Posted by terrepruitt on March 2, 2013
For those of you that cook dinner every night you might understand what I am about to say, “Cooking dinner is difficult.” Ok, more accurately coming up with ideas of what to cook for dinner is difficult. I actually have it very easy because my husband would be fine eating the same thing all week then switching to something else the next week. As long as it was not a vegetarian dish three days in a row. But I am not happy with that. As you know if you have read any of my posts about food, I love left overs because they keep me from having to cook or at least keep me from having to start from scratch. The other night I was really at a loss as to what to prepare for dinner. It was a Wednesday so I really should have been thinking in terms of cooking for Wednesday so that I could have enough left over for Thursday when I have a late Nia class. But I couldn’t think “two nights” I just wanted to get through the one night and use the portion of a piece of chicken I had from the night before. I came up with something that I didn’t even think about being enough for leftovers but it was. It carried us through two nights. Asparagus, beans, rice, and chicken.
Another thing you might know about me if you have a read a few of my posts, I LOVE asparagus. I mean, love, love, love, love. Once I was asked what food I would want to have given to me free every day and I said asparagus. But even though I love it, I won’t buy it when it is $8.99 a pound. I don’t even like to buy it when it is $4.99 a pound. I might buy it when it is $2.99 a pound, but I like the $1.99 range. But knowing how much I love it my hubby bought me some recently. I didn’t ask how much it was. I just had five pounds of asparagus to eat. 🙂
I often use three servings of meat to make four servings of dinner. Usually my husband has a serving and I have a good portion of one. The next night I will use the third serving along with my smaller portion to make another meal. Well on this night I was using just my left over portion because we had only cooked two servings the night before. So to me it would be a vegetarian-ish dish. As it would have way more veggies than meat.
So here is my “recipe”
Asparagus, beans, rice, and chicken
—1 tablespoon olive oil
—1/2 of an onion, chopped
—asparagus (2.25 pounds) chopped
—2 teaspoons minced garlic
—1 3/4 cup cooked rice
—2 tablespoons of butter
—3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
—1 15 1/2-ounce can garbanzo beans/chickpeas, drained and rinsed
—3/4th of a LARGE chicken breast, cooked and chopped
—Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
—Garlic Salt, to taste
Heat the olive oil and the chopped onion. Add the asparagus. Cook only slightly (because the rice takes a while to heat up). Sprinkle garlic over asparagus. Stirring it and allowing it to cook. Add the rice breaking it up and letting it get soft. Use the butter to help the rice get moist (might need to use a bit of liquid too). And the cumin. When the rice is soft, add the can of garbanzo beans. Then add the chopped up chicken. Add pepper and garlic salt to taste.
Since asparagus doesn’t take that long to cook and everything else is ok to eat as is, it is really the rice that needs the most amount of time. If you are using freshly cooked rice then this would take minutes. As a note the chicken I used had been seasoned when cooked the night before so that is something to keep in mind when flavoring your dish.
For me it is the beans and the cumin that is “new”. I have done dishes like this before using other meat. I think this would also be good with left over pork.
I was thinking of the Red Beans and Rice recipe when I did this, using the beans and the cumin.
We liked it. What do you think? Sound easy? Sound like something you would like?
Posted in "Recipes", Food | Tagged: Asparagus, chicken, chickpeas, cooking dinner, cumin, Garbanzo beans, Nia class, olive oil. left overs, Red Beans and Rice, Thursday night Nia class, vegetarian dish | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 2, 2013
So here is the check in post that you get to use. I post this right after midnight (PST) so that early birds can post their comment that they did their plank. I might not get around to it until a lot later in the day and I want you to be able to post your “I did it!” as soon as you do it!
In my original post I had mentioned putting your palms on the floor. Well, if this causes stress/pain in the wrist I would recommend making a fist and having the side of your hands on the ground. Remember pain is not the goal. Discomfort . . . something that our bodies use to tell us it is being challenged and learning something new is one thing. Pain is another.
How are you doing? Are you going to add to your time tomorrow? Are you going to keep your duration during this coming week?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: plank daily challenge, planking, second day | 3 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 1, 2013
I wanted to share one of the good things I put in my jar. It actually happened last week so I could have included it in my Goodie Jar – Check In #4, but I was so excited about the wrapping paper idea I got carried away with that. Anyway, last Thursday was Valentine’s Day and it was my second Nia class at the new time at one of the places I teach for the city of San Jose. I did not have one person in my class. Even though I don’t take it personally I still am usually a little sad when that happens, but this was a cause for a note in my goodie pitcher.
You might be wondering why I would think no one showing up for my class is a good thing, well, as I said it was Valentine’s Day and I was happy because no one being with ME meant that they ALL have SOMEONE to be with! Whenever I think of that I cannot wipe the smile off my face! HOW GREAT IS IT THAT ALL OF THEM HAVE SOMEONE TO LOVE?????? I am not even talking about romantic love. I know some people like to be with their friends, their kids, their parents . . . . WHO is not the issue . . . . LOVE is the thing! They were all too busy with a loved one to be with me. I’m good with that. I am better than good with that. I LOVE that.
So that is one of the things in my goodie jar! It is a GREAT thing that my students have someone to love!
Oh! That is another good thing for MY jar . . . . I have someone to love . . . . how about you? Are you adding things to your good things jar?
Posted in Good Things in the Goodie Jar | Tagged: check in #4, check in #5, City of San Jose, good things jar, Goodie Jar, love is great, loved one, Nia, Nia class, Nia San Jose, romantic love, San Jose Nia, San Jose Nia class, Valentine's Day | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 1, 2013
So, today is our first day of our month of planking. Did you do it? Even though it will only take a few seconds I have not yet done my daily plank. I am posting close to midnight so that you early birds can do you comments as soon as you are done. Me, I’ll be back.
Thank you for being here. Let’s do this!!!!!
Posted in Planking | Tagged: daily plank, month long challenge, planking | 1 Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on February 28, 2013
So, a new month, a new challenge, yes? Wanna? This one will be super easy — time wise — I know, KNOW that you can fit it into your schedule because it is only going to be from 15 seconds — yes, SECONDS, to 90 seconds! You can find 15 seconds in a day to do something right? Fifteen seconds every day! What do you say, wanna commit up to 90 seconds a day for the month of March? Well, before you say yes you want to know what it is you are saying yes too, huh? Well, ok. Planking! You know the position where most people start a push-up? There is that plank or the version where you are on your forearms. The forearm position is the one I am going to recommend for this little challenge. Now remember it is a “challenge” for different people for different reasons. Some may not know how to do a plank so learning it will be the thing they accomplish. Some people can do it perfect no problem, but they never actually take the time to do it. So there are many reasons why we have these little “challenges”. There are different reasons for different people.
My thought is that you pick your own length of time and add onto it every week. If you are starting at 15 seconds and you add 15 seconds per “week” you could end up doing the plank for 75 seconds. The main point is to do it EVERY DAY! The idea is to add time each week.
I would suggest picking the starting time you can do and the length of time you want to end up doing, then add time accordingly.
As I said in the opening paragraph this position is easily compared to the starting position of a push up. Instead of moving the body toward the earth and back up, the body is stationary. So one can do this with straight arms — as the starting position of a push up would dictate, or one can place their palms on the ground and rest on the forearms. I recommend the forearm on ground position to help allow for an easier time of not letting the shoulder/chest sag.
You might actually want to use a mirror for this if you have one because you want to make certain that your body is in complete alignment. Your head is aligned with your hips in a straight line. Your hips do not pitch up nor sink down. Because your arms are holding your body weight this is a great exercise for the arms. Because your abdominals are engaged this is a great workout for your abs. Your legs are working in connection with your back and holding your hips in alignment. This position engages so many muscles it is almost a whole body workout/exercise.
Be very conscious of your hips. Remember to keep them in alignment the entire time. Don’t let them sag nor peak up! Having a mirror is really a great tool because sometimes even when you think the hips are in alignment you might look at notice they are a bit low or a bit high.
Like the challenge we did in December 2012, I’ve made a calendar for you to help remind you and to help you keep track. Also, I will be post on my blog so that you can check in! Let’s do it!
What do you say? Wanna plank?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: body in alignment, challenge, December 2012 challenge, muscles engaged, plank, planking, spine in alignment | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on February 26, 2013
Have you seen this stuff before? Doesn’t this look as if it is a vegetable from another planet? The first time I saw it I was at a farmers market and I asked the vendor if I could take pictures. This vegetable made me laugh. I thought it was one of the funniest vegetables I have ever seen. I thought she had called it an Italian Cauliflower. She had me believing it tasted like cauliflower. I am not really a fan of cauliflower so I wasn’t interested in buying it and trying it. But lo-and-behold I received some in my organic produce box that I have delivered. Yay! AGAIN, I received something that I would not have bought. Often times I don’t think about somethings so I don’t buy them, but this particular vegetable I was once faced with buying but declined because I didn’t know what it was! So here I had some delivered and so I “HAD” to try it. Well, I actually received two. One head on one delivery and another head the next. Yeah, that is kind of long for vegetables to sit in the fridge, but . . . sometimes even though I get it delivered I am still not all that enthusiastic about trying it. Plus, I am still trying to get my new schedule down. I have just started teaching Nia classes two nights a week and so I need to have my cooking schedule down and when I don’t know how to cook something a night I am rushing off to teach is not a good night to experiment. So, I received a new bunch just this past delivery. Plus I still had the first bunch. So I decided to cook them both at once.
I bet you know how I cooked them . . . . you got it. I chopped it up and put it on a pan with olive oil and garlic salt and I roasted it. I decided to cook it a little later than I normally would have started my roasted veggies – meaning the rest of dinner would be done really quick – so I really cranked up the heat. I started it off at 450. I cooked it for about 10 minutes. Then I turned it down to 400 and cooked it for about 10 minutes. Then I think I turned it off and cooked it for about 10 minutes. It seemed to cook faster than both broccoli and cauliflower. It browned very nice.
I thought it would take a long time because it seems dense like cauliflower. Well, it seemed to cook up faster. Yay!
Well, I was very surprised at the sweetness of it. It tasted really sweet. It was very funny having that cornucopia shaped veggie on my tongue. It is pokey. It has a mild flavor. A little sweet. Well, I have to say that I like it.
Here is what Wiki says about it: “Romanesco broccoli, or Roman cauliflower, is an edible flower of the species Brassica oleracea, and a variant form of cauliflower. First documented in Italy . . . ”
I am unable to find nutritional information on it. Maybe as it gains popularity the nutritional information will start showing up on the internet?
Have you seen it? Have you tried it? What do you think?
Posted in Food, Vegetables | Tagged: Alien vegetables, broccoli, cauliflower, Farmers Market, Italian cauliflower, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia schedule, organic, Roman cauliflower, Romanesco broccoli, vegetables from another planet | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on February 23, 2013
Just as there are specific moves in Nia (Nia’s 52 Moves), there are different asanas or poses in yoga. There is an asana (pose) in yoga that is standing still, but it is called Mountain Pose. In Sanskrit, what I think of as the language of yoga, it is Tadasana. While this pose is a still pose and the body is standing erect, it is an active pose. The body is not just upright and relaxed, there are muscles engaged and energy moving. It is more than likely that there is no straining involved and one might look relaxed and even feel relaxed yet there is more than just standing there happening. Mountain Pose is an active pose often used as a transitional pose. Yet can stand on its own, no pun intended.
In Tadasana toes touch and feet are parallel. Of course, as with many things, there are many variations, and people have their own way of doing them. In this post in the pose our toes touch, feet are parallel forming a stable base. For some the heels might need to be fanned out a bit or feet may need to be separate. The goal is to have a stable base so adjust the feet as necessary in order to ensure stability. One way to assist with stability is to relax your feet allowing the toes to spread. Imagine your feet becoming wide and open. The feet do not grip the earth, they spread out. Weight is evenly distributed. Take time to sense all points of the feet.
The ankle joints remain open. The shins and calves are rooted into the floor. The knees are not locked, yet they sense stability because the quadriceps are reaching up lifting the knee caps. The thighs are turned ever-so-slightly in. The buttocks are lifted yet there is no arching in the lower back. The belly (abdominals) are engaged. The spine is long.
With the crown of your head reach for the sky, lengthening the entire back. Keep the chin parallel to the earth and your head in alignment with your chest, hips, knees, and feet. Shoulders are gently pulled back with shoulder blades down, the chest does not stick out, yet the sternum is presented up allowing the collar bones to open wide. Arms are along the side of the body, not hanging, not touching the body, not rigid, but active. Hands are active with fingers gently fanned open.
Energy is moving up allowing for the lengthening of the entire body, yet there is a sense of being rooted and stable. As I mentioned this pose is often used as a transition. You might see it performed in between standing poses. It is perfect to reset the body in order to correctly move into another position. It can also be used as a resting pose. Even though it is an active pose, it still can be a rest for the body.
As you can tell, if you got up to try it, this is not a passive pose. There is a lot of muscle engagement, so maybe you can see why this pose could be practiced on it’s own and not just used as a transition. It is not just standing still, it is a strong, stable pose, like a mountain.
So if you didn’t already do it, are you ready? Get up and try it!
Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: active pose, asanas, Mountain pose, Nia, Nia's 52 Moves, poses, sanskrit, standing still, Tadasana, Yoga and Pilates, yoga poses, Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on February 22, 2013
This is the fourth check in for the Goodie Jar, the jar where we put notes of good things that have happened. I started my jar a month into 2013, but I added a couple of notes of things that happened in January so I’m ok with the late start. In my last check in, check in #3 I shared that I am using all different kinds of paper and even folding them a different way. I look around my house to try to find different color paper or paper with something pretty or colorful on it. Well, I was wrapping a gift and I had one of those little pieces of wrapping paper that there is nothing to do with but throw away. It was too small to use as in a bag as I mentioned in my Wrapping Tips post (you can read about that by clicking here). But it was big enough to write a good thing on!
Oh yeah! I can have a goodie jar full of wrapping paper scraps. Ha, that is a fun idea, but I don’t actually wrap that much! But when I do, I usually end up with that one little piece of paper that is not gonna wrap or cushion any thing. Now it will be a pretty addition to my good things pitcher! Yay!
So, I am wishing you a rapidly filling goodie jar. How is it going for you?
Posted in Good Things in the Goodie Jar | Tagged: good things jar, Goodie Jar, recycle, wrapping paper, wrapping paper scraps, wrapping tips | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on February 21, 2013
Recently I was in a situation that had me wondering . . . . are some people intimidated by joy? I am pretty sure that most of you are familiar with being intimidated by power or authority. Whether you have been the one intimidated or have seen it, I have faith you know what I’m talking about. There could be a situation where someone is not confident or is a little shy and a person with power or authority intimidates this person, even if they don’t mean to. But . . .hmmm . . . . looking up the definition of intimate this is what I am getting:
Verb — Frighten or overawe (someone), esp. in order to make them do what one wants.
And just to be clear for overawe:
Verb — Impress (someone) so much that they become silent or inhibited
Another definition of intimidate is: to make timid or fearful
So maybe intimidate is not even the word I am looking for. What I am looking for is “become hostile and angry and downright rude”. What word is that? It kind of reminds me of the situations where people are guilty of something so they get the same way. You can read my post on that by clicking here. Maybe that’s what it was. Maybe the person recognized the inappropriateness of her/his actions so s/he got rude. But could it be that some people just can’t handle the joy of others. As if their life is so miserable that they become combative and hostile? Have you ever been in that situation? Let me tell you, it is pretty odd.
As I said, I was recently in a situation where the person kind of flew off the handle. As I think about it I cannot understand the reason for this person acting as s/he did. I keep having to remember: it is a reflection of the person being hostile and not me. But I keep wondering. So that is why the thought occurred to me that some people just don’t like others to be happy or something. Some people don’t know how to act in the face of joy or they think that because they are miserable every one should be or no one else has the right to be happy? Or yeah, maybe they become fearful because they don’t know what joy is? Then because they are fearful/intimidated their reaction is belligerent and combative?
Wow. I know I am doing a lot of speculating here, but that is how baffled I am. In the past when this has happened when I have experienced people like this, I have been fortunate enough to be able to remove myself from having to encounter them, but this situation might not be that simple. And, of course you KNOW my immediate reaction is to pour MORE joy into the situation. I just want to saturate the entire space with it, but will that make it worse? That is why I am wondering if someone can be become hostile and angry and downright rude when faced with joy. And if they can will they just become more hostile and angry and downright rude and maybe even violent? Ekkkk! Can’t have that!
So . . . . what do you think? Do you think there are people out there who are intimated by joy?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: angry in the face of joy, belligerent, combative, hostile in the face of joy, intimidated by authority, intimidated by joy, intimidated by power, joy, overawe, rude in the face of joy | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on February 19, 2013
My husband claims he can only cook three meals. The three things do not include him cooking meat and veggies on the grill. The meals that he will cook are beef stroganoff, taco salad, and curry. On special occasions I will request that he make dinner. When I first met him I told him that I would not cook dinner every night. And if I were still working a 40+ hour a week job OUTSIDE of the home, I probably would not. But as my current 40+ hour a week job has me at home more often than not, I have been cooking almost every night. But you know how I love leftovers so I do take advantage of that when I can. For Valentine’s Day, Birthdays, and wedding anniversaries I usually request that he cook. Most often I prefer that rather than going out. The past couple of times that he has cooked I have asked for curry. To me I only know curry the way he cooks it and serves it. He buys beef and cooks it with curry seasonings. He makes rice and we put the meat over that. The best part is all the toppings. And one of the reasons I like when HE makes it is I don’t have to chop up all the toppings.
For our curries we use raisins, peanuts, sunflower seeds, carrots, bell peppers, brocoli, mango chutney, cucumbers, onions, and coconut. I don’t put peanuts or coconut on mine, but he puts it on his. On the plate pictured I didn’t put onions, but on the next night’s plate I did. The meat was cooked with onions so you still might see some in the photo, but not the raw ones.
The rice and the meat are hot (temperature) while the vegetables are raw. I love to add a ton of vegetables to my plate. It is so interesting because every bite is different. You never get the same thing. I like the veggies chopped up really small so that I can get a bite with rice, meat, and a bunch of veggies in my mouth. If the veggies are too big then you just end up with rice, meat, and ONE veggie and that makes it seem like a regular meal, not a curry dish.
I don’t know how other curry is served but that is how my husband does it. Also, the poor guy . . . he LOVES hot stuff, especially curry, but — if you have read a couple of my posts about food, you know I cannot tolerate spicy heat at all. So my hubby makes our curry meat totally mild. There is NO HEAT AT ALL. But the flavor is really good. I feel bad that he does not get to experience the spicy heat. Maybe we can make up a separate dish of HOT curry sauce and he can put that on his curries.
Another thing I love about curry is that there is usually enough for at least one more meal. If you’ve read a couple of my posts about food, you know I love to have leftovers so I can alleviate at least one night of cooking a full meal.
I really like curry. Maybe I should request it more often. Not just on special occasions. Then on a special occasion I can request of his other specialty meals. 🙂
Do you like curry? Is this how you eat your curry with a lot of different toppings piled on it?
Posted in Food | Tagged: Birthdays, brocoli, coconut, curry, curry dish, curry meal, curry seasonings, mango chutney, special occasions, specialty meals, spicy hot, Valentine's Day, Vegetables, wedding anniversaries | 4 Comments »
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