Could it be??

I can't run with music anymore??

I did a quick 3 mile loop downtown on my own so I decided I'd bring the ipod with me (keep in mind I rarely run with music these days). I don't know if I just had a weird playlist or what, but I just couldn't get into a comfortable pace! Plus, the whole earphone cord flopping around and having to hold my gigantor brick of an ipod was annoying. I dunno...my run just didn't feel right. It also could have been all the people/car dodging and traffic lights...hmm. Do you prefer city or bike path/trail running?

Jamie got dinner started while I walked home from running errands in Cleveland Park and I was able to have dinner ready in less than 30 minutes. YAY teamwork! Tonight's dinner was something I pulled together with the help of a friend this afternoon - Smashed Red Bliss Potatoes with Artichokes and Spinach served with a Side Salad with Salsa.
Occasionally I don't want to cook what we have planned for the week and instead I try to come up with a way to use any leftover ingredients we might have (hey, there's nothing wrong with not wasting food!). Tonight's 'must be used' ingredients were about 1/2 lb of red bliss potatoes, a bag of baby spinach and approximately 5 artichoke hearts. Random, right? My friend almost immediately suggested I grab some cream and cheddar cheese to make some artichoke and spinach mashed potatoes. Being a HUGE mashed potato fan, I was sold on the idea...with a few modifications of course ;)

Jamie chopped up a few slices of the deli ham we have (I think we're on a ham kick at the deli counter...or maybe ham's the only thing on sale lately ;p) and I stopped at the Giant for a lemon, cream and a shallot...and maybe a few other random things you'll see later on this week.

Here's the ham, shallot, spinach and artichoke mixture. Something about it just screams spring to me:
I drained the potatoes and smashed them into the mixture - that was the fun part :)
Everything was smelling good, but looking a little dry so I added a smidgen of butter (barely half a pat) before the cream. A few minutes later, it was dinner time!
I wasn't really sure what to eat with the potatoes so I went with the last bit of bagged salad we had and threw in some leftover red peppers and some snap peas. Instead of dressing I used the leftover fresh salsa (which btw, I am never buying again - it was a random brand and not that good) from the Taco Bowl incident.

The smashed potatoes turned out to be surprisingly delicious for a random afternoon suggestion! I think I'm going to play this game more often :)

Smashed Red Bliss Potatoes with Artichokes & Spinach
1/2 lb red bliss potatoes, cooked
1 shallot, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 c baby spinach, chopped
5 artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
3 slices deli ham, chopped
1 1/2 tbsp light cream
1/2 tbsp butter
1 tsp lemon zest
salt
pepper
1 tbsp parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Saute shallot and ham until shallots begin to soften. Add artichokes and spinach and cook until spinach begins to wilt. Add potatoes to the pan, smashing with the back of a spoon.

Add butter, cream, lemon zest, salt and pepper and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle with parmesan and serve immediately.

I'm off to bed. I'm thinking about being ambitious and running my 5 miles tomorrow morning since I might have to work late again tomorrow. We'll see!