Skipi-dee-doo-dah

So I skipped my group run last night...mostly because of work, partly because of a headache, and partly because of tiredness. Ech.

I forced myself to stay productive on Monday after our hike and made a pasta dish I've been meaning to make for about a week now.

Campanelle with Spinach Turkey Meatballs and Mushrooms

1/2 lb campanelle, cooked according to package directions

1/4 large onion, diced

1 package mushrooms, sliced

1 clove garlic, sliced

1 tbsp olive oil

1/3 c reduced fat feta, crumbled

1 tbsp lemon zest

1 package ground turkey

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 c panko

1 tbsp black pepper

1 tsp kosher salt

1 egg

1/4 large onion, diced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cups baby spinach, chopped

2 anchovy fillets, minced

To make the meatballs, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a pan over medium high heat. Saute 1/4 diced onion and 2 cloves minced garlic for 1-2 minutes. Add anchovy and cook for another minute before stirring in spinach. Allow spinach to wilt and remove from heat. Set aside to cool.

Combine turkey, panko, black pepper, salt and egg in a large bowl. Mix in spinach mixture and form small balls. Place meatballs on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

As meatballs bake, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a pan and saute remaining diced onion until translucent. Add sliced garlic and saute until fragrant. Stir in mushrooms and cook until mushrooms begin to soften. Stir in lemon zest, pasta and feta. Remove from heat and stir in meatballs.

SO, this recipe has been modified since my meal was a total fail. Here's what I learned:

1. In an effort to be healthier, I grabbed a package of ground turkey breast instead of just ground turkey. Now I know why I always get the ground turkey...there's just enough fat (in the already lean meat) to avoid the whole dryness issue. I really hated the fact that my meatballs turned out dry.
2. I originally envisioned a pasta bake with a white sauce that I could freeze and eat later. Um, yeah. I didn't have the ingredients to make a white sauce and obviously feta isn't a melty cheese. Baking was pointless.
3. I only put in a little lemon zest because I was nervous it would make the dish weird...no, it needed more zest.

Hopefully this modified version works out better for you!

After that major kitchen effort, I barely had the energy (or appetite) to eat my experiment. I made myself try a little sample before crashing. AAHHH bed.

Instead of eating the meal I made the night before, I opted for a salad made with the mixed greens I got from the farmers market with a side of another sweet potato chip attempt. Can you tell I really wasn't thrilled about Monday's creation? HA.

So check out my second sweet potato attempt:

1. I dropped the temperature down to 325 and checked in on the chips every few minutes
2. It took about 25 minutes for the chips to get somewhat crispy
3. There were still some dark-ish chips, but they weren't black.
4. SUCCESS!

Obviously not the same as a fried chip, but still pretty good. I wish I had taken a picture of the first attempt, but I was just so freaking disgusted by them (slash I was in a rush)! I still have 2 whole sweet potatoes to play with...I'm thinking I'll just use the mandoline attachment that turns them into fries. You can never have too many sweet potato fries ;) I wonder if they freeze well...

What would you do with extra sweet potatoes??

La Di Dah.

How was your 4th of July weekend? Not long enough? My thoughts exactly ;p

I woke up Sunday morning well rested and popped on over to the Fort Mason Farmers Market for some produce. I ended up with just a few fruits...grapes, peaches, nectarines and a bag of mixed greens. I guess some of the vendors took the weekend off. *sigh*

I grabbed some sweet potatoes and brownie mix at Safeway and got to work on some delicious picnic treats. Plan was to bust out the mandoline and make some baked sweet potato chips. I googled how to bake sweet potato chips and it seemed easy enough...

See how pretty the potatoes were post-mandoline? Gorgeous!

Popped those puppies into the oven at 400 degrees (most of the recipes said 350-450) and set the timer for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, I opened the oven door and my taters were black. WTF?! They weren't even black and crispy. They were black and soggy!

Refusing to admit defeat, I tried another batch at 375. Again, FAIL. At this point, I gave up on the sweet potato chips and just packed up my brownie bites for our Stern Grove picnic since I was running out of time. Unfortunately I had a giant bowl of raw sweet potato that I didn't want to waste. In the fridge you go.

By the time we got to Stern Grove, I had forgotten about my kitchen disaster and soaked up the gorgeous weather and scenery. It was a little cloudy as we descended from the parking area to the concert meadow, but I loved how we trekked through this nifty path

It made me forget I was in a city...just for a little bit :)

Then we arrived at the concert meadow:

It was definitely packed when we got there (an hour before showtime!), but we had a sweet picnic table reserved. Hooray for not having to search for grass space!

So Stern Grove (in case you didn't catch it in the pictures) is an outdoor music venue in the middle of the city that offers free concerts in the summer. Our reserved picnic table came with wine, non-alcoholic beverages and some table service. We each brought a selection of goodies to share...cheeses (lots of cheeses), brownies, cookies, bread, chips, dip, you name it. A wonderful afternoon in the sun :) We picnicked to the sounds of the San Francisco Opera for a couple hours and then skipped out to prepare for dinner.

Dinner, a mere 2.5 hours after our massive picnic, was in Cow Hollow (I think?) with phenomenal views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Crissy Field and the Bay. I must admit that I wasn't quite prepared for a San Francisco 4th of July. I brought a hoodie and scarf with me, but apparently that wasn't enough to keep me warm once the sun went down. It got COLD. Cold enough to light a fire and cold enough to light up some heat lamps. Say whaat? SO different from DC.

The chill in the air wasn't the only difference. I had been given a heads up about the fireworks show and the fog. Let's just say it was more of a colorful sky show. No matter, a good time was had by all...also, I'm not a big fireworks fan.

The next morning was pretty rough. I was so tired from staying up past my bedtime (yeah I'm a huge nerd) and from feasting so much the day before. It was one of those days where I actually stopped to buy a coffee while running errands. Woah.

I walked down to Polk Street to grab stuff for a fruit salad and was reminded of this little tidbit I stumbled upon the other week:

You've all seen What Would Brian Boitano Make, right? Well, I never saw the sneak peak video until recently. Um, that's totally my new 'hood...Loving Cup!! and my favorite hardware store! Nerd alert!

I grabbed a kiwi and a champagne mango from the Real Foods in the video and picked up some berries and cereal (can't forget breakfast!) from a favorite of mine that he doesn't visit - Polk Street Produce. I've mentioned this place before and it's become my go-to place for fruits (well, the ones that I don't find at the farmers market) because of its convenience, price and selection. Two thumbs up.

I quickly threw together a fruit salad in a tupperware and headed out to Muir Beach for a hike with friends. We took a super windy drive (so windy, I sorta got a little queasy) to the beach, parked and set off on our hike to Pirate's Cove.

The first 10 minutes or so was quite a steep climb, but the views were totally worth it.

Since we got to our destination faster than planned, we decided to keep walking...hey, it's not like we had to get back to work ;p

On the way back, we climbed up a mini side peak and yep, gorgeous.

The chilly weather and clouds didn't even bother me that much (once we were moving, of course)! I'm sure these views are even better on a sunny day...

Not too shabby...

Have you checked out my nifty tabs yet? You should :)

As usual, Saturday morning brought a long slow run...10 miles to be exact. I was a little concerned because of Tuesday's running snafu, but forced myself out of bed to at least give it a try. Worst case scenario it hurts and I have to stop, right?

Our run launched from Ocean Beach, which is about an hour bus ride from my place, and I got there earlier than expected. What to do? Take pictures for you guys, of course! Check out the scenery (don't mind the grainy/dark iPhone photos):

We tackled the gradual incline through Golden Gate Park to the De Young, turned around and closed out the 10 miles out and back along the Great Highway. I took it super easy and found myself checking my watch a lot. I think I was just nervous that tightness would kick in early on and I'd have to bail. Lucky me, the achilles cooperated and I survived the run...I even finished a little faster than last week at 1:41. Not too bad!

I made it a point to do some serious foam rolling, sticking and stretching once I got home. Definitely didn't want my calf and achilles freaking out after that glorious run. Did I mention we're now 3 long runs into marathon training season? O yes we are!

How were your long runs? Successful? Hot? Took a back seat to 4th of July celebrations? Do tell.

Restaurant adventures and cooking fail

Ok, I take it back...Monday wasn't as boring as I originally made it sound. I almost forgot that Monday was Package Day! Hooray! The first package I opened was from Jamie:

In addition to a few items Jamie found in the storage unit, he tossed in some sweet treats and Spam packs...because everyone loves some Spam. And by everyone, I mean me. :) He also packed up a gift from his mom - a mandoline! SO excited to use this!! I've wanted a mandoline for quite some time now and I can't wait to slice some veggies :)

The second package I opened was a large box of things I had my parents take during the crazy move...mostly cookware/utensils and part of my food processor/blender combo. Now that I think about it, I don't know where that will go. Hm.

The last package I opened was a surprise from the folks at Clif Bar:

Since I'm obsessed with the Mocha Clif Shot Gels, Chocolate Chip and S'mores Clif Kid Zbars, Dulce de Leche Luna Bars, and Peanut Butter Pretzel and Mountain Mix Mojo Bars, I totally jumped at the opportunity to get a sample of their latest product: Clif Crunch. Unfortunately, I also forgot I did this until the package arrived haha.

About a month ago, I received an email announcement (I think via newsletter?) about Clif Crunch and signed up to receive a sample. I can't remember if I specified a flavor preference, or if they just sent a random one. If it was random, they must have read my mind. I'm a little obsessed with the Nature Valley Oats N' Honey Granola bars, but I've found a new favorite. The Honey Oat Clif Crunch is light, crispy and has a more complex (?) sweetness to it. I think it tastes a little more maple-y, dark brown sugar-y than the Nature Valley one. Two thumbs up to Clif Bar for the delicious new addition!

On Wednesday night, I found myself in the Marina (wow, I think I spend a lot of time here) for dinner with Selin. I really wasn't feeling a night in the kitchen so I totally jumped at the opportunity to explore a new restaurant.

We met up at Pacific Catch, an Asian/Hawaiian/Latin Fusion sort of spot on Chestnut (photo from the Yelp page).

It's a super tiny space, so we ended up grabbing a couple stools at the 'bar'. I throw quotes around that because it's not a bar bar...I guess it's more like a counter. Ha. We faced the grill and deep fryer.

I totally checked out the menu in advance and my belly was set on one of their Wasabi Bowls (topped with wakame salad, avocado, daikon sprouts, cucumber, ginger, sesame seeds, shredded nori & soy-wasabi sauce served over sushi rice), protein topping was going to be a game time decision. Things changed when Selin told me they can do a salad/rice bowl combo. HEEEY now...

I went with a Salmon Wasabi Bowl with half brown rice and half salad. DELISH! My salmon was cooked a little more than I hoped it would be, but it wasn't a deal breaker. So many of my favorite things are in this bowl and they went wonderfully together! The dressing was lightly drizzled on the salad greens and wasn't overpowering at all. Just the right amount. I felt a little bad spending money on something I could have done at home (and have sort of done at home), but I loved having it made for me. No dishes to clean.

Yeah, I'll admit it...my lack of cooking lately might have something to do with the whole no dishwasher thing. And no Jamie ;p I'm sure I'll get over it soon and get back to cooking.

I had to get some routine bloodwork done on Thursday, but instead of going first thing in the morning, I decided it would be fun to wait until after work. Not advised. I ate breakfast around 8am and planned on getting to the lab around 6, 6:30. OMG longest. workday. ever. I think the last 3 hours were the worst.

Thankfully, there wasn't a line and I zipped right through the whole process. Less than 10 minutes later, I'm walking to the bus with a banana in hand. I've never loved a banana so much in my entire life.

When I got home, I was pretty disappointed with the contents of my fridge and cabinets...I stared and just wasn't inspired. I ended up boiling some penne and cooking up the broccolini I almost forgot about, garlic and eggplant with some pasta sauce. Meh. It filled my belly, but it didn't make my tastebuds happy. Did I mention I had it sans cheese?

*sigh* Do you ever feel uninspired when it comes to dinner? What's the most boring dish you've whipped up?

I'm off to bed. I've had quite a long day that included a couple hours at the DMV where I had to take a written driving test to get a California license. I haven't taken a written test since 1998. Insane. I mentioned this concern to the lady as she scored my test:

Hells yes that is a smiley face! I only got 3 wrong out of 36...not too shabby considering I also haven't driven in a year. Woooooohoooooo! That was my accomplishment for the day (did I mention I don't have a car, nor do I drive here? haha) and NOW I'm off to bed. G'nite :)

Weekend eats and wines

After the Marina walk and some Safeway action, I made it home just in time to charge my dying phone and shove some food in my face before meeting a friend for our very first San Francisco Wine Market experience. If you recall, friend and I tried to do this last Sunday, but found out it was closed for Father's Day.

I got to The Cannery first and was a little surprised at how small the setup was. For some reason I expected it to take over the whole square.

Ah well. I bought my $20 wine tote and found out I am now granted free tastings every Sunday until NOVEMBER. RIDIC. I also got the market details...every Sunday from 1-4 winemakers from various wineries set up shop. You get about 30 tastings a week depending on how many wineries attend and they change every week. This past Sunday's wine makers came from Napa, Lake County and Paso Robles.

Friend and I sampled a few repeats from last week, some new wines and had a nice long chat with a wine maker originally from...New Jersey! It had to happen at some point. I walked away with these 3 bottles :\

Hey, I'm starting over! I had to leave some tasty bottles in DC! Yes, that is a Rose you see. I was actually surprised how much I enjoyed the Sol Rouge Rose. Not sweet at all and very light! The Jersey native was pouring from two wineries, Hagafen (where he's a wine maker) and Stein Family Wines (his own winery). I walked away with one from each. I loved the crispness and acidity of the Hagafen Sauvignon Blanc...perfect for pairings (this is my new goal - find wines to go with food).

The great thing we learned about the Stein Family Wines, aside from the fact that the reds were pretty tasty, was that a percentage of revenue goes to scholarships for children of wine makers. Um, yes...that may have swayed me to buy a bottle. I really liked the Just Joshin Sierra Foothills Tempranillo (label AND taste!). It had just the right amount of dryness and acidity for my taste.

There was no way we were walking up the massive hill toward my apartment, so we splurged on a cab. I'm learning cabs are pretty hard to come by in this city. Sad. I know you're probably thinking jeez...just suck it up already. UM

No.

For dinner, I whipped up something super fast with my farmers market goods. Kai-lan with Tofu over Jasmine Rice

Not exactly my most exciting stir fry, but I really wanted rice. Also, Trader Joe's Jasmine Frozen Rice is not as awesome as the brown.

Kai-lan with Tofu

1 bunch kai-lan, trimmed and cut in half

1/2 block high protein tofu, cubed

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

1 tbsp oil

1/3 c chicken broth

1 tbsp mirin

1/4 c low sodium soy sauce

2 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp chili garlic paste

Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Saute garlic until fragrant and add kai-lan and chicken broth. Cover for 1 minute. Add mirin, soy sauce, oyster sauce and chili garlic paste and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in tofu and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately.

See? All the usual suspects were present. It was actually better for lunch the next day when the rice soaked up all the sauce. BUT, the rice was still kinda bad texture-wise. Bleh. No more of that.

I'll spare you the boring details of my salad-filled Monday and Tuesday. I will share that after the massage session and walking all over the city on Sunday plus a small stint in flip flops, my tight calves and achilles were SCREAMING at me. Monday was rough. I used the stick on my new hotspot and all over my calf...oww. It was a good ow, but definitely an ow. I was concerned I wouldn't be able to do Tuesday's group run, but I sucked it up and went.

As much as I hate to admit it, I dropped the mileage down from 7 to 4 since I knew I was dealing with angry legs and I felt great for the first 3 miles...I was cruising! Then I felt it...tugtugtugtight...with just a mile-ish to go :( Took my run to a slow heel-striking shuffle and called it a night. Defeat. Did I mention the ART specialist and everyone else said hills contributed to this nonsense? I live on top of a hill! Nothing but hills! What to do?!

Farmers market goodies

Hey all, I know it's been awhile since my last post. I actually had another one drafted up for Tuesday but I figured I'd start from scratch.

Saturday started with a nice and easy 7 miler that took us along the Marina Green through the Presidio,

along the Promenade at Crissy Field,

past the Warming Hut

to Hopper's Hands

and back. (no I'm not skilled enough to carry a camera with me...I am skilled enough to stalk Google images) Oh, and for good measure, to the top of the Fort Mason Hill I love so much.

I polished that run off at an easy 10 min pace with a minor snafu...a familiar little tug tug from the achilles. D'oh. Thankfully we had some Active Release Therapy (ART) specialists on hand after the run. I explained my previous achilles issues and mentioned that the tightness/pulling started up again after my accidental hilly 5 miler the other week and Dr. Kris Blum from Financial District Chiropractic was SUPER helpful and informative.

The whole ART thing is new to me and I told her about my winter of PT and how it would take a lot of massages and foam rolling to get my crazy calf knot worked out. She explained that since this was an injury and a tightness that resulted from movement, static massage wasn't going to help as much. Not going to lie, the 5 or 10 minutes she worked on my left calf hurt like hell...but in a good way. Definitely different than when I went to PT as she worked from my actual achilles all the way up to behind my knee. Apparently everything is connected and affected!

My front ankle joint and calf felt SOOOO much looser after that mini session and I was sent off to do some serious foam rolling. Too bad I trashed mine before I moved...more spending :(

So, what shall I name it??

I decided to have dinner for breakfast since I had a bizarre cereal craving and picked up some milk and Total at the market down the street.

It's been a LONG time since I've had a bowl of cereal and I LOOOOVVEEED it. Especially with some deliciously sweet raspberries :) Do you ever get random cravings for cereal? What kind do you prefer? I prefer flakes (I went through a freak Special K Red Berries phase where I ate around the dehydrated berries).

I woke up early on Sunday with a serious game plan - take a nice long walk to the Fort Mason Farmers Market for groceries, stop at Safeway for some non-farmers market goodies, Wine Market, and whip up two meals to freeze. Of course my plans are never set in stone ;)

I did take a long walk to the market and arrived shortly after it opened. It's a lot smaller than the Ferry Building Farmers Market and less crowded (well, at least at 9:45 it was). I did a quick lap before shopping and walked out with a ton of goodies for under $20! Check it out:

Super sweet pluots

A couple white peaches and nectarines

Some broccolini (WAY cheaper than at the store!)

A HUGE bunch of kai-lan

Just enough grape tomatoes for me

Some little gem hearts (how cute are they?) and some Foggy Morning (fresh cow's milk cheese, hand made) from Nicasio Valley Cheese Company. No picture b/c I tore into the packaging before taking a picture :\ These folks were sampling 4 (or maybe 5) of their cheeses from mild to sharp and Foggy Morning was the very first sample. It was so fresh and creamy...very mild. It reminded me of ricotta, texture and flavor-wise.

Unfortunately, I was so overwhelmed by the people, vendors and produce that I couldn't keep track of who I bought from! Don't worry, I will be frequenting this farmers market and I'll be sure to take note of my favorite vendors :)

I walked over to Selin's afterward to chill my cheese as we took a long walk through the Marina, enjoying the weather and catching up. Ahhh leisurely Sunday indeed!

Stay tuned for the afternoon antics and cookery!