Back to the Grind

Yes, it's that time...time to start putting the feet to pavement again. I haven't been running as much lately, mostly weightlifting, and with the beautiful fall season coming quickly on California's Central Coast, it seems like a great opportunity to get back to the push.

Although David and I have been jogging regularly (we have some awesome trails close to our house where Jax can be off leash), neither of us have been pushing for distance or speed. I saw the following article today and it helped jump-start the motivation for the return to running (erhm, not to mention that someone has a marathon in April...ahem, David that's you)! We'll be doing the Firefly 5k in a couple of weeks - mostly just for fun. One of our dear friends Kacie will be running it with us as her first race ever! We're so proud of her and know it takes courage to just say "I'll try." As my dad once told me, if you don't get it started, you'll never get it finished.

 (Image from http://www.fireflyrun.com/sanjose.htm)

If you also need a little motivation, take a look at these cool races. What a fun way to enjoy a good run with friends!

Love to Live. Live to Love. 

I.Am.So.Behind. - Parade of Pastries, Part Drei

I can't believe it's been over a month since the last post...although a lot has been going on - David and I had our wedding in Virginia Beach this past weekend. And much like these Blackberry and Honey-Vanilla Goat Cheese Tarts, oh how sweet it was.

Here's the original recipe that I modified: http://www.pastryaffair.com/blog/2012/3/25/blackberry-goat-cheese-tart.html

A couple of notes:
- I surely did not have time to make my own tart shells, and the puff pastry shells worked great instead! I followed the directions on the package, then let them cool before I filled them
-I didn't want to re-bake the pastry shells, so I omitted the egg in the filling
-I only used 2 tbsp of honey, and also added a splash of vanilla in the filling
-When I stuffed these, I put blackberries on the bottom, dolloped in the filling, then warmed in the oven for 5 minutes at 350. Afterwards, I garnished with the blackberries....and would have added a basil or mint leaf if I had any.

Ideas for serving:
-Perfect for a brunch treat or a light dessert
-Would be tasty to warm and thicken some jam as a bed for the pastry
-This would become very decadent with a raspberry or white chocolate drizzle