Woah... It's been a hot second (eight weeks) since I blogged. Sad times. It's pouring outside right now, so it's the perfect time to grab a blanket, sit back on the sofa with my pup, pop on the Food Network, and write a little.
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| Brinkles hangin' out on the sofa |
Anyway, this Thursday is Thankgiving. My dad likes to call the holiday Thankgiving after one of my less than proud childhood moments. When I was younger I made hand-drawn turkey place mats for my family to use on Thanksgiving. I spent hours on this project, sitting Native American style (gotta be PC for Thanksgiving week), hunched over the coffee, my 120 pack of Crayola crayons strewn across the carpet. On a regular piece of white paper, I drew a turkey with multicolored tail feathers, a radiant snood and wattle (real parts of the turkey anatomy,
look it up, you're welcome). I wrote the words "Happy Thanksgiving" in big letters across the top of the placemat. This thing was elaborate and I knew my craft project was bound to steal the spotlight at the meal. But when I presented my amazing hard work to my parents, they were quick to point out (nicely, I'm sure) that I had left out the "s" in Thanksgiving. FAIL. My dad still has the placemat in a drawer and takes it out every year. (Thanks, Dad.)
With Thanksgiving only four days away (say whaaat?), I've got to get my crap together and plan what I'm responsible for making and bringing to my aunt's house. One of my favorite parts of the Thanksgiving day meal is all the delicious vegetable side dishes. My mom tasks me with making one side dish and one dessert each year. I get excited just thinking about all the different side options. It's a little overwhelming actually. There's honey glazed carrots, green beans with almonds and parmesan, roasted butternut squash, and let's not forget the new, popular kid in school- kale. But my favorite thing is simple, easy to make, and makes everyone happy-roasted brussel sprouts. They remind me of teeny, enfant cabbages and they are delicious just roasted in the oven. Here's the stupidly easy
recipe that I'm using from Ina Garten. She's annoying as all get out, but she knows her shit.
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| little enfant cabbages |
Alright, let's get down to business, dessert business. Anyone that says Thanksgiving is about the turkey is wrong. Don't trust those people. Thanksgiving is about the dessert. Dessert is the best and most important part of any meal. I will never, EVER turn down a fruit cobbler/crisp/pie. This year, I wanted to make an apple pie but I've always thought apple pie could be better, like something is missing. And it's NOT the ice cream. I don't forget that. I always feel like apple pie would be better with some type of crispy crumble topping. Why can't we have both? Like an apple pie and an apple cobbler got together and created a baby that was the perfect blend of their best parts. Introducing the
apple crisp pie. BOOM. This is happening Thursday. I'll keep you posted.
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| the real deal |
Writing about all that food has left me feeling pressured to write about what I'm doing to counteract those holiday calories. So...did a nine mile run yesterday. Super slow, but whatever. I've been recovering (again) from peroneal pain in both feet. It's beyond frustrating. I'm adjusted my running schedule to four weekly longer runs with a day to rest in between each one. I absolutely dread taking days off, but my feet seem to be telling me that I need the rest and recovery time. Ugh. #runningproblems
Four days until Thanksgiving means means four days until my favorite run of the year, the
Turkey Day Run and Gobble Wobble 5k. My family does several races each year but this one is by far my favorite. I love it because it's on Thanksgiving morning, and it's great to see all these people and families up early and outside braving the cold, instead of sleeping in or worse- stressing about how they need to get home and put the turkey in the oven, or prep vegetables, or clean the house before company arrives for the big meal. People simply thankful for the day, that's what I like to see. And even though, it's a shorter run, when you're done it's still Thanksgiving and you can relax, knowing you've done something good for yourself.
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| new turkey day sweatshirt I'm debating on buying |
It's the time of year to give back, right? If you run, walk, or bike check out
these ways that you can give back without any more effort than you normally do. For every mile you run (or walk or bike) and track, you earn a certain amount of money towards a charity. You can even choose the organization your money goes to at
Charity Miles. It's a pretty cool idea and a great way to help out others in need. All you gotta do is do you.
Well that's it. Enjoy your holiday and remember it's ALL about the dessert. Happy Thankgiving!
