Time to Detox:: Magical Leek Soup

I mentioned I was going to detox, and I wasn't kidding.  Ever since I read French Women Don't Get Fat (my review here) I've been intrigued to try the French version of detoxing ~ with leek soup.  I'm not one for fad crash diets, but I do buy in to the theory that every once and a while your body could use a "reset".  My purpose is not to lose weight, but cleanse my system for a fresh start of healthy eating once more.  Enter leek soup.

This method is meant to be done over the weekend, starting Saturday morning and concluding Sunday evening with a light meal. Since my December weekends are already brimming with social events, I decided to do mine during the week.  And since there's no time like the present, I am starting today.  I made the leek broth last night and have to say actually enjoyed the portion I had for breakfast.

detox method::
excerpt from the book French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano

The juice is to be drunk (reheated or at room temperature to taste) every 2 to 3 hours, 1 cup at a time

For meals, or whenever hungry, have som of the leeks themselves, 1/2 cup at a time.  Drizzle with a few drops of extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice.  Season sparingly with salt and pepper.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley if you wish.

This will be your nourishment for both days, until Sunday dinner, when you can have a small piece of meat or fish (4 to 6 ounces), with 2 vegetables, steamed with a bit of butter or olive oil, and a piece of fruit.

I'll let you know what I think of the results... fingers crossed I make it!

Have you ever tried a detox?

back to reality

How were all your Thanksgivings?  Mine was a complete success! May I remind you it was the first Thanksgiving I hosted, and from the feedback I heard, everyone was pleased.  The turkey felt like the biggest accomplishment ~ with its crispy skin and juicy meat, it was the hit of the party.  I stuck pretty close to the menu I planned (except for the salad which I changed to a classic pear and pecan salad), and have to say the cranberry sauce recipe I followed was to die for.  I also used a chipotle butternut squash soup recipe that received tons of compliments and was a great melding of flavor and heat.

After Thanksgiving, the hubs and I took off for Michigan and spent the weekend with extended family.  To say I'm tired this morning is an understatement.  But it's back to reality!  And Cyber Monday at that.  I was thinking of easing into some online Christmas shopping.  That, and a detox.  Anyone want to join me?

unplug, recharge, and give thanks

You heard me. It's time to unplug, recharge, and give thanks.  I am spending the next five days with family doing what we do together best ~ laughing, relaxing, and relishing the time together.  Our family traditions are centered around two Thanksgiving meals, and an evening we now lovingly call "Absinthefest".  You can only imagine the hilarity that ensues over three generations enjoying absinthe together.

I'll be back next week feeling recharged and revitalized!  Until then, may your holiday be filled with warm hearts and homes ~

Thankful for ~ manis and vino

'Tis the season.  The season of thankfulness.  I think Thanksgiving may very well be my favorite holiday.  Besides the obvious fact that I love a good meal, I also like to reflect on my blessings.

One of the many, many things I'm thankful for is this blog ~ the friendships I have made, the inspiration that has followed, and the pure joy you readers give.  I can't tell you how much I appreciate the comments, emails, and "tweets" that allow us to chat and connect.  My "real life" friends may think it odd I have "internet friends", but only because they don't know what that means.  It's not creepy, it's FUN!

So speaking of fun and being thankful, a couple weeks ago I got to meet some of my "internet friends" IRL (in real life).  It was a blast.  Manicures and wine does a fun get-together make. 

We chatted it up at Essential Nail Spa and then hit up a cute wine bar called Vintage 338.  You know it's a fun night when someone checks the time and everyone is surprised how late it is!

[via Cait]

[via Cait]

[via Johanna]

[via Johanna]
me, Cait, Mel, Ashleigh, Johanna, Kelsey, and Zoey ~ fab girls!

[via Cait]

[via Zoey]

What are you thankful for this season?  It's fun to think about right? Stop by Bright, Bold, and Beautiful today to check out the three things I'm most thankful for.

plenty of tea + honey

[via]

I seem to have caught the nasty cold that is spreading through the interwebs.  Apologies for my lack posts this week, I'm drinking plenty of tea and honey, hoping to kick this before next week's Turkey day.

recipe:: Crock Pot Bison Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed peppers are a big deal.  They're good with ground turkey, beef, and now, bison!  Ever had bison?  It is such a good alternative to beef ~ it's lower in calories, fat, and cholesterol.  We've been making bison burgers and bison steaks here for a while, but it was only recently I thought to try bison in our stuffed peppers ~ and, woah, am I glad I did!

The other benefit of this stuffed pepper recipe is its ease of being a slow-cooker meal.  Who doesn't love letting your dinner cook itself?

I made this and we ate it two nights in a row.  The leftovers taste great warmed back up in the oven.

How do you stuff YOUR peppers? 

My Day in Food (via Instagram)

oat squares with organic raisins and non-fat milk, coffee with non-fat milk

whole grain toast with egg over easy, half of small avocado, slice of bacon

Gala apple, sliced

Stuffed pepper filled with bison, rice, and onion (recipe to follow!)

I think we've all heard of keeping a food journal, but when I heard the idea of taking a picture of everything you eat I was intrigued.  A visual representation of your daily intake makes sense to me ~ you can see the fruits, veggies, whole grains, and also visibly notice what is lacking.  Not shown in my pictures are the two dark chocolate truffles and glass of wine I had for dessert (my phone conveniently died!)

my findings::

• This makes you really think about what you eat, and it's so easy since it can be done on your phone.
• I need to incorporate more vegetables earlier on in my day so I can reach my quota.
• I should probably have more protein at breakfast, and switch out the raisins for fresh fruit.
• I should probably choose either the truffles or the glass of wine, not both. :)

What does your day in food look like?

Blogging vs. Real Life

[via]

Do you know who reads your blog?  Sometimes I'm surprised (happily surprised!) by who I find out are loyal followers.  Do your employers read your blog?  I'm fortunate enough to have some colleagues who read my blog and are supportive of it.  Sometimes though I wonder if they wonder when I'm doing all this blogging. :) The truth of the matter is, I think most bloggers have a pretty good system down for which they can maintain blogging without it interfering in their "real life" ~ whether that is a full-time job, taking care of the kiddos, etc.  Most of us don't (at least no one I know of!) sit around all day blogging.  Here is a sneak peak of the way I layout blogging activities for the week:

post creation::

• Saturday & Sunday ~ draft posts for the upcoming week, and lay them out for the week's post schedule.
• Each weeknight evening, I go through my blog post for the next day, add final relevant remarks, fine tune and polish.

correspondence::

• Each early morning (see my morning routine here), I read through my favorite blogs and correspond with those who have commented or emailed the previous day.
• Each day at lunch time, I use my "break" to read through blog emails and chat with fun people on Twitter.
• I always try to "say hi" to anyone who is a new follower, commented on a post, emailed, etc. in between my "real life" schedule. 

So I'm curious, how do you incorporate blogging into your "real life"?

Happy Friday all!

Thanksgiving Tablescape

In line with planning a Thanksgiving menu, I'm also day dreaming about the tablescape. I think I've found my perfect inspiration from Williams Sonoma's blog The Blender.  While it could suit for any fall gathering, I love it for a modern spin on the Thanksgiving classic.  The softer color palette. The casual elegance.  All signs point to effortless entertaining.

Those sea blue pumpkins. That linen runner.

These mini heirloom pumpkin candle holders.

The pear berries placed on napkins.

What do you love on a Thanksgiving table?

Thanksgiving Day Menu

[via]

This year I'm hosting my first Thanksgiving.  It's not huge by any standards, seven people total, but I think that still warrants a full turkey dinner, complete with all the sides and flourishes, yes?

I've started to conjure up a menu for the feast and have the goal to make everything fresh from scratch. It's not finalized, but is coming together. I've linked to recipes I currently have or have found, and will be researching recipes for other items.  That means it's not too late to give me your tips and favorites (wink wink)!

~Thanksgiving Day Menu~

~To start and nibble~

mulled wine

antipasto platter

cinnamon sugar roasted pecans

~First course~

Butternut squash soup

~Second course~

pea, bacon and pecorino salad

~Main~

Whole roasted turkey, with traditional sides, including

stuffing (need mom's recipe!)

mashed potatoes and gravy

roasted sweet potatoes

cranberry sauce

brussel sprouts (need a good recipe!)

~Dessert~

pumpkin pie

homemade cinnamon clove ice cream

homemade truffles and coffee

I've also started a Thanksgiving Day {FEAST} pinboard on Pinterest ~ care to join me?  Please pin to it whatever your heart desires to feast on this Thanksgiving!

Making Crepes at the Chicago French Market

[almost ready to flip ~ see how the edges look done?]

[and here you have a flipped crepe ~ already looks delicious]

[add your fillings and roll em' up!]

A past recent weekend I attended a cooking class with FliP Crepes at the Chicago French Market to learn what else?  How to make crêpes. 

Coming from Latvian heritage, my interest was piqued to take this class as I was hoping to apply these crêpe making concepts to make my grandmother's famously delicious Latvian pancakes (which are really more similar to crêpes than pancakes).  Goodness knows I needed help in this department.  Every time I went to try and replicate them, something went wrong.  I wouldn't be able to flip them, or the batter was the wrong consistency, or I'd burn one side.  I started to think I'd just never be able to conquer the crêpe; until crêpe class.

The recipe is quite simple, and so is the technique ~ but I can't tell you how much more sense it made after attending this class.  Between me and you, I promise to try again my Latvian pancakes and report back on the results!  Hopefully I'm able to make both you and my grandmother proud.

Savory Crêpes
Makes approx. 12 crepes

ingredients::
1/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour
1/3 tsp salt
1 large egg
2 tsp oil / butter
1 1/2 cup water

preparation::
Put all dry ingredients in the order they appear into a mixing bowl.   Mix together with a whisk, dig a well, and add the egg and oil or butter.  Slowly add in the water while whisking, until the batter is lump free.  Let rest at room temperature or in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

Make your crepes.

crêpe tips::
Each crêpe should be about 3 oz of batter, which is standard ladle size.
Smear a dollop of butter once around the pan before you make each crepe.
Pour the batter into the middle of your heated pan, then swirl the pan quickly to evenly distribute. 
Let the crêpe cook on the first side until the edges are done and the pan side starts to look golden brown, then flip.
Use your imagination to fill your crêpe ~ in class we used ham, mushrooms, fresh parmesan, and a French cheese which I believe was brocciu, and they were absolutely rich and delicious. 

We took them home and I reheated them for dinner the next night (alongside a salad) ~ and what a decadent meal they made!

You can keep crêpe batter for up to 5 days depending on freshness of the eggs and milk used. Mix well before using and store in refrigerator in an airtight container.

Bon appetit!

"You sneaky Mom!"

In honor of Halloween, I stumbled upon this adorably hilarious video from Jimmy Kimmel Live. The kids reactions are priceless.  What child doesn't put that much importance on candy?  And hey, what would YOU do if someone ate all your candy?



Happy End of Halloween Week!  Next week's focus shifts to one of my favorite holidays of the year ~ Thanksgiving!

Top Chef Texas and an Interview with Chef Grueneberg

If you follow me on Twitter (and if you don't... um, why not?) you may have noticed yesterday we had quite a 'Tweetfest' over the new season of Top Chef Texas.  I thought it would be a good time to dust off the interview I did with Chef Grueneberg last year just in case you missed it. ;-)

And in case you haven't heard, there are six chefs competing from Chicago. Who are you cheering for this season?

Artist Spotlight ~ Kim Piotrowski

'Forever Blue'

'Habber Dashed'

'Innocent Enough'

'Ages Spent'

'Vintage Me'

'Young Echo'

'She King'

'LUV U!!!'

'In Them Hills'

It was only this year at Artropolis that I discovered artist Kim Piotrowski, and knew I wanted to know more.  A Chicago artist, Kim's work strikes me because of her use of fluid lines, movement, color and collaging. 

I would hang "Vintage Me" in my home in an instant.  Which is your favorite?

~*~* Headshot Giveaway Winner Announcement ~*~*

Congratulations to Lesley for winning the headshot session with 312 Elements Photography! 

Please email me to claim your prize.

Lobster Cookout!

[my lobster fresh out of the pot!]

This weekend, when most were getting dolled up in costumes and ready to hit the town, my foodie friend and I decided to stay in with our boys and cook live lobsters.  The decision process went something like this...

Strolling the Chicago French Market together, foodie friends sees the lobster tank...

FF: "That's what we should make for dinner!  It's the weekend of Halloween, it makes perfect sense because it will be kind of scary."
Me: "That's not a terrible idea..."  We figure out how much it will cost per lobster (weighing in at about a pound and a half each) and decide to go for it.
Me [on phone with husband]:  Will you come pick us up?  We were going to walk but have had a change of plans.  And can you bring the cooler with you?
Husband:  Um, why?
Me:  We're going to cook live lobsters!
Husband: Alright!!

Our excitement was evident.  We picked up our 4 lobsters, plunked them in the cooler with ice and a little bit of water, and started in on making our feast.

We served our lobsters with a corn chowder soup and salad with roasted grape tomatoes and pomegranate vinaigrette.  The sides were good, but the lobster stole the show. 

[foodie friend looking terrified of her lobster.  apologies for the poor quality pic, I cut this snapshot from a video taken]

[pretending to be brave as my lobster plunges into the pot.  And yes, I needed that oven mitt.]

The process of actually making dinner was also a true highlight. I won't (overly) embarass foodie friend, but she went from thinking the lobster was "kind of scary" to being utterly terrified when it came time to cook it.  Endearing tears and laughter at the same time, while her bf picked up her scary lobster and plunked him in the pot. It was hysterical and such a fun evening!

Have you ever cooked live lobster?  Would you?  It's not for the faint of heart.  But it is the freshest way to eat it, that's for sure!