April’s goal was my least successful so far. It turns out that cumulative goals are much easier for me than daily goals, where you have no room to recover from a bad day and make up for it later. 8,000 steps a day seemed like an easy target, but weekends in particular – my sore spot to begin with – proved much more challenging than I expected. Some of the 11 days that I came in under 8,000 I’m excusing myself for: there were a few days where we spent all day outside in the garden, and although walking up and down a hill with watering cans and shoveling compost for hours may only count as 5,000 steps, it’s certainly more active (and exhausting), then taking a walk through the park. Other days I think my tracker app was a little glitchy – like when it thought I slept at the liquor store and drove for the entire 15 minute walk to the train. But really, I don’t want to make too many excuses. I just didn’t quite succeed, and I need to recognize that.

But failing doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a good goal – on the contrary, it means it was a hard goal and therefore a great goal. There’s no point in setting your sights too low. So although I have a new official goal for May, I’m not taking the 8,000 steps off my list, either. I know I won’t get it every day, but having it in the back of my mind makes me so much more conscious of how active I’m being, and even on the days that I fell short, I made an effort to get out at lunchtime, or walk through the park on my way home. So I want to keep doing that, and I’m considering ordering a real tracker to help with the technological frustration piece. Although, the idea should be the movement, not the number. We’ll see.

Moving forward… it’s May! How on earth did that happen so fast? I think my problem is that I spent so much of January, February, and March yearning for the next season, and then you get here and realize that the year is almost half gone. I’ve been doing a good job keeping up with my running, getting faster and feeling better, and I’ve been toying with the idea of making this summer another racing season (it’s been over a year since my last race). What I haven’t been doing so well with is my cross-training: I’ve only been to ballet twice in the last six weeks and I’ve completely abandoned my Nike Training Club strength workouts. And once you stop doing those, it’s really hard to start from scratch again. So that’s my goal for May, to work that stuff back into my routine, without letting the running slip either. Specifically, I want to do 180 minutes of NTC workouts this month: ideally, I’ll be building in 15 minute sessions to the end of my runs, but in case that isn’t working out for me, I can also do more intense 45 minute sessions once a week. I know the first few sessions are going to be killer, but it will be so satisfying to feel toned again.

As for this month’s healthy recipe, Trevor and I are arguing about what to call it because I wanted to call it a “bounty bowl,” which he insists is vomit-inducing (his suggestion: “It’s A Fucking Salad, Get Over It.” So crass, that boy.) As you can see, we’ve compromised with Warm Arugula Salad (boring). But it doesn’t matter what you call it – what matters is that the maple-mustard dressing is so addictive, I would eat anything that you put underneath it. That said, I highly recommend this particular combination of ingredients: spicy arugula, warm crumbled Italian sausage, wheat berries, goat cheese, and roasted asparagus. It’s got spring freshness and zip from the arugula and asparagus, but with the warm sausage and wheat berries it’s hearty enough for chilly nights.

Past Fitness Challenges

January: 10 Visits to the YMCA; Recipe: Gluten-Free Olive-and-Feta Corn Muffins
February: One vegan meal every day; Recipe: Pakistani Chickpea Pulao with Sweet-Hot Date-Onion Chutney
March: Run 40  miles in 20 days; Recipe: Chocolate-Dipped Almond Butter Cookie Bites
April: Walk 8,000 steps a day; Recipe: Herb-Flecked Spring Couscous

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Maple-Mustard Bounty Bowl

Serves 2.

• 2/3 c. wheat berries
• 2 c. chicken broth
• 1/2 bunch thin asparagus
• 2 TBS olive oil, divided
• sea salt
• 1/3 lb. hot Italian sausage
• 4 c. fresh baby arugula leaves
• 2 oz. soft goat cheese
• 2 TBS mustard
• 1 TBS white wine vinegar
• 1 TBS maple syrup

1. Add the wheat berries and the chicken broth to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and cover pan, and simmer for 40-50 minutes, until wheat berries are tender. Drain and set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove the stem ends from the asparagus and discard. Chop the asparagus into 2-inch lengths, then toss with 1 TBS olive oil and sea salt. Place on a baking sheet and roast until bright green and tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
3. Heat a small frying pan over medium heat and squeeze the sausage into the pan in small pieces. Break up further with the back of a spoon, and cook, stirring frequently, until cooked through and browned all over, about 5-7  minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Assemble the salad. Toss the arugula with the wheat berries, roasted asparagus, and warm cooked sausage. Divide between two bowls, and dot each bowl with 1 oz. of goat cheese. In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, white wine vinegar, maple syrup, and remaining 1 TBS of olive oil until smooth. Drizzle the dressing over the salads and serve.

The post Monthly Fitness Goals: May // Warm Arugula Salad with Maple-Mustard Dressing appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

Gardening  season is winding down.  Our raised bed is barely getting 3 hours of sun a day, the last few tomatoes are ripening, and while I’m still hoping for the brussels sprouts to actually produce their sprouts, I’m not holding my breath.  It’s a little bit sad, but we’re already taking notes and daydreaming about everything we’re going to do next year.

This first year of gardening has been a roller coaster, if you can believe me that gardening qualifies as something in which I have a large enough emotional investment to describe it as a roller coaster.  It’s had extremely fulfilling moments – snacking on super-sweet sun-ripened grapes on my way out the door in the morning; moments of defeat – pulling the umpteenth San Marzano off the vine with more blossom rot; and moments of triumph – a flush of new growth on my lovely lemon tree, despite it having been close to death from a mealybug infestation a month before.  Our most successful crop was probably the cucumbers, which took over the raised bed, climbed up and over the 8 foot fence, and produced at least a dozen mammoth cucumbers.  Our least successful?  The broccoli, as it was the only crop that produced nothing at all, despite some hopeful moments early on.

Success or failure, I think it’s safe to say that both Trevor and I derived a lot of satisfaction from the whole experience.  So much satisfaction, in fact, that we’re upgrading.  My dad has (so nicely!) agreed to share the cultivation of his “back 40” with us.  There’s already a sizable vegetable plot, a dozen or so fruit trees, a raspberry patch, well-established grape vines, and blueberries, with plenty of sunshine and room for expansion.  Since my family spends the majority of the growing season in Maine, having us around to take care of the garden means they might get more than one measly peach and a glut of over-sized kale each year, and for us, well… owning land is not something that we are close to accomplishing, so having a spacious plot to play around with is the equivalent of winning the garden lottery.  Needless to say, we’re excited.

We’ve spent the last 7 or 8 Sundays at the Andover garden, getting a handle on things and caring for a fall crop of beans, peas, beets, and carrots.  Spending a few hours outside working in the dirt – sometimes dripping sweat as you shovel and rake, sometimes peacefully pulling weeds from between the carrots – is deeply satisfying.  It’s also a great way to be with Trevor, working quietly side by side, each with our own task but the same ultimate goal.  I’ve wondered once or twice if gardening is just a fad for me – will I still be this enthused next year? – but it seems so natural to work with the earth that it’s hard to imagine moving on.

Plans for next year are a constant source of conversation – should we add a melon bed?  What structures need to be replaced?  Do we want to add more fruit trees? – but for the time being we’re mostly concerning ourselves with clean up and harvest.  In particular, we’ve had a bumper crop of eggplants (which is in no part due to our efforts, as my dad put them in long before we showed up), and I’ve been struggling to eat my share.  I’ve had my eye on a recipe for Lamb and Eggplant Stew with Farro, Parsley, and Harissa in Sunday Suppers at Lucqes for a while now, but every time it comes down to it, I’m just too busy to put together the multi-day recipe.  Instead, I used the flavors of that dish and a little inspiration from Tender to put together this quicker, vegetarian version.  Eggplant gets roasted with a chile-garlic oil, then added to nutty wheat berries, parsley pesto, and a bit of whipped goat cheese.  It’s balanced in both flavor and texture, and makes an interesting and healthy vegetarian main course.  Feel free to play around with the components – would feta be a better counterpart, or perhaps a traditional basil pesto?  Should the wheat berries be dressed in a chile-paste to amplify the heat? – to see what works for you.  And let me know if you try any variations!  Or if you can think of a better name than I could…

Roast Eggplant, Parsley Pesto, Goat Cheese, and Wheat Berries

Serves 3-4.

• 2 large globe eggplants
• 1/3 c. + 1/4 c. olive oil
• 7 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1/2 tsp harissa or chile powder (may need more or less depending on the heat level of your chile powder_
• sea salt
• 2 c. uncooked wheat berries, cooked according to these directions
  
• 3 c. fresh parsley leaves
• 1/4 c. pine nuts or walnuts
• 4 oz. soft goat cheese
• 1/2 c. heavy cream

1. Wash and dry the eggplants, then slice into 1 inch thick rounds.  Salt both sides and set on a baking pan for 15 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 425°F.  In a food processor, blend 6 cloves of the garlic, 1/3 c. oil, and harissa until a smooth paste is formed.  Use a paper towel to wipe salt and liquid from the eggplant slices, then cut the slices into 1 inch cubes.  Brush the eggplant with the chile-garlic oil, coating all pieces, then sprinkle with salt.  Roast for 40 minutes, stirring eggplant pieces about half way through.
3. Cook your wheat berries while the eggplant is roasting according to directions in link.
4. Make the pesto: In a food processor, blend 1/4 c. olive oil, remaining 1 clove garlic, and nuts to form a paste.  Add parsley and blend until fully combined.  Taste and season with salt if desired.
5. Place the goat cheese in a bowl and use a whisk or fork to break it up.  Add the heavy cream, and whisk together until a smooth, thick cream is formed.
6. Place a scoop of wheat berries in each bowl.  Top with a few spoonfuls of pesto, a scoop of roast eggplant, and a dollop of whipped goat cheese.  Serve hot.

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