Autumn

Autumn

Friday, August 27, 2010

Pictures and Food as promised!

Why, hello everyone!  My first (extremely crazy and busy) week of classes is over :-).  Now for a recap:

At the farmers' market a couple weeks ago I bought a beautiful basil plant:


I am in love with it... but I fear it is dying (it no longer looks like it does above) in my tiny apartment with windows only facing one direction :-(.

I used some of my basil when making a bean soup in my mini crock pot.  It turned out all right, but I think it needed more flavor.  I followed a recipe, but my kitchen is still lacking in a number of spices (that I therefore excluded thinking it wouldn't matter too much).  Alas, I have more shopping to do...

Anyway, here is the soup:


I also bought a couple pluots from the grocery store a few days ago because they were on sale for $.99 per pound (should've gotten more!).  I LOVED them!  Here is one I had for breakfast with oatgurt and chia seeds:


Now for some Illinois scenery :-).

These are some pics from the UIUC campus - lots of people!




Some pics from Champaign neighborhoods I've wandered around on foot and bike:





I was astonished to see that people decorate their yards with lights - my fellow Iowans and I tend to use lights exclusively for Christmas.

I hope this post was worth the wait ;-).  I had fun taking the pictures... and I have more to show you at a later date...

Have a fabulous weekend!

~

5 comments:

  1. What beautiful yards and landscapes. I loved seeing a glimpse of your campus. I just finished my first week of classes too. I'm exhausted and intimidated, but excited too.

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  2. So enjoyed your new post! I've missed them! Yeah, spices (lots or a lack there of) can truly make or break a dish! ;-) Practice makes perfect, as the saying goes! Love the pics. Bummer about your basil plant- looks so 'purty' in the picture. Learn lots and, above all, enjoy your classes! Take care!

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  3. Welcome to Champaign!

    I just found your blog via the Healthy Blog Network. I was looking for CU ones but only found a couple in Bloomington-Normal and here it turns out you're in Champaign! I'm a fellow grad student at UIUC.

    Sorry to hear about your little basil plant. :( Maybe it should be transferred into a larger pot? Mine have been doing really well but they're outside so that makes it a lot easier. :)

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  4. Welcome to the club of basil killers! I can't keep basil alive for the life of me! UIUC looks amazing, I miss it SO much!! I want to come back for a football game this season...if we're not horrible ;)

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  5. LOL @ Nicole. I am a basil killer, too. I have had a couple of plants. They always seem promising and then they slowly die.

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Thanks for commenting! I really appreciate it :-).