happy monday!

Weekend fun makes me happy!

chocolate goodness @ O & E

sleeping lions @ the Lincoln Park Zoo

homemade jamaican jerk chicken filled raviolis tossed w/roasted red bell peppers & carmelized plantains in a jamaican jerk seasoned asiago cheese cream sauce, garnished w/mango chutney & a spiced rum glaze @ Rose Angelis

A Friday evening with friends dining at Sultan's Market, then drinks (my first sazerac) & dessert at Owen & Engine.

A Saturday afternoon bike ride with Ebert to the Lincoln Park Zoo, followed by a most delicious dinner at Rose Angelis.

And to complete the weekend of fun, a picture-less Sunday evening with friends watching the Paris-Roubaix bike race and eating a goat cheese cheesecake- my first, but not last attempt at baking my favorite dessert.

Did you have a happy weekend? The weather in Chicago was gorgeous. Here's hoping to a fun-filled week with warm spring weather.

sunday supper: artichokes

I'll admit that recently I haven't been cooking any of the recipes that I've been sharing and tonight's supper is no exception- we'll be enjoying the delicious leftovers from last night's dinner at Rose Angelis (more on that later). All the recipes I share with you are ones that I would cook myself, but I've been cooking more hodge-podge dishes and not trying as many new recipes as I would like to. Although we did make something last week that I've never made before and I can't wait to tell you about it. We even had to buy something special in order to make it. Very exciting!

Now, I wasn't always a fan of artichokes- unless it was artichoke hearts I felt it was a lot of work with not enough of a payoff. But, my tastes have evolved and now I can appreciate the lightness and delicacy of eating this spring superfood.

artichokes w/figs via myfrenchkitchen

arugula salad w/artichokes & lemon-thyme vinaigrette via darkredcrema

millet-stuffed artichokes via fatfreevegan

artichokes & cheesy grits via norecipes

asparagus, artichoke & shitake risotto via smittenkitchen

Happy Cooking!

artist date

Ebert was in the suburbs most of this week (cue sad face) and while I always manage to keep myself busy while he's away, I rarely treat myself to a night on the town. So, this past Wednesday I decided to take myself out on an artist date. What's an artist date, you ask? Basically it's a solo adventure with your inner-artist, or inner-child. It's a weekly creative outing you're supposed to go on by yourself while reading the book The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. It's an amazing book. Though I will admit that the one time I read it I did not write every morning or take myself out on a weekly artist date- it's a huge commitment. But why shouldn't you make a huge commitment to your creative self?

My creative self and I went to see Sonnets For An Old Century as part of Steppenwolf's Garage Rep Series. It was a passionate production with some monologues so full of gut-wrenching honesty from the actors that I was just in awe of their performance. And on Wednesday nights it's pay what you can night and my creative self digs economy. Afterwards my inner child wanted dessert, so of course I obliged and went to Whole Foods for a piece of mixed berry pie with coconut milk coconut ice cream. I even heated up the pie when I got home and it was oh so "a la modey" good!!!

I felt that the evening really awakened my creativity. Or maybe it was just the extra scoop of ice cream I allowed myself to enjoy!