Hello friends! Sorry its been a few days, I've had spring fever which meant lots of time with my running shoes, my parents back porch and wine. Not necessarily in that order :) And less time with my computer. Forgive me?

This Sunday is the Philadelphia Broad Street Run! Yippee!! If you get lost hehe (its a straight shot) you can follow us!

Lisa and I look stylin with our running shirts and dresses. This is the new hot look. Spread the word.

Tomorrow is Friday! And the Royal wedding day!

Photo courtesy of The Celebrity Planet.com


Question of the Night: Are you getting up early to watch the Royal Wedding?

 We have it broadcasted live with tea and crumpets tomorrow morning at the office! I have a feeling between breakfast and our "Forget the Royals" Happy hour, I'll have my share for the day :)

Happy Moan-day. 

Hope you all enjoyed the weekend! I did with my family for the Easter holiday. 

While I was running errands this weekend and cleaning out my fridge, I thought I'd give you a little sneak peak to what's inside. If you know me, you know I eat a strange combination of things. This will explain why.

Can you tell I love condiments? I have a shelf full too in my pantry. I'm convinced condiments are what make the recipe. You'll also see I keep a 2 liter container of Ginger Ale on hand always! Ginger Ale is my best friend after long runs.

Lots O leafy greens shows you what I brought for Easter dinner :)  And the little bowl was definitely full of  How Sweet East Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip.  It was amazeballs. I may or may not have licked the bowl clean after dinner on Saturday......just sayin'.

And finally the top shelves. Don't judge. My top shelf is full of at least 6 kinds of cheeses. Don't act like your fridge doesn't have that too :) 

Can anyone actually put a number on the amount of cheese in this picture? :) Clearly I was a mouse in my past life.

Is it really Thursday already? Thank goodness! It means we are that much closer to the weekend! Woohooo!

Its been awhile since we had a food challenge to keep my recipe index fresh. So I bring you the Top 10 Ingredient Challenge.

Its kinda like Iron Chef America. Except there are no Chefs participating. And there is no challenger. Ok so maybe its nothing like Iron Chef..... but it's still a lot of fun!

So here's the rules. The first 10 ingredients to be shared in the comments section below will be added into a meal by me. The ingredients can be anything from steak to chocolate to chili flakes.

Just to remind you, this is what we came up with last time.

 Yesterday was a beautiful day and I was all about taking advantage of it! Can you believe it hit 80 degrees in the greather Philadelphia area? Bring on the heat!

After I got home, I laced up my running shoes and took off for a quick 5 mile run. Ahhhh it felt so good :) Well the last three miles did at least.  I felt my shins starting to ache (only on my right leg) for the first 2 miles. Shin Splints are not allowed with 1 week left until Broad Street!

After my run, the BF came over for our usual mid-week date. Instead of the usual Modern Family and cooking, we decided to take advantage of the nice weather and headed over to Penn Tap Room for a beer and dinner.

The town was bustling tonight! It seems everyone else had the same idea.  I <3 this town.

And of course dinner would not be complete without Sea Dog's Blueberry Wheat Ale.

Now I have ants in my pants for warm weather. Bring on summer!!

Hello Friends! Happy Marathon Monday! 

Photo Courtesy of renymyplace.com
Is it just me or does today make you want to lace up your running shoes and sign up for a marathon? No? Its just me? Ok just checking.

Because I was in the running mindset (and because I had a rockin' groupon) I headed over to Philadelphia Runner to pick up a new pair of sneakers and some fuel. I love shopping there because the sales team is not pushy or arrogant. They are helpful and listen.

I cannot wait to break in my new sneaks! I have an early run scheduled for tomorrow morning before the rain arrives.

And BECAUSE today is Marathon Monday, here are a few links you might find interesting:

• Head over to Skinny Runner (I love her blog!) and congratulate Sarah on completing the race in 3:26!! 
  
• To run or not to run....barefoot.
• 10 Steps to Start Running

Question of the Night: Are you training for an event? I am running Broad Street in 2 weeks! 

I have had my fair share of trials on the running trial- but in every experience, there is a valuable lesson learned.

Lets jog down memory lane shall we?

There was that time I went running after a rain storm in the fall, wet leaves, tried to jump the curb (in the dark) and fell....hard on my hands and leg. 

Muddy

Lesson Learned: Probably not a good idea to try and 'jump' the curb. 

Lesson #2 learned: Always let someone know where you are running. Luckily I wasn't very hurt and had an awesome neighbor to drive me to CVS for peroxide and bandaids.

Thanks again Lockett ! :)

Running Fail #2: Eating too soon before a run. Tonight I decided to eat a little before my run. Instead of eating a little (as in a Gu Chomp) I ate a lot. Of Goldfish. BIG MISTAKE.

After tossing my cookies around mile 3- I ended up feeling terrible and truding home for the last 1.5 miles.

This is now my dinner.

This is not the first time I've felt sick after a run. I'm off to lay on a heating pad, sip on my Pinch of Ging Ale and watch the Real Housewives of NYC.

Challenge of the Day: I am looking to do a running tips blog. Share with me your best tips for a successful run in the comments section below!

At this point in my life I can count (on more than one hand) the number of brides that are friends :)  Therefore that means a lot of celebrating, and of course, I'm happy to oblige ;)

Monday, my coworker Jenni was being celebrated for her upcoming nuptials Saturday. We decided to host a breakfast bridal celebration and I volunteered to bake some awesome cupcakes!

First up the cranberry orange whole wheat muffins!  I give you the stars of the show... 

First mix together the dry ingredients.

Add in a little egg action.

And some cranberries and scoop into the muffin tin for baking. MMMMM

These were a little dry for my liking and next time I'll probably add some applesauce to soften things up a bit.  Here is the full recipe below.

Orange and Cranberry Whole Wheat Muffins

1. cup dried cranberries
2 cups hot water
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tbsp. orange zest (about 1 large orange)
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (about 2 large oranges)
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup canola oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray or muffin tin liners

• Preheat oven to 375°.
• Mix craisins and hot water in a bowl to plump cranberries, set aside.
• Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a large mixing bowl. Add in orange zest.
• Mix in orange juice, water, canola oil and egg. Stir until just mixed.
• Drain cranberries slightly and add to batter, fold in.
• Spoon batter into a muffin tin coated in cooking spray or filled with muffin liners
• Bake at 375° for about 13 minutes, or until golden brown and middle is springy.

Makes a dozen muffins.




Question of the Night: Do you have any good tips for moist muffins? 

This weekend was beautiful for all of the runners and outdoor activity enthusiasts. I signed up to give my first 5 mile race a try, and I must say I really enjoyed myself!

The Hafield 5  & Dime is a 5 and 10 mile race. You can end at 5 miles (1 lap) or continue on for 10. I decided to stop after 5 and use this as a training taper run. It worked out well! I crossed the finish line in 48:30 :)  Not too shabby ;)

Because this race was not crowded at all I was able to hang out and stretch while sipping on some water after crossing the finish line.

And then I realized that my car key (that I jammed into my running shorts pocket) had given me a sizable puncture wound in my leg. Ouch! Runner fail.

On my way home I snacked on my usual post run pretzels.(I need/crave the salt) And a chocolate milk, which believe it or not, is an amazing recovery drink.

So to rate the Hatfield 5 & Dime... 4 out of 5 stars! The course is a little boring (the only reason I would demote a star) but otherwise flat, fast, well organized and perfect if you're looking for a longer distance race without the crowds.

Bring Macy's Flowers.

Today was the last weekday of the Macy's Flower show. How beautiful is this display? Something to brighten up the dreary day.

I was disappointed when I figured out (after a solid 5 minutes of staring- mouth open - head tilted) that the large pansies are fabric. Stop laughing :)

Since its a rainy, cold Friday in the Philly area, the BF and I have ventured all of a block for a little Jules Thin Crust action.

Edamame and caramelized onion pizza paired with my Creamy Asparagus Soup and we have the perfect dinner :)

We are now watching the Phillies game and planning to watch 127 hours.

Happy Friday!!!

Run don't walk to your local supermarket and pick up some asparagus. Because thanks to Sommer over at A Spicy Perspective, you no longer have to look at your asparagus as a supporting actress in your dinner.

I present Light and Creamy Asparagus Soup - as adapted from A Spicy Prespective.

First chop up a half of a large vialia onion and sautee in 2 tablespoons of butter. Once the onions are translucent, add the chopped asparagus (minus the chopped bottoms and tops)

Once the asparagus appears bright green in color, add a can of white beans and 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock. Let it simmer for 20 minutes and blend with an immersion blender.

Add a container of plain greek yogurt. And blend again. Add some cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper to taste. Top with crumbled bacon.

Light and Creamy Asparagus Soup - Slightly adapted from A Spicy Prespective

2 Tb. butter
1/2 large vidalia onion, chopped
1 bunch of asparagus
2.5 cups chicken stock
15 oz. can white beans, drained
1 cup 2% plain Greek yogurt
1-3 pinches of cayenne
2 slices of bacon, chopped

In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until the onions are translucent.
Chop the asparagus into short segments and add to the pot. (reserve asparagus tops for garnish if you choose)

Sauté asparagus for another 3-5 minutes–until the asparagus in bright in color and tender. Add the beans and chicken stock. Simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered.

Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Add the yogurt and puree again.

Salt and cayenne pepper and black pepper to taste. Top with crumbled bacon.