Sweaty Selfie

I had a great workout at the gym tonight, and I was proud of my efforts. You can't really really tell in the picture, but I am absolutely drenched in sweat here. That is partially because I was really pushing myself and partially because the downtown YMCA is not air conditioned, so it is hot as Hades in the summer. I had a funny moment tonight when I was working out, where I felt like a total fraud, and thought that all of the other gymmies were looking at me and thinking "What is she doing here?", but as I kept going and my endorphins started kicking in, I felt like I totally owned the place. This is my 3rd YMCA workout this week. Say what you will about the rain,  but nothing like foul weather to motivate me to spend time at the gym!

Smoked Salmon Quinoa

I didn't get a great picture of this, but for lunch yesterday I made a quinoa salad that turned out really well. This one had lemon, smoked salmon, fresh basil, pecans, and a little parmesan. If I made it again, I would add some fresh dill to it as well. Quinoa salads are so great because they taste spectacular cold, but are also wonderful warmed up as a side dish. And as I've said before, part of the beauty of the quinoa salad is that quinoa+basic citrus vinaigrette+just about anything=a tasty and easy meal.

Smoked Salmon Quinoa 
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water
juice of 1 lemon
olive oil
pepper
salt
3 oz smoked salmon (about the size of a deck of cards)
1/4 cup pecans, toasted
handful of fresh basil leaves, sliced into ribbons
handful fresh dill, finely chopped
handful of fresh shredded parmesan or other sharp cheese

Combine the quinoa and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and partially cover. Allow quinoa to cook for 15 minutes. While qunioa is cooking, make the dressing- put the lemon juice in a large bowl, add some pepper and a little salt and stir. Add some olive oil in a thin stream, stirring with a fork or a whisk to create an emulsion.  I didn't measure the oil, and you can add it to taste, but you want the dressing to be light and fresh and not too oily, so keep that in mind. Next, cut the salmon into small pieces. Be sure to look for any bones and pull them out and discard them- getting fish bones in a salad is no good at all! Toast your nuts and chop your herbs if you haven't already done so. Once the quinoa is done, mix it with the dressing in the large bowl and then add all of the other ingredients and stir. Cool in the refrigerator if you want to serve it cold or eat immediately for a tasty warm dish.
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Fresh Summer Salsa

This week we got in some beautiful NW grown Roma tomatoes at the Co-op, which are, in my opinion, some of the best tomatoes for making fresh salsa. Zach brought home all the ingredients for salsa making yesterday, and this morning I whipped some up. If you have a food processor and like finely chopped salsa, you can make this salsa in no time at all. I like a chunky salsa, so I chopped everything by hand, which took a little time. I then pureed just a little bit and stirred it back in to give some nice textural contrast. I think it is also nice to drain the tomatoes in a colander after you've chopped them to keep your salsa from becoming too watery.

The recipe I used came from the Forks Over Knives cookbook, which is available at the library if you want to check it out. It has lots of easy and quick plant-based recipes.  The salsa recipe from this cookbook is really good, I just tweaked it by adding a little extra garlic and some vinegar.

Fresh Tomato Salsa
9 Roma tomatoes or 3 large slicing tomatoes, chopped
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
1-2 jalapenos, seeds removed and minced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp white vinegar
salt to taste
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Store refrigerated until ready to serve.

My Sweet Ride #2

 This post is an ode to my beautiful paddleboard. I took it out on the Sound today, and the whole time I was out there, I kept thinking "Man, I love this board!". My board isn't the fanciest, or the sleekest, or the most expensive board out there, but it's perfect for me. It's long enough and wide enough to deal with the small waves and boat wake that are frequently present in the Sound, yet it's light enough for me to lift it onto my car fairly easily. I love the way it feels under my feet, and when I am on it, I feel stable, strong, and athletic. I can move through the water quickly and easily maneuver and turn the board when I need to. Plus, it's just so darn pretty. I love you sweet paddleboard. Thanks for taking me out to places I used to only see from the shore!

New Adventures

Today I went on a fun adventure, and had a completely new experience- something that just doesn't happen often enough anymore. Zach and I went sailing with some friends who are fairly experienced and they showed us a great time. We rented a sailboat from Boston Harbor Marina and headed out into the sound. There wasn't a lot of wind for much of the day, so at times it was pretty slow going, but when the wind was in the sails and we were moving along at a nice clip, it was pretty amazing. We brought some delicious picnic food, listened to  great music, and had a lot of fun relaxing in the sun (with sunblock, hats, and sunglasses of course!).  It was also interesting to be able to get a view of the sound from a boat- I now have a better idea of how visible I probably am to most boats when I'm out paddling. Even though sailing isn't something I plan to do regularly, I really enjoyed doing something new, and this makes me want to add to my list of goals. Goal #30: Try at least one new activity before the end of the year. This can be anything, as long as it is trying something I've never done to keep my life fresh and interesting.

Fallstalgia

Today I was so happy because...IT FELT LIKE FALL! Fall is my favorite time of the year, and it was nice to have an  unexpected fall-like day in the middle of the summer. Don't get me wrong, I've been loving the lovely, clear, sunny weather we've been having, but it was such a treat to have a reminder of a few fall things I really love- watching the rain through the windows, making soup, and cuddling with my sweetie under a warm blanket. For dinner, I made us a simple soup. This is a great soup if you're feeling under the weather or don't have a lot of time or energy but want something warm and delicious to eat.
Erin's Simple Rainy Day Soup
olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
2 potatoes, chopped into small pieces
3 bouillon cubes, dissolved in a little hot water
8 cups water
2 cans white beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch spinach, sliced into ribbons
2 Tbs. fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
fresh black pepper

Pour a little olive oil into a soup pot and heat over medium-high. Add the onions and saute until almost translucent. Next add the garlic. Saute briefly, then add the celery, and saute until celery is nearly soft. Add carrots and saute a few minutes more. Add the potatoes, dissolved bouillon, and the 8 cups of water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for 15 minutes or until all vegetables are soft enough to pierce with a fork. Add the beans, spinach, and parsley. Cook for 3 more minutes. Serve with lots of fresh-ground black pepper.

Live and Learn

I wanted to do an update on my last post about doing yoga with weights. I woke up the next morning with a terribly sore neck and back. My neck was so stiff it was hard to turn my head. Luckily, I was able to get in to see Miracle Merey, the incredibly gifted massage therapist I've written about before. She got things loosened up and I'm feeling much better now, but it was a good learning experience for me- maybe doing yoga with weights isn't such a great idea after all. It's possible that I just slept funny or that my muscles were already taxed from working and that I just overdid it, but I think for a little while anyway, I might just stick to regular yoga. I'll guess I'll have to keep things interesting by changing the music I'm listening to or doing yoga outside.