I am back from Napa! What a wonderful fun-filled weekend getaway. I feel like I’ve been neglecting this blog lately on the food-side, but no worries, I will be back posting more delicious and easy recipes soon!
This past weekend a couple of friends and I ventured up to Napa Valley for a much needed mini-vacation. I was a little worried about the weather, but it turned out to be a beautiful sunny weekend, perfect weather for running. We planned our Saturday pretty much around the wineries and the amount of wine we could consume in one day. My friend Ann actually had 10 wineries lined up! Of course we didn’t hit up all 10, but we managed to get in a few of the most popular ones before we all decided we had enough wine to last us the entire month and call it quits. Oh yeah, and I also had to be up at 4AM the next day for the marathon, so I tried not to overdo it with the drinking. But it’s a little hard when you’re surrounded by barrels full of wine…
Luna Vineyards
We hit up the expo before for my bib number and race swag. This has got to be the coolest goody bag ever-we got to choose between a duffel bag or a backpack. We used these bags for sweat check the day of the marathon. I choose the backpack just because I have a ton of duffel bags already and the backpack would be nice to take on a hiking trip. This alone made the race entry worth it! Oh yeah, at the expo I also found out about a new challenge, Lake Tahoe Marathon. Not just any marathon, but the Triple Challenge (3 marathons back to back to back, Friday-Sunday). And if that isn’t enough for you, there is the Double Dare (2 x 75 miles) which is twice around the Lake. If running 100+ miles isn’t your thing, this is a great chance to get away for the long weekend because there will be kayaking, swimming, biking events as well! Sounds like my kind of vacation, check it out here. I might do the marathon Friday, biking Saturday or rest, and the final marathon Sunday.
I was a little worried about this race because there was a strict No Headphones policy. They had sent out an e-mail to all participants clearly stressing this issue and it was also reinstated on the website-”Course officials will be monitoring the starting line and the course, and there will be a USATF Referee monitoring the finish line. You are subject to disqualification should you choose not to follow this policy.” 
Since I’ve never run any distance race without music before, I decided to take the chance and bring it with me. Can you tell I don’t like following rules? I hid the wires underneath my shirt and had my long sleeve shirt zipped up to hide the headphones when I wasn’t wearing them. I actually went the first 10 miles without music before I thought I needed a little something. It was on so low I could hear my feet hitting the ground. Ann dropped me off at the finish so I could join the rest of the runners and take the shuttle to the start. Once at the start, I met up with Andrew and Monique as we talked through pre-race jitters and enjoyed the perks of a small race (only 2,500 runners). We pretty much lined up right behind the start line, barely any difference between gun and chip time.
I started off going way too fast and since there were no pace leaders, I had no idea how fast I was going out. My Garmin takes a long time to adjust to my actual pace, so it was telling me I was going at a 10:30 pace which was impossible. I kept up with Monique because she was shooting for a BQ and I wanted to finish in 3:30. Turns out, I was going under 8 min/mile for the first 6 miles of the race. Doh! I always tell people to go out 30 sec-1 minute slower than goal pace to allow your legs/body to warm up, so you can pick it up in the end with negative splits. Negative splits are when you run the 2nd half of the marathon faster than your first. Unfortunately, I didn’t listen to my own advice as my pace kept dropping throughout the race. I was hitting between 8-8:30 until the halfway mark. Every time I passed through a crowd of spectators or saw cameras, I took off my headphones and tried to hide them, just in case they catch it on camera and use that against me. I probably counted only 4 other people who were wearing headphones, so I decided to just take them off for the rest of the race. Although, I don’t think they actually pulled anyone out because of it, all the warnings were enough to scare “most” people away from wearing them. Except me, of course.
The scenery was beautiful, but the race was also very very quiet and sometimes lonely. Since the race was so small, there weren’t that many spectators around, and frankly, after 20+ miles of seeing vineyard after vineyard, I was getting a little bored and wished I had music to distract me. At one point in the race, I chatted with an older man which made that mile fly by until he left me, but overall, it felt like a pretty long race. I counted down the miles (new race tactic: instead of counting up, start counting down, totally mental thing) until I saw my friends who were waiting at Mile 18 to cheer me on. Courtney actually jumped in with me and ran Miles 18-26 with me which was really nice to have someone there. And since she’s a speedster, she had no problem running at my slow poke pace. I don’t think she even broke a sweat the entire 8 miles!
By Mile 18, I was fading pretty fast. My legs couldn’t go any faster and I couldn’t get my pace under 9 minutes. Courtney tried to make conversation and push me along, but all I could muster were yes/no questions and a grunt here and there. Without her, I’m sure my pace would have dropped even more as I was so dehydrated by that time. I think the wine kicked in too from the day before and we were running right into the sun. The water stations were also 2 miles apart from each other, so whenever we passed one I grabbed a Gatorade and a water cup in each hand and Courtney grabbed another cup to hold for me. I totally forgot how long 26.2 miles was, I know that sounds stupid, but at my last marathon, the Goofy Challenge, the miles were just flying by and I didn’t even feel tired until Mile 25. The elevation on this course was also pretty hilly in the beginning. I thought I would be flying down the last 6 miles since it seemed like it was all downhill on the map, but by then, my legs were so worn out that even running on zero elevation was tough. The last mile, Courtney pointed to a girl in front of us and said to keep up with her because she was keeping a steady pace. I gathered up enough energy the last half mile and sprinted my way to the finish. Courtney dropped off at Mile 26 right before the finish.
I was so glad to be done with the race and receive my medal. Official finish time: 3:45:02. Not my goal time, but not my worst time either. I really think I’ve lost some speed since I stopped going to track workouts. Must get back on it. Overall, great race with a nice change of scenery. It’s always nice to run a smaller race and not have to deal with the massive crowd in the beginning and end. The race was very well organized as I got my sweat bag in no time which is unheard of. The medal is pretty bling too, my favorite one so far! It rotates, yes, I am a sucker for cool medals.
Apparently the Eugene marathon also has rotating medals, which I’m actually thinking about doing this year in May since B’s parents live there, but it is right before finals, so that might be a little tricky. Next up: L.A. Marathon next weekend. Now back to back marathons doesn’t seem like such a great idea, but it should be a fun race with tons of friends doing it. I’ve run a lot of the course already so I know it’s fairly hilly in the beginning, but downhill in the end. It is also with 25,000 runners, so I expect it will be a lot different than this race. And headphones allowed! Until the next race…
I think I’ve been posting more race recaps lately than actual food posts! It’s been a crazy month with 3 races back to back. I started Feburary with Surf City Half Marathon followed by the Pasadena Half and ended the month with the Chinatown 10K. I haven’t done a 10K in so long, I think the last one was this Long Beach Turkey Trot? I wasn’t really going for time because a lot of people had told me this course was very hilly. Well, they weren’t kidding about the hills. 1/2 mile in, we started a long uphill climb so I braced myself to go out slower in order to finish strong at the end.
More climbing..last hill
After the brutal uphill climb, the view from the top was amazing. You could see the Dodger Stadium and all of Downtown L.A. Since it had rained the day before, the skies were clear and blue. After the 3 mile mark, a guy tapped me on the shoulder to tell me that I had dropped something back along the course. I quickly looked at myself and thought I had everything, but didn’t want to take the chance so I actually started to run back along the course. On the floor I saw that it was a candy bar that wasn’t even mine to begin with! I was so pissed off at the guy and wondered if he did that so he could pass me? Good thing it was only a 10K or else I would have definitely been looking for that guy after the race >:)
Pictures stolen from my friend Oscar
Running through Dodger Stadium
I spotted my friend 1/2 a mile from the finish and that really gave me a burst of energy to try to keep up with him. A bunch of friends were cheering near the finish (some had done the 5K which ended before the 10K) which gave me the extra boost to finish strong. I ended up finishing 2 seconds after my friend! Crazy how I didn’t see him at all along the course until the very end.
Official time:
| Tag time: 49:39.3
Pace: 8:01 Place: 5th in age group |
8:01 |
The funny thing is, I didn’t even bother checking my official results until I saw that a friend had posted on my Facebook wall that I had gotten 5th place in my age group. No idea! I don’t think my 10K time was the best, but I am curious to see what my time would be if I had a flatter course to run on. I timed myself on the treadmill a couple months ago and I was able to get it down to 44 minutes. Maybe I’ll sign up for another 10K later this year, Santa Monica Classic in May? I feel like I’ve lost my speed a little bit ever since school started back up and I stopped going to track workouts.
Next up: Napa marathon this weekend and L.A. marathon 2 weeks after that. Excited to go back to one race a month after that. I’m also debating between the 50K or 50 mile race this August. I’m getting a little burned out on marathon training and the set mileage I have to hit every week. I think something new would be fun and challenging which is why I’m leaning towards the 50 miler. I don’t think I would do anything differently with the 50K besides doing more long trail runs, but the thought of jumping from 26 miles to 50 is a little intimidating. Thoughts?
Running with fast boys
Click here for recipe
Risottos are a delicious and inexpensive way to enjoy whole grains. Though the dish takes time to simmer, it makes a filling weeknight dinner, as well as lunch the next day. Although risotto tastes creamy, there is actually no cream or butter in this dish. The richness of the rice comes from the way the rice is cooked that causes the starch in the rice to bind together and make the overall dish creamy and delicious. By adding butternut squash to this dish, you can make some very low fat and low cholesterol meals with risotto.
Here are a few tips when cooking and shopping for ingredients:
* The type of rice is crucial in making a good risotto dish. The most common Italian rice available is Arborio, which is available at most local grocery stores.
* The second important ingredient in risotto is the broth. You can either make your own chicken/beef broth, or buy it in the grocery store. You can also make it vegetarian by subbing the chicken broth in this recipe for veggie broth.
* Feel free to mix and match the vegetables in this risotto dish. Look for food that’s in season, whenever possible. Kale, onions and pumpkin can make a delightful winter risotto; zucchini and eggplant can offer a tasty choice with the summer harvest. Check your local Farmer’s Market for a wide selection.
How to cook risotto:
Cooking risotto is different than cooking other types of rice. Instead of boiling a pot of water and dumping the uncooked rice in, risotto is gently simmered on the stovetop with a cup of liquid at a time until all the liquid is absorbed. Once the liquid is absorbed, you add another cup. You keep doing this in that fashion until all the liquid is gone and the risotto is creamy. Adding vegetables is easy. You cook them first and then either leave them in with rice or add them afterwards. Risotto is easy to make ahead and store for a few days. Depending on the ingredients, leftovers can give you 2-3 days worth of meals and side dishes.
Click here for recipe
This is one of my favorite go-to power bar recipe after a long run. I always make a big batch for my running friends and they love it after a hard workout. These bars have all natural ingredients and it is so ridiculously quick and simple to make. I have a hard time stopping at just one! This bar version of a chocolate chip cookie is great for a snack that will keep you energized throughout the day. You can add raisins, nuts, dried fruit, flax seed to suit your taste, anything works! The combination of white, dark chocolate chips, brown sugar and honey sweeten up these bars that you don’t need any other added sugars.
Black and White Chocolate Chip Bars
15 bars
Ingredients
- 4-1/2 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
Directions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease one 9×13-inch pan.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, flour, baking soda, vanilla, applesauce, honey and brown sugar. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Lightly press mixture into the prepared pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes then cut into bars. Let bars cool completely in pan before removing or serving.
Dine in on a Friday night and create this restaurant-worthy meal at home. The sun-dried tomatoes and Parmesan cheese packs a lot of flavor into this simple orzo dish. Most sun-dried tomatoes are packed in oil, so to avoid adding all that extra oil to the dish, just rinse the tomatoes under the sink and pat them dry. Although it doesn’t take out all the oil, it cuts down on a lot of the fat.
Orzo is traditionally used in soups, but this very versatile rice-shaped pasta is a great substitute for pasta. It has all the firm “al dente” texture and its authentic Italian taste adds a new dimension to a traditional favorite. It might look like rice, but orzo is made of hard wheat semolina. You can also substitute fresh pasta for orzo in this dish. At Cube Café in Los Angeles, shoppers can buy fresh pasta and ravioli from their marketplace along with various other artisan crafted gourmet foods. This rustic Italian-inspired dish is great served with some sautéed greens.
Tip: Since the pasta is so small, it can easily slip through the cracks of a pasta strainer. A fine sieve can be used to drain orzo, or you can line a regular colander with cheesecloth.
Click here for the recipe
This post is going to be quick and sweet
One word to describe this race: defeat
Honestly, I just wasn’t feeling it. I knew the second I started the race. My shins started acting up which rarely happens, my Garmin wouldn’t start, I was tired and dehydrated from partying the previous night, and the list goes on. Usually when I start to think negative thoughts, I try not to let it get to me and think about all the positive things that has happened, but I just couldn’t get myself out of the slump. Frankly, I was just feeling shitty. I think part of it has to do with all the great races I’ve been having so far. A new PR in Surf City 2 weeks ago and a BQ in the Goofy Challenge last month. In the end, I was just setting myself up to come down. I know I’m too hard on myself and I even contemplated dropping out of the race 3 miles in. Not because I couldn’t finish the race, or even slow down my pace, I just didn’t want to have “bad time”. My legs felt heavy and I just wanted to quit. I guess I let my pride take over. Fortunately, I stuck through it the entire race counting down the miles until the finish. Longest half marathon ever. I had no idea what pace I was running since my Garmin wasn’t working, I just wanted to finish, get my medal and dash out of there.That’s the thing about running-you have good and bad days, no matter how hard you train.
Haha fake smile
Anyways, my official time is not my worst, but it’s far from my best. Oh well, some days you have it and other days you don’t. Until the next race…
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Amusing conversation from last night…
Me: I think we should give up meat for lent
B: No way
Me: There are tons of vegetarian dishes I’ve made that you’ve liked
B: Like what?
Me: Gnocchi w/ Zucchini Ribbons, Corn Chowder, Pesto Pizza etc..
B: Didn’t the corn chowder have chicken in it? and the pesto pizza had prosciutto on it?
Me: Oh yeah..
B: I’ll give it a try for 2 weeks, just don’t make any of that soy/tofu stuff
Me: Wait, we have too much meat in our fridge right now. Nevermind.
On that note..here’s a recipe for chicken tamale casserole
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup preshredded 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Salt & pepper
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 can corn
- 1 can black beans
- 1/4 cup fat-free milk
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix
- 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
- Cooking spray
- 1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce
- 1.5 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Saute bell pepper, onion, cooked shredded chicken breast in a non-stick pan. Add in corn, black beans and green chilis and season with salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder.
3. Combine eggs, milk and corn muffin mix together and add in chicken mixture. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
3. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with cheese and bake at 400° until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces.
Here is a great recipe to use up that leftover wine from this past weekend. Enjoy!
Spaghetti with Olives in Tomato White Wine Sauce
These tostadas are good and filling, you might have a hard time stopping at just two! I used a simple marinade of coffee, dijon mustard, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar and garlic for this juicy piece of flank steak. Yes, coffee in the marinade! Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it. Seeing how I drink way too much coffee already, I thought why not try pairing my espresso love with something savory.The end taste didn’t have a very strong coffee flavor, probably because I used regular brewed coffee. I’m sure you can experiment with espresso if you want to have a stronger flavor. I thought using coffee was a great way to replace a lot of the oil that is found in most marinades. It really breaks down the meat and gives it that nice juicy flavor in every bite. Instead of buying pre-marinaded meat or those marinades from a bottle with a ton of unknown ingredients, be creative and make your own marinade. Flank steak is also very low in fat content which is great because you get all the protein without all the fat. Paired with some bleu cheese, these tostadas make the perfect meal with some tortilla chips and guacamole.
Steak & Bleu Cheese Tostadas
Serves 4
Marinade
- 1 Flank steak – 1 ½ pounds
- 1 Cup strong black coffee
- 2 Cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1.5 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 Tbsp of brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- Salt & pepper to taste
Tostadas
- 8 corn tortillas
- Canola or olive oil cooking spray
- 1/4 cup hummus
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 cup shredded romaine lettuce, divided
- 1/2 cup bleu cheese, divided
Directions
- Mix all ingredients for the marinade but the steak and marinate for at least 2 hours (can be up to next day).
- Rub steak with a little oil and grill until done basting frequently with the marinade
- Rest at least 5 min before slice across grain.
- Meanwhile, coat tortillas on both sides with cooking spray. Divide the tortillas between 2 large baking sheets. Bake, turning once, until crisped and lightly brown, about 10 minutes.
- To assemble tostadas, spread each crisped tortilla with some hummus. Top with the steak mixture, lettuce and bleu cheese.
This past weekend, I ran the Surf City Half Marathon for the 2nd time. The first time was actually my very first marathon! I was quickly reminded along the course why this is one of my least favorite races. Like I said before, it is just flat out boring. I know I’m spoiled by living in L.A where the beaches are within walking distance, but 13.1 miles of beaches? Let alone, the entire 26.2. No wonder I crashed so hard last year at Mile 15. The race itself was fairly uneventful. I didn’t have a time goal in mind and since Goofy’s Challenge, I’ve been taking it easy and slacking on my mileage. Mentally, I’m so exhausted with long runs and even thinking about going out for a 20+ mile training run stresses me out. I had to miss a 24 mile training run 2 weeks ago because I just wasn’t feeling it and somehow hurt my left foot while trail running. Excuses aside, I better pull myself out of this slump soon because I have Pasadena Half next week and Napa Marathon and L.A Marathon next month. Someone remind me why I signed up for all these races back to back? I think a well deserved “break” is called for after L.A Marathon, although now that I think about it, I have San Diego RnR in June, San Francisco in July and my first 50K in August. Yes, I need an intervention….
Anyways, back to the race…In the back of my mind, I was secretly hoping to qualify for the New York Marathon with a time of 1:37. Surprisingly, the times for New York are harder than Boston, but you are also able to get in with a half marathon time. I’m not sure why I want to run New York so badly, I think it’s just another goal for me to work towards and another excuse to sign up for more races.
The entire course was pretty much along Pacific Coast Highway, with the exception of 3 miles winding into some neighborhoods overlooking the bluff. I still remember the exact song I was playing on my iPod on repeat during last year’s race when I was running over the bluff. Lady Gaga-Just Dance, don’t hate. One of my least favorite parts about this course is the constant ins and outs and turnarounds. You would be running for a couple miles and see runners running the opposite way and wonder how much further until the damn turnaround. It’s a little discouraging and only serves as a reminder that you have to run back the exact same way. My legs felt a little stiff in the beginning of the race, but they loosened up after a couple miles in. After Disney, I realized how important it is to start off slower than goal pace, which is how I was able to do so well and feel great after despite the near freezing temperatures. Even though it might be scary to purposely take it slower and not get caught up with all the hype and energy in the beginning, your legs will be so much more refreshed later on in the race. It’s all about pacing, and I didn’t fully understand this until after Disney. After I crossed the finish line, I felt like I could have maintained a steady 7:30-8 min pace for another 13 miles. I felt great after the race with minimal soreness the next day. A successful race in my eyes.
I ended with a PR in this race, but it was bittersweet because I missed New York by 2 minutes. I just wanted to break 1:40 because the past couple half marathons, I’ve been stuck at 1:45. Oh well, I have pretty much all year to work on my half time and I’m going to try for New York again in a couple weeks at Napa Marathon where I will need a 3:30. Training until then? Track, hills, trail runs, and one more long run, 21 miles in Palos Verdes this weekend.
Oh yeah, I told myself this was going to be the last time running this race, but last weekend I met someone who was wearing a Surfboard Legacy shirt and I asked how she got it. Lo and behold, you have to run this race three times in a row (half or full) to get the shirt and pin. Dammit, guess I’m in it for one more year.
Race Results
| Overall: | 480 out of 11800 |
| Women: | 101 out of 7526 |
| F 18-24: | 11 out of 533 |
| Age/Grade: | 66.25% Place: 542 |
| Finish: | 1:39:23 Pace: 7:35 |
| Tag Time: | 1:39:23 |
| Gun Time: | 1:39:32 |
