Eat, Watch, Buy: Things I Loved, August Edition

I’M BACK! It’s been nearly two weeks of rest and hobbling to and from my bed to the bathroom (with Charles’ help) after I fell off a bench and then jacked up my back tremendously. There were days where I thought sitting up long enough to punch out a post would be doable, but then I’d sadly be (quickly) mistaken.

But I’m finally on the mend thanks to plenty of meds, Charles doing basically everything for me—bless that sweet man—and a miracle-working chiropractor. Wooo thank goodness. Before I jump into my favorites from August, I just have to say, mostly for myself but for anyone who wants to listen: never, ever take your abled body for granted. I’ve never wanted to run around/dance around/be physically active more, being that taking more than two unassisted steps was excruciating. THANK YOU BODY for all that you do when you’re well, and for helping me to heal when you’re not.

Okay, I’m sure saying “man August just flew by” will surprise no one, but it did and looking back, I didn’t do much of anything…anyone else? When I wasn’t watching Saved by the Bell on Hulu, I was…well, honestly I don’t know what I was doing. Let’s see if I don’t have a better, more enlightening/entertaining answer when I’m back here doing September favorites. Maybe by then I’ll have picked a paint color for my bedroom…here’s to hoping. I did start ordering some samples, but more on that another day.

EAT

Looking back over the last month, I ordered A LOT of take out, tbh. But there were some things I made that were double threats: super easy and super tasty.

Perfect Burrata and Prosciutto Crostini from Ain’t Too Proud to Meg

I’ve been on this “no-cook dinner” kick lately because I’m hot, I’m tired and frankly, I’m a bit uninspired in the kitchen right now. But I’d been watching Meg from Ain’t Too Proud to Meg make these burrata crostini for what felt like weeks and I got the itch to whip them up, too. After several failed attempts at finding burrata at the supermarket, I finally scored some and WATCH OUT, I’m about to become a burrata hoarder. OMG are these good. They’re so simple, come together in 10 minutes but BOOM POW they’re perfect. The very words out of my mouth when I first bit into them was “all I ever want to do forever and ever is eat this and nothing else.” From someone who loves eating all.the.things all.the.times, these are high regards, trust.

Heirloom Caprese Salad with Herb Oil from Taste.com

When I made this, I skipped the cheese because I served it alongside the above crostini and I tamed my cheese-animal ways for some reason. The herb oil was fantastic (once I added a squeeze of lemon…it needed the acidity, FYI) and paired so beautifully with ripe heirloom tomatoes. Tomato season is almost over, sadly, so hurry to grab some juicy ruby beauties before they all turn to mealy mush and make this.

Green Chili Enchiladas from Lite Cravings

One day, when I have the motivation to take photos of the steps, I’ll write up my own enchiladas verdes recipe. It’s one I’m pretty proud of, to be honest. Those? They take about two hours from start to finish. There’s a freshly made tomatillo salsa, poached and shredded chicken, corn tortillas delicately toasted one by one on a griddle. These? Just under 30 minutes and so easy I could probably make them with one hand deep in a group text. There is an option for chicken and also a vegetarian version in the recipe, which is great! My favorite store-bought green sauce is by the brand Herdez, so I use that and any tortillas I happen to have on hand. Oh, and to make things SUPER easy, just use a rotisserie chicken.

WATCH

When literally the only thing you can do is lay horizontally and watch TV, you’d think I’d have a long list of things to recommend for you watch. But really, I just re-watched tons of comfort classics this month with the addition of two shows:

Alone on Netflix

I texted my friend Julie, an avid outdoors enthusiast, and proclaimed that I found the show for her, but also I’ve been really enjoying it myself…an avid indoors enthusiast. While I’ve never been much for reality TV, I do quite enjoy a competition show, and that’s essentially what this is. 10 survivalists get dropped off, ALONE (see, get it?) in the Canadian arctic with some camera gear and they film themselves living off the land for as long as they can stand. The winner gets $500,000. It’s oddly soothing with undertones of suspense, and I can’t wait to see who outlasts them all.

Broad City on Hulu

Yes, I’m LITERALLY five years late to the party here but I haven’t laughed this hard watching a show in a long time. It took me about a season-ish to warm up to the characters but by the time it was done, both Charles and I were mourning the loss of our TV friends we wouldn’t be spending our evenings with anymore. It’s a fun one, for sure.

BUY

Bliss Balm, $54: Recently, I’d been suffering from what I just decided to call “tech elbow” and heard CBD balms are really good for joint issues so I dove into “best CBD balm” Google searches and found this. Luckily, when I first visited the site, they were offering 15% off so I got it for less, but I very much like this. It smells wonderful and while my “tech elbow” faded before I could even get around to using it for that, it HAS worked wonders for seriously awful cramps. For that alone, I’d buy this again.

The Nellie Simply Wireless Bra, $40: There exists NO WORLD where I, Arlyn Hernandez and her H-cupped breasts, is recommending a wireless bra UNTIL NOW. I’ve been burned so many times by “truly supportive” claims on softer bras. I chalked anything wireless or reminiscent of a bralette up to the stuff of small-boobed fantasies. If you remember, I did recommend a very similar bra that turned out to be for nursing mothers (don’t care), and I always meant to buy another. Then I got served a Facebook ad that claimed this bra worked with cup sizes up to an I and being that it was relatively affordable, and it kind of looked like that other bra, I decided to give it a whirl. I LOVE IT. I love it so much it’s the only thing I want to wear. It ACTUALLY holds up these heavy ladies, and like…all day, not just the first hour, looks good under clothes and is immensely comfortable. I’m truly happy with this. Size ordered: L-Full Coverage

Slub Knit T-Shirt, $10: I was all prepared to recommend a new pair of shorts I was quite frankly SHOCKED by. The first day I wore them, I went online and bought two more. This coming from someone who wears shorts maybe…3 times a year outside the house? But by the time I double checked the link, they were sold out. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? Sigh. But I did buy this shirt a few weeks back and have worn it over and over again. It’s one of those “always grab it” type of things because it feels SO good, looks good and washes well. Plus, it’s $10. The one I have is a blue tie dye that is no longer available, but there are some other fun prints. The curved hem is perfect for my curvier frame because it doesn’t tug or pull in any of the wrong places but doesn’t end up looking like a sack of potatoes.

And there you have it. The things from August I liked enough to pass on to you all. Hopefully there’s something here you want to look into (MAKE THE CROSTINI), but I, of course, want to hear about anything new in your life you want to share. Shoes, purchases, snacks, recipes…give ’em to me!

Thanks again for your patience with my radio silence, and I’ll be back on Wednesday with a fun one (hint: something you all voted for on Instagram yesterday).