Butter and Push-Up Grips

Friday night, Kevin brought me two just-because gifts.  The best kind.

Push-Up Grips since my wrists always hurt during our P90 workouts.

And KerryGold Pure Irish Butter because i always eye it up at the grocery store.  I think these items even each other out perfectly. 


We were planning on a run Saturday morning, so we stayed in a made a nice dinner of fish (tuna and salmon), asparagus, and risotto.  I made my first risotto and it was so easy!

It was also straight out of a box!  This Butternut Squash Risotto was flavorful and super simple to make.  We ended up chopping some of the asparagus to mix into the risotto.

Healthy and filling dinner.  


Soooo, Kevin and I started P90x over again.  We had gotten too far off track to keep moving forward and figured it would be best if we just start over.  The past two weeks, we have been getting up at 5am and completing the workouts before work.  It has been brutal since I am not a morning person.  But, we have stayed consistent and the early wake-up call is getting easier.  We are ready to kick off week 3 tomorrow.


I have not been running as frequently, but felt surprisingly OK during our 6 mile run on Saturday morning.  I do have to keep up with the running since the Washington's Birthday Marathon Relay had to be postponed to March 28th due to the snow.  That reminds me that I need to post my 2010 Race Calendar. 

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Turkey Meatballs over Baked Polenta

Last night I made Giada's Marinara Sauce and tonight my goal was to make her Turkey Meatballs.

I picked up the biggest bag of parsley yesterday.

I started out placing everything in the mixing bowl in hopes I could achieve one of those cool cookbook pictures where all the ingredients are separated.  Then I added the egg.  Oops.

I added the ground turkey and mixed for a short time before forming (what felt like a million) mini meatballs and placing on parchment paper.

Pre-made polenta from Trader Joes was sliced and seasoned with EVOO, salt & pepper before baking in the oven for about 20 mins at 375 degrees.  Flipped once.

After cooking the meatballs, it was time to re-heat the marinara.  Giada's marinara is so thick and hearty - I love it.

I have a very good helper in the kitchen each night that I cook.

Not sure if anyone else has one of those annoying spaces between the oven and the counter top, but I swear it sucks things down there.

Luckily, my helper likes to keep things clean.  

I really don't understand how he squeezes his body in this space.

But I appreciate his help.  

Giada's turkey meatballs and marinara over Trader Joes polenta came out fantastic.

Topped with a little grated Romano and fresh basil.

I think I achieved a slightly healthier version of my Tomato Palace favorite starter - Meatballs and Polenta.


Enjoy the rest of your night!

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Clean Bill of Health

I am happy to report that my computer has a clean bill of health.  I want to share some of the pictures I have snapped over the holidays and into the new year.

The best oatmeal raisin cookies ever.  Once I steal the recipe from my mom, I will be sure to post.

No room in the fridge or freezer?  No problem.  A pile of snow acts as a perfect cooler for wine and grapefruit vodka.

I took this shot at my parent's house and thought the icicles on the bench looked cool.

On New Years Eve, Kevin and I stayed in and celebrated with cheese and wine.

We also made a delicious dinner of spinach salad, seared white sea bass, carrot/parsnip mash, topped with crispy pancetta.  We had picked up the fish from Frank's Seafood in Jessup, MD earlier that day.

For the spinach salad, we used this great "Powerhouse Salad Kit" from Trader Joes.  Spinach, dried blueberries, dried cherries, dried edamame, walnuts, and a blueberry cherry vinaigrette.

We added a little crumbled goat cheese because thats how we roll.

The powerful Vitamix whipped the carrot/parsnip mix until it was silky smooth.  That thing is no joke.  Love it.

Some other good eats over the past few days...Salad with grilled BBQ shrimp.

Real Simple's Slow Cooker Cuban Braised Beef and Peppers served over Basmati Rice with sliced avocado.

Off to watch the rest of 24.  Enjoy the rest of your Sunday night!

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Pecan Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken

Last night, I made dinner!  and I photographed it!  and now I am about to blog about it!  It feels like it has been awhile.

I am in the mode where I want to use up everything in the house before I go grocery shopping again.  I spent too much money on groceries because I tend to always crave something I dont have on hand.  In the bowl above, I combined:

• Goat Cheese
• Chopped Pecans
• Chopped Parsley
• Thyme
• Garlic Powder
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 Tablespoon Melted Butter

Then, I spread the goat cheese mixture on Thinly Sliced Boneless Chicken Breasts and rolled them up.  I kept them from falling apart by using Skewers that I cut in half.

Rub the chicken with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and spinkle with Salt and Pepper before popping into the oven at 350 degrees.  How long?  Until they look done, so maybe about 15-20 mins.

Meanwhile, I needed an appetizer.  I used the Nature's Pride 100% Whole Wheat Bread that Foodbuzz was kind enough to send me to sample.

Then, I grabbed the Garlic Spread that Kevin had picked up from DiPasquales last week.

Toast up the bread, spread with garlic spread, top with tomato sauce and grated romano.  Throw back in the toaster oven and Voila...

You have yourself a pretty tasty appetizer.  And the bread?  It ranks up there for wheat bread.  I loved the way it toasted - crispy on the edges and soft in the middle.  Kevin was busy chopping veggies for our side dishes with Oscar close by.

Oscar knows who the softy is...AND who makes more of a mess drops more food on the floor! ;)

Looks like the chicken is done.

It turned out great.  The only thing that would have made it even better is if it was wrapped in Turkey Bacon.  Kevin made two side dishes in an effort to use up C.S.A. veggies.  Steamed brussels sprouts in an apple cider vinegar/garlic sauce and...

Sauteed zucchini, yellow squash, and onions topped with asiago cheese.

Yummm.

This saturday is the Baltimore Half Marathon and I am excited about running.  My Half Marathon PR is 2:04 and while I havent been training for "speed" (my speed may be someone else's easy/slow pace), I would love to beat my time.  But, I will be happy with anything under 2:10.

Dont forget to vote for me in the Baltimore Mobbies contest - it ends tomorrow!

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Tacos, Tomatoes & the Twitter Train

After a long day at work, I was in need of a tough workout, but wasn't motivated enough to go to the gym. I decided on Jillian Michaels "Quick" No Trouble Zones which is still 40 mins. In my mind, "quick" is 5 mins, but 5 mins probably wont make my trouble zones go away.


While I was working up a ridiculous sweat in the living room, Kevin was concocting a delicious dinner.
Steamed corn tortillas filled with:

• Chipotle Black Beans (can of black beans with chipotle hot sauce)
• Seasoned Ground Turkey (ground turkey, garlic, can of diced tomatoes, adobo seasoning, cumin, & chalula hot sauce)
• Cheese (medium sharp cheddar cheese, to be exact)

They were absolutely delicious and I was OK without any green for dinner since I had a big salad with veggies for lunch.

Wait - we did have a little green in the form of basil. Some of my CSA goods were ready to be eaten: One very ripe tomato + fresh basil + drizzle of ITALIAN extra virgin olive oil + Balsamic Vinegar + Sea Salt to taste. Yes, I said Italian EVOO - the real stuff - delivered to me from Italy - via my friend, Mara's suitcase.
It tastes waaaay better than the stuff I had, so I have been using it very sparingly to make it last as long as possible.

So, I have a problem that has resurfaced since I started working again - I am STARVING when I get home from work. Like, I cant talk to anyone or I might bite their head off - literally. I feel like I may have asked this question before, but I want to hear your answers again.

What is your GO-TO after work/school snack?

Mine has been Stacy's Naked Pita Chips...

dipped in original tahini hommus. (which is it? hUmmus or hOmmus?)

It does the trick for me, but I have been known to eat too much and then feel it during my workout. A spoonful of almond butter is my other post-work, pre-run snack.

For all of you on the twitter train - I am ON, but just started tweeting more regularly as of late. Is that the right way to say it? Tweeting? I am not up on the lingo. My sister actually got me on awhile back when she was going on a trip - and was posting status along the way. I also followed my cousin whose wife just had a baby and we got updates throughout the labor. Pretty cool.

Have a great night all!

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DNS #2

Here comes my little confession - I had my second DNS this weekend. (DNS stands for "Did Not Start".) This weekend was the EX2 Off-Road Duathlon out in Rocky Gap and I didn't even attempt to make it to the race. I canceled my hotel while on vacation at the beach a week or so back knowing I wasn't going to do it.


Why didn't I make it? Well, I have a list of excuses a mile long, but when it comes down to it - I just wasn't motivated to train properly. It didn't help that I had 3 weddings 3 weekends in June and then a 10 day vacation to the beach. But, if I had really wanted to train - I could have made time, especially since I wasn't working during the month of June. Looking back, I am wondering what I did with all my time.


I have always had structure in the form of school, sports, work, etc. So, when I didn't have anything to do - I just couldn't get much accomplished. Interesting, I guess.


Oh and I had my first DNS last year for the exact same venue, except I was signed up for the Off-Road Triathlon. Hmmm. I guess this race and I are not meant to be.


Anyone else have a DNS (or two) under their belt?


Instead of competing in the duathlon, Kevin and I took Oscar for a walk/hike/swim in Patapsco State Park.Oscar followed Kevin around as they explored the river.
Once Kevin got too far out, Oscar would swim back to me.
The water was cool and refreshing.
Kevin found a live snail that was pretty cool to see. I took some pictures of the scenery.This was a neat pathway leading to another trail.
Overall, it was a great way to spend a Sunday...since I couldn't make the duathlon. ;)


Tonight (Monday) after work, Kevin and I started out on a 40 min run. It was hot and humid and the sun was beating down on us. We both felt like it wasn't in the cards for the night. Instead of giving up completely - we ran a little under a mile down to the soccer field near our house - all down hill.


I led us through the following workout, trying to stay in the shade:

• 5 sets of 20 yard sprints, jogging back to start, so there was no rest.
• 10 squat jumps to touch the top of the goal
• 10 burpees
• 15 push-ups
• 15 sit-ups
  
• lap around the soccer field, sprint the end lines, jog the sidelines
• 20 walking lunges
• 10 squat jumps to touch the top of the goal
  
• lap around the soccer field, sprint the end lines, jog the sidelines
• 10 burpees
• 15 push-ups
• 15 sit-ups
  

Then, we ran up the hill, back home. It was a tough workout that was SO much more fun than just running.


Dinner was sauteed shrimp w/ onions and Adobo seasoning (the BEST), corn on the cob w/ butter salt & pepper, and roasted brussels. It hit the spot.
Good night everyone!

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