Good Thursday morning.
Now that the weather is trending cooler, my iced coffee days are officially numbered.
I know there are people out there who are diehards and drink their coffee on ice all year round. I am not one of these people. When it’s negative whatever outside, I want a drink that will warm me up and help me face the day ahead, not send my back to the shelter of warm blankets.
My aversion to cold foods in the cold weather is not limited to beverages. I also lose my desire for everything from cold cereal and salads to ice cream. Give me all the cookies, and cakes, and pies for the fall and winter seasons. But pack that ice cream away until the spring – at least.
The truth is that thanks to thermoregulation, the body maintains a fairly stable core temperature – unless you’re sick or overheated. And eating cold food when you’re feeling hot can actually have an opposite desired effect, encouraging the brain to activate processes that warm you up.
So, maybe you all-season iced food and drink lovers are onto something.
There are, of course, some holiday specialities that are not of the aforementioned room temperature or warm variety. Spumoni, which is, for some reason unbeknownst to me, is being celebrated today, is an example, as it graces many Christmas tables in the Italian-American community.
If you are not familiar, spumoni is a layered dessert traditionally made from three flavors of ice cream and/or gelato (less air, less butterfat, served at a warmed temperature) – usually chocolate, cherry or strawberry, and pistachio, (so, red and green, which is very on-point for Christmas, but also happens to correspond with the colors of the Italian flag).
It may or may not also include whipped cream, nuts, and candied fruit, and is generally molded into a dome or square and served in slices, possibly drizzled with chocolate syrup. Spumoni – or, more appropriately, “spumone” – means “foamy” or “spongy” in Italian, which refers to the dessert’s light and airy texture.
It is related to, but not synonymous with, Neapolitan (sometimes referred to as Harlequin) ice cream, which is usually composed of three flavors – vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. Spumoni originated in Naples, Italy, while Neapolitan ice cream was inspired by spumoni and other types of Italian layered desserts, but is really more of an American tradition.
The layered dessert fad, by the way, is something that is not unique to the Italians, though they are also the masterminds behind another fan favorite, tiramisu. There’s also strudel (Germany, Austria), trifle (the UK), Baklava and Knafeh (Greece, Turkey and the Middle East), just to name a few.
In the 19th-century Italian immigrants from Naples brought their ice cream-making expertise with them when they settled here in the U.S. The arrival of this delicacy on these shores might have marked the moment when pistachio and cherry were swapped for vanilla and strawberry, which are more traditional flavors here in the states.
Today’s weather will be a welcome change from yesterday’s dreary fall preview – though perhaps still not, by my standards, ice cream eating weather (spumoni or otherwise) – with cloudy to partly-cloudy skies temperatures warming into the mid-70s. It won’t be pool weather, either, but at least it won’t be cold and wet.
Small victories.
In the headlines…
The Texas state House passed a new set of GOP-friendly congressional lines yesterday, putting the party one step closer toward adopting a new map that sparked a redistricting arms race across the country.
The lower chamber approved the new maps on party lines, 88-52, in the first of two key votes. The maps will now go to the state Senate, where they are expected to be swiftly approved.
A Texas Democratic state lawmaker abruptly left a call with Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin and other top party leaders after she was warned she was committing a felony.
Democratic Governors Gavin Newsom and Kathy Hochul of California and New York, respectively, issued brief warnings to Texas after the Republican-led state legislature voted to advance a controversial congressional redistricting plan.
Former President Barack Obama has offered his approval to Democrats’ mid-decade redistricting attempts, praising Newsom’s bid to reapportion California’s House districts as a “responsible approach.”
The California Supreme Court rejected a petition filed by state Republican legislators seeking to halt Newsom’s plan to redistrict California’s congressional map.
A federal judge in Texas temporarily halted a state law that would have required the Ten Commandments to be visibly displayed in every public school classroom by Sept. 1.
The Trump administration faced its third rejection of requests to unseal grand jury material in the cases involving the late sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.
At least two large law firms that struck deals with Trump to avoid punitive executive orders have committed to doing free legal work for the Commerce Department, according to two people briefed on the matter.
A Justice Department subpoena published in court documents provided details about the Trump administration’s expansive demands for confidential patient information from doctors and hospitals that provide gender-related treatments for children.
Hochul made her traditional visit on a rainy and low attendance opening day of the New York State Fair, surrounded at all times by as many as 50 aides, state employees, elected officials, reporters and plainclothes state police.
Hochul announced some exciting new developments, including upgrades to the Rainbow Milk Bar in the Dairy Building — a fair favorite thanks to its fair pricing. Next year, fairgoers will have a new milk flavor to choose from: Strawberry.
Hochul’s office said $35 million in enhancements include a new look and location for the Milk Bar. This should increase the square footage of the exhibit and allow for the installation of new equipment.
“A sustained investment to make sure that our attractions are top notch, that our facilities are first rate, that sends a message that this is a place of significance and importance,” Hochul said.
Hochul said that inflation rebate checks still will be mailed out to some 8 million New Yorkers despite the federal budget dealing New York a financial hit.
The governor has no legal pathway to stop Trump from federalizing the New York National Guard or countermanding orders that he gives to the state’s National Guard troops.
Hochul emphatically rejected the idea of anything happening to New York City’s annual parade celebrating the Jewish state, which is held every May.
A coalition of over 100 local and state elected officials are joining activists in calling on Hochul to kill a controversial and potentially harmful fracked gas pipeline that would run off the coast of Queens.
New York’s infrastructure for caring for older adults could face headwinds from looming federal funding changes, even as the state’s share of older adults is expected to increase, according to a report from the state comptroller’s office.
Winnie Greco, a former top City Hall advisor and current campaign confidante to Mayor Eric Adams, attempted to give money to a reporter from THE CITY following a campaign event in Harlem yesterday.
The reporter, Katie Honan, had scrutinized Greco’s conduct in the past as a major fundraiser for Adams in the Chinese American community.
“I looked and I go, ‘Oh my God, it’s money,’” Honan recalled. She then called Greco, who informed Honan she had left the area, and Honan was unable to return it to Greco.
Todd Shapiro, a spokesperson for Adams’ mayoral campaign, said in a statement that “Grecco [sic] holds no position in this campaign and has been suspended from all VOLUNTEER campaign-related activities.”
Adams’ former chief advisor, a close associate he put in charge of city leases and two key supporters of the mayor are expected to be indicted by the Manhattan district attorney today on influence-peddling charges.
“The District Attorney has refused to provide any details about the charges,” attorney Arthur Aidala said in a statement, confirming that Lewis-Martin will appear in court in Manhattan today.
The mayor, who is just months away from facing voters in his bid for a second term leading New York City, is not expected to be charged.
The son of Broadway Stages co-owner Tony Argento – who also will be charged in connection with a corruption scandal involving the Adams administration – produced a vanity film project written, directed by and starring Mayor Adams’ son Jordan Coleman.
A New York City watchdog group is suing Adams’ administration for failing to release a plan for addressing racial disparities in the city, across a range of topics, as required under a voter-backed initiative three years ago.
The city Commission on Racial Equity, an independent city agency also established by a 2022 charter change overwhelmingly backed by voters, filed the lawsuit on Tuesday in state court. It notes the required racial equity plan is over 500 days overdue.
Adams cut the ribbon on a new Harlem campaign office yesterday, lashing out at opponents while facing pressure from election officials to decide which independent line he will run on.
Adams appears to be leaning toward selecting “Safe&Affordable” as his ballot line in November’s election as opposed to “EndAntiSemitism” after New York City’s elections board told him this week that he must soon pick one of them.
Adams continued his criticism of Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani for living in a rent-stabilized apartment.
Mamdani dodged a question about Trump labeling him a “communist” when pressed by Fox News, saying: “The elements of my platform are all about affordability, and I am a democratic socialist.”
Mamdani said that he did not intend to use his newfound political clout as the Democratic mayoral nominee and the race’s front-runner to try to stop the arrival of casinos that are widely considered a fait accompli, though he generally opposes them.
After being hounded by rival campaigns about his stance on decriminalizing sex work as a Queens assemblymember, Mamdani said that he wants to mirror the policies of his favorite ex-mayor: Bill de Blasio.
Mamdani and Mark Levine, the city’s likely next comptroller, appeared together yesterday and offered support for each other’s campaigns, even as the dynamic of their potential new roles could lead to tension down the road.
Andrew Cuomo is insisting he was just speculating when he recently told donors that he believes Trump will try to convince Republicans to help boost his campaign in the race for New York City mayor.
City Probation Department Commissioner Juanita Holmes received a dressing down from First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro over her leadership of the agency, which is coming under mounting scrutiny amid allegations of cronyism and mismanagement.
Two construction workers who claim they contracted Legionnaires’ disease while working at or near Harlem Hospital are suing contractors they allege failed to safeguard water cooling towers at the building against contamination by the bacteria.
The pair of lawsuits filed on Wednesday specifically take aim at Rising Sun Construction and Skanska USA Building, two companies that allegedly managed construction projects at and near Harlem Hospital.
The detention of an Ecuadorian family, especially a 6-year-old girl, illuminated a practice the Trump administration has revived across the country: the detention and deportation of families with children.
The NYPD got a much-needed infusion of blue blood when it formally accepted nearly 1,100 police recruits – the largest class of future officers inaugurated in nine years.
Two men charged in connection with the July shooting of an off-duty customs and border protection agent pleaded not guilty to various crimes in Manhattan Supreme Criminal Court.
A Bronx man is facing second-degree murder charges for his alleged involvement in a killing that took place eight years ago.
An FBI task force raided four massage spas and the Capital Region residence of a Chinese migrant yesterday in what a federal criminal complaint described as a takedown of a sprawling prostitution ring stretching from Kingston to Saratoga County.
Schenectady County Legislature Chairman Gary Hughes said he is “unashamedly proud” that Susan E. Savage, who served for years in the leadership post he currently holds, is once again working for the county.
Schenectady Assessor Molly MacElroy urged City Council members to consider conducting a municipal-wide revaluation since one hasn’t been done since 2007.
Saratoga Springs police ticketed five housing advocates who protested the city’s controversial camping ban by pitching red tents on the sidewalk and steps leading into City Hall.
Booker T. Moore, who worked in nuclear medicine for the VA Medical Center in Albany starting around 1960, becoming its head physicist, and lived a life devoted to family, faith, country and community, died Aug. 9, about two months before his 99th birthday.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
