Back to the Black Dog

One trip to the Black Dog is NEVER enough..so ABF & I stopped by one afternoon to try some more sweet treats.

New Lane Sundries

Each year on Thanksgiving weekend, Martha's Vineyard has an Artisan Fair. Every craft you can imagine, from hand-tooled leather to seascapes to gorgeous woodworking and more is in the Agricultural Hall in West Tisbury.

I especially enjoyed these funky fish! There's also an artist who works with mosaic glass --her work is stunning. But my most favorite stop of all is New Lane Sundries!

The Perfect Pub

The Newes From America is always a stop for ABF & me when we visit Martha's Vineyard. It just happens to be a decent, 10-15 minute walk from our hotel, too. And when it's cold, windy, and super-wintry outside, few things sound better than a warm cup of chowder and a cold beer.



Our first visit there was actually the first time I ordered a beer (I'm more partial to wine myself). However, it just felt like a "beeyah and chowdah" night. I ordered the Newes' signature beer, light version, known as the Lime n Light Lager (brewed in Providence!) It comes with a splash of Rose's lime juice. And it was AWESOME. It was light, it was drinkable, and it didn't have any malty, yeasty aftertaste. I will definitely be making this a regular there.




ABF ordered the seasonal beer from Sea Dog (based in Portland, ME), which that week was the Oktoberfest brew. I had a sip of that and was surprised at how layered the flavors were--spicy, hefty, and quite lovely. I found it so lovely that I had a few more sips. ;)




I decided to try something new instead of getting the World's Best Chicken Sandwich, which is what I usually order. I got the chicken breast stuffed with prosciutto and swiss cheese. It came on a bed of mashed potatoes and sauteed green beans. YUM! The mashed potatoes were just so-so, but everything else was delicious.




ABF got the chicken sandwich, which again, is one of the BEST sandwiches I've ever eaten. Grilled chicken, roasted peppers, pepper-jack cheese, and chipotle mayo. YES. I absolutely had TWO bites of this. And swore I'd get it the next time we returned (which was 2 days later).




Once again, no room for dessert--one of our only downfalls when we go there. Dinner is so delicious, and the beer so fabulous, that there's no room left at the inn.




Oh man...what I wouldn't give to be right back there now...sitting in front of the fireplace and loving life. Le sigh.

Newes From America Pub
23 Kelly St
Edgartown, Massachusetts 02539

The Black Dog Bakery

One of our first stops on the island of Martha's Vineyard (our annual trip after Thanksgiving Day) is always the Black Dog. Usually it's for breakfast or lunch in Vineyard Haven Harbor...but until this trip, I'd actually never sampled the sweets. We stopped this time at the smaller outpost about a mile outside the Harbor.

The genuinely warm young woman behind the counter was quite welcoming and assured us that the chocolate-chocolate chip cookie was worth my time--she said she eats one almost every day. Sold! ABF got the regular chocolate chip, as well as a plain donut.

We also got some strong & delicious Black Dog Coffee---please notice the differences between my coffee (on the left, with half & half) and ABF's (right, with just a dash of milk).

The cookies were outrageously yumtastic--one bite and I wondered if my mother had suddenly started worked on the Island! The chocolate-choc chip also had walnuts in it--win!

There's plenty of seating, and it was clearly after the lunch rush when we snapped these photos!

The toughest part at TBD is narrowing down your choices...one of the best problems to have!

I'll be back for these tempting cupcakes...and more, I'm sure.

The Black Dog Bakery
11 Water Street
Vineyard Haven, MA
508-693-4786

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I hope by now you are happily stuffed with some of your favorite foods, and warm from the glow of spending time with people you really like. Or at least some kick-butt pets. ;)

  

What are your favorite Thanksgiving foods? Mine are definitely turkey and gravy, as well as that canned cranberry sauce (yes I know it's mostly sugar and I don't care!), but a solid pumpkin pie is important, too. I ate all of these today--hope your day was yummy, too!


Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

My very first-ever Pecan Pie!

I admit it: I have long snubbed pecan pie.

My senior year of high school, this dessert, treacly sweet and inedible to me, was at every single college dinner, awards ceremony, etc. I put it aside and dismissed it as not worth the time and calories. But a while back, and I can't even remember where, I tasted a bite of ABF's dessert (he is a fan) and it was unlike any pecan pie I'd ever sampled. It wasn't so sweet that my teeth hurt, it had depth and texture and wasn't all gooey. Okay, time to tackle this treat after all.

Cherry Pie

This Thanksgiving I made another cherry pie, though I hit a snag or two in my routine. Foodtown no longer carries the sour cherries I normally use. My only option? Pre-mixed pie filling. I didn't know if it tasted good, was sicky sweet, or anything, but time was ticking, so I had to go with it. Also? EIGHT DOLLARS A JAR! What?!?!

Sweet Potato Rolls

I baked. So help me, I baked rolls. For Thanksgiving Day! And they were good. Sound the village bells!

On top of the pecan and cherry pies, I got inspired to make these rolls for Thanksgiving, too!

TJ's Alsatian Tart

I bought this Alsatian-style tart at Trader Joe's on a whim. It sounded delicious and an awful lot like the amazing one we at The Modern (review here!), so I tossed it in the cart. Gruyere Cheese? Caramelized Onions? Plus it was around 5 dollars--deal!

I was impressed to see it looks almost exactly like the box's photo. Don't you hate it when the actual food is nothing like the picture?

After 10 quick minutes in the oven, the tart was ready. I probably could have baked it a little longer, but there is such a thing as too brown for me when it comes to crust.

I had a (heartily-peppered) slice of this with a cup of Trader Joe's organic tomato soup (LOVELY!) and enjoyed every bite of this tummy-and-soul-warming meal on a cold winter's night. It's light, fresh, not a bit of grease--win-win-yum!

Champagne, Cupcakes & Curls!

Thanks to That Sara, of NYC Nom Nom fame, I had an unexpectedly wonderful Wednesday evening the other week. She had a spare ticket to a Gilt City event at Ouidad's 'Curls' Night Out' event. I was already home for the night in Brooklyn, but I'm always up for something fun (free shampoo, styling, champagne AND cupcakes!?!? Shiver me timbers!!) so I hopped right on the subway and made it there in a record 42 minutes! Yay, Q train!

Artisanal: Sweet

We so enjoyed our main courses at Artisanal, and since most of us ordered the prix fixe menu (a set price for a smaller range of menu options), dessert was included. Let's get cracking, then!

Artisanal: Savory

As I've mentioned before, one of our supervisors at work takes out our whole staff (about 9 of us) each quarter for a delicious lunch 'meeting.' Okay, it's really more of a lunch, though somehow we still end up talking shop more than not. This time we went to Artisanal on a rainy, bleak, wet November day.

Swyrl

Swyrl is a self-serve frozen yogurt spot in Lynbrook, Long Island, not far from where ABF lives. We've gone there twice now with his family, usually a niece or two or three in tow, and it's definitely delicious.

Pom Party!

The perfectly lovely people at Pom Wonderful chose my blog (along with about 99 others) to host a Pomegranate dinner party--and they sent me plenty of pomegranates to make that happen! This exotic (but approachable) fruit was the centerpiece of the meal, and they encouraged us to serve it up in different ways.

I decided to throw this party on the same day as the New York City marathon, which goes right past my building each year. ABF's sister, brother-in-law, and nieces were among the guests, and they came with mimosa fixings. Awesome! We took it up a notch and made "Pomosas," which was Moet & Chandon champagne with a hefty dose of 100 percent pomegranate juice. These were gorgeous and delicious--look at that ruby red beauty!

I also put my Trader Joe's apple cider (like a liquid apple pie!) in the crockpot and let it simmer, filling up the whole house with an unmistakable aroma of fall. A splash of pomegranate juice and it took on a whole new flavor. Yum! (Don't worry--Mitzi didn't get near it until AFTER all the guests left--please don't bother to call the Health Department.

For my savory dish, I sauteed chicken breasts in a pomegranate reduction. This was SO easy to make, but it tasted like it took a lot more skill than it did. :) I sauteed some shallots in olive oil, a bit of butter, red wine, and of course, freshly-squeezed pomegranate juice! This had a tart, juicy feel to it and it went so well with the chicken.

I paired it with some quinoa, which I mixed with freshly-chopped cucumber and of course, pomegranate seeds. A drizzle of pomegranate molasses (a gift from a friend who visited Turkey) finished off the dish.

ABF repeatedly told me how delicious this was, and I have to agree with him: it was pretty righteous. The tartness of the pomegranate is balanced by juuuust enough sweetness, and the color is just downright gorgeous!

I feel like I'm seeing pomegranates everywhere, and now they aren't the least bit intimidating. I hope you'll pick up one next time you hit the produce section--they're as tasty as they are beautiful. Thanks again, Pom Wonderful!

Full disclosure: While Pom Wonderful provided me with copious amounts of pomegranates, a kick-butt apron, and giveaway bags for my guests, I was not required to give a glowing review...it just deliciously worked out that way!