Happy Monday. We had fun at Polar Beer Fest

Happy Moday.
Just a quick note on this past weekend's event.
Polar Beer Fest at Rock Bottom Chicago.
with the weather in Chicago it could have gone either way in February. It turned out to be a very nice day. We had a great time of course. Here is the poster from the event. Pretty cool eh?

It is always nice to run into a familiar face or 2. An appearance from Pete Crowley was a nice surprise. He is always nice to talk to.

Here are a couple more pictures we took. This one is me, our polar bear host, and my other half.

Here is the tasting glass.

Here is the list of brews to sample. The ones with * I tried. The ones in Red I really liked. I am not going to make the entire list red but highlight just my top 5 from the day. This is just what my taste buds like.

1. Nina's Belgian Abbey Quadruple by Haymarket, Chicago *

2. Mathias Double IPA by Haymarket, Chicago *

3. Vertex IPA by Destihl, Normal *

4. Bela Imperial Pilsner by Destihl, Normal*

5. Barleywine by Emmits, Palatine *

6. Imperial Stout by Emmits, Palatine*

7. Liquid Inspriation Stour by goose Island, Chicago*

8. Double B Belgian Dubble with Brett by Goose Island, Chicago*

9. Flying Pig Double IPA by Limestone, Plainfield

10. Cipher Belgian Blonde by Half Acre, Chicago*

11. Fourseome Quadruple by Revolution, Chicago *

12. A Lil' Strange Belgian Strong gold by Piece, Chicago*

13. Secret Stache Vanilla Bean Cream Stout by Finche's, Chicago (musta been a big secret. I couldn't find it)

14. Brown is the new Black Imperial Stout by Flossmore Station, Flossmore

15. Dopplebock by Gordon Bierche, Bolingbrook

16. Sled Dog Inperial Red by Rock Bottom, Chicago *

17. Topplebock Dopplebock by Rock Bottom, Warrenville*

18. King of Hearts Imperial Red by Rock Bottom, Orland Park*

19. Sneaky Porking Bacon Imperial Stout by Rock Bottom, Yorktown

20. Alt Capones Double Alt by Rock Bottonm, Chicago*

21. Jimmy Hoppa Double IPA by rock Bottom, Chicaog*

22. Dillinger's Demise Russian Imperial Stout by Rock Bottom, Chicago*

23.Frostbite Belgian Tipple by Rock Bottom, Chicago

24. Naughty Scot Scotch Ale by Rock Bottom, Chicago*

25. Old Mellenium Barleywine by rock Bottom, Chicago

26. Sled Dog Imperial Red by Rock Bottom, Wareenville

27. Oat Malt Stout by Rock Bototm, Orland Park

28. Bishop Belgian Tipple by Rock Bottom, Yorktown

It was a great time and I hope they continue to do these because we had such a good time and plan to go next year.

I'm baaaack

So it's been forever since I posted last.
My 3 followers probably didn't even notice. Since this is a Chicago blog, I'll take this back to what it was meant for. That being my shenanigans around Chicago and Chicagoland area.
Anyone interested in my vegan/nutrarian diet/lifestyle you can hop over to the other blog here:

http://eattolivejourney.blogspot.com/

I will be reporting on some fun stuff soon. It's Thursday and my only adventure for the evening after work is shopping for a green blouse for St. Patty's day and some groceries, then some treadmill time.
Yes, life during the week is not all that exciting. We weekend warriors need to make up for it on the weekend.

Chat at you soon!

Love Chigirl

Lentil stew

I made this last night and it was pretty yummy.

What you need:

1 cup lentils checked and rinsed

1 can vegetable broth

2 cups water

2 TBSP. oil (olive, canola, etc.) I used organic coconut

2 TSP Cumin

1 TSP cayenne pepper (more if you like it HOT)

1 TSP nutmeg

1/2 cup diced onion (white or red)

1/3 cup sweetened shredded coconut (yep, the kind you use for cookies and stuff)

1 large potato like yukon gold cut into small cubes. About 1/4 inch

6 oz. fresh spinach. I clean mine up but taking off the stems and roughly chopping

What you do:

Combine lentils, broth and water in a sauce pan. Heat until boiling. Once boiling, turn down to medium heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes.

In a large skillet, heat oil until shimmering. Add spices, onion, and coconut. Toast over medium heat these until the onion gets a little transparent and the coconut starts to get brown and toasty. Add the potatoes and cook for about 2 more minutes.

Add the lentils to the skillet and stir to combine. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Check the potatoes with a fork or knife. When they are soft it's time to add the spinach. Add a little salt according to your taste and cook just long enough for the spinach to wilt

Eat up!!

This makes 4 main dish recipes @

estimated:

305 calories

17g protein

47g carb

7g total fat

20g fiber

0 cholesterol

420mg sodium

If you are veg not vegan you can top with some Parmesan cheese before serving serving.

vegan pumpkin risotto

Still going along vegan as much as possible.
I found a recipe for vegan pumpkin risotto. This was my first time making risotto but to my surprise it came out great.
Here is how I did it:

What you need:

1 onion. diced
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups arborio (risotto) rice
1 cup white wine
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup canned pumpkin (unsweetened)
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil if you have it on hand
1 tbsp margarine
salt and pepper to taste
How you do it:

Sautee the onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat for three to five minutes, or until soft. Add the rice.
Allow to cook, stirring, for a minute or two. Slowly add the wine.
Start to add the vegetable broth, 1/2 cup at a time.
Allow the moisture to cook off before adding the next 1/2 cup. Stir frequently. **note**
++ Keep checking you rice texture while doing this. I needed more moisture so I added a little water when the broth was finished.++
Add pumpkin, ginger, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir well.
Add the margarine and stir in.
Add the Basil (if you have it) last right before serving.

**note: I learned by watching Lidya's Italy that you should keep the broth (or water) warm when adding. It works better than if it's cold.**

It's been a while

Yeah, it's been a while but I have only 2 followers.
I know it's because this is not exactly interesting stuff here.
So on we go about right now.

So, I was planning on going vegetarian because I was getting depressed when I ate. Mostly thinking that I was consuming animal corpses. Well, one step further and I'm vegan. It is quite a challenge after eating and cooking with animal products for so long. I must say I felt a difference within a week. I don't feel so weighed down and sluggish. It's so nice to have so many resources available now for recipes and options in other products that do not use any form or animal products.
I'll try to keep you up on how things are progressing.

Happy 4th. b safe.

Good afternooon June,2nd

Well Mai Fest was decent. The normal brats, beer, and oompah bands. I was able to spend some time with my brother and sister-in-law. I saw my friend Heide and her son on our way out. Right after I was talking about them. We normally run into them at Mai Fest.
It's a busy week at work so this will have to be short. Time to get back to the grind.