Thursday 12 July 2012

A soaking wet run and a cracking new recipe

This evening tested my resolve to get fit.  It was raining - quite heavily - outside and I don't own a treadmill.  I've already waxed lyrical in a previous post about how I loathe the gym, so it was run outside or not run at all.  My husband had already been out for a run on the field opposite our house and I reckoned if he could run on that (which would have been like a swamp), I can get out and do my usual circuit on the sidewalk.

Tonight I decided to bite the bullet and start my 5k programme straight from the door - that's a 5 minute warm up walk, followed by 2 x run 2 minutes, walk 2 minutes, run 5 minutes, walk 2.5 minutes.  I knew that this would mean that I would hit "the hill" running.  I've been avoiding this like the plague - it's not a steep hill, but it's a steady incline of about 1/3 mile.  Because I knew I would have to run continuously for five minutes in this programme, I avoided starting my official time until after I walked up the hill!  Tonight I thought "sod it!" and decided to tackle the beast head on.  And, as usual, I needn't have worked myself up about it.  It wasn't easy, I was sweating quite a bit when I got to the top and cursing every additional minute of running after I reached the top, but I'm glad I did it.

Can you see how soaked I am?!  Thankfully no panda eyes this time!


I did take my rainmac with me, but at the top of the hill it was tied around my waist because it was making me far too hot.  Needless to say, I did get absolutely soaked!  I seriously need to invest in some proper running gear, because running in a cotton t-shirt in the rain is not the best idea!  When I got home I noticed not only was my t-shirt soaked, but my bra too!!!  So, it's another session ticked off my 5k training and I think when we can get ourselves out and exercising even in not ideal conditions, it makes the victory taste even sweeter :-).

So, tonight I tried a fab new recipe, which I want to share with all of you.  I am really adventurous with food - I love to try new things, but I am limited in what I can cook at home because my husband is a stick in the mud with food, as is his father who lives with us.  However, everyone in the house likes lamb, so when I saw this recipe I thought surely I'm onto a winner!  It's from Annabel Karmel - a lady who specialises in recipes, food and nutrition for families with young children. I've always found her recipes to be very yummy and my kids love them, so that's even better!  These lamb koftas are basically little lamb burgers served in pitta pockets with salad and greek yogurt.  The lamb burgers are about 132 calories each and my pitta bread was 161 calories - but I know these can vary quite a bit.  One large pitta bread with two lamb burgers, a dollop of greek yogurt and loads of salad was enough to fill me up tonight.

         Lamb Koftas

2 onions, finely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
500g ground/minced lamb
80g fresh breadcrumbs (breadcrumbs don't weigh much, this was equivalent to about 1 cup)
2 tbsp chopped coriander (cilantro)
2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
1 tbsp mild curry powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1 lightly beaten egg
1 beef stock cube, crumbled
1 tsp sugar
salt and pepper

vegetable oil for frying

7 pitta bread pockets
salad with tomato, cucumber and lettuce
a pot of greek yogurt

Method:

Saute one of the onions in the olive oil until softened.  Mix together the sauteed onion, raw onion, minced lamb and all of the remaining ingredients (aside from the pitta bread, salad and yogurt, of course).  Transfer to a food processor and chop for a few seconds (I didn't do this because I only have a spice-grinder).

Form the mixture into 14 koftas (small burger shapes) and saute until golden and cooked through.  Drain on a bit of paper towel to soak up any excess oil before serving in the split pitta pocket with salad and greek yogurt - enjoy!

2 comments:

  1. So many people would have said forget it and stayed in. Awesome job going for a run even though the weather stunk!

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    1. Thanks Abby! It definitely helps being in "the zone"!! But I have to say it was quite refreshing to run in the rain - at least it cools you down!

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