Blogger's Block? Have A Doughnut

Wow. Here it is the end of September, and I'm realizing that I haven't "blogged" (god, that's a stupid word) in two weeks! Writer's block? Well, that would be true if I was a writer. Maybe just nothing really exciting to blog about? Who knows what the cause is?

I could tell you all that I've been back to Eataly yet again...but what fun would that be? By the way, dinner at Manzo was great - sweetbreads, pasta with all sorts of offal, beef braised in barolo, a giant pork chop with a side of testa...all delicious. And I gotta stop buying a certain jar of olives - or as I've been referring to them - olive crack.

I could say Significant Eater and I had a less-than-spectacular meal at Zaytinya a week or two ago....but what fun would that be? Lousy, rushed service, food lacking a certain zip that was there on my first few visits...say it ain't so, Jose.

I could tell you about all the great stuff I've been cooking again - and indeed I am cooking again, now that the temperatures have moderated and my kitchen is habitable. But then I'd have to take pictures of the food and we all know how annoying that is. Imagine dinner guests having to wait while I shoot - I can hear the hungry ones now. Okay, okay - just one - here's a batch of pickled tomatoes I put up last weekend...

No, no, no - the heck with all that. I'd much rather tell you about one of the coolest things Sig Eater and I have ever seen on the lower east side. You've all heard of this place, no doubt...

Yep, it's the world famous Doughnut Plant. World famous, you say? Well, yeah - I don't know if you've seen the lines that stretch endlessly out into the street on many weekends. Every lower east side tour and tour bus makes this an obligatory stop. And it's a good one - the doughnuts are truly works of art. I'm partial to the cake doughnuts; others like the yeasted ones...to each his own. And there are plenty of flavors to choose from every day - now that it's fall, expect to find some nice apple and pumpkin varieties, along with the classic jam filled and chocolate ones.

So here we are, walking back to our apartment, which is literally around the corner from the Plant. Our apartment is one of four big buildings, all part of the same co-op, and there's lots of grass and trees and open space - a rarity in Manhattan. Brings with it a good deal of "wildlife." By wildlife, I mean birds of all sorts (there's even a resident red-tailed hawk in Seward Park) and squirrels (which I suppose make good food for the red-tail). And what does all this have to do with Doughnut Plant?

Well, not much, until I looked over at an obviously happy squirrel and did a double take. Yep, there she/he was, sitting in the crook of a tree, looking contented as can be, munching away on a big, fat doughnut - practically as big as the squirrel itself.

Obviously, humans aren't the only ones who love Doughnut Plant. My only question - what flavor?