Nookies

Talitha and I headed to Nookies in Old Town on Wednesday for our weekly breakfast adventure. Nookies, as in "breakfast nook", was opened in 1973 by Greek immigrant, Spiros Alexopoulos. Judging by the decor, I don't think the restaurant has changed much since the 70's, except perhaps in size. As always, we ordered a sweet and a savory meal to share; a summer vegetable fritatta with feta cheese and peach pancakes topped with raspberries.

We stopped by the Green City Market after breakfast to stock up on some fresh berries and wandered into Greer, a cute letterpress shop, on the way back to the brown line.

That's bananas!

I've been amassing an impressive collection of bananas, peels and all, in my freezer hoping I would have some reason to use them in the future. Thank goodness I came across this recipe for Frozen Banana-Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip Milkshakes. I whipped up one of these creamy milkshakes the other morning and it was oh so good.

Via {the kitchn}

Tennis, anyone?

Wimbledon is in full swing (pun intended) and I'm feeling the itch to get out my racket and hit the courts. I'm loving this inspiration board of tennis accessories spotted over at Mrs.Lilien. Who doesn't need a Tiffany tennis ball can?

Via {Mrs.Lilien}

Weekend recap

This past weekend was packed with weddings! I traveled out to Rockford on Saturday for my friend Christine's lovely wedding and played for an outdoor wedding Sunday in Wheaton. Friday was spent eating and shopping in Andersonville with Talitha, two of the things we do best. I also managed to find time to stock up on grapefruit candy from Amy's Candy Bar, use up my strawberries from the market to make strawberry jam and go out for Sushi with my brother and sister-in-law. Is it Monday already?

Breakfast at m.henry

Antique shopping at Roost

Funny signs at Foursided

Giant cupcakes at the Swedish Bakery

Seriously strong Arabic coffee from Dawali Kitchen

My new candy obsession

Homemade Strawberry Jam

Girls on bikes

Loving these shots of stylish girls on bicycles from the steet style blog, The Sartorialist.

Macaroni Salad

My tiny kitchen has been getting more action than usual now that my summer schedule has kicked in. Last night I made Macaroni salad with Asparagus, Peas, and Feta. I used this recipe from Real Simple. It was quick and easy to make and I was surprised at how much flavor it had. Perfect for a hot summer day!

Summer to-do list

Time seems to be moving at warp speed lately but I'm hoping with summer officially starting tomorrow, things will slow down a bit and I'll be able to enjoy the best season in Chicago. Short though it may be, summer in the city is jam packed with fun events. Here is my summer to do list:

1. Ride my bike along the lakefront trail, then reward myself with ice cream from The Purple Cow Ice Cream Cafe.
2. Grab some picnic food from The French Market and then hop on a train to Ravinia.
3. Spend the day relaxing at Montrose Beach.
4. Make a meal from ingredients bought at the farmers market.
5. Watch the weekly fireworks display from the Museum Campus.
6. People watch and enjoy a meal at a restaurant patio.
7. Learn a new dance at Summerdance.
8. Pack a bottle of wine and enjoy a free concert in Millenium Park.
9. Watch a Chicago themed film at Movies in the Park.
10. Sip a cocktail on a rooftop lounge.
11. Make sangria.
12. Shop for antiques at the Randolph Street Market.
13. Stand in line for doughnuts at The Doughnut Vault.
14. Cheer on the Cubbies at Wrigley Field.
15. Eat ice cream for dinner.
16. Take an art class at Lill Street Art Center.
17. Make popsicles.
18. Take an outdoor pilates class.
19. Spend lots of time lounging at the rooftop pool at the Club.
20. Hear a local band at one of the many neighborhood street festivals.

Now, if the weather will just cooperate so I can get started!

The little things...

Inspired by Cupcakes and Cashmere's "Five Things" posts, I've decided to make a weekly post documenting three little things in life that are making me happy. Up this week:

                Chicken burrito from Chipotle.

        Fresh strawberries from the Farmers Market.

    Mocacino nail polish from essie.

Toast + Green City Market

This is quickly turning into a breakfast blog. On our way to the Green City Market, my favorite breakfast buddy, Talitha, and I stopped at Toast for breakfast. We split the stuffed french toast, which came with a slice each of strawberry, mascarpone, and mexican chocolate along with a side of bacon and potatoes. Awesome!

On the way to the market we saw this painted cow on the rooftop of a nearby building.

I left the Farmers Market with a couple baskets of strawberries, a bunch of asparagus, and some fresh flowers to brighten up my apartment.

Someone snuck in the frame as I was taking a picture of the flowers.

Pop Chart Lab

I saw these prints from Pop Chart Lab around the blogosphere awhile back and filed them away in my wishlist folder. I make lists obsessively in an attempt to organize the chaos of my daily life so these flow charts are right up my alley. The beer flow chart is my favorite!

Bakin' & Eggs

Talitha and I met for breakfast last week at Bakin' & Eggs in Lakeview. I'm so glad she likes breakfast as much as I do because we had a crazy amount of food on our table! We ordered a flight of bacon to share which consisted of a slice of maple pepper, jalapeno, honey, mesquite, and cherry smoked. We both liked the honey and cherry the best. I ordered the whole wheat granola pancakes which were good, but not great. The cafe was super cute but the acoustics were terrible...it was like eating in a noisy cafeteria. I definitely suggest eating there on a weekday when they're not too busy!

The little things...

I used the vintage setting on my camera to snap some photos of three little things that are making me happy right now.

Gelato from Paciugo...amazing!

A new summer scarf from J.Crew.

 Pasta salad with goat cheese and arugula along with Dog Days Lager.

20x200

I'm always on the lookout for new artwork for my apartment and a great online resource is 20X200. Their philosophy can be summed up in a simple formula: (limited editions x low prices) + the internet = art for everyone. They introduce a couple new editions each week available in three or four sizes. Here are some of my current favorites. I love reading about the artists and their inspiration behind each piece.

Praia Piquinia 04/08/07 16h04 by Christian Chaize

Winter Flags by Youngna Park

Nice Pants by Landon Nordeman

Balloons by Juliane Eirich

Kite Hill by Paul Octavious

Sunday Brunch

I met Alex and her little rockstar, Violet, this past Sunday for brunch at Stax Cafe in University Village. There are very few things I enjoy more than Sunday brunch. I always struggle with the decision whether to order something sweet or savory, but this time I was pretty set on eggs benedict. I left happy with an empty plate and a full stomach. It was such a beautiful day, we hung out for a bit in the Piazza DiMaggio. I love this darling photo of Alex and Violet in their sunglasses!