curry paste!

Curry makes me HAPPY!

Curry paste:

1 onion chopped

3-4 cloves garlic

1/2 inch piece ginger

1small stick cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon coriander

1/2 teaspoon chilli powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 cloves

1 cardamom

5-6 cashew nuts

4 tablespoons of oil

1 cup tomato puree

Vegetables:

300g purple sweet potato, peeled and diced5 Chinese long beans, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces1 large carrot, peeled and diced

I didnt want to go too in depth about this curry paste because I want YOU to make up your own mind as to what you use it for! It really is the perfect filler for almost anything. Use your imagination!

Happy Friday everyone!

See you soon! Enjoy this weekend!

-Heather

Fava's oh my...

GOOD MORNING!!!

Have you ever seen a Fava bean? Well, let me tell you. These babies take some work. I mean WORK. It almost took me a hour to get them prepared. You better believe every bite was not taken for granted.

They come in huge pods...once you take the bean out of the pod, THEN you have to take the casing off the bean. When done...you have yourself one of the most amazing beans, in my opinion. Fava beans should be shelled and peeled before eating. The outer peel on the beans, while technically edible, is very woody in texture and detracts from the buttery feel of the inner bean. This is the bean all ready to be blanched. They are very large so you only get a few beans per pod.

I rinsed the beans and sat them aside. The hard part was over! Wait...what am I making???

Sorry, I forgot to tell you!

Fava beans with mint, prosciutto, tomme & brown butter vinaigrette

Now you know. Back to Fava's...They have high concentrations of L-dopa (dopamine), an amino acid that is a neurotransmitter in the brain. Dopamine plays a role in the brain in such activities as memory, energy and sex drive. Dopamine levels decline in brain cells as we age, so who knows what role Fava Beans might play in keeping those levels up. We do know for sure that Fava Beans are low in calories and in fat, with no cholesterol. They’re also high in protein, iron, and fiber, and are good sources of vitamin C, vitamin A, and potassium.When the fava's were shelled and ready I started making the brown butter vinaigrette.

Thanks to my magic bullet (a single girls best friend) I was able to make a perfect amount (2 servings) for me and another. I decided that I would invite another person to try out this dish and get some input. He will be commenting on this post with his thoughts and I will publish it. (You better Pete!). Anyway, the vinaigrette had mint and olive oil and shallots (and other unnamed ingredients, just to make you wonder...ha!)

I went with red shallots as I like the taste better than the yellow variety. I saved just a tad to toss with my fava's as I blanched them. Once the favas and the vinaigrette was ready it was pretty much time for me to plate the food. I used arugula, prosciutto, tomme, mint and parsley. Together...they became one.

OMG...this was one of the best salad's I have ever had. I haven't had prosciutto in forever so that is why I went with it instead of the country ham. I rolled the prosciutto and they seriously looked like roses on the plate!

This recipe is the perfect start to a meal, lunch, or all by it's self. You know that I can eat...so the salad needed some friends to go along with. I was starving so prepare your self...I really added some weight to this meal!
I made some asparagus, corn and baked sweet potato's to go along with the wonderful salad. Here is the final product.

A meal like this wouldn't be a meal without the perfect wine pairing (in my book ) so this was the wine of the evening that I chose.

I went with one of my favorites! New Age. If you haven't had this wine. Get. It.

I am a red wine lover. I very rarely drink white wine. I do however have a slight obsession with anything fizzy (soda streamer ring a bell?). With that being said, sparkling wines such as prosecco is the perfect adult beverage in my mind. I love a light sparkling wine. This was the perfect wine for this meal. I was going back and forth with going with a red vs a white but I am happy with my decision.

All in all, this meal was fantastic. It was easy and I really enjoyed making it.

Lastly, get ready to hear a lot about this other gadget that came into my life recently....The Gruve! I am playing around with it as we speak and should know the in's and out's in a day or two. I will be back with a full review!

See you soon!

-Heather

Technology like none other! CW-X

Good morning yall! What a week it has been and boy am I glad to of had the weekend to relax. I also used the weekend to do something else... To try out a new product! I was running with my group just the other week and a friend of mine was raving about a new pair of running pants that her husband had bought her for Christmas. She said "these things are amazing!!! They literally keep my hips and knees in place, I feel great when I am wearing them." I immediately thought "I have to have a pair." So the next day I got on-line and set out to see what these CW-X fancy pants were all about. Boy was I glad! When I first got on the site (which is nicely done btw) I was pretty much sold at first glance. The more I read, the more I wanted a pair to try myself. With that being said, I contacted Sarah over at CW-X and BAM! She sent a pair my way to review.

Here's a little bit about CW-X and the story behind the amazing technology! Wacoal Sports Science dedicates CW-X® to people everywhere in the world who love the exhilaration and challenge of sports. Because to celebrate sports is to celebrate what's best in human beings. Japan's Wacoal Corp, the world's largest manufacturer of intimate apparel, has spent half a century creating clothing born of a deep understanding of the body. Combining its scientific knowledge of the human anatomy with its experience in complex fabrications and apparel design, the company first entered the performance sports apparel market in Japan in 1991 with CW-X® Performance Conditioning Wear.

Recently the company launched the CW-X® brand in the US market through the newly formed Wacoal Sports Science Corp. Wacoal Sports Science Corporation, headquartered in New York City, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wacoal International. The company's mission is to meet the sports performance needs of the active US consumer through the CW-X brand, the world's first truly anatomically-engineered high performance sports apparel. In a study in Kyoto, Japan, electrical pulse activity of the muscles (muscles firing into motion) was measured electromyographically. Unsupported and partly supported legs both show frequency decrease during exercise, indications of fatigue. Legs supported by CW-X® showed negligible frequency decrease.ENGINEERED TO MAKE YOUR BODY A MORE EFFICIENT MACHINE. By harnessing your muscles with Targeted Support, CW-X tights help prevent injury, at the same time that Xcelerated Recovery ensures your body feels better faster.

TECHNOLOGY OVERVIEW: For forty years, scientists at Wacoal Human Science Research Center in Kyoto, Japan have studied kinesiology, the science of human movement. They have tested over 35,000 people and analyzed injuries relative to warm-up and cool-down periods. They have come to understand the mechanics of joints and muscles in minute detail. This exhaustive study of body movement has culminated in over 50 patents worldwide.

Wanna see what they look like? Well, here ya go!

I have to say. I swear to you, I have never worn anything like it!

The stabilyx tights are the only tights I will wear when going out for a cold weather run. I feel a huge difference in comfort, fatigue, stability & support feel like I can run forever!!! I am totally sold and will be buying another pair for sure. I doubt that I will ever look at running gear the same way!

Thank you Sarah and CW-X for truly amazing products! I promise you if you get a pair, you wont be sorry!

Hope you enjoyed my review and found it helpful. I have tried so many products from all over and I can tell you, hearing a review from someone that knows can save you some major time and money!

Have a wonderful rest of your week!

Until next time!

-Heather

Quick post! I will be back very soon with something you have got to see! I swear this is amazing!

See you in just a couple days! xoxoxoxo -Heather