Recipes - Maria Runs

Another lemon cake recipe, this time with blueberries

So, at the moment I am having a real obsession with lemon cake.

Last week I bought some blueberries with the plan of adding them to my weekend pancakes, but then I didn’t end up having any. After I made the lemon cake with the Seedburst, I still had some lemons left, so I decided to make a lemon and blueberry cake for Sunday tea.

I found this recipe for lemon traybake, and I was just going to add the blueberries to it, but the batter seemed very thick and almost dry, so I added the juice of one lemon, and a good splash of soya milk to it. I then added 150g blueberries to the mix, and once I had poured it into the brownie pan, I sprinkled some more over the top.

I love how the blueberries burst when they cook and go all jammy.

Once it was cool I poured over the icing (juice and zest of one lemon, plus icing sugar). Then I left that to set before I sliced it.

The cake seems to be super moist as I think a lot of the lemon juice from the icing has soaked in to it- when I opened the tin to take the photo I was hit by a burst of the tangy lemon smell- I am really looking forward to a piece later!

This morning I pottered about for ages while the snow was still coming down (I really thought when I first looked out the window that I had imagined the snow from yesterday), but after an hour or so I headed outside.

I think the snow was still drifting, as when I headed home my footprints were covered, plus some patches were clear, but then where there was a break in the trees the path would be snowy again. I found this patch of clear-ish pavement about half a mile from home and so ran up and down about 6 times I think. Once I got going it was OK- I took it slowly with small gentle steps, (really don’t want to injure myself) and in the end did just over 3 miles. When I turned to head into the wind it was horrible as the snow was coming down in those tiny balls that are more like hail- they really stung my face.

Pancakes for a warming breakfast! I used up the last of the blueberries, some in the pancakes and some with a chopped apple and fig cooked on the hob.

Yum cooked blueberries are just fabulous!

Pancakes plus tea while watching the Grand Prix= a good start to Sunday.

Clover Seedburst recipe- Earl grey and lemon seeded loaf

Hey peeps, I hope you are all not too annoyed with the snow. Now when the snow is coming down, an afternoon baking at home is always very tempting. A while ago I was asked if I would like to try a new spread, Clover Seedburst. As soon as I saw it I decided that I would try it in a lemon cake recipe, as I love lemon and poppyseed loaf, so I thought the other seeds in it (a blend of 7 seeds) would go really well. I was browsing different recipe books, and came across a Lemon and Thyme loaf in the Hummingbird Cake Days book which sounded fab. But I am having a bit of an Earl Grey obsession at the moment, and lemon + Early Grey is such a lovely combination so I have adapted the recipe.

Lemon and Earl Grey seeded loaf

Ingredients:

190g Seedburst

190g plain flour

Zest and juice of 2 lemons

190g caster sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp baking powder

2 Earl Grey teabags

For syrup to pour over:

40g caster sugar

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Reserved liquid from the tea

Begin by preheating the oven to 170C. Our new oven is taking some getting used to, so I think I started it lower because it is much stronger than our old one, but I ended up having to turn it up a bit.

Line a loaf pan.

Make the tea (you only need a small amount of liquid, so a small cup with the teabags in will do). Cream together the spread, sugar and lemon zest (this helps to release the oils more). Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat to combine. Add the lemon juice, and around 25mls of the tea.

Sift in the flour, baking powder, and mix gently. Then pour into the loaf tin. Bake for 40-50 mins, until a skewer comes out clean.

While it is cooking, make the syrup. Heat together the caster sugar, 40ml of the tea, the lemon juice and zest. Boil it and then let it reduce slightly.

When the cake comes out of the oven, pierce the loaf, then pour the syrup all over. Leave it to cool a little, then remove and leave to cool completely on a wire cooling rack.

I am looking forward to when I can take photos in natural light again!

The lemon juice sinks in, and the caster sugar gives it a sweet topping.

It was delicious. There was a slight hint of tea flavour which went well with the zingy lemon, and the seeds were lovely as they stayed evenly spread throughout the cake.

I don’t tend to have spread on anything- if I make a sandwich I just have the filling, and the same if I have toast I go right for the pb/ jam/ lemon curd etc, but Andy had some of the Seedburst on some french bread and really enjoyed the different texture- we often choose grained bread or seeded bread, so if you like that, then give the Seedburst a try. I am sure I will use the rest of it in something else- maybe some nutty cookies as I think the flavour will work really well.

I was compensated for the cost of the Seedburst and the baking ingredients, but of course the opinions are my own.

Are you a lemon cake fan? It is usually my cake of choice in a tea room now, I love it!

Avocado obsession

So, until about a year ago I didn’t think I liked avocados. Once when I was younger I had some, although I was told it was “avocado-pear”- so I was expecting pear. When I tasted it, it was so strange that it put me off for years. (The same thing happened to be with hummus as I thought it was honey- who knows why!).

I liked guacamole, and then a few times had sandwiches and wraps that contained avocados, and it turned out that I quite liked it. That has now turned into a bit of an obsession. Ocado sell them in packs of 3, and they are lovely and ripe, so I have been enjoying them with different meals this week.

Andy made a yummy sweet potato chilli (roasted sweet potatoes, onion, red+yellow peppers, tomatoes, and a load of chilli)- it was super spicy so I needed the avocado to calm my mouth down!

That was enjoyed after my Monday night run- that was possibly the coldest I have ever been on a run as the wind was so cold- I really felt like my eye sockets were going to shatter or something!

I made another mexican casserole thing- basically I roast chopped celery, peppers, red onion, cook some quinoa, wilt some spinach in the quinoa, then add passata, chilli, sweetcorn and beans, and then freeze. I enjoyed one portion with avocado after going to aerobics on Tuesday- I had not been in ages and it was fab! Although we did a lot of plank things at the end and I have been sore since.

On Wednesday I went to the Sweatshop run- thankfully it was not as cold as Monday, but it did start snowing quite heavily while we were out- luckily it was not settling so it just fogged up my glasses. The group stayed pretty much together and did just over 5K. I was trying to look at my watch to see what I did the 3.1 miles in, but because I was where the streetlights were out I missed it. I think it was about 28 mins though. I was given the nutrition pack as I have completed 25 runs (well actually it was last week, but they didn’t have any last week). Exciting!

I got confused when planning meals this week, so I had to do freezer lucky dip for Wednesday- I found a butternut squash chilli (think it had celery, peppers, onions, squash and sweet potato in there) so I had that with some salad and beetroot that needed using up. I love how you can see the steam in the picture.

I went to Body Pump tonight, and we got to try the new release. I was glad to see the back of the “Welcome to the Jungle” chest track from last time. It was tough. But in a good way I think. The chest track was really hard (you had to do some sets starting at the bottom, and some starting at the top, which meant it felt like there were no mini rests or anything)- it was a good song (Muse) which always helps. The triceps is back to having the bar, dips and the dreaded overhead things (I hate them!)- means it is tougher which is good I suppose. The lunges track is really challenging- instead of the leaps at the end, you stand with your feet either side of the step, and then jump up. The abs was really different as there were no planks- it was all on your back doing leg raises and some weird push up move things. I am aching already!

After my shower I had a lovely snack plate of yoghurt, persimmon and some little marzipan hearts (Christmas chocolates).

I have signed up to Parkrun and I am planning on going to one this Saturday morning with my Dad and brother, although I just caught the weather and it looks like it is going to be raining hard- not so good. I hope I don’t wimp out!

Right, I am off to get my PJ’s ready for Comic Relief tomorrow (yup, wearing them to work!)- what are your weekend plans?

Frazzled brain

So, I can’t think what to call this post! This week has seemed even more busy than usual- visiting my Mum at the hospital/ calling her in the evenings on top of a normal working week has made it more tiring than usual. Thanks for the wishes also- I don’t want to go in to details but she is awaiting an operation at the moment (a year after I had mine, although for something different) and alright.

I have a load of random photos which have been hanging around on the camera for ages, so this is going to be a random post.

This is my favourite pre-Sweatshop run snack at the moment- 2 fruit ryvitas with nutella and that biscuit spread, plus an Earl Grey tea. I was pleased to see the unsweetened almond milk in Waitrose at the weekend, so I picked this up to try, but before that I have been on an Alpro light phase.

I made some tofu/pumpkin bakes the other week, and have been working my way through these. I have put recipes for variations of these before. These ones were 1 block of silken tofu, 2/3 tin pumpkin puree, some sundried tomatoes and a little basil oil whizzed up. Then I mixed in 75/100g quinoa (dry weight, cooked in water), some beetroot and a drained tin of artichokes. I might have added a tsp of pesto in there too. I do often add in spinach too, but I didn’t have any this time.

Anyway, I put them in the foil trays (although I had one right away, so that went in a glass dish) and then I can freeze them, and they are super easy midweek meals.

Does not look like much, but the tofu makes it so creamy, and the sundried tomatoes add a little zing to the flavour. The artichokes were a new addition but they add a bit of saltiness and I really liked them in there.

I noticed this apple and cinnamon granola the other week, so I decided to treat myself. I had it for breakfast at the weekend with a chopped apple and a tea- it was lovely and quite American tasting if that makes sense? Maybe all the cinnamon.

I had a rest day on Monday, after the speedy run on Sunday with Andy, and just did a short run on Tuesday to get my legs going. The Sweatshop run last night was super tough- I have not looked at my Garmin time yet, but I bet it was one of the fastest ones. No-one slower than me turned up, so it was me at the back with the guy from the shop. He is very encouraging, but he does not let you slow down for a moment! My legs were so stiff by the time I had run home and had a shower. I had a couple of delicious Booja Booja ginger truffles as my dessert (lovely Christmas pressie from Lucy), as I am sure they are the perfect recovery food! Tonight I am going to book on to pump, but my shoulder is still not 100%, plus I am totally exhausted after being on a school trip all day, so I am not going to be back to my normal weights.

How has your week been going? What school trips did you enjoy when you were younger?

Alibi winner and a speedy run!

Hey all, I hope you are all having a lovely weekend.

First up, the winner of the month’s supply of Alibi drinks.

I was a bit more high tech this time; I used a random number generator on the internet (and had to work out which number matched which comment as some people put their facebook entry in the same comment- which is fine), and got number 2, which was Lara! Congratulations! If you can just email me the address you would like it sent to, then I will let them know.

Right, on with the weekend.

I was planning on having a run on Saturday morning, but Andy said that he would go with me if I waited until Sunday (he was off to football on Saturday) and I am really glad that I did. Saturday did not turn out as planned as I ended up visiting my Mum in hospital (she has been in and out recently), so I had to put back my work to Sunday afternoon too. I did manage a bit of baking- I made some pecan crumble bars using this recipe.

I added in some coconut too- they are ready for Sunday tea in a bit. Andy had something similar in the tearoom in Stratford last weekend, and I fancied having a go at making something similar.

My shoulder has been loads better too- I feel like I have to be careful doing certain things (eg opening the garage door) but generally it is fine now. Still no idea how I did it (or what I did) but at least it is nearly normal again now.

Right, onto the run. We did the usual 8.3 mile loop- Andy knows that I have been getting faster, and also am prone to plodding when left to my own devices. He promised to slow down a bit, and although parts were tough, it was really great- we chatted most of the way (he had to chat on the hills!)- it does mean I am getting behind with my marathon talk listening! We did the loop in 80 mins, and usually my average for that loop is around 90 mins! Look, I can post my stats from the Garmin website: (split, average speed, distance, time)

1	9:59.4	1.00	10:00
2	9:47.2	1.00	9:47
3	10:00.5	1.00	10:01
4	9:53.4	1.00	9:54
5	9:37.0	1.00	9:37
6	9:30.4	1.00	9:30
7	9:45.7	1.00	9:46
8	9:32.0	1.00	9:32
9	2:42.2	0.29	9:16

Summary

1:20:47.8

8.29

9:45

I did find some of the hills tough, but no more than usual (probably)- it proves to me that the Brighton half was not a freak incident, and I really am starting to speed up a bit.

I sure needed breakfast when I got home!

I made the batter the night before (20g peanut flour, 20g w’g spelt flour, baking powder, 40g pumpkin, 60ml soya milk) and then cooked a chopped apple and pear in some coconut oil and sugar, and then stirred in some meridian mincemeat (my last jar). Plus teapigs chocolate flake tea.

Delicious.

Plus, the sun came out! I treated myself to some tulips yesterday as they are one of my favourite flowers, and they looked so pretty in the sunlight. I really hope Spring is around the corner now.

Have you seen any signs of Spring recently? We saw loads of snowdrops and crocus flowers out, and I saw a rabbit too!