Holiday Hustle and New Food Obsessions

It was another fun-filled sister weekend. Molly came for a visit and we enjoyed good food, coffee and grocery store adventures. She also drove me to Dexter to run in the Holiday Hustle sponsored by Running Fit. I just completed the Running 101 class at Running Fit, it was a great motivator and I really enjoyed having a small group to run with.

It was so nice and sisterly of Molly to stand out in the freezing cold weather with me pre-race and while I was running - at which point she got a free coffee thermos, hot chocolate and pictures of ice sculptures. I think we are even now.

This was my third 5K this year. I finished in 34:07, about two minutes faster than my last, and about four minutes faster than my first race. I was hoping to do a little bit better; but considering I had the flu last week and have had a sore throat ever since getting over the flu - I am pretty proud of myself! I think I am ready to tackle some longer distances. . .

Following the race we headed straight for the Whole Foods hot bar - my newest obsession! I can always count on there being some fabulous BBQ pulled pork (something even this mostly-veg-girl can't resist) and at least one sweet potato dish. We shopped around Whole Foods, ooo-ing and ahh-ing, and then headed to the slightly more affordable Trader Joe's for dessert.

TJ's lead me to my second newest food obsession - Joe Joe's, TJ's version of Oreos with all natural ingredients and vanilla beans in the filling! Yum!

Hope you had a great weekend! Any new foods in your life?

Rosemary Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Happy (almost) Halloween!

This morning I was up early to head to the A2 Farmers Market to volunteer for a project for an Environment class I am in. Our project objective was to get involved in the community on an issue pertaining to the environment. I always enjoy being a patron of the Farmers Market but it was fun to play a role in the Market's production today. We helped out with the Halloween activities at the Market including carving pumpkins, and face painting. Amidst all of that we met a lot of really great people including a 14-year-old boy who gladly answered my pesky questions about his families chickens:

Me: "So, how many chickens do you guys have?"

Boy: "Uh, dead or alive?"

Me: "Hmm. . .Both?"

Boy: "Around 2,000." (He then went on to tell about how they are free-range and hormone free! Woo Hoo!)

One of the conversation over the carving of pumpkins was the deliciousness of pumpkin seeds. I've actually never had pumpkin seeds (at least that I can remember) so I decided to give it a try and we all began separating them out here and there so everyone could take some home.

I loosely used this recipe from SimpleRecipes.com - quick and easy!

First, bring the seeds to a boil in a pot of water w/ a little salt and then simmer for about 10 minutes.

Next, place them on an oiled cookie sheet. At this point I added salt, pepper and rosemary - but you can season them however you like. The seeds then go in the oven at 400 degrees for 10-20 minutes.

Voila!

Enjoy your Halloweekend!

Acorn Squash & Apple Soup

Last week while reading all of my usual blogs in my Google Reader, I stumbled upon this recipe on the blog "Peas and Thank You." Knowing that I am in the Mitten, and it is prime time for apples and squash I made tentative plans to make some sort of apple-squash soup this week. Upon further review of my farmers market purchases I decided to make this soup, found on the blog "Happy Herbivore."

I made a few modifications to the original recipe, the first being that I roasted my squash in the oven on 400 degrees for about 40 minutes instead of putting the squash in the microwave.

My next modification (which may have been where I went wrong) was trying to make a one-and-a-half version of the recipe. I had more squash than the recipe called for but I knew I would use the squash otherwise.

The Verdict: I found the soup slightly sweet, yet lacking in a robust flavor. The original recipe did note that the soup is even better the next day which I would have to agree with. :D

This is not my last attempt with squash soup; I have had some pretty outstanding squash soup so I know it can be done. Next time I think I will try to make a recipe similar to the recipe on "Peas and Thank You" to pack a little protein in.

What are you making this week?

A few of my favorite fall things. . .

It is a lovely October morning here in the mitten. After a quick, early trip to the Farmer's Market this morning I was reminded of a few of my favorite fall things:

-Pumpkin ANYTHING (Specifically, a Zingerman's Pumpkin Muffin)

-Apples

-Apple Cider

-Squash

-Coffee (on a Fall Morning)

-FALL COLORS

What are your favorite fall things?

P.S. Sorry for the blogging hiatus. You haven't missed much. I burned my hand making a frozen pizza. . .see, I told you so.

P.P.S. GO BLUE!