Cozy And Chillin' On A Chilly Chicago Weekend

 ...Continued from yesterday:
     On the chilliest day in Chicago - and it can get darned chilly in the Windy City - still it's always warm and cozy inside my daughter Claire and son-in-law's Miguel's house.

     And so we opted to spend most of the weekend inside looking out,

...while tackling some serious house cleaning,

...baking - and eating- a cherry almond streusel pie,*

...and keeping the kitties company as they went about their business.

     We did venture out a few times over the weekend.
      On Saturday afternoon Claire and I went out for walk to Bucktown, which is the next neighborhood over from Claire's Logan Square neighborhood.

      We had lunch at a wonderful deli called Goddess and Grocer,

...where one can purchase one's food then eat it in a cute space on the second floor.

    Claire had a veggie wrap and a bowl of the most delicious basil tomato soup,

...and I had an out-of-this world salad that I built from the copious salad bar.

      We went out again on Sunday morning, starting out on foot,

...then taking the car,

...to run some errands and pick up some groceries.

     Late Sunday afternoon we headed back to Bucktown,

...where we walked all around.

     After a while we arrived at the Piece Brewery and Pizzaria where we'd decided to eat dinner,   

...and where not only is the pizza great, but where one can also try a sampling of several brews.

    We ordered a delicious basil and tomato pizza which we swore would be too much for us to finish, but we somehow managed to polish off all but the last two slices.

     After dinner we returned home and ate cherry pie and watched The Rocky Horror Picture Show - one of my favorite movies -  as it seemed that kind of a night.

     Then early Monday morning I was once again bundled up, big suitcase in tow, and back on my way to the Western train station to catch the train to O'Hare, though this time, thankfully, Claire and Miguel showed me where to find the elevator to the platform (see the previous post).

O'Hare

      *For anybody who's interested, here's my recipe for Cherry Almond Streusel Pie:

Cherry Almond Streusel Pie
The Pie:
2 cans of tart red cherries.
2 tablespoons of quick-cooking tapioca
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
 1 9-inch unbaked refrigerated roll-out pie crust

The Streusel:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup slivered almonds

     Mix the two cans of cherries with their juices with the tapioca, sugar, and cinnamon.  Let stand for 15 minutes. 
    Mix the flour and brown sugar then cut the butter into the flour and sugar until the mixture is crumbly.  Mix in the almonds.
    Roll out the pie crust, place it in a 9-inch pie pan  and spread the cherry mixture into the pie crust.  Spoon the streusel mixture over the cherries.
    Bake at 375 for 45-50 minutes, until the filling is bubbly and topping well-browned.