Monthly Archives: February 2013
Comfort Food: “Healthy” Sloppy Joes
With winter still persisting, it’s hard to think about anything but warmer days and summer nights. I would give up coffee for a week to be able to wear flip flops and dresses again! We just have to hang in there for a few more weeks. In the mean time, you can get cozy in the kitchen and cook up something new….. and healthy.
Comfort foods, from traditional Mac n’ Cheese to creamy pot pies – why are they all so fatty? Warm and delicious, yes. Nutritious, heck no. A generous helping of mashed potatoes and gravy would leave me anything but “comfortable”; I hate meals that leave you wanting to change into sweatpants. It would be amazing if we craved broccolini and brussel sprouts as much as we crave chocolate and sweets, but most of us don’t. Fortunately we can take a lot of the unhealthy JUNK out of traditional recipes and combine comfort with health. ;)
Turkey Sloppy Joes
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 1/4 lb. lean ground turkey (150 calories per 4 ounce serving)
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¾ Tbsp. McCormick spicy Montreal steak seasoning
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 Tbs red wine vinegar
- 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- Dash of peppercorn pepper
- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 4 ounces tomato paste
- In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and steak seasoning.
- In a large skillet, add olive oil and ground turkey; once meat is broken apart, add the brown sugar seasoning and mix well. Add in carrots, red bell pepper, onion and celery and combine well.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce and red wine vinegar.
- Reduce heat to medium and allow to cook for about 10 more minutes. Add in tomato sauce and paste and simmer for another 10 minutes.
- Serve over warm (whole wheat!) buns; makes 8-10
They look a lot more appealing than the “Manwich” stuff I picture in my head when I hear Sloppy Joes. These are definitely beyond comparision! I just think it’s best to add vegetables into anything you can.
Alright, time to get back to some running articles for me. I’ve been scouring pages on Runner’s World website looking at different 5k/10k training plans. Sometimes I feel like my schedule could use a little “oomph”…..we have 10 runs a week, 8 of which are “comfortable” paced runs. But I know the importance of quality over quantity and like to see some other perspectives on training plans. Interesting stuff out there!
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70 miles a week doesn’t leave much time to blog…
I fully planned on writing up a post last night after I got home, but I got completely sucked into the book I am reading and about 6 chapters later I realized I’d better just get to bed for my early morning track workout today. (But I highly suggest reading The Long Run, an autobiographical story about a New York fire-fighter and triathlete who was in a tragic bus accident and attempts to rebuild himself!)
So here I am, refreshed after some speed work, ready to try this again. My post-workout breakfast this morning ended up being spontaneous and delicious: I ran some hard 400’s this morning, and am coming back for a double run this afternoon so I needed some quick energy-replenishment. I mixed a mashed banana and beaten egg in a microwavable bowl, adding in oats and cinnamon until it was thick. Then I microwaved it on high for 2 minutes, and it came out with an oaty-cake texture, with lots of banana flavor. With a cup of freshly brewed Starbucks-blend coffee, it was such a good hearty meal- perfect combination of protein, carbs, fruit (and caffeine). ;) But not pretty enough for a picture…
As much as I absolutely love the snow, it really is inconvenient to run in. The slick icy sidewalks and my tendency to be a little clumsy have made running outdoors impractical this week. I’ve alternated between the treadmill, the indoor track and the concourse of our dome stadium for every run this week. So if anyone has any good suggestions for songs to add to my ipod, please share!
One afternoon, I chose to cross train on the elliptical instead of running my 4-mile afternoon shake-out run. I had to laugh when I walked into the fitness room and saw the other two girls working out while watching “Paula Dean’s Best Dishes.” The girls were literally moving in slow motion on the ellipticals while they watched Miss Paula whip up some kind of cookie-cake combination that was of course topped with ice cream, and probably melted butter. Not my idea of workout motivation… Since they were almost done I had to change the channel and was happy to find an oooold episode of Boy Meets World! I used to love that show; now it looks so cheesy. The corny story line, the funny clothes. Still, I’d happily watch 90’s sitcom reruns over half of the crap that is on TV now. My cross training went by in no time thanks to Cory and Topanga!
Bozeman, Montana Track Meet 2012
This week’s training has been insane and primarily by myself since my team is currently in Montana for the Indoor Track & Field Conference Championships. I would have loved to have qualified for the meet and be on the trip to beautiful Bozeman with them, but I knew that wasn’t realistic after only training for 5 weeks. I am, however, within 10 seconds of my 3k PR and am taking full advantage of my time this week to push myself and ensure that I’ll be heading to the Outdoor Track & Field Conference Championships in just 11 weeks where I can tackle the 10k again!
Off to run again. Enjoy your weekend
:)
Starbucks’ Frequent Flyer
Monday was a marathon day full of activities from double track practices, appointments and a team meeting, school and a 90 minute PE class. The entire day was spent on the opposite side of campus as my room, so I packed my laptop and some snacks and spent the day walking all over. With awkward amounts of time in between plans, I found myself at Starbucks twice during the afternoon. For me, I prefer to study in the coffee shop than the library; it’s comforting.
Welcoming all of the caffeine-seeking students.
My first trip was around lunch time and I paired my homework with a Spinach and Feta Breakfast Wrap. I love that Starbucks offers “healthy” alternatives to their pastry crap baked goods.
Starbuck’s Spinach and Feta (whole wheat) Wrap with egg whites and tomatoes contains 290 calories with 10 grams of fat, 19 grams of protein, 4 grams of sugar. It’s first ingredient is whole wheat flour, followed by vegetable oil and oat fiber. Hands down, this beats a sugary pastry like the Iced Lemon Pound Cake. Let’s look up the nutrition of this “breakfast” while we’re at it:
One slice of the lemon cake with white icing contains 490 calories, 23 grams of fat, with a measley 5 grams of protein. It packs 46 grams of sugar (the first ingredient, by the way), which will leave you hungry about 60 minutes after eating this fruity-flavored breakfast disaster. You are literally better off eating a Pop Tart.
A few hours later, I was back during one of the hour and a half gaps in my schedule and I really needed something warm to go with my accounting homework. Decaf Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte did the trick! I didn’t need caffeine, I just love the taste of espresso ;) The fat-free, sugar-free drink is a healthy “snack” because it still contains a sufficient amount of protein and calcium from the nonfat steamed milk without that sugar high and crash. With a sliced orange I had already packed, I was recharged for night classes and the third workout of the day.
*By making it “skinny” you are removing 40 grams of sugar and 13 grams of fat, while still keeping 12 grams of protein.
I am in no way affiliated with Starbucks, just a proud customer ;)
Just to be safe, I think I’ll skip the coffee shop today before the baristas start to think I have a problem.
