SPAGHETTI SQUASH!! IN AUS!!

There are rare moments here in Australian supermarkets where you may in fact stumble across something absolutely brilliant that you have been teased with over and over again on other American and European blogs, resulting in an impromptu happy dance with accompanying squeals of delight and occasional hugs to strangers.

Moments like these that I have experienced- finding nutritional yeast, finding kabocha (boy was that a goooood find!) and most recently finding.....

SPAGHETTI SQUASH!

Looking lovely with a knife straight through the middle.. my muscles needed a break- so I took a picture ;)

It was fate I tell you! You see, we had already done our weekly grocery shop the day before and I had a full fridge of veg, when the mother decided she needed a few dinner items and out of the corner of my eye one slightly strange looking veg caught my eye.

Cut in half- because I am a BEAST!

Can you believe it was the last one too? So not only were we not supposed to be at the grocery shops, there was only one spaghetti squash left at that time of the day when we decided to go! FATE I TELL YA!

Drizzled and rubbed with olive oil, sprinkled with cracked black pepper and placed face down on a baking tray to roast for 50 mins at 180 degrees celsius.

Good on ya Australia for finally growing this freaking awesome squash! Though where did the kabocha go? I need that back in my life!!

 Removed from oven, placed on a plate and microwaved for 1 minute:

 Of course I had a little try of the squash before I made a meal out of it and it tasted...
FABULOUS! I loved the flavour of it all by itself. For some reason it reminded me of roasted chest nuts?

I got my fork out and ran it along the soft squash until I had pulled and fluffed out all of the 'strands' and then stirred them in with a mixture of peas, 4 beans, lentils garlic, rosemary and olive oil that was quickly fried up together in a hot pan:

 Topped off with nutritional yeast for the cheese factor!

 I love spaghetti squash and just like with kabocha I'm slightly sad (even though I still have another half of the squash in the fridge) because I have no idea when I'll see one of these guys again... it's just heart breaking!

 The spaghetti-like strands (that really freaked me out) the mild yet oh-so-comforting flavour and the filling-ness of this squash seriously surprised me!

 I didn't even need the side of blanched asparagus and kale I made to go with it:

Although I did chomp my way through as much as I could because asparagus and kale is really yummy too!

That was my first experience with spaghetti squash!

How about you?
Have you ever tried spaghetti squash?
Do you live in a place where it is readily available?
Do you like it? I'm sure everyone who's ever tried it liked it. Without a doubt! ;)

Bye for now friends! Have a great day! :D

Running fuel

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope everyone's day has started off well. Mine started with a bit of a surprise...

I've mentioned this before (probably multiple times) but my running routine is basically run, rest, run, rest and today was a run day.

Now, I don't have a fancy shmancy fitness watch or mile tracker or heart rate monitor or step counter... my distances are the result of how I'm feeling on my run and if my legs feel like they are starting to break- then I'll head on home.

So, recently my legs must be getting stronger and my fitness too (no longer huffing and puffing like the big bad wolf after 20 mins) because when I arrived back home after this morning's run (legs feeling quite similar to wobbly jelly) I looked at the clock and had to do a double take. It was 7:30am. I had run for 1 hour and 15 mins! What?!?

I think the reason it shocked me so much was because I was perfectly fine (if just a little bit more sore and stiff than usual)! I didn't feel like I'd been pounding the ground for over an hour and I guess that's a good thing?
Sure is Steph!

Feeling it now though Steph!

I will admit I'm starting to feel it now (tired-ness is creeping in) but in the name of food lovin' I knew that I really needed to start watching what I fed my running machine and make sure I was filling (and I mean FILLING) it with all the good stuff. Wanna see what I have been nom-ing on?

 Even on rest days a big bowl of steel cut oats full of complex carbs, good fats and protein, is a must as these days in between my runs are where my body recuperates and replenishes it's energy stores. Food is vital- no skimping on portions for this gal!

 I forgot to put vanilla protein powder in this bowl (to make it my favourite bowl of oats), but it's still full of protein from the oats, almond milk, chia seeds and cashew butter on top:

 Made with banana and lots (if I could underline twice I would) of cinnamon cooked in:

 And then of course stirred around:

Lunch involved plenty of delicious fresh veggies (thank you grocery shopping day!) delicious homemade spelt bread, hommus and mashed red kidney beans and lentils:

 The veggies that made this sandwich the monster it was included spinach, avocado, grated carrot and beetroot, cucumber, capsicum and tomato:

 My mouth didn't quite fit all the way around this one... but that's ok!

Dinner was another big plate of veg (all those vitamins and minerals work wonders for the bod)

 With some poached eggs topped with salsa on the side for a little more protein (essential for recovery)

 Brussels sprouts, broccoli, beans and white sweet potato roasted in coconut oil for around 45 mins:

 N-O-M

It's so important what you eat on your rest days as this can influence how you run on the following day! I only just learned that myself! So when I awoke this morning and nomed on 2 pitted medjool dates as a pre-run snack, I knew I would be fighting fit and ready to tackle the trails (well I don't really follow any trails...)

Upon return (and the surprise of finding out how long I was out for) I sipped on some coconut water for fast re-hydration and some added electrolytes etc. Whipped up a ginormous smoothie:

1 large frozen banana + a handful of mixed frozen berries and grapes+ a handful of kale + a handful of spinach + 3 big scoops of greek yoghurt + sprinkle of chia seeds + a dash of almond milk- all whazzed together until smooth.

Then I took a shower (still carrying around my coconut water with me everywhere I went) and raced back down to toast up two wholemeal crumpets, slather them with cashew butter and enjoy my deeeelicious brekky:

 Even though I wasn't very hungry after my long run I knew it was super important to put back all those nutrients into my body so I nom-ed my way through this (the hunger returned soon after starting) and was a very happy camper.

 I feel like I'm doing the right thing with my fueling and really all I'm doing is eating the delicious foods I love- which is the most important thing! ;)

Now my belly's full, my legs are jelly and my smile is big. Perfect. :)


How about you?
How do you re-fuel?
What do you eat on your rest days? Do you eat differently?
Do you ever lose track of the time when out for a run?

Bye for now folks- have a great day!!! :D

On my mind- IRON

Morning Sunshines! Or whatever time of day it is wherever you are right now! ;)

Something's been on my mind lately.

Iron.

No, not the things that rusts if you leave it outside (well- yes that, but not in those kind of quantities) or the appliance that smooths out the creases in your clothes.

I'm talking about the important mineral needed in our diet so that we can function well- vital for extremely important bodily functions like transporting oxygen in the blood!

Now, by default I fall into the list of having a high-risk for iron deficiency just because of my age and gender. I am a teenage girl. On top of that I also tick the box on that list by being a vegetarian. And just because I thought I needed to tick one more box to increase my risk- let's throw in a long distance runner!

So it's probably fair to say I've been starting to really watch my diet and try to make sure I'm getting as much iron as possible through my food choices. This is extremely difficult though, because even though you only need a small amount of iron each day (1-1.5mg) you need to eat HEAPS more than this seeing as our bodies only absorb a fraction of the iron from the foods we eat!

As a girl aged between 14-18 years I'm expected to consume 15mg of iron each day. That's without taking into consideration my diet or exercise. Oy vey.

Apparently a healthy body absorbs 18% of the available iron in a typical Western diet (includes animal foods) on the other hand- about 10 percent form a vegetarian diet.

Seriously- maybe I shouldn't have looked into this so deeply. I definitely worried myself a bit.

Then I took a step back and looked at the big picture.

The signs for an iron deficiency include fatigue, brittle nails, swelling or soreness of the tongue, cracks in the side of the mouth or even unusual cravings for non-food items like ice, dirt, paint or starch.

Well! I am definitely not fatigued- running, walking, cooking, dancing, handstanding, bike riding- shows pretty much a typical day for me! My nails are strong and smooth (I also don't have any of those white dots... whatever they mean;) my tongue feels pretty fine and dandy in it's warm, wet home of my mouth, my mouth is crack free (unless I crack a smile ;) and I don't think I've had a craving for dirt since eating it as a todler and working out dirt does not taste good!

So maybe I'm not deficient?

I know I spend a lot of time focusing on my diet, thinking about what I'm going to make, making it and then savouring every bite- but I guess the above shows it's paying off. I have such a high risk to develop an iron deficiency but I've managed to overcome that.

This doesn't mean I can stop working so hard though. It does take a bit of extra thought but I'm cooking delicious foods that I love to eat, so it doesn't really bother me. here's a look at some of the iron-rich foods I've been enjoying lately:

 Some very reliable websites told me that iron is better absorb when paired with vitamin C, so I blitzed my tropical mango green smoothie with some fresh juice of half an orange and drank those lovely iron rich dark leafy greens up!

 I've been enjoying my salads with large handfuls of dark leafy greens also, just to add in an extra punch. Lentils have been scattered in as well:

 Egg salad with raw chopped veg... and some crushed blue maize organic tortilla chips:

Roast veggies with quinoa, lentils, mixed four beans and spinach:

 Pesto roast veggies with roasted tomatoes, peas and corn:

 Pine nuts are full of iron!

So whilst I don't feel like I'm low on iron and seem to be traveling pretty well, I'll keep shoving mass quantities of it down my throat in the hope that this will continue! Roasted broccoli for lunch anyone?

What about you?
Are you/ have you ever been low on iron/ anemic?
How do you prefer to get your iron?
Are dark leafy greens a must for you as well?

That's it from me today guys! I'd love to hear your thoughts on this and all the different opinions/ experiences out there. Have a great rest of your day! Bye! :D

Things I've been loving on!

Hello Everybody!
Following the wise posts of Peanut Butter Fingers, I thought I might write a little about some of the things I've been loving recently because I'm feeling extremely grateful and blessed RIGHT NOW!

To kick things off- I've been loving nut butter.

Not just any nut butter though... this nut butter:

 What did I use it for today?
Something else I've been loving (for a very long time now!)

Yep it's my old friend the nut butter and banana toastie!
 With a side of peach fro-yo (1/2 frozen peach + 1/4 banana whazzed up with 3 big scoops of greek yoghurt)

 Warm, gooey, chocolatey...

 Let's just take a second to appreciate this chocolatey banana-y goodness:

 Oh yes.

 This was a great breakfast to refuel my hungry body after today's hour long run.

Along with this guy:

Seeing as coconut water's dubbed 'Nature's Gatorade'  I always love to rehydrate with it after some long sweaty runs when I can. Get some of them electrolytes in me!

Speaking of running- something else I've been loving lately:

 My new, New Balance shoes!

So much support and comfort (my other shoes were getting pretty old and... well worn!)

Speaking of sport and active stuff, I have been LOVING!!! These 7/8 pants I bought from Lorna Jane the other day- sooo comfy, light and yeh!

Who else loves to wear 'sports clothes' as actual clothes? So much comfier than real clothes, right!?!

Back to the topic of food- I've been having a mild obsession with roasted white sweet potato!! (Also known as Japanese sweet potato)

And I'm blaming the Paleo Running Momma (Why does my computer think paleo isn't a word??) who seems to always have the bets looking roasted white sweet potato!
So I bought lots last weekend and have been enjoying it almost every night.:D

A big barley bowl with roast veg, peas and grilled tempeh:

 Poached eggs on top of spinach and hommus lentils with a side of roast veg:

 Roast potatoes! (There was an omelet next to them too, but that's not the main focus ;)

 Seriously, white sweet potatoes are like... a dessert for me. They taste so fudgey and sweet and deeeeelicious!! Even better than regular sweet potatoes (and you know how much I like regular sweet potatoes!)

 With the beautiful thoughts of roasted white sweet potato in my head, I will leave you to get on with this beautiful Friday!

I hope everyone has a great day! See you later! :D