Doggy meatloaf

I've seen some recipes for homemade dog food. I decided to give it a go. I made a "meatloaf" for the dog. Maybe I should call the recipe Milly Meatloaf. Or Millyloaf.

1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground turkey
1 grated carrot
1/2 cup peas
1 1/2 cup cooked rice (or 3/4 cup uncooked, but you need to cook it)
1/2 cup oats

It mixes best by hand. Mash it all together. Spread it out in a cake pan. Bake it until it's cooked all the way. I don't remember how long that was.


I was able to cut it into 16 servings. The size would depend on how big your dog is. I gave it to Milly for dinner, so the rest of the day she gets her kibble. She seemed pleased with her dinner.

Milly likey.

Pumpkin fest recipe #1

Butternut squash, pumpkin, coconut soup

1 cup water

1/2 butternut squash cubed

1 1/2 cups coconut milk

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

salt & pepper to taste

a pinch cayenne pepper to the spiciness level you like

1 tsp thai curry paste of choice (I used masaman)

1 tsp oyster sauce

3/4 cup chopped mushrooms

4 oz sausage

Cook the squash in the water and coconut milk until it starts to get tender. Cook the sausage in a pan and add that to the pot. Add a little water to that pan and deglaze it and add the liquid to the soup. Add all the other ingredients.

So, basically I just used up some stuff I had in the fridge that I didn't want to go bad and I need to do something with all that pumpkin puree. Once I thought of adding the coconut milk it made it magical though. It was pretty good. I don't think I would have added sausage to it except that I had a half a package left and I thought, why not. If you don't use sausage, use broth instead of water.

Pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin

I just roasted and pureed 2 pumpkins. I am going to have to start cooking with pumpkin every week. My current pumpkin recipe collection includes pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin bread, and a Julia Child's pumpkin soup recipe.

In celebration of the vegetable I'm going to find some new recipes and I'll update my blog if I find some winners. If you have a good recipe let me know.

If you want to make your own puree, you just cut it in half, scoop out the insides, put each half cut side down on a pan, and cook at 350 degrees until it's soft. You can poke it with a fork or do a push test. Let it cool down. Cut it into chunks and puree it in a food processor or blender. I put about 1 1/2 to 2 cups in a freezer bag and freeze it in stacks so it stays flat.

Also I'd like to update my quinoa and beans experience. Made another batch but used 50/50 mix of black eyed peas (a bean fyi) and black beans. I used dried beans and cooked them in the crock pot (low setting 6 hours). I cooked the quinoa separate and added it to the beans when they were done. Instead of roma tomatoes, I made a little salsa of tomatillas, cucumber and the cilantro and added that instead. Loved it.

What's better for you? Fresh/frozen/canned

I watched a little nutrition video thing in my sports nutrition class this week. The guy was very practical and grounded in his philosophies. I've been asked recently a lot about what kind of vegetable is better for you, frozen or canned. This guy's response was, it's not the canned vegetables that are bad for us, it's the canned twinkies. Meaning, most Americans just need to get more vegetables in their diet however they will take them.


I agree with that absolutely. If you prefer canned vegies, go for it and leave the guilt behind you. Personally, I like fresh the best because I think they taste better. My preference. However, once you cook those fresh vegetables they lose some of their nutrients. It puts them about even with canned vegis. Frozen is the same deal. Once defrosted and cooked, you lose some nutrients. So, overall fresh, raw vegis are the best, but do you like raw vegis? I do, but I'm weird.



Most studies show, we aren't getting our recommended 3-4 servings of vegis every day. If you are getting 3-4 a day, then let's start splitting hairs over where they're farmed or shipped from, how they're preserved, and how you prepare them. Until then, just find some vegis you like and eat more of them.


Here's a little recipe to inspire you.


I ate this in China and managed to replicate it pretty closely by trial and error.


Szechaunese Green Beans



1 lb green beans (I hate to say it but get them fresh, the texture is better when stir-fried)
1 tbl chopped ginger
1/2 tsp chilli paste
1 Tbl dark soy (if at all possible use the dark soy, your standard table soy will not give you the same results)
1/2 tsp sugar
About 2-3 tsp peanut oil for cooking
Optional
2-3 oz ground pork (you can use ground turkey or chicken for a lighter meat)


Wash and snap off the ends of the beans. If they are really thick you may want to cut them length-wise, but I'm too lazy too, so I usually just toss them in whole.


Combine all the ingredients except the beans and meat if you use it.


Put the oil in a wok and heat it up. Add the meat (is using) and stir fry for about a minute. Then add the beans and continue stir frying for about another 2 mins. The meat should be cooked all the way through and the beans should be starting to brown on the outside. Brown, not burn.


Add all other ingredients and cook until most of the liquid is cooked off. About a minute.


This is a really quick dish. The longest part is snapping the bean ends. Since I'm single, I'll make this and eat most of it in one sitting. You can put it over rice too if you like rice. Another option is to toss in some peanuts instead of the meat. Peanut + rice = complete protein, good option for vegetarians.

Las Vegas Ragnar 2010

Team 87, the Frenchies

Every long distance relay I've done has had it's own little hiccups and group chemistry, but like every one I've done, it this one tons of fun and plenty challenging.


The starting line at The Valley of Fire was really amazing. While I still wish I had just slept in and not gone to the start line to see the team off, I did enjoy the views through first section of the course.


We actually got started an hour later than our start time. The first van got a little lost and we missed our time. We did get to all get in costume and apply moustaches. Moustaches for everyone!


Because we were at the start line and the first van had a long section it felt like we waited at exchange 6 forever. Forrrreeeeverrrr. I've never been so happy to get started as when Roger can running through in all his shirtless glory.



I don't have a terribly lot of day time pictures. I kid you not, van 2 did more night time running than day time. Here's a tip--whenever, wherever you can get some shut eye in a long distance relay, do it. And make sure you are eating regularly. We had two regular meals at exchange 6 before we even started. I am a big fan of bagels, pringles, grapes, and string cheese.



Exchange 12 was pretty posh. It was at a resort or something. Unfortunately we did not stick around. They had some guy playing guitar Jack Johnson style. He was pretty good. There were probably 20 people dangling their feet in the hot tub which I called "foot soup". I didn't get in. We did eat there. Since we were so late coming in they had knocked all the food down to $5. It was good.


Here's another tip--move on to the next exchange you are starting at. It's easier to settle down and rest then get up shortly before the next van exchange then to rest and get up and drive to the next exchange. That's how people are late and runners stand around for 30 min waiting for the next van.

The second set of legs for my van was dead of night to sunrise. There was some wind that wasn't fun, but the temperature was still pretty good for running. It never really got warm. Maybe 62 tops Saturday. Very good for running.

Because of the after 5:00 rule that you have to wear all your reflective gear, Tiff & I got to run all 3 legs in full gear. I was pretty thrilled. Our van wore our costumes the 3rd leg. It was fun. We also passed on a schlacked baguette. Very fun. It was sticky from all the previous man handling before it got to me but it was worth it. We got a lot of cheering and comments in costume and with the baguette. "Go Frenchies" or "Go Baguette" was heard a lot. One person coming in was thrilled that they passed the "guy with the baguette".

It was actually the 3rd set that we started catching up to the back pack. I think I passed 5 or 6 people in my last leg.

It was nice to finish. I can't say enough about how awesome the team was. I loved everyone in my van. As I recall now, we spent most of the time laughing. I learned some new terminology as well. Thank you dirty Ragnar runners. The women are the worst. I had a lot of help organizing the team as well which is awesome. It's not easy to put these things together, but I think overall it was a success.

And most important I got my finishers medal and the Saints & Sinners medal. That was some serious bling I was wearing through the casino. Like Flavor Flav style.

I am super greatful to all the race directors, SWAT team, and numerous volunteers that put this event on. I help with it last year, and it is insane the amount of organzation, man/womanpower, and dedication that it takes. Bravo!

Quinoa & black beans

I keep hearing how quinoa is so amazing. It has the most protein of any grain, has as complete a protein as milk, more iron than other grains, has lots of other vitamins and minerals, and saves orphaned kittens from burning trees.

Technically it's not actually a grain but it looks like a grain and acts like a grain. It's really a seed so doesn't that make it a fruit? Anyhow it's really good for you and I've discovered it's pretty tasty.

I made a quinoa and black beans recipe. Delicious. I ate it straight up out of a bowl. It would work well as a meal in itself or as a side. I also thought it would be tasty wrapped in a tortilla with some cheese. I didn't have any tortillas though.

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa

1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)

2 tbl lime juice

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cheyenne pepper

1/4 tsp turmeric

1-2 roma tomatoes, chopped

You bowl the quinoa in a pot of water for about 10 mins. I believe I used about 2 cups of water. If it starts to get too dry add a little more water.

Add the lime juice cumin, cheyenne pepper, & turmeric. You can add a pinch more or less of any of those per your preference for flavor and spiciness. I only like a hint of cumin so I kept it on the down low. Cook that on a very low temperature just so the flavors can settle in.

The quinoa should be light and fluffy. That's what all the recipes say. I wouldn't describe it as fluffy but I don't have a better word for it. Add the black beans and stir them in. Let them just sort of warm up, then don't need to cook. So, after a couple of minutes take it off the heat.

The cilantro and tomatoes are better fresh in my opinion so add them right before serving.Once again, add as much or as little to taste. I like a lot of cilantro.

I had this as leftovers 2 or 3 days and never got sick of it. It has a nice nutty flavor to it. Next in my quinoa adventures will be Martha Stewart's breakfast quinoa recipe.

Fruit Days

I had a double header this weekend. It was Peach Days up in Brigham. We also got to celebrate the 2nd annual Raspberry Days at a private residence in Kaysville. Basically, I ate well this weekend. Probably a little too much, but I have a very happy and expanding tummy.

I made grilled baby bok choy & peaches with peanut satay sauce and Indonesian turkey burgers. The tb basically had a lime/green onion dressed slaw & the peanut satay sauce. Yummy.

I ended up running the Peach Day's 10k after all. Hehe. I took my running clothes in case I decided to go for a jog or something but really my subconscious wanted to run it. I kept my bad shoulder pinned to my side the whole time and just took it at a pace that was enjoyable and not strenuous. I finished in 59 mins and some change. Not bad for being broken. It was my 7th year in a row to run it. I had to.

The coolest thing I saw at the parade has to be the tank. Sorry, a tank driving down main street was just cool. Don't know why.

Raspberry Days. Oh the joy. It involves a lot of eating and drinking stuff that is made of raspberries or has raspberries in it somehow. Except the fettuccine alfredo. No raspberries but so delicious, there were no complaints. We also had pork tenderloin with a savory raspberry sauce, rolls with raspberry honey butter, raspberry Italian sodas, an amazing salad with raspberries and coconut and cashews and all kind of yummy stuff.

The setting was equally delightful. There were little tea lights all over in the grass. Magical little bonfires twinkling in the dusk.

It was the perfect way to end the summer/welcome the fall.

We laid on blankets after dinner to let the food digest before raspberry trifle and watched the stars and talked about why we like Jake--he's tall, American, feeds us, does dishes, and some other "blue" stuff. I then taunted the Blue's. You know I love you all.