chicago bound

My best friend is a classically trained musician who auditions frequently for various symphonies around the country. She has an upcoming audition in Chicago and invited me along for the ride! So, I will be spending a few days in Chicago during the first week of March. I would love recommendations for places to visit, eat, etc. I know that I want to try the Chicago Diner, visit the Museum of Science and Industry, and possibly the Field Museum. I’ve been to the Field Museum, so if pressed for time, I might skip it.
Any suggestions for places to visit? Must sees in Chicago? I am really into non-touristy things as well as some of the more traditional site seeings. I love to people watch, and would love a good recommendation for a coffee shop with good ‘a-watchin.

Tags: chicago, road trip, travel

Music Wednesday…

I have loved Mark Kozelek for 13 years, it is crazy how huge of a fan I am. Borderline creepy. This song qualifies in the top ten of my all-time favorites.
Don’t you just love his voice? He’s so lovely. Okay, I am being creepy, aren’t I?

Tags: indie, music, music wednesday, red house painters

smoky split pea soup

This recipe was conceived because it’s forkin’ cold outside, naturally I wanted a rustic soup. Maybe, I really just wanted to eat green food tonight, because I also had a serving of crispy, toasted, brussel sprouts. I served the soup with a buttered mini-marbled rye slice. This soup was really comforting and a perfect companion to the below zero temperatures.

Split Pea Soup

serves 4.

• 1 1/2 cup dried split peas, washed and sorted for gross bits
• 1/4 medium sized onion, diced
• 1 or 2 celery ribs diced
• 1 TB minced garlic
• 1 TB olive Oil
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 bayleaf
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• 5 1/2 cups of vegetable broth
• 1 TB nutritional yeast
• S & P to taste

Heat olive oil in a medium stockpot. Add onions and celery, saute until onions are tender. Add paprika, bay leaf, thyme and garlic. When the paprika becomes really fragrant (about 1-2 minutes), add vegetable broth, split peas, and nutritional yeast. Bring to a boil, check for salt and pepper, and reduce heat to a simmer. Continue cooking until the split peas are tender, about 40-45 minutes.

Tags: comfort food, soup, vegetarian, wintery soups

house love

I am totally drooling over this perfect mid-century ranch home in Michigan. It is perfectly decorated and keeps in tact the home’s quirky architectural charm. Click the photo to see the rest of the tour over at Vintage Indie.

Tags: design, home life, houses

(vegetarian) buffalo chick’n dip

We watched the Super Bowl, which is highly unusual. Last year was actually the first time I had even seen an American Football game, and of course, it happened to be the Super Bowl. The last few years I have become increasingly more interested in watching sports, but this hasn’t really expanded to the NFL. Alas, I bring you this updated, less saturated with grease or fat, dip. Oh, it doesn’t look super pretty when it comes out, but it is mighty tasty!

buffalo chicken dip-serves 8
• 8 gardein crispy tenders
• 1 ¹⁄₂ Frank’s Red Hot (feel free to use less if you are sensitive to spicy foods
• ¹⁄₃ cup crumbled blue cheese
• 2 8 ounce packages low-fat cream cheese softened
• ¹⁄₂ cup skim milk mozzarella.
• ¹⁄₂ TB Earth Balance or butter

Preheat oven to 420. Cook Chick’n Strips to package requirements, make sure they are crispy. Set aside. Combine the rest of the ingredients, mix well until sauce is smooth. Put sauce and strips in a baking dish. Lower Temperature to 350 and bake for 20-30 minutes, until set.


While this might not be the most healthy thing to eat, this version (per serving) has 188 calories, 9 grams of carbs, 7 grams of fat, and 17 grams of protein. It makes a whole mess, so the serving sizes are much bigger than the typical 2 TB.

Tags: cooking, low-fat, recipes, vegetarian

favorite songs/albums of all time:

Music has always been paramount in my life, I started listening to punkrock when I was 11 and went to my first show at 12. Throughout high school, I probably went to anywhere from 3-5 shows a week. The whole punk rock lifestyle and “scene” (as corny as this sounds) saved my life; it rescued me from a deep depression and still means so much to me. I might not listen to much hardcore, snotty grimy punkrock anymore, but I still love those friendships that were forged during my youth. I will continue to add to this post, because this is in noway comprehensive. So, here are some of my favorite songs in no particular order:



I first heard this Bon Iver album in 2007 and it still really, really, speaks to me. It chills me every time I listen to it. It is so unreal.


I was 16 when I bought the way birds fly by Project Kate, and was spending a summer in Kansas City away from home. I would dance around in my makeshift bedroom listening to this on the record player. It is so sweet, so sincere, and made sixteen and seventeen easier.

I am a huge fan of soul and Otis Redding’s ability to portray heartache is overwhelming.

Another teenage obsession still speaking to me, by Sleater-Kinney.. I was totally into all kill rock stars bands and played this along with Bikini Kill, Team Dresch, Heavens to Betsy, etc on my weekly radio show. Yeah, I was that girl.

R.E.M reminds me of summer, this song especially. There is something so freeing about nightswimming.

Tags: favorite music, indie, music, music lists, music videos, punkrock, top tens

the morning benders are like, woah!

This blog will also feature music videos and songs by artists that i adore. You can also expect to find random links to funny, interesting, etc sites. I want this space to be more of a place for me to show not just what I am eating, but to showcase random things that I am into. I registered a domain, and am going to be working on a total redesign like back in the day! Here goes nothin’.
i love the morning benders, these boys make sweet sounds.

“Promises” Morning Benders from Foundation Content on Vimeo.

Tags: morning benders, music, music videos

tomato soup with grilled cheese

Last night I promised you new upcoming recipes, which I am going to be much more diligent to post. Or at least take snapshots of at least 1 meal daily.

We had a really great tomato soup served with balsamic caramelized onion and crimini grilled cheeses. If I had any adjustments to make, I would have used fresh roma tomatoes and roasted them in the over for about an hour. That is my absolute favorite way to make tomato soup, it adds an intense burst of flavor. Also, I would have used a multigrain or whole grain bread, but the boyfriend came home with a white sourdough. Alas, that is what he wanted and requested!

Tip: It is not super important to get all the vegetables uniform or chopped up small, because you will blend this at the end.

creamy tomato soup

serves 6.

• 2 TB Olive Oil
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 2 celery stalks, plus the green leafy bits at the top diced
• 2 carrots sliced
• 5 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1⁄2 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1⁄2 tsp dried thyme
• salt & pepper to taste
• 3 14 ounce cans diced tomatoes
• 2 tsp tomato paste
• dash of sweetener of choice (i used sugar)
• 3 to 4 cups vegetable broth (with 1 TB nutritional yeast)
• 1⁄2 cup skim milk
• 2 TB cream

In a stock pot heat the olive oil, add onions and celery–about five minutes. Sauté until onions are translucent, add carrots, spices, and garlic on medium heat. When garlic is tender and the spices fragrant– about 2 minutes, add diced tomatoes and paste. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for about 10 minutes; add three cups of broth. Cover and simmer for twenty more minutes, taste for sweetness (should have a nice balance) and add salt. Using either a blender or immersion blender, blend until smooth. If you used a blender, return to pot. At this point, check for consistency, and add more broth if needed. Add cream and milk.


As previously mentioned, we served this with a delicious grilled cheese consisting of balsamic caramelized onions, baby portobella mushroom, and swiss cheese. (this is for two sandwiches) I caramelized 1⁄2 thinly sliced onion adding a splash of balsamic vinegar, added 4 ounces sliced mushrooms, another splash of basalmic and when those were cooked, I lightly buttered the bread. Put each slice butter-face (hah!) down in a pan, arrange 1 slice of swiss cheese on one slice and the mushroom/onion mixture on another. When cheese is melted, bread toasted, put the two together!

Tags: grilled cheese, recipes, soup, vegetarian food

some healthy recipes to watch out for…

In the next few days I will be posting some newer recipes, it’s been a while since I actually forced myself to come up with a recipe for the things I make. Normally, I just eye ball the spices/seasonings.
Upcoming:

vibrant tomato soup with grilled balsamic baby bella mushroom and swiss sandwiches.

a flavorful veggie strata

palak paneer

a vegetarian buffalo chicken dip

Plus, whatever else I end up cooking!

Tags: cooking, recipes, vegetarian

progress, i guess, really does take baby steps.

Let me start off by saying that I am not “over weight” in the clinical sense, but I do feel sluggish. I have a perfectly normal B.M.I, but I still would like to shed some pounds. Mostly, I want to become much more physically fit, and choose foods that are nourishing as well as filling. So, I started using myfitnesspal.com as a tool to guide me through workouts and calculate my daily nutrition. So, far the pounds are not melting away, but I am seeing definite changes in the way my body looks and feels. The muscle tone is slowly building and the definition is starting to pay off!

The scale is a hard thing to break though, and I am trying my hardest not to get discouraged. Because, I do feel so much more energized and my clothes fit better. This whole thing sounds semi-vain, when I think about people who have loads of weight to lose, and I shouldn’t be complaining when I can still wear a size six and not feel squeezed. This journey really is about me getting healthy, because how can I possibly advise people about their nutrition if I am not practicing sound choices as well!

So, for the past three weeks I have been measuring my foods, calculating nutrition, and working out six days a week for 45 minutes or more. Most days I jog, ride a stationary bike, and do some form of strength-training. I also tend to practice yoga for at least ten minutes of yoga daily, which does wonders for my flexibility and energy! There really is a lot to be said for doing several sun salutations to wake you up in the morning.

So, while I am not seeing the pounds fly from my body, I am seeing tone, definition, and an increase in endurance. Also, my food choices are always much more mindful, (gotta love the kale and sweet potatoes), and the alcoholic beverages not as soothing as they once were! The alcohol consumption decrease is one of the biggest changes, but by far the best for my body! I still have a cocktail here and there, but its usually with soda water or none at all; no getting smashed, though! Truth be told, my diet was never really that poor, because when entering stand by recipes and choices into the calculator they weren’t that high in saturated fat or calories. Weeeell, except for my alcohol drinking, gah! So, these days I don’t drink to curb boredom, instead I read, do crosswords, socialize with friends sans alcohol. This is not say that I completely gave up alcohol, as I previously stated, I still have a cocktail here and there. I just don’t get shlossingly drunk, which is a much more grounded and healthy me.

Tags: eating right, exercise, fitness, getting healthy, health, mindful