Looking for improvements in your triathlon performance? Get Out N Play is accepting athletes looking to reach their goals. |
Upcoming Events: Race Day Nutrition Your training time has been logged. You are prepared with your swimming, biking and running. The same attention needs to be given to your race day nutrition. Learn about your race nutrition needs and execution. Additionally gain insight into avoiding common nutritional errors. Fleet Feet West Hartford, Thursday August 2nd at 7 PM. Email Aubrey to reserve your seat. |
| | | Your Table is Ready One of the selling points of this house is the outdoor entertaining space. The large grassy yard, the fieldstone patio and the large deck with a wrap-around bench are delightful attributes. I missed the long ago days of eating Sunday breakfast on my parents back deck drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. The apartment lacked such a space. With the purchase of our cozy bistro table, we now have the opportunity to sip homemade chamomile tea, while eating scrambled eggs with chives and dill amidst the chatter of the birds, frogs and squirrels. Typically, our evening meals are a time to wind down, connect and eat a lovingly prepared meal. Our meals, our connection to the outdoors and each other is strengthened during this time. Forget spending a lot of money dining out in a restaurant with its outdoor dining area that faces a busy street. This is outdoor dining at its finest. During the months of summer I encourage you to get outside and eat a few meals outside, either on your back deck or on a picnic blanket. Enjoy the simple joys of summer and hopefully the mosquitoes will be distracted. |
| Race Report: Black Pond Biathlon At one of my workshops, an attendee told me about this great low-key multisport event. For this race, the bikes are left home as this a biathlon- a swim and run. The second annual race, The Black Pond Biathlon, is a fundraiser for Camp Woodstock in Woodstock Valley, CT. The money raised benefits the Strong Kids Campaign, designed to make summer camp available to families who could not otherwise afford it.
The setting was at a wonderful YMCA camp, nestled in the woods in the northeastern part of the state. After checking in and getting body-marked, the next step was to set up up the transition area. No long elaborate checklist for this race, left running shoe- check. Right running shoe- check. To make it complicated, I had a water bottle and visor there too on my little plot of grass on the hill. After some brief announcements, we walked along the dock and jumped in the lake for an in-water start. The buoys were a little tough to see, as they were white and not too high above the water. The whistle signaled the start of the race and the pack headed to the first buoy. There was a sizable group around me until the first buoy and then the pack thinned out. Keep reading -->
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Three New Blog Posts I'm feeling a renewed interest in blogging. In part because I have fantastic recipes and photos to share from my weekend retreat at Still Waters Pond. This was a memorable getaway and I am plotting to do it again. More details on this come. As I go about my day, ideas and content pops into my head. Currently there are notes and recipes scattered about my desk and the floor. These bits of inspiration will hopefully make their way to a post, a Facebook status update or perhaps a recipe in Fleet Feet West Hartford's bi-weekly newsletter. June's posts on the Get Out N Play blog: - Olive Oil Granola
- Black Pond Biathlon Race Report
- Making a Menu
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Book Review: The Spice Necklace by Ann Vanderhoff I have always been a voracious reader. On road trips with my family, my nose would be buried in a book. No car sickness for me while reading. Before our annual vacation to Maine, my mom would bring my sister and I to the bookstore. Halfway into our beach trip, we'd make a trip to the bookstore to buy another book. Finding time to read as an adult can be a little bit trickier. Picking up a novel now, I feel a little conflicted. There is a tug to read something related to my profession. However with the surge in travel novels (my favorite genre) that feature a food slant, I feel a less guilty.
My latest read, The Spice Necklace by Ann Vanderhoof, was one of my favorites. Ann and her husband, Steve, set sail for the West Indies on-board their sailboat for a two year journey docking in marinas up and down the Caribbean Sea. Along the way they form lasting friendships with the locals on the islands of Grenada, Trinidad, among others. The adventures feature trips to harvest nutmegs, seek out spiced goats, gather crabs at midnight and partake in the celebrations of Carnival. The recipes at the end of each chapter are extensive and doable here in the Northeast, with only a bit of hunting needed for select foods like lambi (conch) chayote and passion fruit nectar. Fresh flavors and island spices are highlighted. Unfortunately the nutmeg has traveled thousands of miles to reach me, but the cilantro in my back garden can't be any fresher.
What food adventures do you have planned this summer? Recipes from the book I've made: - Plantain-Crusted Chicken Fingers with Green Seasoning
- Starburst Salad
- Island Tabbouleh
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Recipe: Starburst Salad After reading about chayote, I was excited to see them in the local grocery store. In the Caribbean, lettuce is a quick-to-spoil leafy green and thus hard to come buy. Chayote are crisp, mild and long lasting. It is a member of the squash family and can be served raw or cooked. It paired nicely with early summer veggies in this raw summer salad. I am anxious to make this again when tomatoes are in season. Starburst Salad Ingredients - 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 cucumber, peeled, cut in half, seeded and sliced
- 1 ripe tomato, sliced
- 1 medium chayote, peeled and sliced lengthwise
- 1 avocado, peeled and slice
- handful of cilantro, chopped
Directions - Combine garlic, mustard, lemon, olive oil and salt and pepper. Set dressing aside.
- Toss the cucumber with some of the dressing and spread out along the base of a large plate.
- On top of the cucumber arrange the remaining vegetables.
- Drizzle with the remaining dressing, and sprinkle the cilantro over the top. Serve.
Source: The Spice Necklace by Ann Vanderhoof
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| Thank you for spending the time learning to nourish your health.
Sincerely,
Aubrey Schulz
Get Out N Play
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