The Daily Scoop - Travelin' Cousins

October 21, 2016 - Pumpkin Eats - Vegan and Non-Vegan - Best in NYC AND Around the World

10/20/2016

Elisa's Daily Scoop
NEXT TRIP DEPARTS IN: NOT SURE YET

Pumpkin Eats

Hello!

Well, Friday arrived awfully fast this week! It seems that with it, we also are going to be saying hi to some inclement weather. That's okay. I don't mind the rain (as you all know). However, today is one of those days with lots to do AND a special night for my Gianna, so it would have been nice if to have a dry, crisp, Fall day and evening.

Let me get down to what I have on my agenda today...

Tonight is Gianna's first 7th/8th Grade School Dance and my schedule of "to do's" is being dictated by this event.

The Dance Committee requested volunteers to bring extra water for the kids' soiree, so I began my day dropping off, not only the kids at school, but also two cases of bottled water.

Next stop, (with Punkin in tow) was for my morning hot chocolate (am I addicted, or what!). Once home, I got to work finishing a load of laundry, which included the sheets (yuk - i hate sheet day, but it is what it is.)

Before I knew it, I had to get back to the school, as the girls have had an appointment for physicals on the calendar for which I had made back in early September. I didn't realize it was going to be the day of the 7th Grade dance when I scheduled it but, so be it.

With noon appointments, I collected the kiddies at 11:40 and headed over to the doctor. Whew!

Thank goodness, no one requires shots today - that's always a joyous experience. (I remember the time when Gianna was 8, I had to literally sit on her to keep her still so she could get the needle. Fortunately, she can laugh about it now, as I thought the experience might result in years of necessary therapy).

The afternoon will be pretty much about Gianna. I promised her a mani-pedi before the event. (I am due for a pedi, so I'll be joining her and I'm sure you have gathered that if two of us are getting beautified, then my third musketeer will also be in the fold for a pedi. (Kelsey just loves them and especially the foot massage part of it!).

Once we get home, Gianna will focus on her hair (and a SMALL amount of make up) and get dressed in her new dress and shoes.

The pre-dance Dinner is one of the traditions for the first time 7th graders attend the dance, and one of the family's has so graciously volunteered to host this event. Me and Kelsey will bid Gianna adieu at this point. A number of parents will be caravanning the kids to the dance after the dinner.

I'm still a bit in shock that this kid is going to a school dance!!

I cannot wait to hear all about it!

PUMPKIN EATS...
Well, this season is certainly all about the Pumpkin! Everywhere ya go, there is a pumpkin this or that. Whether it's a "pumpkin spice latte" or a "pumpkin Scone" or even pumpkin English Muffins! (Yes, they are seasonal, but oh, so good!)

I thought since it is Foodie Friday, I'd tell you about a few of my favorite Pumpkin delights!

1) Pumpkin Ravioli
There are a number of restaurants that put pumpkin ravioli on their menu during Autumn. I did some research and found a few restaurants where the critics have noted have particularly great pumpkin ravioli.

CBS NY Local:
Their pick is :

Boulud Sud
20 West 64th Street
New York, NY
(212) 595-1313

Pumpkin Ravioli at Boulud Sud (credit: boulud sud)

According to Jessica Allen, the pumpkin ravioli at this Mediterranean-inspired restaurant, helmed by Chef Daniel Boulud are lightly dressed with sage, brown butter, and an amaretti crumble.
(That makes my mouth water folk!)

Pure Wow
Their pick is:

Obica
928 Broadway
New York, NY
212-777-2754

Obica's Pumpkin Ravioli (credit:PureWow.com)

According to the review, Obica's ravioli has pumpkin-laced dough and a filling of spicy fruit mustard and Castelmagno cheese. Seriously?? This is a must-try for me!!

2. Pumpkin Soup
I'm a soup girl - love making it and love eating it!!
After reading tons of reviews, it turns out that Bouley Restaurant in Manhattan has one of the best Pumpkin soups (along with amazing food across the board!) in NYC.

Bouley Restaurant Pumpkin Soup (credit: andyhaylor.com)

Rated 4-1/2 stars on Trip Advisor and #2 of 9,926 NYC restaurants, with one reviewer commenting four times:

“One of the best restaurant in NYC”
5 of 5 bubblesReviewed October 4, 2014

“Best restaurant in NY”
5 of 5 bubblesReviewed January 20, 2015

“Best restaurant in New York”
5 of 5 bubblesReviewed February 11, 2016

“Best in NYC in my opinion”
5 of 5 bubblesReviewed October 19, 2015

And according to Andy Hayler's Food Guide,
"An amuse-bouche of pumpkin soup, ricotta foam and roasted chestnuts. This had plenty of pumpkin sweet flavour and was nicely seasoned."

If you want to try this - you need to get there fast, as Bouley will be will be closing at the end of the year. Rumor has it, David Bouley will be re-opening in a smaller space.

3. Pumpkin Desserts
This was one of the "funnest" researching I've done in a while.

The only negative is that I was reading and looking at pictures of these sweet treats late at night and was STARVING and craving everything!

I decided to select several of the desserts that repeatedly came up on reviews by individuals on sites like Yelp, as well as those highlighted as favorites by respected publications such as Food & Wine.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies at One Girl Cookies (credit: onegirlcookies.com)

One Girl Cookie: Whoopie Pies
With three locations, all in Brooklyn, One Girl Cookie has been noted on several review sites for their Pumpkin Whoopie pies - a cross between a cookie and a cake.

Dumpling Man's Pumpkin Dumplings (credit: yelp)

Dumpling Man: Pumpkin Dumplings
100 St Marks Place
New York, NY
212-505-2121
I had to see and read for myself about this NYC dumpling eatery and am determined to get downtown to try their Pumpkin Dumplings. Made with pumpkin pie mix and gogi berries, the dumplings are steamed and vegetarian.

Doughnut Plant Pumpkin Doughnut (credit: doughnut man.com)

Doughnut Plant
With locations in three boroughs - Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, this place has some interesting doughnuts going on.

I have just added their Queens location to my "visit" list and plan to take the kiddies.
Their Pumpkin with Spiced Pepitas doughnuts is a seasonal specialty since 1994!

It is available in yeast, cake and a doughseed filled with fresh pumpkin cream.

Well, I hope this blog was as appetizing to you as it was for me writing it!!

I have just added the above eateries to my must-visit list and I'll be doing Foodie Friday features in the near future!!

Here's to a wonderful day and the start of a great weekend!!

-E
xoxo

Tanya's Daily Scoop
NEXT TRIP DEPARTS IN: 1 DAY

Pumpkin Days and Vegan Pumpkin Finds during my travels!

HIYA GUYS (and GALS)!

Isn't it funny that you go around just naturally saying "you guys" even if you are referring to a group of females! Well at least I do. Maybe it's just me.

Anyhow who's ready for the weekend?

Any big plans? Anything fun? Or are you in need of some good ol' R&R (Rest & Relaxation)?

As you know I'll be heading off to Mendocino early tomorrow morning for a few days of all three - big plans, plenty of fun and good ol' R&R!

In fact I'll be reporting LIVE from NorCal as of tomorrow :)

Meanwhile the kids actually have a performance that I was unaware of when booking and planning this trip. So luckily they will be carpooled to their event.

Speaking of the kids and their events and performances, as of yesterday we got conformation for yet another Christmas Tree lighting performance, and this one is for the Queen Mary and for their winter extravaganza -

CHILL & The Ice Kingdom

As reported here in our W2GW (Where to go Wednesday) back on November 5th, 2014:

Chill & The Ice Kingdom
WHERE: The Queen Mary, Long Beach
WHEN: Select dates from November 23, 2016 - January 8, 2017
WHAT:
ANNUAL HOLIDAY ADVENTURE AT THE QUEEN MARY -
An experience like no other, CHILL transforms over two million pounds of sparkling ice into larger than life hand carved colorful ice sculptures in the 14,000 square-foot Igloo called The Ice Kingdom, located inside the Queen Mary's Dome, formerly home to the legendary Spruce Goose.
Experience the frozen magic that will bring holiday celebration, wonderment and North Pole temperatures to families across sunny Southern California.

And this year they proudly present Alice in Winterland, an incredible holiday adventure illuminating a holiday inspired re-imagination of the classic Lewis Carroll story in striking colors & equally stunning light fixtures.
Wander through an immersive 14,000-square foot experience that tells the story of Alice in Winterland featuring hand-crafted lanterns made from hundreds of pieces of silky cloth and countless hours of preparation in a beautiful visual celebration of the holiday season. RFID technology make the experience truly interactive as you unlock the wonders of Winterland!
CLICK HERE for more info

Other not so great information that I came upon yesterday was in booking our car hire (rental) for our February 2017 Euro Ski Circuit. We are doing a one way rental and let me tell you - the prices are truly OUTRAGEOUS!!
I've got to admit that I became rather dejected by all of this. I'm hoping that I find a much better deal than those I was coming up with yesterday.

Wish me luck!

Now on another note and a tastier note at that, it was Elisa's suggestion that we do a little FOODIE FRIDAY talk about one of the Fall's most looked forward to flavors - PUMPKIN.

Now I have to admit, I'm actually not the biggest fan. Okay go ahead and get all of your gasps out of the way.

It's Pumpkin this and Pumpkin that everywhere you turn.

It's true I don't sought after all of these Pumpkin Flavored Fall Specialities.
But I have to tell you that although I don't go for too many pumpkin foods, the Pumpkin Bread that I make for Thanksgiving is honestly the Bomb dot com.

I'm not bragging or anything, but it is super DELISH and 100% vegan. Not a soul who has ever tasted it would ever guess, and each year I have no choice but to make more and more loaves to satisfy the peeps - it goes fast and if I don't make bunches than I don't end up getting any!

OUT OF THIS WORLD PUMPKIN BREAD

The BEST Pumpkin Bread (c)travelincousins.com

Not to mention all of the Pumpkin Lattes and the such. There are also vegan Pumpkin Pies and Pumpkin Cheesecakes!

And I totally understand if you are not vegan, that you might be wondering how is cheesecake vegan - well of course dairy cheesecakes are not whatsoever vegan, but the vegan foodie world is becoming more and more amazing and they can make some shockingly great "cheesecakes"!

Here's a pumpkin one that was ordered by Dave last year while up in Santa Barbara at Mesa Verde Restaurant:

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake (c)travelincousins.com

And just a bit about a week and a half ago Dave and Cosette ordered Pumpkin Latte donuts from the "oh so good" Valhalla Bakery in Orlando.

PUMPKIN LATTE DONUTS

Assorted vegan donuts and the 2 on the bottom left are Pumpkin Latte Donuts! (c)travelincousins.com

Now one dish that I was shocked about and throughly enjoyed was a Pumpkin Curry that I had at the Loch Roag Guest House on the Isle of Lewis while while traveling in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.

PUMPKIN CURRY

Pumpkin Curry (c)travelincousins.com

Here are a few more Pumpkin ideas that even sound good to me and for all the vegans and vegan curious out there:

ROASTED CAULIFLOWER AND PUMPKIN SWIRL DIP