Guacamole Shake

May 6, 2011 By Laura

Wayyyy back in February my jaw was freshly broken and I was sad.

I couldn’t run, lift, skate… CHEW. Every time I moved my mouth, I could feel bones moving. It was creepy.

Looking back at my posts, I’m kind of proud of myself. On February 8th, I posted my goal race schedule. I wanted to do the Tough Mudder (4 weeks post-break!) and 3 5Ks by April 16th.

I tore up that 14.1 mile Tough Mudder March 12, then placed 2nd in my age group and set a PR 2 weeks later in the Miles for Smiles 5K.

Then I ran the Sweetwater 420 5K on April 16th… after walking 4 miles to the start line.

The next week I placed 2nd in my age group again and set another PR in the Beat the Street for Little Feet 5K! 24:13 was the official time. 🙂

I can’t believe that less than 4 months after the break, I have run the hardest race of my life (Tough Mudder) and shaved 3-4 mins off of my 5K time. How cool is that?!

Say what you will, but simply writing down goals has power. Even if you forget you did it until 4 months later.

I just realized I don’t have another 5K planned… maybe Memorial Day weekend? Anyone know of a good one? My May schedule has filled up FAST.

After making that Mexican Oatmeal yesterday in honor of Cinco de Mayo, I decided every meal should involve spice.

And tequila.

Kidding!!!

Lunch really was that scramble though.

A Me-Egg-ican Scramble:

Mexican Smartground (leftover from WIAW)
Egg whites
Shallots
Jalapenos
Kale
Pineapple
Salsa
Cumin, salt, and pepper

The pineapple was actually good in it! Think pineapple salsa.

Post-run snack was a protein shake.

Served in a pint glass and in the lovely shade of green. Like a margarita.

Topped with a crumbled Citrus-Spiked Granola Bar. (It freezes beautifully, btw.)

Guacamole Shake

1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1/4 frozen avocado
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 frozen kale
1/2 C unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp chili powder
Squeeze of fresh lime
water + ice, to taste

Put it in a blender, blend until smooth, and enjoy the thick, creamy deliciousness.

Then there was dinner. Grilled cheese night at Souper Jenny!

Jenny usually only opens for lunch and serves up soups, salads, and a couple of cold sandwiches. Her menu changes daily, so everything is fresh and creative.

Thursday nights she stays open late and features 2 grilled cheese selections. Tonight was a Cinco de Mayo special: Ham, Avocado and Mango with Monterey Jack on a Jalapeño Cheddar bun.

Grilled panini-style, this was a crispy, gooey Cinco de Mayo win.

So was the fro-yo I chased it with. 🙂

***

Happy Friday!!!

Do you write down your goals?

If so, do you notice a difference in achievement when you physically write them?

I’ll Have a Pint

May 3, 2011 By Laura

…of KOMBUCHA!

My crazy schedule has left me lacking in the grocery department. Thank god for frozen kale – otheriwse I’d be eating ~~normal-colored~~ non-green smoothies! 🙂

I’ve been without my beloved Kombucha since last Thursday. After pushing it with a looong (for me) run Sunday (and the travel, which always messes with my… ahem… digestion), I needed a stiff Kombucha to help my body chill out.

On my way to pick up my boss from the airport this morning, I remembered Lee telling my they have Buchi on tap at Whole ~~Paycheck~~ Foods. It was screaming my name.

Fire is my flavor of choice

My bosses know of my food-love and let me pick the dinner spots when we’re all in town. Tonight I chose Empire State South. A (very worthy) repeat for me, but new to them. Check out my brunch review here.

Tonight was another stand-out meal:

House Charcuterie – my fav was the Deviled Rabbit

Wild Ramps with warm mortadella, english peas, lemon

Blurry Strawberry Gazpacho with pickled shrimp

***Insert pretend picture of my entree: Riverview Pork Loin served with pickled WG tango celery, kale and spring onions***

Dessert barely survived long enough for a picture:

Fried Strawberry Pie with picked strawberry and buttermilk ice cream

This Strawberry Fried Pie was one of the best things I’ve eaten in a long time. The dough was more beignet-like than greasy fried pie. A crunchy sugar coating on the outside was perfectly balanced by the tang of the buttermilk ice cream and pickled strawberries. I’ll be dreaming about this for days.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Last night I cam across an article about the ideal percentage of carbs and protein for athletes in the Phidippidies (my favorite local running store) newsletter by Nancy Clark, MS RD CSSD.

Carb Tips:

Ingest 2.3-3.2 g of carbs per pound of body weight for 1 hour/day of moderate cardio exercise
During longer runs (1 – 2.5 hours), aim to take in 30 – 60 grams of carbs/hour (120 – 240 calories)
It takes the body 24-36 hours to replenish depleted glycogen stores post-exercise (assuming no running in that time)
For runners that struggle running with food on their stomach (me!), swishing a sports drink around in your mouth pre-run “This sends a message to the brain that energy is forthcoming and you’ll feel more energetic. Swishing can enhance performance by 2% to 3% if you are exercising on empty.”

Protein Tips:

In order to best develop muscle, athletes do need more than the 0.4g protein per 1 lb of body weight. Aim for 0.5 – 0.8 g protein per pound (if you’re trying for bulk you’ll need more… this is geared to runners!)
Eat 20 g of protein within 30 mins of weight/resistance work to maximize benefits. Don’t stop there though – “the highest rate of protein synthesis is 3 to 5 hours post-exercise”
They don’t necessarily recommend buying a whey protein supplement. Like any nutrient, it is best consumed in the course of a balanced diet… HOWEVER, many of us who eat a more plant-based diet may need a supplement. I’m holding fast to my morning post-workout protein shakes!

Read the full article here.

***

Do you pay attention of the carbs/protein you take in?

I recommend tracking your protein intake for at least a day. I was shocked to see I need about 20g more!

CSAs and Honky Tonks

May 2, 2011 By Laura

This weekend I went to Nashville for the first time. One of my friends from grad school, Julia, moved there after we graduated. Another friend from school, Katherine, and I jumped in the car and went for a fun-filled visit.

We arrived late Friday night and STARVING. Julia had pizza ready to go on the grill. It was my first time eating homemade grilled pizza and I loved every bite!

Grilled pizza with zucchini, squash, and mushrooms

Saturday morning we had a special treat – Julia took us to her local CSA for the weekly pick up.

Madison Creek Farms was a neat little farm filled with some of the most scrumptious-looking produce I’ve ever seen. The owner, Peggy Lynn Marchetti, was one cool lady – she is obviously passionate about the clean food she grows AND she farms in dangly earrings. Rock on.

Peggy also writes a blog! Check her out @ The Female Farmer.

I'd never seen peas on the plant before!

Lettuce so beautiful I wanted to roll in it. And eat it. In that order.

I'm ruined - I'll never be satisfied with Publix berries again.

My awesome friends - Katherine and Julia

Gorgeous flowers - does anyone know what kind it is?

________________________________________________________________________________

Local Mexican place, Baja Burrito, came highly recommended. It was just as good as advertised. If you go, don’t skip the pineapple salsa!

Chipolte chicken burrito in a bowl

We also did some very successful shopping. I found TWO new dresses!

All that hard work shopping deserved ice cream from a shop called Hot & Cold in Hillsboro Village. They sell Jeni’s Ice Cream, which is hands down the best ice cream I’ve ever had.

After the saint behind the counter patiently allowed me to sample every flavor, I settled on scoops of Bangkok Peanut (peanut butter and toasted coconut with cayenne pepper heat at the end – YUM) and Riesling Poached Pear (literally tasted and had the texture of a pear).

Note: Jeni’s can be found at various places around the U.S. In Atlanta, you can pick up a pint at Star Provisions.

________________________________________________________________________________

All that deliciousness didn’t ruin our appetite for dinner. Julia took us to one of her favorite places, Margot Cafe & Bar.

The menu changes daily based on what’s fresh, but it is always a French-Italian-style cuisine. I’m assuming it is always good… ’cause this was incredible.

The host seated us at a table right by the open kitchen. I was unnaturally excited.

That's Margot!

We split appetizers:

Warm olives with roasted fennel and oranges – the fact that the olives were served warm really set this off
Sugar snap peas with mint and ricotta salata – mint sauce with this was genius
Crunchy sourdough bread

The main was so incredible that I forgot to take a picture of my gorgeously prepared entree – a grilled artichoke stuffed with spinach and parmesan and served over basmati rice.

Dessert barely lived long enough to be pictured – a cheesecake with polenta crust and strawberries.

We finished up a little after 11p and hit the honky tonks.

Beer flight at Flying Saucer

Rockabilly band at Robert's

Keeping it classy, livin' the High Life

I may be little too old to close down a bar… but damn if it isn’t still fun every once in a while. 😉

The Sunday drive home went pretty quickly. Katherine and I drove together and I had fun quizzing her about her 5 marathons. She’s almost convinced me to try it.

At the very least she inspired me to come home and bust out this killer run:

Distance: 8 miles
Time: 1:07:20
Pace: 8:40

***

Thanks for a stellar weekend, Julia and Katherine!

How was your weekend? Did anyone else get shut down a bar? 🙂

Pre-Race Strategy

April 16, 2011 By Laura

This morning I had a grand plan to run 2 5Ks. Wellll… I pulled my hamstring last weekend, there was a crazy storm last night, and this week has been exhausting.

These are my excuses to keeping the 5Ks to a minimum today.

I was going to do the Georgia Tech Pi Mile and the Sweetwater 420 5K. One doesn’t start until 11a and has free beer at the end. Choosing between the two was the easiest thing I’ve done all week.

Without further ado, here is my pre-race strategy for a late, beer-promising 5K:

1. Eat a tasty dinner.

Yakatori leftovers. Mmmmm… carbs.

2. Have a chocolate protein shake.

Get your protein in the night before – too much the day-of can cause cramping.

In my shake:

1/2 dark chocolate EAS
1/2 scoop cookies ‘n cream protein powder
1/2 large banana
1/2 C kale (frozen)
1 tsp cinnamon
ice + water

3. Spend the evening writing a proposal for work and ordering free Bragg samples.

I love their Apple Cider Vinegar drinks too – Apple-Cinnamon is the best!

4. Wake up too early (stupid work programming me to be an early riser).

Post-storm sunrise

5. Drink coffee.

I know, I know… I drank 2 glasses of water too!

6. Devour Carrot Cake Overnight Oats (a la Oh She Glows).

You should make this. Double the recipe… you will want seconds.

My additions: nutmeg and ginger, topped with greek yogurt and pecans (icing!) rather than Angela’s muffins ~~(mine must be lost in the mail…)~~.

7. Blog about pre-race activities and catch up on some reading.

8. Race!!!

***

Good luck to everyone running this weekend! How did you all do?!

Is anyone else going to a festival?

Atlanta has at least 3 this weekend – Dogwood, Sweetwater 420, and Alpharetta Arts Fest!

Empire State South

April 15, 2011 By Laura

After complaining about the funk and then reading an inspirational post by Caitlin @ Healthy Tipping Point about Ellen, a very cool 73 year-old marathoner, I cranked out a run.

One of my favorite quotes from the interview: Remember, energy begets energy…and it’s contagious.

As per usual… I feel better.

Someone just kick my in the arse out the door next time, please!

Stats:

Distance: 4 miles

Time: 33:54

Pace: 8:36

_____________________________________________________________________________________

They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I agree… but brunch is certainly the most delicious meal of the day.

Especially if you can enjoy it at Empire State South (999 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA 30309, 404-541-1105).

I’ve visited for dinner twice. Although it was before I could chew much of anything (my order was an odd mix of sides), I highly recommended you eat every meal here (I live right down the street… danger!).

L to R: Kimchi Rice Grits, Brussels, Oyster Mushrooms with Bok Choy

The Kimchi Rice Grits are addicting.

Back to brunch.

I met a group for brunch at ESS last Saturday – this is a pretty food-oriented group and we were not disappointed.

I’m not a Bloody Mary fan, but I did sample the Caesar Bloody of someone in my party. It was made with clam & tomato Juice, worcestershire, olive brine, tabasco, black pepper, lemon. It was GOOD – to the point that I almost ordered one. Almost.

I drank a delicious cup of Brazilian coffee, made using the pour-over method. This method renders the freshest cup of coffee you will ever taste. I drank mine black.

As a starter we tried the pimento cheese with bacon marmalade. It was served in a little mason jar with a side of crisp toast. The chewy, candied bacon was a nice addition to the creamy pimento. I’m a big fan of the salty-sweet combination to being with. Add bacon and I’m over-the-moon.

Then came the mains.

If you’re in the mood for something light, don’t miss the Spring Farm Salad.

It consisted of farro, local lettuce, legumes, goat cheese, orange segments, carrots, cucumbers, English peas, and radishes. It was crunchy and full of flavor – more “toppings” than lettuce made it extra satisfying. It was drizzled with a balsamic reduction and a citrus vinaigrette (I ordered on the side). The vinaigrette was perfectly balanced with the sweet citrus, sea salt, and olive oil.

Another dining mate ordered the Pork Confit served over a Jalapeno & Bacon Biscuit with poached eggs, arugula, balsamic onion jam, hollandaise mousseline.

I did a little taste test and can vouch for its deliciousness – the confit was impossibly flavorful and juicy. Not over salted or greasy, as I have found to be the case around Atlanta lately. Sadly, he ate it before I got a pic.

Then there was the Special. OMG – it was special.

I wish I had written down the description, but from what I recall it was a: Pheasant Empanada with a green chili chow chow, poached egg, local lettuce, orange segments, and a balsamic reduction. Holy mother of deliciousness.

I’ve never been a big pheasant fan, but this couldn’t have been better. The empanada was flaky and light – not too greasy (as I find is often the case).

And they brought out a little dessert-snack. Some sort of peanut butter fudgy-toffee.

Just when I thought I couldn’t love them more…

If you’re in Atlanta and in need of brunch this Saturday/Sunday, ESS is worth the trip.

Reservations recommended – especially with the Dogwood Festival this weekend!

***

What is your favorite meal of the day? Is brunch a weekend must or a special treat?

Happy Friday!!!

Chocolate-Avocado Pudding

April 14, 2011 By Laura

This week has my nerves a bit frayed.

I’m in a funk.

I can’t shake this tired feeling. My banana muffins turned out salty. Stevie is turning into a terrorist. My photos aren’t loading properly on Flickr.

*Whine*

Tonight I got through half an hour of P90X Yoga and hit the stop button. Bah.

Funk = Comfort food.

So tonight I met a friend for some authentic tonkotsu ramen at Yakatori. It was sheer deliciousness.

Creamy, rich, pork-y broth. Fresh noodles. Crispy cabbage bites. Not too salty.

The service is friendly, the decor is simple, they don’t have forks, and most patrons are not native English-speakers. Awesome.

This isn’t microwave ramen – you will wait for your food. Totally worth it. They bring out crisp, sesame-coated green beans for you to snack on. If you’re in Atlanta (and you eat pork), it’s a must-try. Warning: they only serve the ramen at dinner.

Continuing the comfort food, I made chocolate pudding. With avocado.

If you don’t spill 1/2 the container of coconut butter (try cleaning that off the floor… epic FAIL), this literally takes just 2 mins to prepare.

You can’t taste the avocado – it only adds some good fat and creaminess. I swear. Crosses don’t count.

Mine – of course – included chili powder and cinnamon for a little Mexi-flare. You can leave out one or both of these, but I strongly urge you to at least try the cinnamon.

Did I mention it has 16g of protein?!

Chocolate-Coconut Pudding

1/2 avocado
2 T cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark)
2 T unsweetened coconut milk (I used So Delicious)
1 T almond butter
1 T maple syrup
1/2 T coconut oil
1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
1/2 packet Stevia
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp chili powder (optional… I like all my food spicy!)

Place everything in a blender and blend until smooth.

Devour.

***

Don’t cut your tongue licking the blades (that’s right… I deserve a Darwin Award.)

What is your favorite comfort food?

Does it change seasonally?

Full Week

April 13, 2011 By Laura

It’s Wednesday morning and already this week I:

1. Tried two new products

Close-to-locally made Kombucha

Buchi. Made in Asheville, N.C., purchased at Whole ~~Paycheck~~ Foods in ATL on Ponce.

It was good! Very authentic (read: vinegar-y), but if you’re already used to the taste of Kombucha you’ll probably like it.

Added bonus: it comes in a beer bottle. 😉

: Awesome taste. Awesome nutrients.

Omega-Rich Hummus with Walnuts & Flax. Kudos to you, Whole Foods. Has any one else seen this? I’ve never noticed it before.

I don’t eat seafood, so I’ll take all the non-fishy omegas I can get.

Warning: it is purple-ish. Not sure why.

2. Made (and eaten the h-e-double hockey sticks out of) granola

I love the hint of citrus in these

Callie @ Rawxy posted these Citrus-Spiked Granola Bars a couple of months ago.

I bookmarked them and FINALLY got around to making them. Don’t make my mistake. Make these now.

Delicious, filling, and only 4g of sugar!

My modifications:

Omitted the hemp seeds (didn’t have any)
Added zest of an additional (small) orange
Reduced dates to 2
Reduced Stevia to 1 packet

They were still sweet without the extra data/Stevia, but I do prefer my granola more nutty than sweet.

3. Flew to DC and back

While in DC, I ate at Big Buns.

No, I didn't buy a t-shirt.

It was surprisingly good. Sadly, I forgot a pic.

I had the grilled chicken (which was perfectly cooked) over field greens with grilled pineapple, sprouts, roasted red pepper, and sweet chili vinaigrette.

The big surprise was the room upgrade:

Penthouse suite!

View from the bedroom

Don’t worry – I refrained from taking a pic of the phone in the bathroom. 🙂

Thank you, Westin!

4. Hosted a Roundtable Discussion with my boss. No pics, but it went well. Aside from the jokers that didn’t show up.

5. Hit the Gym

I have been working out... but this is hilarious.

The gym was my second stop (after my house) upon landing in ATL tonight. Biceps and back + 100 stability ball crunches.

6. Cleaned the floor

Stevie didn’t successfully use the potty while I was away. Dammit.

7. Made a tasty dinner

This actually means I tried another new (to me) product – Quorn Turk’y Burger

Less than impressive pic, but it hit the spot

Hunger took over and I thawed the burger in the microwave. It still wasn’t bad, but I’d like to try it again in a grill pan or oven.

I threw together a quick salad:

Baby spinach
1/2 avocado
Raw asparagus (julienned)
Lemon juice
S+P
Greek-style yogurt, plain 2% (yep – more Atlanta Farm Fresh)
Garlic chili paste
Fresh ginger

I tossed the asparagus with a little lemon juice, salt, and pepper, adding it to a bed of spinach. That was topped with sliced avocado. On a whim, I mixed the yogurt with the chili paste and ginger (YUM – will do that again!), and drizzled it over the salad.

Check back tomorrow to see what I did with the other half of that avocado!

Hint: it involves dessert.

***

After this weekend and Monday/Tuesday, I feel like it should be Friday again! 🙂

Do you find you cram in more activities during the warmer months?

Speaking Up

March 22, 2011 By Laura

A friend and I recently had a delicious dinner at an Atlanta restaurant. While there, we noticed that the restaurant was beginning a Monday night dinner at their community table. 16 seatings, $35 for a “three-course, family style dinner featuring paired wine and beer.”

Before we even left the restaurant we made reservations for the community dinner, which took place last night. We included 2 others who had never been to this restaurant before, excitedly telling them about the place.

The dinner was supposed to begin at 7p. Apparently other parties were running late, so service was to begin late. ~~Mistake #1: Don’t make me wait for food!~~

The server offered drink menus, which we initially declined… but after another several minute wait we caved and ordered drinks. The server – clueless about the wine list – tried to tell me a Moscato d’Asti would be dry, btw.

By the time they arrived, the restaurant had decided to go ahead with the dinner. Fine… but that meant suddenly I had 2 full glasses of wine. It would have been nice if they’d warned us of their decision to begin the first course/pairing – I wouldn’t have ordered the wine. No biggie though… you know I drank both!

Unfortunately, that was just the beginning of the service problems.

Chef came out to introduce Course #1: a salad of frisée, asparagus, radishes, and pistachio encrusted goat cheese. Good. Nothing spectacular, but well-executed.

No one introduced the first wine pairing. When I asked the server what we were tasting, she had to go ask the bartender. (It was an Italian chardonnay.) She offered to write down the name. I accepted (very nice of her to offer)… but apparently she forgot and I never received the name card.

Course #2 was a duck confit served over a delicious white bean and ham mixture. The runners borough it out before we had plates. Upon receiving plates, we realized the family-style food had not come with serving utensils. We almost helped ourselves regardless. Luckily, the server appeared with tongs and spoons just in time (reaching over everyone to lay them on the table).

This course was never introduced. Unsure if the chef would be coming out again ~~after staring at the food for another several mins~~, my friend inquired as to whether we should wait to eat. With more than a touch of ‘tude, our server told my friend that she supposed she could go ahead if she didn’t want to wait for the chef. Welll… no one wanted to wait and it’s a good thing we didn’t since he never came out.

Of course, the wine was not introduced either. It was red and actually quite good. That’s all I know.

As mentioned above, the beans with ham was delicious. The duck confit notsomuch. I don’t know how, but it was dry. ~~Not that anyone asked me how my meal was.~~

Course #3 was a dessert course. We were brought key lime pie squares topped with a toasted marshmallow. ~~The marshmallow was the best part.~~

Ok. When you attend a “three-course, family style dinner featuring paired wine and beer”… do you not infer that each course has a pairing?

No pairing. When I asked our server about it, she said she would have to check. When she returned, she unapologeticlly informed me a pairing was not included because if they did that they would be losing money. Super. Excuse me for asking.

At this point I’m really unhappy with the way the night has gone. My dining companions (my friends and the others around the community table) were also disappointed. So I said something.

The chef came out to address the issue with me. I – very nicely – mentioned the short-comings and the sub-par service.

They comped our meal – NOT my goal – asking that we pay for drinks and tip the server.

Then they apologized for my misunderstanding of what the dinner would be. Uh-huh.

It’s unlikely I’ll return. Not because the food was so-so (my first trip was quite good) or because of a “misunderstanding” (I get that they’re new and appreciate the meal being comped). No, I won’t go back because of the poor service and being made to feel like anything unsatisfactory was my fault.

In the end, restaurants are in the service business. If you don’t deliver quality service at a higher-end establishment, I’ll not be spending my time or money there. There are too many fantastic places to eat in Atlanta.

On a happy note, we met some awesome people through the community seating format. We hope to dine with that crew again soon!

The other issue was that it wasn’t enough food. So I made a pit stop on the way home.

Shameless WaHo love

***

Due to a misunderstanding with my computer, I can’t post the cookie recipe I had planned this morning… so that’s coming tonight. ~~I’ll give you the recipe free-of-charge if you promise to tip though!~~

Since I can’t have a photo-less post and I do like to share good finds…

My friend and softball teammate Kelly made the carrot cake for the wedding shower. Literally everyone was raving about it. I’m going to beg her for the recipe.

Kelly, please open a bakery

I may have told my mother this is the best carrot cake I’ve ever had… sorry, Mom.

I want this for lunch

***

I feel a little bad about the restaurant comping our meals…

Have you ever been made to feel like poor service was your fault?

Do you speak up or just let it go?

Guacamole Shake

A Me-Egg-ican Scramble:

Guacamole Shake

I’ll Have a Pint

CSAs and Honky Tonks

Pre-Race Strategy

Empire State South

Chocolate-Avocado Pudding

Chocolate-Coconut Pudding

Full Week

Speaking Up

Follow Me!

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