my favorite items. Braved a snowstorm to get there, if that tells you anything

Cafe Supernatural, a beautiful little place with a yoga studio inside. I spent a few days here enjoying the yoga classes, peaceful setting, and not to mention the raw noodles and delicious shakes

Sages Cafe, the guac and roll sandwich was delish

Any healthy/raw/vegan/vegetarian places in your town or city…let me know! Would love to check them out

Thank you everyone for all of the kind comments and emails about the post this morning- I’m glad it spoke to you.. just trying to keep it real around here..

A few bits and pieces for your afternoon

I found these raw sunflower seeds that combine cocoa powder and a bit of heat- it’s a perfect combo of the two and I can’t get enough.

Women’s Health Magazine informs us of the best exercises we aren’t doing- all of which can be done in your home. Perfecto!

You can make them at home, but goodness.. these kale chips are perfection

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies that are flourless AND 50 calories a piece? Yes please

I get lots of questions about how I stay so fit and yet enjoy all of these wonderful creations that I adore torturing you with. I think they started when Paula Deen came out with her diabetes diagnosis…. I kid, but seriously.

There’s nothing that makes me crazier to hear someone say, “Oh, I can eat whatever I want- then, you know.. I just run around after my kids and I get this insanely toned beautiful body.” You guys know those types.

Truth? I am in very good shape- and I’m proud of that. Truth? I work my butt off, literally.. to stay that way. Typically 4-5 days a week. It’s not easy, it’s not always fun- but I enjoy being fit and so that’s what I do. There’s nothing more stress relieving to me than to try a new workout- from spinning to weight lifting to a group class.

The fact of the matter is, you can workout all you want and if you eat like crap all of that working out will go out the window. Seriously, no point. So how does this work for me when I enjoy baking so much? I will tell you.

Every dessert that you see on this blog- I taste to make sure it’s a recipe I want to share with you all. Some things  that I adore I eat the entire serving of, like cupcakes/cake. Other things that I don’t love as much- like cookies- I just have a bite of to make sure they are good and that’s enough. Extras I have are given to friends, neighbors, or put in my freezer for when company comes.

I just think there’s nothing more misleading than a blogger acting like they are cramming cookies, cakes, brownies, and buttercream into their faces day in and day out. It’s the reason why I try to only post one set of desserts a week on YMC- it’s just not realistic for me to do more than that when I post daily.

I also do most of my baking on what I consider my cheat meal days- Wednesdays and Saturdays. These are the days where for dinner I have exactly what I want, dessert included. Two meals a week aren’t going to wreck your diet and they keep me from eating an insane amount of dessert in one sitting- because I know when the cheat day rolls around again I’ll get another great dessert.

To some this may seem crazy, only having two cheat meals a week. However, it’s what works for me. I really do enjoy healthy foods- as you’ve seen from a lot of the dinners and lunches I post on YMC- and I like how they make my body feel. End of story.

I hope the honesty has helped. Being healthy and fit is a lot of work, but if it’s something you enjoy.. then it’s worth it.

I got to thinking one day, why should we just enjoy breakfast at, well..breakfast time? You see, breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Hands down. It’s when gear up for the day ahead and if you follow me on twitter you know I’ve been eating the same pumpkin oatmeal with peanut butter for the past 6 months- possibly more.

So why not combine two of my favorite things- breakfast and dessert? Seemed like good enough reasoning to me…

Yes, my creations seem to get crazier and crazier these days- I really can’t help myself. I also think that if my math textbooks had been cookbooks I really would have done much better in school. I blame my creative (crazy sweets obsessed) brain.

Waffle Cupcakes:
2 cups of flour
3 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 cups of buttermilk
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake pan with liners (or grease the pan)

Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside
In a mixer, beat the butter, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla extract until combined. Little by little, add in the flour mixture to the buttermilk mixture. Slowly mix until just combined

Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until tops spring back when touched. Remove from pan and cool fully before frosting

Vanilla Whipped Cream Frosting and Nutella Garnish
3 cups of whipping cream
5 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Using a mixer, whip the cream on high speed until it starts to thicken. Turn the speed down to medium and pour in the sugar, continue to beat until soft peaks form.

Lastly, add in the vanilla extract and continue to beat until the cream is smooth and stiff. Ice cupcakes and garnish with a drizzle of melted nutella and cut up waffles

Guys, this app for the iPhone/iPad is life changing (and I wasn’t paid to say this)- and I apologize if you don’t have an iPhone. However, go download Diptic today- you can build amazing collages from the photos on your phone (and photo edit too). Then, share them via email, facebook, instagram, or twitter.

So, via collage- this is what last week looked like for me. Cupcakes, tulips, chocolate raspberry coffee, and mini pears. Oh my!

Pure love

Because I think everyone- during this dreary winter weekend full of cold air and sniffles- needs a little dose of summer. It’s not that far off my friends.

aquamarine ring, beach sea coral bowl , surf beach art print, beach pillows, sea glass necklace

You guys are going to think I’m Chrissy obsessed this week- from her awesome shots in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit to this feature on StyleCaster… but honestly, how could I not share this article?

It’s great, involves food, Chrissy looks fabulous- and it combines my love of looking good and cooking. So, to end this Friday I say go check her out on StyleCaster- and then head over to her blog So Delushious for good times.

TGIF!

bliss is…a friday morning

the scent of  warm cookies baking in the oven

pretty flowers in mismatched vases

a glass domed cake plate

a pink frosted cupcake with sprinkles

morning, with a hot bowl of oats and a steaming mug of coffee

a clean house, the scent of freshly scrubbed floors

a scented candle

hugs

a kind word, a compliment

a turquoise tea kettle, a bright blue pot

a quiet weekend spent away soaking in the sunshine

no cell phones, no computers, no distractions

happy friday and much bliss

to all of you

xx,

YMC

Maybe it’s the rainy and gloomy afternoon weather in NYC? But once I saw these Tea Party images shot by the insanely talented Jenny Haas I at once had to start planning a tea party in my head.

I envision little finger sandwiches, sparkling glasses of champagne, sweets galore, big hats, floral dresses. Oh man, the list could go on and on.

Not very helpful for a person who needs to be packing to head to the airport shortly.. ah well- however, I will most definitely be having a tea party this spring. Who says they are just for kids?

Also, if you are in the Dayton, Ohio area you must hire Jenny- I don’t know her, but if these tea party photos she took are any indication- she does an amazing job.