Merry Christmas

Sending peace, love, light and a good bottle of red to you and yours. May all beings everywhere be happy and free.

Xoxo from the city by the bay,

Kate

Why does this not hurt?

Yesterday I ran six miles. My longest run since July. The best thing about it was for the first time ever, I ran 6 miles and felt completely awesome the ENTIRE time. (Well except half way up Ft. Mason hill but that's its own beast.)

Typically when I run I always end up feeling like I have to put in an extreme amount of effort that others don't seem to have to put forth. I breathe harder and my legs feel not to strong and I wonder why I struggle so much over something that doesn't seem so hard for everyone else. Not yesterday, however. I just killed it.

I hope this ease of tackling miles keeps coming. Maybe it was my pent up frustration releasing itself into muscular energy? Whatever it was, I will take it.

The Waste Land and coming to terms with reality.

I used to be a real writer. Not so much anymore. Now I just rattle on about baking pies and my new stationary.

Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.	30
Frisch weht der Wind
Der Heimat zu,
Mein Irisch Kind,
Wo weilest du?
“You gave me hyacinths first a year ago;	35
They called me the hyacinth girl.”
—Yet when we came back, late, from the Hyacinth garden,
Your arms full, and your hair wet, I could not
Speak, and my eyes failed, I was neither
Living nor dead, and I knew nothing,	40
Looking into the heart of light, the silence.

TS. Eliot - The Wateland

And so it begins!

Well, I went off the deep end. After about 5 months of runs shorter than 3 miles I decided to start a training cycle again. Not just for one half marathon, but for TWO!

I started my plan Monday and so far so good. I am going to be extra diligent about yoga, and rolling out during this round. My first race is February 3 and the following one is six weeks later. I am ready for a PR.

Week One:

Mon - Cycle for one hour
Tue- Two miles:  9:57 first mile 9:41 second mile
Wed-Rest
Thurs- 3.1 this morning in about 31:30 then yoga tonight
Fri- Rest
Sat - 4 miles
Sun - Rest

Ahhh, feels good to be back into a training routine. I worked out really hard for Hawaii but training for a race is its own beast.

A photo of our tree! I picked him out out of all the little cuties at the tree lot.

As for now, ready for the weekend and get in the Holiday spirit. Friday Christmas shopping,  SF symphony Saturday with dinner in Union Sq with Jesse's family to follow, and adventuring and Christmas card addressing Sunday. 

Away we go!

Today we leave for Santa Barbara to celebrate something very special. Things have been very busy around these parts. Portland for Thanksgiving, Jesse traveling nonstop, crazy work schedules, guests in town; but this weekend it will be nice to have some time together and celebrate two people we love dearly.

It's been so rainy here in SF. I finally got to bust out my rainboots that haven't been work in a year or so. It made me very happy. And these three things also brightened up this dreary Friday.

My new fox sweater

Gold OPI manicures!

Rifle paper stationary to write letters to friends near and far

On another note Thanksgiving in Portland was great. I love my family so very much and always enjoy being home with them. The older I get the more I like doing nothing but hanging out at the house and cooking rather than planning extreme excursions.

Hopefully I will be more diligent on posting. I plan to document this weekend very well. It's going to be gorgeous and I know I will have to share some photos.

A Little Down Time and an Apple Pie

The past few weeks, months really, have been extremely busy. With the holidays upon us I am afraid they will only get busier. J is gone the next two weeks for work then we fly out to see my family in Portland for Thanksgiving and fly out again the next week to see one of my most wonderful friends get married. The following four weeks after that are filled with more traveling, guests in town, and holiday parties.

So in order to enjoy this one small weekend of having nothing on our agenda guess what we did?

NOTHING!

Yesterday all I did was hit up Whole Foods for some breakfast staples and we ate, cooked, cleaned, hung art, laughed, laid around the house, listened to music and did laundry. It was perfect. We never have a day where we literally don't go anywhere or see friends. Jesse made his famous red wine braised short ribs which is my favorite meal he makes. It's amazing. And I baked an apple pie to accompany it. We settled on the couch with apple pie ala mode and watched Ruby Sparks. It was so wonderful.

Today involved yoga and brunch with beignet bigger than my hand at Brenda's French Soul Food (which I HIGHLY recommend) with one of my dear friends followed by errands.

My pie came out delicious and I can't imagine using any recipe but this one for the rest of my life since it is so perfect. I did use Trader Joe's crust rather than make my own. My small kitchen with zero counter space makes pie crust making a chore.

The best apple pie you will ever bake

Perfect Apple Pie

• 6 cups peeled, thinly sliced apples (I use a combination of 6 different apples, macintosh and granny smith are musts)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons all Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat over to 425 degrees F

Peel, core and chop apples. Put in mixing bowl. Add ingredients in order listed here. Stir until apples are all coated.

Arrange your pie crust in glass pie pan

Pour apple in

Place top crust over

Arrange edges to your style preference

Cut a shape in middle of top pie crust (I usually use a cute leaf cookie cutter)

Cover edges with foil to avoid burning

Place pie in oven for 45 minutes

Take out and let cool an hour before serving

More Donuts!

Before we left for our two weeks of travel I kept stalking this pumpkin spice donut recipe. This morning I finally had time to make them! After a run, trip to the post office where I found a box of Compost cookies from Momofuko Milk Bar courtesy of my best friend, and a trip to the Farmer's Market I got busy in the kitchen. If you click on the link you'll see the original origin of this recipe. I modified a little. Enjoy!!


Baked Pumpkin Donuts with Maple Cinnamon Glaze

Finished Product

Donuts: 

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup pumpkin puree

2 eggs

2 tablespoons low fat buttermilk

1/4 cup butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Glaze:

1 cup powder sugar

2 tablespoons buttermilk

1 tablespoon 100% pure maple syrup

1 tablespoon cinnamon

Preheat over to 350 degrees F

Mix dry ingredients together in bowl, mix wet ingredients in separate bowl

Combine wet ingredients into dry ones

Spray donut pan with oil

Pour mixture into freezer bag and cut tip to create a piping bag

Pipe donut mix into pan

Bake for 12 min

Let cool for 10 min and remove from pan

Cool for another 10 min on wire rack

Spoon glaze over donuts and let sit

Arrange on serving plate and enjoy!!

Aloha!

Off to Hawaii for a wedding and a vacation!

Leaving, on a midnight plane to Georgia

More like a 3pm plane. We leave today! Off to Atlanta for the night then a three hour drive to southern NC. Can't wait to celebrate J's good friend Andrew and his new wife Kristin. I also can't wait to eat pancakes at Ria's Blue Bird in Atlanta and frolic along the autumn scenery. Full report Monday!

Can't wait to enjoy coffee from here with J after our morning run!

Wanderlust

“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” – Jawaharial Nehru

This week J and I get ready for a lot of travel. We leave to Atlanta on Thursday then drive to the smoky mountains of North Carolina Friday. We come back late Sunday and leave for Hawaii on Wednesday morning. I can't wait but we have so much to do!

Katharine Hepburn Brownies and a phone date with a far away friend

"What you see before you, my friend, is the result of a lifetime of chocolate."- Katherine Hepburn

Getting older has more benefits then it has downfalls. I have more money to spend on things I love, I get to set my own schedule and do things by my own rules, and I can eat brownies for dinner just because I want to.

However, getting older also means busier schedules, distance between friends and family and a lack of time for anything more than work, the grocery store and a trip to the gym.

Tonight I declined the offer to go out with drinks with some co-works because I really just wanted a quiet night at home baking and reading the new Food and Wine issue.

While at home hunkering down, the phone rang, it was my dear friend Emily. A friend who I share a birthday, hair color and love for finding humor in the small things in life. Chatting on the phone for hours with her was blissfully relaxing and made me realize how great it is to see how a friendship can survive distance and time. We had a blast catching up and I am so lucky to have so many talented friends. (Emily runs a restaurant and has a dual degree in culinary arts and business.)

After hanging up with Em I started thinking about friendship, laughter and chocolate. This led me to bake Katharine Hepburn's famous brownies recipe to celebrate the small things that get knocked out of the way in our busy lives: friends, laughter, and chocolate.

“Life can be wildly tragic at times, and I've had my share. But whatever happens to you, you have to keep a slightly comic attitude. In the final analysis, you have got not to forget to laugh.” ― Katharine Hepburn

Katharine Hepburn's Brownie's

Perfect Texture! I ate two in a sitting.

1 stick unsalted butter,
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate (I used Ghiradelli 100% cacao)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1⁄2 tsp. vanilla extract
1⁄4 cup flour
1⁄4 tsp. fine salt

Heat oven to 325°. Grease an 8" x 8" baking pan with butter. Line the pan with parchment paper; grease the paper. Set the pan aside.

Melt the butter and the chocolate together in a 2-quart saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and stir to make a smooth batter. Add the flour, and salt; stir until incorporated. Pour the batter into the baking pan and spread evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40–45 minutes. Let cool on a rack. Cut and serve.

(I added walnuts to the top of my batter) Enjoy warm with a cup of tea or some milk. Mmm!

Welcoming Fall with Apple Cider Donuts

Hello, dear friend Fall. In honor to celebrate your arrival I baked these guys for you. Please, help yourself.

These are my finished product before J and I gobbled them up.

After a visit to Sur La Table by way of the Farmer's Market at the Ferry Building I had acquired a new donut pan.

So, what better way to break it in then with apple cider donuts?

I adapted my recipe from the smitten kitchen.

1 cup apple cider
2 cups flour
1 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup lowfat milk

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease donut pan. Mix up all your ingredients. (I had to rhyme or reason to my mixing, just dumped everything in the bowl.) Add batter to donuts pan but only fill them half way up or else they will come out looking like muffins with a hole only on the bottom. Bake about 12-15 min. Take out of oven and let cool for about 3-5 minutes. Pour one cup of cider in a bowl and prepare another bowl with cinnamon sugar mixture.

Dip donuts in apple cider. 

Roll in bowl mixed with cinnamon and sugar.

Arrange on plate and enjoy!!

(my recipe made 3 dozen mini donuts)

These were so good we ate two dozen in about an hour with some coffee. 

You’ve been warned...

Fall, my love.

Something about the fall makes me want to buy everyone a copy of an Emily Bronte novel, a great candle and a cozy throw blanket.

Growing up in Boston I was accustom to the most lovely New England falls. It was punctuated perfectly by the Topsfield Fair, some new mittens, and apple cider.

Once we moved to Phoenix fall was no longer. In the desert fall doesn't really exist. However, once I went to college I embraced the four seasons again and welcomed fall with open arms.

Aspen Tree's, something that truly makes northern Arizona special

Leaving Flagstaff I knew San Francisco wouldn't have too much of a fall, but so far I am holding out some hope. Due to the fact it never really gets hot here the temps are actually very fall-esque.

Tonight I baked my first pumpkin snack of the season. It was too easy. One box of cake mix and one can of pumpkin puree. Mix it together, stick it in the oven at 350 degrees and bake for 20 min. (I made muffins with the batter.)

I have to say for their simplicity they are pretty yummy. Definitely not as good as my go to pumpkin muffin recipe, but so easy for a weeknight. 

Saturday will be my first pumpkin spice of the season, a tradition my best friend and I have had since high school. We wait until the first day of fall to get our PSL on at Starbucks. J said he wants to join me after we work out in the morning.

Tonight I will resume my fall activity with a glass of wine, delivery pizza from our fav spot, and re-watching some How I Met Your Mother before the new season starts Monday!!

Other fall things I look forward to: picking out a pumpkin with J, rocking my new booties all over town, warm apple cider, watching The Great Pumpkin, shopping for a winter coat, and best of all going home for Thanksgiving to see my family.

What do you love most about fall?

Back in Business!

After eight very long weeks of not running I am happy to announce I have made my (not so triumphant) return!!!

Sunday J and I headed down to our favorite long run route and I managed to get in two whole miles. Woo hoo! I felt surprisingly good and had no ankle pain. I took three stretch breaks just to be sure but I think I am back to my regular ol' self. I couldn't be happier.

After 8 weeks of only doing yoga and some light weight lifting it feels great to get back to my normal routine. I actually started a new boot camp class tonight to get to where I was on my fitness scale and to be ready for a very special occasion.

Fitting into my new Lululemon bikini during our trip to Hawaii in 5 weeks!

My new swim suit! (Can I order those abs, too, please?)

Basically, I am obsessed with Lululemon. I love everything they make and would own everything in their store if it wasn't so crazy expensive. I have a rule to only buy their stuff if it's on sale. I scored this steal of a two piece online recently. It was under $45 for both pieces. I love it. However, I can totally see the aftermath of eight weeks off from fat burning workouts like jumping, running, lunges, etc. My love handles are totally feeling the love, and I am totally not.

Hopefully my new routine of 3-4 bootcamps a week mixed with running and yoga will have me ready to hit the beach before our trip with the only love going on being me admiring my cute reversible suit.

Here's to doing hard work and appreciating how awesome it is to be able to run again and thankful for the body's amazing ability to heal.

Have you ever bought anything to motivate you to reach a fitness goal?

PDX

I went to Portland for the three day weekend to visit my family. I love how short my flight to go see them is now! 

Some highlights from the weekend

Donuts from my favorite donut stand at the Farmer's Market

Picked up two gorgeous bouquets. My Mom loves flowers.

The sweetest (literally and figuratively) little bake cart at the market.

Took my brother's out for ice cream after we had dinner in the Pearl with my parents. I had the salted caramel, of course.

FINALLY got to meet the new addition to the family. My parent's new pup Lilly. She's SO cute and SO spoiled.

No trip to PDX is complete without spending some time outdoors.

Nor is it complete without drinking some microbrews

Sunset and a BBQ on my parent's back deck overlooking Portland and the Columbia river. 

 Ready for a busy work week and helping to cover the DNC. Next week I start running again!!! GASP! I am nervous and excited. More on that later.

How was your long weekend?

It's the good life!

Today is one of those days where I am extra extraordinarily grateful for all the amazing people in my life. I truly feel like I am living la dolce vita.

Looking out toward the Golden Gate Bridge from Chrissy Field

We have so much to celebrate and be thankful for. Especially lately. Can't wait to see three sets of friends get married before the end of the year,  plus spend time with family for holidays and such. This weekend I am in Portland to see my parents while Jesse goes to Vegas for a bachelor party. Looking forward to relaxing, farmer's market with mom, hiking with dad and eating some Salt & Straw with my brothers!

Paleo Project

We've been talking about going Paleo for months now. Our fitness goals make us perfect candidates.  (Six pack, please?) However, I love carbs. Bagels, cupcakes, croissants, ravioli. You name it, I love it. I know I can't go completely paleo because I definitely need to get my pizza on sometimes. (And my cupcake on, chocolate chip cookies on, Tartine dates on, you get the picture.)

Back to the pizza; two of our lovely friends are getting married in October and in prep to look extra amazing for their wedding in Hawaii they are eating mostly paleo, too. So in order to have a great dinner together without breaking diet I decided I'd hold a paleo pizza party at our apartment. Pizza, salad, paleo chocolate cake for dessert.

I've made flourless chocolate cake a million times but never with coconut oil or honey rather than sugar.   This recipe I will share after I get it to taste a tiny bit more sweet. But what I was most nervous about was the pizza crust. Almond meal flour and arrowroot powder? How good can that taste?

To everyone's surprise (mostly mine) it tasted AMAZING! So good in fact that I have to share the crust recipe with you.

Paleo Pizza! Yes, I put cheese on mine because I can't live without cheese. 

Paleo pizza crust adapted from the Unrefined Kitchen:

Ingredients:
2 cups almond flour
1 cup tapioca flour (this is what I changed on the recipe)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder (make sure it's aluminum free!)
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tps oregano
grind in some black pepper
throw in a dash of garlic powder
3 eggs
1/2 cup of almond milk

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees, grease a cookie sheet with oil of choice
2. Combine dry ingredients in bowl and stir
3. Add wet ingredients to the dry ones. Mix well. The "dough" will be runny
4. Spread with spatula onto cookie sheet
5. Bake crust 8-12 min
6. Pull out and top with whatever you'd like
7. Cook for about 8-10 more minutes
8. Enjoy!!

We topped it with lots of veggies, fresh garlic, basil, uncured and nitrate free pepperoni, and some nitrate free prosciutto. Applegate makes some great meats and the only ones I buy these days. If you aren't crazy strict, add a little cheese.

Patience and Healing

I have never been much of an athlete. As a child I played softball for one season, kicked around a soccer ball with my brother's team, and would throw basketballs into our driveway hoop a few times a week. If dance lessons for 7 or so years can be considered a sport, I guess I did that, too.

In high school I played golf all four years and managed to get myself to the state championship three out of the four years I played and even took a 5th place overall in my region senior year. But, most people do not really consider golf to be too athletic. (I beg to differ, obviously)

A year ago, I found myself in a place in my life where everything wasn't making sense and I couldn't find anything to look forward to. After Christmas spent with my boyfriend, (whom at that time I was seeing long distance) we decided we would run a half marathon together. Slowly, I began running. A half mile, nearly a full mile, just over a mile and so on. I signed up for my first 5K (a trail race at 7,000 feet with crazy hills, yeah I don't know what I was thinking either this was all thanks to a supportive co-worker whom I adore) and I became hooked. Not because I am fast or even close to being fast, but I love the energy.

Since then I've run a bunch of 5K's some other random distances, one half marathon and a 14 miles trail race. A few weeks ago I was just two weeks out from my second half marathon, the SF Half which coincides perfectly with my birthday for the ultimate celebration.

After a blissful Saturday 10 miler, I took the next day off to recover and headed out again Monday for an easy three. About a mile into my run which took me through a bit of construction I rolled my ankle after a wooden particle board shifted when I landed on it. I kept running for about another half mile and when I stopped all this pain came shooting into my ankle, like someone hit it with a baseball bat.

Me in my awesome boot. 

"EFFFFFF," I said probably far too loudly. I limped back to my office and headed home, defeated. The next day it hurt a lot to walk on it and as the week went by the pain got worse and the swelling was enormous. Finally, I decided to see a doctor. Two hours, four x-rays and one boot later I knew I couldn't run the race I was so looking forward to.

Things you buy when you can't run because they make you excited to run again and they are cute.

So, for the next few weeks leading up the the race and the weekend of the race I was in a completely miserable mood. Being grouchy and upset and eating my feelings more than I would like to admit. After moping around and feeling terrible I realized I needed to pick my self up off the floor and rethink my eating choices again and come up with a plan since I still have a few more weeks before I can run again. My plan lead me back to a place I love more than anywhere that I spent a little too much time neglecting: the yoga studio!

For me yoga has always been a way to get rid of my frustration and reconnect with my body. I'll be the first one to admit I should spend more time stretching and rolling after my runs and yoga is my favorite way to get some of that in my routine.

I have made it a point to go to yoga every day for the last 7 days. (With help to my awesome Lululemon Studio Crawl Pass that I'll tell you more about later.) This one week back has made me feel so amazing and I can already see some results in my body and definitely my mood.

I still miss running, but I have more patience now and I understand my healing process better. I am so grateful for the body I have been given and love celebrating it on my mat. I am glad that through this injury I have got some of my groove back and found time to slow down and let my body heal itself.


Have you ever suffered from an injury? What did you do to cope?

New Beginnings

My spectacular boyfriend always encourages me to pursue what I love. I love to write. So, for my 25th birthday I got this new writing machine. (A Macbook Air) Here's to a productive 25 and sharing what I love with people who may enjoy the same kind of stuff, too.

Me on my 25th birthday (July 30) just before getting my new writing machine during our dessert course at Ad Hoc in Yountville.