Tough week(s) ahead

This week started off amazingly well with my return to the world of strength exercises! Seriously, the last time I willingly did more than 5 minutes of strength exercises was probably back in September. And before that time, who knows.

I’ve never really loved doing weights. However, I know how great it is for you and I do feel amazing once I’m done. But convincing myself to actually pick up a weight? Close to impossible. Doing it for over 5 minutes? Now that’s crazy talk!

I was doing the 30-Day Shred pretty consistently a few years back but I don’t really have the space to do it in my new apartment (well, that’s my excuse).

So Monday night, I gathered all the courage I had, left our cozy little apartment at 8:10 p.m. to head out to an 8:30 p.m. TRX/Kettlebell Fusion class. So yes, I went to zero weights to that craziness! Go figure.

The class itself was fun! I was definitely worried about what I was getting into when the class started but I was able to do everything and was super proud of myself.

I intend to make this a weekly thing even though it is now end of day Thursday and I am still in pain. I didn’t even know that was possible!

On another note, behold my running shoes:

We’ve been through a lot, you and I. We ran through the Tuscan hills (or mountains really), through a “rough” Canadian winter, through a half marathon and a marathon, in 5 different countries… and now we are done. New pairs coming right up! :)

I kind of feel like those shoes right now. I’m just a teeny little bit exhausted and I feel frayed. This is a super busy month as we technically have a trial scheduled 3 weeks from now. Add to that the training and lots of social activities…

So I am somewhat looking forward to the end of May :)

What about you: where have your shoes been?

Tell me something and I’ll do the opposite!

I don’t know about you guys but I have a very hard time remembering previous running-related injuries. Remember those months I spent unable to run because my knee hurt? I can’t even remember which knee it was!

Anyways, it looks like there is no need for me to remember previous injuries because new ones pop up frequently enough :) Let’s see what’s on the menu this week!

Injury #1: Slipping on Ice and Falling on Knee!

Back in February, I was walking back to the office with my boss after a meeting. All the snow had melted the day before but it was cold again so there were thin patches of ice everywhere. We were walking fast and I unfortunately slipped and fell right on my knee (as if I was kneeling, but I fell like that HARD). I didn’t think I had hurt it too badly – there was no blood or anything. It wasn’t even hurting all that much at the time but once I got home I realized that my knee was EXTREMELY swollen.

I have always had a bump on my knee (but not on the other knee – weird) but it was like half a tennis ball was covering that bump… No, it wasn’t pretty.

Then when I was on holidays in March and went to go see my parents, I went to thermal baths with my mom and when I got home that night my knee started more and more to the point that I couldn’t bend it.

Now, it hurts a bit on and off as I run.

Injury #2: Plantar Fasciitis!

I’ve been experiencing pain and tightness in the heel of my right foot since a month before the NYC marathon, so it’s been about…seven months. It kind of comes and goes, and sometimes bothers me a bit while I’m running. Last week though I started feeling like I had a very painful cramp under my foot during a run, and when I got home I realized that my heal/ankle was extremely swollen and I was limping the rest of the day.

Finally went to go see a doctor, and it looks like I have plantar fasciitis. All he said was, “you’re not running the marathon, just do physio”.

To me, that’s not a helpful answer! I’ve been running with it without too much pain for a while now… another 2 months won’t hurt! I’ll just start targeting this area a bit more while I stretch…

Ok, I realize the above might make me sound a little crazy and “masochistic” (as described by the doc)… but I don’t want to give up on this marathon and I don’t feel like that’s what my body is telling me to do! I think it’s normal to have some aches and pains when you run and what I’m experiencing right now is at a level that I know I can handle.

There. End rant. :)

In other news, my boyfriend is a speed demon. He finished 4th in a 10k race last weekend which he completed in 35’55”, and 2nd in his age group!

John Stanton (founder of Running Room) was handing out the medals!

Question: when is the last time you did something against someone else’s advice? Did it work out?

Friday Favorites: Recent Loves

Following in Amber’s footsteps here… Here are a few things that I am currently loving right now!

♥ my new car!

It’s a beautiful Golf and I am totally in love :) Going from driving an old van to this has simply been dreamy! I loved my 30 minute walk to (and from) work – and still intend on running or walking there when I can – but while I’ve been busy it’s been a total time saver!

♥ Spring and Spring clothing

I don’t know how it is where you are in living but in March, Ottawa received beautiful summer weather. I’m talking 28C. And even though I was away for a bit in March visiting by dad in London, UK and my mom in Geneva, I got beautiful weather there too!!!

♥ tea time

I only had tea (no coffee) while I was in London and it kind of stuck afterwards. I’m obviously still drinking coffee but I am really enjoying having a nice mug of tea in the afternoon. Helps me finish the last few hours of work :)

♥ my newly found hollandaise-making expertise

I’ve never even LIKED hollandaise sauce but I decided to give it a try one weekend morning to go along with our perfectly-poached eggs. It’s not too complicated: first, melt a stick of butter (I know). Then mix a tsp of vinegar and a tsp of water, then a tbsp of lemon juice. Slowly pour the melted butter in there and mix until the sauce becomes thicker and creamy. Then, devour!! :)

♥ making more efforts to find time to run

I’ve really been squeezing it in wherever I can! It was my sister’s birthday on Wednesday and I really wanted to go for a run before her birthday dinner. I wanted to leave work at 6:00 pm but ended up not being able to before 7:00 pm. I drove home, got changed and just headed out regardless! I was supposed to do 7 miles but simply did 5 (then did 7 the following day during my lunch). What’s fun is that I always end up bumping into Olle :) I always find that hilarious!

So that’s that! What about you guys, what are you loving right now?

Running on my mind (but not in my legs?)

Ok let’s give blogging another try…

Let me preface this by saying that work has been extremely interesting these days… but also extremely busy. Not sure if I have mentioned this on here yet but I am registered for the Ottawa Marathon which will be held on May 27, 2012 (!!) which is great, but at the same time, it means I have to find time to sneak in some training…

My running was on track after Christmas and I was keeping my mileage at a good level, even if all of my training was done outdoors in the cold/snowy weather.

You do get some great views when running outdoors :)

I found lots of creative ways to get my runs in, by either:

1. running at lunch (Amber is a strong proponent of this)
2. commute-running (I have done this before but in the winter, it requires bringing a backpack so that I have my boots and coats to walk with the next morning ;) Side note: never running with a backpack again, it was horrible! And it had to happen after a snowfall…
3. fitting it in whenever and wherever I could :)

Unfortunately, as soon a my training officially started, so did a period of just plain craziness at work. I’d often be at work as early as 6:30-7:00 a.m., leave around 8:00-9:00 p.m., do work once I got home and come in on the weekend. So where exactly did I find time to run? Not much…

It was a big vicious circle of I’m too tired/no energy - I don’t have time to run - I feel guilty about not running - Not running makes me more tired… and on and on.

Finally, last week I kind of just snapped and acknowledged that my running mojo was gone. I asked for some feedback/advice on Facebook, and the next day just began fitting in running no matter what and went for a great lunchtime run!

I used to do whatever it took to fit in a run, whether it was waking up crazy early or doing it late. True, I was not as busy as I am now but I was still busy and managed to find time!

Since I had not done a good chunk of my training plan, Olle was kind enough to redo a reduced one. Let me tell you guys, he was tough! But I know I can do 7 weeks of training, even if it is intense :) And it really does feel great to get back on track!

I even found a gel that I actually like!

I won’t be the only one running during the Ottawa Race Weekend… My sister has signed up to do the 5k race!!! This, my friends, is a HUGE deal. Her health has been great this past year *knock on wood* but it was not always the case. Just a few summers ago when we were in Italy, I remember her struggling to simply walk up a hill. And now she is going to be running her very first race :) Thinking and writing about it brings tears to my eyes and she can bet I will not only cheer her on like crazy that day, I will probably also really embarrass her by crying like a baby ;)

So what’s everyone’s big plans now that Spring is finally here?

So long 2011, Hello 2012!

Well look at that – it’s December 30th! I hope everyone has had some wonderful holidays :) Olle and I spent Christmas eve/day together (it was my first Christmas without my family) then spent the next few days with family and friends.

Olle and I went on a nice 9.7 mile run on Christmas Eve then stopped at a chocolaterie to get some hot chocolate.

I set up the ambience for a nice romantic dinner and he prepared us a traditional Swedish Christmas dinner complete with pickled herring, ham and a delicious potato dish!

The next morning I went for a 3 mile run (and came *this* close to spraining my ankle).

Then it was time to open presents! I was absolutely spoiled by Olle – so much so that he pretty much has carte blanche to watch as much basketball as he wants! ;)  What made it extra fun though is that we skyped with my parents that morning so it was almost like we were all together :)

I have to say, 2011 has been a great year for me and I feel extremely lucky. Here’s a recap:

I became a lawyer

2011 brought with it the end of articling and my call to the bar! I feel so lucky to have a job, work in a field that I enjoy and with people that I love.

I obtained my Master’s

In Law. While articling. ‘nuff said (haha! but seriously – it was tough).

I ran 2 half-marathons

2010 was supposed to be the year but because of injury, my first half-marathon had to be put off until 2011. It was an amazing experience that I got to enjoy with Olle. I get goose bumps just thinking about it :)

I ran a marathon

I had barely begun training for my first half-marathon that I was offered an opportunity that I simply could not pass – running the ING New York City Marathon. This was probably one of the best decisions I have ever taken in my life and it was truly a leap of faith – just months ago I would have been certain that it was not something I could do. And then – I did it!

I moved out – and in with Olle

Even though I had technically been living “on my own” (with my sister) since my parents moved to Geneva, it was in their house with no bills. Now, I’m living with Olle in the loveliest apartment and I couldn’t be happier :)

My sister’s health as been amazing!

After a bit of a scare in January, she has bounced back and *knock on wood* is doing just great :)

I travelled

I was able to take a break after my articling and visited Switzerland and Italy. I also went to Toronto and NYC with Olle.

In 2012 I want to…

• get back on track. It’s as simple as that. I will kick off January with my No Sugar Challenge but will add a few other challenges in there – like sticking to my calories and working out a bit more (I’ve been taking it easy since the marathon).
• do more marathons . I am eyeing the Ottawa Marathon in May and another one in the Fall which I would do with Olle – possibly Montreal or Toronto.
• keep in touch with friends. It can be hard to juggle work, commuting and working out. I want to make more of an effort to keep in touch with my amazing friends who live not so close (Carolyn and Erika, I’m looking at you!) – it is so important.
• do more travel. My parents are coming back in August so I want to try to visit them one last time in the Spring – that would include London because my dad will be working there. I will also be going to B.C. for Amber’s wedding and will also get to finally meet Lisa!

What have you accomplished in 2011? What will 2012 bring for you?

Dishcrawl

Last week, Olle and I went on our very first Dishcrawl. What the hell is that, you may ask. Well, let me enlighten you!

A dishcrawl follows the same concept as a pub crawl: you basically go from restaurant to restaurant. In fact, you go to four different restaurants and try some of their specialties at each. There is usually a theme or it is centred around an area. This time, we discovered Little Italy!

The night started off at Allegro where we tried some of their antipasti (fried calamari, fried zucchini, olives and sausages) and got to mingle a bit with other dishcrawlers.

We then made our way to Divino (my favorite restaurant that night I think!). I loved the restaurant’s open kitchen concept! We actually had our meal in one of their “tasting” rooms. We first had an olive oil tasting (had never done that before) which was interesting and quite good because you could actually taste all the flavours in the olive oil.

Then we had some tuna tartar which was out of this world!

And finally we had some gnocchi in tomato sauce that just melted in your mouth!

We then headed over to Il Primo. The owner was super nice but I have to say, it was not one of my favorites… The food was pretty basic and not all that Italian-sounding to me! I think we were also a bit spoiled after Divino’s amazing food and beautiful presentation…

We finished off the dishcrawl at Roma where we had dessert: olive oil and orange cake accompanied by olive oil ice cream with a balsamic vinegar reduction. Wow. That, my friends, was delicious. What made it even better is that it is definitely not something I would have gone for usually but it was so worth it!

Another great thing about the Dishcrawl is that you get to meet some like-minded people who are, hopefully, as food-obsessed as you are. We hit it off with two girls who made the night a lot more fun as we discussed the food and the whole dishcrawling experience.

I definitely look forward to going to another one!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Olle and I are now the proud owners of… a fresh Christmas tree!!! We went to a tree farm to cut our own and it was just so much fun! We first went on a tractor ride to the tree-cutting location.

Then we wandered around for about 20 minutes trying to find the perfect tree. We then got to work sawing (and by “we” I mean “he).

Then we hauled it off back to the tractor! We were even given hot chocolate and cookies :)

The only problem now is that it has fallen… which has never happened to me before. It’s a good thing we weren’t done putting up the Christmas decorations!

Do you guys have dishcrawls in your area? And are you early birds when it comes to holiday decorations or do you wait until just a few days before?

It’s time to get cookin’!

You are probably looking quizzically at your google reader thinking: what, another post from Anaïs so soon? It hasn't been months! Something must be wrong...

Nothing's wrong! I just have some recipes I really want to share with all of you :)

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this on the blog or not (probably not) but Olle and I have moved in together in a lovely heritage apartment in the Glebe. Olle chose it on his own because I was in Europe at the time - and he did a great job!

We have now been living together for two months and have settled into a cozy routine - I do most of the cooking, and he does most of the dishes! Fine by me ;) I am definitely finding it very helpful to have someone to cook for every night (and not just myself). That way, I don't come home and simply nibble on junk all night long and I actually make a healthy and filling meal.

Here are two recipes I have made in the past week which have been mind-blowingly delicious - and one of them is my very own creation!!! I recommend you make these very soon ;)

This first one is ideal for a Sunday night dinner, preferably if it is snowing outside. Or if the snow fails to show... make it anyways!

Beef and Guinness Savoury Pie

adapted from Jamie Oliver's Cooking at Home

• olive oil
• 3 medium red onions, peeled and chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 30g butter, plus extra for greasing
• 5 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 sticks of celery, trimmed and chopped
• 1 package of mushrooms, quartered
• 1kg brisket of beef or stewing beef, cut into 2cm cubes
• a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and chopped
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 x 440ml can of Guinness (no lager, please!)
• 2 heaped tablespoons plain flour
• 200g freshly grated Cheddar cheese
• 500g best-quality ready-made all-butter puff pastry
• 1 large free-range or organic egg, beaten

1. Preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5. In a large ovenproof pan, heat a glug of olive oil on a low heat. Add the onions and fry gently for about 10 minutes – try not to colour them too much. Turn the heat up, add the garlic, butter, carrots and celery and scatter in the mushrooms. Mix everything together before stirring in the beef, rosemary, a pinch of salt and a level teaspoon of pepper.

2. Fry fast for 3 or 4 minutes, then pour in the Guinness, stir in the flour and add just enough water to cover. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan with a lid and place in the preheated oven for about 1½ hours. Remove the pan from the oven and give the stew a stir. Put it back into the oven and continue to cook it for another hour, or until the meat is very tender and the stew is rich, dark and thick. A perfect pie filling needs to be robust, so if it’s still quite liquidy, place the pan on the hob and reduce until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in half the cheese, then season carefully and leave to cool slightly.

3. Cut about a third of the pastry off the block. Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll both pieces of pastry out evenly with a floured rolling pin to the thickness of a pound coin. Butter a deep pie dish, then line with the larger sheet, leaving the edges dangling over the side. Tip the stew into your lined dish and even it out before sprinkling over the remaining cheese. Brush the edges of the pastry with a little beaten egg.

4. Cut the other rolled sheet of pastry to fit the top of the pie dish and criss-cross it lightly with a sharp knife. Place it over the top of the pie and fold the overhanging pastry on to the pastry lid to make it look nice and rustic. Brush the top with beaten egg, then bake the pie directly on the bottom of the oven for 45 minutes, until the pastry is cooked, puffed and golden.

Amazingly Colourful Winter Veg Soup

(ha! Totally made this sound like Jamie Oliver!)

This soup is to be made if your boyfriend surprises you with flowers on your thirteen month anniversary (who does that??) and you need to find a way to show him exactly how much you love him :)

1 carton of chicken or vegetable broth

1 can of coconut milk

2 peeled and cubed sweet potatoes

1 jalapeno, chopped

Kale, leaves torn (as much or little as you'd like)

1 red pepper, diced

1 can of red lentils (regular lentils if you can't find any, like me!)

A few glugs of Frank's Red Hot Sauce in each bowl (do it! It really adds to the taste)

1. Bring broth and coconut milk to a boil.

2. Add cubed sweet potatoes, jalapeno and kale and reduce to a simmer.

3. Shortly before the sweet potatoes can easily be poked by a fork, add the red pepper.

4. Once the sweet potatoes have cooked through, add the lentils and return to a simmer.

5. Serve right away! And add that Frank's red hot sauce. I swear it makes the difference!!

Enjoy!

Where dreams are made

Well guys, I can now officially say that I am a marathoner! To think that back in January 2009, I was dreading and struggling through my short 5k runs. I should also say that I could not have gotten that far without your support, comments, and blogs – so thank you!!!

Olle and I headed to the airport this past Friday after work. We got a great deal on some flights but had to go through Toronto, so we only arrived in New York around 11:00 and made it to my friend Nadia’s place around midnight. We hadn’t seen each other in a while so we obviously chit chatted until 2:00 am… and had to be up by 8:00 am to leave with her!

Nadia went off to class and Olle and I slowly made our way to the Expo where I had to pick up my race kit (quite an awesome kit if I may say so – and the race shirt looks awesome!).

And look who I bumped into:

Two previous contestants from The Biggest Loser! I totally thought it was someone I personally knew until I recognized the dad and then it clicked ;)

We then stopped for brunch at a diner close by and spent the rest of the day wandering around Central Park and the surrounding area.

After freshening up, we headed out for the pre-race dinner! We had a delicious meal (see below) and had a blast – and then it hit me: “Holy crap. I’m running a marathon tomorrow. A marathon! I’ll still be running it around 2pm… and 3pm…”. So yeah – I was freaking out! Everyone calmed me down and I even managed to get to bed at a reasonable time (10:30?) while Nadia and Olle planned out where they would meet up with me along the race course.

I barely slept that night. I was sleeping but waking every hour… so I was pretty thankful for the time change. Then 5:00 am rolled around and it was time for me to get up. I munched on two pieces of bread we took from the restaurant (we had forgotten to get some) smeared with a bit of PB and half a banana.

I attempted to get coffee from the Dunkin Donuts next door but it would appear that I was up too early! I got dressed and then it was out the door so I could meet my team at the Park Central Hotel.

I dropped off my bag of belongings (there was an after-party planned) and managed to find my teammates among the throngs of firefighters/policemen. Then we all packed into some buses and headed for Staten Island! Along the ride I got to know some of my teammates better (all amazing people!) as well as some of the firefighters. It turns out the guy I was sitting next to has been coming to Ottawa with other firefighters for the past few years to play in Hope Volleyball Fest!

We then headed to the FDNY/NYPD zone to wait for our time to go. I grabbed a bite from a stale bagel (bleh) and FINALLY some coffee. I also emptied my bladder about a million times… and then it was time to line up! Nerves were definitely getting to me but excitement was also starting to come through. And look who was in my corral!!

Yup, someone else from The Biggest Loser! He was there with two other contestants.

We slowly made our way onto the toll road and then we were off!

Now I was DEFINITELY getting excited!!! The music, the people, and later the cheering.. woah!

Here are my splits:

Mile 1: ?
Mile 2: ?
Mile 3: 10:20
Mile 4: ?
Mile 5: 10:24
Mile 6: 10:25
Mile 7: ?
Mile 8: 10:24
Mile 9: 10:28
Mile 10: 10:26
Mile 11: 10:26
Mile 12: 10:28
Mile 13: 10:32
Mile 14: 10:33
Mile 15: 10:38
Mile 16: 10:44
Mile 17: 10:46
Mile 18: 10:50
Mile 19: 10:50
Mile 20: 10:57
Mile 21: 11:02
Mile 22: 11:06
Mile 23: ?
Mile 24: 11:17
Mile 25: 11:19
Mile 26: 11:20
Finish: 10:01

To be honest, it would be hard to describe how each mile felt. As soon as we got started it all became a blur. I was running, but the miles and the time weren’t registering. All I could think was “I’m doing this!” or “This is New York!” and I was more engrossed in the cheering and the views than the running.

I do remember thinking that the first few miles went by in a flash. I knew Olle would be meeting me at mile 8 (which would usually register as: almost 1.5 hours of running) but this time it seemed to approach extremely fast. Next thing I knew, I was telling my running partner (someone from the FDNY fundraising team, who really kept my pace up!) that Olle was there and I had to go see him!

I then met Olle again at mile 14.5 – which made me barely understand the fact that at that point I had completed over a half-marathon.

After that I started getting extreme cramping in the front of my thigh. I tried to run through it (because I didn’t want Darrin who was running with me to get a bad time) but in the end that probably didn’t help at all…

I think it was around mile 17 that I told Darrin to just go ahead because I needed to walk for slightly longer. I still had to stop a few times throughout to squat down and stretch my thighs.

I started running alone on bridge #2 I think (or was it 3?) and that’s when I finally started looking at all the facebook messages and emails I had gotten since the race had started. I started getting so emotional that I began hyperventilating! And let me tell you – it’s not easy to run while hyperventilating!

I actually got emotional and teary-eyed quite a lot throughout the rest of the race – whenever I would think of my family and friends and all of the support I received, or when I saw runners meeting their family/friends along the route… and then I would start hyperventilating (crazy!).

The cheering was phenomenal. It almost made me forget I had been running for hours. Finally, at mile 22 I met up with Olle, my friend Nadia and her friend Katie. It was so good to see them! They gave my aching thighs a bit of extra energy :)

Every mile after that seemed to take forever (probably because I was running slower) but I just had to keep telling myself “You’ve done 4 (or 3 or 2) mile runs before and they are so short! You’re almost there!”. Yes, there was a lot of talking to myself!

The crowds thickened up again closer to the finish line and it helped carry me through. Finally, I saw the sign that said “400 feet”, and soon after that the countdown began… and then I could see the finish line… and sprinted for it!” (well, as much as my lead legs would allow me).

And then I thought – It’s over. I can stop running now. And happiness overflowed. I couldn’t believe I had done it (I’m getting teary-eyed writing this). I had done something I truly believed I could not do only a few months ago. Only a minute or two after crossing the finish line, I got a call from my mom. I answered and finally let it out – I burst out crying. I just cried on the phone with her for a few minutes and finally was able to share some of the experience with her :)

Once I hung up though, I started feeling absolutely awful and so nauseous… I managed to hold it in but barely. The hour + walk to the exit was one of the worst things I’ve experienced. I felt so hot and nauseous and almost claustrophobic. And then once I made it out – I got lost! I was finally able to meet Olle and my friends at the hotel around 5:30. I barely touched our celebratory dinner but the appetite definitely came back the next day!

I have to say, I’m quite proud with how my body handled this marathon! The knee was a bit sore following it but got 100% after one day; I was able to walk around New York; and 80% of my muscle soreness went away after 3 days. I didn’t even get one blister! IDID get a bruised a toenail though… but it’s my first ever and I’m kind of proud of it ;)

What an experience… I still have more to say about it but will keep it for later :) It has definitely given me the marathon bug (possibly even the ultra bug but we’ll see).

I will never forget this :)

Baths and Birthday Feast

I thought nothing could top our outing to the Rocher de Naye, but I was proven wrong! On Monday we headed for the Bains de Lavey – an outdoor spa with thermal waters from the mountains. They also have oriental spas (such as a steam room) as well as a nordik one (with saunas and ice baths). We have a similar one in Ottawa which was just as beautiful but in a different way.

This outdoor spa is in a valley in the Alps, so you can imagine how breath-taking the view is!

You swim from the locker room to the outside, where the water is a perfect lukewarm temperature. Throughout there are lots of different types of water fountains. There are even some places where you can lie down and its like you’re in your very own hot tub. And in the middle, there’s this current that takes you in a circle! (see below)

My favorite part was the sauna. Actually, that’s a lie. It’s what comes after – the ice bath!!! I absolutely love it. You really don’t feel how icy cold it is because you are already so hot. However, you do feel your legs get all tingly – it’s the best feeling! I did that four times I believe.

All in all a beautiful and relaxing day :)

And today, it’s my dad’s birthday! He’s the lucky one because he often gets to have the whole family around (whereas other times, the family is usually spread out over a few continents).

My dad loves food just as much as I do, so I prepared two delicious things for him. For lunch, we had the following.

Quinoa and lentil salad

This recipe is extremely easy, healthy, and delicious. This is what you’ll need:

1.25 cups of dry quinoa
1 can of lentils (more or less depending on what you like)
1.75 cups of quartered cherry tomatoes
1 red pepper, diced
1 avocado, diced
1 red onion, diced
fresh cilantro, chopped

Dressing:

4 tbsp olive oil
3 limes, juiced
1.5 tsp of cumin
sprinkle of sea salt

Cook quinoa according to package. Mix with the rest of the ingredients and the dressing.

Makes 10 servings of 1.5 generous cups
Calories: 217; Fat: 9.7 g; Carbs: 27.5 g; Protein: 6.9 g

I usually have it with some Food Should Taste Good olive chips or olive bread. And add some feta. Then you have lots of leftovers :)

Inspired from Eat Live Run’s recipe.

We then had cheese-filled chocolate. Yes. Cheese-filled chocolate. It’s not like there was a piece of cheese wrapped in chocolate but cheese was mixed in with the filling. Delish!!

P.E.I. (aka Prince Edward Island) Chowder

For dinner, my dad requested a P.E.I. Chowder. Apparently, he had some when my family visited the province and has been dreaming about it ever since. I took it upon myself to recreate it.

2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped fennel
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup of white wine
2 cups of fish stock
4 oz of shrimp (peeled and deveined)
4 oz salmon
4 oz scallops
4 oz cod
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
1 cup of whipping cream OR lobster chowder
mini bread bowls

Note: for the sea food, you can replace with whatever you like and change the quantities as well.

Other note: I added way more seafood and had to double the liquids.

Put butter in Dutch oven with the the onion, celery, fennel and salt. Cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Boil until reduced by half, about 2 minutes.

Add the stock and bring to a simmer. Add the seafood and simmer for 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the seafood and vegetables and set aside in a bowl.

Bring the liquid to a boil. Add the potatoes. Cover and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the reserved seafood and vegetables, and add the lobster chowder. Heat through.

Cut off the top of the bread rolls, empty it, and serve the chowder in them. Yum!!!

Serves 8
Calories (without bread): 181; Fat: 4.4 g; Carbs: 20.2 g; Protein: 13.2 g

Recipe inspired from here.

I know I already have too many recipes, but once I’m back in Ottawa I will be remaking my Mom’s Clafouti recipe. This one was made with prunes but it is usually made with cherries. The “dough” is sort of like pancake batter. Anyways, it is deeelicious and very light for a dessert!

Serving size: 1/5th
Calories: 127; Fat: 1.8 g; Carbs: 24.2 g; Protein: 4.5 g