Refreshing dinner and drinks

First things first... the mint julep. So cool, so refreshing, so perfect for a Summer afternoon/evening.



I don't know if this is THE way to make one, but here's my recipe:

4 fresh mint sprigs
4 oz. Jim Beam
4 tsp. powdered sugar
Club soda
Ice

Put the mint sprigs in the glass, add 1 oz. of the Jim Beam and all of the powdered sugar, and mash together. Once its mixed and mashed, add the ice (6-8 cubes), remaining 3 oz. Jim Beam, and club soda to fill the glass. Enjoy slowly and luxuriously.

For dinner, I stopped by Pho 888 on Argyle, and got pho to take home. To my absolute delight, they kept all of the ingredients separate, for me to combine at home. This made it SO fresh and tasty!



Sliced beef, uncooked, will be perfectly medium-rare when you poor the hot broth over it.



Noodles, scallions, and onions.



Fresh mint, a thick slice of jalapeno pepper, bean sprouts, and plum sauce complete the dish. Yummy!



After dinner, I took a nice bike ride down to the Lake, and enjoyed putting my feet in the water for a while, and having a phone conversation with my best friend in VA. Lovely!

Changes, changes

So.. surprise! With one days notice... I moved! Its two floors down and a little to the East of my last apartment (same building), and what I lost in kitchen space... I gained in a bedroom! Hooray, my days of studio living are (for the foreseeable future) over! I'm still moving stuff from upstairs, so most of my food is in a sort of purgatory between apartments... I need, for sure, to get the lamb and the ground beef out of the freezer... and the spices... hopefully I'll be back to cooking soon. It's going to be kind of weird with the loss of my "dining room counter space", but I think I'll come up with solutions to make this space work for me.

Last night I was hungry and in a hurry, so I whipped up something really simple:

Yellow squash, sauteed in olive oil and sea salt.

Green beans cooked in hot water, and then tossed with fried country ham (chopped), apple cider vinegar, and sugar in a sauce pan. Super-yummy!

No pictures, as I'm not completely sure where my camera is... and I was so hungry, I just wanted to EAT! Tonight is mine and my 'fella's anniversary (on the All-Star Game day!), so I might make him something special... or I might just order him a pizza to eat while we watch the game. You never know! ;)

Pasta w/ yellow squash

This is as simple as it gets.

Elbow macaroni
Yellow squash
Garlic
Olive oil
Salt

Cook the pasta in salted water.

Meanwhile sauté the squash and garlic in olive oil.

Toss together, sprinkle with a little salt.

Easy!

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Cucumber, watermelon & mango w/ salt, lime & cayenne pepper

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Location:N Simonds Dr,Chicago,United States

This is a little test to see how this app works out...

My Momma is visiting from VA, and we have been going what feels like non-stop since Friday afternoon.

Yesterday we braved the Taste of Chicago. It felt like it was about 125-degrees, but we survived (just barely). We didn't take many pictures because we were HOT and busy eating! I have a few of us stuffing our faces that I'll post later.

She had lobster tail with potatoes, toasted ravioli, and fried dough. I had collard green egg rolls and Cajun meatballs, and finished it off with a rainbow cone (Mum had the rainbow ice cream sampler size). The lobster tail was yummy but too small for 12 tickets ($8). She seemed pleased enough once she got her fried dough. The line for the rainbow cone was the longest, almost ten minutes.

Until then, the obligatory Buckingham Fountain picture! :)


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Location:W Wilson Ave,Chicago,United States

Dinner and Drinks (and a ballgame) at Bowman's

I had the Mac & Cheese with bacon, which was pretty good, but needed a little salt.



I also had three (gasp!) of these Dreamsicle Tini's, which are now my favorite thing in the world.



Mum, if you're reading this, we might visit the patio of this restaurant/bar on Friday night for a little girl time!

I actually (kind of) made food on Sunday, so I'll post about that this evening. Unfortunately, one of the ingredients I was looking forward to using was no longer, ahem, "use-able", so maybe its time I clean out my fridge? I want to do this before my Mum visits, anyway. Usually, I find a clean fridge (especially after I stock it with new foods and fresh produce) to be really inspiring!

I've been too much of a city girl lately, going out to eat or ordering in practically every night, and even though I keep saying I want to start cooking again, I go out the next night, and the next... I could blame it on laziness, or the generosity of my 'fella, but its kind of fun for me too, and I shouldn't have to feel guilty about going out and enjoying myself. I'm moving away from being so much a "broke" foodie these days... but alas, at the end of it all, I still live in a tiny studio with an itsy-bitsy kitchen, and I can't really shop at Fox & Obel whenever I want to (although I did purchase a Groupon!).

I'm enjoying taking advantage of all the fun restaurants Chicago has to offer, and the warm weather, and the patios... aaaah. A lot of my "nesting" instincts from the Winter/Spring are not so strong in the warm Summer months, just because its more fun to NOT be at home!

I do want to have some fabulous picnics, especially when my Mum visits, and I would like to make more creative and fun lunches to bring to work.

Tacos!

1/2 Lb. ground beef
Squash and zucchini
Shredded lettuce
Sliced red and yellow tomatoes
Avocado
Casera salsa, sour cream