Boston Marathon 2013

I spent all of yesterday at the Boston Marathon, starting from Mile 18 right before the first women's runners passed by and eventually heading to Mile 24 to cheer on a fellow runner with friends. The day was beautiful for running, but as so appropriately put by the Boston Athletic Association, "what was intended to be a day of joy and celebration quickly became a day in which running a marathon was of little importance."

While biking the 6 miles along the route, I was truly impressed by the amount of encouragement and exhilaration the spectators had for the runners. Especially along the notorious hills, the path was packed with people cheering on strangers who have the heart and endurance to run 26.2 miles. The linchpin to the tragedy is that it took place at an event that is only a source of inspiration on so many levels - people cheering for others they wouldn't even look twice at on the street, people of all shapes and sizes training for months to run for a grueling 3 hours.

Any tragedy puts into perspective what's important in life. Everything that we're struggling with in the past week seems so futile when paralleled against life and death.

Sunday Suppers at Lucques: Schaner Farm's Avocado and Citrus Salad with Green Olives

Lately my sister's been pestering me to spice up my salads so I browsed through Sunday Suppers at Lucques and came across this delightfully unique salad, Schaner Farm's Avocado and Citrus Salad with Green Olives. Though it did take much longer to prepare than my go-to salad (peeling those oranges!), it had such an interesting mixture of flavors, that it was most certainly a class above my generic salads.



Sunday Suppers at Lucques: Schaner Farm's Avocado and Citrus Salad with Green Olives
[Winter Menu 32]

Ingredients
4 lbs mixed citrus fruits [I used oranges & clementines]
2 tbsp finely diced shallots
1 tsp red wine vinegar [I subbed in sherry vinegar instead]
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/8 c virgin olive oil [I used Orange & Green Lemon Specialty Olive Oil from O&Co]
2 ripe but not too soft avocado
1/2 c pitted Lucques, Picholine, or other green olives
1 bunch watercress, cleaned, tough stems removed
1 bunch frisee (about 2oz), cleaned
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

• Zest some of the citrus to get 1 tsp fine zest.
• Peel the oranges like so. When the fruits are peeled, hold them in your hand one by one, and carefully slice between the membranes and the fruit to release the segments in between. Discard all the seeds. [Note: If you're using blood oranges, don't cut them into segments; after removing the peel and pith, slice them into pinwheels and set aside in a separate bowl.] You should have about 2.5c of segments in addition to your blood-orange slices. 
• Combine the shallot, 1/4c citrus juice (from segmenting the fruit), the vinegar, lemon juice, and 1/2tsp salt in a small bowl. Let sit 5 minutes, then whisk in the olive oil and the zest. Taste for balance and seasoning.
• Cut the avocados in half lengthwise. Remove the pits and peel. Cut the avocados into 1/4-inch slices and place on a plate. Season with 1/2 tsp salt and freshly ground pepper. 
• Place the citrus and olives in a large bowl, and spoon three quarters of the vinaigrette over them. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt. Gently toss in the watercress and frisee. Taste for balance and seasoning. Add more vinaigrette if needed.
• Plate half the salad on a large chilled platter. Nestle half the avocado slices in the salad, being careful not to flatten the greens. Arrange the rest of the salad on top, and tuck the remaining avocado slices into the salad. Place blood-orange slices among the greens. 

Why I picked this recipe: it was a salad that had an interesting blend of ingredients that I've never encountered before

What I tweaked: I used sherry vinegar instead of red wine vinegar as I had just run out of red wine vinegar last week. And I had this amazing orange and green lemon infused olive oil on hand that seemed perfect for this recipe so I used that instead of plain olive oil. 

What I liked: It was a party in my mouth: tangy, salty, sweet, creamy all at once.

Future Changes: None.

Smitten Kitchen's Peanut Butter Brownies

Why is it that rejection feels so utterly disappointing, even though you KNOW, from the very start, that you never wanted it? That you were merely trying it for fit, just to see? I got rejected from a company in an industry that I quit 6 months ago because I knew that I could not live the rest of my life stuck in a cubicle for 50 hours a week staring at the dull, unloving blink of 2 computer monitors. But, when the overly formal and stiff “do_not_reply” rejection e-mail glided into my inbox at exactly 11:37am, there it was - disappointment. 

Alas, I turned to one of my go-to comfort activities – baking excessively gluttonous desserts. Too down (and lazy) to bring myself to the market, I found a suitably gluttonous smitten kitchen peanut butter brownie recipe that needed everything I already had on hand. In the whirlwind of butter and sugar with the sweet moistness of chocolate in my mouth, I renewed my resolve to pursue a life that was filled with my passions – fitness, fashion, and food. I can do this!

How did you ditch the 9-to-5 routine that society defines as "successful"?

Why I picked this recipe: I'm a huge fan of the moist consistency of brownies and it required all the ingredients I happened to have at home.


What I tweaked: I ran out of semi-sweet chocolate chip morsels for the ganache, but I did have a few pounds of dark chocolate on hand so I used that instead. After I spread out the ganache, my dessert looked unsurprisingly amateur so I topped it off with buttersctoch chips. Now it looks cute enough to pass a bake sale! (right guys?)

What I liked: I loved the richness of the ganache, which added a sophisticated level to humdrum brownie.

Future changes: Next time I would probably use a little less butter, it seemed a bit too heavy on the bottom.