Saturday Summary - 09.03.2022
What I read, watched, listened to, learned, and experienced this month
Hello old friend and Happy September!
Bryan and I spent the first weekend of August in Mexico City celebrating one of his dearest college friends’ marriage. We flew down Friday and back Sunday, but we were able to fit in some incredible meals and explore the well-known Anthropology museum during our short trip.
The next weekend we re-packed our bags and took off for Italy! We spent a lovely long layover in NYC with some of our close friends (Mary Kat, Davis, and MT, who you met last week) and then embarked on 9 fast-paced days in Italy with Jerome, Ashley, and Jordan. We had a great evening in Rome before heading South to explore the Amalfi coast. After a few days on the water, we traveled Northeast to the quaint medieval hilltown of Ripatransone, where we all met in 2018. Want a full recap of that trip? Look no further.
The trip went by insanely fast, and we’ve spent the last few weeks catching up on laundry, spending as much time as possible with Nash and friends we missed while we were away, and started transitioning our home from Summer to Fall. It was a fantastic Summer, but I’m excited for the next few seasons of 2022.
I’ve loved showcasing my friends and the things they love over the last few weeks, and I hope you’ve also enjoyed hearing from different people and seeing different perspectives as well! Keep your eye on your inbox for the next installment tomorrow.
Now, onto what I’ve read, watched, cooked, and have just generally been enjoying over the last month!
Read
If you’re looking for a light hearted read, look elsewhere. This one was completely heart wrenching, but I couldn’t put it down. I’m hesitant to tell you a single detail of the plot, because I experienced so many shocking turns while reading, and I want you to have a similar experience. I finished this book in two days! I loved These Tangled Vines by the same author, and I’m excited to read more from Julianne Maclean. The next on my list is A Fire Sparkling.
After discovering Book Bub, I’ve been given so many great suggestions for books that I wouldn’t have ordinarily gravitated toward. This book, for instance, follows a present day M16 agent who gets sent back in time when a criminal he was tailing sets off what he thought was a bomb. He has to figure out how to navigate life as an M16 agent in the 1960s alongside a team of “misfit” agents. There are two more books in this series that I’m definitely going to read! If you’re a James Bond fan, add this one to your list.
Top 5 Recipes Lately
Braised Chickpeas and Kale from The Modern Proper
This meal legitimately takes 15 minutes from start to finish and only dirties one pan.
It’s a really hearty and nutritious meal that goes perfectly with a slice of sourdough toast (preferably buttered with a little Maldon salt or parm with freshly cracked pep.)
I can see us making this dish a lot as we move into the fall with its delicious smoky, spicy flavor.
Crockpot Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup from Half Baked Harvest
This is, hands down, the best chicken tortilla soup recipe I’ve ever tried, and I have tried A LOT.
This soup has so much flavor and involves very little effort, since it’s a simple crockpot meal!
Black Bean Burgers from The Modern Proper
These were so substantial, didn’t completely crumble when you picked them up, heated up extremely well the following day, and had SO much flavor.
We had ours wrapped in butter lettuce (a very superior lettuce, in my humble opinion), but these would have been great on a regular bun too.
Homemade Hummus from my brain and a variety of recipes. (I made this recipe during Vlogmas 2020 if you want the video version!)
1 Food Processor (known from this point forward as FP)
4-6 cloves of garlic (blitz in FP first)
1 can chickpeas, drained. Reserve 1/4 cup liquid (then add both to FP)
1/3 cup tahini (add to FP)
1 teaspoon salt (add to FP)
Juice of one lemon (add to FP)
2-3 tablespoons olive oil (as the FP is whirring, drizzle olive oil to create your desired texture)
Top with smoked paprika
Spicy Mezcal Margaritas (makes 2) - Our favorite spin on a classic!
Muddle 3-4 slices of fresh jalapeno in the bottom of a shaker
Fill up the shaker about halfway with ice
4 oz mezcal (or tequila if you aren’t a mezcal lover)
2 oz cointreau
2 oz lime juice
1/2 oz agave
Shake, shake, shake, and divide between two, ice filled glasses
Garnish with a slice of jalapeno with a chili tajin rim
Watched
Shows
Only Murders in the Building: Season 2 - It threw me off that they released this show during the summer, because it’s an objectively “fall-feeling” show, but we really enjoyed it and are excited for Season 3! If you like a murder mystery that isn’t scary, this one’s for you.
Junior Bake Off - How did this release so silently? This show is a carbon copy of the adult version of the Great British Baking Show but with adorable kids aged 9-15.
Movies
King Richard - This was the best movie I watched on the plane ride home from Italy! It was also a very timely movie to watch with Serena’s retirement on the horizon. Can’t recommend it enough!
The Lost City - I wanted to love this Sandra Bullock movie, but I ended up turning it off halfway through. It was really bad…and I never thought I’d say that about anything she was in. Maybe I need to give it another shot, though?
Marry Me - This was exactly what I thought it would be - another JLo rom com that brought me back to her 90s movie heyday. I think you can watch it for free on Amazon if you’re a Prime member.
Favorites Lately
— Pura - I’ve shared about this before, but it’s been an especially hot topic in our house lately as we look forward to filling it with more fall scents. Bryan ordered a device for his office, because he noticed his electronics were coated in soot from burning candles. YEESH. Pura scents are flame free and both kid and pet safe. They’re running a 20% off Labor Day Sale right now, too!
Scents in our Pura right now:
Santorini by Brooklyn Candle Studio
Sunday Morning by Brooklyn Candle Studio
Scents I’m excited to use over the next few months:
Frasier Fir by Thymes (very overtly Christmas-y)
Pumpkin Chai by Nest (very overtly Halloween-y)
Blue Cypress and Snow by Nest (general fall/winter)
Highland Frost by Thymes (general fall/winter)
Tip: Don’t go crazy on holiday scents, because these cartridges last longer than candles. Each one has lasted at least 2 months+ when diffused daily for 2-3 hours at an 8-9 scent level out of 10.
— Elf Halo Glow Liquid Filter - I am never the first to buy an overly hyped internet product, but I happened to run out of my BB cream at the same time this was hitting the scene. I use this as a foundation-like product, and it gives your skin a beautiful glow without looking greasy. It provides virtually no coverage, but it still makes your face look even and luminous, and allegedly, it’s a dupe for the Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter ($44). It’s $14, and I have mine in shade 1-Fair.
— Humidifier - I’ve been battling crazy seasonal allergies for the past week, and our humidifier has worked wonders. We’ve had it for over a year now, but this was the first time I committed to using it regularly, and I’m a believer.
— Black denim jacket - This has been on my list for a while, because I wanted a denim jacket that I could wear confidently with blue jeans. (I know denim on denim is a “thing” right now, but I don’t know if I can pull it off.) I think this will be a great staple for years to come, and I jumped on the opportunity to buy it at 30% off with a gift card (win win)! I ordered a size up (M) so that I could wear sweaters under it in the colder months. I have the blue version in a small, and it fits perfectly with little room to spare.
The Latest
Juuuuuust in case you missed the latest article buried in the intro, I broke down the total cost and day-by-day itinerary of our trip to Italy. I hope you enjoy reliving it with us!
I hope you enjoyed this edition of the Saturday Summary! I’m excited to start filming again soon, and look forward to holding a much more regular schedule for the next few months. Enjoy your long holiday weekend, and have a great week!