It’s Friday! How are you guys this week? NO really? Let me know in the comments, k? okay.
I made it through my first week of summer classes! I am relieved that my teachers are pretty cool and that in my English 102 class the topic for the whole semester is: Food Culture! Something I am more than interested in, and excited to learn more about.
Speaking of food culture, I am writing this with a heavy heart after hearing the news of Anthony Bourdain’s passing this morning. It breaks my heart to hear stories like this. I remember the day my grandma called me up to tell me she just watched a show on the Food Network and I need to go get this book. She told me the title so I could go find it, and continued to tell me all about the show she just watched. She thought since I was planning to go to Culinary School that I needed to have this. I was 16, and she was right. I remember going to my local Barnes and Noble (where you purchased books back then) and finding this book on the shelf. Flipping through the pages, I was excited to have purchased my first celebrity chef’s book and it was by Anthony Bourdain. I appreciated his realness and how he approached food. He was an inspiration and still is. He will be missed. Remember to check in with your friends and loved ones. Say hi to a stranger. You never know what they are going through.
Now that I have addresses what is on my mind I can tell you about the 5 things that were good this week and that I really REALLY appreciated while being back in school.
As I mentioned in my first FULL friday post, I am planning on posting every Friday, along with my other bi-weekly blog posts, about 5 things that I enjoyed throughout the week. The more I appreciate the little things, the more I find myself feeling grateful. These post will always be random in nature. This week I was all about:
1. Castile Soap
I have been using Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap * for about 5 years now. I have tried all the different scents but my favorite is the unscented. I love the versatility of this Castile Soap and how I can add my own essential oils to it. Lately, I have been using a copious amount of this soap because I have been taking more showers now that I am training for my marathons coming up. I can’t say enough about this soap. I usually add 1 drop of my Aromatics International Tea Tree essential oil with a small handful of soap. I use this as a body wash but also as a shampoo when my hair needs a little extra love. My hair tends to be pretty oily and this castile soap does a great job at stripping the build up in my hair after a long run outside. I stock up when it is on sale and I just found out they have this soap in the refill section at Dill Pickle Co-op!
I even use their Unscented Castile Bars * to make my own laundry soap, but I will share more about that in another post where I will share my go to laundry soap recipe with you!
2. Non Dairy Ice Cream
I had 6 delicious non dairy flavors this week! First, on Monday I ran (mostly walked) to Real Good Juice Co. Old Town location which is my halfway stop when I do longer runs. I had this:
If you haven’t had the Noyo Froyo at Real Good Juice Co. then you need to try it! It is a raw almond based non dairy soft serve ice cream that is gluten free and has no stabilizers or preservatives! I really like swirling the activated charcoal with matcha. On Monday they had chocolate, so I purchased a small swirl of chocolate and charcoal. I never know what to choose topping wise, but my go to is cacao nibs. I added the coconut too just to have a little something else for contrast. Stopping for this noyo on hot days is so nice, plus their bathroom is much cleaner than the ones along Lake Shore. They now have Noyo at the Southport location so I don’t have to run as far!
Then, Wednesday I enjoyed a little bit of this Rumi Spice Saffron vegan gelato! Yeah, I know! Whaaaaattttt? I absolutely love Sacred Serve, a local Chicago company run by Kailey Joy. This is a new flavor she came out with (check out here other amazing flavors here) so when I was at the Logan Square Farmers Market last Sunday I had to pick it up at the Dill Pickle Co-op down the street. Dill Pickle carries these single serving sizes which are perfect if you want to try a little bit of every flavor like I do!
After trying all 4 of her vegan gelato flavors now, I honestly have a hard time picking a favorite. I like them all for different reasons. This Rumi Spice Saffron though is so unique and even has cinnamon, my favorite. The flavor is so simplistic yet complex. Last fall, she even made a limited edition spiced cider flavor that was to die for! She used her own cider and the spices were on point!
All her gelato’s are vegan, gluten free, soy free, non gmo, raw and delicious!
If you live locally here, you just have to try this gelato. Check out this Store Locator to find Sacred Serve close to you! Also, you can even have it delivered to your place now. Pretty cool. I love supporting local, and this is honestly one of my favorite companies to support.
Last night, after getting a few things done around the apartment, my husband and I decided to walk to Wrigleyville for a little Jeni’s Ice Cream. There is a new location right on Clark St. and I was feeling the cone. I got the sugar cone even though I didn’t eat it because 1) it saves a cup and spoon from being used and 2) ice cream just taste better in a cone!
They had a new flavor called Frose Sorbet! It is a Sangria-style frozen rosé with pear, strawberry, and watermelon. It was tart, bright, and paired well with the richness of the Dark Chocolate Truffle flavor!
I got a half scoop of Frose along with a half scoop of the dairy-free Dark Chocolate Truffle! This is much sweeter than the Sacred Serve chocolate gelato and does not have the superfoods that Sacred Serve does but it did pair really well with the Frose. Walking in Wrigleyville with icecream was a nice little way to end my Thursday.
3. Patio Sitting
Sitting outside on my patio has brought me so much joy. I planted some seeds a few weeks ago and they are starting to come up! I love watching these little herbs come to life.
I also tried authentic Venezuelan cuisine for the first time at Bien Me Sabe and it was so nice to sit on their patio and relax while enjoying this fresh made to order gluten free Arepa! This is the Veggie Sate and on Wednesday’s they are only $5.99 after 4pm!
4. Nesting
After living in our apartment for over a year now, I am excited to say that there is now decor on our walls! I am the kind of person that needs to have things cleaner and organized in order to function and so it was nice to finally get some things up and make our apartment more lived in. My little desk that I write from and do all my homework at has more of an artsy feel now and I love it! I made the top right mirror for under $10, I found the middle mirror on clearance for like $15 (normally $35), and the smaller mirror was in the dollar section at Target! SCORE! It makes our living area feel more open too! And we finally got those three pictures you can see reflected in the first smaller mirror to stay on our brick walls!
Among other photos that we hung up we also finally have curtains up to help block out some light and reduce noise. (We are lucky that we don’t have much noise or annoying lights outside our window but I notice the difference!) I have had these curtains for over 2 years now but since we moved back to the city from the suburbs, I have had them tucked away. I was trying to find the right curtain rods, and I finally found them! My side of the bed is right next to the window, so I am very elated to have these up now! I love these simple minimalistic Umbra room darkening energy efficient curtain rods* and these Drapery holders*. Not only did I sleep better last night but the vibe of our place feels so good with these up. It really is the little things.
5. Veggie Burgers
Wednesday was my first day of summer classes and in between my two classes my husband met me at Kalish to eat lunch. I didn’t plan meals very well for my first day back so this G Burger was delicious. They make their own gluten free buns and although they tend to fall apart a little bit, their veggie burgers are HUGE and satisfying!
I also had these Dr. Praeger’s veggie burgers * a few times this week and I love how convenient these are. They were buy 1 get 1 free at Fresh Thyme over the Memorial Day weekend. (Basically, 62 cents a burger!) These Mushroom Risotto ones are my favorite!
That is what I have for this week’s FULL Friday post! What have you guys been into this week? Tell me in the comments! Hope you have a really good rest of your weekend!
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