I tried a new recipe and rehashed an old favorite this week.
First of all, I took another go at this Quick and Easy Meatball Soup. To make things go quicker, I made the meatballs and cut up the veggies the night before. I also altered the meatball recipe a tad; since I was short on almond meal, I flushed out the requirement with some coconut flour. In regards to the veggies, I had no onions, zucchini or squash, but I did have a green pepper, so I threw that in instead. I cut up all the veggies, including the garlic, and stuffed it all in a ziploc baggie. The next evening, I threw it all in a pot, and we had delicious soup 30 minutes later. I don’t know if the herbs had time to soak into the meatballs or what, but the soup turned out fantastic. The recipe also makes a ton. We had it for supper, breakfast, lunch, breakfast, and lunch. So good. And yes, it’s perfectly acceptable to eat soup for breakfast.
I also tried a new recipe – Grain-Free Zucchini Pancakes. Timmy Tee was sweet enough to go to the Farmers Market for me on Saturday, so we were flush with zucchini, and I felt like trying something new for breakfast. I have to say that I believe the name “pancakes” is a misnomer here. These were more like omelettes than pancakes. They were still tasty, but they were super runny. I ended up scrambling a few of them because I tried to flip them before they truly set up. Not sure I’ll make these again. If I want paleo pancakes, I’ll make these Carrot Cake Pancakes again. These are what I actually wanted to make, but we were all out of damned almond flour. Greatest Grains was out in their bulk section, and HyVee’s was $11.99 per package, which I refused to pay. I’ll have to get some one way or another before next weekend.
Overall, it was a good weekend, food-wise and life-wise. I volunteered for a few hours at the Nahant Marsh Fall Festival, helping to gather seeds of the Partridge Pea and the False Aster. It was a COLD job, but at least I am 3 hours further into my 32 hour Master Conservationist volunteer commitment. Plus, I was rewarded with hot cider and roasted chestnuts afterwards. Well, I had to pay for them, but they were still tasty. I had never had roasted chestnuts before. They kind of taste like raw potatoes. I really liked them, but Tim wasn’t a fan. They do taste much better warm.
After that Tim and I ran 5 miles and then biked downtown to the Front Street Tasting Lounge, where we indulged in a a pint and watched the river. Then we headed to Great River where some Chatty Cathy talked our ears off while we had a Brown Pumpkin (Farmer Brown mixed with Pumpkin Ale) and a Pale Ale. After supper at the real Front Street, we tackled the chilly ride home. And here is where I get to the “general fitness” portion of my title. It is so obvious to me biking home from downtown Davenport how much more fit I am this year than last. Sure, the hills up the valley still tire me out, but I can OWN them. I no longer feel like crying biking up them. I love that feeling of strength.
It was a fun day, and it was great to be outside, but 3 pints is too much beer for 125 lb Hlo. My throat hurt, and I slept horrible. So, today I had to buy some whiskey so I wouldn’t be tempted to drink more harmful beer. 😉 I got Buffalo Trace whiskey. It was only $1 more than Jack, and I thought it would be fun to try something new. Plus, I liked the picture of a buffalo on the bottle. Yes, I’m distracted by pretty pictures. Anyway, it’s pretty good. My boss picked me up some Templeton Rye from Fareway last week ($37 at Fareway – $47 at Target!!!), but I figured I should save the expensive stuff for something special.
Hope you had a great weekend! Tim bought a duck at the Farmers Market, per my behest. Now I need an awesome duck recipe! The freaking bird was $25, so it better be damned delicious!! Send me a recipe if you have a good one.
Take care! Hlo-out!