Tameeka Eats 2020 - Black Owned Business Holiday Gift Guide

2020 is coming to an end and Christmas is right around the corner (literally in 10 days away).

If you are anything like me, you’ve just started shopping for friends and family.

I know..I know.. why did I wait so long!? I think it’s the rush of ordering that gives me a thrill.

I can’t really explain it but if you are like me I decided to put together a small gift guide that’s near and dear to my heart for 2 reasons. The first reason is… I have all of these items in my home already. These are things I love and I use/wear. And secondly, these are all items created by black owned businesses (the majority are black-women based).

Check out the direct links below to the items on the grid and get to shopping!

1. Boss Blend Coffee - Coffee has definitely become a staple in my home during quarantine / working from home since March. Any one of these coffees will make a great holiday gift for a friend, co-worker, or loved one!

2. Bassy Collection - This is one of my favorite fashion online stores to shop at. I LOVE this anchor logo beanie. I also have a black washable canvas face mask and a dope WORTHY sweatshirt from Bassy Collection.

3. BGLH Marketplace - The sandalwood and bergamot blended butter has been keeping my skin moisturized during these cold months. Even-though a lot of us are in the house working there’s still no need for being ashy. Get you some of these blended butters.

4. YGN (You Go Natural) - The wrap I ordered was the Noir - T-Shirt Bun Wrap. I love this because the wrap already comes knotted and has a satin interior to keep your hair from breaking.

5. Love Leone - During the summer I kept seeing these really beautiful body candles and I came across an IG page that featured the same candles but in brown skin. I immediately had to order one and I absolutely love the way it looks in the living room and I can’t wait to burn it. The candle I ordered was the Les Corps.

6. McBride Sisters - Since the summer I’ve been enjoying the Black Girl Magic wine series by the McBride Sisters. These wines make the perfect gift for any celebration. In my home we have plenty of the Black Girl Magic Red Blend and the Black Girl Magic Rosé.

7. Eat Fab Shop Fab - I’m a big fan of Christopher. Her menus and fab t-shirts are all so dope, I want them ALL. I purchased the Rosé Only t-shirt and I’m about to order the Whiskey Only t-shirt next.

8. Plant Bae Collective - Quarantine has definitely ramped up the amount of plants we have at home. It adds so much beauty to our apartment and we are actually home to take care of them more than before. My plant-connect is the Plant Bae Collective and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Check out the instagram page and hit them up with questions and to see what’s available for ordering.

   I hope you enjoyed this little list and if you’ve ordered any of the items below let me know what you think of them in the comments section. Happy Holidays! xoxo

Top 10 Podcasts To Listen To While Quarantined

I’ve been listening to podcasts since 2007.

It’s a great way to learn about people. Connect with others. Hear another opinion from yours. Learn about yourself and so much more.

When I started listening to podcasts, I gravitated towards comedy shows. I still listen to a lot of comedy podcasts but I’ve grown a bit and started focusing more on black based podcasts.

There are millions of podcasts to listen to and it’s all FREE. I tend to listen to podcasts using Spotify but before that I strictly used iTunes. If you do not prefer to use those two options you can always use Soundcloud, Podomatic, Google Podcast, and Stitcher.

Here’s a list of the podcasts I listen to on a weekly basis. Especially now that I’m working from home. I listen to my favorite podcasts while cooking, while flipping through magazines, taking bubble baths, or driving to the grocery store.

10. Hidden Brain > Science > Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.

9. Food Bloggers Pro Podcast > Food + Blogging > We interview successful food bloggers and industry experts in an effort to surface strategies that can help you more efficiently grow and monetize your site. You'll learn about recipe SEO, food photography, plugins, monetization, traffic, and more. New episodes every Tuesday!

8. Dead Ass with K&D > Relationships > LOVE, SEX, MARRIAGE and everything in between! Each week Khadeen & Devale Ellis spread love the Brooklyn way.

7. The Splendid Table > Cooking > The Splendid Table frequently visits with the test cooks at America's Test Kitchen to discuss a wide range of topics including recipes, ingredients, techniques and kitchen equipment.

6. Sibling Rivalry > Comedy/Drag Queens > Monét X Change and Bob The Drag Queen are not actually siblings but they are the intensely hilarious comedy duo with infectious chemistry behind the hit podcast Sibling Rivalry. 

5. Ratchet & Respectable > Entertainment > Demetria L. Lucas, cultural critic muses on pop culture shenanigans, dating and relationships mishaps, everything worth watching on any size screen and occasionally, the hilarious (mis)adventures of being "single" for the second time around.

4. Jesus & Jollof > Comedy > Jesus and Jollof is a podcast featuring Luvvie Ajayi and Yvonne Orji, two proudly Nigerian women (who have no behavior) talking about the things they love, their stories, and life in general. Why “Jesus and Jollof?” Those are the two things they cannot do without. Besides, the other option was “2 Goat Queens.”

3. The Friend Zone > Wellness + Entertainment > Listen along every Wednesday as Dustin Ross, HeyFranHey & Assante explore mental health, mental wealth and mental hygiene, because who in the hell wants a musty brain?

2. Bodega Boys > Comedy > Comedians Desus Nice (@Desusnice) and The Kid Mero (@thekidmero) are the Bodega Boys 

1. The Read > Comedy > Join Kid Fury and Crissle for their weekly podcast covering hip-hop and pop culture's most trying stars. Throwing shade and spilling tea with a flippant and humorous attitude, no star is safe from Fury and Crissle unless their name is Beyoncé. (Or Blue Ivy.)

Comment below, do you listen to these podcasts or do you have suggestions for me! Sound off in the comments!

Living Healthier: Tameeka Eat's Top 5 Juice Mixes

It's been a few months since I've made the change and stopped drinking processed chemical  "juice" sold by supermarkets (and everywhere else). I decided to give juicing a try and make my own juice from my favorite fruits and veggies. Before quarantine, I hosted a few people over the apartment and had to run out to get some breakfast/brunch items and one request was to pick up a bottle of orange juice.

While at the grocery store, I hit the wall of different kinds of orange "drinks". It contained popular brands like Tropicana, Minute Maid, Simply Orange, and Florida's Natural. I pulled out my phone and started quickly googling (I’m sure holding up space) what’s in these cartons. It’s all full of high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, sucralose, acesulfame potassium, artificial flavors/colors, sodium citrate, modified cornstarch, cellulose gum, sodium hexametaphosphate, and sodium benzoate.  I'm sure I'm missing some chemicals but these are the few that are on the bottle labels. *The links above take you to sites describing the side effects of each of these chemicals. 

According to Dictionary.com “juice” is: the natural fluid, fluid content, or liquid part that can be extracted from a plant or one of its parts, especially of a fruit.

I did not notice any corn syrup or artificial colors in the definition above.

In the grocery store, I stood at this wall and noticed my stomach turning at the thought of drinking nothing but dyes and chemicals. I tried my best to pick a "natural" drink or something more reliable and in the back of my mind I  kept thinking "I should just buy a few bags of oranges and make juice". But there was no time and I had already kept everyone waiting so I picked minute maid (I think). I can't even remember. I rushed back so I could cook and serve at a decent time.

This experience made me think about my (and the fiancés) health, what we consume on a daily basis. Even if it's something as small as drinking juice. A small change goes a long way. I'm now getting into reading more juicing blogs and finding out all of the health benefits juicing has to offer.

I put together my top (5) juice mixtures I’ve tested so far . While creating these drinks I did not pay attention to how many fruits or vegetables were put into the drinks (my bad). I will next time but for the time being here are the mixes I enjoy.

#5 "Green-a-Loupe"  (like cantaloupe)
Pear / Orange / Lemon / Lime / Green grapes / Cantaloupe 

#4 "Pink Drink" 
Orange / Pineapple / Green Apple / Watermelon 

#3 "Veggie Combo" 
Green apple / Beet / Pear / Lemon / Cucumber / Carrot / Ginger / Ginseng / Wheat grass 
Note: Use very little ginger in this mix

#2 "OJC" 
Orange / Carrot

#1 "Citrus Fun" 
Grapefruit / Lemon / Green apple / Lime 

There's my list. As you can see I'm a huge fan of grapefruit. I love it and never realized mixing apples with it would be so yummy.

All 5 juices are to die (not dye) for and are packed with nutrients. As I mentioned in my note on the Veggie Combo juice, only use a small amount of ginger for this juice. Ginger is very spicy and you don't want to ruin what you've just made.

Use glass jars to store juices and try to drink them 1-2 days after juicing the fruits and veggies.

Also, use the wheat grass in moderation. I've been told that drinking 1 or 2 ounces of wheat grass juice a day should be your limit.

Out of the top 5 juices which would you want to try? Leave a comment below.