Our final meal together for the girls' wine-tasting weekend was brunch back in San Francisco at Foreign Cinema. This restaurant also shows movies on the concrete walls at night, but since we were there on a sunny Sunday morning, it was just a relaxed, high-ceilinged sight to see.
Is an oil change an excuse to try a new place for brunch? Husband and I think so. The closest Jiffy Lube is right in Andersonville so we parked on a side street one sunny Saturday afternoon and walked until we found a brunch that peaked our interest at Acre Restaurant. Husband liked the number of items on the menu with meat and ordered the Porkburger (yes, Porkburger) at the suggestion of our server. It was Triple S Farms Pork with blueberry jam, lettuce, house-smoked bacon, and pepperjack cheese.
I've lived within walking distance of Lutz Cafe and Pastry Shop, the German bakery extraordinaire, for many months now, visited/gorged on their offerings twice, and have been hoarding these fabulous drool-worthy photos all to myself.
Continue reading "Lutz Cafe and Pastry Shop: Lincoln Square, Chicago" »
I know it's getting hot out, but there's always a time and place for oatmeal. It's one of my favorite breakfast comfort foods that doesn't get me into trouble like a giant bagel, a doughnut, or a stack of pancakes. Jenn, the all-around amazing blogger, runner/cyclist, dog mom, digital PR person, gluten free cook, and really great friend, sent me this blog post with a steel-cut oatmeal recipe when I asked her about healthy breakfast options. I make my oats on a Sunday night then have them all week (they just need a quick pop in the microwave). Thanks, Jenn!
I've eaten a lot of bars in my life. Starting with Quaker Chewy bars as a child; those were my afternoon snack nearly every day. Then in my low carb phase, Adkins-friendly bars. After that, Zone bars for meals on the go. Finally, I eat a fiber-enforced bar for breakfast now. I figured it was about time to make a bar of my own. I've seen lots of recipes and decided to start with this one. I can say with some certainty that I have some practice to do before this becomes a regular thing. Sticky hands, messy baking sheets, and dry granola bars are not my idea of convenience. I'm open to suggestions for other recipes.
Continue reading "Homemade Granola Bars: My first attempt" »
Baby showers aren't my favorite thing in the entire world, but I will endure if they involve dear friends. And if they include food like the kind my friend Lisa served at a baby shower last weekend, I can certainly handle myself. It was a brunch for my wonderful friend Colleen who will be welcoming a son into the world, little brother to her three-year-old. The food mirrored the day, bright, fresh, and sweet; fruits, eggs, juice, and the best thing in the world, this Praline French Toast. It is so good that you know the instant it touches your lips that it isn't good for you. And reviewing the recipe below, you'll see that's true. But it is so. darn. good.
Yesterday I posted the recipe that I entered into Marx Foods Morel Recipe Challenge, and for those of you who know me, you know that one is never enough. So I made another.
And since I still have two dozen eggs from my failure to decorate Easter Eggs, I thought a delicious bread pudding was in order. I pretended this was an appetizer, but this would make a yummy breakfast/brunch dish.
Continue reading "Savory Morel Mushroom Bread Pudding: Mushroom-O-Rama Day Two" »
Brunch is growing on me. I may have mentioned that brunch sometimes irks me because the meal usually involves waiting for a table in the crowded doorway of a restaurant, and the food is fine but not worth $15-$20. Lately, I've been finding more and more places on Open Table for brunch, and it can be an enjoyable experience, as long as you're not seated next to a screaming baby (another common brunch item). My friend Katie and I had a very nice time at Cafe 28, a Cuban restaurant just a short jaunt from my home. It was busy, but with reservations, we walked right in and to our table. Katie ordered the always delicious chilaquiles with grilled chicken on the side.
I couldn't resist snapping a photo of Husband's Bloody Mary when we went to brunch at Branch 27 in West Town. While he's had the drink filled to the brim with odds and ends, I've never seen a meat and cheese skewer addition. This is what you'd call a manly Bloody Mary.
My college girlfriends are among some of my best friends and the funnest people I know. Unfortunately, in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, we don't get together as often as we would like (and we seem to be moving further and further apart even for those of us still in Chicago). So, when we plan a brunch, everyone shows up (even the little ones), and we have a grand ol' time. Our last get together was at Sweets & Savories, a Lincoln Park BYOB, and because the menu is prix fixe (and we brought in our own beverages), it makes that end-of-meal check-splitting awkwardness melt away.
Continue reading "Sweets & Savories: Sunday brunch with the ladies" »
