Travels and Trdelnik: Coolest Cold Weather Things to Do

Hi all,

With temperatures winding down, the indoors beckons more. Leaves forming that crunchy surface underfoot. Vibrant colors splashed across the trees. Plaid scarves and tall boots abound. Cozy cafes invite. Warm drinks entice. All the while, I know some of us tend to feel our activity ideas and opportunities seeming to narrow as the weather grows brisk, with less incentive to be outside and thus, more challenged with fun things to do.
Look no further, and worry no more. Ive got you covered.

Places in Boston to cozy up with a book and/or great conversation
1. The Thinking Cup
2. Crema
3. Jaho
4. Darwins Ltd (both of them)
5. Tatte
6. South End Buttery

Tatte

Darwins Ltd.

Charming cafes in Frankfurt, Germany
1. Sugar Mama
2. Café Crumble
3. Café Maingold
4. Iimori
5. Bitter und Zart

Café Maingold

Bitter und Zart

One of my many afternoons spent at Sugar Mama <3

Click here to read the majorly read review I wrote (loaded with photos) of Sugar Mama Café.

Sugar Mama

Café Crumble

And here to read my full review of Café Crumble.

Café Crumble

New Hampshire locales to explore
1. Mt. Kearsarge
2. Newmarket, New Hampshire
3. Portsmouth, New Hampshire
4. Concord, New Hampshire

Mt. Kearsarge

Portsmouth, NH

Newmarket, NH

Concord, NH

Comfort foods for fall
1. Macaroni and cheese
2. Lasagna. Try my paleo version, for all the homey, comforting deliciousness but without the grains/gluten and explosion of calories.
3. Pancakes. Obviously.
4. Grilled cheese and tomato soup
5. Chicken Pot Pie
6. Casseroles

Find the recipe for this Paleo Lasagna here. SO delish, SO homey and yum.

Snag the recipe for these grain free, lactose free, and sugar free, fluffy and sweet pancakes here.

Here is how to make these pumpkin lavender pancakes. One of my favorite recipes.

Pumpkin oat buckwheat pancakes. Mmmmm.

Top notch TV shows
1. Friday Night Lights. Quintessential autumn TV show. Pretty sure it won something like 11 Emmy awards.
2. Six Feet Under. Another award winner and majorly gripping watch.
3. The Wire. Best show ever made. Enough said.

Rad reads for colder weather afternoons (and evenings) spent indoors
1. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
2. Big Stone Gap series by Adriana Trigiani
3. The Night Circus by Erin Mortensen
4. White Oleander by Janet Finch
5. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
6. Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
7. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
8. The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King
9. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
10. We are Water by Wally Lamb

Here is a review I wrote of the Goldfinch back on first reading it.

Decadent desserts
1. Pumpkin Donuts
2. Pumpkin Cheesecake
3. Chocolate Pudding
4. Brownies
5. Carrot Cake
6. Sweet Potato Pie
7. Chocolate Chip Cookies
8. Chocolate Cake.

The recipe for this gingersnap crust pumpkin cheesecake is here.

Raw Carrot Cake with Maple Mascarpone Frosting. SO good.

Sweet Potato Pie with Brown Sugar Crust. Mmmmm. A very autumnal and Thanksgiving dish, if there ever was one.

This quinoa chocolate cake recipe is moist, decadent, fudgy, one of the best chocolate cakes Ive ever had. However, it has zero grains/gluten, is low in sugar, and is lactose free. Here's the recipe :-D

Activity ideas for autumn
1. Hiking (Blue Hills is a nice area close to Boston. Mt. Kearsarge, Mt. Major, and Mt. Monadnock are three great ones in New Hampshire).
2. Exploring Salem, MA
3. Leaf peeping
4. Cooking competitions
5. Haunted hayrides
6. Holing up in a café and reading, writing, or chatting the afternoon away with a friend
7. Heading to Heidelberg, Germany (an easy one hour shot from Frankfurt, and incredibly gorgeous).
8. Dinner parties with friends.

Haunted Hayrides.

Heidelberg, Germany.

Bomb Diggity Boston Ideas
1. Boston Museum of Science
2. Museum of Fine Arts
3. Take a cooking class at the Adult Center for Education (there is one in Cambridge and one in Boston center), so much fun!
4. Brunch at any of the following: Fat Baby, Lincoln Tavern, Tatte, Little Donkey, all of these are delish.
5. Go check out a phenomenal magic show in the city! Maxx and I saw this together, and loved it.
6. Barre in Harvard Square, and then Crema Cafe for something warm to drink/eat.
7. Stand-up comedy is always great. There are several spots in the city to see such. Just Google and youll be met with a list of options.

Fat Baby- great for brunching.

Fat Baby brunch

Neat New Hampshire Stuff
1. Granite State Candy Store in Concord. To. Die. For. Sweets here :-D
2. Some enticing eateries: Willows Plant Based Eatery, Sweet Green, Crust and Crumb Bakery, The Clean Take, and The Works (Bagel Works).
3. White Park. A nice place to take a walk, feed the ducks, or get silly on their expansive playground. (This is one of the central sites of my childhood right here).
4. Umami in Deerfield, New Hampshire (the town in which my mom lives). The most charming of restaurants, housed in a redone barn. Love this.
5. Tuckers in Concord. Mouthwatering breakfast food on offering here.
6. Gibson's Bookstore in Concord. A great spot for grabbing something sweet and finding a great read.

Desserts from Crust and Crumb. They have the BEST flourless chocolate cake here, as well as amazing whoopie pies.

Food from Umami in Deerfield, NH

Umami, Deerfield, NH

White Park in Concord

White Park

Fun in Frankfurt, Germany
1. Hugendubel Bookstore. With a café for hunkering down, and a decent section of books in English, this is a great place for relaxing and reading.
2. The Library, just off the Zeil. A HUGE English section on the bottom floor. I could (and did) spend hours in here at a time. Great place for a hushed, quiet atmosphere and an awesome reading selection.
3. Its getting to be that time again...for Christmas markets!!!! Not just in Frankfurt, but throughout the country. Fun Fact: Germany is known for having the best Christmas markets in all of Europe.
4. Good Times for Good People. Loved going here once in a while for a drink. Way cool atmosphere.
5. Berger Strasse. Really neat street, lined with funky boutiques, charming cafes, delicious food, and more.

Check out my complete list here of "Most Fantastic in Frankfurt" for the places I loved most.