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A Summer Check: CSA

June 19, 2012 – 11:53 pm

 

CSA Week #1. Wine + strawberries + pickles is how I juice.

I have wanted to join a CSA for a few years, and this year, finally checked it off the list! If you don’t know what a CSA is, here you go. Also, you probably don’t live in Brooklyn or Oregon. Sorry about that.

We get our CSA (full veggie share, full fruit share, plus eggs, a canned item and wine. I KNOW) from Partners Trace Farm, which we pick up on Mondays at Huckleberry bar. Picking up farm fresh, sustainable produce while getting a drink? It’s like it was made for me. I LOVE that I get to hang out with the farmers,  Amoreen and Tierney, who are awesome ladies, and make farm clothes look hot.

This week’s bounty:

  • Kale
  • Chard
  • Collard greens
  • Vulcan lettuce
  • Turnips, with an insane amount of greens attached
  • Nasturtiums
  • Summer squash
  • Ho Mi Z Mustard  greens (google thought I wanted Ho Chi Minh, which would be awkward to pick up in a bar)
  • Eggs
  • Cherries from Breezy Hill Orchard
  • Bottle of Pinot Noir from Whitecliff Vineyard in NY

OMG so many green things to cook! I am loving the forced creativity though. I consider myself a fairly adventurous eater, but if left to my own devices I will eat nothing but brown rice, avocados, lettuce, and cake. Below is what I made last night (and had for lunch today). So f-ing good, people.

So. Much. Kale.

Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Swiss Chard and Pecorino Cheese – recipe by Giada  De Laurentiis from foodnetwork.com

Note: I took this straight from the website, but made a few changes. I used kale AND chard, don’t even worry about it.  I didn’t have tomatoes, so I added a little pasta water at the end to keep it from drying out. I also used fresh mozzarella instead of pecorino. Enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 onions, thinly sliced
  • 2 bunches Swiss chard, trimmed and chopped (about 14 cups)
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
  • Salt and pepper
  • 8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
  • 1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons freshly grated Pecorino cheese
  • 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

Directions

Heat the oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the chard and saute until it wilts, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, wine, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer until the tomatoes begin to break down and the chard is very tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Season the chard mixture, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the spaghetti. Add the spaghetti to the chard mixture and toss to combine.

Transfer the pasta to serving bowls. Sprinkle the olives, cheese, and pine nuts and serve.

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checklist

June CHECK: Ride a Bike (Again)!

June 12, 2012 – 4:21 pm

Me with A on Schwinn #2, Spring of 2006. Also, you know you want it: Shirt: Lake Loch Ness Gift Store. Aaah, college.

This month I hope to check this goal off the list: get a bike and ride it to work.

In college, I biked all the time on my trusty Schwinn. Two concussions later (these stories to come), it got stolen. Then Andrew came into my life, bringing matching Schwinn bikes that belonged to his parents. I KNOW.

And then we moved to New York.

A lot of people bike here, but it feels challenging to me for the following reasons:

  • crazy crazy traffic
  • rampant bike theft
  • lack of space to store it
  • used bikes are just more expensive here
  • getting repairs, etc., is difficult without a car

These have been my excuses. But now, it’s time! I have just barely started looking and am already overwhelmed with what, so far, are too many expensive options. I’ll keep you posted!

 

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Happy National Running Day (…yesterday)

June 7, 2012 – 4:55 pm

Best care package EVER. I also appreciate that I seem to be passing someone on the card.

A little late, but here it is: a re-cap of my half-marathon. While I was training I scoured the blogosphere for “My First Race” stories. If you aren’t interested, then go read this awesome cat blog. If you are, here you go!

What I Ate

I did not eat the contents of the care package pictured above sent to me by my dear friend Jill, although a shot of whiskey sounded really great. I became kind of obsessive about the Perfect Race Day Meal (and pre-race dinner) and finally decided to just eat what I knew feels good for my body (with a little more pasta that I would usually go for). Sometimes the simplest answers are the hardest to arrive at.

Pre-Race Day Dinner

  • Whole wheat pasta with veggies
  • Salad
  • A few bites of A’s amazing vodka sauce pasta
  • SO much water

And that was it! I was in bed at 10:30pm. It was the most responsible Friday night OF MY LIFE.

Race Day Breakfast (at 4:30am!)

  • 2 pieces of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and a banana
  • Pretzels on the way to keep my stomach calm

During

  • Jelly Belly sports beans, pictured above. The best!
  • SO MUCH water- I stopped at every station once I hit 2 miles.

Bottom Line

  • You know what makes your body feel good. Eat that.

 

The Wind Beneath My Wings. SERIOUSLY.

And Then, We Ran

My #1 piece of advice to anyone who wants to start running, or really do anything that’s new and challenging, is to find some hos to do it with you (you can call them friends, and they can be boys, but for me, it took a big pack of hos). I can not tell you enough how encouraged I was by my running buddies- from Sam who got me to sign up, to Katie and Mollie who ran around Brooklyn with me, and especially Laura (above on the left).

Laura is a bad-ass woman who started running just a year/year and a half ago, and ran the NYC Marathon in November. She was my go-to for all of my running fears/questions, and she gave me a huge gift – she ran with me and paced me the entire race. It was literally a game-changer for me. Before the race, I had only run 10 miles without stopping (and that included a few patches of walking). On race day, I made it the whole 13.1 miles without walking (except for water stations – they were my little treat). THANK YOU, LAURA!

My Bro Amidst the Hos - my coworker who ran SO FAST!

How Did it Go?

Running a half-marathon, my first race ever, was really hard.

I started off feeling great- all of my fears about hitting a wall early didn’t happen – phew! For the first 9 miles, I could chat, even laugh, and was loving the scenery and crowds cheering us on.

Around mile 9, I started to get weary, and was having a lot of pain in my left foot. Following Laura’s encouragement, I focused on parts of my body that felt good – damn, my eyebrows felt GREAT!

Around miles 10 and 11, I wanted to cry. I started to get worried, and 2-3 miles seemed like a LOT more to go. I thought it would get easier at that point, but it really didn’t.

At mile 12, I started to get really nauseous. Laura was giving me a non-stop stream of encouragement, and at one point started talking about the food we would have at Coney Island when we finished – ice cream!, beer! I expressed rage, and she stopped.

When we hit the Coney Island Boardwalk, there were signs exclaiming “800 meters to go, 100 meters to go.” Again, this seemed really far to me. Yes, I had just run 13 miles, but I still had the equivalent of a lap around the McCarren track left to go? WTF?

And THEN- I heard my name! The super organized folks at NY Road Runners have it set up so that an announcer reads your name just as you are about to cross the finish line. I got my last little boost, and sprinted through, arms held high. For real, I held my arms up. The official photos look like stills from a Lifetime Movie. I can’t post them here, because paying $49.95 for some of the most embarrassing photos of myself I have every seen didn’t seem like a great idea.

I finished my first race in 2 hours and 27 minutes, coming in at 12,679th place. Being proud to finish something almost thirteen THOUSANDTH place is a unique feeling.

I realize this sounds a little bit awful. It kind of was. But it was also SO AWESOME AND I LOVED IT. I get it. I get why people love this.

Will I do it again? We’ll see. I am determined to keep my fitness levels up and my ass tight. I’m enjoying mixing in some other types of exercise now that I don’t have the pressure of the race. But – I’ve got more things to check off my list!

Check back here SOON for my June CHECK!

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A Checklist You’ll Want to Finish: Summer Cocktails

June 1, 2012 – 4:26 pm

 

Summer in a Jar, and a free ad for my fave place, Brooklyn Kitchen!

 

When summer hits, there are three things I want to do ALL DAY LONG: lay on the beach, drink fruity drinks, and take showers (a girl can only handle sticky for so long). Showers seems like a tough topic for a blog post, so let’s talk about cocktails!

I made a pitcher of these for a Memorial Day BBQ – they are a perfect light drink to sip on a hot day with burgers and lots of guacomole. And there is something about drinking out of a jar that is so summer, don’t you think?

Check-list: Ellyn’s Summer In a Jar

  • Mix or shake in a glass or cocktail shaker:
    • 1 part mint-infused vodka
    • 1 part blackberry-infused vodka
    • 1 part club soda
    • 2 parts lemonade
  • Pour over ice
  • Top with mint leaves and a lemon slice.
  • Drink that mofo!

“But wait, Ellyn! What is this fancy, artisinal, grass-fed mint and blackberry vodka?” Don’t worry, babycakes, keep reading:

Pretty pictures from Lindsay at My Own Ideas blog - click for cute wedding favor idea.

 

Check-list: How to Make Infused Liquor:

  • Put some stuff (herbs, fruit, berries, whatevs!) in a jar
  • Pour some liquor over it
  • Seal and  put in a dark place for at least a week
  • Show up to a party with a bottle of fancy liquor and impress all your friends!

For a slightly more eloquent how-to, check out this Wired’s article.

Still thirsty? Here’s a quick check-list of more great summer drinks:

Bottoms Up, Friends!

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outfits

Memorial Day, in which I Wear Some Clothes and Spill Some Things

May 29, 2012 – 2:08 pm

Heading to Berry Park to watch the Men’s U.S. National Soccer Team play Scotland. I didn’t plan on wearing red, white, and blue, but I did, and they won 5-1. I ALSO didn’t plan on wearing this purse, but as I walked out of our apartment, I gracefully spilled an entire bottle of diet coke into my purse.

Shirt and shorts – Madewell, Belt – C. Wonder, Shoes – Muji, Purse- vintage Coach (found for $1 at an estate sale by my MIL!), lipstick – Lady Danger by MAC

On Monday, we headed for a very warm stroll along the Highline in Manhattan. Fun, in the way that jamming yourself into a small space with sweaty people is fun. But there were pospicles!

Here we have my first popsicle attempt, a strawberry rhubarb from People’s Pops.

Dress - Alter, Purse- Porter, Hat - Cheap Monday.

 

Just after this was taken, the whole thing fell apart. FOR REAL. The stick just broke in half, strawberry rhubarb DOWN.

Take 2, cucumber lime from La Newyorkina.

 

Popsicle #2. I look sad because that baby by my left knee was trying to steal my popsicle.

Shorts, popsicles, and the park – Happy Summer!

 

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checklist

Hump Day Mini Check-In: List Daydreaming

May 24, 2012 – 7:26 pm
http://www.supercoolpets.com/pictures/cat_writing.jpg

Cats writing lists = brain explosion. (also, I would credit this, but it came on uncredited on the vast world of the internets. I'd like to think the artist is a 97 year old man).

 

Now that I have crossed my first item of the list (and finally started recovering), I’m plotting what to do next month.

My whole list is here, and I’ve had a few great suggestions from y’all cute folks as well, including bake a perfect tarte tatin (I’m not totally sure what that is), and to “learn football,” which seems kind of big.

I’ve also enjoyed hearing about some of your own lists. Ingrid, a wonderful woman from I met in Mexico (jetsetters, no big deal, shoulder shrug), has been working on her “turning 50″ list (she is a super hot almost 50 year old, FYI). For your perusal:

Checked off Ingrid’s list:
..been through the biggest whirlpool in Europe on a boat
..booked a willow basket weaving course on a remote island
…am learning to eat fish …still have to catch, kill cook and eat a fish
…booked a 5 day sea kayak adventure
…booked a 4 day cycling adventure
…made and sold something in a local gallery
…learned to play the Ukelele (to accompany songs)

Still on Ingrid’s list:

…Spend a night alone in a hammock in the woods
…record a song
…write something and get it published
…paint a self portrait
…paint an heirloom piece of furniture telling my lifestory
..read Crime and Punishment
…read to Kill a Mockingbird
…read On the Road (Kerouac)

This is a pretty bad-ass list. I love some of the ideas on it, although I just peed my pants at the thought of spending the night along in a hammock in the woods. My list is a little less impressive, although I’m sure it will be an inspiring you-tube video when I AT LONG LAST become a card-shark.

SO. What should my next CHECK be? Any ideas that I should add to my checklist? Weird goals you have for yourself? DO TELL.

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check CHECK: Run a Half-Marathon

May 21, 2012 – 3:03 am

Yesterday, I crossed my first item of my check-list, and hot DAMN, does it feel good!

Finish Line

I was actually so tired, I forgot how to smile like a normal human being.

The Brooklyn Half-Marathon is a pretty incredible race: the race sold out in 10 hours (with 15,000 registered) and 14,728 crossed the finish line on Saturday. I came in 12,679th. I can’t think of any other activity in which you feel AWESOME about coming in 12,000th place.

I am tired and sore tonight, so I’ll save the real re-cap for later this week, and leave you with this:

Almost as good as running the race was being DONE with running the race, and buying cupcakes and flowers to accompany me for a few hours of knee-icing.

Yep, that cupcake has a puppy on it. Yep, my ring is of a french bulldog. I'm sorry, Theo!

 

 

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Two Bulleted Lists – Happy Hump Day!

May 16, 2012 – 2:33 am
Brooklyn Half

Everyone's feet are twice as wide as their boobs, right?

 

I love to plan an outfit, and this Saturday’s Big Event is no exception. The picture above isn’t quite accurate, but it’s close to what I’ve picked out to maximize feelings of being a hard-core runner:

While I love gear, I don’t love spending tons of cash on clothes I wear to sweat in. With the exception of that sports bra, which is worth EVERY PENNY (minus the pennies I could earn by turning tricks on the street for all the old men who stare if I’m not wearing said bra), everything was purchased from either the Nike outlet or runoutlet.com.

As if this post alone isn’t obsessive enough, I’m taking the whole outfit for a run today – I have heard too many chafing horror stories, I’m taking no chances. Also, outfit planning, even the  most boring outfit ever, is distracting me from my anxiety over:

  • Crapping my pants mid-run
  • Having my iphone fritz out and having no music
  • Doing something really awkward at the drink stations (if you know me, you know that this is a founded fear – if there is an opportunity to spill, fall, or splash Gatorade in a child’s eyes, blinding it for life, I will do it)
  • Having to stop and walk a bit and having crowd members yell at me
  • But mostly, crapping my pants

Help me out, runners! Are either of my lists missing something important?

 

 

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checklist

How it all started

May 13, 2012 – 7:17 pm

Just a hint of cankle.

Do you remember in elementary school, once a year, when the whole class had to “run the mile?”  I used to cry myself to sleep in anxiety over the impending doom of mile day.
I would watch all the sporty girls crowd each other at the start line, ponytails bouncing around in anticipation, and would pray to melt into the asphalt. I was the bookworm girl, the student council girl, the drama girl – but never, ever the sporty girl.

Things improved a bit after high school – bouts of running with college roommates here, devotion to Jillian Michaels there. Grad school was the first time (thanks to the fabulous NYU gym and it’s hundreds of TVs seducing me into spin workouts with Real Housewives marathons) that I started to finally understand that exercise actually makes me feel good.

But as these things go, me and working out are always a bit hit or miss. And running has rarely been a hit. Enter my friend Sam back in February.

While waiting for a table at Parm, Sam and I had between 1-27 black olive martinis (basically an adult version of when I used to drink straight olive juice as a child and completely awesome). We then ate our body weight in lasagna and caprese salad. It was in this state that Sam said, “Hey! Do you want to run the Brooklyn Half-Marathon with me?”

Sam is the type of person who makes everything seem like a really good idea, so after 24 hours or reminding myself that I’m not a runner, I said “meh, ok.” Fortunately, Sam and a few other friends who joined in have been awesome cheerleaders, and I’ve been jogging my heart out for the past 4 months. Like, literally, there have been moments when I thought my heart was going to pound out of my body after a particularly grueling lap around the block.

So, here we are! The race is on Saturday, and I am scared stiff, but excited. I don’t think I’ve become a runner,  and honestly, I don’t even really like it a whole lot still. But it turns out, doing the mile is possible. Doing a bunch of miles is even possible. I wish I could travel back to Santiam Christian Elementary around 1993 and tell myself “Hey! You can run the mile! Also, you are rocking those purple stirrup pants. ”

 

 

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Hump Day Mini Check-In: 5 miles and some power candy.

May 9, 2012 – 6:02 pm

Taking pictures of yourself while your neighbor is taking his dog for a pee is AWKward!

This month’s CHECK is to run a half-marathon. Don’t worry, I didn’t come up with this goal last week – it’s been in the works since January (more to come on how exactly that happened soon- but I’ll tell you that it involved black olive martinis from Parm).

Yesterday I ran (shuffled) a slow and steady 5 miles, which took me over the Williamsburg bridge and back. With the Brooklyn Half-Marathon on May 19th, I’m pretty much stuck at where I am in terms of being ready. I’m in OK place- I will finish, but it will be hard. The next week and half will be focused on just maintaining and feeling good (and NOT drinking martinis, I promise!).

I am highly motivated by gear, as you can see. My amazing runner sister-in-law sent me this awesome water bottle (I like to refer to it as a “strap-on”), which makes me feel so legit. And I’ve found my fuel soul mate in Jelly Belly Sports Beans (I get them cheap on  Amazon). 5 miles was not really enough to warrant a snack, but getting to eat candy while running really keeps my spirits up.

 

 

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