By: Sammy Harris
I’m probably not the only one when I admit that I am guilty of not knowing the weekdays from the weekend at this point in quarantine, and I am definitely not the only one when I say that the end of the semester has truly snuck up on me. The spring semester on campus ended months earlier than planned, and to be honest, the entire current situation has felt almost surreal to me, until I learned that this is MY LAST FRIDAY FOODIE FEATURE UNTIL NEXT SEMESTER-- so so wild. I love asking people about the first things they want to do once quarantine and the stay-at-home orders are finally done across the nation; when they ask me this question back, I immediately say enjoying delicious food and drinks with my best friends. I don’t know about you guys, but I count my blessings everyday because I do not have a single friend that does not enjoy food and enjoy TALKING about food. With that being said, I have been trying to figure out how to shine light on my incredible Miami foodie best friends for a while. I have decided that this is the perfect time because they have been cooking up a storm during quarantine, and I have been eating out a little too much (no shame, though!)Chloe Kennebeck from GLEN ELLYN, ILLINOIS is firing it up in the kitchen!! Specifically, she is killing the seafood game, which is my favorite type of foodie game. The meal to the left is the Kennebeck’s infamousTERIYAKI SALMON BOWLS. I say infamous because I have had the opportunity to eat this delicious meal, and they SHOULD be famous. The bowls are full of white rice, salmon marinated in SoyVay teriyaki sauce (shrimp sometimes too), cucumber, avocado, white & black sesame seeds, sriracha mayo (mayo & sriracha hot sauce mixed together, & soy sauce drizzled on top!) Now, I have not had the chance to have the meal on the right YET, but I have hopes to in the future after Chloe shared the deets with me : flour or corn tortillas, shrimp cooked in olve oil & @traderjoes chile lime seasoning, bag of slaw mixed in homemade dressing (olive oil, lime juice, honey, salt & pepper, cotija cheese, sliced avo, & sriracha mayo! The Kennebeck household has, not to anyone’s surprise, outdone us all again. [gallery ids="4911,4915" type="rectangular"]
If sweet tooth cravings are a daily issue for you, like they are for me being stuck at home all day, then you are in luck!! Emme Stefen and her family inSANIBEL ISLAND, FLORIDA shared with our friends a Life hack: ALMOND-DRIZZLED FRUIT BOWLS. She was even kind enough to give us the quick and easy steps to perfect this healthy dessert:
- Cup of fruit of your choice; according to Emme, berries are the best: blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, etc.
- Warm up some almond milk -- the amount is up to you depending on how much you want to drizzle; in my humble opinion, the more the better!!
- Add two drops of almond extract to the warmed almond milk and mix powdered sugar in until it has a creamy consistency.
- Pour the mixture over the fruit bowl & enjoy!!
Lauren Stevens needs to create a foodie feature or blog of her own, because she is a QUARANQUEENin her TOLEDO, OHIOkitchen. I literally look forward to the snapchats of her daily mouth-watering meals; HER EGG SANDWICH GAME IS FIREEEE. Here to the right, she shared with us her favorite dinner, SHRIMP LETTUCE WRAPS : lettuce wedges full of grilled shrimp, grilled peppers, avocado, corn, and chipotle sauce. Lauren loves the variety of lettuce wraps; she usually adds other ingredients on hand, including tomatoes, guacamole, etc.
I wanted to save Sarah (Rah) Oldford for last because she is a plant-based vegan from CLEVELAND, OHIO who has a bomb foodie account of her own [@cle_vegan]. Her posts and aesthetic in general inspire me daily. On Earth Day, Sarah posted, “eating plant-based is considered to be the ‘single biggest way’ one can reduce their environmental impact on earth - by not eating meat and dairy products you too can reduce your carbon footprint by up to 73%.” Pictured below is Rah’s delicious & nutritious OATMEAL BOWL that she has “every damn morning” : 
- ½ cup rolled oats with 1 tbsp chia seeds and 1 cup water in the microwave for 1 minute
- Take out and stir, then put bowl back in for another 30 seconds
- Add agave, banana, berries, hemp seeds, & coconut flakes
- “mmmmmmmm”
I wanted to finish off my last foodie feature for the semester with something that is super important to me: local restaurants!!! Of course I love home cooked healthy & yummy meals, and being stuck at home is perfect for self-improvement and working on our cooking skills, but NOW is also the time to feel guilt-free while splurging at your FAVORITE LOCAL BUSINESSES! So what better way to do it than getting @bberrymarket & my other favorites in Glen Ellyn, Illinois all the time?!
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To do a little bit of both-- home-cooking & local business supporting-- I have begun buying @bberrymarket market salads to-go, and then putting my own protein on top to make a balanced & delicious meal! Featured below are two examples of frequent meals I have put together lately: Blackberry’s pesto pasta salad w/ grilled citrus shrimp on top & their whole 30 sweet potato bowl with w/ balsamic-glazed grilled salmon on top!
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For the last time in a while (sadness), please feel free to reach out to me (Via my Instagram) and/or GreenHawks Media with any suggestions, requests, questions, etc.. I cannot wait to keep sharing my love for whole, organic, mostly plant-based foods that make us feel good while helping out the environment A LOT!
Photos courtesy of Sammy Harris & friends mentioned in post