buericana

View from my hotel room this week:

Times Square (Vote!):

After a bizarre dinner at Cafe 6 Sixty, John and I got ice cream at Jake's in Irwin Street Market. I, your standard Chocolate Slap Yo Mama while John tried a new Unfor'goat'able. Goat cheese and blackberry ice cream. Pricey, but worth it.

John and Townhouse spending some quality time together, apparently bathing, last night.

a.k.a Biscotti dello Canella-Zenzero
(adapted from Cooking Light Septemer 2008)


1.5 cups of flour
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp grated nutmeg
dash of salt
6 tbs butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 tbs fat-free milk
3 tbs molasses
1 tsp vanilla extract
cooking spray

1. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients, through salt. Stir with whisk.
2. Combine butter and sugar in a medium bowl and beat witha mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Beat in milk, molasses and vanilla extract.
3. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and beat on low speed until blended. Shape dough into a 6-inch disk.
4. Cover and chill 30 minutes.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
6. Shape dough into about 30 balls (about 2 teaspoons each).
7. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Flatten balls lightly with a spoon.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on pans for 4 minutes. Remove and cool completely on racks.

I made these last night. They were mild. Not soo sweet and very tasty.

A post from Design*Sponge recently made me flip through the Pottery Barn catalog I got in the mail yesterday.

I love this chandelier (also featured by Design*Sponge). I think it would be too much for our little place but it is definitely unique:

John and I have also been looking for a great wall piece for our dining room. I think we've finally found a winner but wonder if we can recreate this ourselves with smaller mirrors:

6 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup coconut
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/2 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
Cooking spray
1/4 cup dried fruit of your choice

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees
2. Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Add syrup, honey, juice and extract. Toss well.
4. Spread mixture evenly onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.
5. Bake at 300 degrees for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.
6. Cool completely. Store in an airtight container

Yield: 10 servings (serving size = 1/2 cup)

I recently bought this stationery from Simplesong. They really are gorgeous and the quality is excellent. Huge rave!

Saturday. Yay! Today after dropping off some old clothes to the Salvation Army, John and I went to my very favorite place in Atlanta, Star Provisions!

With Day of the Dead approaching, Star Provisions had cute merchandise and treats for the holiday.

The cafe has the most amazing treats. We've had the cupcakes before (obviously tasty) and (whether or not John knows it) I've had the caramel marshmallows (amazing, sickeningly sweet).

Today we tried a concha and a palmier. Delish. The concha could have been used as bread for a fancy sandwich. Perhaps gouda with carmelized onions? Or butter. While it was good plain, it would have been amazing with real butter. The palmier (a.k.a. elephant ear) was crisp and yummy.

Local farmstand outside of Star Provisions. Gorgeous!:

I coordinated a happy hour event for the women's group in the office this afternoon at Table 1280. FYI, this place is ideal for lunch interviews. Best crabcakes ever.

The drinks were strong, the food was pretty good. For $100 for each platter below, I felt the cheese was a good value but not the "tapas". Really, gherkins, hot peppers, etc.? When I heard tapas, I assumed warm food or tuna tartar. Oh well.

Today's J.Crew post is inspired by today's events. First, I went to yoga today and it made me want fun new yoga clothes. While I'm all about going to Target for workout gear, I just wanted to give a shout out to J.Crew attempting to have a yoga-wear product category. I think they have a limited offering of these items in stores. Wonder how it's doing. . .

The skirt below comes in several colors. They are so cute and colorful. However, I don't get how J.Crew can pull off keeping bare legged girls in peep toe heels as long as they do into Fall. Every year I think to myself, aren't these people cold? Do they walk to work in New York?

Lastly, I'm keeping my eye out for a peacoat for my husband. He'd look so European in it.

My company had a happy hour on the Rooftop Garden on Fifth Avenue and 27th Street with our parent company and sister companies.

The mini pizzas were delish. The crabcakes were fishy. The view was great!

I do not need or want sleeveless shirts. When do people wear them? At work, my arms would freeze and I'd have to throw on a cardigan or something which would completely miss the point. But I do love this with dark, cropped jeans:

Although I have officially abandoned strapless dresses (feel too bare with pixie short hair), I love this print and are those pockets??? Love pockets:

J.Crew had silk or satin polka dot dresses last year in a silver and green I adored them but the colors held me back. I should also note I hardly even wear the dresses/skirts I already have. Bad Erica bad. I need to go through my closet. Anyways, this red I love and the neckline is even more interesting than last season's base style:

At $378 this is well outside my price range but I am in search of a new bag for fall. I bet I can get something similar to this at a Fort Lauderdale flea market for like $20:

Left work after dusk tonight. The building below isn't my building but the reflection is.

Midtown.

One example of the difference between New York and Atlanta.

The new W in midtown Atlanta taken from my company's office. We have prime real estate on this balcony and don't use it enough.

Also, hideous picture of where I've been spending all of my time lately. Typical, masculine corporate conference. Good times.

Getting psyched for fall.

Definitely taking a day trip with John for apple-picking in North Georgia this year.

I prefer red apples. No clue on what type. I do know, through extensive sampling in multiple states, that apples with hard angles, are the best and sweetest. Never mealy. Seriously, look for apples that are literally almost rectangular and they'll be the best for snacking.

Perfect for M-F in Atlanta office

With this in mind, I'll expand on our trip this past weekend to Wood's Hole and Martha's Vineyard, a.k.a. the most relaxing vacation I've ever taken. Who knew 3 days, practically unplanned, could be so wonderful?

So, I arrived Thursday night, left Monday morning. Typical consultant weekend. I spent Friday working then we spent Friday evening dining. Yummy lobster roll. Minimal mayo:

Saturday I did nothing. Well, conceived this blog. But other than that, absolutely nothing. It was so unlike me.

Wood's Hole has great little beaches. At night, the entire sky is filled with stars. It made me realize when the last time I had seen stars was. In the water, you can also see bioluminescent plankton. So cool.

We headed to Falmouth, had a mediocre dinner then headed back.

Sunday we went to Martha's Vineyard. Took the morning ferry and landed in Vineyard Haven. We rented bikes and rode to Edgartown and Oak Bluffs. It was amazing and so much fun. My tailbone was on fire. As is expected, we had ice cream and fried food. That too, was amazing.

Oops. I'm still getting used to the posting daily thing. I'm at my parents house in Poquoson, Virginia. I literally haven't left the house since I arrived from New York on Wednesday night. Oops again.

Shout out to my first two comments. Thanks guys!

All caught up to August 27 pictures!

Home, visiting parents in Virginia. They're cat-sitting Townhouse. He met a new Halloween decoration today.