By: Molly Cimikoski, Editorial Assistant
“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art… It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.” –CS Lewis
Although friendship might not be included in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, I think we can all agree that a lot of our survival requisites could not be met without the help of our dearest friends, if only because we would be too sad to roll out of bed and get that vital glass of water. Food on the other hand is necessary by anyone’s standards. Just a few hours without eating, and I quickly regress from a twenty-one year old human into something more closely resembling an ogre. However, when we take the wonders of food and add that very special additive called best friends, the result is longer lasting than any typical meal.
One of my favorite memories so far was a weekend spent with two of my closest friends, Ashton and Kara. Ashton had just returned from a semester abroad in London, so the three of us were eager to catch up and make some great food. We’ve gotten in the habit of each picking a different 6-pack of beer to share with whatever meal we’ve come up with, for educational purposes only, of course.
The wonderful website “Healthy in Chicago” has some great suggestions for making the healthiest choices when it comes to drinking alcohol!
On this particular night we went for a fruity variety including: Magic Hat #9, Wild Blue, and an old favorite, Woodchuck Draft Cider. We loved all three, but were particularly impressed with Wild Blue! Not only was it delicious and 8% alcohol by volume, but also gorgeous! This beer is definitely worth pouring into a glass just so you can glimpse its beautiful shade of purple.
Kara and her parents had introduced me to the wonderful Newman’s Own Lighten Up Light Lime Vinaigrette a few weeks prior, and ever since then I’ve been addicted. This stuff is great on everything! We planned on marinating chicken breast in the dressing and then grilling it, but when push came to shove we realized we didn’t feel confident enough in our charcoal grill proficiency, and ultimately ended up cooking them on the stove. Having since barbecued with the vinaigrette, I can say that both methods are excellent, but the stovetop holds more of the lime flavor.
Lime chicken paired with green beans sautéed in low sodium soy sauce with a touch of garlic (I’ve also added fresh ginger!), add a few zucchini slices in the same lime dressing, and the meal just cannot be beat! And for dessert, Kara made us the most delectable Banana Bread from a recipe she got from The Food Network. I’m pretty sure Ashton and I just about devoured the whole pan. The best part is that the whole meal is happily and healthily dairy-free!
After an amazing night spent sharing stories, and envying Ashton’s European adventures and job success in Parliament, we called it a night and made plans for an early morning together.
We spent the next day indulging in our favorite shopping areas (Anthropologie, we love you!!) and made it to the afternoon Bikram class. High off of our home cooked delicacies from the night before and the joys of exercise and shopping, we gladly purchased some coconut water from the yoga studio (O.N.E. is the newest partner of Healthy Child Healthy World) to start rehydrating for our drive back to campus, just happy to all be together again.
