Saturday, September 25, 2010

Shrimp Gumbo

by Meghann on September 25, 2010

When heavy nausea set in this afternoon, I realized I did NOT eat enough after my race this morning. I also had a a bad headache which led me me to believe that on top of not having enough food, I was also severely dehydrated. Ughhh…

A big lunch was needed. A large bottle of SmartWater was welcomed as well.

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I had purchased a GroupOn for Infusion Tea a while ago, but have been saving it for a rainy day. Well, it wasn’t raining, but no better time than the present, right?

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I started with the Ice Tea of the Day – a Winter Mint Roobios.

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Very minty. :)

I needed carbs and lots of them! The Greek Pizza was screaming my name on the menu and I knew it would be the perfect meal to kick my nausea to the curb.

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Infusion Tea has the most amazing whole wheat pizza crust. It’s thin, crispy, and full of whole grain goodness. They also have an amazing marinara sauce that has just a touch of sweetness and pairs beautifully with the salty goat cheese and sweet balsamic reduction they drizzle over everything. :)

Derek had an Eggplant Parmesan Panini that left him full and satisfied.

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Happy Plates :)

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We spent the afternoon running errands and once again I learned you can’t go into Target for one thing without leaving with one or two new toys.

Like needing cleaning supplies and coming home with new boots, a new purse, and new cardigan. ;)

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What? The boots and cardigan are a must have for my trip to Colorado next week and the purse…. well, the purse has been needed for a while.

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See the frayed straps?

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And broken attachments?

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I think I wore that purse out past it’s prime. Definitely time for a change.

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I’m a fan of finding one purse that’s a fun color and just sticking with it. This new red should be a fun one to just blindly pair with everything.

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I wanted something sweet when we returned from shopping. I dug into a couple of last night’s chocolates and the last of my fresh figs.

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Handmade Dark Chocolate Coconut Cup. Yum!

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Derek and Maddie both needed some time to recover from their 3 mile runs this morning.

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Aren’t they cute? :)

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How Derek and I decided what to have for dinner tonight:

Me: What do you want for dinner?

Derek: How about those carrot peanut butter fries?

Me: Umm… ok. What should we pair it with?

Derek: Okra?

Me: Maybe. But what kind of okra?

Derek: Okra fries

Me: Umm.. not feeling it. How about something else with okra?

Derek: Okra and tomatoes?

Me: What about stewed tomatoes with okra. Like a soup with beans and stuff. I know there’s a name for that. What’s that dish called?

Derek: Gumbo?

Me: Yes, Gumbo. Let’s make gumbo!

And that, my friends, is what’s for dinner tonight!

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I googled a few Gumbo recipes, but didn’t like what many of them ad to offer them. Some the ingredients list were too long and other seemed to short. I decided to create my own to make it just right.

Shrimp Gumbo

adapted from Paula Dean’s Savannah Seafood Gumbo

  • 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • 2 tbsp All Purpose Flour
  • 1/2 of a large Red Onion
  • 2 Carrots
  • 1/2 Orange Bell Pepper
  • 1 tbsp Minced Garlic
  • 3 Cups Water
  • 1 can diced Tomatoes
  • 1 can Black Eyed Peas
  • 2 cups Okra
  • 1 tsp Thyme
  • 1 tsp Parsley
  • 2 tsp Salt
  • 2 tsp Pepper
  • 1.5 tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1.5 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
  • 1 tbsp Hot Sauce
  • 1/2 pound Shrimp

Begin with a hot pan. Add the vegetable oil and flour and cook while stirring constantly until the mix is a light brown.

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Chop the veggies into small bite size pieces

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Add the garlic, onion, carrot, and pepper to the flour & oil combo. Cook until veggies are soft (about 5 minutes)

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Once veggies are soft add the can of tomatoes + water + spices

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Can’t forget the black eyed peas!

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Last, but not least – the okra! Because what’s gumbo without okra?

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(make sure to chop the okra into bite size pieces too!)

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Let the gumbo simmer for about an hour on low. Add the shrimp in the last 5 minutes to avoid overcooking them.

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Serve over rice

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with a dollop of plain yogurt (or sour cream)

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and some nice crusty bread on the side.

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Beer

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I think the hot sauce was really what brought this gumbo over the edge. As far as gumbo is concerned – the spicier the better!

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More leftover chocolate with ice cream for dessert! :)

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A chocolate covered Nutty Butter! Mmm….

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Race Results

Track Shack (the local running store/ race sponsor) has a fun new system to check out your race results after races.

To review your results all you need to enter is your last name and birthday.

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As I was filling in the information I thought “Man, this would suck if someone had the same last name and birthday as you” and then it realized someone does have the same last name and birthday as me. His name is Josh and he’s my twin brother! Good thing he hasn’t run any Track Shack races yet!

All that information leads you here.

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Every result for every Track Shack race I have ever participated in is not in one neat little area. How convenient is that? It’s actually really interesting to have one are to quickly reference how much I’ve improved in my last two years of running.

Let’s just compare the Miracle Miles Races:

2008 1:30:36 9:43.2

2009 1:21:05 8:41.9

2010 1:20:31 8:38:3

Love it!

You can read all my recaps from each race at my Racing Recaps Page ;)

{ 25 comments }

Miracle Miles 2010

by Meghann on September 25, 2010

This morning I added my THIRD Miracle Miles medal to my ever growing collection of race medals.

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Did you notice how the medals have gotten a teeny bit smaller each year? What’s up with that?

It was a race I was worried wouldn’t happen at first.

The plan was to meet my sister, Megan, and our friend Sara at the start line about 20 minutes before race time. I made sure to give myself plenty of time, but the traffic was worse than predicted. The directions the race packet had provided for parking became useless when we discovered the suggested roads were blocked off my police barricades. Great.

After a couple of illegal u-turns – and blindly following other drivers – I managed to find the recommended garage. Unfortunately we only had 15 minutes until the start and my sister was frantically tweeting me/ calling me that she was driving around in circles with no clue where to park as well.

I had been blindly following multiple drivers and had no idea how to guide her. She started freaking out and I started freaking out. Last year she had to run the start after the gun had already gone off, I had an idea she would have the same experience this year. :/

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After a final call telling her to just park where ever, I gave my phone to Derek and tried to just think about my own race. So, my sister wasn’t there. So, I couldn’t find any of my friends. I was still here to run a race and I was going to run this race.

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The start wasn’t as crowded as I was predicting. I managed to find my way up front and crossed the starting line less than 5 seconds after the countdown.

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I started off feeling great. Legs felt good. Breath felt good. Everything felt good.

I feel better when I see Sara pass me right before the first mile marker. You rock it girl!

Mile 1: 7:42

Holy crap. Way too fast. Way too fast!

I recently read an article on Runner’s World regarding the top ten mistakes people make during taper time. One of those mistakes was trying to PR at other races during taper. They emphasized that this practice could lead to injury and to instead aim for marathon goal pace for these races. That was my goal for this race – marathon goal pace for Chicago, which comes to 9:00 minutes per mile, not 8!

Mile 2: 8:02

ekkk… still too fast. Slow it down Meghann.

Mile 3: 8:27

Ok, a 5k down. Legs still feel good, but mentally beginning to lose it. My stomach is starting to cramp and the pumpkin scone I had for breakfast isn’t sitting too well in my stomach. What was I thinking eating a scone before the race?

Mile 4: 8:43

Alright, mentally really starting to feel it. At least my pace is somewhere near where I want to be. It’s just so hard not to be competitive with all these runners around me.

Mile 5: 8:49

Halfway done. You’ve got this girl! Stomach is still off, but at least I’m beginning to get my groove.

Mile 6: 8:54

Just ran by a girl on the ground surrounded by medics. I hope she’s ok.

Mile 7: 8:47

All the volunteers are really great. Did you know the smallest baby to ever be delivered at the Winnie Palmer Hospital and survive was 11 ounces? That’s so tiny! This race raised $25,000 for a really great cause and I’m greatful to be a part of something so wonderful.

Mile 8: 8:56

Wait, when did this race get hills? I thought this was the same course as last year, but I don’t remember all these inclines. I feel like I’ve been slowly running uphill for over a mile. Not cool.

Mile 9: 8:58

I’m almost done? I’m almost done? I’ve got this!

.3 nubbin: 3:07 (8:12 pace)

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Finish Time: 1:20:31 (A new PR?!?!? <– wasn’t expecting that)

Average Pace: 8:35 (a little faster than I wanted, but I’ll take it! )

I ran the entire race not knowing if my sister had made it to the start or not. Two minutes after I crossed the finish line I had my answer. Kelly came running through the same shoot with a huge smile on her face. She made it! And she finished in an awesome time!

I immediately found her and gave her a big hug.

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We also spotted speedy Sara who came in at a smokin’ 1:12:34!!

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Megan was another runner who I wasn’t sure had made it or not. Apparently Derek had seen her at the start and Kelly had ran a little of the race with her. I couldn’t believe we all made it! That was really a close one!

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The Miracle Miles after party was full of food and drinks, but it was 9:00am and I had jsut run 9.3 miles, so I wasn’t feeling it.

However, Derek helped himself. :)

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I did one my traditional Chik Fil A post race sandwich, but they didn’t have any this year. What?!?! I grabbed the parfait they were offering instead.

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It was just vanilla yogurt and strawberries, but it was sooo GOOD! It was thick, rich, and cream. It had to be full fat yogurt and I was NOT complaining :)

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You think one would be done after a 15k race, but I needed to get at least 3 more miles in for my Chicago Training Plan.

I ended up running an easy 3 miler with Derek and Maddie by my side.

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Don’t tell Derek, but I think Maddie could take him in a 5k! She’s actually a great runner and kept up with us the entire time! We stopped at a few water fountains to give her some hydration, but that’s the only time she ever felt like stopping.

Maddie will be sleeping good today. :)

I was feeling nauseous after our run, but the cracker Derek gave me helped a lot. I guess that’s my clue that I need FOOD stat! Time to get some lunch! :)

Have a great Saturday!

{ 35 comments }