Hi! So, it’s officially less than a week until my birthday 
. Do other people love their birthday as much as I do? I’m curious. I get kind of unreasonably excited about it and decide that all day I’m totally special. I do get bummed about the fact that I had to be born in the dead middle of winter though. Thanks Mom. But I digress.
I wanted to update you on some of my eats from the past couple of days:
Falafel! Falafel (basically, chic peas that are mashed and baked) still makes me think of those 3 am weekend nights (mornings?) right after you graduate college, when you emerge from the bar ready to eat your arm, only to stumble into the path of a beautiful little Falafel place that tastes like the best thing you’ve ever eaten at that very second.
The only thing that can top this 3am miracle is chili cheese dogs from a cart, but that’s another story.
I made this for dinner last night, and it was SO good! The directions were for deep frying it, which would have been delicious, but I don’t own a deep fryer. Does anyone these days?
Honestly, I would love to get one and say I would only use it every once in a while, but the more likely scenario would be that I would start deep-frying donuts and french fries every day and all of a sudden forget that I love almond butter. That would be a tragedy.
So anyway, the Falafel came out of the oven still crispy and yummy minus the vat of oil:
I actually almost burned them, because my dog decided he had to pee at the very second I needed to be monitoring them closely and barked his head off to go outside, and it was either watch him empty his bladder on the floor or abandon my Falafel balls. True story. (We made it. Barely. So did the Falafel.)
So anyway, I haven’t mentioned it much on the blog, but I’ve still been running, and making some progress! Does anyone else feel like there is so much to learn/know/understand about running?
I read a lot about interval training, speed work, etc, but so far my plan has just sort of been to tackle the treadmill three to four times a week, increasing my mileage/speed a little bit each week. But I am training for this craziness and really want to be able to do my best:
The 500 Festival Mini-Marathon! Thinking about completing this 13.1 miles makes me really happy. Thinking of doing it at my goal speed (which is yet to be completely determined) makes me really extra happy!
So my question is this: would it be beneficial to sign up and train with a running group? There is one in my area, and it’s a little pricey, but it holds group runs once a week specifically target toward the Mini. I printed out this training schedule to use on my own, but am wondering if it would be better to run with a group. Thoughts? I am such a running newbie.
In related news, Dave and I watched Spirit of the Marathon the other night and it’s SO good! It really captures the reasons for running and the feelings you get from it. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for motivation.
So tonight involves a fun hair-related outing…come back tomorrow to see how that turns out (I know this sounds riveting) and Fun Fashion Friday!
Haha we got a deep fryer for our wedding, and with as much cooking as I do, I’ve never used it!!!
I REALLY want to try falafel. Everytime I see it, my mouth waters! I love anything in ball form.
I’m going to TJ’s this weekend, so hopefully they have it there?
I would definitely do the group runs if you could! I’ve always trained by myself in the past, but wished I’d had a group to do long runs with. I’m sad I won’t be able to do the Mini this year – it is SO MUCH fun. I’m excited for you!
1. I love those falafel balls–they seem like a summer-y food to me though, which is when I like to make them and pair with a cucumber/tomato salad.
2. YES to a training group! I never would have been able to run the mini last year without it!
Training with a group is so powerful! First, there is built-in accountability. But perhaps more importantly, you are surrounded by people who can inspire you to achieve your goals and to teach you those little running “secrets.” I think it is well worth the investment! Good luck with your training!
I love falafel…it is just hard to find it without bread crumbs! I am going to check this out though.
Congrats on your runs! I think a group environment is a great idea!
I’ve never had Falafel, but I’m sure they are good!
I’ve tried a number of times to make myown falafals. Every time they fall apart in the frying oil (we just put a big pot of peanut oil on the stove and got it super hot). Then we add some extra flour to the dough to help them stick together and then they don’t taste good. I’ve found the best way is to make falafals is shape them into patties and bake them on a cookie sheet that has a couple tablespoons of peanut oil greasing the bottom. They come out crispy and don’t fall apart!
Now I want to make falafals!
I truly LOVE falafel! It’s one of my favorites!
falafel is the BOMB – so yum!
ive never tried making falafel before! i feel like i havent eaten it enough to really crave it, you know what i mean?
i love love love my bday. i walk around all day with a stupid grin on my face, eat ice cream cake, and always wear a tiara
check out http://biz319.wordpress.com/ one day…she makes some amazing deep fryer creations!!!
Hey girl! Training groups can be fun and keep the running interesting and you might learn some tips. If you are a newbie runner this might be beneficial. But if it is too expensive then it really isn’t necessary as long as you are dedicated to following the schedule on your own. I have the 1/2 marathon training schedule I used when training for my first one a few years ago on my blog if you are interested. It is under the tab: how I run….
Thank you Kelly!! I will definitely take a look.
fryers always scare me! I’m pretty sure I’m going to burn myself!
I have never had falafel. I really want to try it, I just havent yet. No good excuses or anything. Just lazy.
I’m new to running, too! And am constantly amazed at how much there is to learn. But similar to you, I’m just trying to START running for now (which I am somewhat pathetic at) and learn later. Love your blog!
I think it goes without saying how I feel about my birthday, so I think you excitement is perfectly natural!
I would join a running group. My friend Lee joined one when he ran a mini in November and he said it was a great investment.
I would definitely recommend creating a little running group to spur you along! A few of my friends and my sister started one about two years ago and it worked out great. It’s just so much fun having your friends by your side to motivate you. We aren’t in a race against one another, we’re just there to accomplish the same goal together – we even have a motto: Start Strong, Just Finish
I really want to try falafel balls!!
Hey Casey! I just started blogging a couple of months ago and one of my first blogs was about how much I love falafel and finding a great baked falafel recipe! If you’re interested, the recipe is here: http://minnestrella.blogspot.com/2009/11/baked-falafel-culinary-victory.html. Love the blog!
I trained for my first half with a friend and did several of my long runs on my own. I thought doing runs on my own would be awful but I actually enjoyed it. I think you should save your money and do it on your own.