Great Swamp NJ Devil 5K

GREAT SWAMP NJ DEVIL 5K 2012

Today I ran my 4th 5K this year and PR’ed by 3 minutes! I woke up excited to have a Sunday off work and excited to get my race on. I fueled with some gluten-free pumpkin pie pancakes before heading out to Basking Ridge, NJ for the 11am race start. There were two options, a 5K or a 15K. The 15K started an hour later to avoid overcrowding on the narrow out-and-back course.

 

It was windy and chilly this morning due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Sandy tomorrow, so I shivered and did some dynamic stretching until the gun went off. I don’t usually listen to music when I run but I loaded Taylor Swift’s new album onto my MOTOACTV watch and I really think it helped me run faster (did I already mention that I PR’ed by 3 minutes?!) I love my GPS watch that I stole from my mom, it’s way lighter than my old Garmin 350 and locates a signal much more quickly, plus you can load music onto it!

 

 

 

 

 

The course was really flat and there were only about 150 participants. There’s something really nice and intimate about smaller local races. Maybe it’s because there is less of a competitive atmosphere? After the race started I quickly found my groove and kept a good pace throughout. T. Swift really kept me pumped and the race was over before I knew it…

I was completely beat since I really pushed myself to increase my pace, but luckily it paid off!

 

Woot woot! My next race is a 5-miler on Thanksgiving Day! I also signed up for my first half-marathon this week, the National Half Marathon in Washington, D.C. on March 16th!

Talk to you soon! I hope everyone stays safe with Hurricane Sandy!

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

It’s official. I have eaten so many pumpkin pie pancakes that I am sick of them. I wasn’t sure it was possible but there comes a time, after about the 136th pancake, that the thought of eating pillowy fall-themed morsels becomes merely tolerable instead of the exciting prospect it usually is. The only reason I was able to eat 136 of these babies in the first place is because this recipe is that good. Try it and I’m sure you will agree! In fact,  I’m sure I will be hankering for some more of these bad boys in a couple days, after I no longer have the aroma of pumpkin spice emanating from my pores.

Vegan Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

yields one serving of 2-3 pancakes

• 1/2 cup flour (I have used both regular All-Purpose flour and Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free AP flour and either works fine)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup almond or soy milk
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup

In a medium bowl mix dry ingredients together. In a seperate bowl  stir the pumpkin, milk and maple syrup together until smooth. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir together until fully combined. Use 1/4 cup measure to put batter onto a skillet coated with canola oil. Cook one pancake at a time on medium-low heat until batter begins to bubble at the edges and then flip with a spatula. Cook the other side of the pancake until it is no longer raw in the middle (1-2 minutes) and repeat until all the batter is used up. Serve with maple syrup, almond butter or whatever you choose! 

We’re Back!

Has anyone seen this movie? I used to watch it all the time when I was a kid.

Welcome back to Well-Fed Redhead! I took a rather lengthy hiatus to get my behind in gear after finishing culinary school and my internship in San Francisco. To briefly summarize the last three months of my life:

1. I moved back to NYC.
2. I got a low-paying job at a well-known international vegan restaurant that never had any customers.
3. I quit that job because it couldn’t support living in the city.
4. Upon realizing I was destitute and that my lease was up, I packed up my apartment and moved back to my parents house in NJ.
5. I got a new job in my hometown at a super meaty restaurant that cures its own bacon.

Now that my life has settled down a bit I want to get back to blogging and plan to use this blog for recipe development and as a wellness journal. My job keeps me pretty busy so I will probably only be posting a couple days a week, but the great part of having practically no audience is that I have no pressure to blog every day!

What has been on my mind lately:

1. Running! I finished physical therapy in April after a whole year of not being able to run. Now I have ran 3 5K’s and 167 miles! I’m kind of obsessed now and think about running all the time. Yet somehow when I’m actually running I still can’t wait for it to be over… (pic from Dailymile.)
2. HENRY. Is Henry ever not on my mind? I plead the fifth but it should be known that I am obsessed my cat. In the best cat-lady way possible. Since we last spoke I have had a failed experiment with making raw cat food from scratch. I have also spent hundreds of dollars on vet bills because my precious feline so selflessly took it upon himself to develop chronic asthma while I was away in San Francisco. Yes, cat inhalers do exist. On a positive note, Henry has lost two pounds!
3. Coffee. I am officially re-addicted. What is your Starbucks order? Recently I am all about iced coffee with soy milk and one pump of pumpkin spice. It’s a mouthful to say but I love it!
4. Pitch Perfect! I just saw this last night and it is my new favorite movie. Everyone go see it immediately or we can’t be friends.
5. Pancakes! (Hint: this may or may not be related to tomorrow’s recipe)

I have a delicious fall-inspired recipe to share tomorrow. GET EXCITED!