Military Latte

NYFW is one day away and when it comes to maintaining the energy of a marathon runner, I've been drinking a whole lot of what's called a military latte. Originally created in Japan and then onto Chicago, I stumbled upon an article a couple of years back about the interesting coffee concoction.

Named for its camo-like surface, the drink is made up of a matcha latte, cocoa powder, espresso and vanilla syrup. I know sometimes it is made with white chocolate but since I'm trying to avoid sugar (I think it's the culprit behind my breakouts) I opted it out of the ingredients when it came to making my own version of it! 

I would love to be one of those cool people that can create latte art such as beautiful leaves, hearts, unicorns and more. They even do 3d art now which is so amazing! This is my first attempt at any kind of latte art and I have to say it's not all that bad! What do you guys think? I also used a larger matcha bowl for aesthetic purposes. The green brings a nice accent with the dusting of the matcha powder. 

Photos + recipe by © Suzanne Spiegoski

Military Latte

Serves 1

(Matcha green tea latte, cocoa powder and espresso)

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons coffee/espresso.

1 1/2 tablespoons matcha green powder

12 ounces milk

1 tablespoon vanilla syrup

dash of cocoa powder

Directions:

1. Mix espresso, matcha and vanilla syrup together.
2. Add warm steamed milk.
3. Sprinkle a dash of matcha and cocoa powder on top to decorate.

What's your energy booster as of late? Are you more of a coffee or a tea drinker? I love both which is why I had the idea to blend both worlds together, to begin with. You can definitely say my cooking is definitely focused on fusion cuisine! I can't wait to share more food content, but fashion week starts tomorrow so stay tuned for lot more content on that for the next couple of weeks! So much more to come, I can't WAIT to share with you what I'll be doing in the next couple of months! 

LOVE & XX'S,

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Sun Basket Two Breakfasts

Cheers to the long weekend! I just got back from a day retreat to Connecticut. It was such a scenic drive up to the country. I simply love fall and everything about it. We went up to escape NYC-living stress (trust me, there's nothing else quite like it) and more importantly, to catch up with a dear friend. Her parents house literally looks like a treehouse on top of the mountains. The foliage this time of year is also epic. So many rich vibrant colors, driving back today with the heat on in the car as the rain came down was somewhat magical. Romantic even. I think the reason I love taking drives so much is because of the amazing conversations I always used to have with my father. It never fails to remind me of what he taught me and to never forget how far I've come.

He wasn't the one to teach me how to cook, however. Basic 101, yes - but it was my Korean mother who taught me everything in the kitchen. And here we are on this rainy Sunday morning back home, and the usual outing is brunch. But sometimes it's even better to just stay home when the weather is really gross out. Extra cuddling equals extra warmth. And cooking at home is something I absolutely love! This morning I worked with a special two breakfasts meal kit from Sun Basket. 

Each meal serves 2, the first meal: Fried eggs with spinach and romesco. Catalan romesco is made with sweet roasted red peppers, garlic, almonds, and paprika. I never tried this sauce until today! It's sweet and nutty flavors are pure magic with the fried eggs and wilted spinach. I love a breakfast/brunch meal that's not too heavy from time to time. Food-induced comas are also pretty damn terrific, but I do try to make a habit of eating on the healthier side as well. The smoothie is even more nutritious. 

Sun Basket Two Breakfasts

photos by Suzanne Spiegoski recipe by Sunbasket

Serves 2

Fried Eggs with Spinach and Romesco

Ingredients:

4 pasture-raised organic eggs

2 ounces baby spinach

Romesco (roasted red peppers - almonds - fresh garlic - sherry vinegar - olive oil - salt - sweet smoked paprika)

1 tbsp butter

salt & pepper

Directions:

1. In a medium frying pan, heat butter until hot but not smoking. Crack the eggs directly into the pan and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the whites have set and the yolks are slightly runny, 2 to 3 minutes. If you prefer firmer yolks, cook 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer to a plate.

2. Add the spinach to the pan, season with salt, and cook just until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.

3. Transfer the spinach and eggs to individual plates and spoon the romesco on top. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

Mango-Matcha Smoothie

photos by Suzanne Spiegoski recipe by Sunbasket

Serves 2

Ingredients:

Fresh ginger

1 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon maple syrup

2 cups mango pieces

1 ounce baby spinach

1 tbsp black chia seeds

2 tsp matcha powder

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine coconut milk and maple syrup with the ginger, mango, spinach, black chia seeds, and matcha. Add 1 cup of ice. Season lightly with salt. Blend until smooth

2. Pour into glasses and serve.

Packed with finely milled green matcha tea, this smoothie delivers a mega-dose of antioxidants and a deluxe detoxer. Also with fresh ginger, mango, spinach, black chia seeds, and coconut milk, this smoothie is heralded as an energy booster, a calorie burner, and just a great way to start your day. It certainly packed a punch and jumpstarted my morning! I couldn't wait to share my experience with Sun Basket and their amazing meal kits!

For a special discount of $30 off your purchase, please click here! Aside from the two breakfast meal, they also have a variety of other dishes such as Moroccan chicken and green curry shrimp with bok choy. I can't wait to try more of Sun Basket again! If you love healthy, fresh, and affordable meals with an ethnic twist, you definitely need to go and check them out! What are you guys up to for the long weekend? Apple picking? Pumpkin patches? Hay rides? Haunted houses? (Oh He** no). Ha ha! Whatever you're doing, I hope it is with joy and love. And lots of snuggles. Enjoy!

LOVE & XX'S,

FOLLOW MAQ + SUZ

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Matcha Cheesecake

Lower frigid temps had me craving for something sweet and since I've been on this green tea kick, I decided to incorporate it into a modern cheesecake! Some of you may know I'm not a finessed baker, so I'm always in my kitchen trying to hone in on my skills within the baking department. I pulled a recipe from A Cozy Kitchen for my first attempt at a matcha cheesecake.

Matcha Swirl Cheesecake

Matcha Swirl Cheesecake. Recipe from A Cozy Kitchen. All photos by:  © Suzanne Spiegoski

Recipe from A Cozy Kitchen

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes

Yield: 1 (nine-inch) cheesecake

Serving Size: 8

Ingredients

Crust:

• 1 1/4 cups (about 16 cookies) chocolate cookie crumbs
• 2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

Cheesecake:

• 24 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 4 ounces (European-style, not Greek) yogurt, room temperature, divided
• 2 tablespoons green Matcha powder
• 1 1/2 cups white granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt

Swirl (optional)

• 1 ounce (European-Style, not Greek) yogurt
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl, mix together the cookie crumbs, sugar, salt and melted butter. Add the crust mixture into a nine-inch (10-cup) springform pan and press evenly onto the bottom of the pan until packed tightly. Transfer to the oven to bake for 8-10 minutes (unfortunately since the crumbs are so dark you can’t really tell when they’ve toasted so it’s important to pay attention to the clock). Remove from the oven and cool completely before adding the filling. Wrap the bottom of the spring form pan in a few sheets of foil and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the matcha with 1 ounce of yogurt until very smooth—be sure to really get in there to whisk out the lumps of matcha. To the bowl of a stand-up mixer, using a paddle attachment, add the cream cheese and beat until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Next, add in the matcha yogurt mixture, reserved 3 ounces yogurt and sugar; beat until combined. With the machine one, add the eggs, one at a time, waiting until each egg is incorporated before adding the next one. Lastly, mix in the pure vanilla extract and salt.
3. To a small bowl, whisk together the yogurt and powdered sugar until smooth. If it’s thick at all (this will depend on the yogurt you’re using), you may need to add a splash of water. It should be the texture of heavy cream.
4. Pour the matcha and cream cheese filling into the springform pan and smooth out the top with a spatula. Make sure it reaches the edge of the pan. Make little dollops of sweetened yogurt all over the surface of the cream cheese. Take a skewer or popsicle stick and run it through the dollops creating a marbling effect. Make it as messy or neat as you like. Place the springform pan in a roasting pan or another pan that’s as big. Transfer to the rack of the oven and fill up the roasting pan with about 2 inches of water. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until it looks set, yet it’s still a bit wobbly in the center. Place on a cooling rack for 30 minutes and then place it in the fridge to set for at least 3 hours. (I let it set overnight.) Slice it up and serve.

Sinfully decked out in blackberries. I just love a high contrast in colors!

Cheesecake can be slightly difficult to make, being how easy it is to crack the beautiful dessert. But you can still say no to crack if you follow these tips! NEVER open your oven while the cheesecake is baking. The air and change in temperature will ruin it indefinitely. Make sure to wrap your sweetness in aluminum foil. This will trap the heat and prevent the cheesecake from being overcooked. And lastly, make sure it's being 'bathed' in water, as this also preserves the heat from accelerating too fast and therefore burning the crap out of it.

This matcha cheesecake is to die for! I put in a tad extra green tea powder for more vibrancy with the coloring.

I also added some blackberries for aesthetics and added flavor and texture. The fruit brings an acidic pop to the already very rich cheesecake. I always hate it when a dessert is way too sweet, overpowering any other taste but sugar. Blech! Doesn't it look appealing decorated in the center? I love the deep contrast in color!

You want a piece of me?

For the crust, the cookies I used were chocolate Teddy Grahams. They came out very leveled and super tight. Look at the cut on the cheesecake, I'm getting hungry! Perhaps a little side dessert with lunch today? ;-)

Black and green never looked so good together.

What's your favorite kind of cheesecake? I would've made a classic New York-style cheesecake but I wanted to do something a little more innovative - something I've also never tried making before. Let's just say the results were beyond delish! Happy Baking & Happy Hump Day! Stay warm friends. ♥

LOVE & XX'S

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