Happy Veterans Day! My weekend has been all about having fun and relaxing. I've been super sore lately and decided it was a good idea to let my body rest a bit. My physical therapist has been having me do a lot of glute and hip conditioning exercises. We're treating my calf injury with a sort of all-around approach, not just working out the knots and scar tissue in my calf, but also strengthening my entire left side from my hip down. I think it's great, but I've been working on smaller leg muscles that I probably don't usually target, and it has certainly been leaving me sore! Outside of physical therapy, I've been doing workouts that focus on a lot of my upper body, resulting in achy arms and back muscles. All of last week I felt sore all over the place, and that's why this weekend I've ... [Read More]
Archives for November 2012
Goat Cheese & Date Panini
One of the reasons I love to experiment in the kitchen is that is allows you to be creative. Sometimes things turn out better than you expected, sometimes they flop, sometimes not everyone loves it. Creating meals is a form of art, and you can draw inspiration from anywhere. I love to walk around the grocery store and find something new that peaks my interest, then just go with it from there. This week while picking some things up at Trader Joe's, I spotted some fancy Medjool dates. Hmmmm what can I do with these? I asked myself. I chose a few ingredients to come up with a flavorful combo for a panini dinner - date, goat cheese, thyme, and honey on fresh whole grain bread. While I loved my panini and thought it was tasty and different, my hubby decided that he isn't a fan of dates. To each ... [Read More]
Holy Guacamole! My Go-To Easy Guac
When it comes to healthy eating, a big piece of the puzzle is moderation. If you're trying to trim down or just aiming to eat healthier, it doesn't mean that you can never treat yourself. What it does mean is that you need to be mindful of the foods you eat and watch your portions. Giving into your food cravings here and there is perfectly conducive to losing weight, but here's the catch: If you want something, let's say ice cream, eat a cup. It won't wreck your diet. But don't bring a gallon of it to the couch with you and dig in with your spoon until you're stuffed. And if you do wind up going with the latter option, once you've eaten it, be done with it. So many people, myself included, will overdo it one night, but instead of moving on and forgetting about it, have a tendency to beat ... [Read More]
Election Night Fare: Spinach & Red Pepper Quiche
Happy Election Day! Like a lot of people in the U.S. this evening, I've been tuning in to my television watching the projections and stats for the presidential race. I was so distracted with election coverage, I forgot to photograph tonight's dinner until we had eaten half of it.... When I'm preoccupied with other things, like watching a game or in this case, an election, a quiche is a great meal to make. This is because there's little prep time, and once I pop it in the oven, I can just let it bake while paying little attention to it. Tonight's quiche centered around a bag of fresh spinach I had on hand. Spinach & Red Pepper Quiche 1 frozen pie crust1 red bell pepper (chopped)1 6- oz bag of fresh raw spinach1 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella (provolone, fontina or ... [Read More]
My First Pomegranate
While exploring the Little Italy farmer's market a few weekends ago, my friend Jackie was psyched when we spotted locally grown pomegranates. I had somehow never eaten a pomegranate fruit before, which might be a bit odd since I'm slightly obsessed with fruit. I've had many pomegranate flavored things, just never the real thing. Always excited to nab foods at the market that I haven't eaten before, I picked one out to try. Pomegranates are a fruit with a lot of health benefits. They're full of antioxidants and rich in nutrients, particularly Vitamin C, B5 and Potassium. Research has shown that regularly eating the fruit can increase oxygen levels to the heart, promote healthy circulation of the blood, and help improve digestion. It's even believed that pomegranates are great ... [Read More]
An Afternoon at the Park
''Enjoy the little things, for one day you make look back and realize they were the big things." When my Marine is deployed, I often think about the little, everyday things I enjoy doing with him - eating dinner, holding hands, watching a movie. These are things you don't necessarily think about too much when you're always with your partner, but when you've faced significant stints apart, I think they are certainly more likely to cross your mind. Having been separated from my hubby a lot makes me appreciate these small things more. On one of my hiking adventures with Harley earlier this year when Adam was away, we passed a scenic, seemingly tranquil area that looked like a nice spot to hang out. I remember thinking that I would have loved to have a picnic with my hubby there at that ... [Read More]