Essentially Jackie

02
Sep
2014

Unofficial End of Summer

We all know that Labor Day Weekend is the “Unofficial End of Summer.” People enjoy their last barbecues, last weekends at their summer camps, and just embrace the last few days before the cooler weather rolls in and kids head back to school.

My friends and I decided to go out with a bang and try to complete all of the quintessenial summer activities in one weekend. The weekend started with a day at the Saratoga Race Track with my office. We had a beautiful, sunny day at the races. Though I didn’t win a single dime, it was still nice to spend some time out of the confines of the office and relax with my coworkers.

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27
Aug
2014

Wining and Dining Through Long Island

categories: Life & Adventures

My girlfriend has a house on the outskirts of Long Island. In years past we’ve spent a weekend every summer relaxing on the beach, eating lots of delicious food, and just enjoying the care free atmosphere. Now it’s been some time since we’ve been able to get together over at the house. We decided to settle on a weekend that would work for the three of us and stuck to it. (more…)

17
Aug
2014

Zucchini Muffins

categories: Treats

My girlfriend Sarah planted a vegetable garden this year. Last time I was over to visit, she had a plethora of delicious home grown veggies to share; one of which was a very large zucchini. I decided to bake it up into a delicious treat. Thanks Sarah! (more…)

11
Aug
2014

Exploring San Francisco

categories: Life & Adventures

As I’ve previously posted, my friend Theresa and I made a short trip over to California.Throughout our four day stay, we were able to pack just about everything in that someone traveling through San Francisco would want. We had an early start to our trip and were off exploring upon landing. Our first stop, of course, was the iconic Golden Gate Bridge. I was able to surpass my fear of bridges and we walked across most of it. I’m glad I did because I was able to get a few great shots!

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04
Aug
2014

Penna alla Vodka

categories: Treats

I feel it has been awhile since my last turn for Girl’s Night. When planning, I had originally wanted to make grilled pizzas. However, the grill is currently indisposed so I had to turn to Plan B. I obtained this recipe from a friend of mine who has told me about this dish several, mouthwatering times. I could not wait to try it myself so I figured this was the perfect occasion. I also feel that I use my Girls as my test subjects for new recipes, my guinea pigs if you will. Thanks ladies! (more…)

03
Aug
2014

USA Food Tour: California

categories: Life & Adventures

I am delighted that I launched the USA Food Tour series when I did. A little over a week after I started, I had a preplanned trip with my friend Theresa to San Francisco! This worked out perfectly because honestly, how often does one travel to the other side of the country?

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30
Jul
2014

New and Improved!

categories: Life & Adventures

For those of you who may remember, it was a goal of mine this year to revamp this here blog. I had been utilizing Google’s Blogger since it’s inception for several reason; it was cheap (free to be exact), easy to use, and had decent templates.

However, the time has come to move on to bigger and better things. I was limited in some ways and wanted to have a blog that was my very own. So I have officially purchased the domaine name http://www.essentiallyjackie.com (thanks for your help Shane!). I have spent a few weeks playing around with the new site trying to make it as close to perfect as possible before launching. I think I have it as ready as it ever will be. Plus, I think it looks so pretty and I can’t possibly write any more posts without showing you all here!

I hope you enjoy the new and improved Essentially Jackie.

22
Jul
2014

Quattro Goes To Mystic!

categories: Quattro the Malamute

Like his Mom, Quattro thoroughly enjoys adventures. Exploring a new place, seeing new things, investigating new smells…it really makes for the perfect day. When it was decided to take a trip down to Mystic, we went back and forth on whether to bring the beast along for the ride. Having him tag along would hold us back just a bit but we decided it would be much better to have him with us for the day. (more…)

19
Jul
2014

Mascarpone Chocolate Toffee Bars

categories: Treats

I came across these delectable treats on one of the Giada at Home episodes. While salivating over the TV screen, I noticed that the ingredients were pretty standard and the recipe was extremely simple. I actually had almost all of the ingredients on hand too! So I decided to give them a try. And let me tell you, they taste as good as they look. Maybe better! (more…)

16
Jul
2014

USA Food Tour: Connecticut

categories: Life & Adventures

This past Friday was Nick’s birthday. When I had asked him what he wanted to do he had said, “Why don’t we start your USA Food Tour and hit up one of the states?” I thought that was a great idea! I had come up with the idea a few weeks ago so I was eager to get the ball rolling. I mean, I do have 50 states to conquer so time is of the essence, right?

Since it was going to be a day trip we had to narrow the destinations accordingly. We had three options, but settled on Connecticut. Now, one would think that being that the entire southern part of the state borders the Long Island Sound, Connecticut would specialize in some form of seafood. Do not be fooled. Not very far into my research did I realize that pizza was indeed one of the foods that the Constitution State is known for. Silly me should have realized this before I started typing into Google. I mean, we’ve all heard of the 1988 film starring Julia Roberts based around the small town restaurant Mystic Pizza! No? Am I the only one? (more…)