Thing the first:

I ran 7.3 miles! Ok, to be honest, I probably ran six miles and walked the rest, but I covered 7.3 miles total. Running seven miles this weekend was part of my training for the ten miler, and for some reason I was convinced I wouldn’t be able to do it. I’ve just been dreading it. In fact, I sat around on Saturday fretting about going to the gym (yes, the gym. It was too icy for outside running. I fell while walking Seamus that morning) for like two hours before I decided to just suck it up and go. Things looked grim when I first got to the gym, because all of the machines with TVs and good fan placement were taken, and I ended up in the corner with no air circulation and absolutely nothing to distract me. The first half an hour was actually the hardest. Luckily, a prime machine opened up, and I was able to switch treadmills after the first 2.25 miles.

I think I finally figured out something about my running. For now, I should worry less about trying to run faster, and just focus on building stamina. Let’s face it, I’m short, and my stubby little legs can only cover so much ground per stride. I’m never going to be able to run all that fast anyway, and it really does seem to be much, much easier for me to run at 5.6 or 5.7 miles per hour than it is for me to run at six miles per hour. Plus, it took me 1 hour and 22 minutes to get to 7 miles, so it stands to reason that I should be able to make my goal of completing the ten miles in under two hours if I’m running 10:30 to 11 minute miles.

Thing the second:

I successfully recreated an appetizer I’ve only ever had in restaurants…and even better, it was really easy. While poking around on the Internet, I found a recipe for spring onion cakes on this blog . I’d put up the recipe, but I followed the one that is posted exactly, and she’s got step by step photos that make the assembly process a snap to follow. If you’re looking for something delicious, simple and Asian themed, I highly recommend them.

Thing the third:

I experimented with a mushroom barley soup recipe, and came up with a version that is nice and healthy and so flavorful that I think even a dedicated meat eater could enjoy it. Here is my new and very yummy mushroom barley soup recipe:

3 Tablespoons olive oil
½ medium onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 medium stalks celery, roughly chopped
3 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
10 ounces fresh mushrooms (I used half cremini and half shitake, but Portobello and white button would probably also work), washed and stemmed, then roughly chopped
1 cup pearled barley
1 teaspoon thyme
4 cups stock or water (I used 2 cups of mushroom broth and 2 cups of veggie broth)
2 Tablespoons soy sauce

Heat oil in deep saucepan or stock pot.

Sautee the onion, garlic, celery, carrots and fresh mushrooms over medium high heat until they start to brown.

Add in the barley and thyme and cook, stirring frequently until the barley starts to brown, 5 to 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste, then remove from heat.

Simmer the dried porcini mushrooms in 3 cups of water for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, strain the liquid and set aside. Roughly chop the porcini mushrooms, and then add them to barley/veggie/mushroom mixture and cook over medium heat for one minute. Add in the reserved mushroom liquid and the 4 cups stock or water and bring to a boil. Then cover and lower heat. Simmer for 25 to 30 minutes or until barley is tender. Stir in the soy sauce and cook of a minute or two longer.

I had a bowl with a slice of nice crusty wheat bread this afternoon, but the soup was so hearty I barely needed the bread. I did notice that the barley continued soaking up liquid as I let the soup cool, so you may need to add more liquid to keep it soup-like when reheating.

Special bonus thing the fourth:
I’m very happy with Jon Stewart for bringing Marketa Irglova, who won an Oscar for best original song, but who didn’t get to give her speech because the stupid orchestra started playing too soon, back out on stage. I didn’t even listen when they played the song, so I don’t know if it is any good, but she deserved the chance to give her acceptance speech.

Posted by Bad Penguin at February 24, 2008 11:09 PM