Our day started with good food and it ended with good food.

homegrown greens, sweet nectarine, raspberries, red onion, toasted pecans & raspberry Dijon vinaigrette

Brown Rice Pasta with Basil Avocado Pesto, Zucchini & Local Lavender Chevre

Fresh

Creamy (& garlicy!)

Organic vino for the parents

Apricot Cherry Upside-down Cake

NATURALLY

I made the dinner as a Father’s Day “gift” to my dad, but my mom took care of my birthday dessert (thank you thank you!!). Each fresh apricot is stuffed with homemade almond paste – oh, how I wish I was as talented of a baker as my mother. It was a toss-up between this recipe and cheesecake. I think I made the right choice.

Hope you enjoyed your day, Dad :)

Hill

The second day of October kept the good vibes of yesterday alive. The blue October skies say it all.

I enjoyed sleeping in this morning and getting woken up by my MOM :) Because we both wanted to get outside and enjoy the lovely fall day, we decided to leave the waffle iron for tomorrow; instead, I made a cool, creamy concoction in my new blender for breakfast in a jiffy.

Saturday Special: proudly sponsored by Pumpkin.

• 2 frozen bananas
• 1 c. almond milk
• 1/2 c. organic pumpkin
• 2 T flax
• 1 T agave – I’d suggest using less
• pinch of cinnamon

Top each with 1/4 tsp. coconut + 1 T toasted pecans.

Serves 2.

Neither my mom nor I finished our serving, as the smoothie was surprisingly rich. However, the not-so-sweet Pepita Pecan Pumpkin Muffin balanced out the meal quite nicely.

We did our best not to let the morning get away from us, so we scurried on downtown to the market and filled our basket to the brim with produce.

We admired the Sweet Cottage iced teas and local almonds

… but saved our appetites for a light lunch at Tea Bar & Fusion Cafe.

We shared a ginger tofu wrap accompanied by a whole wheat tortilla, brown rice, avo, fresh veggies, and miso dressing… plus a side of sea salted edamame. Fresh – yes!

Oh, and of course tea was to be had: ginger peach [unsweetened] – mmmm!

Our food-filled day continued on as we made our way to Trader Joe’s. Again, we loaded our cart with a lot of healthful eats – some staples, as well as a few new finds.

It was a hair past 5 o’clock by the time we unloaded at home, which meant a refreshing spirit was to be had before the cooking got under way. There was a solo Blue Moon beer that had been hiding out in the back of the fridge for far too long – like May! – so, I pop off the top and stuck a fork orange in it!   

Dinner was scrumptious, as it always turns out to be when I dine with my mom.

• Mixed Greens, HumCo Tomato, Peppers, Scallions and a French vinaigrette
• Whole Wheat Pasta tossed with Olive Oil, Garlic, Arugula, Green Beans, Lavender Chevre, Toasted Walnuts & Fresh Pepper

Coffee ice cream was the ultimate way to cap the tasty day.

I’m tired, sticky, and a bit stressed about the schoolwork that’s to be done. There’s a lot of excitement coming to NN on the Run in the near future though, so stay tuned!

Hillary

Hi! I hope you all had a great Thursday and are excited for another weekend. I feel like it just was the weekend, but I’m not complaining! I only have one class on Thursdays; today, I didn’t have anything else scheduled, so I was able to enjoy my ‘free time’. I also enjoyed a few notably delicious eats.

Before class, I ate my first plate of oats. I bet some of you are rolling your eyes at this silly sight, but after seeing many mouth-watering plates of Ashley’s oats, I wanted to give them a try myself. The point of plating your oats, rather than using a standard bowl [or mug], is to cool the hot cereal more quickly for warm summer/fall mornings. It also prevents you from burning the roof of your mouth. Thanks, Ash for keeping breakfast interesting : )

1/3 c. steel cut oats, 1 T flax, 1/2 peach, 1 T pecans, 1 tsp. unsweetened coconut

After class, I met my roommate at the WREC for a mid-morning workout.

… and several swigs of refreshing coconut water [which is now sold at TJ’s!]

After putzing around, cleaning, and an uneventful trip to Target, I was ready to make dinner by 6:00pm.

Organic Heirlooms

Green Goddess Summer Pesto

Voila! Whole Wheat Pasta + Pesto, Tomato, Greens & Honey Chevre

I was a little unsure about the honey flavored chevre in my savory pasta, but it’s the only cheese I have. It was still very edible : ) I am really looking forward to using the sweet roll of goat cheese in other recipes though.

* * *

Enough with food… today in the one class I had [Foodservice Administration], we had an assignment due which was to create a personal mission statement. There were very few guidelines, so I chose to write a little poem. Here’s what I came up with at midnight last night – just thought I’d share.

My Mission

I remain true to myself

whilst

always moving forward,

but never forgetting the past.

I spread inspiration

by eating intuitively -

savoring, appreciating… each and every bite.

Travelling far offers experiences

that allow me to

smile often.

I nourish appetites and souls,

all the while running across another finish line

that strengthens my healthy life.

Dark chocolate covered almonds, iced green tea, physiology… g’night!

Hillary

* * *

• Do you have a mission statement? If not, any idea what it would entail?
• What would you do with honey chevre? Recipes!?

The exhaustion is setting in, and the to-do list is extending. How’s that for an ugly sentence? Must trek  on… but first, yesterday:

I woke up early to crank out a long training run. I ran with my running gals, Ali + Amy – we were moving! We covered roughly 9.5-10 miles in 88 minutes. It was refreshing to conquer the hills in the misty morning air.

I rushed home and cranked out a humongous waffle with this recent purchase from the local co-op bakery.

Topped with the usual: banana, pecans, and real maple. [For the record, I ate half of a banana for running fuel, and only ~2/3 of the monster waffle.]

I cranked out a shower [well, not really… I don’t know how to take quick showers], and then jetted over to the computer doc for the final fix. My computer is working at light speed! Adding more memory [1GB –> 4GB] = a miracle!

There was no time to play with my like-new computer, as I had to rush to my last catering event of the summer. I was really surprised with how well my body held up after my long run and 6 hours on my feet – sweet!

Thankfully, I didn’t have to make myself dinner though. My mama had a beautiful meal ready when I walked through the door.

Fun Noodles + Roasted Cherry Tomatoes + Sautéed Zucchini + Fresh Basil, Parm, and Pinenuts – so so wonderful!

Afterwards we splurged with Haagen Dazs Five Coffee Ice Cream with crumbled chocolate almond toffee on top. Life’s rough.

* * *

Finally… today:

It was extremely damp outside [as seen below] when I woke at 8:30, so I didn’t rush to get on my bike gear. First, I leisurely enjoyed an oatmeal parfait.

• 1 c. water
• 1/3 c. thick-cut oats
• 1/3 c. fresh blueberries
• 1 T flax
• raw walnuts
• cinnamon + raw sugar

After my morning eatin’ + readin’, I suited up, fastened my helmet, and my dad and I were off for our third and final ride of the summer.

Mustard brings joy to a grey day.

We stopped to let the chickens cross the road.

White fluffy chick, you are precious.

We also encountered a preschool of toddler cows.

How sweet are you, #102.

I don’t see why someone would want to eat you. Don’t worry, you’re safe with me.

We had a great, relaxing ride today. Nothing too intense, but it was sufficient cross-training to finish off training week #3.

• Distance: 20.2 miles
• Time: 1:38:14
• Average Speed: 12.2mph
• Top Speed: 24.5mph

Hours later, and this post is finally finished. Many breaks were taken as I fixed dinner + dessert for my parents tonight. Stay tuned for the recipes! Hope you had a healthy weekend. I’m off to fold my entire wardrobe + pack pack pack.

 xo Hillary

* * *

Feta Freebie Winner

Please e.mail me your address, so Athenos can send your goodies ASAP.

I wanted to write this post last night, but my body clock is completely different since being home; in other words, I am exhausted by 10:00pm. I slept for 12 hours last night– yikes! I guess it was resting-up for my birthday week!

Anyway, there were a lot of great eats yesterday. I enjoyed going shopping at our local co-op – it’s seriously a health nut’s heaven; I came home with two full bags of organic goodies. After unloading, I dove straight into a 2% Fage with organic blueberries, our neighbor’s raspberries ,and a drizzle of organic agave – it won a blue ribbon for “Snack of the Day”.

Next, I dove into another new find. I think this is my new favorite Chocolove flavor – love love love!

What’s your favorite?

I couldn’t resist this at the market. Ya’ll know how I love my green tea. This is was super strong, but at only 6 ounces, I guzzled it all. I could almost taste the antioxidants ; )

Catechins are powerful antioxidants in green tea that help maintain a healthy heart and neutralize cell-damaging free radicals.

I was in charge of making Sunday Family Dinner…

Appetizer

Local Herbed Boule, Local Chevre & Organic Green Grapes

Award-winning Purple Haze: the perfect mixture of lavender and fennel pollen gives this cheese a sweet flavor that plays off the acidity in the cheese for a delightful complement.

Dinner

Arugula, Gorgonzola & Walnut Whole Wheat Pasta

[original recipe @ How Sweet It Is]

In a medium pot, bring water to a boil. Cook 1 lb. of whole wheat pasta of your choice until al dente. Meanwhile, in a large skillet sauté 2-3 cloves of garlic in 2-3T of olive oil. Add 3-4 c. of fresh arugula and stir until wilted. Drain pasta, add arugula mixture, a couple additional tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 c. of crumbled gorgonzola, and a couple handfuls of toasted chopped walnuts. Combine thoroughly, then finish with a sprinkling of freshly-grated hard cheese [parmesan, asiago, etc.] – enjoy! Serves 4.

We also enjoyed a colorful salad full of homegrown lettuces, organic avocado, tomato, red onion, chive flowers, orange-infused olive oil & balsamic.

My Plate

Dessert

Chocolate Strawberry Scone Cake

Just wait!

You learn something new every day. Sure, I might have learned a thing or two in Organic Chemistry at this morning’s lecture and about eggs this afternoon in Elementary Foods…but what I’m most excited about is finally getting clued in on Marathon Monday! As a runner, you’d think this would have been second knowledge, but I did not know that the Boston Marathon is the only marathon held on a Monday. Thus, the special weekday event is given a global title! Thank you, Skinny Runner, for finally filling me in : )

I am still in awe that the first man to cross the finish line today came in just a minute shy of my first half-marathon time – how is that humanly possible!?! I’d love to travel to Boston in April just to be a spectator of Marathon Monday – how fun and inspirational!

In honor of Running Tuesday Monday, I ran my own little ‘race’…against myself…on the treadmill:

6 min. @ 6.2mph

4 min. @ 6.6mph

6 min. @ 6.4mph

4 min. @ 6.8mph

[repeat entire set @ 2.0 incline]

Total: 40 min./4.3 mi.

+ abs, arms and leg conditioning – whoopie!

* * *

My fresh food supply is just about extinct. I feel like I just made a big grocery trip, but alas…I’ll be hitting up TJ’s tomorrow. Almost zero produce and NO dairy – yikes! So, that meant slim pickings for dinner tonight. I almost always have a purple [tie-dye] box for such emergency purposes. I couldn’t resist this adorable box when I saw it at the store last Tuesday: organic, peace pasta. That says Hippy Hill all over it, can’t you see?

Luckily I still had a bag of frozen peas to add color and avocado, cucumber & tomatoes to make a veggie parfait. Simple does it best!

Any guesses at what tonight’s photography backdrop might have been?

…my jeans! I was going for the groovy theme : )

Trying to resist my after-dinner sweet tooth…

Peace + Love,

Hippy Hillary

QUESTION: What would you like to see on Nutrition Nut on the Run?

(a) more nutrition info.

(b) more daily eats & recipes

(c) other: ______

Hey Guys! I’ve got a little gift for you tonight: pictures! I know I’ve been a slacker lately – the photos I have taken are barely passing quality – but I think I deserve an A for effort today : )

Breakfast #1

3/4 cup Raisin Bran, 1/4 cup Cheery Cherry Almond Granola, 1/2 Banana & 3/4 cup Almond Milk

Breakfast #2

Whole Wheat Toast + PB + [other] 1/2 Banana

Snacks

I packed a couple snacks to eat after my 3 hour lab. I didn’t pack a whole lot since I planned to exercise post-class.

Back to Nature Multigrain Flax Seeded Flatbread Crackers [that’s a mouthful] + my daddy’s homemade hummus & a carrot

Dried Apricots + Dark Chocolate Almonds [6 ea.]

After 3 painful hours of Infrared Spectroscopy – don’t even ask me what that is – I sat outside in the sunshine and savored my snacks. I still had quite a bit of steam to burn off from my overwhelming class, so I threw my books into a locker at the gym and kicked up my heals. I didn’t run for very long [appox. 36 minutes], but I started to feel like my freckly face was getting pink from the radiant rays. It was just enough time to sweat out some of my stress. Running cures all. I finished up with a little conditioning…but should have done more.

While I waited for the bus, I grabbed a smoothie from Jamba. I tried one of their new all-fruit creations: the Five Fruit Frenzy. It was tasty, but nothing I’m anxious to have again. I’d much rather make my own mix…with spinach!

Appetizer

Buttery Smooth Heart-Healthy Monounsaturated Fat [a.k.a. 1/2 Avocado]

Dinner

I traded in my boring plain penne rigate for a more exciting option:

The garlic and basil flavors add a lot to a simple dish. I sautéed a few cherry tomatoes in olive oil with garlic and red onion, tossed the al dente pasta in the skillet with the tomatoes, sprinkled in a little chevre & parm, and poured all that over fresh baby spinach – voila…dinner.

Dessert

…fooled ya! I actually did not eat any Chocolove today, but wanted to show you my new finds:

1. Coffee Crunch! My mom brought their new flavor to my attention as she knows coffee/espresso & dark chocolate sits high on my totem pole of favorite flavors – yummm.

2. MINI Chocolove Bars! How cute, right?

***

There ya have it…I finally managed to show you a day of all my eats…well, 90% of them. What can I say, this girl can eat! I have my very important ServSafe Certification Exam tomorrow. I am actually being recertified. I will be disappointed if I receive a lower score the second time around. [I dominated the test in 2007 with a 95%]. The pressure is on!

Hope you have a happy Hump Day tomorrow!

Hillary

Yes, that would be a Lean Cuisine. Don’t judge. These were on sale last weekend, and I couldn’t resist. I am not one to eat frozen meals all the time, clearly, but I knew it would come in handy after a long week day. Today was that day. I didn’t end up eating dinner until 8:30pm — whoopsie!

My day was a little hectic, but thankfully flew by! I had a half-caff iced latte around 3:00pm which made me bounce off the wall! I was seriously tweaking out in class and could hardly wait to exert all my energy at the g.y.m. I rushed to The Resort just in time for 1 hour of Zumba. Oh, boy…I think I looked like a 3-year-old on speed. Since an hour of cardio dance wasn’t enough, I then ran on the treadmill for 30 [10 minutes ea. @ 6.0 (2.0 incline ), 6.2 & 6.4mph].

I apologize for the lamest post of all time, but my life is no Harry Potter or Twilight story. Going to listen to Colbie in preparation for tomorrow’s concert – woot woot – and enjoy a cup of green tea…

Later, guys!

Happy MARCH!

Wow, Spring is just around the corner…20 days away, in fact! I think Spring is actually my least favorite of the four seasons, but if it means I am getting closer to completing another semester of college and never having to open my Organic Chemistry book again, then it couldn’t come sooner.

I always love it when the first day of month falls on a Monday because I use it as a marker to set new goals for myself. I already have a list of 10 goals I am aiming to accomplish in 2010, but I figured adding an extra challenge couldn’t hurt.

For the month of March, I want to challenge myself to MOVE as much as possible! I know I am already pretty good at fitting in my physical activity, but I think there is room for more. I’m young, healthy, and injury-free…why not? I will be recording my workouts – including the distance & duration – on my Running Page. Feel free to join me by moving your muscles more this month too!

My Monday schedule is tight – leaving very little time to exercise – but I did want to publicize that I had a glorious 50-minute run in the sunshine yesterday afternoon. I must get moving; after all, my race is two weeks away!

***

Monday’s Munches

Breakfast was cold cereal.

Raisin Bran, Humboldt Honey Granola, Banana & Organic Almond Milk in every bite!

Today’s school snacks reminded me of a Harry & David Box:

raw veggies + dried apricots & dark chocolate almonds + 1/2 of a d’anjou pear

Annie’s Whole Wheat Shells (a first for me) & White Cheddar…with peas and real buttah.

Organic Romaine, Avocado, Cucumber, Carrot, Red Onion & Low-Fat Parmesan Ranch

It was a perfect medley. I’m a fan of the whole wheat pasta, too : )

[No, I didn't eat in bed in case you were curious. It was just for photography sake.]

***

Alright, well I bet 96% of you can guess where I’m rushing off to next: The Bachelor Finale – hello! Hope your month began on a bright note!

Hasta la proxima,

~ Hillary

If you missed the memo, my recipe is featured on Green Monster Movement!

Hey hey! Monday, oh Monday…what’s your opinion about the often dreaded day of the week? I don’t mind it so much, as I always think of it as a fresh start – to eat mindfully, to erase any negative thoughts, and to make the most out of another week of life : )

I got super excited last night thinking about today’s breakfast; yet, it ended up being bittersweet.

Greek + LAST of my Humboldt Honey Granola (tear) + 1/2 Banana + 1 T Raisins

I tell ya, I did not want this yogurt ecstasy to end!

***

School was school…minus 1. My last class of the day was cancelled – hooray! I hurried home for an afternoon snack.

Whole Wheat Toast with PB&Co Bee’s Knees & 1/2 Banana

***

With a couple extra hours on my hands, I had to figure out my plan of attack for the rest of the night. Since the semester began, Mondays haven’t included exercise; however, I didn’t have a good excuse not to fit in something today:

Mini Monday Moves

Treadmill

0-5 min: 3.5mph @ 5.0

5-10 min: 4.0mph @ 5.0

10-20 min: 6.0mph @ 2.5

20-25 min: 4.0mph @ 5.0

25-30 min: 3.5mph @ 5.0

***

Dinner looks familiar, doesn’t it? You’re seeing leftovers…that’s why.

1 Huge Handful of Fresh Spinach, Avocado, Tomato, Spinach Ricotta Ravioli with Marinara…drizzled with Balsamic

I know some like to keep their salad separate from the rest of their meal, but I’m clearly not one of those people. I’ll eat salad any way, any day!

Homework (a.k.a. The Bachelor – hometown dates!)…

Peace out,

~ Hillary

Question: Anyone know of excess flax causing stomach issues? It’s either that, or I’ve been hitting the fiber too hard. Ok…TMI : )