Running Army Wife

I found this Carrot Muffin with Cream Cheese recipe a little while ago online. It's probably the most amazing recipe that I've discovered to date. I'll never be able to appreciate carrot cake from a box again. So I started thinking.. why not try this with a pumpkin muffin? Pumpkin and cream cheese? Yes, one of the best combinations ever. A visual of what you need: This recipe has three acts. Act 1: The Muffin (courtesy of Will Run for Food ) 1 package (18.25 oz.) spice cake mix 1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin 3 large eggs 1/3 cup vegetable oil 1/3 cup water 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Paper-line or grease 24 muffin cups. Blend cake mix, pumpkin, eggs, oil, water, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. I decided NOT to beat with a beater because I wanted them to be a little denser and moister, a little more like a muffin and little less like a cake. Pour batter into prepared muffin cups, about 3/4 full. Act 2: The Cream Cheese Filling (courtes...

(my adaption of Rachel Ray's Citrus-Caramel Poached Pears ) I decided I had to try this. But I couldn't resist adding Chai. This might be my new favorite way to eat Pears. Ingredients 2 Pears, pealed 1 tbsp Cinnamon 1 tsp Nutmeg 1 to 2 cups of Orange Juice 1/4 cup Sugar 1 shot of Triple-sec 1 scoop of Chai Latte mix Combine all ingredients in saucepan. Cook on low heat, covered, for 30 minutes or until Pears are tender. Carefully remove the pears (they are going to be really soft). Continue to boil liquid for another half hour, or until syrupy. Drizzle pears with syrup. Sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg, and chai mix. Seriously. Try it.

I'm in the middle of moving. My apartment is full of boxes. The good news is that my husband is be home TOMORROW night and will be able to help me pack for a couple days before we get the u-haul truck. YAY! I decided I could still take time to make a good dinner for myself. But not too much time. This was really easy. This is all it was: Easy Salmon Patties 1 egg 1 3 oz packet of salmon 5 or 6 Ritz crackers, crumbled up about 3/4 cup Italian panko-style bread crumbs Pepper to taste Panko bread crumbs are really new to me, but I'm loving them. Then I just mashed it all together and made patties. This recipe makes about 2 1/2 hamburger-sized patties. Then I put them in a frying pan with a little olive oil and cooked on medium about 3 minutes per side. Yumm. I know not too many people read this, but I figure that I love reading what other people do for food.. especially if it's an easy recipe. So maybe someone someday might want to try this. :) This was also a breakthrough for...

I've been addicted to strawberries lately. This summer, it's been rare to not find them in my fridge. I made this strawberry-mango salsa (absolutely delish) and I got to thinking.. hm.. sometimes you can substitute strawberry for tomato and get away with it. Why not in caprese salad? Then I did some googling and discovered that my idea was actually not unqiue at all. But this is my own version of strawberry caprese. :) Strawberry Caprese Salad Sliced Strawberries Sliced fresh, moist mozzarella cheese Fresh basil leaves drizzle with Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette (I found mine at the grocery store, but there are plenty of recipes out there to make it on your own) That's it. I didn't add olive oil or salt and pepper, but that would certainly give you a more traditional caprese taste. I wanted it to be more about the strawberries. Because really.. anything tomatoes can do, strawberries can do better. :) Enjoy!

I just ran about 4 miles.. which doesn't seem like much but it was a hill workout and about 100 degrees outside. I just sweated a lot. And ate a pretty salty dinner. I thought I'd share my post-workout shake that I've been having lately with my obsession of strawberries. I know what you're thinking. It doesn't look like there is any chocolate in there. Trust me, there is. But the trick is that it's very subtle. That's why it's a "Strawberry Chocolate" shake and not a "Chocolate Strawberry" shake. Just sayin'. If you need more chocolate, go ahead and add it. This is my version though. Strawberry Chocolate Post-Workout Milkshake 1 1/2 fresh strawberries 1/2 cup of milk (this doesn't seem like a lot, but the strawberries make a lot of juice) 2 or 3 ice cubes 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder (I use whey protein* from Kroger, one of the main ingredients is cocoa powder) Blend. Garnish with mint leaf and strawberry. Serves 1. And...