Category Archive: whole foods

December 15th, 2009
post by tamalechica | | 1

Wishing I was car enabled again

I don’t have a car and I no longer drive, mostly because of residual issues after a bad accident some time ago. As such, as one of my Junior Achievement kids said, “I take the big, green limousine.” That’s the CTA, for those of you who didn’t know they used to have a more heavily green colored theme. This awesome shot of one very old bus (check out the trolley device on top!) is from Zack’s photostream on Flickr.
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Taking the train or bus on a nice day when you are just trying to get from Point A to Point B is no big deal. When you use it to go grocery shopping, well, then there are times where it’s not exactly my idea of fun. Take for example, a rainy day. Try holding an umbrella when it is pouring rain out and carrying two shopping bags. Something has to go.
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Today I went to Whole Foods to pick up part of tomorrow’s dinner, plus mostly organic produce for tomorrow’s food fest. I wanted to take the Lincoln Ave bus and go directly to Julius Meinl for our dessert, but CTA tracker gave me a wait time I couldn’t live with so I walked over to the Paulina Brown Line Train stop. My transit card barfed up at me and spit out error codes while a well dressed man with a lady companion proceeded to spew out a torrent of vitriol and negativity at the attendant working behind the booth. She shrugged it off and said he does this to her every day. Send that man a huge lump of coal!
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It turns out that the card was fine, the machine was having issues… and of course this delay cost me catching the next train. After announcing the next one would be an express, I finally made it home. After dropping off my groceries, I walked to Julius Meinl where I picked up two lovely pieces of chocolate cake for our dessert, and walked from Montrose to nearly Lawrence and Lincoln to pick up some naturally raised meats and a big head of cabbage at Gene’s and then a couple of sticky buns at Cafe Selmarie. My hands were full.
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So there I was, like a Sherpa, walking with bags in both hands, and I’m only half way home, when hair blows across my face and gets stuck, partly, in my nose. Now there’s a look every girl wants.

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Cafe Selmarie, car less in Chicago, Gene's, grocery, lugging, sherpa, shopping, whole foods
June 21st, 2009
post by tamalechica | | Closed

Cool Summer Spelt Wrap Sandwich

When it gets hot out, there’s little incentive to heat up my kitchen. Even a dual window fan does little to keep me from nearly passing out if I turn on my toaster oven for too long, much less the big oven. So what’s a girl to do when she wants more than a salad and she wants some zinga zinga zow?

I finally started to use Wasabe Mayonnaise, available at Trader Joe’s, for that whack of hotness in a cool meal. Wasabe is horseradish, and for those sashimi sushi lovers out there, this is that glob of culinary torture that will blow out your sinus ailments faster than you can say, de repente! It’s also great on either bread or wrap sandwiches.

Here are my fixings:

These I picked up at Whole Foods. The Rudy’s Organics provide substantial whole grain goodness and I do organic cheeses because conventional ones put something funky in it that makes me want to say, gagola. The wraps come in either spelt or whole wheat. Any thin sliced deli meat will do, and as for cheeses, I prefer the mildness of provolone but I have used Swiss and muenster. Smoked Gouda would probably be great but if you’re feeling lazy, that’s extra slicing.

Yes, that’s how much wasabi mayonnaise I use. Yes, it’s a lot. Yes you can smell it a mile away. And yes, yes, it will leave you with open sinuses and a no-caffeine post wake up experience.


Now this is the recommended amount of deli meat, but I also had a little leftover so I threw another slice in.
Throwing more than 2 slices also throws off the rolling up of the roll-up. Normally it’s a much tighter roll and no toothpicks are required to keep it from returning to it’s one with the counter look.
It’s an easy to make sandwich and if you only use 2 pieces of meat, the proportions are just right for a filling sandwich that does not leave you feeling like a beached whale. I think it’s time to make another one with some cilantro in it.
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cool, recipe, sandwich, spelt, trader joe's, whole foods, wrap
June 4th, 2009
post by tamalechica | | 1

Organic Sweet Baby Broccoli Exists!


Last year after class I decided to go to the Whole Foods in Boystown to pick up a couple of items. There, in the produce department, were bunches of Lakeside Organic Garden’s Organic Sweet Baby Broccoli. I purchased two bunches. They were delectable. While they reminded me of Rapini, which I’ve never found in organic form, these were scrumptious. The best thing about these baby broccoli is that there is virtually no waste. Usually purchasing organic broccoli ends up being very expensive because some of the stalk (and there is usually a LOT of it) is inedible and more suited for a door jamb than the dinner table.

A few days later I made a special trip to my regular Whole Foods and sadly, they did not carry it. Soon after, Roseann was up for errands, so we went to the Boystown Whole Foods and they didn’t have it, either. A friend of mine tried on several occasions to find this item at one of three different locations, and nada. All I had left from last year was the memory of how good it was and the saved label.
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Okay, I’m an easy girl (hold on I am NOT finished with my sentence!!) to please when it comes to basic things in life. I love good food, and good food does indeed please me. Well, you can imagine how happy I was when a friend called me earlier this afternoon, and said, “I’m at Whole Foods and they have that organic baby broccoli — do you want any???”

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I photographed the goods for evidence. It is not Photoshopped, it is the real deal!!

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baby, broccoli, Emily's organic chocolate cherries, gardens, lakeside, sweet fried plantains, whole foods
September 26th, 2008
post by tamalechica | | Closed

El Mariachi

Thursday Roseann and I did our Quest for Mole, as well as a little grocery shopping and a lot of returns. When she came to pick me up, I had so many boxes and bags I looked like we had just finished a shopping trip, rather than just started one. After a quick drop off to my local post office, we went over to the Anthropologie store on Southport Ave. I had ordered many items, and now needed to return them. Too bad my muy guapo UPS driver (se llama Mario) never sees me return things. He brings the goodies, and I return them!

The one downside I discovered about Anthropologie is that if you do not have the credit card you made the purchase on, they will not credit your account. This meant that I had the choice of returning home and getting that card, or accepting a gift card, which is what I ended up doing. Of course I would rather have the credit on my account, but I am sure I will be able to use that credit, especially with the holidays coming up. Since we were there, I wanted to take a look at the merchandise, and found a nice sweater coat.

Because I have wide shoulders, despite the fact that I look like I should wear a size “medium,” I usually need either a size “large” or if it is cut narrowly, it can even be a size “extra large!” I tried a the large, and while it fit, it was snug at the shoulders. Since I am sure I would want to wear something more than a tee shirt underneath it when the weather turns chilly, we looked for a an extra large size. Not finding one, I went back to the register counter to ask the same sales clerk if she knew if it came in the size I needed. She went in the back to check in case there was one in the storage area, but there was not.

Another employee, who seemed like the manager, checked the inventory (since there were no XL’s online) and there were four stores in the entire USA that showed there was at least one in this size. The woman called each one. Some of these calls were painstakingly slow, and one of the stores apparently told her they didn’t have time to do an inventory check. The last store, ironically one in Illinois in Highland Park, had the sweater in the size I wanted! We were both impressed with the level and quality of service at this Anthropologie, and since my sweater jacket will be arriving this week, I am quite pleased!

Off to El Mariachi, our lunch destination, we went. Since she was taking me to the Whole Foods in Boystown, I suggested one of two places in the area. It is a small restaurant that is family run, according to the reviews I’ve seen online. We both fixated on mole. A person can never have too much good mole. But first, the waitress brought us two salsas for our chips. The one on the left was more red tomato based and richer, and the one on the right had a milder yet nice flavor.

We both ordered enchiladas, although our plates look slightly different because I prefer to skip refried beans and I don’t like sour creme with my enchiladas.

Originally I suggested El Mariachi because they have sopapillas, however, I was still rather satiated from the incredible and delectable meal I had the night before at Mixteco, so after I had my enchiladas I was ready to move on. The mole was good, by the way. I know that I have had bad mole, but not for a very, very long time.
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And NO, the bird wasn’t part of our meal, although it was part of our dining experience in the way of entertainment. The restaurant has walls that open up to the sidewalk, and while we were waiting for our bill, we suddenly saw our waitress run out with her arms flailing to chase away a city pigeon that had decided to waddle into the eating area.

In all the years I’ve dined in open air restaurants, I do have to say this is the first time a city pigeon came to join us. Several years ago when I was having lunch in Lutz’s garden cafe, there were a lot of birds that would come to the water statues they had. As all of us can appreciate, little finches add a different ambiance than a rock pigeon would. Who says size doesn’t matter!?

After lunch we went to Whole Foods in Boystown. About a month ago I bought some organic sweet baby broccoli there, and have never seen it since at any other Whole Foods store, including this one. I did buy more fish for “mi novio” and a few deli food items, fresh produce and my favorite Tazo teas in bottles.
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As the cart rolled down one of the aisles, a little organic baby broccoli consolation prize hung from an aisle hanger: Emily’s Organic Chocolate Covered Cherries. I looked at the ingredients and it was preservative free, which meant I could have this. I decided to try it. It’s not exactly broccoli but it did look good. Today I tasted one, and it does not disappoint. I will save it for when “el hombre” comes over. He is such a chocoholic!
I went to their website and OMG!!! Emily’s has other delectable chocolate covered items including strawberries, cashews, blueberries, espresso beans, raisins and other goodies. I am considering placing an online order for some of the items I did not see at Whole Foods. I’m thinking they’ll make fun Christmas gifts!

El Mariachi

3420 N. Broadway
773/ 549-7020
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Anthropologie, el mariachi, Emily's organic chocolate cherries, Mexican Food, mole, Southport, whole foods
September 4th, 2008
post by tamalechica | | Closed

Whole Foods: lunch and a bag!

This morning I had an appointment to see my naprapath. Thanks to an odd thing I did in my sleep, I did a number on my right leg. The whole lovely situation came to my attention one morning several weeks ago, when I first tried to get out of bed. I felt that something wasn’t right in my hip. Then I tried to stand up, and well, the searing pain that went up my leg from my right foot really helped to take my mind off of the hip issue. Over many days, okay over a few weeks) I had noticed problems in my right foot, but often as in the past, usually the problem went away if I did some stretches and stayed away from walking on the sidewalks. This time, it didn’t happen.

What I ended up with was something “like” plantar fascia. I say “like” because unlike the real thing, where the pain lessens as the day goes on, the pain in my foot got worse. There were a few times I thought I’d pass out from it. I can say that I used almost all the furniture I had just because walking from one room to another required frequent breaks as I hobbled and limped to a chair or couch. A friend of mine, this incredibly talented telepathic healer, channeled homeopathic remedies to me and did some other healing work, and I was able to start walking a little more without diving for the nearest chair.

Finally, last Friday, I went to my naprapath, who confirmed the problem started in the hip. Apparently it’s not rotated properly and as a result is turned outward. The way this is all happening, it is creating unhappiness with my tendon and ultimately my right foot and my arch. I made another appointment for today so that we could work on it some more. The good news is was only rotated 30% off when I got there. It’s times like this that I wished I could just fly over from her office to my home, and not deal with more standing, which only aggravates things. The wait for this morning’s bus, of course in the rain, was an hour. At the time of my appointment, I saw a cab (the first one sighted!) with his light on, so I grabbed it. And ouch, a $10 transportation cost just to get to her office. Sill, under the circumstances, I was grateful to get a cab in the downpour. My driver’s name was Javier and he was the southern part of Mexico, south of Mexico City. (Hola Javier, espero que tu puedes encontrar una computadora para que leer mi blog!)

My naprapath’s office is around Lincoln Avenue and Roscoe, which is near Whole Foods on Ashland. After my appointment I walked over there to get a few of their delicious organic heirloom tomatoes, which are usually badly wrinkled and are the Charpee of tomatoes (but oh, sooo good!)
I then realized that I was a lot hungrier than I thought I was, having had my breakfast around 6:30 am and it was certainly lunchtime. Incidently, there is nothing like a leg and foot problem to remind you how painful it is to stand and do food preparation! Not wanting to further aggravate the hip, knee, foot and gang, I went to the deli area and this piece of pizza spoke to me (it said, ‘take me home!’). Whole Food’s pizzas are good, although nothing beats the incredible pizzas that Kay from the Bread Shop used to have in their bakery of years gone past.

And oh yes, the deli — I wanted traditional coleslaw, but they only had the Asian slaw and this other one using greens. I’m really picky about my greens so I opted for the Asian slaw. It’s good, an odd combo with the pizza, but still quite tasty with a bit of a zing added to it from the ginger.
I mourn the passing of the Whole Foods plastic bags, for one, because they were so well made you could reuse them quite a few times, and for another, I am a commuter. Not having a car and carrying groceries home in a downpour means those paper bags really don’t work for me. Neither was my fabric bag that I had stashed in my purse. Fortunately, Whole Foods being no stranger to commerce, also sells these pricey but fun recycled plasticized totes. Of course I chose the pink one. The handle is long enough to sling it over your shoulders, and the bag is not very deep, which is a real plus if you are not a tall person. At least with this bag I could let the bag hand completely down versus pulling my arms up to keep it from cleaning off the sidewalk.

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deli food, lincoln ave, pizza, whole foods

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