Mish mosh of weekend stuff

Can you believe its already Sunday evening? I hope you all had a great weekend! I just can’t help but wish that weekends were a day longer. . . but I can’t complain, it was a good one! I planned on posting last night, but just wasn’t feeling it. Do you ever feel that way about blogging? Yesterday was a nice day, rainy and lazy for the most part, spending a lot of time watching the Kennedy funeral on TV. In the evening the hubs and I took his parents, who are visiting from Ireland, up to Salem. It was a gray, Irish day indeed.

We couldn’t really walk around much as the wind was whipping and the rain was pouring down in sheets. I loved it! We quickly decided to eat dinner at Finz, a Salem favorite that is right on the water. We have been to Finz many times and always had a good meal and a great view. To start, I strayed from my normal red wine and had a Pomegranate-tini. It was sooooo delicious! So sweet I could only have one, but it was a bright addition to a gray evening. We also had oysters to start. Sorry to all of you who may be grossed out by my oyster addiction!

Cool fishie 🙂

It took me a long time to decide on my entree. On one hand, we were at a seafood restaurant, so seafood was the natural choice. But it was chilly, and I wanted something that was hearty and offered lots of post-workout nutrition. I went back and forth for awhile but settled on the yellow pineapple coconut vegetable curry with rice and cashews.

I didn’t get any photos because, well, my in laws think I am strange enough without me taking photos of our entire meal, but it was the PERFECT choice. It was so hot with many spices throughout, a warm, creamy coconut base with zucchini and carrots and eggplant cooked perfectly with just a bit of bite in them so that they weren’t  mushy or overdone. The rice was also perfect, and I stirred it into the curry for a truly filling, hearty meal. Yum.

I saved enough room for dessert and hubs and I shared the s’mores cheesecake: a light marshmallow cheesecake with chocolate ganache and graham cracker crust. So good.

We called it a night fairly early, but I ended up staying up until midnight watching TV. I was just not feeling the best, overtired and emotional and couldn’t rest.

This morning I woke up and had quite the wintry brekkie. I had soaked some of my Trader Joe’s mixed oats and grains overnight in vanilla soy milk, so I cooked that up with a very mashed banana and topped with with PB & Co. Dark Chocolate Dreams.

With a cuppa Lyons’ tea, the perfect chilly morning solution. I actually skipped my Green Monster for the first time in probably months! I was just too cold.

I went to the animal shelter to walk dogs and got quite the workout despite my plan to not exercise today. You really can’t help it when you look at their little faces; they want to run!!!

I made a quick lunch of a Dr. Praeger’s veggie burger, a whole heirloom tomato, some pickles, all dipped in BBQ sauce and spicy Chinese mustard.

Not very pretty at all, but it was the fuel I needed. . . and a good stomach liner for the Bin Ends Fine Wine Flea Market.

Our friends Jules and Dunc came over a bit after 1:00, and we headed down to Braintree for the wine event. These are held monthly, and I have to say, it is quickly becoming something that I look forward to. It varies, but there are around 8-10 distributors sharing a sampling of their wine, in total about 100 wines. I obviously didn’t taste them all, and didn’t drink all of what I tasted. With that much wine it would be impossible to!

If you live in the Boston area, I would definitely recommend a trip to Bin Ends to stock up on wine. Their markdowns are incredible. At this event alone,we probably saved about $75 dollars. Hubs insisted on buying a case of a variety of bottles. We don’t drink them all ourselves, but we do like to have host/ess gifts on hand or a nice bottle to open if family or friends stop by. Okay and we do like our wine.

I won’t go through all of them, but I will share a bit about my favorites.

2006 Paso a paso Tempranillo: It is no secret that I love Spanish reds, and this one was a steal at $8.00 a bottle (down from $12). This is a very rich, dark Tempranillo from La Mancha with good berry flavors, and a finish that really leaves your mouth happy and full.

2004 Bodegas Almanseñas Almansa La Huella de Adaras: Another Spanish red, an utter explosion of flavor in the mouth. This wine has so much going on. It is so red that it is almost black, a
nd really runs the gamut of flavors from berries to chocolate as it goes through the mouth and finishes in the back of the throat. I can not wait to have this wine around over the winter and to drink it with hearty soups and rich chocolate desserts. It is warming and decadent.

2006 August West Pinot Noir Graham Family Vineyard: I also love a Pacific coast Pinot Noir, and this one was really interesting. It was lighter in color than most Pinots I have tried, and it had a sweet finish to it, that would make it a good choice for year round drinking. I could see it going well with a summer cookout as much as I could see it pairing with a stew in January. Being that this vineyard is in CA, I may just have to add it to my list if places to visit 🙂

At this point I think I need another wine country trip already!

We are capping the day off with a late dinner of salad and roasted veggies. At the moment I am roasting up my farmers’ market beets and pattypan squash to mix with heirloom tomatoes, romaine, and croutons. I am looking forward to the variety of temperatures and textures that this meal will bring.

Is there anything better than a fresh, roasted beet?

Lunch for the week is also on the cards for tonight. A simple blend of quinoa, tomato soup, TJ’s frozen grilled pepper and onion mix, garbanzos, and plenty of crushed red pepper.

My week is short, but it is going to be hectic. I need to get a long run in as well as a long cross training day before we leave for Cali. My co-workers’ mum also passed away last night, so I hope to be able to attend her wake and to share my condolences with him.

My goal this week is to fuel properly. I think that I often feel tired and sluggish because I unwittingly just don’t eat enough, especially fat and protein. I need to be more conscious so I don’t have crash days like I had last week. I hope you are all having a restful Sunday!  Be sure to send any guest posts to traveleatlove2009@hotmail.com by September 1 so that I can post them while I am on my mini vacay. Do you have plans for the upcoming long weekend?

“The work begins anew, the hope rises again, and the dream lives on.”