Brooklyn Baby (Part 1: Ice cream baby!)

JRD and I traveled down to New York City last weekend for my older sister's (IAM's) birthday scavenger hunt extravaganza! After a long day of running around Manhattan taking crazy pictures of ourselves with strangers and blue vampire teeth we ventured back to Brooklyn and were needing something to eat. Walking back to her apartment from the subway we came across Blue Marble. Of course, IAM had been there before, in fact just earlier that morning when she had taken my little sister there for breakfast!

Blue Marble is an ice cream shop with two stores in Brooklyn. What really got me was the toppings. Balsamic vinegar, honey, and fleur de sel were among the options for your ice cream! Unfortunately, when I asked what they recommend for the balsamic the girl working said, "It is wonderful on the strawberry ice cream, but...we don't have it right now." So then I asked what she recommend for the fleur de sel not seeing any caramel flavors. Her response, "We love to put it on the Dulce de Leche that we usually have but...we don't have it right now."
Have no fear! I ordered a rich scoop of this luscious dark chocolate ice cream on a sugar cone with fleur de sel sprinkled on top.

JRD had the pumpkin ice cream - sweeter than I expected and so good. A cold thing that could make you feel warm and cozy. perfect.

They have coffee and baked goods too (thus the breakfast...). Nothing is made in or by the shop but they are proud to tell you where it all comes from - always a great sign. Their way of bringing everything together makes for a great feel. With a tall wooden fence lining the wall, light blue and whit-ish paints that make the place feel open and bright, beautiful chalkboard menu and lovely staff (at least the one and only girl there when we went) Blue Marble feels as good as the treat you are getting!

Eating off the Norwegian Land: (Part 1: the Berry Edition)

These days eating directly from the earth usually means visiting a farm with a "pick-your-own" crop; shopping at the farmers market or growing a few vegetables as experiments in the backyard, or on the deck in pots or a little patch of well fertilized dirt. This is a glorious and satisfying way to get my food, but, never before have I just been able to feel like the casual roaming reindeer eating what the land provided for me!

One of the most magical parts of the second half of my vacation was the time that I spent in a cabin in rural Norway. Just up from a glacial fed lake that provided the drinking, washing, and swimming water, the cabin was our cozy home for 6 days.

There were two things that covered the ground: Blueberry bushes and reindeer moss. Luckily we were there at the height of the blueberry season. (Reindeer moss is actually a slow growing lichen that has a misty green hue that makes everything look enchanted.)

We had blueberries for breakfast. We put blueberries in our cocktails. We made blueberry galettes and blueberry crumble. We ate blueberries on the way to the lake. We ate blue berries on the way to the outhouse. And never did I feel like I had too many!

On our last day we took a long, dramatic and beautiful hike. Like good Norwegians we had chocolate bars with us for energy and morale. However, there was nothing better to keep me going than the occasional mountain raspberry that we found along the way. It is hard to tell, but here GA is picking one.

Bright pink-red berries peeked out of bushes on the sides of mountain cliffs. They may be the sweetest, softest berries I have eaten.

Oh, Norway, I’ll eat your berries anytime!

Hot diggity dog!

There is a little place to stop in between the United States and the rest of Europe called, Iceland. The landscape is stark; the blue lagoon is hot; the population is small; the capital is small; the puffins are small.

I had two days and I was focused on two things: baby puffins and hot dogs. In my pre-trip research I learned that while we were arriving a week after pride in the only country with an openly gay head of state that at least we were in time for watching puffins!
I also learned that among various forms of putrefied shark meat this little country was known for a delicious hot dog. This information proved to be the anchors of our loose agenda.

Hot dogs in Europe are different. They are crunchier and spicier and well topped. In Iceland the absolute best place for one of these deluxe dogs is Bæjarins Beztu, a metal stand down by the water. The classic is served up with a dark & sweet mustard, ketchup, fried onions and raw onions on a bun. In 48 hours, more than one trip was made here. What tasty and satisfying food which proved to be the cheapest meal on my vacation!

It was only upon going through customs on the way home that we learned Icelandic hot dogs are one of the few meat products the discerning U.S. of A. will not confiscate.
I really blew that opportunity. If anyone is going…pick me up a pack?






(don’t worry, I also went on a puffin watch and got the best view of the city while watching the struggle that is the flight of the odd little puffin. Two members of our group even enthusiastically ate puffin at a local restaurant. I understand that it was very smoked.)