Best Meal of 2015

Sometimes you just have an amazing meal and in your brain you strategize about how to have it more often, who else to eat it with, ways to celebrate things around said meal.. That happened last night at Chicago's Fig & Olive on Oak St.

My mom and I have established a date night every month and we kicked it off with F&O. (Next month is dinner + the Stevie Wonder concert and we are PUMPED!!!) Just a few days before, their Fall Menu went in to play.  They do four menus a year and each changes with the season, is Mediterranean based, and they rotate a few wines in and out of the menu as well.

I did preview the menu in advance and set my eyes on the Riviera Salmon or the Rosemary Lamb Chops.  I went with the salmon because of the broccolini and the cauliflower puree.  We also got a few crostinis to share.  The white wine was decent, my mom's dish was delicious, and then came the dessert.  We ordered the carmalized cheesecake.  I won't describe the whole dish, but it's not only tasty, but fun (with the right company). 

Jason was great to us and we went around 5PM on a Sunday so the crowd was minimal as was the traffic on Oak St.  According to people this is a very "sceney" restaurant.  If you're not in to that then I guess that would matter to you.  If you want good food, thorough service, and something fresh, go for it.  If it were mediocre I'd totally say go if you wanna say you've gone.  But it's so good, I just want you to go and wiggle around in your seat while you chew like I did.

Where should we go for dinner before the Stevie Wonder concert next month??

Holler,

Melissa

BETTER BODY: F**K THAT *Kendrick Lamar voice*

B-DAY WKND w/ my sis :)
When people find out that I've lost 30 lbs, they always ask me how I did it and when I think about it, one of the main keys to my success was my DIET (and sleeping).

Changing the way that I was eating changed my mind and my body.  I was clear, light, happy, shedding weight, and I really felt quite mature because I was making healthy choices left & right.

The catch is, however, that I never really made a crazy big change beside cutting out fast food/restaurant food and making sure I ate less from packages and more from my own skillets.

The other day I was walking down the street and had wanted to satisfy my craving for late-night style tacos and dropped into a random joint to grab some super unhealthy handheld munchies.  NOT a good idea.  I honestly don't feel bad about eating it, but my body definitely rejected them LOUD & CLEAR!  haha

I definitely don't eat as clean as I used to when I began my journey, but I definitely still do 75-80% healthier choices (even if it's food from 7-Eleven).  I was so surprised by the physical reaction that I just knew that eating clean is pretty much my only choice at this point.  It's definitely something that I want to keep up, but for a second I was becoming a little anal, and it really scared me, so I backed off in a major way.

I don't want to set a rule for my diet, but if I had to, the idea would be to eat clean 80-90% of the time and eat really really dirty (in a good/quality way) about 10-15% of the time.  I was headed down the road towards vegan, but it wasn't really founded an anything sturdy, so at this point--with all of the understanding of clean eating that I have--I imagine that I will be eating vegan/veggie/pesky (that's my way of saying PESCETARIAN) most of the time.  I think I'm mostly afraid of never eating pork bacon, hamburgers, and steak again.  (Not in a negative way but in a...I REALLY LIKE BACON, HAMBURGERS, AND STEAK, kinda way.)

I also don't think I'll be going vegan because I wanna be prepared for whatever is in store for our nation and world.  Part of the reason that I train and the reason I eat well (and want to keep beef, chicken, & pork in my diet) is because I'm afraid of being in some DOOM situation where it's 2059 and we HAVE to eat fake cow meat by government ordinance.  I just want my stomach to be ready for that... AND SO I'll practice with real beef & pork now!

lol

The beef, pork & chicken intake will not be high at all, but when I want it (or if it's the only option) then I will have it!  And I will try to make it at home vs ordering it.  SIMPLE!

My way of achieving this lifestyle is:
  • buy salmon/fish once a week
  • buy spinach for eating & smoothies once a week
  • trying new recipes OFTEN ... not once a week, I can't commit to that
  • make a staple shopping list over the next few months for my "no brainer" dishes
  • eat 3 homemade meals a day for 4-6 days per week (If I eat out, it has to be a light and big salad for at least 6 out of those 9 potential meals.)

I have always envisioned myself as a veggie/veganesque girl, but I also think it's important to make sure I'm doing it the healthy way.  I have SO many vegetarian friends who only eat packaged food and that's just so backwards to me!  Eating clean is where it's at and it's possible and affordable enough for ANYBODY to do.  I'm still going to have the cravings, I'll just have to develop a little discipline to make sure I just cook those meals myself and not spend the $3-$50 dollars on them at places outside of my home.

Manifesto from the book In Defense of Food #reminder
So goodbye, JUNK FOOD!  Chips, pop/soda, and multiple fast-food stops, that snuck back into my life.  You're banished!  I love you & I'll visit from time-to-time at Super Bowl parties, but you gotta go and I gotta stay true to the happy, healthy, thug in me. 

If you are on some kind of fitness/diet journey.  It REALLY suggest that you read the book IN DEFENSE OF FOOD:  An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan.  I really helped me to change my mind about my thoughts on food w/o really trying.  VERY good book.  VERY good notes.  ENJOY!

Much Love!

Melissa B. :)
xox