45 Province Not Adverstising its Greatest Asset

Last May, I wrote about the 45 Province building that was quickly being built. Well, yesterday while on my way to Chacarero, I noticed that there was a vehicle from the mayor's office and someone wielding a giant pair of scissors. I'm guessing there was some sort of grand opening official ribbon-cutting ceremony, or a Hagrid-type was getting a haircut.

The people with the giant shears are next to the car in the lower left-hand corner

Aside from the spa, library, catered kitchen, etc. I still think the greatest luxury would be living across from Chacarero. How is it not listed as a dining option under neighborhood highlights? Actually, where is Sam LaGrassa's too? This list needs a revision!

An Ode to my Favorite Fruit

Sweeter than a strawberry

More fun than a plum

Apples blush in your presence

Without you, I'd be glum

Easier to slice than a pineapple

Honey dew isn't as compellin'

Classier than a cantaloupe

Give it up for watermelon!

Eat to Prevent Hunger Today at Boloco

I'm on Boloco's mailing list, which has helped me get a bunch of free burritos over the years. I just received an email this morning and wanted to repost a portion of it here, because it's an easy way to help out a deserving charity:

Finally, in support of our favorite non-profit Community Servings (www.servings.org) and our annual commitment to give to their cause, tomorrow we will be presenting them with a check for 50% of all of today's Sales from our School Street, Congress Street, Pearl Street, and Federal Street restaurants.

From CommunityServings.org:

Community Servings is dedicated to providing free home-delivered meals throughout eastern Massachusetts to people homebound with HIV/AIDS and other acute life-threatening illnesses, who are unable to shop or cook for themselves. We provide our clients, their dependent families, and caregivers appealing, nutritious meals, reaching out to those in greatest need. Our goals are to help our clients maintain their health and dignity, provide nutritionally and culturally appropriate meals, preserve the integrity of their family, and send the message that someone cares.

I'll have a tall skinny Amoxicillin, no whip

Through his work, Nick received a gift certificate to Starbucks, which he gave to me since he doesn't drink coffee. Normally I avoid Starbucks, because their ordering system and staff intimidate me. I feel like most of Starbucks' employees act as if they're fulfilling their destiny to work there; or, perhaps because I don't have their small/medium/large equivalents memorized yet it's just that I am an annoying patron. Anyway, on Friday I went to the Quincy Market store and saw that they had a new smoothie called Vivanno. I decided to try the orange, mango and banana version and threw in the optional matcha for an extra $0.50. Matcha is apparently made from green tea and functions as a healthy add-in and a sweetener. It also turned my smoothie a pleasant green color.

Behold, the Vivanno

The smoothie had a unique taste to it; it definitely didn't taste like oranges, mangoes and/or bananas, but it was sweet and I became slightly nostalgic drinking it. About halfway through the drink, I realized what it tasted exactly like: amoxicillin! Amoxicillin is the pink bubblegum flavored medicine I used to take for ear infections, and it was delicious (for a medicine.) I'm not sure if drinking Vivannos will cure a bacterial infection, but they sure taste like they will.

One Woman's Tasty Sandwich, Is Another Man's Brussels Sprouts

While ordering my sandwich today, the guy behind me was visibly gagging as I gave my order. I thought about it, and think my order was pretty standard.

ham, American cheese, mayo, lettuce, onion, pickles, & hot peppers on a chili wrap

Is that weird? I don't think so... Someday, when I have my own sandwich shop, Alicia's Tasty Sandwiches, this will definitely be on the menu. The only ingredient I would add is black olives, which aren't an option where I bought my lunch.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred

I've seen this posted on some food blogs that I read. I quickly counted 45 bolded items in my list- not too impressive. I bet my friends Vince and Steven (the most adventurous and cultured diners I know) could maybe get 90 of the items. I wasn't able to cross out the items I would never eat, because I can't figure out how to format that on Blogger; however, I guess I can't say that I'd NEVER eat something. An explanation (copied from Very Good Taste), the list and instructions are below:

Here’s a chance for a little interactivity for all the bloggers out there. Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers.

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten. (my personal comments are in parenthesis)
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk/ linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros (ole!)
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht (only the hot version)
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns (one a penny, 2 a penny, Steamed Pork Buns)
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float (Blech. I hate Root Beer)
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (Every night, after I put on my silk robe and leather slippers.)
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O (it's a house staple)
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects (Only if Bear Grylls asked me to)
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk (I've had goat cheese...)
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin (I will do my best not to eat this again.)
51. Prickly pear (Does a prickly pear martini count?)
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine (one of my new favs)
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian (yes, and it was well-documented here)
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho (I ate this in Spain, and discovered cold soup is not for me)
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill (No, but a friend of a friend ate turtle's blood soup from a roadkill turtle and they got a parasite that wiggled around under their skin for 6 months until they found an herbal doctor that managed to kill it. True story.)
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie (the cupcakes are way better)
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox (one of my favorites. I love to order this at S&S in Cambridge)
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

PowerBar New Product Review

Recently, PowerBar asked me to try out some of their new product offerings, which was pretty exciting since I acquired a taste for all those energy bar/gel/drink/chews during my marathon training. I had previously had trouble with the PowerBar gel products during my runs; that is, I couldn't open them with my teeth. This is problematic during cold weather runs, when my fingers aren't nimble enough to tear the packaging.
They sent me a package with with 2 new products: PowerBar Energize Fruit Smoothie Bars and
PowerBar Electrolytes.
The first time I tried a Fruit Smoothie Bar, I was hungry and didn't even feel like going for a run; however, I felt like that would be a good test of the bar's performance. I choose "Creamy Citrus" and it initially tasted exactly how I imagined it would taste- like the orange-flavored Bubblicious gum. After a few bites though, I noticed there was a strong after-taste that was sort of stinging the back of my throat. It wasn't uncomfortable enough for me to stop eating the bar, but I definitely felt something. (My husband tried the same flavor and didn't notice any aftertaste at all though.) The bar's consistency isn't as stiff as other PowerBars I've had, which was nice since sometimes they make my jaw feel sore. The bar did satiate my hunger and I felt fine during my 5 mile run.
The second time I tried a Fruit Smoothie Bar, it was before the Harpoon 5-miler. This time I tried the Tangy Tropical flavor, while Nick tried the Berry Blast one. Mine tasted pretty good, and I didn't experience the weird aftertaste that I did with the Creamy Citrus bar. Nick loved his Berry Blast flavor. Nick had flown in that same morning on a red eye from Vegas, after being there for a bachelor party and managed to run the race in record time. He told me afterwards that he's pretty sure it was the bar that got him through the course. I also felt great after the run, and I'm guessing the pre-race bar had a lot to do with that. I can't say if these bars are necessarily more effective than the original PowerBars or other bar brands; however, they seem to do the trick and I'll definitely work them into my energy bar brand/flavor rotation.
The Electrolytes are meant to be mixed into 16.9 oz of water and consumed during the run to stay hydrated. I guess the theory is that people are more willing to rehydrate during exercise if their water is flavored. So far, I have only tried one flavor of the PowerBar Electrolytes: Natural Lemon. If by natural, PowerBar meant, the lemon's natural peel, then the name is spot-on. This flavor is not especially tasty. I tried a little sip right after I mixed it, and then I refrigerated the mixture for about 10 minutes. I poured a bit into a Fuel Belt water bottle, and off I went in the 90 degree heat for a run around Castle Island in Southie. During the run, I tried to take sips at consistent intervals, and I did notice that the flavor improved as the run went on. I think that the key is to really shake the mixture before drinking it, as the drink became more palatable the longer it bounced around in my water bottle. Overall, I felt good during and after the run, despite the heat; however, the mixture just wasn't as refreshing as water. I think for shorter runs, it's better to stick with water; however, for longer runs where I wear my fuel belt, it would be helpful to alternate the electrolyte mixture with plain water in my bottles.

Bow Down to the Buns!

Today's Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's! To find a participating Scoop Shop, click here. Also, for a little dish of heaven, try the Cinnamon Bun flavor, which has chunks of cinnamon buns mixed into a vanilla-caramel ice cream. What's not to like about that?

No caption needed- this flavor speaks for itself.

Chacarero: Accept No Substitutions!

I went to Au Bon Pain to grab lunch just now and was greeted by a woman offering me a sample of their new sandwich. Never one to refuse a sandwich in any shape or form, I helped myself and was horrified to discover it's their new Chilean Chicken Sandwich. It's a complete rip-off of the popular Chacarero sandwich in Boston. In fact (much to my embarrassment) I audibly gasped, "It's the Chacarero!" I sincerely hope Au Bon Pain's new sandwich does not take away from Chacarero's local business. While the sample tasted pretty good, it was no substitution for the original.

Sweet Potato Fries

Last night I planned to meet my friend/gym buddy, Leah, at the gym for a workout and dinner. I ran at a light pace for 40 minutes (6.3 mph for 20 minutes and 6.1 mph for the next 20 minutes.) Then we went to Elephant & Castle for a fun dinner. This is a great pub with excellent food- I've had several menu items here, but always go back to the veggie burger. They top their burger with a spicy tomato mixture and the patty is made from scratch. I hate it when I order a veggie burger at a restaurant and it's just a reheated Boca burger or something... The highlight of the meal though is the sweet potato fries. Delicious. The best veggie burger I've come across in Boston is at Houston's. E&C's is very good, but tastes like cardboard compared to Houston's. This is all the opinion of a non-vegetarian though, so take what I say with a grain of salt. Anyway, tonight since the roads are very icy and I'm still dressing my wounds from last Wednesday's dust biting, I'm going to do my 30 minute cross training tonight and then do my sprints on the treadmill on Wednesday.

Rest Day

I had a headache for most of the day yesterday and wasn't able to really do too much. I think it's because I didn't drink enough water on Saturday after the run and drank a few Labatt's during the Pat's game. I have been trying to drink more water during the day, but sometimes it's hard to remember- especially if I don't feel thirsty. But like my book likes to point out: If you wait to drink water until you're thirsty, it's too late.
I did manage to go to EMS, and although they didn't sell the spandex I was looking for, I did get 2 different kinds of running gels to try instead of GU. I have high hopes for the Clif shot- their bars actually taste good. And while I do enjoy regular Power Bars (cookies and cream, especially!) I just have a feeling that the Clif will go down easier.
Tonight I'm going to do a 40 minute light run, and tomorrow I was going to do a FitCorp hill workout; however, Boston is being blanketed with snow now, so I'll probably stick to the treadmill this week.

Tonight's run

Tonight I ran 3.5 miles- the first 2.5 at 6.8 mph at a 1.0 incline and then the last mile at 6.6 and 1.5 incline. I had wanted to run a bit more; however, I just wasn't feeling it. I have to remember to bring a snack with me for the afternoon, otherwise I'll run out of steam. Tomorrow I will try and do some cross-training (maybe the elliptical machine) and then on Saturday I am going to do a 10.5 mile run that's organized by FitCorp. As part of Team Eye & Ear I get to take part in these long runs on Saturday, hill runs on Tuesday night and different lectures on nutrition, etc. Plus you get a t-shirt! Not too shabby.