Recipe to Try---Pumpkin Stew with Cucumber Poblano Salsa from Vegetarian Times

Pumpkin Stew

2 Tbs. olive oil, divided
1 medium onion
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1" dice
2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
1 tsp. chili powder, preferably New Mexican
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 lbs. tomatillos, husked and quartered (1 1/2 cups)
1 15oz can hominy, rinsed and drained
3?/4 tsp. salt
1 3-4 lb. pumpkin, either sugar pie, cheese, red kuri, kabocha, or buttercup squash
2 oz. grated sharp cheddar cheese (1/2 cup packed)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Heat 1 Tbs. oil in pot over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Saute 7 minutes, or until softened. Stir in chili powder, cumin, and oregano, and cook 3 minutes more, or until spices darken.
2. Add tomatillos, hominy, 1/2 cup water, and salt. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, partially covered, 10-12 minutes, or until tomatillos are softened. Uncover, and cook 5 minutes more to thicken stew, if necessary.
3. Meanwhile, cut top of pumpkin around stem to make lid. Scoop out pumpkin seeds and strings. Rub inside of pumpkin with remaining 1 Tbs. oil, and sprinkle generously with salt. Sprinkle cheese in bottom of pumpkin.
4. Fill pumpkin with stew, then top with pumpkin lid. Place on parchment-covered baking sheet and bake 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until pumpkin flesh is fork-tender. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes.
5. Scoop stew, including pumpkin, into bowls and serve hot, topped with Poblano-cucumber salsa.

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Cucumber Poblano Salsa

1 poblano chile
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into small dice
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 Tbs. lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced (1 tsp.)
1 jalapeno chili, stemmed, seeded, and minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1 ripe avocado, diced

Preheat oven to broil. Roast poblano chile 15-20 minutes, or until skin is blackened, turning occasionally. Cool until easy to handle. Remove charred skin, discard seeds and stem, and cut into small dice. Combine poblano, cucumber, cilantro, lime juice, garlic, jalapeno, and salt in small bowl. Gently fold in avocado. Season with salt and pepper.

Weekend Eats

On Friday night, I picked up Joanna and we headed straight to PF Chang's for my initiation into the club. We called ahead at 7pm for a 7:45 arrival, but were told they only take reservations 2 hours in advance...had I known that clearly I would have called earlier! We were bummed but knew we had to commit to the mission. When we arrived, the wait for 2 was 80-90 minutes- ugh! I was busy stalking a bar table when I looked down at the buzzer in my hand and made a wish: "I wish it would go off right now!" Just a minute later it started buzzing. I made Joanna continue to stalk the bar table, in disbelief that they really had a table for us within 5 minutes. Quickly I was able to summon Joanna and we got a prime table outside.

We did the "Chang's for Two" deal- $39.95 for a 4 course meal for 2. We also enjoyed some specialty cocktails (and got carded). I am having a love affair with the Chicken Lettuce Wraps and the Honey Shrimp. The hot and sour soup was quite tasty but not out of the ordinary, and the Chang's Spicy Chicken...was fine. But I wouldn't order it again. Our 2 mini desserts were Red Velvet and Smores- not impressed with either. We noticed that the other table had licked 4 mini desserts clean, so we can only assume we ordered the wrong ones. Next time: the chocolate dome.

The next day, I felt the burning need to show McMenamin's to my visitor. This bar isn't anything special at first glance, but the beer selection and food quality far surpass that of my neighborhood bars in NYC (in my opinion). We enjoyed 2 Brothers Biere de Gard (farmhouse- I just like the name of that kind of beer). We split an order of wings 5 ways and I had a tasty burger, but made the mistake of ordering cheese fries. From now on, cheese on the side ONLY. The fries got way too soggy and messy.

After lunch, we needed a walk to shake off the mid-afternoon beer and fatty foods. Along the way we stumbled upon pumpkin cupcakes with cinnamon creamcheese frosting at the Night Kitchen Bakery. Adorable and so tasty.

That night, we went to Earth Bread and Brewery. Nibbled on edamame and two pizzas: the seed and the sundried tomato. I loved both of them, but above all I love the atmosphere there. It is warm and feels Christmasy with low lighting. The PBC BiBerry was pink and quite tasty as well. After that I was quite content and ended up passing out on the couch (typical) while everyone else watched I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Sunday morning we went to Cafette for brunch (although by the time we got seated it was afternoon...). I loved the slice of pumpkin bread I had as a teaser, and couldn't finish my Pigs in a Bunkbed- vanilla pancakes with canadian bacon, regular bacon, and chicken sausage.

Afterwards, we headed out to Trader Joe's for a pumpkin extravaganza. I stocked up on 3 cans of organic pumpkin, a box of pumpkin granola, another jar of pumpkin butter, pumpkin pancake and waffle mix, and a few other non-pumpkin goodies. Next up was Target but TJ Maxx was also in the parking lot, so we happily stopped there. Good thing we did- I got a pumpkin candle, a bag of ground pumpkin coffee, and a few other randoms like a cute travel coffee mug. Target had me buying 2 light-up jackolanterns and a halloween garland to decorate my house, as well as pumpkin spice Hershey Kisses and some new clothes.

Last night after dropping off Joanna, some people came over to play Tiger Woods on Wii. One of the guys brought farmer's market corn, and we made sweet potatoes fries as well with hot dogs. Yum! I had a Shipyard Pumpkinhead and tried the Southhampton Publick House Pumpkin Ale for the first time- although I still prefer Pumpkinhead, it was delish! I went to bed early while watching Fever Pitch.

I had big plans for today- stay in bed all morning, be lazy. I ended up out of bed by 7:30am (I now consider that sleeping in...I'm a grandma) and at the gym by 8 for a 3 mile run followed by a trip to the plumbing supply store. The sink is finally fixed and all the dishes are done. Next up is more random cleaning just to make the house look clean (as opposed to deep cleaning where the house actually would be clean), lunch at McMenamin's (again...) and a trip to the Gap. I might check out Silk City Diner with my sister-in-law tonight. If we do go, I'll definitely get Mac & Cheese in a crock with garlic breadcrumb crust....completely negating whatever I burned on my run plus at least 2000 calories.

Tonight I have to get together my breakfast and lunch for tomorrow so I break this eating bender I've been on. But it's been oh so tasty.

Constantly setting new goals. Yup, that's me. Also, constantly sabotaging my goals? That's been me, as of late. I gained back the magic 7 pounds I lost for my wedding, and I've been eating to my heart's content while barely exercising.

I've also been spending money- way too much money- on food. My new job requires me to leave the house by 7:20am, so making sure I have breakfast at home AND pack a lunch in the mornings has been next to impossible. So, I would just go out and spend $4 at Starbucks on a pumpkin spice latte. Then I'd go out and find something to eat for lunch- spending $6-$10 depending. Really not a good habit to get into when I finally broke it during my July Challenge, and buying coffee and/or breakfast AND lunch? Really unacceptable.

Last night I finally took matters into my own hands. First, I joined my local gym. I had been putting this off and pondering the pros and cons; this gym is really swanky and I didn't think I wanted to budget the cost into my bank account. But, I discovered that through my new job, I could get gym benefits at quite a few places across the city, and this gym was one of them. For less than half of the quoted monthly price, I am now a member! I had a great run my first night there, and last night I lifted and did the elliptical. Today I'm really feeling the weight work in my back- good sign, since my bras have been feeling tight, so I really need to tone up there. Second, I made dinner while prepping my breakfast, coffeemaker, lunch, and snacks for the next day. For dinner, I had half a Trader Joe's Wild Mushroom and Black Truffle flatbread with 1 cup of Trader Joe's boxed tomato soup. I even have a cell picture, but can't upload right now.

I cleaned up the coffeemaker from that morning (gross) and put in fresh new TJ's beans and programmed it to brew at 4:30 (when my hubby has to get up for work on Thursdays...also gross). I made 1 serving of oats in the microwave, added a heaping spoonful of pumpkin butter, and quite a lot of pumpkin pie spice. I left it to sit in the fridge overnight. For a snack, I cut up some cheddar cheese to go on low-fat Triscuits. Prep for lunch included putting another cup of the tomato soup in a container, and saving the other half of the flatbread as well. I put everything together, including a spoon and a small square of milk chocolate, into my lunch bag, and put it in the fridge. It was all set to go this morning, and wow- my oatmeal was delicious!

Tonight I'm planning more of the same- I will make Trader Joe's pad thai with a side salad to divide for my dinner tonight and lunch tomorrow, will prep the amazing pumpkiny oatmeal and coffee, and will square away my snacks and pack them up, all after another trip to the gym and before I settle down to watch the Office wedding.

Now, since I'm constantly setting new goals, here are 2 more:
Long-Term:
Next June, I want to run in the Wissahickon Trail Classic 10k. I love that area, and this is sure to be a challenge for me seeing as my longest running distance...ever....has been 4 miles. Map: http://wissahickontrailclassic.org/pics/wtc-course-map.jpg

Short-Term:
In 2 weeks, I will run the Alex's Lemonade Stand 5k, on October 25th. This run benefits pediatric cancers and I love this organization. It's also a great way to get me back into running hardcore over the next 2.5 weeks.

I also plan to blog at least twice per week to get back into the groove and a healthy mindset.

Costs of Commuting

Since I don't really have a home base this week, I have been treating myself quite a lot.

This morning it's a nonfat Awake Tea Latte with 2 pumps of pumpkin spice syrup, inspired by Graduate Meghann. And a Perfect Oatmeal with a brown sugar packet and a mixed nuts packet. A filling fall breakfast.

I'm also all about hydrating today (hence choosing tea over coffee) and will be working my way through this box:

Ode to Pumpkin

I love all things pumpkin. I love gourds. I love picking them. I love pumpkin patches. I love carving them. I love pumpkin pie, butter, pancakes, beer, risotto, soup, tea, lattes, dip, ravioli, oatmeal. I love pumpkin!

Today I walked through a farmer's market with plenty of squash and pumpkins for sale. The sky is cloudy, the wind slightly chilled, and the temperature in the mid-60s. It feels like fall, like back to school, like sweaters and jeans and uggs and a pumpkin spice latte in hand. Getting one after work.

Recipe to Try

Shrimp and Feta Pasta (based on recipe from AllRecipes but altered based on user comments)

INGREDIENTS
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1 pound linguine pasta
4 tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon fresh basil
1 (6 ounce) package crumbled feta cheese

DIRECTIONS
In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil. Cook shrimp, garlic and white wine for 5 minutes, or until shrimp is pink. Remove shrimp with slotted spoon and set aside.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
While pasta is cooking, cook tomatoes with remaining 3 tablespoon oil, oregano and basil over medium heat in wine mixture until tender, 10 minutes.
Toss hot pasta with shrimp, tomato sauce and feta. Feta will melt slightly. Serve.

Judgment Day

How often have you sat next to someone in a restaurant and judged what they ordered, for whatever reason? Maybe you think to yourself, wow, doesn't that person know how unhealthy it is to order a cheeseburger, fries, wings, soda, huge plate of pasta, etc?

Monday night, J and I were at Uva, our favorite restaurant. Two girls next to us, similar in body type/size, ordered bruschetta, a huge cheese platter, and a meat platter, but then had the gall to judge our orders of gnocchi with cream sauce. This is a treat for us- it's not like Uva is an everyday occurance. But it still made me feel angry, unfairly judged, and upset. What they were eating wasn't much better than what we were eating, yet these girls had to make themselves feel better about their choices by judging ours- "How can they eat that? It's 4 kinds of cheese and cream! I guess some people's bodies are just used to overeating like that. Mine isn't." It wasn't as if we were sitting across the restaurant from them. They were right next to us; if we had been a table of 4 instead of 2 we would have had to push the tables mere inches to join them.

Clearly her comments stuck with me and I will be more mindful in the future of judging what others order- even if I'm just doing it in my head (even though I'm usually the unhealthiest orderer in a restaurant- I feel like it's when I'm treating myself!).

Have you ever been judged out loud by a stranger on what you ordered?
What about the opposite kind of judgment- when you're trying to eat healthy at an unhealthy restaurant and you are criticized for not just going for it and eating the highest calorie meal possible?