Green Street Smoked Meats

Last week, a group of friends and I decided to get together and grab food/drinks after work. There are a lot of new, interesting and delicious places that are popping up everywhere, but the West Loop seems to keep hitting it right on the mark. If you are unfamiliar with the West Loop of Chicago, it is directly west of the loop (shocker) and is home to some of the best food/restaurants in the city: Au Cheval (known for their incredible bacon cheeseburger), Girl & The Goat/ Little Goat (Stephanie Izard’s famed dish – pig face), Avec (bacon-wrapped dates), The Publican (Serrano Ham and Beer), RM Champagne Salon, Nellcote, The Aviary, … just to name a few 😉

We all decided that we wanted something low-key, but with awesome food and drinks, so Green Street Smoked Meats it was.  I had not yet been to GSSM, but as an avid lover of all things barbecue I was on board.

The first cool thing about this place is that the entrance is in an alley.  An alley that has been transformed into an outdoor eating mecca with communal picnic tables and twinkle lights galore.  When you enter, you are immediately greeted by a bearded staff member who explains the order of events – get in line and pick out your meat/sides, then go to the bar to order your drinks.

(blurry – I was so excited! … but you get the idea)

The smell inside the building was intoxicating and seeing the giant smokers with chefs pulling out delicious, succulent meats almost made me go weak at the knees – how could I decide what to order?!

Since we went right after work, the line went by fast and before I knew it I had decided on pork ribs with a side of potato salad and house made spicy pickles. – I’m literally drooling right now just thinking about it.

We passed by the bar to grab some margaritas and beers and headed outside to snag a table.

Fist of all, the sides were AWESOME.  I could have eaten two containers of the pickles which were not super spicy, but had a good kick from the spice/vinegar combination.  The potato salad was light, not overly dressed with heavy mayo and the potatoes themselves were perfectly cooked – love red-skinned potatoes.

The ribs, oh those ribs.  Do you see that rub?! They were phenomenal.  Juicy and succulent, you bet I took off all that meat straight down to the bone.

I had little bites of other dishes that were around me as well – smoked brisket, broccoli salad, frito pie (oh, yes).  Everything was phenomenal and BONUS under $20!

We took our time eating through our plates, going back up to the bar for a second round and enjoying the beautiful weather.  I’m fairly certain we could have sat there all night if it wasn’t for that dog at home we needed to take care of at home…

If you are ever in Chicago and are looking for a fun place to grab food/drinks, I highly recommend making your way over to the West Loop.   Stroll around, take it all in and wander over to Green Street Smoked Meats for some amazing smoked meats and strong drinks in a causal setting.  You won’t regret it!

Healthy Chicken Salad with Grilled Zucchini

Man do I have a delicious and nutritious recipe for you!  But first… let’s recap the day.

As I mentioned in my last post, I decided to take Monday off a while ago so that I could catch up on some much needed R & R after a crazy busy weekend.  While the day was awesome, I definitely kept busy!

A 4 mile run bright and early to ‘beat the heat’.

I was lucky because there were still a lot of clouds in the sky that provided much needed shade from the sun.

A trip to Petco.

Bailey was so exhausted after that walk, she immediately flopped on the hardwood floor to catch a breather.

And lastly, a grocery run at Trader Joe’s for this weeks meal plan:

Monday: Healthy chicken salad with grilled zucchini

Tuesday: Ground turkey tacos

Wednesday: Out for drinks/apps with a friend

Thursday: Grilled shrimp and salad

Friday: Dinner at Diane’s (Brian’s cousin)

Saturday: Picnic with the fam – brining fresh pico de gallo and a kale salad (Willie Nelson concert at Ravinia)

Sunday: Turkey brats with parmesan zucchini wedges

Which brings me to the awesome recipe I have to share:

Healthy Chicken Salad with Grilled Zucchini

Servings: 4

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb shredded cooked chicken (I used the precooked chicken from TD’s to save on time)
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1 crisp apple, chopped
• 1/2 cup red grapes, halved
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 3/4 cup Greek yogurt
• Salt, pepper, dill, garlic powder to taste
• 2 medium zucchini
• Olive oil spray

Directions:

Super easy, prepare yourself.

1. Prep your fruit and nuts

2. Shred the cooked chicken in a large glass bowl

3. Add the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, spices, and prepped fruits and nuts

4. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hr.

5. While the chicken salad is cooling… prep your indoor or outdoor grill with a little olive oil over medium high heat

6. Slice the zucchini in half horizontally (hot dog style)

7. Season the zucchini with salt and pepper to taste and add to the grill.

8. Grill both sides for 3-4 minutes each

9. Plate the grilled zucchini and add 1 heaping scoop of cold chicken salad on top

ENJOY!

This is the perfect recipe for a hot summer day and is loaded with all sorts of good veggies, fruits and protein from the Greek Yogurt.

Memorial Day Weekend Pt. 2

After running the Soldier Field 10 Miler on Saturday, Brian and I were busy busy busy. We enjoyed our complementary beers in the finishers area and then immediately headed out for Brunch with the other Lindsay and Brian.  Schubas is this great little bar/restaurant close to our apartment which was perfect because we did not have too much time to spare. By this point in the day I was starving and immediately ordered a prosciutto and egg sandwich accompanied by a couple mimosas 🙂

After brunch, we headed home to shower and get ready for the afternoons events:

1. My sisters graduation party at my parents house
2. My best friends birthday party at the Arlington Race Track

If I have not mentioned it before on this blog, I grew up in Arlington Heights, Illinois which is about 45 minutes northwest of Chicago. It’s a pretty large suburb that has really developed into a hot spot for dining since I left after high school. Another major attraction that competes with the local dining scene is the Arlington Race Track.

Once we arrived at my parent house, we said hello to the relatives, dropped off Bailey and then immediately headed to the track to spend some time with my friend for her birthday. The track was PACKED with people celebrating the Memorial Day holiday and everyone was in their best derby gear. It’s funny, my friends and I would go to the track all the time growing up in just regular clothes – shorts and a tank. Now, you wouldn’t be caught dead wearing anything less than a maxi dress, wedges and a floppy hat. Girls.

(throwback picture because I was too busy socializing to take any pictures!)

The visit was very short lived as we needed to head back home to get the graduation party started! I had a lot of relatives from all over the country fly in to help celebrate and there was a great turnout of our family friends as well.

On the menu for the party:

Italian beef (it’s no Chicago grad party without this staple)
Pizza
Pulled chicken sandwiches
Lots and lots of various sides

One of my favorite items of the evening was this Kale salad mix that my mom picked up from Costco that everyone at the party went nuts over. I love Costco!

The party was a great success and went out until the wee hours of the night.

Sunday morning we took our time to sleep in and enjoy the beautiful weather outside before heading back to Chicago for a BBQ at a friends house.

I decided to make my Zesty Broccoli Salad to contribute to the party and I’m glad I did because it was one of the only ‘green’ items at the BBQ 🙂  Not that anyone really complained about that fact or anything… haha.

(Did I mention that these two above got engaged this weekend?!? SO EXCITING!)

To say we are very fortunate to be surrounded by such amazing family and friends is a huge understatement.  The weekend was full of so many fun activities that by the time Monday came around both Bailey and I needed some good ol’ rest.

Ta ta for now.

Lolla Weekend

Lolla Weekend has come and gone…

Seriously though, I had an amazing experience at Lollapalooza this weekend.  What started out as a semi-stressful morning turned out into a fun-filled, music-packed day.  Going into the weekend, I had nightmares about large crowds, unbearable weather and losing my friends – but none of those became my reality!  I survived.

First off, I don’t think there could have been a more perfect weekend for this festival – Sunny days with temperatures in the mid 70’s.

When we arrived at Grant park the energy was so intense and crazy, I’m fairly certain I walked around with a huge smile on my face looking like a goon.

Once we got our bearings on where all of the stages were and bought a few beers, we headed over to our first concert – Ellie Goulding.  I absolutely love her, but was not too impressed with her show.  I think it was partially because I had a hard time hearing her voice over her bass.  Nevertheless, we had a ton of fun dancing to her songs and screaming the words.

By the time Ellie finished, it was almost 6:00 p.m. and we had some time to kill before we posted up for the next performer.  My friend and I were pretty hungry at this point, so we headed over to ‘Chow Town’ and grabbed some pulled pork sandwiches from the Smoke Daddy tent.

This sandwich hit the spot.

After we ate, we headed back to the Bud Light stage to see Kendrick Lamar perform – he. was. awesome.

I had a lot of fun ‘people watching’ at lolla, especially the people who were in charge of carrying their groups “beacon”.  Beacon meaning, the item (usually a large balloon or sign), that could identify them in the crowds if someone was to be looking for them.  Unfortunately, I was too busy stalking to take any pictures of these magnificent items, but some of my favorites included:

– Honey Boo Boo’s face

–  The Simpson’s characters

– An inflatable monkey who was carrying glow sticks

– A piece sign balloon

After Kendrick, we headed over to the ‘Lakeshore’ stage which was where The Lumineers were playing.

We stayed for a while, but decided to cut out early so we could get prime standing position for the main event.  Mumford & Sons!

They were so amazing live, seriously one of the best concerts I have ever been to , plus I find Marcus to be super dreamy 😉

I will definitely be returning to Lolla in the future.  I had an amazing experience with great friends, and could definitely now see myself dropping over $200 for the 3 day pass.  It is really hard to see every aspect of the festival in just one day!

After a day like that, the majority of Sunday was spent on the couch watching episodes of ‘Orange is the New Black’ on Netflix and planning out my workout’s for the week to get back on track after a crazy weekend.

Cheers to a productive Monday!

Frosting and Fireworks

Hello!

What a BEAUTIFUL day in Chicago to have a birthday!  That’s right… I’m officially 25… 1/4 of the way to 100.

I can also now legally rent a car 😉

The past few days have revolved around a lot of eating, drinking and celebrating.

Wednesday evening, my girlfriends and I headed up to Ravinia to see that Matchbox 20/Goo Goo Dolls concert.  It was awesome!  The concert was a sold out show, so my mother was able to give me her “members only” pass which got me into the venue a half hour earlier than general admission.  This was clutch because there were 7 of us and we needed a larger picnic space!

My friends and I brought lots of goodies including cheese, meats, crackers, a delicious smoked salmon dip (you like that xtina?), Chinese chicken salad, brownies, pasta salad and so much more!  And of course – 4-5 bottles of wine which we much needed.

The concert was the perfect way to kick off the holiday/birthday weekend.  Good times and great friends!

Yesterday was my FAVORITE day of the entire year!  I love the 4th of July more than my birthday!  Every year, all of my family/family friends flock to my parents house to watch the Arlington Heights parade and spend the afternoon eating/drinking and swimming at their pool.

This year, all of my hometown best friends we able to come which I was so thrilled about because it’s really hard to get us all together in one spot.

Actually, we were missing one… shout out to Carly in NYC!!

After the parade was over, we all headed into the backyard where the real party began.  My parents presented a very impressive spread of BBQ pulled chicken, 2 whole smoked turkey and lots of sides that other people brought as well.

So. much. food.

My family from West Virginia is in town and it was so much fun catching up with them and day drinking.  Whenever we all get together, we pretty much spend about 90% of our time just eating and catching up.  Literally – there is always something out to snack on – oh, the Italians.

Around 4:00 p.m., people started to part ways, but not before my mom brought out a monster birthday cake!  No, she did not bake this herself (sorry mom), but it was delicious!

I have never really been a huge cake fan, I’m more of a pie girl, but i do love FROSTING.  This frosting was da bomb!

Once everyone left and it was just my family, I opened all of the presents they got for me.  My family was so generous this year – I loved everything!

My West Virginia/Ohio family got me a Garmin watch, my sister got me an adorable leather purse from Florence, Italy, and my parents got me some cooking items I have been dying to have!

All in all, it was an amazing 4th of July/birthday celebration.  Bailey was exhausted!

How did you spend the 4th of July?

Spicy Weekend

Hello, Friends!

I apologize for my absence yesterday, I was a bit under the weather and needed the day to recover.

Besides the sudden sickness that was brought on Sunday night, I had a very active weekend full of…

Good Friends

Good Food

Great Runs

And lots of stretching

I pushed my “long run” up a day because I figured I would be really tired by Sunday with all the BBQ activities that were planned.  The run felt good and I kept a good pace I would like to maintain for the full 13.1 miles.

After my run, I headed to the grocery store to pick up the items I was in charge of for the BBQ’s I was attending.  This included ingredients for my favorite – homemade pico de gallo!

Lindsay’s Pico

Ingredients:

• 1 Orange Bell Pepper
• 1 Green Bell Pepper
• 1 Red Bell Pepper
• 5-6 Roma Tomatoes
• 1/2 White Onion
• 2 Cloves of Fresh Garlic
• 1 Jalapeno (Seeded – only use 1/2 amount of seeds)
• 2 Limes
• 1 Lemon
• 1/2 cup Fresh Cliantro
• 1 ‘Spicy’ Salsa Seasoning Packet

Directions:

1. Chop and Drop all of the delicious fresh veggies!
2. Squeeze the Lime and Lemon Juice over the pico
3. Add the seasoning packet and stir (I use the Salsa Seasoning that is found in the Jewel produce section.  For some reason, it is the only grocery store that carries it)
4. Enjoy!

This was a big hit at the parties!  I also mad a batch of my father’s spicy green dip, but I will post that recipe sometime this week!

Have a fantastic Tuesday!