Running of the Beef

Hi! Sorry I have been sooo slow lately! I'm a busy girl I guess!

This weekend is my town's annual festival "Beef and Dairy Days" (welcome to Wisconsin!)

The festivities began on Thursday night with the crowning of Miss Whitehall 2013, and continued yesterday with the carnival. The community kicked off B&DD Saturday with the Running of the Beef 5K.

This was my first ever race for anything, so I have really been looking forward to it! I am definitely not a strong runner though, so it was a lot harder than I expected! I have been using a C2-5K app to help me get ready for this race and next month's color dash...I still have a long way to go before I can run an entire 5K.

The route was beautiful, as most of Western Wisconsin is, but also really hilly, so that took a toll as well! I ended up finishing the race with a time of 33:33.

The best part of this weekend though is getting together with family and friends that all find roots in Whitehall. My boyfriend has a huuuuge family, and his dad along with his two brothers operate a dairy farm just outside of town. Their family is so close, and I am so grateful to have become a part of it! 

Since there are sooo many Sygullas, we decided we should probably have a uniform for the Running of the Beef so we could all find each other. However, we are dairy farm people, and since it is Beef AND Dairy days, we changed it to the Running of the Dairy for ourselves. ;) We all ordered t-shirts that said "Running of the Dairy...Herd it's Udderly Fun!" and had a cow with a very obvious and almost offensively large utter. We also each had a cow tag to pin to our shirts with our own number.

Even though I did not run well and was absolutely miserable, The Running of the Beef was a great experience, and I will definitely be joining the Sygullas and Associates next year. :)

Homemade Taco Seasoning

So...funny story. I have only liked tacos for like 2 years. Before that I detested them...then I started liking them, then I started being healthy. After that, no more tacos. At least not without guilt.. ;)

Anyway, I came upon some posts on Pinterest that featured homemade taco seasoning with no MSG and wayyyyy less sodium than the packets. I mixed it up yesterday and we had chicken tacos with it tonight! Nomnomnom.. :)

The recipe is as follows...but I'm going to change it up next time. It was wayy to spicy for my wimpy tongue!

3 T chili powder (I used chipotle chili powder, and I think that's why it ended up so spicy!)
3/4 t garlic powder
3/4 t onion powder
3/4 t (or less) red pepper flakes
3/4 t dry oregano
1 1/2 t paprika
1 T + 1 1/2 t cumin
1 T salt
1 T black pepper

This makes roughly 9 T. We used between 2-3 for 1 pound of chopped chicken breast for tacos tonight.

I had about 1/3 cup of chicken on two 6 in. corn tortillas with lettuce, black bean and corn salsa, a touch of sour cream ( I needed it!), and a little shredded cheese, if you're looking for a recipe idea. :)

The seasoning can be kept at room temperature, but should definitely be in a sealed container!

Feliz Comida!

Banana Bread Protein Bars

Post one of two for the day, what a treat!

I got a recipe from the mom of some kids I babysit, who also happens to be a doctor. She went to make it and said she thought of me, so she texted it to me. And boy, am I glad she did.

These bars/bread squares are packed with energizing ingredients that give you a great jumpstart in the morning or before a workout. The bananas offer potassium, which can keep cramps away, the chia seed offers fiber and protein, along with the buckwheat flour...I could go on and on, but you can just find out for yourself. :)

I made a HUGE, tragic mistake when I made these heavenly little energy squares. I forgot one ingredient that offers some antioxidants along with some happiness...chocolate chips. I still have no idea how I forgot those, but I am very upset about it. Looks like I'm going to have to make them again soon!

Anyway, here's the recipe! And DON'T forget the chocolate chips!

2/3 cup Rolled Oats
1/2 cup Buckwheat Flour
1/2 cup Chopped Walnuts
1/4 cup Shredded Coconut
3 T Chia Seeds
3 T Chocolate Chips
1/4 t cinnamon
1/4 t salt
2 small-medium Mashed Bananas
1/2 cup Peanut Butter of your choosing (I used JIF Natural and melted it a little to make it stir in more easily.)
1/4 cup Brown Rice Syrup OR Honey
1 t vanilla

Just mix it all together, no particular order.
Spread into an 8x8 pan, and bake for 22-26 minutes at 350.

I love these bars for breakfast, warmed up a little and topped with honey, along side some fruit!