Why not Tri?

First came the running, then came triathlon. It was an idea that simmered in the back of my mind for over a year as I heard some of my fellow grad students talk about their training and experiences. I went to one of their races and got to see it happen. To actually watch so many people as they complete each leg of a triathlon is quite moving. It's like you can see the challenges they've had to overcome in their facial expressions. I got the same feeling watching the Boston Marathon this year-- I'm a sap, I teared up!

As I began to realize my limits with running, the sport of triathlon really appealed to me. What can I say, I enjoy competition :) Without any commitments, I began to take some spinning classes at the gym, and tried swimming at the pool. I am NOT a swimmer, so it took awhile for me to feel even remotely comfortable in the water. When it came to biking outside, I had some issues, as the bike from my past was too small and hurt my knees (proper fit is important!). But each day things got easier.

A year went by, me thinking about doing a tri, worrying about my knees, wondering if I could do it. Now I feel like this was a year wasted, but I'm not going to lie--I was apprehensive! Finally it started to come together and I decided to give it a tri (haha). These articles from Runner's World and Womens Health Magazine provided alot of helpful information and gave me guidelines for my own training. It is a commitment to train for swimming, biking, and running, but it doesn't have to consume all of your free time!

The first race? I chose a women's-only sprint tri in Philly, appropriately called SheROX. (They have now teamed with Danskin to run events in multiple cities, check the website for one near you!) A sprint distance tri ranges anywhere from 1/4-1/2 mi swim, 10-16mi bike, and 2-3.1mi, depending on the course. I would definitely recommend a women's only race for a first event--not only did they have a mentor program for first-timers, but the support on race day was unbelievable. I loved every minute of it and was so thrilled by the new experience!! So... what are you waiting for??

Are you ready? (pre-race, SheRox 2007)

Ok, well, this post is turning out to be longer than anticipated, so I will try to compile the helpful tips I got along the way into another post. In the mean time, what questions do you have??? Is anyone else training for a tri right now? (I'm signed up for the Danskin New England at the end of July, looking for some more races) What is your biggest worry? I know I had quite a few! Would you be interested in seeing what I actually did for my training? In the mean time you can check out what college student and pro triathlete Jen Perez has to say in her interviews by Jenn, Ashley, Caitlin, and Meghann!

Ready Healthy Go!

I apologize if you've seen Tina or Lauren's recap, but I wanted to let everyone in the Boston area know about a wonderful opportunity to get healthy, fresh food when you're on the go! A few weeks ago, I had the amazing opportunity to meet Jeff- the founder and CEO of Ready Healthy Go and try his company's products. Their menu provides many amazing choices, ones that I could totally see myself creating at home. Fresh, convenient, and most importantly tasty-- a great option if you're near The Harvard Coop or their other gym locations.

The sandwiches are made using Iggy's bread, which is reason enough to get one :) But with choices like Roasted Portobello, Chipotle Spiced Chicken and Grilled Asparagus, you'll have trouble picking which one! Asparagus on a sandwich? Loved this idea, as well as the smoky eggplant spread that accompanied it. The sandwiches were all winners, but it was the amazing spreads (sweet pea mockamole and basil white bean puree) that added so much flavor and kept dancing around in my head :) A great way to boost nutrition without adding alot of calories!

(top to bottom: Grilled Asparagus, Chipotle Spiced Chicken, Roasted Portabello)

Next up were the wraps, Vietnamese Tofu, Turkey Green Apple and Just Veggies. These were all fantastic, with the standouts being the Apple Vinaigrette on the Turkey Wrap, Edamame Hummus on the Veggie Wrap, and the texture of the tofu! Luckily Jeff was nice enough to share one of their secrets to their dressings ;) I'll have to give it a try myself... so you'll have to wait!

(l to r: Vietnamese Tofu, Turkey Green Apple, Just Veggies)

And then came the salads. I did not expect to be able to sample so many things, but it was great. Except that I liked everything, and it was hard to stop at just a taste! We got to try the Sesame Glazed Salmon, Herbed Chicken and the Jicama and Citrus Salads. All of these were awesome, there's no way for me to pick a favorite :) All their nutrition info (found online or on the products themselves) includes dressing--if you look at the numbers, you'll understand why I was impressed!!

(top to bottom: Sesame Glazed Salmon, Herbed Chicken, Jicama and Citrus)

Bottom line? Loved it. They cater, too, so I'll have to put in a plug at work! Jeff has done an amazing thing- bring together the people required to make fabulous, healthy, fresh meals available to me when I need to eat on the go!

Thanks to Lauren and Tina for their pictures, as I was sans camera! It was a fabulous night with the girls :)

Elina, Me, Lauren, Tina

Berries 3 Ways

This post is dedicated to a friend of mine who, upon seeing me with a 2lb container of strawberries, asked what I was going to do with them. Hmm... "Eat them" just didn't quite seem like an adequate response! And while I did eat my fair share, I managed to try a few of your recipes-

Baked Oatmeal (minus the pepitas as I didn't have any)

Baked Ricotta w/Berries

I made a few slight changes to this recipe, cutting back on the honey in the ricotta mix, using agave nectar in the berries, and baking it in a small square pan instead of individual ramekins since I broke one of mine :(

Strawberry Curd

While curd is usually made with citrus and egg yolks, pureed fresh strawberries took center stage in this Strawberry curd. The consistency was quite thick and made a nice spread on toast or into some greek yogurt! It was also fabulous on a rice cake with a layer of cheese (laughing cow, cream cheese, goat cheese...)--a great new spread!

So there you have it, just in time for summer- some ideas of what to do when you realize you just picked 10lbs of strawberries (not that I've done that...)!

Who's ugli?

I was pretty excited to see Katie's New Foods Challenge, as I always have my eyes on fun things in the produce section of the grocery store! First were the ramps I found, which I really enjoyed. This time I made the switch to a fruit...


Ugli fruit! It's also known as uniq fruit, or Jamaican tangelo, and believed to be a hybrid of a grapefruit, tangerine, and perhaps a pomello. Like other citrus fruit, it's high in vitamin C and has some fiber to boot. How to pick a ripe one? I had no idea, but according to this website, it is only picked when ripe (so it will be ripe in the store) and can range from green to yellow to orange. While I found recipes for an Ugli Salad w/Avocado & Shrimp and Uniq Lemon Marmelade that sounded great, I got lazy and decided to try it in its natural form... I just ate it :)


It has a thick rind that was very easy to peel. The segments came apart easily, but the casings were quite tough, so I ended up starting to peel them and squeezing out the pulp with my teeth. Perhaps eating it like a grapefruit would've been easier! It was SO juicy, it's a good thing I didn't try to eat this on my couch! I could tell it was part grapefruit, but it was very sweet and refreshing. Maybe next time I'll try those recipes...

Good Eats & Sweet Treats

Sheesh, where do the weeks go? With my mind on other recipes, I took the opportunity to make some of your recipes! They came out so well that I had to share :)

I think the star of them were Veggie Girl's Blondies! Holy moly, if you have not tried her recipe, RUN to the kitchen!! These were phenomenal. I followed her recipe, using macadamia nuts, white choc chips, coconut, and lime zest for the add-ins. I didn't have the correct size pan so I used a smaller one, which only added to the gooey deliciousness. I had to share these with some of my friends otherwise they would've been devoured all too quickly!

I got reviews from them too, just to make sure I wasn't biased (thanks guys!).
"Wow --- the blondies were delicious. Melt in your mouth goodness."
"By the way, your blondies were the highlight of my day... :-) Perfectly moist, soft and sweet."

Tropical Blondies

Next up was Kelly's Spinach, Tempeh & Mushroom Stroganoff. I changed the proportions based on the ingredients I had, but it was very good. My picture does not do it justice, you should go check out her blog! At least I used the last of my broken fettucine noodles!

With the last of my brie, I made Cauliflower Risotto w/Brie & Almonds. This creamy brie was certainly perfect for risotto! Delicious :)

Cauliflower Risotto w/Brie & Almonds

Il Fornaio Heads South to Campania for May's Regionale

From May 4-17, Il Fornaio celebrates the food of Campania. One of the better known regions of Italy--home to Naples, Sorrento, Salerno, the island of Capri, and the Amalfi Coast--Campania enjoys a warm climate and a long growing season. Mario Lombardo designed the regional menu, pulling favorites from his mother's kitchen and the dishes his father prepared as a chef in Campagnia at O'Parrucchiano-La Favorita.

At Il Fornaio's Santa Monica restaurant (1551 Ocean Avenue across from the Santa Monica Pier; 310/451-7800), we enjoyed another tasting as we continue our exploration of Italy through its regional cuisines.

As befits a coastal region, the Campania menu features seafood. There were mussels with breadcrumbs (Tegamino e Cozze), linguine with clams (Linguine cu e Vongole), risotto with shrimp, mussels, and clams (Risotto e Amalfi), and seabass baked in parchment paper with shrimp, mussels, and clams (Spigula Dinto o Cuoppo).

Our starter was the cannelini bean soup (Menesta Schitana). The beans thickened and sweetened the broth, which was complimented by barely cooked fresh tomatoes and crisp pieces of pancetta. With the soup we were served the Fiano di Avellino, D'Antiche Terre (2007) a dry white with strong fruit notes. At first it seemed counter-intuitive to have wine with soup (who does that?), but they worked well with one another.

The second appetizer was a beautifully plated selection of heirloom tomatoes (Pummarole e Capri) with first-of-the-season Pineapple and Brandywine tomatoes, topped with soft cubes of mozzarella di bufala. With the Pummarole, we had the Greco di Tufo, D'Antiche Terre (2007), a white wine with a touch of sweetness to leven the acid of the tomatoes.

For our pasta course, we had crepes filled with ground beef (Cannelloni e Pascale), mixed with a trifecta of cheeses--ricotta, mozzarella, paremesan--and seasoned with fresh basil. Resting on top was a coating of tomato sauce and melted fresh mozzarella. When my Jewish mother cooked comfort food, dumplings were usually involved, which always made me very happy. I have to imagine that cannelloni have a similar effect on the children of Campania.

The menu offered a meat course of veal (Scaluppine a Caprese), a mixed grill of lamb, game hen, and sausage (Carne Mista 'Ncoppa a Griclia), or seabass in parchment paper (Spigula Dinto o Cuoppo). We decided to try the Scaluppine.

Thin slices of veal were sauced with lightly cooked chopped tomatoes and melted fresh mozzarella, accompanied by fresh English peas sauteed with pancetta and roasted baby Yukon Gold potatoes. A richly flavored Aglianico, Terredora (2007) was served with the veal. One of our friends described the aroma as "almost like you're drinking it inside a wine cask." Deliciously musky, the Aglianico was perfectly paired with the veal.

Well-known as a citrus growing region, for our Campanian dessert we had half-glasses of chilled limoncello and a serving of light-as-air lemon sponge cake with lemon pastry cream inside (Delizia a Limone). All too often lemon's tartness is counterbalanced with a heavy addition of sugar. Not so with the limoncello and sponge cake. Sweetness softened lemon's edge but didn't overwhelm its flavor.

One of these days we'll take a long postponed trip to Italy, but until then we look forward to Il Fornaio's monthly Festa Regionale.

For more posts about Il Fornaio's Festa Regionale check out:
Grilled Vegetable Couscous Salad
A Tasting at Il Fornaio, Santa Monica--Trentino-Alto Adige
A Trip to Italy is Just Around the Corner at Il Fornaio--Calabria
Il Fornaio Heads South to Campania for May's Regionale
Il Fornaio Heads North to Lombardia
Abruzzo at Il Fornaio, Santa Monica
Friuli-Venezia Giulia at Il Fornaio

A little help?

Hi everyone, just a quick post to say if you liked my Nutty Quinoa w/Brie, Asparagus & Sundried Tomato Pesto recipe, would you cast your vote in the Ile de France Recipe Contest?? CLICK HERE to rate my recipe, and any others that were submitted!

Nutty Quinoa w/Brie, Asparagus & Sundried Tomato Pesto

A few of you asked about Daregal in my last post, and a quick check on their website revealed their availability at a few stores, including Shaws, A&P, Stop and Shop, and Giant food. They also have information about how to get their products in a store near you (click above link)! Don't forget, you can enter their sweepstakes for a chance to get some of your own!

I'll be back soon with some more food, but until then-have a great week!