Strawberry Salsa

You will never buy salsa again. I swear to you. This is, by far, the best salsa I have ever had... The flavors are surprising, but delicious. I could it eat plain. In fact... I may have a bowl of it sitting in front of me, with just a spoon in it...

I've seen recipes all over the web for mango salsa, and had other fruit salsas before, but I was always thrown off by the texture of whatever fruit was used. Something about strawberries, though... They hold up just perfectly. They stay firm, don't turn to mush... And that have that burst of fresh, summer flavor that is just perfect... On its own, or on a chip.

Strawberry Salsa

Photo by Jessica Y.

Yum. Just yum.

1 lb strawberries, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup minced red onion
1 T chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
2 T lime juice
1 T lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients in a bowl.

Eat.

Easy, no?

Strawberry Protein Bites

I never fancied myself a runner. Even as my running routines have increased, I never classified myself in "that" category. I've gotten to a point where I actually enjoy running and do actually look forward to my weekly distance endeavors. But when I drag my butt along the boardwalk at the beach, I never dream of classifying myself in the same category as the "real" runners who smoke past me, barely breaking a sweat.

But the reality is... I think I am nearing that category. I'm running a half marathon in two weeks. Me. Thirteen miles. The thought terrifies me. And excites me. The feeling of accomplishment that comes with breaking a new personal record, adding a mile or just surviving, is incredible. These feelings have come, more and more regularly, as my training regimen has increased.

Other feelings have become more frequent, too. Like hunger. Oh my lord, I am hungry. Running ten miles puts a pit in your tummy like nothing else. But the trade off? Burning a thousand calories makes me far less critical of what I put in my mouth. But it's also made me realize that what I'm eating really does matter. With little 5ks here and there, and maybe a 10k every once in a while, my meal preparation hasn't played a major role in my training.

But now, with running maps rolling out in front of me that are ten plus miles long, I'm realizing that I need to feed my body more effectively. Putting the right things into it help me get the kinds of results I want out of myself. And learning how to effectively prepare things to support my efforts has been both challenging and exciting, in the realm of my kitchen. Combining my newest addiction (tacking on miles), with my most popular addiction (baking), has been a deliciously rewarding experience.

These yummy morsels are both healthy and delicious. They also provide an adequate amount of protein and give you a wonderful, flavorful boost of energy before or after a workout. And, you don't have to feel bad about popping a few of them in your mouth every time you walk by the kitchen.

Strawberry-Almond Protein Bites

adapted from Baking Serendipity 

• 1 cups rolled oats
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate pieces
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or almonds
• 1/4 cup fresh strawberries, diced
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/4 agave

In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine oats, raisins, flaxseed, nuts, chocolate, strawberries, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add almond butter, agave and honey and stir to coat evenly. Refrigerate for at least an hour. Using an ice cream scoop or tablespoons, form the bites into balls. Store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Summer Fruit Cobbler

Two days ago, I was packing all my "grown up" clothes, toiletries and shower shoes into my bright pink suitcase, preparing to embark on a cross-country journey that would have me preventing a bunch of rowdy high school kids from unleashing their havoc on Yale University. This stressed me out for a number of reasons. First and foremost, I was worried that my house would not get cleaned or looked after while I was gone and would subsequently be overrun by ants. Second was that I was also seriously concerned that my boyfriend would exist solely on energy drinks and hot pockets in my absence. And finally, I had mounds and mounds of guilt welling up inside of me about the copious amounts of fruit (and the decent chunk of change that I spent on it) that was going to go bad in my fridge while I was gone. I am not kidding when I say I lost sleep over this final quandary. There was also this pesky business about a thesis I have to have finished in less than three weeks, but I mean... really? Minor detail.

BUT!!!

Lady luck has smiled on me (and simultaneously given me the finger). My flight out of San Diego was cancelled and the airlines are so inept at their own job that they couldn't get me across the country in time for me to do the job I was supposed to do... So I ended up keeping my feet on the ground and scoring five more days of summer that I hadn't planned on. The only drawback? I don't get to spend those five days with my friend I would have been working with... But I'll see her when I work a similar conference at UCLA next week... which will involve cupcakes (but that's another post entirely).

So, I get to stay in San Diego. I get time do things. Like my nails. And clean out my email inbox. And organize my towels. And buy a REALLY awesome hammock. But the best part? I get to put that fruit to use! And you get to read about it, in all of its delicious glory...

Summer Berry Cobbler

photo by Jessica Y.

A summer concoction of berries makes for happy melody in your mouth.

5-6 Cups of assorted fruits (I used 4 cups of sliced strawberries, 1 cup of peaches and 1 cup raspberries & blueberries... I used all fresh fruit, but frozen would work as well... Just let them thaw first and drain the run off, otherwise you're going to have a very soupy cobbler on your hands.)

2 Tablespoons white sugar

3/4 Cup whole wheat flour

3/4 Cup rolled oats

1/2 Cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 Cup butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2 Tablespoons Milk

1. Preheat your oven to 350. While that baby is heating up,  slice all of your fruit into bite-sized pieces. Place in a large bowl and add the sugar. Stir to coat all of the berries. 

2. In another bowl, mix together all the other ingredients. Add the milk last, and if you don't need a full two tablespoons, don't use it all. The ingredients should mix to form a crumbly, chunky dough.

3. Spray an 8x8 baking pan (or similar sized baking dish) with cooking spray. Press half of the dough mixture into the bottom of the pan. It doesn't have to be perfect, but cover most of the bottom of the pan.

4. Spoon the berry mixture on top of the crust you just pressed into the pan.

5. Crumble the rest of the dough mixture over the top of the berries. Sprinkle with sugar (if you want).

6. Place in the oven on a middle rack. If your pan is almost filled to the top with goodness, you may want to place it on a cookie sheet so that if it bubbles over while it bakes you don't end up cleaning your oven for the next three days. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling around the edges.

7. Let cool for 10 minutes (if you can wait that long) and top with a healthy scoop of vanilla ice cream. We actually ate ours with vanilla bean gelato... Amazing.

photo by Jessica Y.

Melting ice cream + sweet fruity goodness + green polka dots = winning!