Surf & Turf Mini Loafs!

It was Loaf Day in my house.  Sounds kinda weird huh?  Well if you missed my last post, I decided to make a bunch of meals this week using my brand new mini-loaf pan! I decided to make "Surf & Turf" Mini Loafs!

 First up was turkey meat loaf. I used Ina Garten's recipe as the base.  All I did was saute up some onions and mushrooms and add it to bowl with 93% Lean Turkey, Salt, Pepper, Thyme, Worcestershire sauce, chicken stock, tomato paste, bread crumbs, eggs, hot sauce, parm cheese and ketchup.  Then take your rings off and get mixing...

I formed the the meat into loafs and added more ketchup on top.  My mixture made 6 loaves.

 I popped it in a 350 degree oven and cooked it for about an hour.

 While that was cooking, it was time to make the Surf part of these Surf and Turf Loaves.   This recipe was based off Big Daddy's Shrimp Burgers.  I randomly saw this recipe on the food network yesterday morning and thought- I can make those into a loaf! First I had to do some clean up.  I had to peel and devein about a pound of shrimp.  What a pain!  Definitely wasn't fun.

  Then I mixed the shrimp with 1 egg, cilantro, jalapeno, green onions, red pepper, panko and toasted sesame ginger seasoning and salt and pepper. I also added a little bit of olive oil.

 I got this seasoning from the swag bag at the Boston Bloggers Launch Party!! But you could easily use Old Bay seasoning if you have it.

 Mix all that together with your hands and form it into loaves! I had enough for 5.

 I baked these for about 25 minutes.  And then dinner is served....

 I loved both of these.  The meatloaf was packed with flavor and the shrimp loaf was moist and delicious!

 Aren't the loafs (is it loafs or loaves) cute?!

 MMmmm.. fun with my mini-loaf pan!

 Oh, I also made Trail Mix Cookies inspired by Ashley at Edible Perspective.  I bought some fun stuff at the grocery store and was excited to try them out- wheat bran, coconut oil, flax seed! These cookies definitely tasted healthy but Dave really loved them.  I figure I'll eat them in the morning after my workout with some white chocolate peanut butter...

 Trail Mix Cookies
2 large bananas, mashed
1t vanilla
2T unrefined coconut oil, softened 
1c rolled oats
2T ground flax meal
1 egg
1/4c trail mix
1/4 cup milk
3T  shredded coconut
1/2 t pumpkin pie spice 
1/4t salt
1/2t baking powder
Mix all these ingredients together and form small balls on a baking sheet.  Cook at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

 While I was in the kitchen I also made quinoa for my quinoa loafs later in the week and I cooked my lasagna noodles for my lasagna loafs tomorrow night.  I love prepping ahead!!!

What did you cook this weekend?

Weekly Workouts + Gym Pet Peeves

I wish I could write about the successful week of workouts I had... but truth is, I got sick on Thursday and since then my workouts have slacked.  It's definitely a case of "should I push myself even though I'm sick or should I hold off.." I ran an awesome speed workout on Tuesday and felt great on my 10K treadmill run on Wednesday.  Then I took Thursday and Friday off.  I went to the gym late in the day yesterday to hopefully get through 11.  I got through 8.  It was a combination of things that made me stop: my stomach, my sore throat, time (we were meeting another couple for dinner) and my head.  Sometimes I feel like its easier to cheat on the treadmill versus outside.  Sometimes I give in to my brain and quit.  At 8 miles I said to myself, "You can do the extra 4 tomorrow." But today is that day and an 8 mile run on one day and a 4 mile run on another does not equal 11 miles together.  You don't get 15 hours during a half marathon.  So...I'm taking another rest day to get healthy. Hopefully next week will be better!

And here is the Weekly Recap of Workouts:

Monday 1/24: 

Day Off- Long Commute

Tuesday 1/25:

Speed Workout, 5 miles/45:45/8:58 pace, 1 mile: 8:21, 1 mile: 8:09, 1 mile 7:39, 1 minute rest

Wednesday 1/26: 

Physical Therapy

10K in 55:37 (8:57 pace) on treadmill, lifted legs

Thursday 1/27:

Snow Day, sick

Friday 1/28: 

Day off, Sick

Saturday 1/29:

8 Miles on treadmill 1:14, 9:14 pace, 1.0 incline

Sunday 1/30:

off

Total: 3 days running, 19.20 miles, 1 Days of Lifting, 4 Days off

 Biggest Loser update- down 1 pound and .5% Body Fat. 

 

Hopefully, this week will be better! I have big plans for the week- one of my best friends Stephanie's Birthday on Tuesday, Half Marathon before work on Friday with Stephanie and the Super Sunday 10K with my brother and tons of friends! I've also planned an awesome menu for the week using my new favorite kitchen tool: Mini Loaf Pan!

It's Mini Loaf Week!

Planned Meals for the Week:

Sunday: Surf and Turf Mini Loafs- Mini Turkey Meatloaf & Spicy Shrimp Loafs

Monday: Mini Lasagna Loafs

Tuesday: Quinoa Loafs

Wednesday: Sweet Potato Tofu Loafs

Thursday: Leftovers

Can't wait to get cooking : )

On another note,  Sara at Meals and Manhattan recently wrote about her Gym Pet Peeves and I thought it was hysterical so I'm going to partake in my biggest pet peeves.  For the most part, I love my gym so I don't have toooo many but of course I have a few! Mostly it's people related, not exactly gym related..

 

In the Gym:

Holding onto the top of the treadmill while running.  

(There's a girl at my gym who runs 5-6 miles while holding on the entire time... it bothers me soooo much, I want to tell her to just slow down instead of holding on... like whatttt?? You can't hold on outside!)

Odd Stretches

(There is this dude at my gym who does the most uncomfortably sexual looking stretches I've ever seen and then holds then for a long time.)

(Source)

Working in on my sets

(I lift like twice a week.  When I do, its such a pet peeve when a guy wants to "work in" on my sets.  I do 3X10.  Takes like 5 min max.  Can't they wait?  Go to a different machine?)

Improper form on the spin bike

(I get it, proper form on the spin bike can be hard but at least fake it.  Spinning really can be as hard or as easy as you want it to according to how YOU adjust the resistance.  But I mean if we are doing Position 1, 2 or 3, please at least pretend to hold the position.  There is this older woman at the gym who takes all these spinning classes and just bounces around in position 2 the entire class. Its distracting and annoying.)

Locker Room

Disgusting things in the Shower

There is some woman who hocks a loogie (I had to look up spelling on that one) in the shower.  It makes me want to vomit.  This is a public space and do you think we can't hear you? NASTY!

Taking forever to get ready

I find it hysterical how long it takes some people to get ready at the gym.  They spend just as much time in the locker room as they do in the gym!  I literally get ready in ten minutes.  I don't think I've dried my hair in a year.  No joke!

Nakedness

There is no need to sit on benches or sit on the floor naked.  Put some clothes on people.  Grossness!

I'm sure this is popular subject... 

What are some of your biggest pet peeves at the gym?!?!

and.. Have you used a mini-loaf pan?

Mid Week Running & Oscar Noms

I had a feeling today would be a snow day so I ran my Thursday run yesterday.  Which means I broke my rule about not running two days in a row.  I've suffered from Achilles tendonitis for about a year and a half now so I try to be extra cautious, especially after speed days.  But now I'm actually happy I ran yesterday because I'm currently lying in bed with a really bad headache/sore throat that I hope won't turn into anything too serious.  But to be extra safe, I'm planning to do my long run on the treadmill again this weekend. However, next weekend I'm getting outside no matter what- RACE DAY- Super Sunday 10K!

Tuesday I woke up super early to get to the gym.  After Monday's commuter fiasco I was pretty happy with only a 15 minute delay.  I got to the gym, jumped on my treadmill and got cranking.  The workout was 3X1Mile with 1 Minute rest at 10K pace.  My goals every time I do speed is to get progressively faster with each interval.

Workout:

1 mile at 6.0mph, 1.0 incline

1 mile at 8:21 (7.1-7.2mph)

1 minute rest (I ended up just jumping on the sides of the treadmill and drinking water for a minute)

1 mile at 8:09 (7.3-7.4mph)

1 minute rest

1 mile at 7:39 

(I started at 8.0mph and went up every 400 meters- I felt good on this, apparently I had a lot left!)

then I walked a quarter mile and jogged .75 until I hit 5 miles

5 miles/45:45/8:58 pace

I felt awesome on this run!  I love running intervals.  Ten miles was painful on the treadmill Sunday but felt great on Tuesday. 

Wednesday I woke up early again and got to the treadmill.  I just wanted to run at a fairly easy pace for 6 miles and slowly get faster.  I ended up running a 10K in 55:37 (8:57 pace).

I'm running a 10K next weekend.  I'm not exactly sure what my goal is- I would love to hold an 8:30 pace but not entirely sure thats possible, but we'll see!

On a non-running note, I want to talk about the Oscar Nominations for Best Picture.

I've seen Inception, Black Swan, The Social Network, and The Fighter.  I want to see 127 Hours and The King's Speech.  I loved all the movies I saw except Black Swan.  Social Network had a great story.  The Fighter had a wonderful story and passionate, amazing acting. (Christian Bale is the best actor of our generation, Melissa Leo was extremely impressive and Amy Adams nailed the part as a girl from Lowell). Inception took you into a new world, made you think and left the end up to your interpretation.  I guess you could say the same about Black Swan but in my opinion, it just wasn't interesting enough. I've read countless reviews on Black Swan.  I am seriously fascinated with this movie, and more, why it has so much buzz.

To quote a review on Screen Rant: "In terms of technique, Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan is arguably a masterpiece. The way Aronofsky manipulates sight, sound and editing to create this story of ambition and madness, shows that he is truly one those increasingly-rare directors who is worthy of the title “filmmaker,” as oppossed to “glorified video game and/or music video maker." So why am I not yet ready to tout Black Swan as “the film of the year?” Because for all its technical marvel -- and wonderful performances -- the movie falls short of its primary goal: conveying a moving and/or interesting story."
And that's exactly how I felt about Black Swan- the story, screenwriting, and acting were not developed enough.  And in my opinion, Natalie Portman was not the star of the movie- the director of the ballet, Thomas (Vincent Cassell) was and I think he is the one who got snubbed with the Oscars noms.

I used to love Darren Aronofsky (I even wrote a report on Requiem in college) but I'm not sure my POV on films is the same anymore.  I used to care more about cinematography, editing, and effects then I did about the actual film/story.  I'm older now and what is most important to me about a film is the story. Screen Rant wrote this and I wholeheartedly agree
"a clear visual metaphor is established: to this character (Nina- Natalie Portman) there is no outside world, only the world as it exists in her mind. This would be an intriguing approach if Nina was a more intriguing character. However, sadly, this was not the case. I will say that Portman delivers an impassioned performance in this film, in the sense that she wholeheartedly attacks the role in much the same way that her character is asked to attack a set of pirouettes at one point. Yet Nina is not what I would call a complex or interesting character -- in fact, I dare say she is one-note: crazy" He goes on to say that in this film Nina's character goes from "crazy  to crazier." 

So I guess you could say I just didn't like the story.  However, The Fighter and Social Network were fascinating stories that captivated me the entire time. People also talk about how The Town got snubbed.  I liked the action of The Town but it failed on two major points in my opinion: acting and believability.  Blake Lively was the worst casting I've ever seen for a trashy, drugged out Charlestown girl.  And the relationship between Ben and the banker was so unrealistic and the ending just pissed me off.  Am I alone?

I love films that make you think, that have tremendous acting, that are relate-able and have interesting stories. But I'm not going to tell you I'm a total film snob.  After all, I did watch Valentine's Day this morning (and actually enjoyed it)! And I may be currently watching Adventures in Babysitting as I type...hehe.

What film do you think should win Film of the Year at the Oscars?  

And did you run Speed this week?  What was the workout?

Weekend Eats : )

I had one of the worst commuter experiences of my life today.  To make a long story short, my husband and I went to three different commuter rail stops (I got dropped off at the third) before I decided to stop waiting in the cold and grab a cab to the local T stop about 10 miles away.  Thirty dollars broker, I arrived at the T just in time to get on as it was going inbound to Boston.  Unfortunately, three stops later, it decided to stop in between stations for 45 minutes due to a "disabled train."  So there I was, in my gym clothes at 9:30am and still 20 minutes away from work.  Luckily my work was accommodating and I was able to shower and get to my desk by 10:15am.  Needless to say, commuting sometimes really blows.

But on a brighter note, I cooked up some delicious meals over the weekend.  My plan on Saturday was to bake cookies for the Blogger Cookie Swap, grocery shop and then head into town.  Unfortunately, my plans got derailed when halfway through the cookie process I failed AND I started to feel sick.  So I decided to bail on the Cookie Swap. My first non-successful cookie was these 5 ingredient macaroons from Ina Garten. 5 Ingredients- how could I mess that up?  Well as most of you know, 14 ounces of liquid is not the same as 14 weight ounces (OBVI!)  Needless to say, I ended up with little blobs.  I know exactly what I did wrong (didn't add enough coconut) and I know I will make these another time successfully.

Aren't they scary???

Lucky for me, I had planned to make TWO kinds of cookies.  The others were from Jen at Peanut Butter Runner/Bakin' and Eggs and they were successful  - Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Almond Cookies.  I added in the almonds because I really wanted to make an Almond Joy inspired cookie.  Another thing that differed from her recipe is that I only had enough for about 20 cookies and she made 30.  Hmmm... I really need to work on my baking skills! But these cookies were delicious and I wish I got to share them at the Cookie Swap!

On Saturday night I made one of the most delicious soups I've ever tasted- Tortilla Soup from Baked Bree. The freshness of the ingredients made this vegetarian soup (well, I used Chicken Broth) really delectable.  I just absolutely loved everything about it!

Tortilla Soup
Ingredients:
2 cans Rotel tomatoes, I used one mild, one medium
2 carrots, peeled
1 green pepper
1 large onion
2 garlic cloves minced
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
4 cups chicken broth
1 bag frozen corn
1 can black beans
1/2 cup cilantro
tortilla chips
for garnish:
avocados
tortilla chips
cheese
cilantro

Instructions:
Put the Rotel, carrots and pepper in the food processor.

Process for a few minutes but keep a little chunky.  

Then in a large Dutch oven (if you are a lucky enough to have one) or pot, saute onions and garlic until soft and then add in all the spices.  Cook for one minute.  Add tomato mixture, broth, beans and corn.

Simmer partially covered over low heat for 30 minutes. Add clilantro and then ladle the soup into bowls.  I added more cilantro, avocado and cheese on top.  Oh and I would have served with tortilla chips but I only had pita chips...

Mmmm... I wish I still had more leftover!  So fresh and delicious.

I also made Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches in the Slow Cooker using both chicken tenders and chicken thighs.  It was pretty simple- a recipe I found in Everyday Food by Martha Stewart.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. boneless,skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces ( I bought tenders)
1 medium yellow onion, diced small
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced small
1 can (14.5 oz) crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup Buffalo Wing sauce ( I used Franks)
3 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp. yellow mustard
1 tbsp. molasses
buns
Instructions:
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add chicken thighs, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring once, until meat is golden brown, about 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a slow cooker, leaving as much oil behind as possible. Repeat with chicken breasts. To skillet, add onion, garlic, red pepper, and cook over medium, stirring constantly, until onion is translucent. Add 1/4 cup water and cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits from skillet. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to slow cooker. To slow cooker, add crushed tomatoes, hot-pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and molasses; stir to combine. Cover and cook on high until chicken is very tender, 4 hours. Shred chicken and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve on buns. 

 With all the leftover chicken, I made Buffalo Chicken Tacos on Sunday.  All I did was saute up some red onions and slaw mix, hit up the chicken mixture and serve it in a Josephs Flour Tortilla.  If you're into blue cheese or ranch dressing you could add that.  But thats not for me!

Oh... and lastly, I made some breakfast "loafs" for the week using my amazing new loaf pan!  I wanted to do a take on The Chic Life's Green Monster Muffins but as loafs and with banana as well.  These were pretty fun to create and I'm sure look pretty scary to non-healthy eaters!

 

Green Monster Banana Mini Loafs

Ingredients:

1 cup oats

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

Wet Ingredients: 

1 egg

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup of milk

1 cup PACKED, triple washed baby spinach, chopped by food processor into small bits 

1 ripe banana, mashed 

3 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions: 

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F and prepare your mini loaf pan. Add dry ingredients into a medium bowl and whisk together. Mash the banana then whisk in the rest of the wet ingredients. Pour dry ingredient mixture into the wet ingredient mixture, add 1/4 cup walnuts if desired, and stir gently just to combine – do not over-mix. Pour batter into loaf pans – about 3/4 full each. Bake for 15-25 minutes until centers set or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Pop out of loaf pans and let rest.  Then enjoy!  

I'm telling you, these were delicious!  You can't even taste the spinach but you know its there because of the pretty green specks!  A nice way to throw some greens into your food : )

..And I'm off... here's hoping the commute home is better than the commute in : )

Races, Long Run and Weekly Workout Recap

This post was going to be about my amazing long run with Becky along the Boston Marathon route.  But, at 7:30am, I checked my phone to find that it was 11 degrees outside.  Not only that, but no sidewalks have been cleared near me and if we did run, we'd have to run single file.  Sooo... Becky and I called it quits and decided to hit the treadmill instead. I sat on the couch for awhile updating some pages on my blog before I finally got ready for the gym.  I now have a Races and PR Page as well as a page that shows all my Training in 2010. I also have a 2011 Training Page that I will update at the end of each month (hence why there is nothing there yet!)


Around 12, I drove to my gym.  Its quite a hike for me to get to (I usually work out  in Boston) so I try to only go on the weekends when I'm desparate and can't run outside.  I grabbed a few magazines and got moving. I started at 6.3mph at 1.0 incline and gradually went up each mile.  My goal was to run 10-11 miles.  The first few miles felt easy.  At 6.25, my treadmill stopped and I contemplating quitting as well.  But I reset it and just kept moving forward.  I love the treadmill for speed and tempos, but it was challenging today.  There was nothing good on TV and even reading two magazines (Entertainment Weekly, Us Weekly) didn't entertain me long enough.  I went through two bottles of water and a bag of jellies but I finished.  10 miles in 1:35. 9:30 pace. 

I have this goal of breaking 1:50 in my halves coming up but I'm not sure how realistic that is.  I keep thinking that maybe on race day I will pull out something amazing.  I mean, Runners World always talks about how you should run 1-2 minutes slower during long runs.  (Which by the way, makes zero sense to me... why would I run at 10:30 pace if I want to compete at 8:30?!?!) Anyway... the next month will really help me evaluate my goals for my upcoming races.  What upcoming races you ask?  Check these out!

Super Sunday 10K (Boston)

Sunday February 6th

(Sign Up and Run with me!)

Old Fashioned 10 Miler (Foxboro)

Sunday February 20th

Sign Up

The Hyannis Half Marathon

Sunday February 27

Black Cat 10 Miler (Salem)

Sunday March 6th

Ras na HEireann St. Pattys 5K

Sunday March 13

(Sign Up!)

and finally...

the National Half Marathon in DC!

Saturday March 26th

Its funny but I always run more races in the Winter then any other season! Hope to see lots of you guys at these races : )

After the gym, I checked out a local running store that I found on my phone: PR Running. It was a pretty awesome store and had everything that more well known stores have (like Marathon Sports).  I was super impressed and will definitely be back again.  Anyway, I bought my 2150s which are on sale now because the Ascics 2160s recently came out.  So I got these shoes for $77 bucks!  Score!

I also bought The Stick.  This thing is amazing- much better than the foam roller.  I love it- I'm obsessed!  And I got the best socks in the world if you are known to get blisters... Experia Padded Socks by Thorlo.  They are soooo worth the $14 price tag.  I just wished I knew before I ruined my feet in cotton socks in my first marathon.  Oops!


And here is the Weekly Recap of Workouts:

Monday 1/17: 

Day Off

Tuesday 1/18:

Speed Workout, 6 miles, 58 minutes, 5X1000 with 400 rest 7.0-8.2mph

Wednesday 1/19: 

Physical Therapy

6 min eliptical, 30 min electric stim (hip, ankle, ice) Lifted Legs, everything 3X10- Ski Slope, Hip Up, Kick Out, Ankle Out, Hip Sled

Thursday 1/20:

Lunch Workout: 5 miles 45:45, 1 mile warmup, 2 miles at 8:13, 400 rest, 1 mile at 8 min, .75 cooldown

Friday 1/21:

15 min eliptical, 1.25 ( Crossramp 10, Resistance 10)

Abs: Ball- Back Extension 3X10, Ball Plank Tuck Knee 3X10, Basic Crunch on Ball 3X10, Throw Ball Machine 3X10, Planks 3X:30, Superman 5X:15, Bent Knee Up 3X10

Biceps/Triceps: Standing Cable Curl 3X10, High Cable Curl 3X10, Supinating Dumbbell Curl 3X10, Incline Alternating Dumbell Curl, Bench Dip, Hammer Curl, Standing Cable Curl, Straight Bar Pressdown

Saturday 1/22:

Rest Day

Sunday 1/23:

10 Miles treadmill, 1:35, 9:30 pace, 1.0 incline

Total: 3 days running, 21 miles, 2 Days of Lifting/Cross Training, 1 Day of PT, 2 Day off

 Biggest Loser update- down 1 pound and .5% Body Fat. 

How was your week of workouts?

Vegetarian Meals

My husband is not loving these vegetarian or "light" meat meals, but I am!  This week I cooked a Butternut Squash Quinoa Bake, Pumpkin Curry with Tofu, and a Winter Panzanella Salad. 

 

Butternut Squash is the common theme in all these dishes.  I roasted two squashes  on Sunday and used those bite size pieces in each of these dishes.  Also on Monday, I cooked the Quinoa, cooked the chicken sausage, and sauteed the onions.  I combined the quinoa with the sausage, onions and squash in a casserole dish for Tuesdays dinner.  All I had to do on Tuesday was throw some cheese on that dish and put it in the oven.  I served the Quinoa Bake with a side salad with feta and pomegranates.

Tuesday I made a dish inspired by Mama Pea's Pumpkin Curry with Tofu. I didn't love this dish.  But I also put a whole can of pumpkin in instead of a half can like she reccommends, oops! If you are looking for an amazing Tofu dish, cook this from Cara's Cravings.  I made it last Friday and even my meat-loving husband enjoyed it! But this curry dish did pack some flavor, I just wish it had some spice.

Pumpkin Curry with Tofu
Ingredients:
Marinade:
1/4 c. maple syrup
1 1/2 t. apple cider vinegar
1/2 t. salt
2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spiceCurry:
One 16 oz. package of extra-firm tofu, drained and pressed
1 1/2 cups of roasted butternut squash
1/2 red onion diced
1 T. minced ginger
1 t. minced garlic
1 c. broccoli florets
1 c. red or yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 1/2 T. curry powder
One 14 oz. can light coconut milk1/2 c. canned pumpkin
salt and pepper
2 c. cooked brown rice

Instructions:
In a shallow pie plate or dish, combine marinade ingredients. Add pressed tofu and turn to coat. Allow tofu to marinate for at least 30 minutes. 

 Preheat broiler. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and place over medium high heat.  Sauté ginger, garlic, onion, broccoli and peppers for 4-7 minutes. 

Remove from pan and place in a large bowl covered with tin foil to keep vegetables warm. Place tofu on a prepared cookie sheet and broil for six minutes on each side. Combine pumpkin and add to curry sauce and bring mixture back to a boil. Then add and then add vegetables, tofu and roasted squash. Stir, heat through and serve over brown rice.

 Last nights dinner was a take on the Panzanella Salad I made on New Years only with whatever veggies I had left in the fridge.  This was an idea I saw on Smitten Kitchen's blog.

 I used Roasted Brussel Sprouts, Roasted Brocolli, Roasted Butternut Squash with Pomegranates, Red Onion, Crumbled Bacon, Parm Cheese, homemade cruotons (made with EVOO spray and salt and pepper) and then a lemon honey mustard vinaigrette.

I put all those ingredients in my favorite Pyrex bowl and shook it up.

And voila, a delicious salad!

PS- I got into work today, mainly by waking up super early and taking the train into the city before all the delays happened.  Check out the scene as I was leaving the gym.

 Yep, and now the suns out.  Gotta love New England.  Just hoping this snow won't ruin my long run outside with Becky!