Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend. As with many of you, I spent a good chunk of mine glued to the Olympics. I've always been fairly indifferent about the Olympics; while I greatly enjoyed the gymnastics and track portions, I never really paid attention to much else. There was something different about this year - it was as though an Olympics craving switch was suddenly turned on in my brain. I just couldn't get enough! I even watched some basketball, which is one of my most hated sports (only slightly ahead of football). I especially loved the women's super heavyweight lifting - those girls are fierce!
Besides watching the Olympics, I devoted a fair amount of time to lesson planning and getting things ready for the new semester (my new job starts in two days!). Mario and I also spent Friday geeking out at Chicago Comic Con and then partied hard on Saturday at our friend's seven-year-old's birthday party. Fun times! :-)
A few random food highlights from July...
More Cupcake at More Cupcakes: Belgian dark chocolate cake, cream center, and covered in chocolate ganache. The cake was moist and flavorful; most importantly, there was the perfect frosting to cupcake ratio. I'm usually not the biggest fan of chocolate cupcakes (the cake tends to be too dry for me), but this was one delicious cupcake. I can't wait to go back to try some of their savory options (especially the bacon maple!).
Blueberry Pancakes at Uncommon Ground: Whole wheat pancakes with fresh blueberries and blueberry syrup. As I've mentioned before, I love the seasonal pancakes at our neighborhood brunch joint. These pancakes were extremely light & fluffy - the perfect consistency. The pumpkin pancakes (my favorite flavor) should be next in the rotation. Yay!
Iced Mint Tea at Uncommon Ground: Sweetened with a shot of mint syrup and topped off with mint leaves. I don't drink much tea (I tend not to like the flavor), so ordering this was definitely out of the ordinary for me. I'm so glad I gave it a try. It was very minty and refreshing - the perfect hot weather drink!
Jerk Catfish at Ja' Grill: Baked catfish served with cabbage & carrots steamed in coconut milk, rice & peas, sweet plantains, and cornbread. Ja' Grill is my favorite Jamaican restaurant in the city and I was excited to be able to finally introduce Mario to it (yes, he loved it too!). The catfish was tender with just the right amount of jerk seasoning - not too hot to eat, but with a nice amount of heat that hits a few seconds after the bite.
Tour de France at Yolk: French toast sampler - banana nut bread with bananas and peanut butter, sweet orange bread topped with strawberries and orange marmalade, and lemon poppy seed bread topped with blueberries. Holy amazing breakfast of all breakfasts! Every piece of bread had a sweet crust with a fluffy center and there was a perfect balance of sweet/tart. This was definitely the most indulgent & delicious breakfast I've had all year!
Prosciutto, Pesca, e Mozzarella at Pasta D'Arte: Fresh mozzarella layered with white peaches, served with thinly sliced prosciutto and dressed with EVOO and balsamic glaze. Diana and I met up with another friend for dinner in Diana's new neighborhood - such a fantastic choice! Every single bite of this dish (as well as my entrée) was absolutely amazing. The sweet grilled peaches paired perfectly with the salty prosciutto. And the mozzarella? Well, mozzarella just makes everything better, right? This dish was also the one that started my massive peach obsession of late - I just cannot get enough of them!
Soft Serve Vanilla Yogurt with a mini Gingerbread Muffin at Jason's Deli: The perfect sweet ending to a delicious salad bar dinner! :-)
ETA: the downtown location of Jason's Deli has closed.
I love Yolk! I haven't been there in years--I must visit it the next time I'm in Chicago.
ReplyDeleteBTW--your hair is so cute. Did you lighten it?
Nice picture of you and Breezy!
ReplyDelete@weary prof: Thank you! I had it cut & lightened - I love it! :-) Also, Yolk? AMAZING! You much get back there!
ReplyDelete@Jane: Thank you! Mario took it at Jolene's party - I like it a lot, too!
I got hungry just reading this......salivating....right.....now....
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I love Jason's Deli. Your pictures make me want to stop in just for dessert.
ReplyDelete@Brandi: Thanks for stopping by! :-) I love Jason's Deli, too! It's the perfect place for a healthy, delicious meal & an indulgent, but not overly unhealthy dessert.
ReplyDeleteThose pancakes with blueberry syrup sounds so good! Good luck with your new job!
ReplyDeleteThose are some great eats for the month and giving me ideas of places I need to visit!
ReplyDelete@Nami: Thanks! :-) Those amazing pancakes will definitely make it on my list of top breakfasts of the year!
ReplyDelete@Esi: Thanks for stopping by! I love meeting new-to-me Chicago bloggers!
Holy nerd envy! Cons...I so miss them!
ReplyDeleteLoving these highlights. That vanilla yogurt has me drooling :)
I loved iced mint tea too... particularly this time of year when mint is so lush and plentiful in my little herb garden!
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