One of my goals for this year is to visit as many State Parks/Wilderness Areas/Waterfalls as possible. Tennessee is so beautiful and there are so many places within reasonable driving distance to explore! Harpeth River State Park was first on my list, I couldn't believe how close it was, only 15 minutes away! (Review includes a handy pros and cons list!)
Vegan Strawberry Pistachio Crumble Pie
Strawberry picking is one of our favorite summer activities! Usually we pick about three to four buckets of strawberries, but this time we we had to scale back a bit due to the size of the freezer in our new house. (I'm fairly certain our freezer was designed by someone with only ice cube and frozen pea storage in mind)
Until we can get a new fridge/freezer, I've taken to bribing people with berry desserts in exchange for freezer space. This pie is my newest bribery tool! The strawberry fruit swims in a sweet syrup right on top of a rich layer of cashew cream, all of which is complimented by a salty pistachio crumble on top.
Girls on the Run - Spring 2016 5K
Today we completed our season ending accomplishment of running the Girls on the Run 5K! But there is more magical goodness happening at Girls on the Run than just running! There is Girls on the Run spirit lining each and everyone of my favorite moments from today including, reaching new goals, doing the right thing, supporting our teammates, taking risks, going the extra mile (kind of literally).
Green Poodle Cocktail
Changing my diet to mostly vegetables has forced me to be more open to new flavors and spices. I used to be such a wuss about spiciness. I still kind of am, but am definitely more adventurous.
That led me to trying a cocktail based on jalapeno. A cocktail that I am still thinking about. I can't remember all the exact ingredients of said cocktail, but I am pretty dang satisfied with how this one turned out. It is clean, fresh, and crisp, with a spicy aftertaste.
IT BAND/BANNED FROM RUNNING (get it?)
There are 29 more days until I am supposed to be running the Rock n Roll Nashville marathon. Except for this IT band is not healing - and by that I mean, I have not allowed it to heal. My chances of running the marathon are not looking good. I refuse to throw in the towel at this point.
Vegan Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Easter Eggs
Aside from the dark chocolate Easter bunnies, Resee's peanut butter cup eggs used to be one of the most highly coveted treasures in those Easter baskets. Then, one day, I became an adult and now most sweet things that you can buy in the candy aisle make me feel terrible, and I am not even the least bit tempted to indulge. One day I was making protein bars, and then these happened. What a happy accident!! I've experimented several times, and after making these into hearts, shamrocks, and medallians, I am so proud of how this recipe turned out!
100% more delicious than Reese's peanut butter cups and probably 100% healthier too! Peanut Butter Filling: 8 ingredients, including vanilla and salt. Dark Chocolate Covering: 3 - 4, ingredients including salt.
A Bad Run: 20 Miles was Great, 13... not so much
Last week, we ran twenty miles, I sprinted the last bit, felt super strong. I wore my old shoes. It was fantastic. I felt great! I wasn't sore the next day, and I completed all of my miles this past week with no problems, including speed sessions.
Today, during mile three, I started having some pain in my knee. At mile four, I was hoping it would go away.
Miles five through seven involved some controlled breathing....
Taco Tuesday: Sweet Potato Black Bean Falafel Tacos + Kale Slaw + Tahini Sauce
Aside from being healthy and worthy of the mid-chewing 'mmmmmm's' (I'm thinking specifically of the scene in What About Bob? where Bob is eating corn at the family dinner table), my favorite recipes have three things in common:
- They make great leftovers
- They are easy and relatively quick
- They keep me satiated for a long time
Spicy Almond Chickpea Salad Sliders
I love to be sneaky and trick people who usually shy away from anything labeled 'vegetarian' or 'vegan' into eating exactly those kinds of things and then watching their reactions of surprise and delight.
This is a GREAT recipe for that purpose.
Marathon Music Monday
I signed up for the Rock n' Roll Nashville Marathon back in September, so I'm set to run on April 30th! I am training with Fleet Feet Nashville again, and could not be happier to be running with a group again! Without my running buddies, I still count on my headphones for my runs during the week and am always on the lookout for new music to add. Please please please give me some music suggestions to add to my playlist! (Look here and here for more music to add to your playlist!)
Read down to the bottom where you will find two wonderful gems that you might not have in your music library yet.