Inferior Inspiration #15: Halloween food edition!

Although my (fairly minimal) Halloween decorations are up again this year, they haven't changed one bit from last year's Halloween decor post.  Writing a feature for WOW247 about the 5 best Halloween inspired sweet treats on offer in Edinburgh last week inspired me to trawl Pinterest and compile a list of the most creative and cutesy Halloween party food I could find for this year's themed blog post.

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It's pretty much unheard of for me to choose the healthy option when it comes to snacking, but I have to admit that these are some awesome looking fruits and vegetables.  At least the fruit kebabs have marshmallows on them (which, as far as I'm aware, haven't yet been classed as a fruit) along with the melon pumpkins and kiwi Frankensteins.  I also think the idea of hollowing out a pumpkin and using it to serve dip with vegetable crudités was genius and definitely worth a mention.  And I'm not sure who could really find the time to dye rice orange using carrot juice to make the jack o' lantern rice balls, but don't they look adorable?

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I think these poison toffee apples look so cool, even if their blackest black colour makes me a little bit nervous.  (If you're wondering, the secret is black food colouring, presumably in industrial quantities!)  The eerie eyeball cocktails are actually just lemonade with green sweets to give the colour and a floating eyeball cake topper, but I bet they would benefit from adding some alcohol for a 'grown up' party.  Marshmallow pops coated with festive coloured sprinkles look great and also seem pretty easy to make!

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How blooming cute are these chocolate owl cupcakes, decorated with a separated Oreo biscuit and M&Ms?  Again, they look fantastic but probably wouldn't take too long to put together, especially if you cheated and used store bought cupcakes - I promise I won't tell if you don't.  Everyone loves a donut, so who wouldn't want to include some monster donuts on their Halloween party buffet table?  Just be sure to remind everyone that the plastic vampire teeth are not edible...  Last, but certainly not least, the ingredients for spooky boo brownie bites - chocolate brownie and marshmallows - are an unbeatable combination, and these wee ghostly faces prompted screams (of delight) from me on first sight.

Sadly I won't have time to try my hand at making any of these terrifying treats for myself in the next few days, although Craig and I will be having friends round for a traditional scarefest movie marathon over the weekend.  Are you baking anything for a Halloween party this weekend?

A sleepy Sunday in NYC:

Like most big city breaks, this holiday has been great fun but also a little hectic and tiring.  A combination of jet lag, late nights, early starts and miles of walking really takes it out of you!  Craig and I decided to take yesterday (Sunday) at a slower pace to give ourselves a bit of a rest.  Unfortunately we managed to get horrendously lost once or twice, but aside from that it was an enjoyable, stress free day!

Our first and most anticipated stop was brunch (we intended to go for breakfast, but by the time we made it there it was after 12pm...) at a restaurant called Pies 'n' Thighs in Brooklyn.  Unsurprisingly, this place specialises in sweet pies and fried chicken, but they're also famous for their biscuits (kind of like a flaky, savoury scone) and their donuts.

When Craig and I arrived at Pies 'n' Thighs there were around twenty people standing outside, with a waitress occasionally popping her head out to call out names from a list.  I knew from online research that the place was very popular, so I had been expecting a long wait, or maybe even to be turned away.  We were told it would be about half an hour's wait for a table, so we shuffled off in search of takeaway coffee as getting lost for so long had left us dead on our feet!  True to their word, when we arrived back at Pies 'n' Thighs about thirty minutes later, we were quickly called and escorted to a little table in the middle of the restaurant.

I chose fried chicken (two pieces) and buckwheat waffles, which came with cinnamon butter and baked apples on the top.  This might sound like an odd combination, but it was actually really tasty!  The chicken had an especially lovely flavour.  Craig had fried chicken, a biscuit and home fries, and we both sipped on mimosas (bucks fizz) because I hear that's the done thing to do at brunch.

After eating we were both stuffed, but I wanted to try a donut, which are rumoured to be the best in New York City.  We ordered a couple to go (caramel apple for Craig and pecan butter crunch for me) and headed off in search of the Williamsburg Bridge.  Halfway across, I tucked in to what was undoubtedly the best (and biggest) donut I've ever eaten while enjoying the Manhattan skyline in the sunshine.

The Williamsburg Bridge runs between Brooklyn and Manhattan, and you can drive, cycle or walk over it, depending on how the mood takes you.  It only took us around half an hour to walk across - including time spent admiring the view - and it made a nice change from the subway.

Our next stop indulged Craig's nerdy science side.  Roasting Plant Coffee in Greenwich Village uses a system called the 'Javabot' (designed by their founder) to select and grind coffee beans fresh for you, depending on how you would like your coffee to taste.  All along one wall there are loads of different canisters full of different types of bean, and the Javabot will suck out different kinds to make a completely personalised coffee for you.  As a novice, I opted for the house blend, but I would love to create my own perfect coffee.  Maybe if we were staying longer!

Most relaxing Sundays involve a stroll in the park, and not far from Roasting Plant Coffee there is one of the most unusual parks I think I've ever seen.  The High Line is a disused railway bridge (nearly one and a half miles long) that has been converted into a linear park.  The last section of the High Line was only opened to the public in September, so it was very busy and crowded, but I still really enjoyed visiting a rare slice of greenery within New York city centre.  There are plenty of places to sit (and even eat and drink) along the path, and I can imagine it would be a really lovely way to spend a few hours with a  book on a slightly quieter day.

We rounded off our sleepy Sunday with a movie at the Regal Cinema in Union Square.  We saw the stop motion animation Boxtrolls, which was super cute, before catching the subway back to our hotel.

Mademoiselle Macaron, Edinburgh:

Where did macarons come from?  There we were just a few years ago, quite content with our Penguin biscuits and fairy cakes (remember when they weren't 'cupcakes'?), and suddenly this new 'must have' delicacy was blowing up blogs and Instagram feeds.  Macarons really are the most photogenic of sweet treats, aren't they?  Is it a biscuit?  Is it a cake?  Is it a meringue?  Whatever it is, the macaron is essentially the Chanel handbag of the bakery world: French, timeless and in high demand.

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Undoubtedly the first person to seriously bring macarons to my attention would have been my oldest friend, Emily.  As well as being a hugely talented artist, she is also an amazing self taught chef and baker who has actually mastered the making of delicious macarons - something that not all that many professionals can say!  In fact, those beauties in the photo above are Emily's handiwork.

On a trip to Paris a few years ago she took me to the famous luxury bakery, Ladurée, and that was where I officially jumped on the bandwagon and purchased some eyewateringly expensive macarons of my very own.  I have since discovered that the much cheaper McCafé macarons sold at McDonald's over there aren't bad either...

But there isn't a McCafé in Edinburgh, and there isn't a Ladurée either, so where does one go for a macaron fix in Scotland's capital?  As of this month, Mademoiselle Macaron on Grindlay Street is your answer.

After first learning about Mademoiselle Macaron through a uni pal (Melissa) Craig and I trotted along to the newly opened premises earlier this week to check it out.  The shop is adorable, both outside and in.  There are little Parisian touches everywhere, and being served by the lovely Caroline (of La Robe á Caro) with a genuine French accent made the experience feel all the more authentic.  Caroline's beautiful dresses are on display in the shop too, giving visitors endless pretty things to gawk at.

 You can choose to either sit in and savour your macarons with a drink, or take them to go (there are even special take away coffee cups that can house a couple of macarons on top - so cute!).  We snagged eight delicious macarons to take away - and promptly scarfed them about ten minutes later - but choosing flavours was tricky.  There are a lot to choose from!  I will definitely be back in the future for some coffee and to spend more time in Edinburgh's little slice of Paris.

52 Canoes Tiki Den:

I first became aware of 52 Canoes Tiki Den through photos on a friends Instagram.  As soon as I saw their cocktails in totem poles and skull shaped glasses, I was itching to visit and try them for myself.  So, under the pretence of going out for dinner, I dragged Craig and my big sister, Helen, along to sample as many cocktails as possible with me.

52 Canoes is the closest thing Edinburgh has to a tropical beach holiday, hidden downstairs in a basement building on Melville Place in the West End.  The bar is dark, but not dingy, and the tiki themed decoration is consistent without being tacky.  After reading a few reviews online, I was pleased to discover that the Tiki Den is famous for its food as well as its cocktails, particularly the nachos.

Our menus arrived with a pitcher of pink water infused with lemon and what we decided must be some kind of blossom (hence the unusual colour).  You know the cocktails are going to be good when even the water is pink!

When our first round of drinks arrived, I was very excited to find out that mine was in one of the aforementioned totem pole style glasses.  Overexcited, really.  Probably the most excited I've ever been about a beverage.  Most of the drinks are rum based, but Helen was pleased to find a cocktail featuring her favourite wine!  (See the huge wine glass it came in below!)

I loved this little guy!

When the pulled pork nachos that we ordered arrived, I was very glad we had decided to share one serving between three of us!  Somehow, we did manage to finish them.

As you can see, enormous portions seem to be the norm at the Tiki Den.  My 52 Canoes burger (with bacon and two kinds of cheese) tasted amazing, but I could only manage to eat half of what was on my plate, which is pretty rare for me!

Still, there was a wee bit of room left for another cocktail, and my coconutty 'Bahia' (in the blue glass) was delicious.

I think Craig's choice (which arrived on fire, and stayed burning for at least 10 minutes!) deserves a special mention.

After the meal, we paid our bill (which arrived with a huge selection of sweeties) and, with our waiter's blessing, pinched a lei necklace each from the rafters of the bar.  Overall, I really enjoyed visiting 52 Canoes Tiki Den and can't wait to go back.  Unlike a lot of bars and restaurants in Edinburgh, I felt like I actually got my money's worth for both food and drinks there.  The staff were friendly and helpful, despite obviously being rushed off their feet.  Maybe the fact that the place was so busy on a Thursday night speaks for itself, but if you're a cocktail enthusiast (or just appreciate good nachos and burgers) then you should definitely pay the Tiki Den a visit!

You can like 52 Canoes Tiki Den's Facebook page here for more information about their menu and special events that they have going on!