Retro Recipes and Traditional Fare

The biggest problem with dating an ultra-runner is how unimpressive your small, daily achievements seem in comparison.  My boyfriend, Shannon, ran 8 ultra-marathons (marathons longer than 26.2 miles) in 2012, bringing his race and training mileage to around 3500 miles in just one calendar year. 3500 miles- the distance from New York to Los Angeles, on foot.

I’m still in a great deal of denial about the whole thing.

One of the perks of dating an ultra-runner, however, is that you get to cheer them on in some truly amazing places.  This past January, we traveled to Hawaii so he could compete in one of the hardest ultra-marathons in the world; The H.U.R.T. 100 Mile Endurance Run.

“Compete” is actually the wrong word.  Most 100 mile races are so challenging that the runners try to concentrate more on finishing than finishing first.  I learned a lot on this trip while listening to racers tell stories about how desperately they wanted to quit mid-race but reached deep within themselves and found the emotional and physical fortitude to continue on.

But wait a minute.  Back to me.

If I say, "She's so granola," you know exactly what I mean -- she's a tree-hugging, free-spirited, hemp-wearing woman with long graying hair who wears her well-worn Birkenstocks to walk to the local co-op where she buys only fair-trade goods.

Does that mean that a short-haired, Anthrolpologie-wearing, Cosmo-drinking girl with a 401K like me can't be "granola"? Cause I eat a lot of it.

I don't buy it at the local co-op; I make my own, while wearing high heels. Making homemade granola is easy and allows you to control the fat, sugar, and calorie content. It's also less expensive. Don't pay $5.00/pound for pre-made granola when you can buy oats for 79 cents a pound.

My current favorite is Easy Homemade Crunchy Maple Walnut Granola, a hearty maple-coated granola loaded with clusters of sticky walnuts and coconut, crisp banana chips, and tart cherries. I know it's expensive, but you have to use pure maple syrup.  

Recently someone said to me, "You're so Mad Men in that dress." Hah. Little do they know I'm so granola.

In the Deep South, spoonbreads are our version of bread puddings and Yorkshire pudding and other European pudding-esque breads. Referred to as “spoonbreads” for their gooey texture, consistency, and easy enjoyment with a spoon, these quick and easy delights have arisen from surplus and derelict circumstances alike – too many squash to eat at once or not enough of this and that to make a complete recipe!

This Squash Spoonbread came out of a surplus of baby crookneck squash, thankfully! Shredding these delicious little gourds on my standing mixer’s shredder attachment (what a fun toy, p.s.), one quickly realizes why vegetables are so healthy – they are all water with a bit of fiber and some nutrients for color! Now, the butter may demise that perfect combo of natural, healthy complements, but it sure does make it good! A shredded onion, Vidalia preferably, adds great texture, moisture, and flavor too.

It wasn't until I moved to the West Coast, that I realized how many people had been deprived of one of my favorite childhood treats - Whoopie Pies.  A New England favorite,  Whoopie Pies were always part of bake sales, school lunches, and family gatherings.  And, they were quite often the confection upon which many mother's were judged. The variations in the pie (which is actually cake) and the sweetness and texture of the filling can differ greatly with each recipe.  My Aunt Mary would often lament about the pies turning out too flat, or the filling too runny.  Our next door neighbor, Mrs. Ekberg, made a memorable Whoopie Pie, with a completely unique cooked cream filling, a recipe that she never shared, but I later discovered the method while researching frostings for Red Velvet Cake.  At home, my sister has become the family champion of Whoopie Pies, and has a blue ribbon from the county fair to prove it.