What??? Two posts in ONE day??? I know! I will allow you a moment to recover from your shock....
Ready?
Good.
Sometime during the middle of last year's bowling season, I ordered a thin crust pizza at the bowling alley.
(Yes, it was 9:30 in the morning. So.)
I had them put my usual on it: green peppers and pineapple. But somehow they mixed up and added ham.
(Contrary to popular belief, I will eat other pizza aside from green pepper and pineapple. This pizza, for example, was still good, even with the ham.)
My bowling posse thought it was so good that ever since we've ordered the same pizza almost every week.
(In fact, the combination of green peppers, pineapple and ham was so popular, half of the other teams have started ordering it as well.)
Every week I've looked at it and thought...how do they get the crust SO thin? And then last week, my question was answered.
Tortillas.
Yep. Just plain tortillas.
So, for dinner tonight, I tried to replicate the awesomeness that is Bowling Alley Pizza. And this is what I came up with:
For the record, I made homemade pizza sauce, but it wasn't as good as I would have preferred, so I'm not going to post it here.
Take two tortillas (the bowling alley uses ten inch tortillas. I think mine were closer to six or eight inches. I also used wheat for mine and regular flour tortillas for everyone else) and add some mozzarella cheese between the two.
For my pizza, I put it in the oven on a pizza stone for a few minutes to "crisp" up the "crust" a little bit. For the others, I just put the toppings on and cooked it.
Top your pizza how you like and put it in the oven at 350 degrees until the cheese melts.
It wasn't exactly like the bowling alley pizza I have come to love, but it was close. I think with a different sauce it would be even closer. And it was simple and everyone got to choose what they wanted on their pizza so theoretically there were no fights.
Calories
tortillas: 260 (130/tortilla)
pizza sauce: 35 (1/4 C)
mozzarella cheese: 160 (2 oz)
Toppings: 55 (pineapple: 40, green peppers: 15)
510 calories
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
My Beef with Blockbusters
I'm an avid reader. I love to read. And I love recommending books to people, especially people who don't read, because the more you read, the smarter you are. And I like to hang around with smart people, so if I can help you become smarter, it's a win-win situation.
I can remember the exact day I picked up Twilight. I picked it up before ALL of you. Well, most likely. I read it, on my mom's suggestion, in January of 2007. How can I possibly know this more than five years later? Because I was so engrossed by it that I dragged it along to a race I did with Wade in St. George and preceded to read it in the car on the way down, while we were in the hotel room, and then on the way back. I finished it too, but I wasn't much fun to have on a long car ride.
And then I preceded to tell everyone about it. To which everyone said "What? A book about vampires? a bazillion pages long? Yeah...no thanks."
But, then those same people, months later came running over and saying "You HAVE to read this book. It's the best thing I've ever read." Nevermind, it's the only thing some of them have read. And then it got HUGE. Everyone was talking about it and I wanted to shout "Hey wait! This is the same book I was telling everyone to read and no one would. Not until it became this big blockbuster." I was a little peeved.
Weird, I know. Who cares, right? But apparently, I do.
I almost didn't read the other ones in the series because I was so miffed at it's success. But I sucked it up and read them anyways. I can't say that I'm all that much smarter for having done so, but that's just my opinion. I know people love the series. It's just alright for me.
My sister-in-law brought me Hunger Games while A. was in the NICU after she was born. I really enjoyed the story, though it might not have been the most appropriate thing to read in the NICU after having just given birth. I realize now, three and a half years and after watching the movie later, I didn't really retain a lot. But I was really excited about the other two books coming out. That is, until, the same people who gushed about Twilight being God's gift to the literary world went on and on about Hunger Games.
Then I lost interest. I have the other two books. I just have never opened them. Never read them. Even loaned them out and have yet to receive them back, but I'm not stressing about it.
The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo is suppose to be amazing. Still sitting on my bedside table, yet to be cracked.
I mean, what does it matter if I'm just part of the millions ingesting these books? I don't know. I guess it's just me.
Although, after having seen the Hunger Games movie, I am a little more intrigued with how the rest of the series ends. I guess, maybe it's time to find the books and dive in.
I can remember the exact day I picked up Twilight. I picked it up before ALL of you. Well, most likely. I read it, on my mom's suggestion, in January of 2007. How can I possibly know this more than five years later? Because I was so engrossed by it that I dragged it along to a race I did with Wade in St. George and preceded to read it in the car on the way down, while we were in the hotel room, and then on the way back. I finished it too, but I wasn't much fun to have on a long car ride.
And then I preceded to tell everyone about it. To which everyone said "What? A book about vampires? a bazillion pages long? Yeah...no thanks."
But, then those same people, months later came running over and saying "You HAVE to read this book. It's the best thing I've ever read." Nevermind, it's the only thing some of them have read. And then it got HUGE. Everyone was talking about it and I wanted to shout "Hey wait! This is the same book I was telling everyone to read and no one would. Not until it became this big blockbuster." I was a little peeved.
Weird, I know. Who cares, right? But apparently, I do.
I almost didn't read the other ones in the series because I was so miffed at it's success. But I sucked it up and read them anyways. I can't say that I'm all that much smarter for having done so, but that's just my opinion. I know people love the series. It's just alright for me.
My sister-in-law brought me Hunger Games while A. was in the NICU after she was born. I really enjoyed the story, though it might not have been the most appropriate thing to read in the NICU after having just given birth. I realize now, three and a half years and after watching the movie later, I didn't really retain a lot. But I was really excited about the other two books coming out. That is, until, the same people who gushed about Twilight being God's gift to the literary world went on and on about Hunger Games.
Then I lost interest. I have the other two books. I just have never opened them. Never read them. Even loaned them out and have yet to receive them back, but I'm not stressing about it.
The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo is suppose to be amazing. Still sitting on my bedside table, yet to be cracked.
I mean, what does it matter if I'm just part of the millions ingesting these books? I don't know. I guess it's just me.
Although, after having seen the Hunger Games movie, I am a little more intrigued with how the rest of the series ends. I guess, maybe it's time to find the books and dive in.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Racing Season Begins
Yesterday was the official start of racing season.
I know. I ran a 10k last weekend. But I don't really count that as the start of the racing season because I run the same race every year as my season opener. And I only did last weekend's 10k because a friend who is moving to the east coast wanted to run one last race together and she wouldn't run a 5k. So I obliged her by running the 10k. And while I was happy with my time, the course was definitely not an easy one and there were times during the race where I was reminded how much running can suck.
Not how I want to start my racing season.
So, yesterday was the start of racing season. Every year I run the Running of the Leopards 5k from the zoo to East High. I love this race for one sole purpose--it's downhill virtually the entire way. This makes me happy because at no time during the race am I reminded how much running can suck. I'm gleeful the entire way. And this year, I was even more gleeful because I was chasing down my brother.
He's come a long way in a year. Last year, he couldn't run a mile. This year, he's training for a half marathon AND I ran behind him nearly the entire way yesterday. In fact, I almost caught him on the track at the end, but he kept me at bay and crossed 15 seconds ahead of me. But, I can't say that I'm too disappointed by that. I figured he'd be ahead of me. What I'm surprised by is that I was nearly a full minute ahead of where I thought I would be. That says a lot for my perceived fitness level. I was only 40 seconds slower than my fastest time on that course.
Which means that I'm getting in shape!
My racing season is pretty light this season. By which I mean, I'm not doing a lot of races. I still have that HUGE race of 70.3 miles looming over my head.
My next race is a half marathon in June and then my annual 4th of July race. An olympic triathlon in July and then my annual sprint tri in August followed by the mother of all races for this season, the Half Ironman.
It still blows my mind to say it: Half Ironman.
And after blowing my expectations out of the water yesterday, I think it's shaping up to be a PR-breaking summer.
I know. I ran a 10k last weekend. But I don't really count that as the start of the racing season because I run the same race every year as my season opener. And I only did last weekend's 10k because a friend who is moving to the east coast wanted to run one last race together and she wouldn't run a 5k. So I obliged her by running the 10k. And while I was happy with my time, the course was definitely not an easy one and there were times during the race where I was reminded how much running can suck.
Not how I want to start my racing season.
So, yesterday was the start of racing season. Every year I run the Running of the Leopards 5k from the zoo to East High. I love this race for one sole purpose--it's downhill virtually the entire way. This makes me happy because at no time during the race am I reminded how much running can suck. I'm gleeful the entire way. And this year, I was even more gleeful because I was chasing down my brother.
He's come a long way in a year. Last year, he couldn't run a mile. This year, he's training for a half marathon AND I ran behind him nearly the entire way yesterday. In fact, I almost caught him on the track at the end, but he kept me at bay and crossed 15 seconds ahead of me. But, I can't say that I'm too disappointed by that. I figured he'd be ahead of me. What I'm surprised by is that I was nearly a full minute ahead of where I thought I would be. That says a lot for my perceived fitness level. I was only 40 seconds slower than my fastest time on that course.
Which means that I'm getting in shape!
My racing season is pretty light this season. By which I mean, I'm not doing a lot of races. I still have that HUGE race of 70.3 miles looming over my head.
My next race is a half marathon in June and then my annual 4th of July race. An olympic triathlon in July and then my annual sprint tri in August followed by the mother of all races for this season, the Half Ironman.
It still blows my mind to say it: Half Ironman.
And after blowing my expectations out of the water yesterday, I think it's shaping up to be a PR-breaking summer.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
What's For Dinner Wednesday Revamp
So I've been doing WFDW for a few years now...sorta. Because, well, there's this thing...
I call it "time"; you may call it something closer to "you're just being lazy".
But it takes time to find a recipe and make it. I was thinking about this last night. And then I got to thinking "You know what? No one would even know if I wasn't finding a new recipe every week, would they?" I mean, I could just post what we had for dinner on Wednesday and if you like the recipe, it would be new to you, so does it really matter if it's not new to me?
Exactly! I'm surprised it's taken me this long to come to this conclusion.
So there you have it. My grand WFDW revamp. Instead of trying to find a new recipe to make every week, I'm just going to post what I made that week (it might not even be what we had for dinner on Wednesday, but shhhhhh....don't tell anyone), and then you'll have another recipe at your disposal. Or you can just ignore my Wednesday posts anyway. And I can feel less guilty. Some weeks I may still feel like making something new, so don't go all ape-crazy on me.
It's a win-win situation.
So this week:
We ate turkey sandwiches from leftover turkey I had frozen sometime around Thanksgiving time. I'm planning on putting it all in a soup for tomorrow's dinner and I wanted a few more turkey sandwiches before it was gone.
I was going got make something really good, but I spent the afternoon outside "drivewaying" (as in sitting in the driveway watching A. play), and burned the tops of my feet and I can't stand on my feet for too long or they start to ache. I can't really sit either. I have to have them elevated.
Why, yes. I do do this every March. Why do you ask?
Next week, I'll post something better.
I call it "time"; you may call it something closer to "you're just being lazy".
But it takes time to find a recipe and make it. I was thinking about this last night. And then I got to thinking "You know what? No one would even know if I wasn't finding a new recipe every week, would they?" I mean, I could just post what we had for dinner on Wednesday and if you like the recipe, it would be new to you, so does it really matter if it's not new to me?
Exactly! I'm surprised it's taken me this long to come to this conclusion.
So there you have it. My grand WFDW revamp. Instead of trying to find a new recipe to make every week, I'm just going to post what I made that week (it might not even be what we had for dinner on Wednesday, but shhhhhh....don't tell anyone), and then you'll have another recipe at your disposal. Or you can just ignore my Wednesday posts anyway. And I can feel less guilty. Some weeks I may still feel like making something new, so don't go all ape-crazy on me.
It's a win-win situation.
So this week:
We ate turkey sandwiches from leftover turkey I had frozen sometime around Thanksgiving time. I'm planning on putting it all in a soup for tomorrow's dinner and I wanted a few more turkey sandwiches before it was gone.
I was going got make something really good, but I spent the afternoon outside "drivewaying" (as in sitting in the driveway watching A. play), and burned the tops of my feet and I can't stand on my feet for too long or they start to ache. I can't really sit either. I have to have them elevated.
Why, yes. I do do this every March. Why do you ask?
Next week, I'll post something better.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Outta Sorts
The last little while has been kind of ho-hum here. Nothing too exciting to report, but I'm sure I can find a few things to share that don't involve politics. Because I promised I wouldn't discuss politics for the rest of the year...
* Wade got a new mountain bike for an early graduation/birthday/anniversary/Father's Day/Christmas/Valentines 2013 present. It's a pretty sweet ride. But...I was a little concerned because he isn't necessarily the cyclist in the family. And some of us have some pretty big goals this summer that would be made a little easier by the addition of a bike that doesn't weigh half what we do. And has more than 10 gears. And doesn't squeak when you ride it. So...the better news is that I get a new bike too. One for my birthday/anniversary/Mother's Day/Christmas/Valentine's 2013 present. I'm really excited about it too. I have it picked out and everything.
* My dad is leaving tomorrow for a three week trip to Israel. It's a funny story about how he's going on a tour to the Holy Land and my mom is staying home and visiting a friend in California instead. Something about being in the right place at the right time. But, he's always wanted to go to Israel and my mom has not wanted to go (for obvious reasons--like bombs and threats of nuclear attack), but the tour guide in charge of my dad's tour ensures all that there is no need to be worried.
* Naturally, we're all worried though. It wouldn't bode well for your tour agency if you were hesitant about how safe it really is to go to Israel, right? In any case, it sounds like the trip of a lifetime and I'm glad he gets to go do it.
* I'm running my first race of the year this Saturday--a 10k up at the capitol. I'm a little nervous because I'm definitely not in the shape I was two years ago and a 10 minute pace is looking pretty nice right now. But I'll take it. I always love running the first race of the season because it reminds me why I keep doing this.
* Next Saturday is the Running of the Leopards 5k. I've done this one every year since they started. It's one of my favorite races of the year. We run from the zoo to East High, where it's virtually downhill the entire way. The first year I did it, the winner came in at 13:56--which is a 4:30 pace for three miles straight. And he wasn't one of the high school kids either. He was 26 years old. In fact, the top ten that year were all under 15 minutes and all over the age of 18.
* My older brother and his wife are doing this one with me this year. I have beat my older brother in every race we've done thus far, but I think he might have me on this one. He's been training really hard. My sister-in-law might beat us both if she can figure out how to ride Halle's stroller down the course. The other night, we figured out that with Halle at 60 pounds and the bike trailer adding another 10 pounds, Eliza was definitely at an advantage on the downhill if she didn't care how fast the stroller got moving. Otherwise, it was going to take an act of God to keep Halle from flying down the hills with Eliza chasing after her. It could make for a really funny story though. God bless them for taking Halle on these runs because she loves the runs, but it's a sacrifice for my little itty bitty sister-in-law.
I think that's it. See, nothing too noteworthy. Maybe a few good stories will present themselves this week.
* Wade got a new mountain bike for an early graduation/birthday/anniversary/Father's Day/Christmas/Valentines 2013 present. It's a pretty sweet ride. But...I was a little concerned because he isn't necessarily the cyclist in the family. And some of us have some pretty big goals this summer that would be made a little easier by the addition of a bike that doesn't weigh half what we do. And has more than 10 gears. And doesn't squeak when you ride it. So...the better news is that I get a new bike too. One for my birthday/anniversary/Mother's Day/Christmas/Valentine's 2013 present. I'm really excited about it too. I have it picked out and everything.
* My dad is leaving tomorrow for a three week trip to Israel. It's a funny story about how he's going on a tour to the Holy Land and my mom is staying home and visiting a friend in California instead. Something about being in the right place at the right time. But, he's always wanted to go to Israel and my mom has not wanted to go (for obvious reasons--like bombs and threats of nuclear attack), but the tour guide in charge of my dad's tour ensures all that there is no need to be worried.
* Naturally, we're all worried though. It wouldn't bode well for your tour agency if you were hesitant about how safe it really is to go to Israel, right? In any case, it sounds like the trip of a lifetime and I'm glad he gets to go do it.
* I'm running my first race of the year this Saturday--a 10k up at the capitol. I'm a little nervous because I'm definitely not in the shape I was two years ago and a 10 minute pace is looking pretty nice right now. But I'll take it. I always love running the first race of the season because it reminds me why I keep doing this.
* Next Saturday is the Running of the Leopards 5k. I've done this one every year since they started. It's one of my favorite races of the year. We run from the zoo to East High, where it's virtually downhill the entire way. The first year I did it, the winner came in at 13:56--which is a 4:30 pace for three miles straight. And he wasn't one of the high school kids either. He was 26 years old. In fact, the top ten that year were all under 15 minutes and all over the age of 18.
* My older brother and his wife are doing this one with me this year. I have beat my older brother in every race we've done thus far, but I think he might have me on this one. He's been training really hard. My sister-in-law might beat us both if she can figure out how to ride Halle's stroller down the course. The other night, we figured out that with Halle at 60 pounds and the bike trailer adding another 10 pounds, Eliza was definitely at an advantage on the downhill if she didn't care how fast the stroller got moving. Otherwise, it was going to take an act of God to keep Halle from flying down the hills with Eliza chasing after her. It could make for a really funny story though. God bless them for taking Halle on these runs because she loves the runs, but it's a sacrifice for my little itty bitty sister-in-law.
I think that's it. See, nothing too noteworthy. Maybe a few good stories will present themselves this week.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
What's For Dinner Wednesday--Chicken Stuffed Apples
Source: Everything Healthy Casserole Cookbook by Kris Widican
6 large baking apples
3 T lemon juice
1 C crushed croutons
2 C diced cooked chicken
1/2 C dried currants
1/4 C finely chopped walnuts
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 C butter, melted
1 C chicken broth, divided
1/2 C apple juice
1. Preheat oven to 400 F and spray a 2 quart casserole dish (with lid) lightly with nonstick spray. Cut the apples in half and remove cores. Carefully remove the apple flesh, leaving a 1/2" shell. Chop the removed flesh and place in a medium bowl, then stir in 2 T lemon juice.. Brush the apple shells with remaining 1 T lemon juice
2. Add the croutons, chicken, currants, walnuts, salt, thyme, pepper, butter, and 3 T chicken broth to the chopped apples and mix gently, but thoroughly.
3. Cut a thin slice off bottoms of the apple shells so that they will sit without tipping. Divide the chicken mixture evenly among the shells and arrange in prepared casserole dish.
4. Pour the remaining chicken broth and apple juice into the dish and cover. Bake for 35-45 minutes, basting apples occasionally with the liquid in the dish, until apples are tender.
I was pleasantly surprised by the final product of this recipe, though my presentation could use some work. I thought it was really, really good and I especially liked the apple shell. I just wished that I would have hollowed more out so that I could have more filling. And the chicken could have used some spices. But other than that, really good. I didn't have any currants, so I omitted that. And I only put in a little bit of walnuts.
Nutrition Breakdown:
Calories (two halves of apple): 267
Fat: 12 g
Protein: 9.2 g
Carbohydrates: 33 g
Sugar: 23 g
6 large baking apples
3 T lemon juice
1 C crushed croutons
2 C diced cooked chicken
1/2 C dried currants
1/4 C finely chopped walnuts
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 C butter, melted
1 C chicken broth, divided
1/2 C apple juice
1. Preheat oven to 400 F and spray a 2 quart casserole dish (with lid) lightly with nonstick spray. Cut the apples in half and remove cores. Carefully remove the apple flesh, leaving a 1/2" shell. Chop the removed flesh and place in a medium bowl, then stir in 2 T lemon juice.. Brush the apple shells with remaining 1 T lemon juice
2. Add the croutons, chicken, currants, walnuts, salt, thyme, pepper, butter, and 3 T chicken broth to the chopped apples and mix gently, but thoroughly.
3. Cut a thin slice off bottoms of the apple shells so that they will sit without tipping. Divide the chicken mixture evenly among the shells and arrange in prepared casserole dish.
4. Pour the remaining chicken broth and apple juice into the dish and cover. Bake for 35-45 minutes, basting apples occasionally with the liquid in the dish, until apples are tender.
I was pleasantly surprised by the final product of this recipe, though my presentation could use some work. I thought it was really, really good and I especially liked the apple shell. I just wished that I would have hollowed more out so that I could have more filling. And the chicken could have used some spices. But other than that, really good. I didn't have any currants, so I omitted that. And I only put in a little bit of walnuts.
Nutrition Breakdown:
Calories (two halves of apple): 267
Fat: 12 g
Protein: 9.2 g
Carbohydrates: 33 g
Sugar: 23 g
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