Thank you to every single person who left a comment on my last post. 🙂 You guys are so wise, so thoughtful, and such great role models!! I really feel so lucky to be included in this blogosphere!!!
You guys rock!!!!
And with that, I present you a FABULOUS weekend post of delicious, satisfying, and (I think) balanced eats! Starting off with a gourmet brunch, more Chinatown bun eating, some cake-baking, and a farewell party at night!
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The Bongo Room
There is a super hyped about brunch spot in Chicago that I have been DYYYING to go to. The bf took me here after I got my Guardasil injection in the AM and boyyy was brunch tasty. (If you haven’t gotten the shot, get it!! 10 out of 10 doc’s recommend it)
Pear & Apple French Toast
We started off with a half order of this tasty toast….it is “Brown sugar crusted brioche on top of warm spiced pear and apple compote topped with cinnamon creme anglaise”
OMG SOOO GOOD. The syrup with so cinnamon and apple-ish. The toast was flaky on the outside, soft on the inside, and I don’t know what the sauce on the toast is, but it is HEAVEN.
Salmon Eggs Benedict
This was my main dish! I asked for the sauce on the side and instead of hash browns, asked to switch it for fresh fruit.
As much as I love smoked salmon, I still like ’em uncooked. This smoked salmon was too dry, but the eggs were PERFECTLY cooked so the yolks oozed over everything. I dipped each bite into the dill hollandaise…and YUMMMM. Drool.
Croissant Sandwich
The boyfriend ordered the croissant-wich with bacon, melted muenster cheese, a fried egg and hash browns.
Overall, the meal was reallly tasty! I loved the restaurant’s bright and happy decor but we agreed that the food was a little over-hyped.
I rounded out my brunch with an Iced tea from Dunkin Donuts and sweetened it with a pack of splenda and some half & half.
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After brunch, we did a good 2 hours of grocery shopping and hit up Chinatown for our favorite BAKERY!!
We returned home with a big box full of yummies.
By they time we got home, it was late afternoon and I was getting a little hungry, so I made the good old Green Tea Frapp and snuggled up with a Paper-Wrapped Sponge Cake.
I set out to bake a cake for my friends farewell party that night.
Cinnamon Honey Bun Cake!
I modified the recipe to make it lighter, using light sour cream, half the oil, and egg whites. I also went with 1/4 of the icing/glaze specified by the recipe.
This is the cake right out of the oven!
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Rock Bottom Brewery
Our surprise farewell party for my friend Ren started a tad late (of course) and I was a tiny bit hungry by the time we got to Rock Bottom Brewery. Despite being SUPER tempted to order a big BBQ pizza, I decided to order this!
Asian Ahi Tuna Salad
The tuna was quite dissappointing and flavorless, but the dressing (which I dipped in) was SO tasty and honey-mustard-like I was won over!
For dessert, we had my cake of course!! Here’s Ren holding up the cake I baked him.
I’m proud to say that EVERYONE finished their slice of cake!! Here’s mine, all moist and cinnamony!
We rounded out the night by hanging out at a friends’ apartment and eating oranges, gossiping, and then heading over to the theater to watch I LOVE YOU, MAN!!!
What an awkward, yet super funny movie. I was really entertained and I think you would too!
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Now I’m ready for a NEW WEEK!!
Every day is a new day and a new opportunity to eat better, live healthier, and be happier!!! Hope you all have a FABULOUS Monday!
Lucky Taste Buds! 
that tuna salad looks incredible!
Oh my gosh, your french toast looks amazing! And oh yes to bakeries. I love the coconut buns, pineapple buns, and egg tarts! MWAHAHAHA!
And look at you go with the baking skills. Love the pretty cake!!
I got it despite how much I hate needles!!! That french toast looks amazing 🙂
I finshed all three of my Guardasil vaccinations last year. I was so glad when I found out that they had developed that sort of vaccine.
Lovely cake too!
-E
The cake you baked looked incredible! I love chinese bakery buns…so delish!
I went to Rock Bottom Brewery in Portland! I totally got one of their salads too, but forgot to get the dressing on the side like you did. 😦
Your other eats look SO tempting!
If the sauce on your toast is cinnamon creme anglaise, it is a thin custard made with milk, egg yolks, sugar and flavorings (in this case cinnamon, but maybe also vanilla). The milk and vanilla (and cinnamon) are heated until steaming, and in a separate bowl, the yolks and sugar are whisked together. The hot milk is added a little at a time to the eggs (while still whisking) to heat the eggs without scrambling them. Once all the milk is mixed into the eggs the mixture is returned to the saucepan and cooked until it thickens. It’s then strained to remove any cooked egg bits and cooled. Creme anglaise is also the base for ice cream- just with a little cream added at the end.
I use to live in Chicago’s Chinatown for a brief period of time, and your posts brings back lots of good memories.
Mmm, Chinese bakery! I ended up in Chinatown today on like Kermack street or something en route to the Loop. Whoops.
Stupid Chicago weather. It nearly killed us.
Your brunch looks yummy, sorry it was a bit overhyped!
Wow, that french toast and the cake looks incredible! Yum! So does the tuna salad.
I got the Gardasil shot too– I think everyone should get it.
The Bongo Room sounds great…of all the breakfat dishes I think I would go for the pear and apple french toast! YUM!
I am jealous of the Chinatown yummies! Is that a baked pork bun in the back of a sweet one? I always see the steamed pork buns but I can rarely find the baked outside of CA.
glad to see that you had a great weekend! you’re so cute to bake cake for your friend! I like doing that too! because I love seeing people’s smiling face when they have something delicious made by me! 😀
love the quote! so true! we need to remind us every single day when we wake up that today would be a fabulous day! 🙂
Yayy! I’m so happy you had a beautiful weekend of great eats! That FRENCH TOAST!!! I’m drooling over here. Shooot. I hope you have a great start to the week!
Hi lovely~
That Pear & Apple French Toast looks heavenly.. mmm gimme some of that deliciousess!!!
I’m loving that cake you baked.. looks FABULOUS!!!!
Hope your week is filled with happiness and wonderful eats 😀
xoxo
You deserve that French toast after the shot – I know they HURT!! That cake is stunning!
Have a great Monday 🙂
how sweet of you to make the cake! haha- no you didn’t miss anything, when i first started blogging i was deciding what to do with my life after graduating! I decided in jan to go back to school for nursing, but my undergrad degree is history- so i have to go back and do all my sciences from scratchy 😦 !! It’s really interesting though, and hopefully a wise decision for my future 😀
yayy that looks like an AWESOME weekend. I seriously need to see I Love You Man ASAP! Thanks for being SO awesome with your awesome words back to my post. You’re the best girl 🙂
Omg that french toast looks amazing! I need it now! So cute of you to cook your boy a cake! It looks delicious too! Glad you had a nice weekend!
wow that restaurant gave you really good fruits! everytime i swap my stuff for a fruit salad i get melon and grapes. i’m glad you had a great weekend!
Everything looks so delicious! I miss living near Chicago with all of the arts and great food!
no wonder everyone gobbled up that cake, it looks delicious!!!
I’m drooling over your box of goodies from the bakery and your amazing looking cake. I love cinnamon and anything involving glaze rates high on my list. Yum, yum and YUM!
over-hyped?? it looks amazing to me!!!!! that french toast is a killer.
i’m disappointed that you were disappointed with the tuna – it looks so good on paper (…screen….), shame. glad the dressing saved it!
and i really really really want a slice of your cake.
OMG, are you kidding me with that French Toast?!?! I need to re-create that ASAP!
Let me just say, that cake looks amazing!!
yayyyy for balanced satisfaction!! send me some of that pear and apple french toast, please? and some honey bun cake? and one of those chinatown egg custard tarts while you’re at it? geez, you’ve been busy 🙂
Salmon Eggs Ben… I could just die! Lovely cake creation!
All of your eats look awesome!
all of your eats just look fabulous!!
especially the french toast 🙂
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