My Sporty Spice Week

(null)(null)(null)(null)On Thursday I went to the United Center to see the Blackhawks take on the Flyers with Becky. It was my first Blackhawks game and my first NHL game in 13 years. The Blackhawks lost, but I still had a fun time!

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(null)In the meantime, Jess, Sara and I had been discussing going to a Bulls game. We tossed around a lot of dates and looked up a lot of different ticket prices. We finally settled on St. Patrick’s Day, which happened to be the day after the Blackhawks game! So, I was at the United Center two nights in a row! This time the Bulls beat the Brooklyn Nets.

(null)I took Friday night off and Dallas went out for March Madness. I forgot it was even March Madness until a week or so before. On Saturday we all met up at Brownstone for brunch. Dallas left a few hours later to play ping pong, but Makai and I hung out all day to “watch” basketball. In truth, I didn’t really watch much basketball. We even had a side trip to the park with Ellyza and Lena. But I did notice Makai Mason, the star player on Yale’s team.

Standard Bar/Grill

Standard Bar/Grill opened in May, just in time for us to go and watch some Bulls playoff games. The space inside is huge, including a second level, and decorated with gorgeous dark wood. The guys at the door were kind of weird to every person in our group who came in, asking if they were meeting someone or they had a reservation… which was odd.. bc hello… you’re a sports bar. There are TVs everywhere in there. Well, later on we realized they were probably just trying to manage the chaos because it was SO packed during the game. Still, they could have probably gone about it better.

Drink specials were good. You could get all the cheap beers in buckets. Actually, some friends even got buckets of locally brewed, Daisy Cutter. And I thought the food was good too. I got a veggie burger (portobello, black beans, lentils, brown rice, tomato, beet, avocado, red pepper mayo, whole grain bun) with a side salad. Nothing crazy, but the veggie burger was delicious. You could tell they made it in-house. It wasn’t some frozen Boca burger that they microwaved

I would not go back unless I was going to watch some sports, probably. It seems to be the main focus of the place, with all of the TVs. But I did like it and would go back again.

Wine Tasting at WineStyles

Last week I went to a wine tasting at WineStyles in Lakeview. Limey Dave won the tasting at a charity raffle and invited me to go. It just so happens that this is Limey’s regular go-to wine shop and that he’s good friends with Matt, who is a wine specialist there. One thing I really liked about the WineStyles store was that they split up the wines by different styles – crisp, silky, rich, bubbly, fruity, mellow, bold, nectar – that I can actually understand. I tended to like the crisp and mellow styles the best.

Matt chose the wines for us and poured. We tried each one and then at the end we had seconds on the ones we liked. They also had cheese and crackers for us, which was good because I hadn’t eaten for like 7 hours and when I did, it was just a salad. I didn’t think our pours were large, but I was feeling the wine quickly!

WineStyles was also running a special on their wine club. You had to sign up for 3 months, but the first month would only cost $1. It was a great deal, but the store is not that convenient for me, so I didn’t sign up. Check out the notes Matt printed on our tasting sheet. Sorry Dave. And Go Heat! Matt is a huge Miami Heat fan, which we found out later when we went to Beckett’s to watch the game and eat dinner. Bulls lost, but Jill and I were big winners with the delicious burger we ordered and split. Get this, the Oui Oui burger was a french onion soup infused patty topped with truffled mushrooms, cognac onions and melted brie and served on a French baguette. So good. I really liked that place, too: Beckett’s. I hadn’t been there since it had been the bar called Belly’s, which I didn’t really like.

Also, I may not have joined the wine club, but I did buy two of my favorite wines from the tasting:

Skouras Chardonnay – Greece. Tasting Notes: Crisp. Only a touch of oak in this lean, refreshing Chardonnay. The pineapple, peach and vanilla scents are bright. Tropical and orchard fruit flavors, but crisp with the acid to focus the flavors.

Maryhill Winery Winemaker’s Red – Columbia Valley, Washington. Tasting Notes: Mellow. An easy-drinking wine with complex notes that make this wine a favorite! The caramel, cherry and smoke aromas lead into a palate of black pepper and nutmeg, followed by cherries, berries, and oak.

Derrick Rose: Longest Eyelashes in the NBA

… also, youngest NBA MVP evah! Go Bulls!

Todd thinks I am keeping a seperate set of stats than everyone else. Derrick Rose: Longest Eyelashes in the NBA; Alfonso Soriano: Tightest Pants in the MLB. This is just how I keep the game interesting!

For more photos, check out this GQ spread. Supposedly, it’s about windbreakers, but I didn’t make it past the eyes. Also? I could do without the pornstache!

Los Bulls vs. 76ers – Noche Latina

One good thing that came out of that WTF night is that at the Association House event both Jess and Sara won Bulls tickets! So, we all three, plus Jillian, went. I’d only ever been to one Bulls game before and it was 6 years ago, so I was excited. And Sara had never been to a game, so she was super psyched.

We didn’t realize that the game was Noche Latina (Latin Night) until we got to the arena. Noche Latina honors the Hispanic community and is presented by the McDonald’s Hispanic Owner-Operators Association (MHOA). The Bulls wore Los Bulls jerseys and throughout the game there was all kinds of stuff going on! The player intros were in Spanish, a mariachi band played the National Anthem, local Hispanic dance troupes performed, and at halftime the flags of 20 Spanish-speaking Latin countries were presented.

You’ll see from my photos that I found a lot of this stuff to be more exciting than the actual game! Blasphemous. Maybe if the Bulls would have won….


Getting Excited!


Really excited! This was Sara’s first Bulls game!


If you can’t understand the audio: 1. Derrick Rose incites screaming and 2. It’s in Spanish.


Game On!


Nosebleeds


Madhouse = The United Center is at 1901 W. Madison Street


Like our #1 fingers?


Jumbotron


Cool Dance Troupe


Flag presentation = Most boring halftime show ever!


Killian was at the game and came for a halftime visit. He took this photo of us.


More awesome Hispanic dancers.


#1 Beer!


Rachelle & Jess


Acrobatics. Check out that lady getting spin at center court.


The Luvabulls.


Noche Latina

After the Bulls game we went to Bottom Lounge just for one more drink.



Martha Stewart’s Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars

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When Dallas, Billy, Josh and Killian went to the Bulls/Celtics game I decided to do a little baking. I like to bake when we have company because then I don’t have to eat everything myself. Plus, I thought they’d like a snack when they got back. Killian always says he loves my baking, so I thought the other guys would too.

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I made this recipe from the Martha Stewart Cookies cookbook, of course. I’ve made a lot of recipes from that book this year. They always turn out great and this time was no exception. Returning from the game, the guys plowed into those bars. Especially Killian, who must have downed at least half the pan himself. Not that I am complaining, It’s the best compliment when you can’t stop eating something I made!

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Martha Stewart’s Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars

This version of a well-loved combination from childhood concentrates the flavors into a sweet dessert that appeals to all ages. We like strawberry jam, but feel free to substitute any flavor you prefer. Makes about 3 dozen.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups strawberry jam, or other flavor (I used black raspberry)
2/3 cup salted peanuts, roughly chopped

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan with butter, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease the parchment, and coat inside of pan with flour; set aside. Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. On medium speed, add eggs and peanut butter; beat until combined, about 2 minutes.

Whisk together salt, baking powder, and flour. Add to bowl of mixer on low speed; combine. Add vanilla. Transfer two-thirds of mixture to prepared pan; spread evenly with offset spatula. Using offset spatula, spread jam on top of peanut-butter mixture. Dollop remaining third of peanut-butter mixture on top of jam. Sprinkle with peanuts.

Bake until golden, about 45 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool; cut into about thirty-six 1 1/2-by-2-inch pieces.