Guest Blogger - SUMMAR
Punk Rock brekkie: Bleeding Heart Bakery & Cafe in Chicago
By Summar Ghias
Brunch may just be my favorite pastime. But brunch well past standard brunch timings at a 24-hour café essentially morphs me into a kid in a candy store. You can only imagine my excitement at hearing about the new Bleeding Heart Bakery & Café, a welcome bright spot in Chicago’s otherwise dismal late-night dining scene. The restaurant has an edgy diner vibe with vivid tattoo inspired art on the walls and what the owners dub a “local sustainable punk rock brunch” all day, every day.
After road-tripping to Indiana for a concert (yeah, Lupe!), some friends and I were in need of grub. Not just any kind of grub though. Once we’d confirmed that the food was delicious (because really, the host would have told us if it wasn’t), we set out to order from the brunch menu and eye the well-endowed glass counter from afar in all its munchkin and mini-cake mound glory. After oscillating between sweet and savory, I settled on a wild mushroom polenta eggs benedict with roasted red peppers and what seemed like an exotic twist on the standard condiment: persimmon hollandaise. My friends got the farmer’s veggie skillet, the seasonal fruit pancakes and, wait for it, the fried vanilla bean yeast doughnut breakfast sandwich with eggs and cheese.
My disappointing but tasty looking Wild Mushroom Polenta Benedict.
Gift Guide: Kiehl’s and Jeff Koons
By Summar Ghias
Kiehl’s is giving holidays shoppers the opportunity to elevate winter gift giving to warm and fuzzy philanthropic levels: take artist Jeff Koons’ collaboration with the brand to design a limited edition label for their Crème de Crops holiday collection Kiehl's special edition Creme de Corps Collection, artwork by Jeff Koons
Chrysta Wilson tells us to “Kiss My Bundt” this Valentine’s Day
Chrysta Wilson, is affectionately called the Bundt Babe for a reason.
Wilson, who founded the sassy LA bakery, Kiss my Bundt, in August 2008, proceeded to start her own baking academy and introductory class before creating a custom cookbook specifically on the art of bundt baking. Wilson caught the bundt bug early; her baking escapades with her Aunt Dia sparked a love for pound cake as much as it did the bundt pan it was made in. She shares this love in her new Kiss My Bundt cookbook, released this past November, with over 60 recipes dedicated to the cake.
Kiss My Bundt by Chrysta Wilson
Wilson likens the fluted edges and ridges of her moist cakes to a woman with all the right curves, and with recipes ranging from vegan red velvet to a savory mac and cheese, we hope we can maintain our right curves post baking and consumption.
Craving of the Day: Almond Bread Pudding – Sweet Melissa
“I’m not the biggest fan of bread pudding, that is until I tried the almond bread pudding at Sweet Melissa Patisserie in Park Slope. The almond bread is just the right amount of sweet to complement the tangy raspberry sauce, and they never fail to serve it warm and toasty. Combine that with a maple latte, and you’re in heaven.”
– Summar Ghias/East Coast Editor
Bakery Info:
Sweet Melissa Patisserie
175 Seventh Avenue
btw 1st & 2nd Streets
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Park Slope
Kyoku for Men: An epiphany in men’s skin care
Asim Akthar, founder of men skincare line, Kyoku
Flawless skin aspirers, you’re not alone. Flawless-skin-aspiring males, you’re in luck. New skin care line, Kyoku for Men, aims to give guys healthy, age-defying skin by combining natural tried-and-true Eastern ingredients with cutting edge science.
For founder Asim Akhtar, an early interest in the epidermis led him on a quest for the perfect skin-enhancing ingredients, taking him all the way to a small village in Japan called Yazuri Hara, or the “village of long life”.
A luxe evening with Dove PLUS answers to fall-winter skin questions with Dr. Luftman
Dove's new Ultimate Visibly Smooth line
No need to mince words, right? That is how I imagine Dove came up with the name PitiCure for their latest at-home beauty solution for sensitive underarm skin. This ‘cure does for your pits what a pedicure does for your feet. Who knew that was necessary?
Creators say the treatment cares for the delicate area by removing dead skin and impurities through exfoliation, thus preventing unwanted irritation from shaving, sweating and contact with fabrics. I was a little skeptical. It actually just seemed like just another way to hawk their latest deodorant, the Ultimate Visibly Smooth Anti-Perspirant, which is supposed to help minimize the look and feel of underarm hair over time. After all, one whole step in the three-step process is dedicated to applying it.
