Sprint 2 the Table

Appetites and Adventures

Any Excuse to Party

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My family loves a party.

To say the least.

Last Saturday would have been my dad’s 59th birthday.  I froze him in my head at 52… it’s weird to think he would have been almost 60 this year.  It may seem weird to some people, but we decided to have a little party in his honor with some close good family friends.

My dad loved people.  He also loved good food and good wine.  We made sure all were present!  We laid out snacks while prepping the grilled goods.  Cheese, crackers, soppressata, grapes, and figs:

Cheese plate… 

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Merry Monday

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Christmas ends so quickly!

So does the dessert.

I took a nice, long blog break last week to enjoy the time with my family.  It was great to take some rest… but I was excited to come back and share, and to read everyone else’s recaps!  Is anyone else still full? 😉

Our Christmas Eve was a little different this year – we went out to dinner!  That was fun, but the best part was our tradition of sharing dessert and drinks at home with some family friends.  I make something different every year.  This year was chocolate-hazelnut martinis and an amazing Sweet & Salty Chocolate Guinness Pie topped with marshmallow meringue.

Sweet & Salty Chocolate Guinness Pie

I followed this recipe, with a few adjustments.  I halved everything to make just 1 pie.  Instead of graham crackers I mixed pretzels with ginger snaps in the crust.  I also made a simpler meringue.  Rather than doing it over heat, beat the egg whites into a fluff and slowly added sugar to keep it light. Then, I melted the marshmallows in the microwave before adding them in.  I skipped the Guinness reduction and in favor of bourbon extract.

That meringue was insanely good… I must say this is one of the best desserts to date!

 

Christmas morning was a sure sign we are all grown up – after a late night, we slept until 9am and no one touched a present until almost 10:30!  This is unheard of in my family.

It gave me time to take some pictures of my favorite ornaments.  The one on the bottom right was my great grandmother’s!

Christmas ornaments

French press coffee in hand and fire built, we dug into the bounty.  Even Honey (the dog) waited patiently for her turn to explore her stocking.

Mom out did herself, as always.  We are lucky girls!  I got a ton of clothes, a pizza stone, new towels (my only request – another sure sign of being an adult!), some cool glass bottles, make-up, chocolates… and bacon duct tape.  Wouldn’t it be awesome if it was scratch ‘n sniff tape?!

Presents

Brunch is the big-deal meal in my family.  So is taking pictures of everything we eat.

Mom staged a shot of the sparkling wine and ambrosia:

One of our most-loved traditions is the champagne brunch.  I brought a bottle of sparkling from my Napa trip – a Schramsberg Brut Rosé.

It went well with our smorgasbord.  We had ambrosia, Italian sausage and cabbage saute, local bacon, toast, scrambled eggs, mâché (greens), and mushrooms (so good sautéed in bacon remnants and fresh rosemary).

Christmas champagne brunch

Then we lounged.  We Skyped my other sister in Portland.  I napped.  I never nap… bacon and sparkling are to blame!  😉

But we aren’t total lushes couch potatoes.  A few hours later we took Honey for a 3 mile walk by the river.  It’s pretty close to where my dad is buried, so we made a pit stop to say hi.  Honey jumped right up on the bench there to say hi.  It was really sweet.  And really cold… we hauled it back home for hot tea and to begin dinner.

Honey

Dinner was another tradition – my friend Ben and his partner came over.  Ben makes the best chocolate-coated toffee I have ever had, and every year he comes over for a meal and to deliver a bag of crack toffee.  We snacked on a cheese plate, enjoyed some wine, and prepared dinner.

Mom helped me to roast my first whole chicken.  It turned out really well!  We ate that with a spaghetti squash and bacon creation and a salad.  And more wine.  (Read: we slept in again.)

Christmas Dinner

This marvelous Christmas deserves a link up over at Katie’s MIMM!

***

I’m prepping for a NYE pairing dinner I’m co-hosting… and then I must admit I’m excited to get back on the clean eating train.

What is the big holiday meal in your family?

What was the best gift Santa brought you this year?

Low-Fat Peanut Almond Butter

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I’m terrible at making nut butter.  

Does that get me kicked out of the blog world?  The only one I’ve ever successfully made was a Spiced Almond Butter.

Until today.  I found a workaround.

One my training diet, I can’t have a ton of fats.  However, I do get to have a handful of almonds or seeds each day.  I’m forever searching for a way to maximize the nutty deliciousness.  What can I say – I’m a volume eater.

With this low-fat peanut almond butter, I can have a heaping 2 tablespoons of the good stuff.  I’ve been taking full advantage – smearing it on toast, stirring it into Greek yogurt, dipping apple slices in it… name your favorite way to eat peanut butter and this is a worthy sub!

For a protein-filled breakfast, I slathered it on a piece of P28 high protein bread and topped it with fresh peaches.

The true test was when I craved it on a cheat day.  On a day when anything goes, I still slathered a piece of toasted bread with this butter and happily snacked away.  Of course, that “bread” was a slice of chocolate pound cake. 😉

Recipe at the bottom, after a quick, unrelated review…

You may have seen Energy Bits reviews floating around the blogs lately.  At 64% protein, I REALLY wanted these to live up to the hype.

Spirulina has been gaining popularity lately.  These bits are made from 100% organic spirulina algae.  It’s super high in protein, low in calories, and will supposedly “boost your athletic performance, supercharge your run or crank up your endurance while working or working out.“

Sounds almost too good to be true, right?

Well…. it was for me.  I didn’t notice the slightest difference.

Ideally you are supposed to chew them.  I tried one and nearly gagged, so I opted to swallow the rest.  I waited a good 45 mins to let it hit my system before working out, but no dice.  Maybe they’d work if you took them more consistently?

I received these at no charge through the Fitfluential Ambassador  program.  This is my honest opinion.  I wanted to like them… but I can’t see spending $115 on this product.  Thank you to the Energy Bits crew for allowing me to sample the product!

Low-Fat Peanut Almond Butter

  • 1/4 cup almond flour
  • 3 T peanut flour
  • 1/4 cup almond milk
  • 6 drops vanilla liquid stevia
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Mix nut flours and almond milk until combined.  You may adjust liquids to desired consistency.  If too thin, place the mix in the fridge to thicken. Add sweetener and cinnamon, if desired.

Makes ~8T.

Approximate Nutritionals (per tablespoon): 32 calories, 2.2g fat, 5.6g sodium, 1.6g carbohydrates, 0.8g fiber, 0.3g sugar, 2.3g protein

***

Today my dad would have turned 57.  It’s hard to believe he’s been gone 4 years… but he is forever my inspiration.  Happy Birthday, Daddy.

“Death ends a life, not a relationship.” – Mitch Albom

Are you a successful nut butter maker? (Sarah, you can’t answer, #nuttybutter )

What is your favorite nut butter pairing?

Simply Happy Its Friday

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It’s a hard day to be appreciative.

Today marks 4 years since we lost my dad to cancer.  It seems the perfect time to focus on things that make me happy, especially since my dad always made me smile.

I’m copying a billion other bloggers completing the A-Z Simple Things That Make Me Happy quiz.

 

A – Antennas.  I’m busy and cheap.  That has equated to me not having cable for nearly 3 years.  I did invest $20 in an antenna so I can watch the basics (ABC, NBC, etc.), and that keeps me satisfied.

B –  Baseball.  I love baseball, even when my team can’t consistently beat the Cubs.  What’s up, Braves?!

C – Chocolate.  Need I say more?

D – Dad.  Anyone who tells you the pain of losing a parent will get easier is a liar.  However, I am grateful every day that I had such a great man in my life for nearly 26 years.  I couldn’t have asked for a better role model and coach.

At The Cloister @ Sea Island for Father’s Day years ago. He’d probably kill me for posting a pic of him in a robe… bwhahaha!

E – ESP.  Maybe not in the crazy sense, but the sort that just nudges you to go left instead of right.  Those times you look back on and thank god some inexplicable pull made you chose path A over B.

F – Food.  I love food.  Creating it, looking at it, eating it.  Food is the shit.

G – Goose & Fox.  It’s my sister and her boyfriend’s band and they make me smile.  They are really good!  I’m not just saying that because she’s my sister.

H – Hair Stylist.  I love mine.  Her name is Karen.  I’ve been going to her since I was 15.  I’d drive an hour to go see my friend and get my hair rocked.

I – Internet.  I vaguely remember going to the yellow pages for the pizza delivery number… weird.

J – Juice Plus.  It’s the supplement I take everyday and I swear I haven’t gotten sick since I started using these rather than regular multi-vitamins.

K – Kombucha.  It’s no secret I’m in love with the stuff.  Good for the digestion, if you know what I mean.

L – Legs.  I’m grateful that I have 2 strong legs that carry me wherever I want to go.

M – Music.  It can evoke emotion in me faster than anything else – smiles, laughter, or choked up with tears.

N – No Limits.  The only thing holding you back is you.  Once you own that, you can do anything.

O – Oatmeal.  Arguably the most versatile food.  It can be sweet, savory, spicy… you can blend it in smoothies, turn it into flour, cook it in your eggs.  In the words of the Texas Pete lady, “I put that shit on everything.”

P –  Protein Shakes.  Without them, I would NEVER be able to get the 150g pf protein a day that I need while training.  And you can easily funk them up like I did with this Zucchini Bread Smoothie.

Q – Quality Time.  We are pulled in some many directions, it’s nice to be able to take time to relax and really talk to those you love.

R – Recipage.  It makes life so much easier… even though I’m still only half way through transferring my recipes.

S – Summer Storms.  I love a good thunderstorm to lull me to sleep (and they cool down the city!).

T – Teams.  I love playing on a team.  Solo sports/workouts are great, but the camaraderie of a good team is something I hope everyone can experience in life.

U – Underwear.  Can you imagine how uncomfortable jeans would be without it?

V – Vacations.  I love traveling and seeing new parts of the world.  Like Navy ships in Chile!

W – Weight lifting.  It’s my favorite workout.  Lifting makes me feel confident and strong.

X – Xylitol.  This all-natural sugar-replacer allows me to have sweet treats without all the sugar.  Like my favorite Granola Cookies. 

Y – Your Dekalb Farmer’s Market.  This local market is open year-round and is THE spot to go in Atlanta for fresh, cheap produce, flours, and chia seeds.  They always have things I’ve never heard of, which I consider to be an added bonus.

Z – Zero.  I don’t drink soda… but I do love a Coke Zero with a bag of pretzels on an airplane.

***

My Strawberry Smoked Almond Tart made the FoodBuzz Top 9 yesterday!  Thank you SO  much for the Buzz! 🙂

How about you?  What simple thing are appreciating today?

Any fun weekend plans, or lots of lying low after the 4th/Canada Day?

Tattoos and Red Birds

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Has a red bird ever flown across your path?

My Grandmother, my dad’s mother, used to say that seeing a red bird was good luck.

She passed away when I was very young so I don’t have too many memories of her, but from what I do remember and the stories I’ve heard we had a lot in common. MamMaw loved the Golden Girls, shopping, and baking.  She didn’t take a lot of crap and had a sense of humor that could make people blush.  I have always sensed a sort of kindred spirit in her…

…and every time I’ve had something big going on in my life – a new job, taking the GMAT, a death – a red bird has flown across my path.

The words in my tattoo read: “All I ask of livin’ is to have no chains on me.”

It is a line from a Blood, Sweat & Tears song called “And When I Die.”  If you haven’t heard of this band, it’s a  jazz-rock group that was popular in the late 60s/early 70s – lots of horns/brass and a good beat.  It was one my dad’s favorite bands.

One of the memories of my dad that sticks out in my mind the most was when we were sitting in the car after a softball game and this song came on.  He turned up the stereo wayyyy too loud and we sat in the car and jammed out.

It sounds small, but it was such a fun, happy moment.  Not a care in the world.  Just me and my dad with some good classic rock. 

July 6th will be 4 years since he passed away.

I’m positive he would hate the fact that I have a fairly large tattoo on my back. 🙂  I do think he would appreciate the significance.  Whenever I see a red bird, I think of my grandmother and my dad.  It’s a reminder to me that they are somewhere out there watching my back and hopefully sending a little extra luck my way when things are tough.

The song lyrics with the red bird remind me that the sky is the limit.  All I ask of life is to let me keep living it so I can see how high I can go.  My dad approached life like that – he believed that anything is possible, as long as you believe in yourself.  He was an incredibly intelligent man.  He owned his own business, built our family’s house, and excelled at everything he attempted.  I never heard him complain about getting a bad hand dealt.  He may have hit some hard times, but he would roll up his sleeves and fight his way through whatever roadblock presented itself.

Maybe it’s hokey, but this tattoo reminds me of the example he set.  It reminds me that with hard work, confidence, and a little luck, anything is possible.

Thanks to my best friend’s husband, Greg, for designing my tattoo – it makes it that much more special.  And, of course, a huge thanks to Danielle at Only You Tattoo in Atlanta for doing such an incredible job.

***

PSA – put a towel down before you sleep on a new tattoo:

Do you ever feel like you’ve been given a little extra luck just when you needed it most?

Is there a song you associate with one of your parents/grandparents?

Everybody’s WIAW

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Happy Hump-WIAW!

 Get yer mind out of the gutter.

 

As always, head over Peas & Crayons to check out 100+ others’ creative eats!

 

With football season so close (Tech’s opener is 8 days away!) and the Italy trip in less than 5 weeks, I’m getting really antsy.  Ants.  In.  My.  Pants.

Here’s our high-level Italian wine region/city itinerary:

  • Days 1-3 – Veneto/Verona
  • Days 3-5 – Friuli/Cormons
  • Days 5-6 – Lombardy/Milan
  • Days 6-8 – Piedmont/Alba
  • Day 9 – Driving/Hike Cinque Terre(!!!)
  • Days 9-11 – Tuscany/Lucca/Sienna
  • Days 12-13 – Tuscany/Florence

 

Of course, there will be side trips to smaller towns.  We are working out the winery strategy now.  Our trip also falls at the beginning of truffle season and I couldn’t be more excited.  One stop in the Piedmont region includes 2 hours hanging out with the chef at a family run, Michelin star restaurant before enjoying dinner there.

It is looking like this will be a trip to remember!

________________________________________________________________________________________

After listing all of that my day’s eats seem anti-climatic, right?

 

Breakfast

 

 

A hodge-podge overnight oats mix in poor lighting at 7am:

  • 3/4 C unsweetened almond milk (a little too much… maybe just 1/2 C next time)
  • 1/2 scoop cookies and cream protein powder
  • 1/2 banana, mashed
  • 1/2 C uncooked oatmeal
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • Blueberries

 

Lunch

Here I go again with leftovers!

I made my Chili Nutty Tofu again – I think this is the recipe I repeat most often (which says a lot since I rarely repeat anything).  The spicy chili with the sweet, nutty peanut butter (use chunky!) is addicting.  It’s a baked tofu, which is my favorite way to eat it because of the way the tofu fluffs up in the oven while the outside becomes nice and crispy.  My only edit this time was to add freshly grated ginger to the marinade.

 

Served with a leftover raw kale and oyster mushroom salad (full recipe for the raw kale salad tomorrow).

 

Snack

 

Dinner

Everybody’s Pizza

Mom and I ate dinner together in honor of my dad.  He would have been 56 yesterday.

Is it the best pizza in Atlanta?  No.  But it’s the most memory-filled.  My parents used to hang out at Everybody’s when they were in college.  Growing up, he would take the family there and sometimes as a special treat on Friday nights he would take just me.

Same front door they had when my dad was in college.

 

I always ordered the same thing – a pie with pepperoni and feta.  They are huge individual pies, but I conquered it.

20 years later… my order has changed!  Mom and I split 2 massive pies.

The Pizza Salad has a pizza base, but is piled with salad on top.  We chose the Panzanella – a pie topped with lettuce, basil and Roma tomatoes tossed with house roasted chicken, mozzarella, provolone, sun-dried tomato and onion on a pesto cheese pizza.  Yes, it was as good as it sounds.

 

Pie #2 was a Cheeseless Pizza.

 It consisted of oven roasted zucchini, fresh spinach, mushrooms, onion, fire-roasted red peppers, Roma tomatoes, broccoli artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, sesame seeds, and hot pepper-infused E.V. olive oil.

My first helping:

 Dad didn’t like to miss dessert and we honored that tonight.  The last part of the tradition at Everybody’s is to order bread pudding.

It’s the only dessert they serve and it is rich amazing.  I often wonder how many they could possibly sell since it’s not even on the menu… but I like to think it as a cult following. 🙂

***

Life is short.  Don’t skip dessert.

Did anyone on the East Coast feel the earthquakes yesterday?

Does your family have food traditions?

 

Rosemary-Lemon Shortbread Cookies

By

Father’s Day Weekend.

What to do…

Cookies are in order.  Girls without their daddies most certainly deserve treats.  Definitely a few glasses of wine (which will no doubt be blamed for any tears).  Not to worry, I’ll strive for balance.

My dad would have LOVED to see this

There will be time spent simply remembering my dad and try to concentrate on the fact that I was lucky to have such a great man as a father for 25 years of my life (cliche… but look at all the jerks out there!).

My dad loved to laugh.  He was so smart – loved learning more than anyone I’ve ever known.  Enjoyed good wine, food, football, and hanging out with his “girls” (Mom, me, and my 2 sisters).

To those of you whose fathers are still with you, give them an extra hug today.  Or at least don’t forget to call!  Maybe buy a present or two.  Ties, socks, chocolate-covered cherries (those were my dad’s favorite).

To those who are in the unfortunate situation of being without a father on Father’s Day weekend, my thoughts are with you.  I can’t say it gets easier… but it doesn’t get worse.  That’s something, right?

Treat yourself to cookies. The kind your dad would have liked, or the kind that are most comforting to you.  Maybe they are just fun to make.  Light, buttery, summery cookies like these Rosemary Lemon Shortbread Cookies:

Some people are intimidated by baking.

One of the secrets to doing it well is measuring flour properly.  It can make the difference between fluffy, delectable treats and dense failures.  “Real” bakers will argue that the only way to measure is by weight.  However, more often than not, I use a simple measuring cup.  I’m a lazy baker.

To me, the important thing to do is to fluff the flour.  When it sits in your pantry, it settles.  This compacting can result in the addition of 25% more flour than the recipe calls for.

Solution: Take a fork and fluff it up before diving in with your measuring cup (please tell me you’re using a dry ingredient cup already).  Then use a knife to sweep off the excess flour.  Do NOT shake, tap, or compact the flour down.

Once you have the shortbread base, this is an easy recipe to take in many directions.  You could change it up with some basil or thyme!

Rosemary Lemon Shortbread Cookies

by Laura Hall

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Keywords: bake dessert Rosemary Lemon cookie spring

Ingredients (20 cookies)

  • 1 1/4 C all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 C white whole wheat flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 T chopped fresh rosemary
  • 2 tsp lemon zest
  • 3/4 C salted butter, softened
  • 1 T light agave nectar
  • 1/2 C confectioners (powdered) sugar

Instructions

In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, salt, baking powder, rosemary, and lemon zest.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer (I used a hand-held), mix together butter, agave, and confectioners sugar at a low speed. Gradually add flour mixture and mix until dough produces small butter lumps.

Using your hands, make a ball with the dough and transfer to a lightly floured surface. (Lightly flour your hand to make this easier!) Knead dough until it just comes together (5-6 times). Roll into a log (like the cut and bake cookie dough)and cover in parchment paper. Refrigerate 1-2 hours, until hardened.

Preheat oven to 300° F.

Remove from fridge and cut into small (~1/2 in thick) disks, arranging on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake shortbread in middle of oven until golden brown, ~20 mins.

Powered by Recipage

***

Happy Father’s Day!

What is your favorite way to celebrate life well-lived?

2011 Goals

By

In the summer of 2008, my dad passed away after a 4.5 year battle with cancer.  He was the most amazing man, and I continue to miss him every day.  I feel his influence in everything I do – particularly over these past few months as I have made a commitment to live in a more healthy manner.

Dad was a lover of food.  His mom (my grandmother) made a carrot cake you’d step over your own mother to get to.  It was tradition to eat “Hot Choc” (chocolate gravy) and biscuits the morning after Thanksgiving… the more you could stuff in your belly, the better.  Miraculously, no one in my family was/is obese… but Dad realized he could stand to loose a few.

As with anything else in his life, Dad set his mind to becoming more healthy and achieved his goal.  He cut out the “bad” carbs and sugars (no more eating Cool-Whip directly from the container) and began exercising regularly.

One of Dad’s favorite sayings:

You can do anything you want to if you want to badly enough.

Dad, still smiling!

Dad lost a lot of weight and kept it off for years.  When I don’t want to get off my butt and exercise, I am inspired by the fact that even when he was sick and in Houston for treatments, he could be found on the treadmill, walking to keep his strength up.

Dad’s girls with the Rambiln’ Wreck

Dad was also a Georgia Tech grad, and I’m glad he at least knew that I was in the MBA program there.  Sadly, when I graduated he wasn’t here to see it.

With my uncle, also a Techie

Graduation day was a little easier with Dad’s college roommate and best friend, Randy, there cheering me on.  Randy presented me with a card at dinner, full of congratulations and advice.

The family, Me, and Randy at graduation

One thing he encouraged me to do was to write down goals.  He said I’d be surprised how many of them I would accomplish by doing this, even if I never looked at the list again.  Of course, I put the card aside and got caught up in the working world once again.  When I bought my condo I ran across his card and decided to take his advice (better late than never, right?).

Wonder of all wonders, he was correct.  I documented 6 month, 1 year, 5 year and 10 year goals.  6 months later, I’d accomplished all but one of my shortest term goals.

Amazing how that works. 🙂

So, with my dad’s strength and determination at my back and Randy’s advice on my mind, I am documenting my 2011 Goals here.

1. Run (another) 1/2 Marathon

After the Gobble Jog in my Half shirt

I did it in 2009 and swore I never would again.  It took me a while, but I am ready for #2.  The one I have my eye one is the Publix Georgia Half Marathon (formerly known as the ING).

2. Work on my fitness

This goal is two fold…

2a. Continue to be more responsible with how I fuel my body

I developed some pretty unhealthy habits over the past couple of years.  Since cutting out/reducing my intake of processed foods, desserts, alcohol, and red meat, I have felt SO much better.  My goal is to continue on this path, and continue to improve in the area of moderation.

2b. Build more muscle

I’m a beast

Overall I’d like to be more toned.  And I want a 6-pack.  I know it isn’t feasible to keep it forever, but I want it even if it is for 5 minutes.

3. Develop more original recipes

Plotting dinner

This is both a blogging and personal development goal.  I love to cook/bake/create.  In 2011, I’d like to learn more about flavor combinations and the “science” behind baking.

4. Surround myself with good people

I’m busy.  Really busy. Time is precious – too precious to spend it on people who drag you down.  In the past I have made the mistake of spending time with people who negative and hinder personal growth.  This year I want to spend my time with friends who are positive, healthy, and fun.

The best of friends

5. Advance at work

I’ve been in my new job for almost 6 months.  Don’t get me wrong – there is still lots to learn.  But I’m ready to step it up more.  I’d love to begin developing a solid niche and build my reputation in my company.

Cheers to my dad, to achieving goals, and to a fantastic 2011!

***

What are you looking forward to accomplishing in 2011?

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