Experimenting in the kitchen

Hello all

First things first- I had planned a 5.5 mile run today, but due to the weather (it keeps on getting it wrong recently) predicting rain from about 9am, I decided to do the 3.7 mile run before breakfast instead. As I am not training for anything, and already had one run in the rain this week, it was what I fancied.

The run was good, 35 minutes (so only one min slower than last time, I think I have sped up a bit). I started off slow (10.33, then 10.14) but finished quick (8.48)-not sure what happened. I think I got hungry and decided the faster I got home the sooner I could eat! (IN fact I had forgotten to put the hot water on so I had to wait before my shower, so didn’t get breakfast for a while).

I have been out shopping (I seem to have done loads recently)- had to get a pressie for my brother, and decided to pop to the health food shop to get a couple more clif bars. Also, check out my haul from Morrisons the other day- I thought they had stopped doing Nak’d bars so imagine my excitement when I saw the best 2 flavours- gingerbread and cocoa orange! Plus some so crispy bites for when I fancy something salty after a long run.

When I got home I was hungry, so I decided to experiment with a smoothie- coconut water, frozen watermelon and a few blueberries. It was ok, (refreshing) but as soon as it came out the blender it started seperating and wasn’t very thick. I also had a peanut butter clif bar, which was delicious, but not as nice as the oatmeal raisin one.

I also had to do some work (boring) and did a great job of distracting myself on the internet. I did however get it done.

Now, onto dinner. I fancied another experiment, so am having a sort of concoction of 3 different dishes. On no meat athelete I saw a pineapple, beans and rice dish, and in my Veganomicon book there is a quinoa pineapple cashew stir fry, and also baked tempeh. So from that I have already boiled the tempeh and marinated it in a little oil, along with almond butter (not cashew), some paprika and ginger. Then I am going to make some quinoa with spinach, and serve it with some grilled (or maybe baked) pineapple. Sounds a bit hotch potch but I am hoping it will be sort of tropical with the pineapple, and the nuttiness of the quinoa and the almondish tempeh.

EDIT- Here is my dinner. It was quite nice, the pineapple and quinoa were lovely, think I need to practise my marinading skills!

We shall see!

Gosh this weather is horrible, I had a cup of tea and even contemplated putting the heating on! Imagine! In August! (But I didn’t).

I watched some of the great british bake-off and I must say I really would love one of those KitchenAid mixers. I have seen a cream one which is so pretty. But I only have a little kitchen, plus it is a lot of money to spend on one thing. So I will make do with my bowls and utensils at the moment!

So, any hotch-potch meals that you love?

And any “treat” things that you would love?

🙂

Tips for healthier holidays!

So this morning was my last run before holiday. After porridge (yes it worked yesterday so had it again today) I went out on a 3.7 mile run. It was very overcast and I got really hot, but there was a breeze, I had water with me and I felt pretty good, much better than yesterday. It’s funny how runs can be like that, one day really hard and the next day fine. It took me 36 minutes, so a minute quicker than the last time I did that route.

When I got home I had an apple and a cocoa orange Nak’d bar (sooooooo good) plus loads of water.

For lunch I am having a wholemeal pitta, half with dark chocolate PB and a banana all sliced up, and half with normal PB and banana, plus some cherries, and maybe some pecans. I had forgotten how good the combo and peanut butter and banana actually is! Yum! Trust me to redicover it right before I go away! Ah well something to look forward to on my return!

For dinner I have defrosted a quinoa lentil bake. I cant remember what I put in it when I made it, so it wll be a nice surprise! Will have that with some butternut squash and some beetroot- yum. Plus maybe a courgette side dish if I have more growing in the garden.

While I was running I was thinking about my holiday, and how to keep staying healthy whilst on holiday. So here are some of my tips:

Keep active! I love sightseeing holidays so spend a lot of the time walking around. Sometimes we have hired bikes to ride too. I am not much of a swimmer but if you like that then spend some time swimming.

Keep a note of what you eat! Either write it down, or really think about the meals you have eaten already. Think about what you would usually eat at home, and try to eat similar amounts. Portion sizes can be a lot more so don’t feel obliged to eat everything!

Beware of the buffet! If you have a buffet breakfast, then try to eat what you would normally eat for breakfast. Just because it is there does not mean you need to eat cereal, toast and a croissant. Maybe once every few days have a “treat” breakfast, but have sensible ones most days. I may have a little extra but this is usually because we would then have a banana and cereal bar for “lunch”, and then a normal dinner. The same applies if you eat out at a buffet restaurant in the evening- just because you have paid for it does not mean you have to eat it all!

Share snacks. Often we fancy an ice cream or cookie, but we will now get one and share it between us and this is normally plenty.

Be prepared! I like to take cereal bars with me, so if I feel hungry then I have that to hand instead of having to buy something less healthy from a shop/ café. Also if we stop in a supermarket then I would always buy some bananas to have later on.

Drink water! I used to always get diet coke as I got annoyed having to buy water when it is free out of the tap at home. But although fizzy drinks start off feeling refreshing, the artificial sweeteners can cause more sugar cravings, plus the fizzy drinks are bad for your bones and don’t hydrate you well. So have loads of water whenever you can.

See if you can swap! If your chosen item comes with chips, ask if you can have a salad instead (watch the dressings though!)- most places are happy to accommodate.

Think about where you are eating! Choose a local resturant over a fast food chain, try not to choose anywhere with a deep fat fryer!

Think about the food! When ordering in a resturant think about how active you have been that day, and how much you need to eat. I would not order a starter or dessert, just the main. Try to make sure it has lots of veggies in it, not too much cheese etc.

But most of all;

Have a lovely holiday! After all, we work all year so we can have a lovely few weeks getting away from it all. I am not going to feel guilty if I have a few extra bits here and there. I don’t want to go crazy, but a holiday is a bit of a treat and eating out means that meals will be heavier than usual, but it is only for a couple of weeks. I am going to do lots of walking, and I think a break from running will do me good so I will be raring to go once I return. So enjoy your holidays.

🙂

Any other tips for staying healthy while away?

My ode to quinoa

I had a nice dinner this evening. In a pan I cooked a third of a red onion, half a red pepper, half a small courgette, added in about 150g tinned tomatoes, 40g rinsed quinoa and cooked for about 15 minutes (until it had thickened and the quinoa had started looking all squiggly). I had it with some Cauldron butternut squash falafel. It was super tasty.
Just wanted to share that! I got my new copy of Women’s Running mag and I think because it’s national veggie week they have a few articles in there about being a healthy veggie, plus they had an article on quinoa. I do use it occasionally (often make a batch for lunch in the winter), but should use it more as it is a complete protein. Usually veggies need to combine foods (e.g. wholegrain + pulses or wholegrain + nuts) to get complete protein (which occurs naturally in meat). But this grain has it all!

Then it was off to body pump, good as usual although my shoulders are killing me now!
I am going to treat myself to one of the cookies (which by the way were a success, I now have 11 people sponsoring me, which is loads more than before- the bribery is working!).
Then it’s the bank holiday weekend hooray! May is such a great month.

Veggie friendly foods

Hooray! My order from ethical superstore turned up today; the millet and quinoa flakes look good- plus lots of protein = veggie friendly. I was thinking of making a muesli blend, but they can also be used warm as a rice-pudding style dessert. Definitely one to try! I also got some cacao nibs (am really looking forward to trying them) and some Divine chocolate covered mango. I have had this already so I know how delicious it is! In addition I had some Meridian Morello Cherry spread (it’s like jam but no sugar, only fruit cooked in apple juice); this is my favourite addition to a PB&J sandwich/ wrap/ crumpet. One blob of peanut butter and one blob of cherry spread on whatever you want! Seriously try it, it’s amazing (incidentally this was my lunch today in a little tortilla wrap, along with cinnamon pears and a yoghurt).

After work I went to get my hair cut (no body pump tonight as the instructor is away- boo), whoops I had not had it cut in months and months! After that I popped to Waitrose to get a few bits. I love their frozen butternut squash- I know it’s lazy to not chop it up myself, but seriously how do people do it? I would quite like an electric carving knife for pumpkins alone, as I always feel like I am about to be on casualty and chop my hand off. I have read to stab them a few times and then microwave to soften the skin. Well that would be OK if I could actually pierce the skin!

So the frozen ready peeled stuff it is for me!

I also got a few other tasty nibbles (pink lady apples were on offer- yay), some boxes of granola bear nibbles (have only got these in Boots before) and some treacle and pecan granola which looks amazing- this will be a post-run snack I feel.

I got home pretty late so have been updating the photos on here (takes me a while to add them to my recipes) and pottering about.

I really do need this weather to warm up; my courgette plants are huge- the window sills all look like jungles and need to get outside into some space! I have heard that the weather this weekend is going to be nicer so hopefully summer is around the corner.

I was reading that soon it is going to be National Vegetarian week, and I often get asked (well usually as soon as people find out I am veggie) why I am vegetarian. I also get offered fish a lot, and no that would mean I would be a pescatarian. It is a bit late now to explain it all, but I will later. I will say that I am not interested in “converting” anyone else, so don’t worry I am not going to become all preachy.

Friday tomorrow yeah!