Benefits of a 3-day Weekend.. and Check Out This Place!

Hi!  I must apologize to you, my loyal readers, for disappearing off the blog-map this week.  I had big plans to experiment in the kitchen, track my trails, enlighten you to some fabulous Au Naturale recipes... but then my well-intentioned plans got pushed aside for other plans.  Mainly, the being-social-with-other -human-beings plans.  Oh, well.


I won't bore you with another soul-searching lament about the fact that I ate out this week.  A lot.  I'm going to just go ahead and assume (or hope) that the higher-end restaurants I ate at make most of their sauces and rubs and marinades in-house.  Shall we leave it at that?  Okay, sounds good.


However, I will take a moment to brag that I was able to avoid the jelly bellies on the Evil Bar of Doom for the rest of the week, except for Friday evening at about 6:30.  I was at work very late for a good cause and had run out of both energy and the raw macaroons.  Anyone else seeing a pattern here?  I need more snacks at work.  I recognize this, however I have yet to do something about it.  This is my learning disability.


I also want to give a shout-out to another great place to visit while eating Au Naturale downtown.  On Thursday I had every intention of hitting up Hannah's Bretzel for another delicious sandwich, but on my way to a bookstore I passed Chicago's Downtown Farmstand, a wonderful little storefront I discovered this summer on Randolph.  I haven't hit it up much this winter well, because, walking down Michigan Ave. in the dead of winter tends to be very windy and cold.  But I'm glad I did.


Chicago's Downtown Farmstand specializes in products which are all within 250 miles of Chicago.  Many of the farms that visit my summer farmer's market sell there, which makes me very happy.  Beyond local and sustainable produce, though, they also offer packaged products from businesses that also reside within the 250 mile radius-- and all, to the extent I can tell, are completely all-natural.  Very affordable, too:  The pepper, mushroom and cheese pie I picked up there, made by Middle East Bakery and Grocery in Chicago was less than $3.  I grabbed a second to keep as a snack in the office fridge.  Maybe I am learning, after all.


Now to throw on some clothes and head to Whole Foods to pick up ingredients for experimenting.  Yes, the same experimenting I was planning on doing this week.  I have a 3-day weekend so this should be fun.  Again, stay tuned!