I love desserts. What I love more is that we have so many delicious dessert locations in this area. Your sweet craving can be fixed within a 10mile radius of your house, it’s awesome. Most recently I went to Sweet Temptations. This sweet treat location is probably the closest to my house and ironically, it’s one of the last ones I’ve had the opportunity to try- Sweet Temptations.

I was going to try the cupcake, write a blog entry about whether it was comparable or better than the other locations I’ve tried until I saw this cookie/peanut butter concoction and OMG (read as, Oh Em Gee). By the time I took a picture of it, I had already devoured quite a bit of it because I don’t have much self-control when it comes to that much deliciousness. It was a sugar cookie base, drizzled with chocolate, covered in Reese’s peanut butter cups and another small layer of peanut butter drizzle for $3.00; I saw it and fell in love.

At first I was nervous that the sugar cookie with all that sugar would be too much but it wasn’t, the cookie was honestly just an edible plate to make it easier to eat the pile of deliciousness in the middle and to hold more chocolate. Next time (or the first time) you go to Sweet Temptations, see what other desserts they have instead of just cupcakes- try something new. If you see this there, TRY THIS! I highly recommend it, you won’t be disappointed. You can also order cupcakes, birthday cakes, wedding cakes as well as pick up some candy. Make sure you become a fan of theirs on Facebook because that’s where you can find out about weekly deals and contests & see pictures of some of their recent creations. Sweet Temptations has a location in Albany (469 Albany Shaker Road), Schenectady (432 State Street) and is opening a new location in Lake George (3609 Lake Shore Drive).

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SATURDAY, MAY 26

-          ALBANY at the Bistro Bar at 74 State at 8:00PM is Lee Shaw Trio

-          SCHENECTADY at Café Nola at 7:00PM is Big Creek

-          SCHENECTADY at Pinhead Susan’s at 9:00PM is Joe Nacco Band

-          SCHENECTADY at Moon & Rive Café is Danny Whitecotton

-          BALLSTON SPA starting at South Street Naval Memorial at 9:00AM is the MEMORIAL DAY PARADE

-          COLONIE at The Crossings at 10:00AM-1:00PM is the First Annual New York TEARS Rock & Walk

-          ALBANY at The New York State Library at 10:30AM-12:00PM is Walking Tour of the Local History and Genealogy Resources

-          LAKE GEORGE at 10:30AM is the MEMORIAL DAY PARADE

-          SCHROON LAKE at 2:00PM is the Lake OPENING Weekend- The Official State to Summer!

-          CLIFTON PARK at The Upstate Concert Hall (Northern Lights) at 4:30PM is Gorilla Battle of  the Bands Finals for $8adv/$10 day of show

SUNDAY, MAY 27

-          CLIFTON PARK at Northern Lights at 8:00PM is The Kooks

-          LAKE GEORGE at Dunham’s Bay Resort at 10:00AM-2:00PM is Brunch on the Bay, $12.95 adults and $8.95 kids

-          NORTH RIVER at Garnet Hill Lodge at 12:00PM-4:00PM is Memorial Day BBQ & 75^th Anniversary Kick-Off for FREE

-          GLENS FALLS at The Hyde Collection at 1:00PM-3:00PM is Discovery Day Family Program

-          LAKE LUZERNE at Adirondack Folk School at 1:00PM-7:00PM is a Spring Fundraiser with BBQ, Music and Silent Tool Auction

-          SCHENECTADY outside City Hall at 10:00AM-2:00PM is the Schenectady Greenmarket

MONDAY, MAY 28

-          BETHLEHEM, Memorial Day Parade

-          WARRENSBURG on Elm St at 9:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          ALBANY at 9:30AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          BOLTON LANDING at Rogers Park at 10:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          NORTH CREEK on Main Street at 10:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          CAMBRIDGE at 10:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          SALEM at 10:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          GLENS FALLS, Downtown at 10:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          SARATOGA, Downtown at 10:00AM, Memorial Day Parade

-          NORTH GREENBUSH at 1:15PM, Memorial Day Parade

ONGOING

-          BOLTON LANDING (May 26-27) at Rogers Park at 10:00AM-4:00PM is an Arts & Crafts Festival

-          HALFMOON (May 22- 25) at Halfmoon Town Hall at 6:00PM-10:00PM is a Carnival for FREE

-          SALEM (Until May 27) at 9:00AM is Salem’s Annual Town-Wide Garage Sale

-          OLD FORGE (Until May 27) at 1:00PM-9:00PM is PolkaFest USA- $17 per day/ $30 for two

-          SARATOGA (Until June 3) at the Saratoga Arts Center at 8:00PM is Avenue Q, the musical

About a month or so ago I went down to NYC for a Member’s exclusive first peak at Creatures of Light: Nature’s Bioluminescense at the American Museum of Natural History running until January 2013. I grabbed a membership last year from Groupon but it’s usually $95 (tax-deductible) for the basic membership. Since technically Saturdays are for local “spots,” I figured with summer coming up I’d put a small spotlight on a cool exhibit I checked out only 3 hours away!

To those of you who, like me, don’t know what bioluminescence is, let me explain. Ever wonder why some organisms flash, blink or glow? With this exhibit you can travel from a warm summer meadow to the deep-sea floor to explore the phenomenon of bioluminescence: living things that generate light, cold light that generates almost no heat.

The entire exhibit is in the dark so you can really see what kinds of lights these animals give off. You start in the woods with illuminating fungi and then go to the woods to check out the more familiar fireflies. What I didn’t know was that fireflies give off light to attract potential mates with each flash pattern meaning something different and they’re not even flies, they’re beetles! You continue to venture through various ecosystems and learn about the different animals who use bioluminescence to convey a message to surrounding animals. One of the more interesting species are those that live under water and since it’s so dark, upwards of 80%  of the animals down there light up as they travel, hunt and mate.

If you’re looking for a day trip from the 518 and heading to NYC, check out this exhibit. It’s safe for all ages and really cool to see all the various species that give off light! Let me know if you check it out!

-          SCHENECTADY at the Mohawk Golf Club at 11:00AM-8:00PM is the Harry Apkarian Memorial Golf Classic with the Chamber of Schenectady County SOLD OUT

-          LAKE GEORGE at the Sagamore Resort at 1:00PM-5:00PM is FREE Electronics Recycling & Pharmaceutical Waste Collection for Lake George Area Residents

-          TROY at Bush Memorial Hall, Sage College at 5:30PM-8:30PM is the 2012 Troy 100 Forum- a Forum of Community Leaders for FREE

-          ALBANY at Appletini’s Café at 6:15PM is Real Estate Investors and Professionals Event, first meeting is FREE- open to ANYONE involved in the real estate industry

-          SCHENECTADY at Aperitivo Bistro is Vocalist Chris Dollard

-          CLIFTON PARK at Northern Lights at 8:00PM is Buckcherry with James Durbin and Red Light King

TUESDAY, MAY 22

-          ALBANY at Times Union Center at 8:00PM is Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour!

-          ALBANY at Valentines at 7:30PM is Craig Owens with Bear Cat

-          ALBANY at The Egg at 5:30PM-7:30PM is Fork it Over to End Hunger for $50/ticket

-          ALBANY at Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce at 8:00AM-9:30AM is UAlbany School of Business Weekend MBA Program Information Session for FREE

-          CLIFTON PARK at Protective Chiropractic at 6:15PM-6:45PM is Intro to Chiropractic for FREE

-          ALBANY, Latham, Saratoga, etc. at Uno Chicago Bar and Grill is KIDS 12 and under EAT FREE!

-          SCHENECTADY at the Proctors Mainstage at 12:00PM is the MVP HealthCare Organ Concert Series for FREE

-          LATHAM at the Century House at 7:30AM-9:00AM is a seminar for Integrated Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business

WEDNESDAY, MAY 23

-          SCHENECTADY at Sandye’s Café at 11:00AM-12:00PM is a ribbon cutting for their Grand Opening

-          TROY at The Children’s Museum of Science and Technology at 3:30PM-4:30PM is World Turtle Day Celebration for FREE if you’re a CMOST member and $2 + admission for non-members

-          TROY at Brown’s Brewing Co. at 7:30PM-9:30PM is Save Our Beer! For a $5 suggested donation; Proceeds will go to support our continued work protecting New York from fracking and other threats to New York’s environment

-          MALTA at DiDonna’s South Shore Restaurant at 6:30PM-7:30PM is Converting Your Medicine Cabinet for FREE

-          WATERFORD, Townwide  at 7:00PM is the Waterford Memorial Day Parade

THURSDAY, MAY 24

-          ALBANY at the Egg at 7:30PM is Glen Campbell

-          CLIFTON PARK at Northern Lights at 8:00PM is Feed Me

-          SARATOGA at Vapor Night Club at 7:00PM is Country Idol Karaoke for FREE

-          MIDDLE GROVE at Village Pizzeria & Ristorante at 6:30PM-9:30PM is Toast to the TaTa’s Wine Tasting for $40

ONGOING

-          SCHENECTADY (May 21-23) at the Proctors GE Theatre is We Need to Talk About Kevin

-          HALFMOON (May 22- 25) at Halfmoon Town Hall at 6:00PM-10:00PM is a Carnival for FREE

-          June 7: Dave Mason (of Traffic) with the Emerald City Band

-          June 14: Bootsy Collins with Soul Session

-          June 21: Patty Smith & Scandal with SIRSY

-          June 28: Dickey Betts & Great Southern with Kristen Thien

-          July 5: Local Blues Night

-          July 15: The Bacon Brothers with The Stray Dogs

-          July 19: Buckwheat Zydeco with Captain Squeeze & the Zydeco Moshers

-          July 26: Smash Mouth with Dylan Emmet Band

-          August 2: COUNTRY NIGHT, Lee Brice with Wendy Owens & Renegade

-          August 9: The Beach Bums, Tribute to the Beach Boys with Grand Central Station

-          CLIFTON PARK at Northern Lights at 7:30PM is Rancid *20 Year Anniversary* with Brick by Brick, Murders Row & Chosen Ones ($20 adv/ $22 day of show)

-          SCHENECTADY at Aperitivo Bistro is Jeanine Marie Quartet

-          SCHENECTADY at The Happy Cappuccino at 7:00PM is Kevin Wayne

-          SCHENECTADY at Proctors, Underground at 8:00PM is MOPCO

-          SCHENECTADY at Café Nola at 7:00PM is Holly & Evan

-          ALBANY at The College of Saint Rose at 7:30PM is a Jazz Concert

-          SCHENECTADY at Proctors at 7:00PM is Electric City Couture for FREE

-          SARATOGA at The Saratoga Winery & Tasting Room at 6:00PM-9:00PM is Live Music, Wine & Wood Fired Pizza for FREE

-          ALBANY at the Times Union Center at 7:30PM is Friday Night Lights

SATURDAY, MAY 19

-          ALBANY at the Bistro Bar at 74 State at 8:00PM is Sonny & Perley

-          CLIFTON PARK at Northern Lights at 8:30PM is Lil’ Kim

-          ALBANY at Crossgates Mall at 9:00AM-1:00PM is Valleycats National Anthem Auditions

-          LAKE GEORGE at Lake George High School at 9:00AM is Randy’s Run, Annual 5K Race

-          LAKE GEORGE at Shepard Park at 9:00AM-4:00PM is Lake George Community Garden Club Perennials Plant Sale for FREE

-          TROY at 8^th and Eagle Streets at 9:00AM-1:00PM is CDCG’s Spring Plant Sale for FREE

-          COLONIE at The Beltrone Living Center at 10:00AM-1:00PM is the Beltrone Living Center Open House for FREE

-          SLINGERLANDS at the Bethlehem Childrens School at 10:00AM-5:00PM is Greenfest/Greenhouse Grand Opening

-          ALBANY at the Albany Institute of History and Art at 2:00PM-4:00PM is Girl Scout Gallery for FREE

-          SARATOGA at the Saratoga Springs Public Library at 2:00PM is Food Revolution Day—Food & Farms Panel Discussion for FREE

-          QUEENSBURY at The Westside Grille at 3:00PM-6:00PM is May Wine & Brews Under the Sunshine, $20 advance and $25 at the door

-          SARATOGA at Vapor Night Club at 9:00PM is DVDJ Dread for FREE celebrating ARMED FORCES DAY, show your military ID and receive a free gift!

-          LAKE GEORGE, anywhere at 9:30PM are FIREWORKS!

-          SCHENECTADY at The Happy Cappuccino at 7:00PM is Luke Brown

-          SCHENECTADY at Katie O’Byrnes is Tailspin

-          NISKAYUNA is NISKA DAY!!!!

-          SCHENECTADY at Proctors, GE Theatre at 11:30AM is the 2012 NGA North American Pro/AM

-          SCHENECTADY at Café Nola at 7:00PM is Jazz Connection

-          SARATOGA at The Comedy Works at 7:30PM is Johnny Rizzo & Dave Cooperman

-          SARATOGA at the Saratoga Skatepark at 2:00PM is SKATEJAM

-          ALBANY at Valentines at 7:00PM is Skip the Foreplay with Tradewinds, An American Tale and Be the Deceiver

-          ALBANY at the Palace at 8:00PM is Gordon Lightfoot

-          ALBANY at the Egg at 4:00PM is the Saratoga Ballet Academy for $20 adult and $15 for 12 and under

-          GLENS FALLS at the Charles R. Wood Theater at 8:00PM is the Lake George Community Band Armed Forces Day Concert

SUNDAY, MAY 20

-          SARATOGA at SPAC at 8:00AM is SPAC Rock & Run 5K

-          ALBANY at the Egg at 8:00PM is Collective Soul for $29.50

-          SCHENECTADY at the Jay Street Marketplace at 1:00PM-3:00PM is the Schenectady County Flea Market  Craft Fair

-          BETHLEHEM (May 14-20) is BETHLEHEM RESTAURANT WEEK, 3 course meal for $20.12

-          SCHENECTADY at Proctors at 5:00PM is Empty Bowls Project 2012 for $15 early and $20 at the door to benefit the Schenectady City Mission and Bethesda House

-          SCHENECTADY at the Schenectady JCC at 1:00PM is a Teen Dodgeball Tournament- $5 for members and $10 for nonmembers

-          QUEENSBURY throughout the town is their 250^th Anniversary!

-          QUEENSBURY at the Elementary School at 8:00AM is the 7^th Annual Spartan Sprint 5K & Family Fun Run for $20

-          SARATOGA at SPAC at 10:00AM is SPAC’s 5K Rock & Run

-          CLIFTON PARK, throughout at 12:00PM-5:00PM is Historic House Tour

-          LAKE GEORGE at Fort William Henry Hotel and Conference Center at 12:00PM-3:00Pm is the Northern Saratoga/ Adirondack Walk to End Alzheimer’s for FREE

-          SCHENECTADY, Outside of City Hall at 10:00AM-2:00PM is the Schenectady Greenmarket

ONGOING

-          SCHENECTADY (May 15-20) at Proctors is Disney’s Beauty and the Beast

-          LAKE GEORGE (May 19-20) at the Tiki Resort is the New York State World of Beauty Pageant

-          LAKE GEORGE (May 19-20) in the Village is Performance Boating & Custom Car Weekend

-          ALBANY (May 18-May 20) at St. Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Church is the GREEK FESTIVAL; FRI 6pm-11pm, SAT 12p-11pm and SUN 12p-7p– $3 at the door, kids 12 and under FREE

-          LATHAM (May 19-20) at the Shaker Heritage Site at 10:00AM-4:00PM is Pottery Fest 2012

-          LAKE GEORGE (May 19-20) at Great Escape Six Flags is OPENING WEEKEND!!

-          SARATOGA (Until May 19) at Saratoga Wine & Spirits is their GRAND OPENING; FRI 4:00-7:00PM and SAT 2:00-6:00PM

-          OLD FORGE (Until May 20) at Mountainman Outdoor Supply Company is the Adirondack Paddlefest 2012

-          SCHENECTADY (May 17-20) at the Schenectady Light Opera Company is Hairspray

-          ALBANY (May 18-19) at The Comedy Works at 9:00PM is Johnny Rizzo & Dave Cooperman

This week’s local blog focus is on Rosey Rebecca: Staying Healthy in a World Full of Food. Go to the section of her blog “My Story” and you can see that she has struggled with the temptation of food but succeeded, lost weight and looks great! What I find the most interesting is her transition into becoming a vegetarian. Most of us looking to lose a few pounds have thought about that transition, until I have sushi for dinner or bite into a delicious steak but Rebecca did it in 2010.  Looking to become a vegetarian seriously? Check out her blog for a recap of her progress as well as some recipes to try that look delicious, even if you’re just looking to boost the amount of veggies in your diet.

Having recently moved out of the state, her blog entries have become less frequent but as I always say, just because there aren’t many NEW blog entries, there’s still plenty of useful materials and recipes if you’re looking for something new! Check out Rosey Rebecca!

I will admit it. I do love shopping at local farmer’s markets and I think the Schenectady Greenmarket is one of my favorite places to go in the summertime but I just can’t get passed the convenience, price and service of Price Chopper (& it is technically local). You will see from my PAST BLOG ENTRIES about Price Chopper that I would call that my grocery store and it would be hard for another supermarket to take that place in my heart. Last month, I took part in Price Chopper’s Be Seafood Smart Demonstration at The Century House in Latham and learned a lot about fish and different recipes to do with them.

Price Chopper Executive Chef Dave Hamlin and Vice President of Seafood Lee French demonstrated some really easy recipes with some products you can find at your local Price Chopper. Last year during Lent, Price Chopper sold 133,920 fried fish dinners, 90,131 pounds of fried hot fish and 56,534 pounds of cold fried fish! Wow! I first met Lee French at the #PCHOLIDAYCHEER and he’s so passionate about seafood. He talked to us about how he travels to different countries to make sure Price Chopper has the best products to serve.

To start they cooked Seared Salmon with Maple and Fresh Dill. Oh wow was this delicious, I can’t wait to make it! Using 2-6oz salmon fillets, Price Chopper Olive Oil, fresh shallots, white wine, fresh dill and Price Chopper Syrup. Brush the salmon with some olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper to create a caramelized crust. Saute the salmon until it’s a rich golden brown and remove from pan. Add some olive oil to the pan and then add the shallots, the wine and dill and cook until reduced. Add maple syrup to shallots just to heat and pour the mixture over the seared salmon fillet. Sounds delicious, right? It was!  One of the most important things I learned from this presentation is that with Price Chopper seafood, fish goes from farm to store in 4 days.

Next we had Baked Swai with Cajun Panko Breadcrumbs. Before this I had no idea what swai was. It’s not too fishy of a fish if that makes any kind of sense, more like a tilapia than a salmon to clarify. They talked about how Price Chopper offers a few different kinds of breadcrumbs other than the Cajun that they were using for this recipe. I was able to grab myself a garlic batch and will be cooking with that as soon as I can! All you need for this recipe is 2 swai fillets, half a lime, a tablespoon of white wine and panko breadcrumbs. Brush the fillets with olive oil, drizzle over white wine and squeeze lime juice, bread and bake. Easy right?

One of my favorite stories to hear was about the Pan Seared Scallops. I learned about the difference between dry (processed) scallops and all natural. Some stores will blow up the scallop with a sodium solution to give you what looks like more scallop for less the price when it’s really mostly full of this solution. I had no idea that was happening! To know if your scallops are the best kind, or any fish for that matter, Lee told us the three most important questions to ask ourselves or even the seafood guy to make sure we’re getting the best product: 1. Why is it that cheap? 2. How long of a period of time are these products from farm to store? 3. And of course, has this product been soaked? As Lee said in regards to Price Chopper, “I’m not gonna sell you anything that’s not safe for you.” The most important thing is that their seafood big wigs visit the plants these products are coming from or more important the country itself.

After the demonstration we got to partake in the best part- EATING! Everything was delicious! My favorite would have had to have been the salmon with maple syrup. When I see maple syrup, my first thought is pancakes or waffles but after that meal I’ll also add salmon to that list. Price Chopper offers quite a few of these cooking demonstrations and they’re always enjoyable. Tomorrow will be their Gluten Free Food Festival that I’m attending and I’ll be sure to let you know about it this coming Sunday! I don’t eat Gluten Free but I’m curious to know some recipes because I can’t imagine carbs not being a part of some of my meals = NO PASTA?

Looking for more Price Chopper events? Follow my blog on twitter or on Facebook and I’ll sure to keep you updated!

As many of you know, I work for a number of local radio stations when I’m not posting lovely blog entries for you all to read. One of my more recent events was at a relatively new bar in downtown Albany called the Barrel Saloon (942 Broadway, Albany) that opened about a year ago.

Photo Credit: Times Union

Ever since Wolff’s Biergarten opened in that area, it’s started to grow with a good number of great bars separated from the crazy Pearl St and Lark St hangouts. If you’re into a Western themed bar, this is the place for you. Not only is there a mechanical bull upstairs but the whole bar is covered in lassos, cowboy boots and hats from the front door all the way to the small patio in back. Of course, the atmosphere of a bar is one thing but if the food and drinks aren’t worth the visit, what’s the point?

One of the trends that is being picked up by many of the local bars is a special birthday drink and while I was there a table of girls were partaking in the Dirty Swamp Water served in a fish bowl. Another special drink they offer is Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey, from what I’ve heard, try that in a Pepsi and you may partake in a dangerous number of them! As for food, they have what you would expect at a Western bar: burgers, pulled pork, chili, nachos, wings and some homemade dips. Since I was working, I wasn’t able to try any of the food but the list of homemade dips looks delicious so I’ll have to grab some friends and hopefully we’ll be able to agree on one!

Each Monday is Industry Night with drink specials for people who work in restaurants and bars, Tuesday is All Draft Beers at 7:00PM are 2-for-1, Wednesdays are Karaoke nights starting at 9:00PM, Fridays are Pop Culture Trivia and Happy Hour from 6:00PM-8:00PM, Saturdays is Live Music and Sundays are $1.50 PBR draft all day. Everyday, ALL cans of domestic beers are $2 from 11:00AM-6:00PM. Want to keep up on events? Join their email list and check out the LIST on their website. So pick a day with a special that peaks your interest and check out this bar. If you end up trying one of the dips, let me know how it was!

*I took a bunch of great pictures but I accidentally deleted them, I’ll most any new pictures I take to my Facebook page! *