5 Weeks in Photos

Hi friends! It's been over a month since I've blogged. I'm so sorry, but I've been quite busy living my awesome life. I'm hoping to get back in the regular blogging swing, but for now here's a quick photo update on where I've been and where I'll be off to next!

First up was a big work event - our annual 5K at Soldier Field with over 4,200 participants! 

Then I was off to New Orleans! Say hello to my little friend....

Next up was Sean's law school graduation weekend. I've never been so proud! 

We also caught a bunch of Yankees games in Chicago. I've never been so disappointed :(

The face of disappointment

Speaking of the Yankees, next stop was New York for one of my lifelong friend's weddings. It was a most beautiful day for a most beautiful couple!

The new Mr. & Mrs. Betz!

The most amazing view of the NYC skyline at cocktail hour.

And now I'm back in Chicago. It's been a whirlwind, but totally awesome. Once I make my way overdue to the grocery store (a place I vaguely remember....) I'll be back with more recipes, more updates and more fun! 

Easter Dinner

Though I'm not 100% Italian (okay, not even 50%), it's my favorite side. I have a lot of Italian traits - I'm loud, I'm passionate and I love to cook. I cook when I'm happy, I cook when I'm sad, I cook when I'm angry, and I cook when I'm celebrating. (I also cook when I'm just hungry. That happens too).

So, since I was feeling a little blue and missing my family on Sunday, I decided to whip up an awesome meal. I made eggplant manicotti and homemade whole wheat bread (WAY better than store bought and no preservatives or added crap!). It was AMAZING! We'll start with the main dish:

Eggplant Manicotti:

You need:
1 Eggplant
1 cup Ricotta Cheese (I use organic whole)
1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano (or just parmesan is fine)
1 cup fresh basil (chopped)
2 cups tomato sauce (I use Trader Joe's organic tomato basil)
Mozzarella to top (I only use a little fresh, some people like a lot, so however much you want)

Here's how:

• Pre-heat oven to 400.
• Cut the top and bottom off the eggplant and two sides, so its kind of a square, and you can stand it on its bottom. Slice the eggplant longway, top to bottom, in about 1/4 inch thick slices. (I ended up with about 9 and one sorta wonky thin one from the end)
• Place the eggplant on parchment paper lined baking sheets,  spray with olive oil (or brush), and sprinkle with salt and paper. 
• Roast eggplant in the oven for 20 minutes (I had them on two trays, so at 10 minutes I swapped the racks so they cooked evenly).
• Take eggplant out to cool after it's roasted, but leave the oven on.
• Grab your pan, and pour 3/4 cup of sauce into the bottom (I used my 2 quart square pyrex dish).
• While cooling, mix the 1 cup of ricotta, 1 cup of basil, and 1/4 cup of parmesan in a bowl.
• When the eggplant is warm but cool enough to handle, scoop about 1 tbsp of the ricotta mixture into the bottom end of an eggplant strip. Roll up (like a jelly-roll) to the top, then place the eggplant seam side down into the sauce. Repeat with all the slices of eggplant.
• Pour remaining sauce on top and top with some extra parmesan and mozzarella cheese.
• Put back in the oven, about 18 minutes or until cheese is bubbling.

And ta-da, you have a delicious, healthy, gluten free amazing meal. It's about 150 calories per each slice of eggplant. 

There it is, all rolled up!

The bread recipe is from the website A Well Floured Kitchen, and I used it almost verbatim. I ran out of whole wheat pastry flour after about 3.5 cups, so the rest was plain ol' whole wheat flour. The bread came out awesome, though I didn't make the top cuts big enough, so it didn't get that crusty separation. 

Now that I've made and ate this delish meal, I'm happy again. Which is a perfect emotion for heading back into the kitchen for some dessert! 

Centerpieces: The Epicenter of my Universe

One of the benefits of having a long engagement is the lack of stress. If I don't want to do something today, most times, I don't have to. If I want to spend six hours scrolling through wedding invites online, I can. It's been nice being able to do things when and how I want without rushing.

The one thing that I find funny, however, is that many of the things I thought I would care about in wedding planning, I don't. And the one thing I said I couldn't care less about has now become priority #1. Centerpieces.

When we got engaged I said (multiple times), "just throw some flowers on the table and call it a day. I don't care." Then, Pinterest happened. And now, our centerpieces and table settings have become (in my mind) one of THE most important pieces of the wedding. 

Despite the fact that I know almost no one remembers them, and no one has ever left a wedding saying 'those were some great centerpieces' (myself included), I can't stop myself. I have a vision. And the vision must be met. And that was fine, until the candles I wanted were out of stock. 

I've spent countless hours this weekend hunting down candles, so now I'm turning to you, friends. Does anyone know where I might find candles that look like this: 

I will be forever indebted to whoever can help me out! 

Cafe Coziness

It's a pretty dreary day here in Chicago, as most of the past six months have been. Sean is doing a bar prep class, so I have most of the weekend to myself. I've decided to cozy up at our favorite local cafe, Cafe Vienna. 

It's a great little bakery and cafe that actually inspired our final honeymoon decision. As I sit here on this gloomy day, all I can picture are the bright ones ahead. A wonderful summer with friends, marrying Sean, traveling to Austria and Prague. 

Maybe it's the cafe's atmosphere or the amazingly strong cup of coffee brightening my mood, but on this cloudy day, all I see is sunshine. 

Just Being

I feel like I haven't blogged much lately, and that's partially because I feel like I haven't had much to say. I'm in a state of just being - going to work, coming home, relaxing. The usual. Nothing exciting or crazy or awesome or not awesome happened. I just am.

This morning, I decided to enjoy the just being. I snuggled up next to Sean, and just listed in my mind all the things I am thankful for. I recognized all the wonderfulness that my life is. I acknowledged the beauty that is just being. 

Getting to a point where I could just do that has been a long road. By nature, I am a high-strung pessimist. I often find it hard to turn my brain off. But one of my goals from last year was to learn how to ease my mind. And as I optimized my health through food and exercise, I knew optimizing my brain was the next step. 

The website Mind, Body, Green has been an amazing resources for helping me do this. Not only have they helped my physical health (they have great recipes!), they have helped my mental health. 

When I listed things I was thankful for this morning, just being able to make the list was at the top. Before, I'd would get terrible sleep (both due to stomach pains from poor nutrition, and stress. I'd wake up worrying about work, the day, food, working out, who said what and who didn't. Though that still happens sometimes (change takes time!), the fact that I was able to take some time to just be grateful felt so good. So if you don't hear from me from time to time, know that I'm not busy. I'm just being. And it feels great.