Parisian Flashbacks

You know who I’m really girl crushing on lately (sorry, Brian)? Lorde.  Day and night, I love all her tracks… They are so good.  I have also been in this Parisian Cafe music kick, especially when I cook these kinds of meals:

Now I know that pasta is generally viewed as being an Italian staple, but let’s be honest you can find it anywhere.  When I lived in Paris for one summer, I had a very very small ‘studio’ apartment.  Basically it had a bathroom, a desk area (I was “studying” abroad after all), a small kitchenette, table seating for two and a bed… Futon actually.  Two things I loved most about my room was my courtyard view:

It wasn’t exactly the most beautiful courtyard area but it was great for people watching.  My second favorite thing about my apartment was the fact that I had a kitchen that I could cook in if I didn’t want to eat out.

My meals frequently consisted of a baguette and a good chunk of Brie cheese, fresh vegetables from the street market and pasta.  My go to was always spaghetti with a garlic lemon butter sauce and fresh parsley.

Heaven.  Let’s be honest, butter just makes everything better.  I guess I’m supposed to say, “In moderation”. 😉

This exact meal came back into my life last night after work and it was great lighting a candle, pouring myself a glass of wine and stepping back in time.  I did add a little chicken and mushrooms to boost up the protein, but it still tasted the same.  Paris is my favorite place in the whole world.

To balance this seductive indulgence, I set my alarm for 5:00 am today and headed to the gym.  I ran a brisk 3 miles on the treadmill – groan to treadmill season – and then headed to the mat area to get my Nike Training Club on.

I only had 20 minutes or so before I needed to get into the shower so I selected the 15 minute Leaner legs workout.

I loved the intensity of this workout and how fast it went buy.  You change movements every minute which really keeps you engaged.

Have a fabulous weekend everyone!

Easter Menu Prep

It’s Tone It Up Tuesday!

As some of you may know, I frequently visit the Tone It Up page to get great strength training workouts to pair with my daily running schedule.  The Tone It Up girls make videos for just about every workout you could want and they are all free to use on their website!  I highly encourage you to check it out and test out a video or two if you find you aren’t incorporating enough strength training in your workouts.  In addition, they are running a special promotion with SELF Magazine called the ‘Drop 10 Challenge’.  It’s free to sign up through Self.com and you receive free workouts, as well as some great breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes to help you stay on track.

Work flew by as Monday’s always seem to be the busiest in the office.  My lunch was quick and simple: 1 serving size of Trader Joe’s Chicken Gyoza, 1 cup of raw broccoli paired with TD’s ‘Guiltless Guacamole’ and an orange!

This kept me full the whole day aside from a tasty indulgence of dove dark chocolate 🙂

After work, I headed straight to the gym to complete a 4 mile run paired with some usual strength circut moves.  This included: 25 dead-lifts, 25 lunges, 25 mountain climbers, 25 tummy tucks and a 1 minute plank repeated 3 times all the way through.

I did a lot of stretching and foam rolling after my workout and decided I officially need to invest in a foam roller at home.  If you are a runner and have not started foam rolling, it is something I highly recommend.

On the menu for dinner was Lemon Chicken, Haricot Verts and Sweet Potato Wedges.  Lean, Clean and Green!

Lemon Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs. whole wheat flour
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 tbs. olive oil
• 1 cup reduced sodium fat-free chicken broth
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:

1. Cut the chicken into 1 inch cubes and season with salt and pepper
2. Lightly dust chicken breasts with flour on a shallow plate

1. Heat olive oil in nonstick sauté pan over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and cook until lightly browned and cooked through; about 5 minutes
2. Remove chicken and set aside
3. Mix ½ cup broth and garlic and pour into pan bringing to a boil over high heat.  Scrape brown bits off the bottom of the pan.
4. While the mixture is reducing, stir the remaining ½ cup of broth, ½ tablespoon of flour and pinch of salt in a separate bowl.  Add to pan and bring the mixture to a low simmer
5. Cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes
6. Stir in chicken and lemon zest – heat through
7. Add lemon juice and toss to coat
8. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Wedges

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 2 medium sweet potatoes
• Paprika
• Cinnamon
• Salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400* F
2. Cut the sweet potatoes into wedges
3. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with paprika, cinnamon and salt to taste! Toss to coat
4. Spread wedges out on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet
5. Bake for 10 minutes and turn
6. Bake for an additional 10 – 15 minutes until wedges have turned golden brown and the skin is crispy
7. Dig in!

These recipes make a great weeknight meal because they do not take longer than 30 minutes to prepare.

After we cleaned up dinner, Brian and I watched the second to last episode of ‘Game of Thrones’ to prepare us for the new episode this weekend!  Since I had already seen it, I took full advantage of the down-time to prepare for Easter Sunday.

My parents are currently vacationing in Hilton Head Island and will not get back until Saturday afternoon.  I suggested that instead of having our traditional Easter celebration in my hometown, that I could host the festivities at my apartment in Chicago.  They loved this idea since they will be traveling so much and won’t have any time to cook, plus there is a Catholic church just down the street from me!

I read through a handful of my recipe books and did a bit of research online to come up with this spring-inspired Easter menu:

• Appetizer: Smoked Salmon Dip with Crudites
• Entree: Roasted Chicken with Fennel
• Sides: Whole wheat linguine with lemon ricotta and a salad
• Dessert: Lemon Thyme Bars (Courtesy of Giada)

My mouth is watering already.  Since I don’t have any plans for this Friday, I will most likely get all of my grocery shopping over with then.  I’m more excited to go food shopping then I would be if I had plans to go out.  Lame, right?  There is something about grocery shopping that really puts me at ease… it’s almost therapeutic.  I love strolling through the produce aisle at Whole Foods and taking time to look at all the fresh vegetables they have to offer.  So many people just stick to their regular routine that they never really look to see what else there is to cook.

When I studied abroad in Paris, France, I would frequent the local farmers market everyday and pick up a few new items to cook in my tiny little studio.  I would sit by my window, sip on a cafe au lait and snack on fresh raw vegetables.  Bliss.  Of course I also had my fare share of warm and savory baked goods… but that’s a whole other discussion 🙂

Au revoir!