seven & half years, 2 apartments, 3 roommates, 1 cat, 17 parties (might be more, honestly) 1 job, 5 tattoos, a million & 1 drinks + dinners, countless loops around the park, l rides, summer dips in the lake, farmers mkts & diversey wine tastings, long walks through the city, a whole gang of friends & the famdamnily nearby — Chicago, i love you, you’ve been good to me

in a funny plot twist or maybe it’s fate — i’m headed back to New Jersey, where i was born, where i lived before we moved to the dirty 630 in the summer of 2004. ryan got a new job in nyc & jersey city is calling me. should i revive my old email address jerseygirlmkb@yahoo.com? yes, no or maybe

excited for this next adventure, this new chapter — it’s not really goodbye more like see ya later. i have just a few more days. i’ll be back in december, it’ll be much colder then, but i do love a sweater

as always,

mk

i finished my big book of the summer already so what else is there to do? (lonesome dove), have a vague hangover, really more of a slight depression honestly from having finished such a good & long book — a heartbreakingly well-written one at that.

i also saw a big rock & hiked & swam in a gorge & there was also a sauna & cold plunge & vintage shopping & lots of talking & ate really great food & read another book recently — but i’ll tell you about all that another time.

i’m currently v. busy (re-watching veronica mars)

as always,

mk

plz read this like you think someone would @ those cafe poetry events or that weird performance art scene in she’s all that

this summer while not yet done (truthfully there is so much still left) has done a bit of a number on me — in a way that i can clock, my feet are calloused & blistered even though my last pedicure was a week(s) ago. i’ve had a migraine for days. i saw my friends just the other day. i haven’t lifted a baby weight but i’m averaging 18,000 steps a day. i’m pretty tan. i’ve been to every farmers mkt & then some (brag). i haven’t eaten enough ice cream, specifically soft serve, not so specifically milkshakes. i’ve drank the perfect amount of wine (lie, i would like more & a margarita too plz & maybe a martini & a pile of salty hot fries). i swam in the lake. i watched point break. i want to run around the park again, again & again & not get tired, never get tired. i want to stay out maybe too late. i’m just digging into my big book of the summer. it’s never too late. doctorcat just ate.

as always,

mk

i’ll to confess i haven’t watched a movie in a little while, instead i’m burning through a 90s law & order re-watch

cooking wise — everything i’m making has a tomato in it or a peach or both, even if they don’t call for it, lots of salads with tomatoes + fresh mozz + basil + peach + honey balsamic dressing & various tomato based sauces for naan pizzas or galettes. next week we’re going to have pan tomate everyday, doesn’t that sound wonderful?

lows — besides anything actually bad that has happened to me recently, by far the worst thing in the world was going to the farmers mkt on sunday and finding out that my microgreens guy was on vacation

books — digging into lonesome dove this month, because i read a big book every summer, but i will say even in paperback it’s hefty to hold on the el (so i should start lifting baby weights again) & no before you even say anything i don’t want a kindle & i’m not going to listen to it. like some other things, i am incredibly particular about reading a physical book

as always,

mk

p.s. it’s bob’s birthday today, so if you see him wish him a happy birthday or maybe drink a fountain Diet Coke or a beer (preferably an ipa in his honor, he also enjoys good tequila or gin & tonics if that’s more your speed)

147 — i’m pretty sure there is a singular evil red winged blackbird in the park that keeps trying to grab my bun or ponytail every time out for a run or walk. sometimes it gets me twice a day. it’s talons grazing my head, startling me into swearing & sending a weird shiver down my spine. i keep frequenting the park though because it’s gorgeous and full of life and steps from my front door. ryan has also been attacked by this bird which is a lot more disconcerting because he doesn’t even have a ponytail, he doesn’t even have a bun!

she was a tomato girl, he said see ya l8ter girl

it’s tomato season bitches & it’s been so hot the thought of turning on the oven even in central air sounds bad. gazpacho is a bit of a choose your own adventure, something you can play fast and loose with. all you really need is a strong blender, some quality tomatoes & some olive oil. i like to add a little additional fruit to ours bc summer (i.e. peaches, cherries, raspberries or watermelon). make some with your farmers mkt haul and keep in a pitcher or large mason jar in the fridge all week pouring yourself small bowls or glasses whenever the feeling is right. i’ve never been to europe but it feels v. european to me

a good gazpacho ingredients

3/ maybe 4 if they are small, heirloom tomatoes (preferably from the farmers mkt but store bought is fine)
1 clove of garlic
2 or 3 persian cucumbers or 1 regular old cucumber which i like less
1 shallot or half a small onion color does not matter. choose your fave
1 or 2 banana or cubanelle or anaheim pepper(s) — they are mild(ish), but so bright & good here i also did this with a couple of shishitos & it was fab
some fruit! (optional of course but i like to throw in a few cherries, or some watermelon or peaches, etc, just a little)
1/2 cup of olive oil
vinegar (sherry, red wine, champagne)

salt & pepper of course!
some herbs (basil or parsley or cilantro, if you have it!)
olive oil fried bread, or croutons, or pesto, or herb oil, or pecorino, crème fraiche, etc. (all optional of course but nice if you are trying to make a full meal)

a good gazpacho steps

1st — get out your ingredients & break them down a bit roughly chopping or crushing, etc. we do this so they all fit & the flavors really meld! add them all to your high powered blender, (we have a vitamix — you can get them refurbished for cheaper & they last a long time) with half a cup of olive oil. blend until really really smooth, then taste, adjust salt & pepper, maybe add a splash more vinegar & blend again.

2nd you could strain it through a mesh strainer to make it even silkier but that is fussy & another dish to wash so i won’t be doing that. pour your gazpacho into it’s pitcher or jar & set in the fridge to chill for awhile, atleast 5 or more hours — the flavors just get better as they sit together

3rd maybe it’s this evening or maybe it’s tomorrow at 10am, give your gazpacho a shake or stir if there’s a little separation (totally natural, dude). pour into a small bowl and drizzle with some good olive oil + a little more pepper, if you’re adding a big crouton or a dollop of pesto or crème fraiche do it now. sit & savor your little bowl, maybe have another

particularly good things i’ve consumed recently

(confession there’s been a lot, truthfully so many that i couldn't list it all here)

sox game — 1st baseball game this summer, i had some onion rings, i had a hot dog & some nachos & some beers. it was great!

chef’s special — w/ the girls, so so good even though we got fairly drenched in the process from a sneaky summer storm (trying to figure out to reverse engineer their rolled noodle special & the carrots!)

gale street inn — we went with janel & mike! v. classic & delicious. we ordered a lot of things which is my favorite way to do dinner — more restaurants should have live music & an incredibly large cheese crouton in their kale cae sal

molly’s last irish dance show — we laughed, we cried, it was wonderful to have the whole famdamnily together, quite honestly the end of an era

lonesome & estereo — in basically the same week? is it 2019 again, am i 24? tbh both still really hit. esp. the queso & esp. the mojitos

welcome back lounge — did you know they have mini corn dogs, did you know their fries are really good?!

1st lake dip — thursday night beach @ montrose, ft. some $3.50 impulsively purchased pool noodles & alison romans secret ingredient pasta salad, it was v. delicious have to make again soon.

a long bike ride w/ janel, audrey & callie — outside of a marathon i don’t know if i’d ever been so sweaty

a day off afternoon hang with sam & ellen — did we eat lots of trader joe’s jarred salsa yes, did we also have a lot of grilled meats & veggies also yes. 10/10

quite a combination of movies (sheep detectives, devil wears prada, panic room, the fifth element, mission impossibles 2 & 3 ) — all good in their own ways, but none of them are the parent trap

holts w/ ma — for perhaps the worlds largest cae sal wrap & some v. delicious cheese curds

books about murder & secrets & lies in california — ideal summer reading (everbody knows, a violent masterpiece (both by jordan harper), member of the family)

diversey — w/ ryan & becca for bottle share to send off jp, then barbaro bc we needed food, mexican food specifically.

31st street beach + calumet fisheries — we took a cheeky friday off to go to the beach & read & swim & have a hot dog. then we stopped @ calumet where i might have had the best fried shrimp of my life & also the best smoked salmon — still thinking fondly of it a week later

le bouchon w/ janel & mike! — they had never been and really enjoyed it + the bucktown garden walk, of course which was wonderful as always, SO MANY GARDENS + ft. winnie a v. chubby & adorable bulldog + the celery gimlets @ the charleston

a v. good saturday — morning beach to read & swim, naan pizzas for lunch, a long walk / jog & parsons patio where we made friends with a wedding while waiting for our table

currently consuming

standard issue sunday coming at you — farmers mkt, a diversey tasting, plenty of steps later & maybe a lil hh or an elaborate homemade dinner. why not both. you can have it all

as always,
mk

this was supposed to come out last week, sometimes you forget to hit publish but also sometimes you forget how to write

dairy star — in this summers’ goal to eat more soft serve i made ryan walk here. i did not tell him it was in the suburbs. it was delicious. i got a twist cone dipped in oreo. can’t wait to go back.

the replacements — unsure why keanu is often cast as a former ohio state quarterback but i’ll never question it. a silly but kind of sweet movie, perfect for any night of the week

the pure joy of getting to see lots of your friends in basically the same week (1 wine tasting & walk around, a cheese class & cheeky post wine & french fry, a friday off leisurely lunch & shop, & a sunday girls day) my week as a 31 year old in chicago ❤️

& i do have to tell you best intentions is still worth the hype at least for a cheeseburger + tiny fried shrimp + bees knees nightcap — p.s. pretty sure now that’s officially summer the patio is open

as always,

MK

146 — four away from 150, should we throw a party? should we invite everyone we know?!

camp goes well with

while it’s not “officially” summer yet it is post memorial day & JUNE, so it is summer in my heart. i’ve been running loops around the park in sports bras, i’m planning on getting soft serve both tonight & later this week, i’m taking two showers a day, i’ve said goodbye to my jeans for the next 3 months1, i’ve been hitting my step goals & having weeknight margaritas. below is a loose summer sched bc i spent too many years as a camp counselor & also bc it was more fun to make than a real list. i’m going to draw a nice chubby checkmark next to each & every one this summer but you can pick & choose your own adventure.

some necessary elaborations on the above

mk’s summer reading list. my summer reading list is in part wholly unoriginal bc like every other “cool girl” i’m going to tackle lonesome dove. i decided this in march but that’s besides the point

the summer movie trifecta. parent trap, point break & the birdcage — i’ll watch plenty of other movies this summer. good ones honestly. but these three are required summer viewing.

particularly good things i’ve consumed recently

molly graduated (high school?!) crazy plz enjoy the pic below which might be the only one i got to commemorate the auspicious occasion have to say a small private grad where the parents do a lil entry dance is a lot more charming than the public school pomp & circumstance — though janel, kaitlyn & i looked really cute in those garish red gowns if i’m remembering right

el xangarrito. we hadn’t gone in years. it was just as delicious & cozy as ever. such good mole. really recommend calling ahead for them to make the marg mix for you since they are byob.

the grad party. we ate a lot of los (if you know you know), i got asked how i never age (a lot of water, a lot of steps, a lil retinol + vitamin c serum in the winter months & moisturizer always), & came home @ midnight smelling like bonfire. 10/10 perfect.

goodbye (really more a see ya later) to ashton, jake & baby jules! we all hung out for a lil bit had some dips & snacks in their chicago place. can’t wait to visit you guys in gr! sad the gang is getting a lil smaller & a lil less cute but so excited for your next chapter.

ribs! for memorial day but maybe for the rest of the summer tbh — a really lovely meal with a crunchy ranch adjacent salad & some onion rings. i made up my own rhubarb jalapeño ginger bbq sauce. dm for the recipe.

impromptu friday night dinner party. on thursday ryan & i were like what are our friends doing friday, should they come for dinner? so ellen & sam & kiera & jeremy came over for some fresh focaccia, dips + spreads & cutlets w/ a salad & some homemade whip cream & rhubarb cranberry compote & plenty of wine

long walk #3 (32k steps later). ft. birds nest for wings, the zoo to see the actual birds, old town ale house for a cold one (in my case a magners on ice, which i was told is v. irish, like i didn’t already know), pierogi kitchen (for some pierogis & a cocktail to make it home — we were withering away), omakase box for a late dinner, really delicious, was excited to show it to ryan, excited to go back.

allez cafe | cream top. as someone who does not typically drink foo foo coffee I’m about to have had this the last three Sundays in a row & think about it often during the week rather fondly. if you’re in chicago & you drink coffee — go get it, available both @ their cara cara pop up location & also the og spot on western. it’s basically a salted lightly sweentened whip cream on an iced americano

hollow spaces & the keeper. two thrillers to kick off my summer reading. v. different setting wise but both have a lot of secrets which make for a twisty good time

boeufhaus. we went for a sunday afternoon linner/hh whatever you call a meal you eat @ 4. so good. go for the SHORTRIB BEIGNETS. everything else really hit the spot. but those were my favorite & how novel.

bungalow w/ molly & ma. girls lunch! which turned into a few hours of chitchatting ofc. they loved it & would like to go again v. soon. i think the soft serve sealed the deal.

eggplant rollatini w/ janel. perfect early summer meal to catch up over with some fresh baked focaccia2 & a lemony arugula salad.

currently consuming

the half marathon that’s going on outside my window as i do some tidying & chores before hitting the market

as always,
mk

p.s. i re-started veronica mars. don’t text.

have i had french fries three times in the last five days? yes but it is practically summer — hopefully soon i’ll be eating them everyday

step challenge — work is doing a step challenge & it’s brought out a competitive edge in me that honestly no one has ever seen

tomato anchovy butter sauce? dip? both?! — have made it twice in four days, 1st as a kind of dip with some whipped goat cheese & warm focaccia, 2nd as a sauce for fresh daisies raviolis courtesy of the logan farmers mkt — it’s dead simple & so delicious, have a bit leftover & might use it for a naan pizza

you will need, a hot medium deep skillet, 2 pints of lil tomatoes (multi-colored heirlooms, cherry, sungolds, etc.) , 4-5 anchovies, 5-8 cloves of garlic finely sliced, butter (salted ofc, like half a stick) a generous splash of vodka, salt & pepper (to taste), calabrian chilis or red pepper flakes — you can throw this all in the skillet or do it in stages but what it turns into is an incredibly glossy & savory sauce — the tomatoes really bursting, the anchovies and butter melting in, goes well with some fresh basil & a snowstorm of pecorino if you’re making it for a pasta or eating it with a spoon.

the housemaid — not a good movie but a fun one to close out a weekend if your idea of fun is murder, just kidding it’s a thriller where amanda seyfried is doing the most (in a good way). ryan’s got an essay in him about how thrillers & most horror are almost entirely marketed to women now but you can buy him a beer & ask him about that — this newsletter doesn’t have funding for his byline

as always,

MK

been cooking v. seasonally the last few days: rhubarb bbq sauce, herby ranch, v. green garlic scape pesto, a towering golden brown focaccia & i had a giant pickle with my sandwich yesterday literally longer than the sandwich itself, we love this late spring / early summer in-between

thief — if you’ve learned anything about my movie tastes reading this newsletter is that i prefer an old thriller or an old romcom to almost any modern movie & that i fucking love a heist, while heat is canonically a v. famous boy movie it has a soft spot in my heart. thief is quieter, and well shot, never giving too much away so you have to pay attention. this article is mostly about heat/ mann’s chicago connections but there’s a fun tidbit at the end regarding some of the cast of thief and the inspiration behind it all

the nice guys — a v. funny buddy cop style comedy in which neither of the main characters are cops, also a bit dark & seedy & stuff since it’s set in LA in the 70s.

as always,
mk

p.s. the mini this week is apparently a place where i just review/rec movies that came out at least a decade ago.

145 — molly went to her senior prom on friday & she graduates next week. i’m going to be honest, i’m feeling a little old in a way that i haven’t felt before. it’s nice but a tad bit uncomfortable. also i should confess, that i haven’t flipped my closet yet. in my defense the weather has been a lil unreliable to say the least.

alternative titles i thought about while running around the park were: crispy chicken cutlet cuties, crispy cutlet gang & crispy chicken cutlet cult

in the lifespan of this newsletter there have been six newsletters that are specifically telling you to make crispy chicken cutlets, (this is not counting all the newsletters where i either reference making them or suggest them as a side lol). in a slight twist all of those newsletters were written before there were even 100 issues of this thing which is wild to think about mostly bc i make them at least once a month in some capacity (ryan or any member of my fam can attest to this under oath if needed), sometimes even more frequently bc a crispy chicken cutlet + a salad & maybeeeee a cocktail or a glass of wine is like a top five ideal dinner of mine. if this is also your ideal dinner, plz let me know and you can come over next time. we sometimes have mini ice cream sundaes after, you know as a treat.

as i’ve gotten older & slighty wiser, i’ve realized you don’t need to slice & pound your chicken breasts every time you want a crispy chicken cutlet, you can just buy them thin sliced especially if you’re only feeding 1-3 people. or if you’re feeding your fam or a crowd, buy tenders bc when you’re pressing them into the breadcrumbs they naturally thin out a bit.

there is no real “new” recipe this month just a couple of ideas you can take or leave when it comes to the next time you’re craving a chicken cutlet + a salad. which for me will likely be tmrw.

classic crispy chicken cutlet recipe & steps

chicken (tenders, thin sliced breasts, breasts pounded thin, etc.)
eggs
panko
canola oil
salt & pepper

1st in two separate shallow dishes (i usually use pyrex pie plates, if anyone was curious) crack a couple to a few eggs, whisk together with salt & pepper, then in the other toss the panko with salt & pepper.

2nd take your chicken and dip it in the egg so it’s fully coated, before moving it to the panko and really pressing the chicken into it (this is essential to the signature crispy(ness). once i get through all the chicken ( i put these on a large plate or sheet pan as i go).

3rd put a generous amount of canola oil in a wide, medium deep skillet and turn the burner to medium high. once hot enough, start dropping your chicken(s) 1 or 2 at a time depending the size of your pan. when they are golden brown & crispy deposit them on your wire rack over a sheet pan or a paper towel lined plate, sprinkle with salt. once you have a stack of them turn your oven to 200 to keep them warm, they will be fully cooked through when they are fried since they are so thin, so don’t worry about that

particularly good things i’ve consumed recently

dumplings. (we tried the new qxy in wicker after dance class one night & might have eaten 3 sets of dumplings v. quickly. (lamb & coriander, beef & onion, & the pork & scallop special) absolutely delicious. definitely recommend.

art institute + evettes. we had a girls day! the sun was out, we did a lot of walking & chatting & looking @ art.

farmers mkt (wp edition) + same day + diverse. bopped around a bit, chatted, lunched, tasted some great wines & was home in time to go to two grocery stores & make dinner. platonic ideal day

sunday dinner ft. ryan’s friend archie. i riffed on my spicy spaghetti(o)’s recipe & with orecchiette instead (which cupped both the sauce & the teeny tiny meatballs beautifully), some roasted lemony broccolini & ramp butter garlic bread to round it out. there was also quite a bit of wine in a good way

the flautas @ barbaro. which i’ve had before ofc. but these were the cochinita pibil on special, so so good. hope they add them to the regular menu

mk & ryan go on a big walk #2 (34k steps later). ft. valois (for a solid breakfast to sustain us), caffe oliva (for a little lakeside breeze + cocktail), the wilde (for late slightly nostalgic lunch (we went on like our 4th date there) but honestly their mussels are v. tasty + the southwest salad & a pile of fries) came home for a little bit before deciding we deserved a few cocktails @ remedy & some 11pm hot dogs courtesy of rhr.

the 1st logan farmers mkt. well due to the late night hotdogs i slept in a bit & got there @ little before 10 and it was too busy for me lol, quickly procured ramps, ravioli, little gem & radishes & got the hell out of there.

mother’s day. headed out to the burbs to hang with mom, there were some crispy lemon chicken cutlets of course, pesto pasta, garlic bread, bruschetta salad, lots of berries & homemade whip cream & homemade sweet treats. somehow cable tv knew it was mothers day bc we got to watch both the italian job & beverly hills cop

naan pizzas. the easiest way to have really tasty pizzas @ home on a weeknight. you have to toast the naan 1st in like a 425 degree oven with a generous amount of olive oil, then when you add the toppings you just broil it till the cheese melts & starts to get burnished on top.

currently consuming

making a to do list for the busy week ahead & going to some yard sales later with the girls!

as always,
mk

p.s. how are you liking the midweek mini?

not sure who to talk to about this but i don’t think it should be 40 degrees in may

striking distance (1993) — bruce willis is former homicide detective demoted to river patrol. apparently there are a lot of murders in pittsburgh & also sarah jessica parker, along with a bunch of other people famous for being in the wire, law & order, & frasier. is this a “good movie” no but it is kind of a fun one, in a completely bonkers, really?! type of way.

ramp caesar salad — springy & fun, i swapped two ramp bulbs in for the garlic, added in the leaves to make it a tasteful pale green color & kept it brighter & drippier than my typical caesar dressing recipe with plenty of lemon, to the salad itself added radishes, pickled shallots & crispy crunchies for bite variety, we ate it for dinner 2x in two days, didn’t use a fork the entire time, bc little gem is the best.

as always,
mk

with all this rain, every other girl in the loop is wearing a trench coat, like they’re a detective. it’s me i’m every other girl in the loop. i’m also a detective.

repurposing leftovers — over valentine’s day weekend ryan bought us some goat off the street & i made birria out of it. you can read more about that adventure here. but it obviously made it a lot and i froze some for future us. was going to make flautas with the leftovers but ryan wanted to think outside the box a little bit. so i thickened the consommé with a bit of cornstarch, crisped up the left over birria, made a little chimichurri, and what could only be described as mexican mashed potatoes. yukon golds boiled till very tender and combined with crema, kerrygold butter, roasted poblanos, scallions, oaxaca cheese, white cheddar and lots of salt & pepper. we had it for dinner on friday & breakfast sunday morning ( i made the leftover mashed potatoes into potato pancakes & topped everything with an egg). ryan said it’s one of the best things i’ve ever made.

cheeky afternoon sodas — a couple of weeks ago, when we first started getting warm weather i started occasionally getting a cheeky lil afternoon soda.1 it’s a remarkably cheap & a fantastically fizzy pick me up. (preferred sodas are a mexican glass bottle coke, a medium size fountain diet coke or a mini can of ginger ale). you should get one for yourself today.

as always,
mk

if you ever thought oh i wish there was more gww in your life, like if you miss when i used to write this thing weekly for my day 1 readers, well i’m back! starting this week & likely every or every other week in the future there will be the midweek mini, it will/could feature a mini recipe, what i made for lunches that week, a real time rec, maybe a rec from a friend, who knows?! not me. a bite-sized gww to brighten up your week. don’t worry the longer monthly version is still here to stay :)

april showers bring may flowers

movies — you should watch if you haven’t already, the james bond(s) with daniel craig in order in quick succession of course & practical magic, perfect weekend movies i have no other notes or comments here

mini recipe — my vegan refried beans which are perfect for tostadas but also for always (i.e. breakfast tacos on a girls cabin trip or breakfast tacos for your lightly hungover houseguests). all you need is a can of black beans, some olive oil, some garlic, some onion or shallot, salt & pepper, a pint of lil tomatoes, & half a can of chipotle chilis in adobo — you can cook it all in stages or honestly you can throw it all together & let it hangout for awhile before you start crushing everything together, season to taste obviously but i can eat these with a spoon, almost cold honestly which is saying a lot for a girl who didn’t know she liked beans until she was probably 20.

something particularly delicious i consumed this week — two tamales from cermak produce they were both supposed to be rajas and cheese but there was a sneaky pork verde, what a fun surprise! going to tell them i want variety packs going forward.

as always,

mk

144 — it’s spring (aka perpetually wearing the wrong jacket szn)! the weather in chicago has been vacillating somewhere between summer & winter, with a side of some crazy rain. which you know is not, not common for spring here. should we break out the florals (i would have to get some florals)? the sandals? should i actually flip my closet?

ring before spring

one of ryan & my’s new year resolutions was to make more cheeseburgers — he got me the meat grinder attachment to the kitchen aid for christmas, so this was an obvious one for us to pursue in the year of our lord 2026. 1st test kitchen was a pretty good success, but we wanted thinner, smash(ier) patties, 2nd test kitchen was a fail our chuck + bacon mixture was too warm and it wouldn’t grind, ryan saved the day by ordering us RHR. 3rd test kitchen was a lil messy but turned out fabulous (there was a v. humbling realization that i am embarrassed to admit & won’t do so here, let’s just say — stars they are just like us) this whole time though i’ve been piggybacking cheeseburger test kitchen with the quest for the best onion ring.

the onion ring is a side that i feel doesn’t get enough love / honestly isn’t on a lot of menus outside of your standard american restaurant/ diner / institution (i.e. culvers), giant in logan square has these really impressive onion rings but that's not always in the budget & also no ketchup.

these got a lot of inspo from the crunchy onion strings that my mom taught me how to make and that v. rarely make it to the table bc they are perfectly salty and downright addicting

ingredients
1 to 2 big yellow onions (i prefer spanish ones since they are a bit firmer, just so you know)
buttermilk or whole milk + vinegar
flour
salt & pepper
canola oil
spicy ketchup, garlic aioli or ranch for dipping (or all of them, i like a lot of dips)

steps
1st slice your onions so that they are in nice rounds, not too thin. get out a medium sized bowl & pour in your buttermilk + salt & pepper, toss the onions in there too and make sure they are separated from each other and properly coated. let them hangout for a little while in the fridge. prep your sauces if you need too or whatever else you’re having for dinner (if you’re just having onion rings for dinner, no judgement here).

2nd pour a generous amount of canola oil into a high sided pot, turn the burner on to medium. in a pie plate or shallow bowl dump a bunch of flour, season it generously with salt & pepper. working one at a time dunk your butter milk coated onions into the flour and set onto a large plate, repeat till all onions have been coated in seasoned flour.

3rd once your oil is hot working in batches, start dropping the onion rings in. fry util golden and move them to a wire wrack or paper towel to drain, season with salt. i like to keep my oven at 200 and pop them in there to stay warm. taste a couple to make sure they are good. at least one from each batch. quality control.

4th make your onion ring tower. take a picture of it. share it. devour it. wish you had made more onion rings.

particularly good things i consumed recently

tv/movies — the fugitive, the town, get shorty, clueless, when harry met sally, my cousin vinny, the birdcage, james bond, sweet home alabama, legally blonde, mad men, 3 episodes of diners drive ins & dives — really don’t think any of these need any explanation other than that you should also watch them as soon as possible

books/articles — best offer wins (completely batshit, but rather darkly funny, way better than i expected), that best bread article bc caity weaver is fantastic & if you’ve never read her you should start. & this wild article about staged car crashes that i can already picture as a movie (but the movie would have to be made in the style of a 90s thriller).

restaurants — i rarely go to “new restaurants” i almost exclusively go to the same collection of restaurants bc i love consistency & deliciousness. that being said some newbies on this list in the last month in a half. barbaro (for nachos & margs of course), radicle (i’ve been here 3x’s in the last month & a half, whoops but THE PIZZA, THE OYSTERS, THE DRINKS), cafe tola (if you’ve never had two empanadas & shared a horchata iced latte with an extra shot of espresso on a beautiful spring morning, then i feel bad for you),piccadilly pub (we went for the last fish fry of the szn w/ bridge & phillip, absolutely fantastic, will def be going back), mindys (their pastries & bagels are v. much worth the hype), mikos (we’re so back baby, brb stalking their instagram till they have the cranberry flavor on special), the publican (we went for an oyster shuck off & had some v. delicious carrots, fries & sweetbreads as well, also a gem of a waiter, the couple next to us had 3 dozen oysters, unclear if they are well), omakase box (to celebrate kaitlyn’s birthday! v. v. good, we did the tableside omakase + ordered a couple of handrolls (which were delicious, like little sushi tacos), make a res! get a yuzu highball). spinning j but for dinner — two words, celery gimlet, also fab pizza & salads. 1st hi lo patio hang — those frozen naked & famous(es) go down too easy.

activities — st. paddy’s (we threw a big party, there was lots of potatoes, & corned beef & cabbage slaw — it was a blast), mk & ryan 1st big walk of the szn (20ish miles we were so happy, a lil exhausted, a lil tipsy, more big walks(tm) to come), diversey sunday (they were doing $5 pours, so kiera & i posted up & chit chatted with jp for a lot of the day), dance class (our latest hobby, we’re making some moves), pizza class (@ bungalow, so cool you learn a lot about the dough, you stretch some, you drink some wine & then they give you two pizzas!! also you have to get the soft serve afterwards) jules turned 1( ashton & jake threw a lovely little party, with so much pizza & cake & we got to give them the felt book we’d been working on! my stitches are what you would call rustic), a lil wendnesday night handlebar + clara’s hang, did we all order french fries? yes or yes, easter w/ the fam! ham is so good but also the sleeper hit was the cheesy potato casserole (aka funeral potatoes) my mom only used white cheddar though bc it’s more chic. 1st farmers mkt of the szn, ry & i made our way to lincoln park to procure some ramps & other spring goodness, then we divy(ed) home, perfect morning

santa fe — 2nd annual girls trip w/ kate & em! we chit chatted & walked 13k steps a day, we frequented burrito company multiple times for their perfect dip trio & some san telmos (a delicious lil mezcal spritz), shopping till we drop (did we go into nearly every store & accidentally pick up some v. expensive things, yes. but we put those things back) god all i want now is a pair of high-rise wide legged cream colored jeans & a turquoise & silver cuff bangle, MARKETS (farmers, art, & vintage, incredible to just wander around for a bit and soak it all in), caviar frito pie @ the steak house next to our airbnb, honestly out of this world, sazon - THE MOLES, but also the stuffed squash blossom special, esquina for pizza & salads on the last night of course, absolutely perfect, hatch green chiles (in so many forms & also tucked into our suitcases) & susan’s wine (what a popping store w/ some v. fun natty wines). went to santa fe a girl, left as a basket of tortilla chips & a dip trio

food — green chili pork (so savory & good, i have some stashed in the freezer still and am thinking of defrosting it, broiling some cheese on top & scooping it into tortillas), lentils! (kind of obsessed atm, made hippie soup which is similar to alison romans squash & lentil but with tons more herbs & a shit ton of kale, + then lentils w/ sweet potato, chipotle chilis, tomatoes & shallots, a perfect lunch with a little mexican crema, scallions & a drizzle of good olive oil), a new salad in the rotation (shredded brussel & kale base, shallots, apples, crispy crunchies, craisins, grilled chicken, pancetta, burrata + a balsamic dijon dressing)

currently consuming

i am really eye(ing) these sunglasses. but do i need them, unfortunately no. what i actually need are a fresh pair of running shoes. thinking these. though the colorway for these ones is gorg. but i think i would just want to use them for our v. long walks.

as always,
mk

p.s. keep an eye out for something new from me in the next few weeks. there’s going to be a little more goes well with in your life.

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143 — better late, than never, this is a little guide of what i ate, drank, bought & experienced in mexico city. definitely not comprehensive, definitely didn’t take enough pictures & yes i already want to go back. confession — it was my 1st international trip! if you want full access to all the recommendations we curated before the trip + the lil google maps ryan made plz send me $51

my spanish is a bit rusty & i could use some more confidence speaking but if there’s one thing i can do is read a menu.

food & drinks

tacos de ciudad – this was the taqueria close to our airbnb we loved it & ate there 2x. get the al pastor ofc.

los carmelos – similar to the casualness of tacos de ciudad but focused on a different style of tacos, we had a tasty dinner here after a long day of exploring & met fun couple who were staying nearby for a whole month. i was jealous

marmota – cdmx meets puget sound, couple of oddball things on this menu but the fusion ones are really really good.

contramar – classic, we went for a long leisurely seafood lunch & it was so freaking delicious.

taco tony’s official – rec from one of the bartenders @ barbaro but also was on our devoured mx tour, v. delicious.

el vilsito – a taco shop by night a car wash by day, near taco tony’s – the al pastor torta is life changing.

street tacos – try them, go to places with a line, some our best tacos were random ones on the street with no names!

el caimancito – chilaquiles!

pisca café – we got some v. tasty cortados here

amanda manda – this was a rec from kaitlyn! go for chilaquiles, sit outside – really cute & good.

las brujas – a witchy little cocktail bar. a bit fancy, a bit avant garde – go early or make a res

rimessa wines – a rec from our devoured mx tour guide cristina, – you can go and just have a bottle or glasses of wine there. i loved it so much.

sarde – we stopped for a cocktail / to use the bathroom while we were walking around, super super nice place / bartenders & the marg was so good

tlecan – go for a couple of cocktails after dinner, a quintessential mexico city cocktail bar, ryan tried to bully another american couple here into eating crickets, they were not enthused. some people should just go to the wedding.

excursions & activities

teotihuacan — to see the pyramids! we did this the morning of our first full day! booked a tour guide to come pick us up and show us around. he was incredibly knowledgeable & it was such a cool experience. ask ryan for the specific deets here.

anthropology - this is an incredible museum, budget a couple to a few hours to fully explore all the artifacts. there is also a wild restaurant here that has really good food starting with the indigenous era broken up by regions of mexico – called sala gastromica, we ordered too much & it was great

devoured mx. we did the taco & mezcal tour – ended up being just us & the tour guide (rare) but we had such an incredible time. might be my favorite part of the trip. the tortas we had after the mezcal tasting live forever in my dreams. i actually ran into their natural wine & taco tour a couple days later and hung out with them a bit – it also seemed like a fab time!

lucha libre. we went to arena mexico on a friday night it was a lot of fun! drink some beers w/ salt & lime. i did make ryan walk from here all the way back to our airbnb. which was also fun. more so for me.

shopping & markets

amor & roses — v. cute upscale boutique, all made in mexico – got a crocheted halter top & went back a few days later for some cool sunnies

cardon – small boutique, a bit pricy but scored an incredible red leather purse for about $100

casa mandarine – another small boutique we found while wandering around after having chilaquiles one morning. got a nice chunky silver ring & a pair of linen pants

the artisan market – is so so cool incredible way to kill an afternoon, got a few tchotchkes & one of those mexican house dresses

particularly good things i consumed recently

barbaro — just a little reminder to everyone that they have a v. solid weekday happy hour deal, that their nachos are apart of & their nachos are probably my favorite other than the ones that i make inside my own home. that is all.2

outside runs — we’ve had a lil of chicago’s infamous fools spring, it was glorious — i ran outside everyday, even in shorts 2x.

galentines — my longest running annual party to celebrate female friendship & being a girls girl. smaller crowd than usual so leaned into more of a dinner party. there were plenty of carbs, plenty of wine & a spotify playlist i found called 2000s teen girl vibes. 10/10 no notes.

valentines — ryan & i went on a nice long park walk, then we made cheeseburgers (grinding our own meat with the kitchen aid attachment), some homemade onion rings & a mustardy kale red cabbage slaw for health of course. it was v. lovely & v. relaxing.

street goat — when ryan went out to buy me some flowers saturday he ran into a guy selling eggs, hens & goat out of an suv near roeser’s bakery on north. well we had to try it, so we went back sunday & bought a goat leg & made birria of course. it was unsurprisingly v. delicious.

milli by metric — with audrey, ashton & baby jules, just a quick lil 2 mile run from my apartment. delicious pastries & v. cool aesthetic, would like to go back sometime to write a bit or maybe when they are pouring glasses of wine.

blade runner (if there was a sci-fi action movie that was really just a noir), steel magnolias (funny, fabulous & an absolute sob fest, ryan’s pick), fargo (i had never seen it, wild — good sunday night movie), eternity (actually v. cute & also sadder than we expected) & sleepless in seattle ( a little sad, a little funny & it makes you feel so cozy)

le bouchon lunch — the monday off routine, ft. a long walk, ryan, sam, 3 bottles of wine, heavily buttered bread, a beet salad, some escargot, the onion tart, the mussels, the trout, the steak frites (manion style, ofc), fabulous as always even though everyone had the same idea and we had to wait v. long time for our table. the nice weather made everyone feral.

paper cut — devoured this in about a day & a half, if you liked emma cline’s the girls you’d enjoy this twisty little novel about a post 9/11 hollywood adjacent cult. the road to tender hearts — think little miss sunshine but going to find your long lost love, funny, dark & heartfelt i read the bulk of this in one sitting. lost lambs — a freaking weird book that i rather enjoyed, it has: sisters, complicated family dynamics & an evil billionaire.

friday fish fry — happy lent, we went to tumans of course & ran into kiera & jeremy!

a lil armitage crawl — babes, parsons & outside voices for girls night to watch the olympics, eat french fries & chit chat about life

fire & wine — for a lil early celebration for mom’s birthday, we ate v. well, we watched some olympics, ryan fell asleep on the couch, molly’s toe was cold, brendan got a great choice from the waiter, bridge talked the whole time & we missed megz. i also might have sipped some of the broth from the mussels like a soup

cheese class — we went with ellen & sam, there were mini margaritas! there was lots of cheese! it was a blast.

archie & leslie got married — oh my goodness, what a beautiful wedding! i wore my mom’s dress from aunt maura’s wedding! we had such a fun time celebrating & i am still thinking about the mini pimento grilled cheese sandwich i had at the cocktail hour.

radicle w/ janel — the ideal thursday, we got a couple of catholic guilts, half a dozen v. briny oysters, mozz sticks, a green salad, a sausage pizza w/ onion dip ranch & a perfectly chilled lambrusco. absolutely fab. the best new restaurant i’ve been to in awhile.

friday fish fry #2 — we walked the two miles to chief o’neills bc it felt like spring & also i needed more steps. mussels were delicious, fish fry was a lil under-fried (sad) but they had magners on tap which made up for it

audrey’s denim birthday — there were canadian tuxedos, there were batched martinis, there were portillos hot dogs & karaoke, it was an absolutely fab time

currently consuming

waiting for ryan to bring back the bagels, some general sunday responsibilities & A LONG WALK since it is beautiful out

as always,
mk

142 — if you want to cook something for galentines/valentines @ home and need ideas plz let me know! i have so many thoughts & feelings + love love.

it’s been quite chili

in the fall when the weather first started to change i had a lil chili party — which is an incredible way to host a bunch of people casually and on the earlier side (ideal for friends with kids & friends who want to be home by 9pm (me, i’m that friend, except it doesn’t usually happen bc i do not know how to stop talking). chili party takes care of all that for you. what it doesn’t do is leave you with a lot of leftovers so sorry about that but you’ll survive. it’s all for friendship & community.

i made 2 chilis, a vegan cornbread (you treat it like it’s an olive oil cake), some homemade tortilla chips & some guacamole. you’ll need plenty of fritos, sliced scallions, pickled & raw jalapeños, limes, sour cream, shredded cheddar, etc. so everyone can fix their bowl the way they like & then go back for 2nds.

the 1st chili was my white chicken chili but a little herby(er) bc i added more cilantro & scallions — big hit. this is the type of chili i want to have on hand all the time.

the 2nd chili is new & fully vegan (if you want to add a bit of ground beef or ground turkey for extra protein or for your boyfriend/husband/brother who only eat things with meat in it, it’s delicious as well, but i’ve tested it a few times and prefer the way written below)

ingredients
black beans (1 can)
chipotle peppers in adobo (a couple of peppers + some of the sauce, more if you’re a spice queen)
tomato paste (a small can or one of those tubes)
fire roasted tomatoes (2 cans)
sweet potatoes (1-2 depending on size, peeled & cubed)
red onion (half, save the other half for garnish)
bell peppers (2-3 orange, red or yellow)
garlic (4/5 cloves at least)
jalapeño (2 finely chopped)
chili powder
cumin
olive oil
salt & pepper
(whatever fixings your heart desires, my favorite is sour cream, freshly shredded cheddar, scallions, pickled jalapeños, some crushed fritos & a kiss of lime)

steps

1st get out a dutch oven or other heavy bottom pot put a little olive oil in the bottom and turn on medium/low, add your chopped or microplaned garlic, your finely chopped jalapeño, the tomato paste, the chipotle chiles in adobo + some of the sauce, the red onion, some salt, pepper, cumin & chili powder (measure with your heart, i tend to be a bit heavy handed here to really toast the spices). cook until it’s a deeper darker red and v. fragrant.

2nd add in your canned fire-roasted tomatoes, the bell peppers and the sweet potatoes + more salt & pepper. cook on medium/medium low until the sweet potatoes start to soften, taste & adjust seasoning as needed. added in a can of drained & rinsed black beans + a little water if it’s looking a bit chunky. let everything hangout for a bit while you prep the toppings, etc.

3rd take a little less than half the chili, blend till smooth and add back into the pot. this makes everything a bit more full bodied & texturally interesting instead of just a dutch oven full of vegetables. taste and adjust seasoning as needed. it should be a really wonderful combo of smoky & spicy with a hint of sweetness.

4th ladle into bowls & top it anyway you like — this was actually the fan fave of the lil chili party.

particularly good things i consumed recently

shepherds pie for megan — made using leftover pot roast, absolutely delicious, peak winter cozy the perfect thing to catch up over. she also brought me some gourmet cookbooks from the 1950s which are a riot & have excellent illustrations that could also be tattoos.

pan pizza for janel — we had some cocktails, we had some wine & her + ryan taste-tested a new recipe for me! dough was fabulous. sauce/cheese/topping ratio needs a lil tweaking. we were a lil avant garde & the combo was phenomenal (braised broccolini, sun-dried tomatoes & sausage). hopefully coming to an inbox near you soon.

kaitlyn’s first spinning j — she had never been before so we had to fix that while we caught up! we had a lovely lil breakfast & order a couple savory pastries, the kale poblano breakfast sandwich & of course a hibiscus key lime pie. we’ll go back for the milkshakes.

aruba — oh wow where to start, it’s honestly just really nice to go to beach everyday, swim, eat chips, and read your book & then go to a nice dinner. so so relaxing. we had such a good time! hope you followed it live via ryan’s new career as a travel influencer. if not i feel bad for you. definitely recommend if you’re looking for a beach/tropical vacation.

rootstock — w/ kiera & jeremy & ryan (embarrassingly our 1st double date) —perfect wine, perfect vibes & THAT BURGER1 is probably my favorite for winter. do not like that they make their own ketchup but we can’t all be perfect.

being v. bad @ pool — went to chris’s (of color of money fame) for scott & bryan’s birthday, i have a lot of practicing to do. it’s a good thing the girls (audrey, becca, chloe & janel) left to go get a cocktail & a snack.

decked, snagged & jinxed (these are carol higgins clark mysteries from the late 90s, featuring an early 30s private eye named reagan reilly — honestly incredible stuff, funny and easy to breeze through, a cozy mystery for sure) the library book (if you have ever wondered about the library’s inner workings and also like an unsolved crime this is for you, made me want to read her book that got made into a movie with nic cage) & heart the lover (okay really enjoyed writers & lovers when it came out & am a sucker for a made up card game — tore through this in a day & also sobbed).

a time to kill & the client (a 90s john grisham adaption, always hits), oceans 11, clueless, 10 things i hate about you & something’s got to give (excellent plane movies, excellent movies in general) as good as it gets ( we had never seen this, it’s honestly quite heartfelt & adorable) contact (jodie foster & matthew mcconaughey & aliens — feels spiritually adjacent to twister) pixie (a little madcap, irish, has a guy from bad sisters & alec baldwin is a gangster priest a rec from janel via janel’s dad — v. fun), hamnet ( incredibly heartbreaking but also beautifully shot, saw with janel which was good bc emotional support). snatch (a good boy movie, see rounders & boiler room for other examples of this genre). jackie brown (don’t think i’ve ever seen a tarantino movie before, but this one was quite entertaining).

the olympics — i love them, that is all. will be giving people in my life (cough cough ryan) updates & facts against their will.

currently consuming

going for my first outdoor run in almost a month (excited but also nervous), some chores/prep for the week & maybe making something fun for super bowl (as in a super big bowl of pasta? hmmm).

as always,
mk

141 — happy new year! all i have done in the past few weeks is eat, drink, run & be merry.1 not a bad thing but not sustainable except maybe that running bit, i should definitely keep that up. i also have been lifting tiny weights again. i don’t like it but felt the need to share.

not a soup but incredibly comforting, maybe even more comforting than soup

can you believe i just wrote that? there’s something more comforting than soup? yes. yes there is. i made this up / for us in december for ryan & i, he was feeling a bit under the weather but we were already 80% broth from all the soup the previous week. because in the winter i fall into the soup/stew trap — it’s easy and delicious to make a large quantity of & eat for lunches everyday. but you can’t live on soup or stew alone. if you want to though here, here, here, and here are some options and you can feel free to skip the rest of this newsletter.

this recipe is a little more involved then anything i’ve published as of late, but it’s not hard. it’s nice to have a little more of a project during these winter days. also how could cooking something in butter, chicken broth & a bunch of wine be bad.

ingredients
bone in / skin on chicken thighs (1 package)
pearled cous cous (i did 1 & a half cups)
carrots (a large thicker carrot, plz)
shallots (like 4 or 5)
dry white wine (something ideally you wouldn’t mind drinking but also you’ll use about half the bottle in this recipe so does it really matter? sometimes wine is just for cooking)
garlic (at least 6 cloves, 5 for the chicken & 1 for the spicy green sauce)
butter (a little less than half a stick)
chicken bouillon + water (or chicken broth)
olive oil (you’ll eyeball this)
lemon (to taste)
spinach (half a bag)
parsley (1 bunch)
cilantro (1 bunch)
serrano peppers (1-2, pending spice tolerance)
sugar or honey (to taste)
salt & pepper (to taste)
bay leaf (not sure what it does, but it always makes brothy things taste better)

steps

1st in a dutch oven or other large heavy bottomed pot drizzle a bit of olive oil, toast your cous cous till it is lightly golden and set aside (this will add a warm nutty flavor later). next add a bit more oil if you need it, and sear your chicken thighs with a bit of salt & pepper till they are are starting to brown on all sides. pull them out and let cool slightly — before removing the skins, set those aside onto a parchment lined baking sheet. put the chicken skins into the oven @ 325 and cook until very crispy, should be about 40 minutes. you can flip skins over halfway through if they are looking too brown, then set aside to cool, maybe give them a little sprinkle of flaky salt. add a pat of butter to your pot along with 5 cloves of microplaned garlic, some salt, some pepper and the shallots (4 or 5 of them cut in half lengthwise),— once fragrant and slightly softened add back in the chicken — cover with a little less than a half bottle of wine & a couple of cups of chicken bouillon + water or chicken broth. drop in your bay leaf. do not fill the pot to the top or even close to the top, we are not making soup ( should be a little more than halfway full).

2nd while the chicken is hanging out a bit make the spicy green sauce — in blender combine the spinach, parsley, cilantro, garlic & serranos, with a bit of salt & pepper, a splash of water & a splash of olive oil — blend till smooth & drippy, taste and adjust as needed, add a bit of honey or sugar if too spicy to help mellow it out. even though i am a spice queen, i added a bit of honey but then i ran out of honey and had to supplement with a little sugar too. stars they are just like us.

3rd check on your chicken, add in the carrots (peel and chop them into large irregular chunks). taste the broth, season as needed. tidy up your kitchen, snack on a couple of chicken skins but not too many because you’ll need them later. once the carrots are starting to get tender — pull out the chicken & the bay leaf, and remove the chicken from the bones, it should be pretty easy, don’t fully shred the chicken as you’ll want it to be piece(y) & it will break down more later. add the chicken back in & also the cous cous. at this point the pot is starting to get a lil crowded so you’ll need a bit more salt & pepper, a couple tablespoons of butter, a few more glugs of wine & a bit more broth so that everything is covered. cook until the cous cous is tender, but still toothy. the dish should have a thicker consistency — but will have some brothy pockets. resist urge to eat it straight out of the pot, because it is really effing delicious & delicious things deserve to be plated sometimes, as a treat.

4th in a shallow bowl (basically a blate, if you know you know) spoon in your chicken & cous cous, scatter with chicken skins, artfully dollop the spicy green sauce, a crack of black pepper & a squeeze of lemon. go back for seconds & maybe a small thirds.

ins / resolutions for 2026

cortado walks — a little stroll with the cortado instead of just taking it to your desk
boyfriend (ryan)
orange bitters & soda
moving everyday
reading in the mornings/evenings instead of looking @ your phone first & last thing
outfits not just clothes
wine tastings at diversey, at home, at new places
layered jewelry & mixing metals
actually taking photos
more phone calls, facetimes & letters
french fries & martinis — preferably eaten while sitting at a bar & gossiping
heist movies
sauna & cold plunging
being chic
having people over for dinner
hot fudge sundaes w/ a sprinkle of flaky salt on top

what are yours?

currently consuming

a lot of tidying & getting my life in order (i.e. going for a run, the grocery store(s), prepping some soup & salads for lunches this week, doing some laundry) but hopefully there is a cheeseburger in my future today, because i have been wanting one since at least friday. maybe longer if i’m being honest.

as always,
mk

p.s. our christmas tree & little village is still up — we should take it down today, but the thought of it is making me sad. it might stay up till next sunday.

p.p.s. the tamales @ cermak on north are v. fresh & delicious today — get the rajas w/ cheese. they are a little smaller than our normal tamale guys’ so ryan calls them lil males (mollys)

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140 — 10 away from the next goes well with party? could be fun! could make a pasta cake again! you could also make a pasta cake for red sauce america, that would be v. impressive.

it’s the holiday szn

where did this year go honestly? feels like it’s been a blur of plans, work, travel, beverages & bites. thanksgiving has come & went & i didn’t publish my fennel apple brussel slaw w/ maple tahini dressing recipe or tell you to make sourdough stuffing alla alison roman. i made both for friendsgiving and they turned out really well!! i might have a lil stuffing in the freezer for the next time i roast a chicken & want a bunch of sides. molly also did very well @ her last oireachtas even though it meant that we waited till 1:30am to find it out — don’t worry a late night jets order sutained us.

christmas is around the corner (hope you did your shopping, still working on mine) & right after that is new years — we’re throwing a party this year! if you want to come let me know, when harry met sally is going to be playing on a loop & there will be plenty of apps & bevs & i’m going to make everyone write a resolution down & share it with the class. just kidding.

christmas will be the eve @ my aunt’s, a steakhouse night, a little red sauce america meets chengdu bistro on the 27th, white christmas, home alone & an echolls’ family christmas. this year my parents have a cozy new house with real stained glass for us all to come back to — maybe next year we’ll watch the christmas episodes of all teen dramas but only the christmas episodes like it’s some kind of movie.

speaking of movies we’ve watched an awful lot lately, something about it getting dark so early makes you want to watch something you need to commit a little to. double jeopardy (an entertaining crime thriller, v. fun viewing) training day (intense, but the kind you can’t stop watching), mystic river (heartbreakingly sad, also feels a little like mare of easttown was influenced by this, ditto task & gone baby gone or am i finally noticing tropes of the genre) a knights tale (one of ryan’s favorite movies & such a fun one @ that), sentimental value (saw w/ janel @ a nice theater in ravenswood, v. good first intellectual movie i’ve seen in awhile is the patriarch skarsgard the best?), while you were sleeping (a classic, the sweaters! sandra bullock being sandra bullock, CHICAGO, bill pullman, sandy cohen but he’s kind of a jerk need i say more), home alone (all good holiday movies are set in chicago, in this essay i will, i love this movie, every single moment, macaulay culkin is a national treasure), the holiday (only saw this for the first time in the last couple years, i love it — such a lovely premise & so many downright wholesome moments + british accents) varsity blues (falls under movies for boys but dawson not being as whiny & pretentious was v. fun to watch, good soundtrack too).

no new recipe today — just a couple of things that are in the works. but need to be tested again if anyone wants to volunteer as tribute.

particularly good things i consumed recently

it’s the tail end of fall “technically” but also sort of winter already (the SNOW of it all, the COLD of it all) — these are somethings i’ve been consuming lately & maybe you should too

le bouchon — take the day off & go for lunch, walk there & back, order 3 bottles of wine, the snails, the beet salad, the french onion soup, the mussels, the steak frites, the creme brûlée (just one creme brûlée). this is truly one of life’s greatest pleasures in a restaurant.

outdoor runs — even when it’s really cold. you’ll feel really good & strong & accomplished. i promise.

parsons little dipper — with kaitlyn! it’s the little hh version of their big dipper & the perfect thing to share & catch up over

she’s under here — one of the most fascinating books i read this year. a memoir that’s paced like a thriller.

maxwells’ trading — with the mktg team for our holiday dinner, still dreaming about that basque butter cake. swim favorite things — one of my favorite work events of the year, my entire tub of maldon was a hit. chinatown — for the support team outing, yes plz i would like to eat dumplings & noodles & dry chili chicken & walk around.

indy — for ryan’s birthday! so nice & fun to see his fam, to eat some tasty empanadas, to go to such a big football game & wildly entertaining to be @ a howl @ the moon for the first time in almost a decade

birria — @barbaro where i wrote 80% of this newsletter on my phone1 delicious but also their consomé is so good you have to drink it at the end, i don’t make the rules

christmas village — we got a lil diner, a church, some trees, a lil snow & some trash raccoons. it’s adorable & perfect.

craft night & thai food — nice way to spend a wednesday evening & catch up with chloe, audrey & becca. sustained only one small flesh wound from my tin garland

seedos — that sterling food hall is really the best place to eat in the loop. a nice lentil soup & manakeesh covered in za’atar for about $10.

cheese class — @beautiful rind, i bought the tickets for their spruce wrapped cheese class (rush creek reserve, if you know you know) for ryan’s birthday — it was v. fun & delicious & we also ate a lot of cornichons

fresh mani pedi & fresh haircut — suddenly i’m a brand new girl. went to juko for the nails & it was so pleasant & relaxing & they gave me a diet coke. ambre @ oko for the haircut of course, incredible as always & where i get the best haircuts of my life — she also blew it out & i felt so fabulous

an office holiday party — perfect moment was getting dressed up with ryan & eating a rare mini cheeseburger in one hand & a glass of champagne in the other. there were also mini lobster rolls, crab cakes, sushi, ravioli & dark chocolate cake! non-perfect moment when my shoes went from being cute block heels to incredibly painful (around midnight) next time flats for dayz

currently consuming

a quiet morning on this v. cold day. have some of reading to do since my next round of holds are ready @ the lib and i want to make a soup or stew like thing. stay cozy today guys.

as always,
mk

p.s. upcoming newsletters include a night of two chilis, a mexico city itinerary, a butter chicken pot pie & some other delicious things — let me know if you have any thoughts & feelings on what i cover in 2026

139 — on the el this week everyone took a collective sniff, our noses were running from the crisp fall air, from the cold that appeared on sunday and lingered through the week. a communal, kind of gross moment to mark the mundanity of life, the morning commute and remind us that we’re all alive.

is my midwest showing, asking for a friend

this is the ranch i mentioned in the last newsletter but also in real life. it’s a step or two more than really good jets adjacent ranch but it’s well worth it, flexible enough to be a salad dressing, but also something you can dunk a french fry, a celery stick, a sweet potato empanada, or a slice of pizza in.

ingredients
3-4 hatch green chiles (medium-hot), could sub in anaheim or poblanos or another mild-medium green chile if you can’t find them if you can’t find them
1 & 1/2 cups of buttermilk (or regular milk + 1 tablespoon of white or apple cider vinegar)
1 cup of mayo (hellmans, dukes or kewpie)
1/2 cup of sour cream (daisy)
1 hidden valley ranch dressing packet
a few pickled jalapeños + some of the brine
miscellaneous herbs (i had a bit of cilantro & parsley left over so i used that up too)
salt & pepper

steps

1st broil your hatches in the oven till they are really burnished in places, can also do this over the stove but i had things to do. set aside in a bowl with a plate over it — this will help make the skins easier to remove. once cool enough to handle peel the skins off and discard. some of my hatches had quite a lot of seeds so i got rid of the bulk of them too, roughly chop & set aside.

2nd pour 1 & 1/2 cups of buttermilk into a blender, add the 1 cup of mayo, 1/2 cup of sour cream & 1 hidden valley ranch dressing packet, the chopped hatch chiles, a few pickled jalapeños, some of their brine, your miscellaneous herbs + a lil salt & pepper. blend together till smooth & creamy and a lovely green color, taste to make sure it’s all incorporated. put in the fridge to chill.

2nd make/prep whatever you plan on dipping in the ranch. it’s okay if you don’t know yet and still have to go to the store. that you wanted it just to have.

particularly good things i consumed recently

feld — we don’t usually have a dinner like this, but it was an absolutely wild & delicious experience

lou mitchells + indiana dunes + pleasant house pub + skylark — ryan & i had ourselves a fabulous fall saturday

diversey — for the tasting w/ becca, ashton & baby jules, still one of my favorite sunday afternoon activities

pizza dada — if you’re downtown & need lunch i love the grandma slice or the cae sal slice if they have it on special, bc what i really want is a slice of pizza w/ a full salad on top

a v. good jelly donut, a secret taco / quesadilla + 2 karaoke bars + spicy chicken biscuit + packing up my parents + a full fat coke + chilis — bridget was in town, it was halloween, our parents + molly were moving to a cutie house w/ real stained glass.

pollo verde — the cold cure all, the perfect soup/stew hybrid. if i could eat this everyday i’d be happy. riffed off this, bc i’m incapable of following any recipe, even my own apparently

the departed — my movies for boys education continues. v. into it. have been trying out a boston accent

the big moon — it was really big & i really loved it, perfectly circular like a pizza

when harry met sally — ryan had never seen it. so cute. so good!

cholula chicken cutlet — similar idea to those molly baz buffalo chicken tendies but better. perfect to top with a crunchy ranch(y) salad & lightly pickled veggies

a nice little work hh for wits — we went to barcocina which i had not been to since a brunch date almost a decade ago

basic instinct — you know how i feel about a 90s thriller, also made calzones, they were more like stuffed focaccias but they were v. delicious

spinning j — we tried a new pie, cranberry yuzu meringue, it changed ryan’s whole world. best slice yet.

chengdu bistro — so good every single time, current favorite order is just stopping for a couple dumpling orders & a cucumber salad

true grit & charlie’s angels — the double feature that no one thought of, 10/10 no notes, have to watch charlie’s angels 2nd though bc it’s more fun

rootstock — kiera & i’s current wine bar burger champion + fries so salty they don’t really need anything else

currently consuming

i saw this jacket @ gemini in wicker park last weekend and it’s incredible but also too expensive so it had to stay there. alison roman’s new cookbook which i’m reading like a novel of course, also an excellent shade of green — seeing her tonight w/ janel.

as always,
mk

138 — a lot has happened since i last wrote — we went to cleveland, i threw a big party, i turned 31, kennedy turned 1, i had my last peaches, tomatoes & lake dips of the season, i sliced off part of my thumb, kiera & jeremy got married, molly turned 18, the maybe baby girlies went on our annual cabin trip, we finished the OC, brendan turned 29, kate moved back to portland, mi tocaya & daisies both still hold up as v. nice dinners you can get in logan square on a whim without a reservation. janel turned 32, we went to mexico city (more on that later but it was so GOOD)! suzanna had her baby, meg meg turned 23, i had my first farmers mkt apple (pink lady, ofc), i acquired 3 new cookbooks, i also cooked a lot of things but only some of them were good & interesting. & in the midst of all of that work also got ridiculously busy. so i accidently on purpose ended up taking some time away from this newsletter. but we’re so back*

you’re supposed to sing the title of this issue to the tune of tiny dancer — c’mon, it’ll be fun

i’ve always liked baked potatoes but mostly bc they served as a vehicle for butter, cheddar cheese, sour cream, scallions, bacon & black pepper. so really i was in it for the toppings. or what i really just wanted was potato skins, that would be really fun. the rest of the potato sans toppings was never crispy or tender enough for me. a russet potato is good for lots of things (potato chips, french fries, etc.) but they are not small or cute enough for this. a small yellow or yukon gold potato are perfect here they get a nice crispy exterior and plush and tender interior. so good with just a little butter & salt but that’s for another day. today we are making tiny baked potatoes! these are not a full meal so you’ll need one other thing to round it out — unless you decide to eat all four of them.

ingredients
4-6 small yellow or yukon gold potatoes depending size/ how many people you are making these for, you want to be able to easily hold 1-2 of them in your hand.
salted butter
medium cheddar
sour cream
bacon
scallions
salt
pepper
olive oil

steps

1st pre-heat your oven to 400, wash & dry your potatoes. prick them all a little bit with fork, roll them in a bit of olive oil, salt & pepper till nice & coated —bake them in the oven for 25-30 minutes or fork tender. while your potatoes are baking, take a few pieces of bacon you won’t need the whole pack but if you want to cook it all knock yourself out — and cook it on a skillet till crispy. drain, let cool slightly and crumble into bacon bits! taste a couple for quality control of course.

2nd shred the cheddar cheese, i prefer medium cheddar here because it’s got some good flavor to it and still melts really well. once your potatoes are fork tender carefully slice open and give the potatoes a little squeeze so they puff slightly, add a pat of butter, salt & pepper, the cheddar cheese — put back in the oven and broil them slightly till the cheese starts to melt & the sides get crispier. while this is happening slice up your scallions, i like to use both the white & green parts here.

3rd top with with a generous dollop of sour cream, a sprinkle of bacon bits, scallions & plenty of black pepper. take a picture because the tiny baked potatoes are very cute & so is ryan when i tell him that two of them are for him.

particularly good things i consumed recently

the thomas crowne affair (the late (90s remake) hadn’t seen it since I was maybe in high school — excellent movie to watch on a saturday evening with 2.5 cocktails

sweatshirt/long sleeve + shorts running weather — elusive & perfect even if the run itself is/ was kind of shitty. the moving your body consistently part is what’s important

what kind of paradise | this might have gotten me out of my reading rut & i just found out the author has written several other mystery adjacent novels so don’t mind me while i put them all on hold

this hailee catalano salad that i riffed on (used sweet potatoes instead of butternut squash, added craisins, swapped in prairie breeze & a couple different nuts, etc. ) excellent for both lunch & dinner, might actually make it again this week. a perfect fall salad, the harvest bowl could never.

casino — it’s not goodfellas but it’s also not not goodfellas. remarkably long but just get some chili going on the stove and when the movie is just about over the chili is ready! honestly though i did really enjoy it & it was a nice way to spend a quiet sunday evening

night pasta — the pasta you eat @ 9pm or later when you the salad you had earlier was not enough. all you need is high quality dried pasta (i did a small fistful of malfadine), salted butter, pasta water, pecorino, & lots of black pepper

task — we loved mare of easttown and while this is not the same it’s had us hooked in. last episode drops tonight & preparing myself to likely sob

bungalow w/ janel — the perfect order is a bottle of pizza wine, the salad, the soppressata hot honey pizza & two cones of their ridiculously delicious soft serve at the end. 9.75/10 perfect friday*

eastend w/ kiera — you know starting your day with a sauna | cold plunge cycle makes you a brand new person. need to make this more of a thing esp. in the winter. i’ve never felt so relaxed

hatch green chile ranch — like regular ranch but better. i put it on a homemade snack wrap but you could also probably just drink it if you want

currently consuming

the penultimate farmers’ mkt of the season, needlework @kaitlyns’ — we’re making bracelets & a nice sunday dinner

as always,
mk

p.s. there is a mexico city guide coming soon, don’t worry!

*wow that was a lot of birthdays if you want the menus lmk — i cooked for quite a few of them :)
*.5 off bc we were quite actually the only girls not wearing off the shoulder black tops & light wash jeans…