Roasted Broccoli and Sweet Potato Salad

The weather was beautiful tonight. It was still about 65* when I got home from work, so I laced up my shoes and went for a long run. Even though it is officially Spring, it is still pretty chilly here. Therefore, I'm boycotting any day that is below 60* and sticking with the treadmill. Tonight, however, was a different story. I ran my usual route for 7 miles at a 8.5min pace. I definitely pushed myself during the second half of the run, and finally by mile 6 I was starting to loosen up. Tonight my hamstrings were super tight. I swear somedays I can barely put one foot in front of the other for more than a mile...

For dinner I roasted a broccoli, red onion, sweet potatoes, and baby tomatoes in the oven with walnuts. I seasoned the veggies with salt, pepper and a little olive oil and baked them for about 15 minutes at 425*. After 10 minutes I sprinkled the mix with a little brown sugar to add a touch of sweetness and caramelization.

I added the veggies to some mixed greens and dinner was ready.

Healthy and Delicious

For once, I decided to be proactive and pack my lunch for tomorrow. I used the leftover roasted veggies and mixed them with 3/4 cup of instant brown rice, some super spicy chili garlic sauce and general tso's sauce stir fry sauce.

Lunch :)

I hope I remember to bring this to work tomorrow. I always forget my lunch in the fridge when I have something yummy to take.

Waiting for my bread to bake...

As soon as I threw my bread in the oven, I started to think about dinner. I had eaten a light lunch and even resisted the cookies at an afternoon meeting and beautiful dulce de leches at a colleague's going away party.

Since I had pizza last night, I decided on a veggie loaded dinner tonight. I pierced a sweet potato several times with a fork and put it in the oven next to my bread. While the potato baked, I caramelized some red onion with a little olive oil and brown sugar. To the saute pan I added green beans, fresh garlic, and jumbo shrimp.

When the potato was ready I tossed everything together in a homemade honey balsamic vinaigrette that I am obsessed with!

It tastes as good as it looks!

For dessert, homemade bread! Now off to sleep, tomorrow is supposed to be my day off but I'm going into the Bank for at least a few hours and then Carmine's to bartend. I plan on spending every penny I make shopping on Sunday, so I'm okay with it :)

I hope everyone has a good weekend!

Lemon Salmon with Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Today after work I wanted to work out, cook dinner, and relax. I was so tired that by the time I got home all I wanted to do was take a nap. Lupe convinced me to go for a run and since the weather was so nice, I couldn't say no. For dinner we had baked lemon salmon, mashed sweet potatoes, and a mixed green salad with honey balsamic vinaigrette.

For the salmon, I preheated the oven to 350* and lined a baking pan with tinfoil. I brushed the salmon with olive oil, diced garlic and a little salt and pepper. I topped the salmon with lemon slices and baked it in the oven for 15 minutes.

Ready for the oven!

To make the mashed sweet potatoes, I baked one medium sweet potato in the oven along side the salmon until it was fork tender. Meanwhile, I heated one teaspoon of olive oil and one teaspoon of butter in a small saucepan. After the butter melted, I added 1/4 cup diced onion, 1/4 cup diced red pepper, 1 teaspoon brown sugar, salt, pepper, and a little cinnamon. I sauteed everything together until the onions were nice and caramelized. When the potato was finished I mashed it together with 1 teaspoon of butter and 1 teaspoon of skim milk and mixed everything together until it was nice and creamy. I finished the dish with fresh chives for some freshness.

Caramelized onions and red peppers

Mashed Sweet Potatoes! The only thing that could make these better is bacon :)

For the salad, see the recipe that I made last week. Instead of the pear champagne vinaigrette, I mixed 1 teaspoon of aged balsamic vinegar with one tablespoon of honey. I am obsessed with this salad, it is so good :).

Yum!

For dessert I picked up some sweet mint chocolate ice cream gum to enjoy while browsing recipes in Rachel Ray's magazine. We'll see if the gum satisfies my sweet tooth. I seriously have my doubts.

Dessert gum...what do you think?

Ray's Hell Burger

Sunday afternoon I met up with Kasia for a late lunch. I had been craving a hamburger, mostly because I had been watching the Food Network's "The Best Thing I've Ever Ate" earlier this morning and the subject was, of course, hamburgers. We decided on Ray's Hell Burger, which is a no frills restaurant that serves only burgers in a cafeteria type setting where you order from a cashier, get a number, and try to find a table. Despite the complete lack of atmosphere, the burgers are awesome. Kasia and I both ordered the "Soul Burger Number One" with applewood smoked bacon, swiss cheese, and cognac and sherry sauteed mushrooms. We ordered our burgers medium-well, but they came out more towards the well-done side. However, they were still delicious.

The Soul Burger Number One and Sweet Potato Fries

Obama and Biden like Ray's Hell Burger as well! They made headlines when they surprised diners during a lunchtime rush in 2009. Rumor has it Obama has treated Russian President Demitry Medvedev to a Ray's burger as well.

An original cheddar cheeseburger for Obama

Ray's Hell Burger is part of a local beef empire owned by Chef Michael Landrum, which also includes Ray's the Steaks down the street. Ray's the Steaks in a more upscale concept that offers great steaks and delicious sides. I've been there once to celebrate my friend Adam's birthday this past Fall. Everything was SO good and super affordable.

The group!

The Birthday Boy!

Our steak dinner was followed by a great dessert tasting. We asked our server to do something special to end our meal and he literally brought out at least one of everything on the menu :) It was a perfect ending to a great night. I can't wait to go back to either location.