Author Archives: Bob Vivant

About Bob Vivant

I'm a writer, recipe developer, and photographer. I write about food and human nature and the curious intersection of the two. After collecting a few degrees and nurturing an unsatisfying, 15-year love affair with corporate America, I chose a new path, one that would allow my passions for writing and all things food to flourish. My cooking focuses on whole grains and fresh (local!) ingredients with a few naughty bites thrown in for good measure. Chocolate truffle cake anyone? I believe that recipes are mere guidelines, and food rules are made to be broken. I strive to make cooking more approachable for those who say, “I don’t have time,” “I don’t know how,” or “I just didn’t eat those things as a kid.” Anyone can make pizza from scratch and fast and easy doesn’t have to mean processed. I'm committed to changing the way people think about the food they eat – one bite at a time.

Courting Our First Swarm

Posted on May 24, 2012

“Baby come back Any kind of fool could see There was something in everything about you Baby come back You can blame it all on me” ~ Hall and Oats, Baby Come Back As I type this, thousands upon thousands … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Chicago, Events, News | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Our First Ever Spring Hive Check

Posted on April 18, 2012

It’s often said that the more you know, the more you know you don’t know. This rings true for us every time we open our hive and even when we’re just sitting nearby watching with wonderment. Though we’re entering our … Continue reading →

Posted in Basics, Beekeeping, Chicago | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Winter Beard

Posted on March 27, 2012

Our little blog has been dormant for months, but our mighty hive is alive and kicking. Early last September we harvested over twenty pounds of honey, a 225% increase from our first-ever harvest in 2010. We were surprised by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Chicago, History, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Do As He Says, Not As He Does

Posted on July 28, 2011

Sunday night. It’s hot. We’re tired. Our bodies are rebelling against us after a six hour road trip. The sun is setting, and our bees are settling in for the evening. We wanted to curl up with a slice of … Continue reading →

Posted in Basics, Events, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

A Little Tough Love at the Hive

Posted on July 22, 2011

When we picked up our new bees in late May, Bob the Beeman from Kress Apiary handed us a clear plastic packet containing something that resembled refrigerated pie dough. In fact it contained two formic acid strips. On an earlier … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Resources, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

With a New Colony Comes New Lessons

Posted on July 8, 2011

When our first colony of bees died this spring, we knew almost immediately that we would start again with a new colony. Though we’d only been at it for a year, we loved beekeeping too much to simply throw in … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping | Tagged | 4 Comments

Our First Colony: The Final Chapter

Posted on June 13, 2011

How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. ~ Carol Sobieski and Thomas Meehan, Annie It’s been two months since we lost our hive. Though I’ve always believed that something good can spring from even … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Uncategorized | Tagged | 6 Comments

Unsolved Mystery: What Happened to Our Bees?

Posted on April 12, 2011

Our first year as urban beekeepers ended on a sad note: we lost the entire colony. On a recent, warm spring day we opened the silent hive in search of answers. Our investigation was inconclusive, but we ruled out starvation.

Posted in Beekeeping, News | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments