I recently made the decision to deactivate my Facebook account. I sent the following email to all of the family and friends whose contact information I have on file.
I've been thinking about leaving Facebook for a while and for a number of reasons. I'm not using it in a way that is productive. I find that I spend hours and hours going through photographs and pages of people I hardly know, becoming overwhelmed with emotions including regret, jealously, remorse, and sadness. I wonder if I'm living up to my potential, if I'm supposed to be engaged, or working a different job, calling into question my own happiness and very existence. I know, right? Facebook was making me have a partial identity crisis in addition to being a giant waste-of-time.
That said, I'm keeping the blog and the Twitter up and running. I'm hoping that my time on the Internet will decrease, and that I will start to become a more active person. I'd like to grow as a photographer, learn to cook new things, and begin to think about some serious long-term goals for myself. I'm looking forward to seeing where this journey takes me, and I hope that all of my friends and readers will continue to follow me and show the tremendous support that they have in the past!
xoxo
Inspired by my friend Kate's new food blog, Little Kate on the Prairie, I've decided to try sharing more recipes over here on Edie and Andy. Last week she posted a charming recipe for filling and hearty muffins that looked absolutely scrumptious! In response, I thought I'd share my family's version of a similar recipe. I tinkered with it a bit today, subbing in flax-seed for the wheat germ, banana for the oil, and chocolate chips for the dreaded raisins, but I know that the original is just as good as the modifications I made today.
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut
1 large apple, quartered and cored
1/2 cup vegetable oil OR 1 banana
2 large eggs
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/3 cup raisins OR 1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup pecan halves
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup oats
3 tbsp wheat germ OR 3 tbsp toasted flax seed
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1) Preheat oven to 375°. Shred carrot & apple in food processor. Set aside.
2) Process oil, eggs, sugar & vanilla with the metal blade until well blended, about 30 seconds.
3) Scrape down bowl and add carrot, apple & remaining ingredients. Pulse until just combined, 6-8 times. Do not overprocess.
4) Divide the batter among greased muffin cups, filling them 3/4 full, and bake in the preheated oven until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean (about 20 minutes.)
Eat fresh from the oven, and spread with your favorite topping. Right now I'm big on mascarpone cheese and Earth Balance butter substitute!! Enjoy!
Though we haven't been having the coldest of winters, I still find myself craving yummy hearty winter dishes. For dinner last Friday, I decided to whip up one of my all-time favorite dishes - bolognese sauce from the Joy of Cooking. Traditionally, this dish is served over spaghetti, but I thought that it would be fun to try it over a bowl of freshly stewed polenta. Davanti Enoteca has something similar to this on their menu, and they prep it at the table, stirring the hot tomatoey sauce into the steaming creamy polenta on top of a wooden board.
I couldn't have been happier with the way this mean turned out, and was really proud of myself for coming up with a new take on a classic dish. The polenta came out perfect, mainly due to the amount of attention I spent stirring it - or maybe due to the addition of mascarpone and parmesan cheese right at the end. If you like Italian food, and classic homestyle meals, then try this sauce! It's good on everything, and gets better after sitting overnight in the fridge.
Buon Appetito!
Bolognese Pasta Sauce a la Joy of Cooking
1 package dry mushrooms
1 cup butter
3/4 cup lean ham, bacon, or pancetta
3/4 cup chopped carrot
3/4 cup chopped onion
3 cups chopped lean beef
1 small can tomato paste
3 strips of lemon peel
a few pinches of nutmeg
3 cups beef stock
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1) Reconstitute the dried mushrooms in hot water. Bring water to a boil, then let the mushrooms stand for 20 minutes. Separate the mushrooms from the liquid, but be sure to save the liquid. Chop the mushrooms.
2) While the mushrooms are being reconstituted, chop the onion and carrot.
3) Melt the butter in a large pan, and sautee the carrot and onion until soft. Add the bacon.
4) Once the bacon, carrot, and onion are mixed and cooked, add the mushrooms and the beef. Turn the beef over until it begins to brown.
5) Once the beef is brown, add the mushroom liquid, the tomato paste, nutmeg, lemon peel, beef stock, and white wine.
6) Partially cover and simmer slowly for one hour.
7) After an hour, remove lemon peel, and just before serving, stir in the whipping cream.
8) Season with salt and pepper to taste.
9) Serve over pasta or polenta, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese, and enjoy!!
On Wednesday I received a rather charming email from the Music Box Theater offering me two free tickets to see a movie. I thought to myself, free tickets, what's the catch? Obviously, since there's no such thing in a free lunch, there's no such thing as a free movie... and the catch was that the movie screening was a complete SURPRISE. The only hints were that it is an Oscar nominee, and that the film has yet to screen in Chicago. Naturally, being the curious cat that I am, I took the bait.
Before the movie, Spencer and I participated in my ritual of grabbing a snack at Julius Meinl. We noshed on their sandwiches, and I opted to try something new - a German bologna, pickle, and mustard aioli sandwich with a cream of turkey soup. While I wasn't crazy about the soup, I LOVED the sandwich. It was crispy, flavorful, and simple. I'm of the mentality that even with the most basic of ingredients, the key to a good sandwich is all in the crispiness, freshness, and flavor of the bread. And a perk for me, was that I told the waiter I didn't love the soup, gave him a pointer on how I would've done it different, and he comped it for me! Let it be known my fellow foodies and consumers, giving good and useful feedback can equal free food!
chai tea with cinnamon at Julius Meinl
We headed to the mystery movie after dinner, and settled into our seats. We talked for half an hour, I kept glancing at my watch, anxious to find out what it is we were about to see!
Just after 7:30, the general manager came onto the stage to unveil the big surprise... and to my surprise, a majority of the film buffs in the crowd had done their research and figured out that the film we were about to see was Monsieur Lazhar - a foreign film that has already won a slew of awards.
The film takes place in Montreal, and is entirely in French. The story opens up to the classroom of 11 and 12 year old students whose world has been rocked to the core following the suicide of their beloved teacher, Martine. The film sheds light on the way in which humans deal with grief and mourning in a public and contemporary space of the structured school environment - showing how the teachers, students, and parents cope on very different levels. While students embrace the grief, many of the parents stifle it. And then to spice things up, a replacement teacher arrives in time to establish stability, assert change, and encourage healing and mourning, all while correcting grammar and getting all of the students to fall in love with him! Monsieur Lazhar was filmed beautifully, and deals with the difficult subject matter of death and suicide with grace and poise. Though the story was dense and poignant, moments of lightness and humor interject at all of the right times. I really enjoyed this film, and was pleasantly surprised to be invited to be one of the first viewers to see it.
If you're looking for an amazing and compelling movie, I highly suggest giving this one a try. It will be playing at the Music Box in March. And once again. thank you to my favorite theater, the Music Box. You made last night wonderful!
My dear Alma Mater Knox College turned 175 yesterday, and to celebrate, I donned an outfit of purple and gold. I also had lunch with Ben who graduated from Knox with me, and we went to an alumni event after work at the Green Eye in Logan Square. Though I didn't quite have the right energy level for the alumni event, it was great to run into other alumni from our graduating class, as well as meet some new people. I've come to the conclusion that no matter what, any conversation can be turned into a conversation about Downton Abbey.
After Shirley Temples and lots of small talk, a group of us headed next door to Belly Shack. Belly Shack is Bill Kim's second restaurant - and given my supreme and undying love of Urban Belly, it's a shock that I still hadn't stopped in to try some of the street food inspired dishes. I ordered the hot dog, which was delicious. He didn't really reinvent the wheel with this, but the sausage was delicious, and the flavor profile worked. It was topped with crunchy fried ramen, fresh and garlicky kimchi, and a homemade asian inspired ketchup/mustard combination. The fries had fresh herbs, and a yummy Asian-inspired creamy dipping sauce that I couldn't get enough of.
Nights like last night remind me that I live in a really amazing city, full of great people and really solid restaurants. I'm lucky to live in a place where so many Knox College alumni live - our network has a great home-base here in Chicago. And I live walking distance from so many great restaurants like Belly Shack. There's nothing like a good meal and good people to remind me of how darn lucky I am to be here!!
