"Absolutely Amazing Abs"

I don't have them, and I'm not sure I ever will. But we can all dream. The only real way to try and achieve amazing abs is by exercising them. I don't know if anyone really enjoys working out his or her abs, but for me it's all about variety. I get bored doing the same exercises for too long, and luckily that's apparently a good thing. I've read that after you do the same exercises for about 4 - 6 weeks, your muscles get used to them and they're not as effective. Time to change it up.

I got an email this morning from Athleta Chi, an inspiring blog written by various women athletes (and connected with Athleta, a great fitness clothing line). The link in the email brought me to a post with pictures and descriptions of a handful of exercises for Absolutely Amazing Abs. I tried a couple of them today and the balancing ones on the Bosu were killer... hopefully that meant they were working.

I think if I had her view on the beach I might actually enjoy the exercises more. Instead, I get to look at myself in the gym mirror... trying to look like I know what I'm doing!

Gym babysitting helps keep me sane (somewhat)

I didn't make it to the gym today because I needed to go to BRU, Target and Bed Bath & Beyond. Not exactly my ideal day, but a mom's duty calls. Little H and I were back, however, by noon. The day started off much earlier than I would have liked due to the little guy's new, unimproved napping schedule, or lack thereof. He was fussy when we got back, wouldn't nap... so I needed to figure out what to do with him since it was a balmy 85 degrees in our condo (and not much reprieve outdoors). Since the gym babysitter leaves at 2pm, I didn't have time to get in a workout. It's on days like today when I realize just how much 1 hour at the gym keeps me sane, even if only a little bit.

We usually go late mornings after his nap, and it's like a physical and mental recharge to get me through the day. Not only do I get some "me time", but Little H can crawl around to his heart's content (without me constantly wondering what he's getting into, which is everything these days).

Needless to say, we'll be heading to the gym tomorrow morning. I need my recharge. That, and because I just inhaled a burger, fries and ice cream. I'm going to roll myself to bed now.

Blueberry ricotta pancakes

One word... heaven. And I think I have the new ricotta to thank for it. These pancakes were so moist and delicious. The batter is mixed so that it purposely remains a little lumpy, which means that when you take a bite of the pancakes you get a burst of the ricotta. And if you've ever had anything with ricotta mixed with blueberries, the flavor is wonderful. Instead of traditional maple syrup to top it off, the recipe includes directions for a honey syrup that is lighter but still sweet. I would have made one change by adding lemon zest to the batter, but I didn't have any lemons. I think the added citrus flavor would have made the pancakes even better. I substituted with 100% whole wheat pancake & waffle mix, and I don't think I'd want them any other way.

I'm a pretty modest person, but I have to say that these pancakes were much better than similar lemon ricotta ones I had recently at a local restaurant. The restaurant's pancakes weren't as moist, and I could hardly taste the ricotta and lemon. I practically had to drown them in maple syrup.

I'll be making the blueberry ricotta pancakes again... (and again...) When I made them yesterday, I cut the recipe in half. Whether you make a full or half batch, you can always refrigerate or freeze any leftovers and reheat for a quick, easy and tasty breakfast. And they don't take long to make in the first place.... I made and enjoyed them during Little H's morning nap. I could think of worse ways to spend my time :)
Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes (adapted from Food Network's Giada de Laurentiis)
~Serves 4 (16 pancakes)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups water
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
• 2 cups 100% whole wheat pancake & waffle mix
• 1 cup whole milk ricotta
  
• 2/3 cup frozen blueberries
• melted butter
  
• zest of 1 lemon (optional)

Directions for honey syrup:

• Stir 1/3 cup of water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.
  
• Stir in the honey. Set aside and keep warm.

Directions for pancakes:

• Using a rubber spatula, stir the remaining 1 2/3 cups of water and vanilla in a large bowl.
• Add the pancake mix and stir just until moistened but still lumpy.
• Gently stir in the lemon zest and then the ricotta, incorporating the ricotta while maintaining a lumpy batter.
  
• Gently fold in the blueberries.
  
• Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Brush with the melted butter.
• Working in batches, spoon 1/4 cup of batter onto the pan for each pancake. Cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side.
• Serve with fresh blueberries and honey syrup.

Enjoy!

The farmers' market and a new love

Yesterday was opening day of the local farmers' market in Copley Square, so Little H and I made our way over there in the afternoon. I'd been looking forward to it for some time, and to be honest, I was a little underwhelmed. I expected more vendors, and a greater variety of fruit and veggies. What I seemed to forget is that it's only mid-May in New England, which means that there still isn't much growing happening around here. Even though the selection was a bit lacking, I did manage to pick up a few things that are pretty wonderful.

A couple of vendors sold locally-grown arugula, lettuce and other greens, English cucumbers, a variety of herbs, and delicious looking bright red strawberries.
There were also some locally-grown plants and flowers (unfortunately none of which I would have been able to carry home while also pushing Little H in the stroller).
However, the 4 items I walked away with were ones I was not expecting to purchase: goat cheese, ricotta, fresh bread and homemade raspberry jam. As soon as I saw the goat cheese, made at Crystal Brook Farm in Sterling, I knew I wanted to use it to make scrambled eggs for dinner that night (one of my favorite egg dishes). I warmed up some fresh 7-grain rolls in the oven to have on the side. These come from Iggy's Bread, who is based in Cambridge and supplies bread to many Boston-area bakeries, cafes and restaurants. They make quite a few different varieties, but this is the first time I had the 7-grain rolls. Wow, they are amazing! They have a nutty, grainy flavor with a touch of sweetness, and are extremely soft. I warmed another one up this afternoon and topped it with the homemade raspberry jam I got from Hamilton Orchards. Thanks to the market being open 2 days a week, we will now be enjoying Iggy's bread very often!
But one of the best purchases was the Renaissance Ricotta from Narragansett Creamery in RI. I walked up to their table and was handed a little paper cup filled with the ricotta and topped with a blueberry. I was in love. The ricotta I normally buy is the part-skim grocery store brand. Now that I've tasted the really good stuff, I'm not sure I was even eating ricotta before. The Renaissance Ricotta won first place in the WI World Cheese Championship (I know nothing about this competition, but I thought it sounded pretty important in the cheese world). It's made with whole milk and a little sea salt.... that's it. Because it's so pure, they suggest you eat it within 4 days after opening since it spoils faster. I bought it without batting an eye, and then realized I had no idea what I was going to do with a pound of ricotta in such a short amount of time. Enter the fabulous world of the internet. I found quite a few recipes, one of which I'll be sharing with you tomorrow.

I think I'm in ricotta heaven.

Homemade muesli with red berries

I was flipping through some cookbooks yesterday and found a recipe for homemade muesli made with strawberries and raspberries that looked delicious. I'm not sure I've actually had muesli before. I knew it was something like oatmeal or granola, and since I eat both almost daily, I figured it would be something I'd like.

According to Wikipedia, muesli is a popular breakfast cereal based on a mixture of uncooked rolled oats, fruit and nuts developed around 1900 by a Swiss physician for patients in his hospital. Instead of cooking the oats, they're soaked (usually in water).

I happened to pick up both strawberries and raspberries earlier in the day, but this recipe would work just as well with blueberries, bananas, dried apricots, prunes, etc., or a combination of the above. Also, the original recipe calls for coarsely chopped toasted hazelnuts, which I replaced with sliced toasted almonds because I already had them on hand. Again, you could replace these with other nuts, such as sunflower seeds, walnuts, etc. You can be creative depending on your own preferences.

Little H and I went for a run this morning, and I thought this would be a perfect pre-run snack with it's combination of whole grains, protein and fruit (plus a little added sweetness :) ). It did not disappoint!

Homemade muesli with red berries (adapted from Ina Garten's Back to Basics: Fabulous Flavors from Simple Ingredients) ~ Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup quick-cooking oatmeal*
  
• 1 1/2 T. sliced toasted almonds
• 2 T. granola with raisins**
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 1/3 cup hottest tap water
• 1 T. honey
• 4 large ripe strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 6 to 8 fresh raspberries
• 1 t. sugar
• Greek yogurt such as Fage Total 0%, for serving

Directions:

• Measure the oatmeal, almonds, granola and salt together in a bowl.
• Pour the water and honey over the mixture, stir, and set aside to soak for 12 to 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, toss the strawberries, raspberries and sugar together in another bowl and allow to macerate while the muesli is soaking.
• When ready to eat, stir the berries into the oat mixture. Serve at room temperature with a dollop of yogurt on top.

Notes:

*Ina suggests using McCann's quick-cooking oatmeal, but all I had was Quaker old-fashioned oats and it turned out great.

**I used Bear Naked fruit & nut granola.

Enjoy!

Can snacking be a hobby?

Little H and I like to keep busy. Whether we're taking a class, running errands, meeting with friends or just taking a walk, I enjoy getting out with him during the day. So there are times when we're out for hours. If you know me well, you know I can't go more than 2-3 hours without food. I'm admittedly a snacker. If I don't eat often, I get the shakes. I get irritable. And I can't focus on anything else besides getting food in my belly.

Solution? Easy. I carry snacks with me at all times. They're always on my mental checklist when packing Little H's bag. When I have a couple different healthy snacks on hand, I can avoid stopping at the many tempting coffee shops and bakeries for a hunger fix. Don't get me wrong, I love my sweets, but I try not to indulge everyday.

By eating every couple of hours, I can avoid overeating at regular meals (which ultimately happens when I've gone too long without food). Incorporating healthy snacks into my day helps me eat smaller portions and, in a way, lets me enjoy my meals more since I can eat slowly and appreciate the food and the flavors... since I'm not shoveling food in my mouth from hunger.

Here are a few of my favorite go-to snacks:
Apples
Bananas
Kashi granola bars
Unsalted almonds
Unsalted mixed nuts
Dried fruit (apricots, figs, prunes,...)
Fresh medjool dates

These always do the trick for me.

If you have any favorite healthy snacks for when you're on-the-go, I'd love to hear them. As a perpetual snacker, it'd be great to add more to my rotation :)

*This reminds me of some homemade granola bars I've been wanting to try and make... look for those soon!

Cooking in season

We've been a little off-schedule this past week. Not as much cooking or exercising as usual due to being out of town for a few days. Because of the water main break and boil water order that affected 2 million people in MA, including everyone in Boston, Little H and I spent part of the week at my parents' house. A lot of fun was had by all! The little guy got to spend time with his Nonnie and Papa, which meant my hands were free for a change... not that I don't love holding that adorable boy :)

Since getting back home on Wednesday, I've made it to the gym once and cooked once. A supermarket trip is much needed. We're indebted to Don Otto's Market this week. We're big fans of their fresh, local meats and also their prepared foods, which we enjoyed twice over the last 3 days.

But I was itching to get back in the kitchen and found a recipe in a new cookbook I've been wanting to try. A simple pasta with lemon and asparagus. Fresh and light for spring. It's from the cookbook In Season: cooking with fruits and vegetables by Sarah Raven. I've always been interested in eating and cooking with fruits & veggies that are seasonal and local, and ultimately at their freshest and most delicious. I browsed a handful of cookbooks with this particular focus and liked the layout and content of this one the best. (And the full-page photos are beautiful to look at... another plus). It groups 2 months together in chronological order, highlighting fruits & veggies in season during those months and detailing recipes for dishes that use those seasonal foods. The recipes use simple ingredients, a prerequisite for me. A few of the other cookbooks were too "gourmet", using ingredients I've never heard of and preparations too involved. That type of cooking is not for me. So far, I've tried 3 recipes from this cookbook:

• Rhubarb tart - This was my first time making a pastry crust. I had to roll it out quite a few times before I was able to pick it up in one piece and place it in the pan (it kept getting holes or rips in it). I still never got the crust perfect, but overall the tart turned out really good. It had a custard-type filling mixed with the rhubarb that gave it a creamy texture with just the right amount of sweetness. The only other time I've ever had rhubarb is in strawberry rhubarb pies my aunt would make using fresh rhubarb from her garden. I was much younger then and didn't have a real appreciation at that time for the fact that she grew it, picked it and cooked it at it's freshest. I just remember how good it was!
  
• Cauliflower soup - I wasn't too crazy about this one. The flavor was a little dull, and the texture a bit too grainy (but I think that was my fault because I didn't purée it enough).
• Asparagus pasta with lemon - I made this one just last night and loved it. Tis the season for asparagus, and this dish was perfect for spring, light and fresh. The lemon juice and lemon zest gave it a refreshing flavor, not overwhelming with just a touch of citrus. The mixture of butter and cream helped coat the pasta with the flavors of the lemon along with the fresh parsley and grated Parmesan. Seasoned with salt and pepper and served with some fresh warm bread, this was a perfect spring dish.
  

The local farmers market doesn't open here until May 18th (in Copley Square). So, in full disclosure, the rhubarb, cauliflower and asparagus I used were not local, but they were all I could find in the stores. But since I was eager to try the recipes, I just used what they had (I think the cauliflower and asparagus were from CA and the rhubarb was from MI... not exactly local). In a couple weeks I'll be able to purchase fresh fruits & veggies directly from the local farmers, and that's when the true seasonal cooking begins. That's part of life in New England!

If you can find some good, fresh asparagus now, I'd encourage you to try this dish. I had it as my main meal, but it would make a great side dish as well.
Asparagus pasta with lemon (from In Season: cooking with vegetables and fruits by Sarah Raven) ~ Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound asparagus
• 12 ounces penne or egg tagliatelle (I used penne this time)
• Salt & pepper
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, to serve
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Break off the tough or bendy bottom ends of the asparagus. If the stems are quite thick, pare off a thin layer of stalk at the stem end with a potato peeler. Cut the stalks at an angle, leaving the tips whole. Steam or boil the asparagus for 7 to 8 minutes, until tender but still crisp. Rinse in cold water and drain.
• Cook the past in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente.
• While you're cooking the pasta, warm the butter and cream in a pan over low heat and simmer for a couple of minutes. Add the cooked asparagus and lemon zest and juice. Take off the heat and leave for 5 minutes for the flavors to blend.
• When the pasta is cooked, drain all but a tablespoon of the cooking liquid, add the olive oil, and combine with the asparagus and lemon sauce.
• Stir, season with salt & pepper to taste, and serve with plenty of chopped flat-leaf parsley scattered on top and a bowl of grated Parmesan on the side

Enjoy!

Nice buns

Here it is, folks.... the sticky bun I've been craving all week. Actually, this one is called a "Sticky Sticky Bun" because it's extra gooey. It's sold at a local bakery here in Boston called Flour Bakery, one of my favorite stops for sandwiches, sweets and all kinds of goodies. And it's in walking distance from where we live... dangerous. I get overwhelmed whenever I'm in there because I usually want one of everything, and decision-making is not one of my strong points. Luckily, today I went in with one thing on my mind... sticky buns.

Why this particular sticky bun, do you ask? You might be familiar with the show Throwdown with Bobby Flay, which is in my usual rotation of shows on the Food Network. I happened to be flipping through channels the other night and saw the owner of Flour Bakery, Joanne Chang, on the show in a sticky bun throwdown with Bobby. And, well, after watching a half-hour show about sticky buns, I had to have one (naturally). And since Joanne's Sticky Sticky Buns won the throwdown, it was only a matter of time before I dragged Little H and my husband to get one. So at 8am this morning, with a groggy husband and baby in tow, we were there (along with the 20 other people in line in front of me... seriously... this place is always jammed). Was it worth it? Yeah, it was pretty good. Although, it would have been better if it was warm, just out of the oven, so that the "goo" (as she calls it) was even more gooey. I really liked the crunchiness of the pecans with the soft brioche. Would I get it again? Absolutely. But with so many other yummy sweets at Flour, I should probably try a little of everything for comparison.

*I like the story behind Joanne Chang, who originally graduated from Harvard with a degree in Applied Mathematics and Economics before changing careers. You can read more here.