Chicago Bucklist: 360 Chicago!

Posted on April 8, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

As a local Chicagoan, sometimes the best of our city is hiding right beneath our noses (or way way way above our heads)! Our normal views of the city include looking at monstrous traffic on the Dan Ryan expressway off our back porch or driving up Lake Shore drive to catch the waves out our window. We are on Cloud 9 now that we visited 360 Chicago. Formerly known as the John Hancock, 360 Chicago lives up to its name with spectacular 360 views of our pretty city and a newly renovated space.

Now, us 606-zip code Chicago residents can score a sweet discount of half off admission. 360 Chicago features the ONLY tilting attraction in the world, aptly named…Tilt! Giggle and gasp as you extend out and over the city in double pane glass at 1,000 feet above. 8 people at a time can Tilt!, so grab your best buds for moral support.

Local tip: There’s a bar and snack area, the Architect’s Bar, where you can gain some liquid courage if you need it!

Sunset Series

How do you decide when to go? 360 Chicago has themed events, called the Sunset Series, to elevate your interests. All events are from 6-9 p.m. unless otherwise noted.

Mondays (Encourage your Inner Artist): Photography Night

On Mondays ONLY, photographers can bring in tripods to heighten their insta-fame and catch gorgeous skyline scenery. Professional photographer, Nick Ulivieri, will be on hand with contests and learning segments throughout the year.

Tuesdays (Friends and Family Friendly): Chicago Architecture Foundation Night

Chicago Architecture Foundation volunteers are available to give you the deep dish on Chicago’s rich architecture scene and the buildings that star in our skyline.

Thursdays (Perfect for You and Your Boo): DJ and Dancin’

Mode Events makes sure your night is “on fleek” with live DJs and a sunset toast.

Get ready for summer too because 360 Chicago has the scenes to fit your light show dreams. During Wednesdays and Saturdays, beat the heat and rest your feet on 360 Chicago’s cozy furnishings, as you gaze at the Navy Pier seasonal fireworks.

Other Upcoming Events

For Football Fanatics:

During the madness of the NFL Draft in Chicago (weekend of April 28-30), rep an official team jersey and buy a 360 Chicago admissions ticket to Tilt! for free!

Honoring our Veterans:

In May, sample the special cocktail, The Yellow Ribbon, and a portion of proceeds will help ChicagoVets.org.

Military veterans and active duty members to visit 360 Chicago FREE throughout Memorial Day weekend (May 27-30).

What are you waiting for? Get your superman on and impress visiting friends, fam and your Air B and B guests (ha) with 360 Chicago.

Where: 360 Chicago 875 N. Michigan Avenue, 94th Floor in Chicago, IL.

For more info, weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., call 312-751-3681. All other times, please call 312-654-2892 or visit www.360chicago.com.

Brunch Bunch: Prairie Grass Cafe

Posted on April 4, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

You know when you ask people where they live, and they say some far off burb’ and you cancel the possibility of visiting? Well, change your mind if they live in Northbrook and grab some brunch!

Prairie Grass Cafe, conveniently located right off the expressway, will make you wanna visit your neighbor to the north. Chef-Owner Sarah Stegner and Chef-Owner George Bumbaris, both formerly of the fancy pants Ritz Carleton, partnered to created a casual environment with local fresh food. Stegner is also a 2 time winner of the ultra prestigious James Beard award so just think of the awesomeness of experiencing her cuisine without the abominable months’ wait of similar city joints. Prairie Grass Cafe hosted us one lazy Sunday afternoon to see what all the fuss was about.

Family Friendly

Prairie Grass Cafe was popping with kiddos during Sunday brunch, illustrating its’ kid friendly appeal. Stegner is a founding member of the Healthy Fare for Kids initiative which encourages restaurants to ditch the junk for children and provide them with nutritional sound menu items. The brunch menu for kids was comprehensive and our lil’ guest of honor, Monica’s nephew, scarfed down a cheese, fruit and veggie plate. Prairie Grass was able to work around his allergies with this dish.

One small thing for improvement: as there were so many kids, there was no high chair available. We made due with a booster seat instead thanks to the help of our friendly wait staff but this might not have worked for a littler dude or dudette.

Looking for more than just a meal? Check out “Make Your Own Pizza” Fridays where the toppings come to the table for a more active event for your tots.

Meatless Fare

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Pancakes can be a ho-hum or over the top in sugar at brunch. We flipped, however, over Prairie Grass’ fluffy light Lemon Ricotta Pancakes. The citrus flavor measured up to our preferences and added a delicate sparkle to the cakes. Go for the gusto and add the berry flavorful rasberry sauce and creme anglaise for that WOW effect. We also sampled the french toast and although it was decent, the Lemon Ricotta Pancakes take the taste award.

Chilaquiles

The Chilaquiles will make any tummy happy with runny soft fried eggs melting over the top of a hearty pile of cheese, crispy beany tortilla chips, guacamole and pico de gallo.

Egg White Omelette

The Egg White Omelette is chock b’gawk full of farm fresh eggs, seasonal produce and topped with avocado and pico de gallo. We added a side of perfectly seasoned crispy potatoes to round out the meal. This omelette is big enough for 2 people so feel free to split.

Dessert-a-thon

Prairie Grass Cafe is a dessert lovers’ dream with their bountiful selection of fresh homemade treats. Chef Sarah spoiled us sweetness with the Coconut Cream Pie (seasonal), Double Chocolate Cake, Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee, Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream with local berries, and Strawberry crepe with grand mariner sauce.

The standouts were the Coconut Cream Pie and Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee. Luckily, we had a group of 6 to avoid sugar shock. 🙂

Chicagoans, if there was ever a reason to meet your suburban friends half-way, this is a reason to venture beyond the borders of our city. Not feelin’ the brunch buzz? Get up later for lunch or dinner at your wake up whims.

Dirty Girl Mud Run: The Warmup

Posted on April 1, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

Wanna get dirty? Channel your Christina Aguilera in your PJs like we do every weekend OR join us for our first time at the Dirty Girl Mud run this August 6th! Why do we wanna mud mask it up with … Continue reading →

Best of the Good Food Festival 2016

Posted on March 28, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

This past weekend we went to the Good Food Festival for the third year in a row. Click here to read one of our first blog posts about our first Good Food Festival three years ago. Yesss, we are celebrating the three year … Continue reading →

Run and Strength Train with CrossTown Fitness

Posted on March 25, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

Runners and Lifters will love this Chicago Workout with @CTFChicago Continue reading →

Healthy Fast Food: Green Bean Chicago

Posted on March 21, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

It’s not often that healthy and fast food share the same title but magic is possible. Behold, we hath found a restaurant that aims to do both (oh and its yummy, princes and princesses). We know there’s a few chain healthy alternatives in Chicago but none are 100% gluten free, GMO free and free of common allergins (no nuts, coconut or chickpeas) like the new Green Bean Chicago.

It’s not often that you learn about the passion behind the restaurant you are eating in either. Owners, Executive Chef Mike Watson, Aaron Bush and investor and dietary manager Srinivas Ravanam partnered on this daunting culinary adventure for many reasons. Mike thinks about the health of his children and how fast food often targets them. Aaron works in the health and wellness industry across the state and sees how limited healthy food availability affect people throughout Illinois. Both wanted an affordable fast healthy option for working families. Both strive for a healthier tastier lifestyle for themselves.

We received free samples of their menu for review.

Menu Highlites:

Pick Your Protein: Chicken, Portabella Mushrooms (vegetarian) or Steak

Wrap it up: Choose a gluten free wrap, gluten free panini, or keep it simple with a salad

What’s Your Flavor? Choose Asian, Caesar, Caprese, Griller, Greek or Spanish style toppings

What we ate:

Gluten free Mushroom Griller Panini – pineapple, asparagus, mixed greens and spicy mango sauce

Gluten free Chicken Caprese Panini – mozzarella, basil, tomatos, red onion with olive oil and balsamic vinegar

Gluten Free Mushroom Caesar Wrap – croutons, parmesan, romaine and caesar dressing

Sides – Sweet Potato Fries, Tempura Green Beans, Black Bean Hummus

Dessert! – Gluten Free Caramel Cupcake with Italian Salted Caramel Gelato

Loving the light life:

All meals (entree, a side and a drink) are balanced to run around 500-600 calories. There is NO soda at Green Bean but instead homemade stone fruit waters are provided for the combos. Price point runs about the same as a Panera, Chipotle or chain greasy fast food meal, around $8-$9 for a meal.

Who needs gluten?

Kate is sensitive to gluten and has tried gluten free wraps and breads before. Some good (Udis), some not so good (some kinda yucky wrap). Chef Mike’s personal gluten free bread and wrap recipes (a mix of tapioca and rice flour with extra love) don’t seem “gluten free”. Both were hearty and satisfying.

Take us to flavor town!

Monica noted the sweet potato fries were delightfully crispy. Chef Mike explained they are made fresh 4-5 times a day…no preservatives here peeps. She also adored the salted caramel melty creamy gelato. Kate was stuffed to the brim by her chicken caprese panini and, although she doesn’t normally get the feels for mushrooms, these ones were garlicky, juicy and free of that sometimes unpleasantly earthy flava flav. No complaints at the taste office here.

Final Tasting Notes:

We highly recommend Green Bean. It’s health conscious, allergy friendly, and you get your monies worth. Fun Foodie Fact: You can get breakfast or lunch/dinner ANY time (for you brunch cravers). It’s also awesome if you have a social group with dietary needs. You can bring your diabetic dad, celiac sister-in-law, and nut allergic nephew all to the same place! Green Bean is expanding to Schaumburg (yaya suburbanites!) and plans to franchise in future locations. So lighten up and head to Green Bean when you’re in the mood for a healthy and quick meal!

Yoga 101 @ Studio Three Chicago

Posted on March 18, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

Do you wanna know a secret? We’ve been practicing yoga for years. It’s what brought our friendship to fruition. BUT! We’ve never taken a Yoga 101 class until now.

Studio Three’s new FREE Yoga 101 class offers a format that is accessible to anyone, from new yogis, to sweaty gurus (especially those who need patience practice). So don’t be nervous if you’ve never ventured into this world of open mouth tongue out breathin’. We checked it out 2 Saturdays ago and checked our assumptions at the door.

First Impressions:

Studio Three’s yoga studio features linen covered decorative lamps (good for staring at in a hard pose), hardwood floors and natural light to induce relaxation. Studio Three also features cycling and interval training in its other 2 studios.

Attending your first yoga class can be intimidating. You know, those people all stretching and showing off their wacky legs behind their head poses. However, our teacher, Todd Rhoades, was bubbly, welcoming and accommodating to all in the room. Luckily no one in our class was stunting either. Todd is multi-talented and has a background in yoga, and dance. This evident in his grace and ease at talking through poses.

Note: Emily DeBouver and Maggie McElhiney are teaching an “It’s Britney B*^#h” dance class on March 25th at Studio Three if yoga’s not your thang.

Format (may vary by teacher):

We began with pranayama practice, breathing in one nostril and out the other, sometimes feeling like a drowning hippo. Prana what, now? It’s a breathing practice for yoga to help you be in tune with your gorgeous bod. We then moved on to sun salutations with an explanation and demo of each step. Class may seem slow if you are used to quick vinyasa flow but we were sore after and learned a ton. Classes can cover a variety of topics including etiquette, form, history and/or alignment.

Where: Studio Three, 648 N Clark Street
Chicago IL, 60654

When: Saturdays, 1:45-2:45 pm

Bonus: This Saturday, March 19th, is Yoga 101 with QUICHE AND MIMOSAS!!

Sign Up: First, sign up for an account. Next, schedule yourself!

Already experienced? Studio Three could appease many a yogi with styles from Forrest Yoga (from the amazing Allison English) to Hot Power, Flow, or challenging Hi-Def (integrated yoga and strength training). We gots to go back and give another try another style.

*Update* 3/25/2016 Yoga 101 will morph into Power Yoga 101 for April.

Low Sugar Protein Bars: Luna Improved

Posted on March 14, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

A busy life calls for easy snacks. We love having the option of something we can just throw in our gym bag and go. What we don’t want is eating a nutrition bar that is basically a candy bar disguised as a health food. We’ve been Luna Bar fans for years but were excited to find out they reduced their Lemonzest and Chocolate Peppermint Stick. Both have 25% less sugar than before. We received samples to taste test the evolution.

Snack Bar Stats

LemonZest

Sugar: Reduced from 12 g to 9 g

Protein: 9 g

Fiber: 3 g

Chocolate Peppermint Stick

Sugar: Reduced from 12 g to 8 g

Protein: 8 g

Fiber: 4 g

What do we think?

Suga, we don’t miss you:

The low sugar bars actually taste better than before and there are no artificial sweeteners.

Crumbly Cookie Style:

We also noticed a change in texture. Both tasted less dense and the oats were crumbly which was pleasing.

The ingredients are mostly organic and non-GMO. Cliff Bar, the parent company, works with organic farmers and focuses on sustainability in their practice. With under 200 calories and a boost of vitamin and minerals, these Luna bars can be included in a healthy diet.

Luna Bar is also releasing 3 new choco-riffic bars with only 5 grams of sugar and dark chocolate. Dark chocolate is a major yesss because of its antioxidants.

Luna Bar flavor creations, Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk, Dark Chocolate Mocha Almond, and Dark Chocolate Hazelnut are now available, each with 5 grams of sugar!

Which flavor tickles your fitness fancy? Do you have a go to flavor of Luna Bar that you already love? Tell us in the comments!

20 Minute Toning: Ignite Fitness Review

Posted on March 11, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

Admit it. Sometimes, during tough workout videos, you lie there huffing and puffing hoping your virtual teacher won’t catch you slacking. That feeling is slightly guilty/awesome because you know this workout is challenging you.

It may seem that 20 minutes of fitness won’t do squat (HA!) but high intensity workouts can pack a punch for more energy and toning. We received a complementary Blu-Ray copy of the Women’s Health Ignite workout starring Next Fitness Star winner Nikki Metzger to test its fit factor. Nikki Metzger isn’t just some gym rat of the street. She’s a Master Trainer and owner of BODI gym in Scottsdale, Arizona. She’s not afraid to slap you with a bad @#s fitness routine.

Ignite fires you up with 3 x20 minute stand alone (or get crazy and plow through all 3) workouts. Bonus: An 8 minute bananas ab sequence in case you didn’t feel sore enough.

Workout Chapters:

BUILD

More of a traditional weights workout, but still maintains an interval format. Nikki demos the moves and sets before each change. Free weight usage is optional, removing intimidation for the recently sedentary.

BURN

Guacs, this is a doozy. Plyometrics take center stage for this cardio heavy chapter with crazy hard moves like the evil planky bear or real move name: Lateral Bear Crawl.

SWEAT

Your muscles will get HIIT from the front and the back with this 360 high speed interval routine. Expect 45 second sets with 3 sets in each rotation. Moves include modified burpees with a row added, plank walk outs and our Snapchat favsie: The Starfish Crunch.

Workout Cheers

These 20 minute speed workouts torch calories and slow time. You can fit this into a busy life!
Nikki’s lady crew each demo-ed a different move level for beginners up to bodybuilder lost your mind mode.
As a trainer, Nikki is approachable and encouraging. Also, we like her fitanista style with 3 on fleek fit outfits to choose.

Workout Woes

8 minute abs was like 8 minutes confused. Transitions were too too fast so it was hard to follow where to move next.
Closed caption anyone? This is 2016 so I am sure the fitness industry would want people with hearing issues to be able to follow along with verbal cues too.
Why do all workout videos have drum kit music created on a Casio keyboard for their background? We suppose it’s necessary to appease a majority of viewers (?) but we think even keyboard cat could do better.

Final (Get) Cut

Extra Extra! Get your 20 minute toning with Ignite here. Not ready to commit? Check out a preview of Nikki’s training here.

Looking for other workouts? Check out some suggestions from previous posts here.

Meatless Monday: New Laughing Cow Asiago Cheese

Posted on March 7, 2016 by CHIORGANICGIRLS

Cheese! The friend of many a vegetarian and, in excess, a possible foe to your caloric intake. Laughing Cow Brand Spreadable Cheese Wedges can make you giggle in cheesy delight however and ease your cheese anxiety (easy cheesy..hahahaha).

We’ve always been a fan of Laughing Cow cheese. Their spreadable wedges are portable, low in calories, high in protein and a versitile snackaroo. One of their newest flavors, asiago, is savory and satisfying when on the go, a quick after work snack or even when hosting a partaaaay. We received free samples during the launch of the asiago wedge back in January and lightened up our New Years but then bought even more for the Super Bowl. We decided to create 2 contrasting recipes to showcase 2 sides of the same cheese.

Kate’s Sweet N’ Spicy Wedges

Ingredients

1 Can Crushed Pineapple Slices
1 Jar Jalapeno Jelly
1 12 ounce Jar sliced Jalapenos
1 bag CrunchMaster Multiseed Crackers
Laughing Cow Asiago Cheese

Directions

Sooo…this is so easy! Lay out the Multiseed Crackers crackers on plate. Use a cheese knife or butter knife to spread 1/4 wedge of cheese (or more if desired) on each cracker. Spread jalapeno jelly on each cracker. Garnish each cracker with a piece of pineapple and a slice of jalapeno. These lil’ crackers got demolished at our NYE gathering so we’re sure you’ll love um.

Monica’s Italiano Caprese Wedges

Ingredients

Cherry tomatoes sliced in halves
Fresh Basil leaves
Italian herbs
Garlic Sea Salt
Whole Black Pepper grinded
360 Whole Foods EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
Laughing Cow Asiago Cheese

Directions

Peel open several Laughing Cow Asiago cheese wedges, remove wrapper and set each wedge on a plate. Sprinkle dried basil leaves, Italian seasoning, garlic, sea salt, and grounded black pepper on each wedge. Slice cherrry tomatoes in half and wash/pat dry the basil leaves. Add fresh basil leaves and halves cherry tomatoes to each wedge.

Laughing Cow Asiago can also be smeared on tortilla chips and turned into breakfast nachos with scrambled eggs and veggies, spread on a bagel with spinach and roasted peppers or whateva’ you like (as T.I. says). Or try the Pistachio Pear Honey Asiago recipe posted recently for a sweet treat. Click here to read the recipe.

Are you team Sweet N’ Spicy or team Italiano? Do you have any other Laughing Cow Recipes you love? Offer 9 total flavors, you can #savorthemoment with a different flavor every day! Find Laughing Cow products at a grocery store near you.

Chi Organic Girls