I’m finally back on the blog!  Life has been running from one project to the next with chairing a conference in April and planning leading up to that, leaving the country for two weeks, catching up with work, having C back for a few weeks, and finally realizing I have done nothing with my pictures!

So here goes the story – it is a tale of mostly food, but that is what happens when I go on vacation… the life of a dietitian revolves around food. 

At the beginning of May, we left the old US of A and flew to Toulouse France – C was there for a conference and I decided to tag along for fun before we would continue the adventure. Toulouse is a fantastic unversity city of about 1 million people. Because of the university it’s vibe was very welcoming to foreigners – lots of different ethnic foods (although we ate mostly French cuisine), many if not most people could speak some English since our French is terrible (the translate app saved my life), and the compact city center was easy to get around. 

The first night we ate at Brasserie De L’Opera which was close to the hotel and quite good. I ordered risotto which I thought came with chicken… it didn’t look or really taste like chicken, later I learned that word was fish – which makes what I ate some sort of fish sponge?

  
Dessert was an apricot mousse with lady fingers, kind of like a tiramisu. Great way to kick off vacation!

  
Here are some more city shots before I talk about food for the remainder of this post….

I realized more than a half week in to the holiday that I had only taken pictures of food so far… so above is C relaxing in a plaza. That night we went to La Compagnie Francaise for some Italian fare, which definitely could give Italy some running for their money. I decided on a bellini, a burrata appetizer (seriously in love with that cheese now – fresh mozzarella on the outside and creamy fresh cheese on the inside), and a bleu cheese gnocchi (with seafood – again miss translating). 

Of course we had to get macaroons. 

And ate tiramisu at least a few times during this trip – even if I might not share photos of every time. 

  
Ok, so I lied about the city pictures… here are a few more of the capitol square with a pop up market, river and countryside. 

We had our last lunch at a recommended place that turned out really good.  I had trout with shaved carrots and rissoto – is there a theme here? I think I had fish at least once a day. For dessert I had creme brulee, which is actually the first time I’ve even eaten creme brulee – the real thing is tasty.  

The last evening in Toulouse, we went to La Braisiere and had one meal I can not soon forget. For a entree (also know as an appetizer in the US) we shared a tricked out version of cassoulet which is a traditional bean type casserole with duck.  Ours were pea dumplings in a foi gras sauce – once of the best things I’ve ever put in my mouth.  What it lacks in visual appeal it more than makes up with in flavor. 

 
I went lighter on the main with a salad of greens with scallops and chorizo while C had a steak – one of the best ever he claims. 

  
And finally dessert, again. I chose profitterols – ice cream inside choix pastry topped with chocolate… serious heaven. Naturally with every meal with had a bottle of wine.  Unfortunately rarely pictured but always delicious. 

  
I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Toulouse and was so glad we started there. It’s more laid back than the major tourist attraction cities and just feels a little more like home. 

Next, it’s off to Barcelona in Part 2!!

Happy Monday everyone!  I’m so thankfully that having today off from work allowed me time yesterday to whip up some delicious and colorful muffins!  The other week I made an inspired impulse buy of frozen wild blueberries at first I thought I’d just throw them in a smoothie – but how predictable right? Then it hit me – blue corn and a recipe took shape.

 I find muffins to be perfect pre-gym snacks at that 5am hour, especially when I don’t have time for anything substantial until I’m checking my email at work three hours later (then it’s a smoothie to the rescue).  With these muffins, I took a more classic blue corn muffin and subbed some fat for yogurt and almond milk and added some honey for sweetness.

Blue Corn Blueberry Muffins

Makes ~24 muffins

2 1/4 c. blue corn meal

2 1/4 c. all purpose flour (subtract 1/4 if not at high altitude)

1/3 c. white sugar

2 T baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1/2 c. honey

2/3 c. plain yogurt

1/2 c. almond milk

2 eggs

1/2 c. oil

1 1/2 – 2 c. frozen wild blueberries (keep frozen)

Preheat over to 350F and line muffin tins with papers.

Mix all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl, set aside.  Whisk all of the wet ingredients except blueberries in a medium bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix just combined – do not over mix. Spoon batter into muffin tins about 2/3 -3/4 full.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow muffins to cool slightly before eating… but then be sure to top with butter and/or golden delicious honey.

Dig in and enjoy!

There’s a pretty big debate about chilies where I’m now living – three years ago I would have asked what the big fuss is all about, but now I know.  Not only is the debate between green and red (New Mexicans put green chili on everything), but also about what goes better with red or green.  In our home, C is convinced that pork only goes with green, while I prefer the more traditional carne adovada with red.  One thing we do agree on however is that green chili enchiladas are better than red, so the last time C was making enchiladas I asked him to set aside some of the chicken for me and the Deconstructed Chicken Enchilada was born.

All of the traditional flavors are there, but it looks a whole lot prettier! Instead of wrapping everything in a corn tortilla, I lay it atop pillowy polenta and add in some more vegetables for color.

Deconstructed Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas

Chicken

2-3 large chicken breast

1 c roasted diced green chilies

Polenta

1  1/2 c polenta or course corn meal

2 c water

2 c milk

2 c chicken broth

1/2-3/4 c sharp cheddar cheese

1 tsp salt

1 tsp red chili powder or to taste

Vegetables

1 large onion, roughly chopped

1/4 large bunch swiss chard or kale, chopped

1/2 bunch asparagus, cut to bite sized pieces

Chicken: Place the chicken and chilies into a crock pot on low for 6-8 hours and let cook.  Shred chicken and mix in chili drippings.  Set aside.

Polenta: Stir together all the ingredients sans the cornmeal and cheese and bring to a boil.  Whisk in the cornmeal, making sure to get rid of clumps.  Stir until creamy, 10-15 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in cheese.

Preheat the over to 350-375F.  Grease a 2-quart baking dish.  Spoon the polenta mixture into the casserole dish.  Bake for 30 minutes, until polenta is golden brown and bubbling.

Vegetables: Toss onion into a saute pan with about 1 T olive oil, cook until translucent. Once onions are cooked add in greens and asparagus and cook 2-3 minutes more.

To serve, place a scoop of polenta in the bottom of a bowl and top with chicken and vegetables – now you’re ready to eat!

~Ingrid

Less than ideal internet connectivity prevented the publishing of this sooner, however after having nearly two weeks off from work and starting 2015, I feel refreshed.  And ready to get on top of posting some of my new recipes creations.

In the mean time, here’s a little summary of my time with family in Minnesota.

We arrived on the 24th to weather that was warmer in Minneapolis than it was in Albuquerque – that is a rare occurrence for Minnesota in December.  After reaching my parent’s house and my home town, there was no snow – only some melting slivers by the side of the road.  In the coming days, we went to walking around Glendalough State Park, wine tasting at Carlos Creek Winery, and baked some Danish – all before the rest of the family arrived – meaning the main attraction, my little 1 year old nephew. 🙂  The next few days are a blur of playing with him and just relaxing with everyone I don’t get to see but twice a year.

The travesty of it all is that I took zero pictures of food… who am I? Enjoy the people picture though!

 At Carlos Creek Winery – nice views and really good wine.  C loved the Port, but there was no room in our carry-ons.

 Christmas selfies were really difficult….

Cousins and little family laugh time.

 Little E got a black bear from me that was mine since I was 8, he loved it!  Look at that mischievous look.

My favorite little boy.

Who doesn’t like a good biscuit?  I know I do, especially something that is flaky and flavorful.  Last week I whipped up a new savory batch and they disappeared with 48 hours – all gone, 20 of them. We ate these with… who am I kidding, I was only focused on the biscuits I can’t remember what else the meal contained.  But they would be good with any stew, roasted meat or veggies, or even turned into a breakfast sandwich – just imagining that now.  Mmmm.

Sour Cream and Chive Whole Wheat Biscuits

Makes about 20 biscuits

• 2 c whole wheat flour (I used the white whole wheat since it’s a touch lighter in texture)
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 4 T butter, frozen, grated
• 1/4 c chopped/minced chives
• 1 c milk (I used whole)
• 1/2 c sour  cream

Preheat oven to 425F.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper.

Cut in grated butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add in the chives.

Stir in the milk and sour cream until just combined, careful to not over mix – biscuit texture will become tough.

This dough is a little too sticky to roll, so we’ll make them into drop biscuits (if you’d like to roll and cut your biscuits, decrease the milk by 1/8-1/4 c).  Drop dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet, about 1/4 cup size.

Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes until lightly browned.

Enjoy warm!

*This recipe was created and baked at high elevation. 

I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving weekend!

Here’s just a brief recap of what went down:

Wednesday afternoon, C and I packed up my vehicle with suitcases, pillows, dog bed and of course the lovable pup, Kate. She was going crazy with excitement and anxiety on the drive out of town – finally quieting down about 2 hours later. We left New Mexico and drove west to Flagstaff, AZ to spend Thanksgiving with C’s family at his sister, Nona’s place.

Thursday morning I took Kate out for a run outside to calm her nerves and get in a little activity before the big meal. That day we had a house of eight people and four dogs. The spread included: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, red chili pinon cornbread, cranberry relish, and pumpkin tart for dessert (recipe to coming soon).

Look at that plate!

Once we were all full from Thursday’s meal, we headed down to Sedona on Friday for some fabulous views and shopping.

(I took the these pictures in the spring a different time we were in Sedona, but the view is just as gorgeous.)

Saturday we headed back home to Albuquerque, getting home in time for quick workouts and then jumping in the car again and heading to Santa Fe. It had been a few months since we were last there and I always love the Plaza this time of year with all of the lights, so we decided to take in that holiday sight and try out a new restaurant. We decided on The Anasazi Inn restaurant which was phenomenal. I had their Roasted Berkshire Pork Tenderloin with sweet potato gnocchi & purée, broccolini, smoked bacon lardon, baby carrots… holy yum. C had the New Mexico Lamb Topped Sirloin and also raved about his dish.

For desert we shared the Decadent Chocolate plate with just about every chocolate you can imaging – ice cream, fudge, gnache, truffle, macaroon, and all in varying dark, milk, and white chocolate flavors.

 A very enjoyable weekend. I’m just sorry that it’s over and everything is back to normal life.

~Ingrid

Hi all!

Here’s what happening in my last week of fitness – pretty yoga intensive:

Monday – gym workout (30 minutes cardio, 15 min weights, 15 min abs and stretching)

Tuesday – 3 mile run with the pup

Wednesday – 60 minute yoga (went as a student instead of teacher!)

Thursday – Crossfit (farmers carries and sit-up WOD), taught 50 minutes yoga

Friday – taught 90 minutes yoga

Saturday – taught 60 minutes yoga

Sunday – hour long dog walk (mountains covered with snow!!)

Goals for the coming week – more running and making it to Crossfit 3 days – for a normal week.

~Ingrid