July Coffee Chat
Fried cheese, fresh hobbies, and a call for your favorite peach and tomato recipes.
Welcome back to my monthly coffee chat! This is where I share my life in a personal, unfiltered way that you don’t get on my primary recipe site Well Plated, or even on Instagram. No ads, no algorithms, no AI. It’s just me, your friend Erin. Let’s catch up!
Shawano, WI (a.k.a. “Up North”)
Wisconsin culture extends well beyond cheese, and nowhere can you experience it more fully than small towns like Shawano, 45 minutes northeast of Green Bay.
Our neighbors have a cabin on Shawano Lake, where we spent an iconic Fourth of July weekend drinking brandy old fashioneds, eating fish fry (it’s not just a Lenten thing up here), playing pull tabs (sort of like a slot machine, on cardboard), and engaging in the great American pastimes of overeating and lighting things on fire.
If you didn’t eat fried cheese, drink a brandy old fashioned, and play pull tabs, did you even go to Wisconsin?
And, ok, we also ate a lot of fried cheese (it’s still Wisconsin, after all!).
It was the most relaxing few days, an ideal bookend to the busiest two months of travel of my life. Between April 29th and June 29th, I visited (for work or leisure or both) Montpellier, Provence, Denver, NYC, Traverse City, Charleston, Austin, and Portland, ME.
Fourth of July weekend: steak, jalapeño poppers, potato salad, and Aperol spritz on tap.
Slowing down was like a cathartic exhale when you didn’t even realize you’d been holding your breath.
On July 1, I searched three different stores for red, white, and blue M&Ms to add to my friend Tessa’s Brown Butter Malted Blondies (recipe in her amazing book), only to discover anything Fourth of July themed had already been replaced by back-to-school.
Must we always be so rushed???
Affronted, I headed to my next destination in full hold-onto-summer mode.
Park City, UT
Something has happened to me here this summer. I have become a woman of hobbies.
Between mountain biking, hiking, mahjong, keeping up with French, and my newest endeavor, golf, I finally have an answer to “what do you do in your free time” other than “eat, then travel to new places to eat more.”
Clockwise from top left: Weekend hike at Alta, women’s downhill mountain biking clinic at Deer Valley; Nashville songwriter concert at Sundance Resort; sunset in paradise.
I still count food and travel as my top pastimes, but it’s been exciting and fulfilling to have new activities in the mix, even if I’m not particularly good at any of them yet (golf and mountain biking, I’m looking at you).
Annual blog retreat with some of the best: Sally’s Baking Addiction, Easy Chicken Recipes, Rachel Cooks, Spend with Pennies, Handle the Heat, Tastes Better from Scratch, and The Modern Proper.
I also hosted an annual retreat for some of the smartest, most successful food bloggers in the business.
These women are some of the very first creators I admired, and now we text. I still fangirl over them, because they are genuine, intelligent, kind, and we have the best time together.
Las Vegas
In case you missed my bubbling profession of love and declaration to let your freak flag fly, I went to the Backstreet Boys (yes, again) and had the TIME of my LIFE.
What the Backstreet Boys Taught Me About Joy
When was the last time you felt absolute, unbridled joy?
These unbelievably chic sweatpants and this flattering Spanx top are my new WFH uniform.
BEST JEANS EVER. I talk about these all the time—so comfortable I wear them on planes, lots of great colors, washes, and lengths, wide but not too wide, and above all, they make your booty look great. What is new: I got a discount code!!! Use WELLPLATED15 for 15% off at paige.com. Yes, these are expensive, but two pairs replaced 90% of my other jeans, and they last and last.
Watch for a timelapse of my sunrise alarm. You can set the sunrise duration (mine is 10 minutes).
Sunrise Alarm Clock. Other than said jeans, this is the other item I can’t seem to shut up about. Instead of a blaring noise, it mimics the sun’s rise with a gradually increasing light, which leaves me feeling less groggy and in a much better mood. It doubles as a sound machine, you can set evening wind-down routines, and the alarm options (which sound after the sunrise ends) are gentle. I get up about an hour before Ben, who does not use it, and it’s rarely been a problem.
Working to keep my makeup routine as simple as possible. This is no filter, wearing these products only.
French-Girl Bronze Balm. I’ve long admired that French “no makeup makeup” look, and this bronzer achieves it so well. It gives you a subtle sunkissed glow, contains zero glitter or shimmer, and you can apply it with your fingers. I’m no contour genius, and fortunately this is idiot proof. I wear color Seine, and the website has lots of tips to find the right shade.
Spanx Activewear. For the longest time, I only thought about Spanx for its shapewear, but their activewear line is so good. I’m normally a Lululemon girl, but I love that their pieces are more forgiving, flattering, and they are better lined so you don’t see every lump and bump. This top and skirt are my new fave golf outfit. This classy pullover has been a top Nordstrom Anniversary Sale pick among you all.
A delish dinner (grilled flank steak), but you know what it needs? Tomatoes and peaches!
I’m feeling criminally behind on my tomato and peach consumption.
I look forward to them all year, but other than a single pint of cherry tomatoes that I picked up at the grocery store (and subsequently ate like candy), I have yet to take advantage of either.
It feels like a travesty that it’s nearly August, and I have yet to let a BLT drip down my chin or pour heavy cream over my Grammy’s famous Peach Cobbler.
Do you have any favorite tomato or peach recipes? I’ve got to squeeze some in before Target replaces back to school with pumpkin! (I may already be too late…)
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Red Light Therapy Mask. My #1 skincare recommendation because IT WORKS. 10% off with WELLPLATED.
Microcurrent Device. The ZIIP Halo lifts and tightens your skin. It takes 5 minutes, and I see an immediate difference after use. 10% off with WELLPLATED.
Bras With Pads That Say in Place. I will sing the praises of this brand, which makes affordable, comfortable bras. 20% off with CLARKE20.
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This sounded lovely - i like how you structure these coffee talks
Those little MN and WI towns and friends with lake cabins and sitting around doing basically nothing was my childhood! Your travel schedule has seemed insane on stories and glad I wasn't just imagining it - it WAS insane. Bet you're glad to just exhale and stay put! Your retreat looked lovely and so many great women!