Recommendation: spaghetti squash recipe

i was hesitant to post this b/c i had another recent post on butternut squash and i don’t want to seem like a squash freak but my supportive cube-mate told me i must! Since i got the recipe from her friend Candice’s blog that i’m newly obsessed with, i kinda owe her, so here we go.

squash as spaghetti!

i was checking out the Stiletto Chef Blog b/c Candice was recently featured on Good Morning America and my cube-mate brought in her beautiful cookbook – Pretty Delicious: Lean and Lovely Recipes for a Healthy, Happy New You, which I’m dying to get. The blog is so pretty and I love that she has video clips of how to do the recipes!

After watching the spaghetti squash one, I was dying to try: the recipe. The question was, how to make it into a complete meal so that my 6’5 husband would be full and satisfied too? Solution turned out to be easy. I used our most favorite spaghetti sauce (Mids) and went this wonderful Italian store Panozzo's nearby us that we frequent often that has amazing meatballs. Squash cooked, ladled with sauce, parm, and fresh basil, and plop one meatball in and you have a heck of a meal!

Leftovers were super delish too! My responsibly green friend gave me a few of her

discarded tupperwares from WF that have dividers b/c I’ve been looking for a Tupperware version of them. It worked great for the small portions of leftovers I had for lunch at work the next day, and it was completely filling!

p.s. I’m also dying to try this Pad Thai recipe. Can someone please make it??

Recommendation: ctabus tracker via text

i am never on time, i blame the indian blood that runs through my veins but deep down i know its because i am a pokey puppy and just need to pick up the pace. Getting to work is always an adventure but something that I've started using the past 6 months that has helped me amazingly is the cta bus tracker that you can access via text. You text 'ctabus' and the bus # that is located on the sign and it texts you back with all of the upcoming buses and wait times. magic! you can even text as you are leaving the house so you know how fast you have to run to the bus stop :)

check it out!

Recommendation: things to do when you return home from traveling

Back from the big apple (recommendations and reviews to come soon!) and completely exhausted. Its hard to get back from a trip on a Sunday and start the week with full force. Where to find the energy to unpack, do laundry, grocery shop, etc?? We took it easy last night after getting home - unpacked our suitcases, ordered in, and watched a netflix. I think that really helped me decompress so that I could make this a manic monday and go grocery shopping, start the laundry, and prep a few meals for the week (and stay sane by slowly sipping 1 glass of red wine).

In an effort to catch up on my blogging, here are a few random recommendations that have helped make my life easier in the past 24 hours:

- unpack as soon as you walk in the door. you are not going to want to do it at any point and the longer you wait, the more painful it gets. like a band-aid. rip it off. get it done. quick

- buy fruit as a snack for work...and then slice it the night before work or morning of. i am like clockwork and need snacks at 10:30 and 3:30 every day. if I bring a whole apple or pear, I will not eat it, guaranteed. slicing it the night before only takes minutes and ensures that I get some fruit into my body the next day! this is especially great after traveling b/c if you are like me, you are used to eating all day everyday on vacation and you'll need little snacks to hold you over and get you back on a normal eating schedule

- be realistic when grocery shopping after a busy weekend. If you didn’t get your normal errands done and they are going to carry over to the next week, don’t plan crazy meals that take tons of prep work! TJ’s is my go to place for this as they have tons of pre-made and quick-cooking dinners. For tonight, I got this fantastic vegetarian (for you carnivores, I can’t taste any difference) french onion soup from the freezer section. It takes 40 minutes in the oven but is nice b/c you can pop it in, then change into sweats, and do a quick chore.

Before:

After:

- take a quick tally of your trip - i'm talking food & beverage, transportation, sights and misc. in nyc i just stuffed all receipts in my purse so that i could do this when i got home. its not necessarily to track the money but moreover to have an idea of what this trip cost, in case you want to take it again. i put mine in excel (i can't help it, i love excel). i plan to take those totals and put them back into our itinerary (i told you i love lists and planning) and will file that in our travel file (and/or google docs) for future reference when we go to the big apple next. flights and hotels and circumstances will change but at least we'll know roughly what the trip will cost

ok, that's all i've got for now. exhaustion is taking over. stay tuned for nyc tips!

recommendation: charles smith wines

we have a wine rack in our house that holds 9 wine bottles. 5 are permanently occupied by 1) a wine gifted by my father-in-law with our last name on it 2) champagne 3) more champagne 4) wine i will never drink 5) another bottle of #4

the other 4 slots are constantly changing, i try to keep them full but we kind of love to indulge in a glass a few times a week. no matter what, i always turn to Charles Smith wines to keep these at least 1 of these slots full. we were introduced to his Kung Fu Girl Riesling when we dined at a Chicago Steakhouse. the sommelier was so helpful and we quickly fell in love with this wine.

since then, we've tried a few others by this vineyard. while i normally do not even touch merlot, i actually like the wine by Charles Smith. the bottles are so funky, and work great when you need to bring a bottle to a dinner at a friend's house or BYOB. i get mine at WF (whole foods, duh) in a pack of 6 so I get a discount since I know we will go through it or gift it!

p.s. website lists event: 19 Apr 2011 / Charles Smith World Tour / Chicago, IL / more info to come

recommendation: LeSportsac anything

my husband and i are traveling to the big apple this week for a long weekend (and for his spring break from grad school). as i was packing this afternoon, i realized i had packed 3 different LeSportsac bags. i have to credit my mother for introducing these bags to me, she has had a LeSportsac for ages. here is why i like the brand and their products:

- these bags never go out of style
- fun patterns & prints
- lightweight, washable (which make them great for travel)
- tons of pockets with zippers
- well priced (and almost always at tjmaxx, marshalls, nordstrom on sale)
- variety of sizes and shapes

i have multiple bags i use for makeup, for keeping lady things in my purse, i have a backpack, a book bag, small purse, medium sized purse, crossbody purse, medium sized duffle bag, and recently packed for nyc, this awesome tote bag that has a back flap that slides over the handle of your suitcase to make traveling easier!

check.it.out.

recommendation: easy guacamole

the thing i absolutely love about this recipe is how flexible it is - its so basic that you can add anything to it to personalize it to your tastes. i don't like cilantro so i leave that out. sometimes i don't feel like cutting onions, sometimes i add tomatoes. the recipe is from weight watchers so you don't have to feel guilty eating it. it such a simple basic recipe.

i made it yesterday for a co-workers bridal shower at work and used 4 small avocados and it went quick, so make sure to buy an appropriate amount of ingredients! tonight i made it as a side with mexican food we got to-go from xoco (mmm), and i made too much! oops.

1 medium avocado, Hass variety
2 Tbsp red onion(s), chopped
2 Tbsp cilantro, fresh, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
1/4 tsp table salt, or more to taste

enjoy!

recommendation: single cup coffee

I am not a coffee snob. My mom drinks folgers, my sister drinks starbucks, my husband drinks zingermans (check it out), I drink all of the above. I drink coffee black, with sugar and skim milk, sugar and soy milk, I drink coffee with flavored creamer, carmel macciatos, vias and instant coffee, anything really except for an espresso (I’m hyper enough naturally). I prefer black but I’ve been that girl before (can I get a grande coffee with two pumps of sugar free hazelnut and a steamed soy topper?).

My husbands preference for each morning is fresh ground coffee, but just one cup does the job. I got annoyed at cleaning the coffee pot for such small brews, so his dad introduced us to the most amazing invention ever. The single cup filter! You use #2 filters, boil hot water on the stove, grind the beans, and wa-la – 7 minutes later you have a wonderfully fresh cup of coffee.

I got mine at jewel – its mr. coffee, and has a peak-a-boo-hole so you know how full the cup is getting… important (believe me). And it came with a travel mug!

recommendation: get a great blow dryer

my husband makes fun of me b/c i'll buy something that i have absolutely no need or use for because i saw it in a magazine or just HAD to have it or honestly, because i saw that red sale tag - but then it'll be 6:45am and i'm trying to get my blow dryer to start and it won't but see the thing is the power button sticks a little but if you take something hard, like your hairbrush and hit the power button in just the right spot, it will work! Since blow dryers at target can be like $19.99, its just silly for me to be using a broken one.

well i (read: my kind and generous father) invested in a miraculous product that i knew was out there but never had interest in buying.... a CHI BLOW DRYER. i did get a chi hair straightener last year from DSW, and that is because i was shopping for shoes i didn't need and thought it was so funny that they were selling this fancy straightener at DSW that it must be a good deal. and it has saved me so much time. so i figured it would be the same for the blow dryer and i was right. i no longer cringe at the thought of drying the wet mop of hair on my head - the dryer gets really hot (careful) and dries my long thick hair in 5 minutes!!!

This is the one: CHI Blue Nano Ceramic Hair Dryer i have although i would say worth doing a comparison to see which one is best. before you roll your eyes or freak out about the price, read the reviews - its worth the investment. sometimes it is worth it to buy an item that is more expensive but quality - in this case, its saving me tons of time!

recommendation: 21

adele's new cd is awesome, that girl can sing! i love her voice and attitude, her music just makes me happy. i've been listening to 21 when i'm getting ready in the morning and the cd is listenable the whole way through (big deal for me). check it out!

rani recommends: butternut squash side dish

when i get a butternut squash, it takes me forever to cut it up. its always worth it, and i know they sell them precut and frozen these days, but the same old-fashioned part of me that still buys bags of carrots to peel myself, wants to buy the actual squash. its a pretty vegetable and makes me feel grown up in the grocery store...let me just go grab a squash because yes, i eat this vegetable, and yes, i am an adult now and was too immature to even think about eating a veggie that resembles a pumpkin when i was younger. once you dice it up, its normally enough for 4 servings in my household of 2, so I split it into two different dishes. normally one i use as part of a recipe for the entree - stew or soup with squash, etc. the other, i've been using as a side dish to a rotisserie chicken (our latest go-to-meal) lately and its just so fantastic. i found it on another blog, Crapes of Wrath, and my only revision is that i use butternut squash, not yams. same quantities of everything else.

so its vegetarian, vegan, delicious, and totally worth the effort of peeling and dicing a squash! and btw, yes, you can cube it a day or two in advance, keep it in a ziploc (!love!) and it'll keep fine until you are ready to make this:

1/2 butternut squash, peeled, cubed (about 1 in thick)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (or oil of your choice to make it vegan)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons honey
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
juice of half a lemon
1/3 cup pecans, chopped
1/3 cup dried cranberries

preheat oven to 375 degrees. peel and cube squash. toss with 2 tbsp of melted butter or oil (original recipe calls for 'neutral flavored oil of your choice'). put on a greased baking sheet (i use pam) and bake for 15 minutes until tender.

while squash is in oven, whisk maple syrup, honey, vinegar and lemon juice in bowl.

take squash out after 15 minutes. turn oven up to 415 degrees, place oven rack directly under the broiler. pour syrup mixture over squash, toss around to coat. bake 8-10 minutes or longer if needed until squash has browned a little and syrup mixture is caramelized.

while squash is finishing up, put chopped pecans in frying pan and toast over medium heat for 5 minutes or until toasted.

take yams out when done, toss with pecans and cranberries, serve immediately. enjoy!

recommendation: natural cures for a migraine

i have a horrible migraine problem and sometimes refuse to take medicine for it thanks to my 'will it away, its all in your head (duh), natural remedies are better than medicine' father... and in turn for this, i suffer stupid horrible headaches that last days. around christmas time last year i was in marshalls and a gal found the cutest hot water bottle (do you remember those? i used them for my cramps when i was like 15), and of course it was the last one - it was the rubber bottle with this great pastel knit case. anyway, i'm getting off topic. so this lead to my search on amazon for one and instead of finding that, i found something equally as fabulous in the same department - an ice bag!!!

i ordered it and wasn't sure why, i just like to buy things, especially online, and when it came in the mail i was disappointed at first b/c it was smaller than i thought but it has been absolutely amazing AND essential to the cure of my headaches and migraines. fill this baby with ice cubes and fall asleep with it on your head. it feels soooo good and looks pretty darn cute too!

recommendation: restaurants downtown chicago for cocktails and dinner with the girls

a coworker sent the office an email looking for restaurant suggestions to get drinks & dinner on a Friday night. the pre-reqs were - not too expensive, "downtown" (loop, river north, west loop), and good food. here's what i came up with:

LuxBar in gold coast - i went here for the first time last month for lunch and it seemed pretty good. decent prices, delicious bloody mary, nice but not too nice vibe, nearby other bars...

La Madia in river north - our new favorite, love love love the pizzas here. my friend evie introduced me to the pepperoni (giant thin slices) with truffle oil... mmm.... and you can also get half glasses of wine, so when you are debating - should i have another? should i not? i want one? but shouldn't have one? you can just order a half glass!!! pizzas are well priced and i highly recommend getting more than you need and taking home leftovers.

Mercat a la Planxa - I haven't been here yet but its nearby my house in the Blackstone Hotel. Seems to have a good vibe, people say the drinks are good and its tapas so always fun with a group of gals to get a bunch and share!

Mercadito - my sister loves this place and continues to go back without me even though its on my MUST TRY SOON list. hmph. apparently they have great fish tacos and lots of fun salsas.

Feast - admittedly, i've only been to the gold coast location and didn't love it - solely based on the fact that they put us at a table in an empty room when there were tons of tables in the room with other diners. it killed the atmosphere! that said, i've heard the bucktown one is awesome, friends and sister are always ordering to-go from here, so i feel as though i should give this place another chance.

any other ideas? happy dining!