A Salad and Another Race

Summer is definitely knocking on the door here! Today it topped out in the low nineties, although it felt hotter in the sun. On days like these, I typically want a salad (surprise, surprise!). Tonight, I made my salad a hearty meal by adding half a roasted sweet potato and about half a can of pan-fried chickpeas. For the potatoes, I simply cubed them, tossed them in a couple teaspoons of olive oil, salt, and pepper, and roasted them for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees. For the chickpeas, I heated about a teaspoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a skillet, then added the chickpeas and cooked them for about 5 minutes, until they were popping. I topped this colorful creation with some freshly made Tomato Tahini Dressing, care of Gena at Choosing Raw. She has lots of great salad dressing ideas on her blog, so check it out. Anyway, this dressing called for one ingredient that isn't usually in my pantry (but should be): nutritional yeast. So, yesterday I bit the bullet and bought some from the bulk bin at my local Whole Foods. I was happy to find out that besides adding good flavor and a creamy texture to food, it is also a really good source of B vitamins and is a complete protein. Bonus. The only thing I changed in the dressing recipe was the nama shoyu; I subbed in soy sauce and it was no problem. This dressing added a lot of body to the salad without being heavy. The flavor was tomato-y, with a hint of tahini, but a little mild. Next time I might throw a clove or two of garlic in. But overall, it was a nice change of pace from the vinaigrettes I usually make. I have plenty leftover, and I think it would also serve well as a sandwich spread.

This Saturday I have my first race since the half marathon - The Spring Lake 5. This is a 5 mile race on a nice, flat course. It really serves as the kickoff to the summer racing season. This is one of the largest 5 mile races in the country, and is run by almost ten thousand people each year. It's also notoriously hard to get an entry into this race, but thanks to a very early morning wake up I managed to secure a bib. My Achilles is feeling pretty decent these days, thanks to Kinesio tape and heel lifts. I'm just happy to be healthy enough to be running! Ideally, I'd like to beat my 5 mile PR, which is 47:05. We'll see how it goes!