Vegan Recipe Starring: Dulse Leaf and Chia Seeds

Here's another vegan recipe that was inspired from this website. I had heard about dulse leaf on youtube from a woman who has been vegan for 20+ years. 

She said that it contains a lot of iron and is a good way to substitute the salty, fishy flavors in dishes. So I really wanted to try it.

My husband and I went to a health food shop in Seville back in March and bought a few things that are impossible to find in Córoda. 

I had never even heard of dulse until watching youtube so this dish was my first experiment with it. 

It's a type of seaweed, which we bought dried. Once you add a liquid to it, it softens up nicely. 

So you can choose to add it directly to your dish or simply soak it in water and add only the liquid.

We both loved the recipe. The salty, sweet, fishy flavors really mimicked authentic asian cuisine. I say if you're ever in the mood for some Chinese food, this dish is a great healthy alternative.

The chia seeds were not the protagonist in this recipe. But we have tons of them left so I hope to experiment with them this summer. There are some desserts and beverages and things I'm hoping to try with them so stay tuned!

 

Ingredients: 

soba noodles
2 Tbsp peanut or sesame oil
Any mix of fresh or frozen veggies you like
2 baby bok choy
4 green onions
1 Tbsp CHIA SEEDS (or sesame seeds)
½ cup DULSE LEAF

Sauce:
2 Tbsp minced ginger (I used 2 tsp. dried ginger)
1 cup soy sauce
4 Tbsp honey
4 Tbsp raw, shredded coconut
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
 

Cook the noodles according to directions and toss with sesame oil when done – keep warm. Prepare sauce by whisking all ingredients in a small pot, slow-simmering 10 mins. Prepare veggies. Stir fry veggies and sauce, tossing constantly until just done. Remove veggies and lower heat until the sauce thickens a little. Place veggies back in pan and then spoon over noodles. Sprinkle with chia seeds and dulse leaf and serve.

October 2012 Marathon: XVII Castilla-La Mancha

This was from last year's race.

Yes, I did it again! I signed up for my 2nd marathon that will take place on October 28th in Ciudad Real, a province of Castilla-La Mancha.

I AM SO EXCITED!

Oh, and yes, I do have a more ambitious goal this time: 

to finish in 3 hours and 30 minutes.

 After running the Seville marathon, my plan was to take a break from training to recover and then set my sights on another marathon in the fall. I didn't want to rush back into training too quickly because I do not want to get injured again.

So I've been on my conditioning program for almost 3 months now. Then I start training July 1st. The conditioning program was a way for me to keep running without the pressure and strain of training. 

I did, however, want something a bit more structured than just running when I feel like it. Especially since I don't want these 3 months to be lost time.

I fully expect to be ready for training in July. Actually, I know I'm still in shape. Plus, my joints and muscles have had ample resting time.

This marathon only cost me 25€ (or $31), which is a ridiculous bargain! The route consists of two laps and that's probably the only thing I'm not that thrilled about. 

Laps tend to get boring because you have to look at the same scenery etc. Although I pretty much do laps in training so maybe it won't be so bad. Either way I'm ready for another race and can't wait to get started!

More updates to come such as my new training schedule and some tips and tricks I've learned about training through the brutal summer months.

June Goals

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There aren't any strict running goals for June. As I've mentioned previously, my training doesn't start until July 1st. June will pretty much just mark the winding down of my conditioning program and a renewed focus on training.

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Stay Motivated

For this month I hope to stay charged and ready for what lies ahead. The last week of June I feel like I should cut back on my running distance, although I haven't definitively decided yet. Any running program starts off slow and then gradually increases.

So when I start training I'll go from 3 months of pretty adequate intensity to suddenly starting from zero and then climbing back up. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about that. Of course I don't want to lose fitness but I don't want to push myself too much either.

What I'll probably do is just incorporate an extra day of weight training into my routine to maintain the intensity. Then juggle things as needed once training starts to increase in mileage.

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Rest Better

Another thing I've been thinking about for June is to switch one of my long runs from the weekend to the week. Once Saturday hits I'm so exhausted from running and working that the thought of waking up early yet again doesn't appeal to me.

Instead of missing a day of running, or being inadequately rested for the following week, I think running on Friday will be perfect. All my days will stay the same except I will do a low-intensity run on Monday (switched from Friday) and my Saturday long run on Friday.

That way I will have one day of the week where I can sleep or simply not have to think about running or work!

What are your goals for the month ahead?

Things I'm Loving (May Edition)

I don't know where the time has gone! It's June already and I feel like I'm playing catch up. However, I couldn't let another day pass without sharing my May Favorites.

These funny looking things are called "altramuces" or more colloquially "chochos." In English they're called Lupin beans but I've never seen them in a supermarket in the States or heard anyone talking about them. With good reason too because it's a real chore to cook Lupin beans.

If you don't cook them correctly you can get poisoned! It takes at least a week of rinsing and soaking and boiling to make them edible. Here in Spain they're eaten as a snack like potato chips or nuts. You put them in the fridge and in the summer you have a nice, cool, satisfyingly salty treat!

"Tinto de verano" is another summer time treat. It's a typical drink made from red wine and lemon soda. Whenever I go to a restaurant I order it and sometimes I even buy it bottled from the supermarket.

This vegetable I recently introduced myself to and since then have become obsessed! Leeks are so delicious and I like them best sauteed with just a touch of oil and some salt and pepper. I'm also digging soba noodles. Be sure to check out these vegan recipes if you want to know some quick and easy ways to cook both leeks and soba noodles.

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In a quest to save money my husband and I have started making our own bread and our own hummus. We eat hummus almost everyday and a small container at the supermarket is almost 2€. While a bottle of garbanzos is only 0.30€ and makes a large container that lasts more than 3 days!

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Not sure why, but once the warm weather hits the cravings for sweets intensifies. Since my husband and I are now vegan it gets harder and harder to buy pre-packaged goods anywhere really. I don't mind making our own things but there isn't always time to do so. Plus, at the end of a long day I like to grab something already cooked in the cupboard. These soy ice creams and dried fruit pieces really help to satisfy my sweet tooth.

Flavors: mango, papaya and ginger

Okay, so now onto a couple of non-food related items. 

I'm loving my hair accessories right now for the summer. It's such a cute way to easily spice up any hair style.

These are just a few. Please Look at Week 37 Hair, Week 46 Hair, and Week 50 Hair Part 2 for more pics.

I also can't live without my all-natural sunscreen I purchased from Smart Girls Who Surf, my African black soap, my coconut oil or my nail polish. 

I sweat a lot and I love washing my face with my black soap at the end of the day. It contains no chemicals and quickly washes away all dirt, oils, and makeup from my face effortlessly.

During the day I apply and re-apply my sunscreen because we all know we have to protect the delicate skin of the face from those harsh rays! I also use it when I go running because it's waterproof.

The coconut oil I like because it is a denser oil that helps my hair to better retain moisture with the hot, dry, summer climate here in Córdoba. I find it works better than olive oil and isn't as thick as castor oil.

Finally, nail polish is something I've always loved. But I usually only rock it in the summer because that's when those vibrant colors I like are in season.

What are some of your favorites from May?

May Reflections: Hair and Running

HAIR

Another updo with two daisies.

Last month was my 1-year HHCJ anniversary. It's strange but I didn't celebrate it with any bells and whistles. In fact I didn't really celebrate it at all! Last year when I started this journey I felt like a year was a long way off. Now that it's been a year I'm wondering where the time went.

In general I'm content with the progress that I've made. My continuing goal is to maintain healthy hair. I'm not obsessed with length, although I do want to continue to retain length. However, I doubt I'll do any further length checks.

I'm still figuring out what my hair likes and how to cope with my hair given my schedule restraints. I mentioned in the post Henna Application 2, that I wanted to try washing my hair every 2 weeks to cut down on manipulation. I don't like it. A clean scalp is important to me especially with all the exercising I do and 2 weeks is simply too long.

Now I want to try washing my hair with my twists in. (Check out Week 50 hair for more info) So this weekend I will wash and deep condition my hair with my twists in. When I apply my kimmaytube leave-in I will unravel each one individually, detangle, and then apply product.

On Tuesday of this week I did a "quick fix" because my hair needed some attention. I rinsed my scalp with a cheap conditioner really well and then applied my Aussie quick fix deep conditioner while I showered. My twists were still in the whole time. I rinsed it out and then applied my kimmaytube leave in, my Qhemet Biologics moisturizer and some coconut oil.

Since my hair gets very frizzy, I retwisted the perimeter of my head just so I would look presentable. I loved the results, my hair felt and looked great.

Overall, I'm trying to spend less time on my hair without sacrificing the health or appearance of it. I've learned to love my hair and how to manage it so that it's not only healthy, but also looks great too. I'm so happy I had the courage to embark on this journey because it's given me much more confidence in rocking my natural hair.

RUNNING

The conditioning program I started back in March has been going well. While I don't always get every, single, run in during the week and weekends I feel good. I feel like I'm still in shape, taking care of my body and am ready to start training on July 1st.

I've also already signed up for my second marathon in October! (more on that later!)

I've learned so much from when I started running in 2009 until now. I've gone through injuries, life-changes, and everything in-between, but I've stuck with it. I'm still running and still enjoying myself.

My goals for the future are to try trail running and ultramarathons! I plan to run my second marathon in October and the Seville marathon again in February of 2013. After that I want to concentrate on trying some trail running (smaller races at first) and then some ultramarathon training.

My over-arching goals are to stay fit, stay healthy, stay injury free and to continue to enjoy running! For the blog there's much more updates, thoughts and goals to come!