Running revisited

New Year- New Goal!

I signed up for the Hyannis Half Marathon February 28th.  I am hoping it will get me back out running more.  It's the first year in 8 years that I am NOT running the Boston Marathon in April, so my former Satruday morning long run routine has been replaced by my new saturday morning sleeping in and eating waffles with bacon routine.  It's not pretty. 

I have been sick this week, but am starting to feel better and hoping to run 8 miles this Saturday with my running partner, Tracey. 

Wish me luck!

Best Cupcake in Manhattan

Well, we probably didn't try them all but we did try quite a few... our favorite, without a doubt, was Buttercup bakery... while a few other places had some good cake, or good frosting, it was buttercup that had the best of both...

We also tried Magnolia, Crumbs, Amy's Bread...

     

We also went to financier... delicious...

Dessert Intervention

I went to the doctor yesterday (turns out I have a sinus infection) and for some reason, even though I was only there for the antibiotics, the nurse put me on the scale.




EGADS. It wasn't (and isn't) pretty. I had realized I had been gaining weight, but the number on the scale was still a slap in the face. Something better get done.



So, I have decided to give myself a dessert intervention. I eat healthy and exercise quite regularly, but I also ALWAYS eat dessert. Practically even for breakfast. Part of this is an occupational hazard, part of this is simply a life style choice. But no more! Starting today I will limit my desserts to Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.



I did well last night. Scott had ice cream after dinner and I resisted... can I keep it up?

French Onion Soup

Dinner tonight was french onion soup from "Mastering the Art of French Cooking".

It takes a while but is pretty easy.  Bon Appetit!

Julie & Julia

So, I watched Julie & Julia last night. I had read the book years ago and enjoyed it but am not much of a movie watcher.  I am glad I did.  It was one of those very rare movies that actually kept me sitting on the couch for its entirety. I mean, I did feel a fleeting urge to get up and start cleaning, but I persevered and stayed seated and the urge past.




If you love food, which I do, the movie made you want to cook. It actually made you want to cook French food with all its buttery goodness. It also made me want to blog more, which I don’t do often enough, probably because my computer is junk and I am too lazy to download my photos.



I hate my job. It’s a scary thing to write that out in the world where anyone, including my bosses, could read it. But I do hate it. No one reason stands out, just a lot of little reasons that basically add up to it just not being the best place for me to work. “Not the right fit” is the phrase that comes to mind. I mention this now because the movie made me realize that I am not alone in feeling like I am lost in the day to day routine existence. And like Julie, I think I could benefit from undertaking some sort of project or goal.



But what would I do? How would I find a way to do something similar but unique…



I guess I need to think about that for a bit.



Any ideas?



Well, regardless- if you haven’t already you should watch the movie.

Hamersley's Desserts... Not so sweet

After an amazing dinner at Hamersley's Bistro you may still want a little something sweet.

The high point on the dessert menu is the warm sticky toffee pudding. The warm and almost-but-not-quite-too-sweet pudding is complimented perfectly by divine coffee ice cream. It was the cleanest plate on the table at the end of the course with everyone clamoring for the last bite.

The apple tart had a delicious oat flavor, but the crumb topping seemed dry. The crust resembled a filo dough shell, which might work with a more complex filling but this apple filling seemed lacking in everything- including apple. It felt more like a healthy or low fat dessert- which is fine if that is what it is supposed to be but disapointing if you are looking to induldge.

The pumpkin bread pudding with perfect ginger ice cream was well executed but still lacking in a wow factor. It was enjoyable but not memorable.

In the search for a fourth and final dessert to try, even the waiter struggled to give a believable recommendation between either the creme brulee, lemon custard cake or upside down pear cake. After settling on the pear upside down cake, it was found to be rather dry and uninteresting in texture and deeply lacking in the advertised spice. The cranberry sorbet was the high point on the plate. Just tart and just sweet enough, it was easy to enjoy. Although it is possible that the cake would have benefited more from a richer or fattier accompaniment.

Hamersley's is well worth a visit for dinner, but if you are looking for some dessert after your meal it might be worth walking to one of the other restaurants in the area.

Bear Naked Grain-ola Bar

I got a free sample in the mail yesterday of Bear Naked Grain-ola bar.  I tend not to be much of a granola bar/power bar/energy bar kind of girl.  I may eat dessert after every meal including breakfast, but I think health food should be as un-processed as possible.  Why eat a granola bar loaded with sugar and fillers when you could eat some nuts and some dried fruit- also shelf stable, also capable of curbing your afternoon sugar craving.  That's not to say I don't eat them from time to time, but it's usually when I have done a poor job of planning out my food intake for that day.  I was impressed, as always, by bear naked's packaging.  It has a simple and clean look that is always so appealing to me. 

The ingredients were fairly impressive.  It uses maple syrup as a sweetener- that and honey are always my first choice, especially for convenience foods but also contains tapioca syrup, an ingredient I have only recently begun to find in foods and am a bit unsure of.  The bar does have a clean and healthy flavor.  You can really taste the individual ingredients.  The texture is a little too chewy for my taste- I tend to lean towards crunchy granola bars and this is a clearly chewy granola bar. 

Over all it is a product that I would buy if I was in the market for some granola bars.  With 4 grams of fiber and a reasonable 14 grams of sugar it might be the best and most filling bar I have come across. 

If you are interested in learning more about the product check out their website.  BearNaked.com

Whatever you do don't mistakenly go to BareNaked. com like I did.