Archive for September, 2009

Sicilian Pesto

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

We love anything with basil in our family. Even my one-year old and three-year old eat pizza and pasta with pesto instead of red sauce. One of the better recipes I have made is for Sicilian pesto. The Sicilian variety is special because it calls for tomatoes, uses almonds instead of pine nuts, and leaves out the cheese. It is really good and quite refreshing – not as heavy as the Genovese variety. We usually serve it on angel hair pasta with grilled shrimp. The kids love it and it is great for days when you want a few more carbs in your diet - like when training for a big race.

Here’s the recipe:

1/3 cup almonds
1 clove garlic
1 seeded, chopped jalapeño
¼ to ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Fresh basil
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced

Combine the almonds, garlic, jalapeño, and ¼ cup olive oil in a food processor (I usually like my pesto drier, but if needed, you can add the other ¼ cup of olive oil). Add basil leaves (about 30-40 leaves), until just blended and so it has texture. Do not process it into a puree. Pour into a mixing bowl and add tomatoes.

Mix with cooked angel hair pasta and serve with grilled shrimp…its really good…this recipe serves four people…Enjoy!!

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Posted in Recipes | 2 Comments »

I Have NEW Running Shoes!! Yeah ASICS!

Monday, September 7th, 2009

Yippeee!!! I have new running shoes. I broke down this evening and bought a replacement pair. I have to admit my running shoes were in TERRIBLE shape. They had miles upon miles of wear. In fact my “newer” shoes were so old that I replaced them at one point with my “old” running shoes that had less wear.

But now…I have BRAND NEW shoes!!! I ended up getting the same brand I had gotten in the past; so this makes for my THIRD pair of ASICS - I must be a fan. I know they fit me well, they never give me blisters, and they make me fast…well, kind of fast. I am so motivated to break them in…YEAH!

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Posted in Running, Running Gear | No Comments »

Calypso Cascades at Wild Basin – Another Great Rocky Mountain National Park Hike and Bears a Plenty

Monday, September 7th, 2009

For years upon years I’ve been coming to Rocky Mountain National Park, but I had never experienced the Wild Basin area near Allenspark. I have one word for this area of the park, PHENOMENAL! We decided to hike to Calypso Cascades on Saturday morning to kick off the Labor Day weekend.

After driving back to the parking area on a dirt road, we were greeted by our first surprise…bears!! Apparently, bears had shattered the window and torn out the metal door frame of two cars that were parked in the parking lot. The rangers were all abuzz. Typically, we have been told to leave all food, sun blocks, candy, etc in the car; however, the rules were new for these bears. They clearly knew how to get to the food they craved. Consequently, we were told to pack all of our food out of the car and take it with us on our hike.

Once I confirmed that the trail we were going to be taking was fairly busy, we packed up our picnic lunch and headed out. The trail was gorgeous. It followed a swift creek most of the way. The trail meandered through thick forest that reminded me of the Pacific Northwest, more than it reminded me of Colorado. Ferns, green mosses, and damp pine needles were all to be found during the entire hike.

After hiking about 1.8 miles in, we reached Calypso Cascades. The bridge crossing the stream below the cascades made for a perfect photo opportunity with the kids. Then, we settled in for our lunch. Although I initially had envisioned us hiking all the way to some larger waterfalls, storm clouds were approaching and the temperature was dropping. The kids were getting chilled, so we high-tailed it back to the parking lot.

All-in-all it was an exciting hiking trip…always on the look out for hungry bears. I can’t wait to head back and make it a bit further next time. I’d love to see the falls and eventually the lakes beyond that. One step at a time…I’m sure we will see it all…

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Posted in Hiking, Mountains | 3 Comments »

SIGG Offers to Replace Old Water Bottles with New BPA-Free Ones

Thursday, September 3rd, 2009

I commend SIGG CEO, Steve Wasik, for setting up an exchange program for people who have purchased water bottles with a BPA liner. Although the public should not have ever been given the wrong impression on the bottles, the company is taking steps to correct the problem. In a letter on the SIGG website, he announced, “…we made a commitment consistent with SIGG values that we would offer anyone who is concerned about BPA an opportunity to swap their old SIGGs for new SIGGs with the new EcoCare liner. Today, I am announcing that this voluntary Exchange Program will be in place until October 31, 2009 to ensure that our customers have ample time to send their former liner bottles back to us should they choose to do so.”

The exchange program is simple; however, since the program is only voluntary and not a mandatory recall, each consumer is responsible for the cost of shipping the old water bottle back to SIGG. The SIGG website links consumers to the appropriate shipping labels and return forms. At the very least, consumers will be able to get new BPA-free water bottles for a minimal charge – this is better than the alternatives – drink from a BPA-lined water bottle or foot the bill for a new one altogether.

Hopefully other companies will follow suit. I had always been a HUGE Nalgene® fan. When I found out that the water bottles that I had been drinking from every day for years – at work, while on hikes, and while at the pool – were comprised of BPA, I immediately became alarmed. I contacted the Nalgene® customer service department and was told that BPA has not been proven to be dangerous if I use the product correctly and I’m out-of-luck if I’m looking to replace my water bottles free of charge. I threw out my old Nalgene® bottles and I will never use a Nalgene® product again.

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Posted in Health, Healthy Living | No Comments »

Rocky Mountain National Park – A Night to Ourselves

Tuesday, September 1st, 2009

On a whim, my husband decided to take a vacation day on Monday. We wanted to go someplace close to home and so we headed back to our favorite stomping grounds on Sunday morning – Rocky Mountain National Park. It turned out to be a real treat!

To begin with, we felt like we had Rocky Mountain National Park to ourselves. We got what we consider to be a “prime” camping spot. We took a hike up a little hill, relaxed, took in the beauty of Longs Peak, while watching herds of elk in the moraine below.

The best thing about the entire night was that NOONE was there. My husband and I joked about whether it was the end of August or the end of February. There was not a single camper on the opposite side of the street and there were at least a dozen spots that were open on either side of us.

I know that camping on a Sunday night was the key to the entire process; however, we thought it would a bit more crowded with the busy Labor Day weekend just around the corner. How wrong we were – happily!!

The next day we tootled up to Bear Lake (there were tons of parking spots) and did a short little hike up to Nymph Lake. The lily pads are still beautiful up there – not in full bloom but still bright green and very tranquil looking. Then, we meandered back to the campground, packed up, and headed home. A true vacation and Rocky Mountain National Park to ourselves!

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Posted in Mountains | No Comments »