I get it!

So after four months, I think I've finally mastered the "long slow run" concept. For the last two weeks, my long runs (7 and 8 miles, respectively) have been relaxed and totally fun. Once I stopped trying so hard, I think I was able to just naturally back off on my pace. The next step is to try to remember to look at my watch to verify that my pace is consistent. (I feel like it is, but I never remember to check mid-run.) I've also gotten back to working in faster segments on shorter runs and finally got my 10-minute mile back consistently. (I had temporarily misplaced it in the move/achilles annoyance/school starting again chaos.) I found my running groove again, and it feels great. :)

There's a 5k walk/fun run through Greenfield Village for Henry Ford staff after work on Tuesday, and I'm going to do it since I don't have class on Tuesdays. It sounds like fun, and I'm hoping to meet some other runners who can give me tips on good routes around here.

In culinary news, I pulled off a couple of stellar Cooking Light gems last week. They were both pretty time-consuming, but worth the effort.

• Curried chicken penne with fresh mango chutney--I was so happy this one turned out because I had to buy a couple of obscure ingredients and I despise dealing with mangoes. (I like the way they taste, but I very rarely find the effort worth it.) This one will definitely make it into regular rotation.
• Pear crumble with dried cherries and almond streusel--My brother was in town last weekend, so I made this when I took my grandma to my parents' house for dinner because pears are great this time of year and my mom and I have a thing for dried cherries. Everyone liked it, and I actually ended up cutting it into 15 pieces instead of 10 (and they were still plenty big).

I also devised a recipe for whole-grain pumpkin cranberry bars that I've been eating in place of store-bought granola bars. There's a booth at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market that sells these amazing fresh, stone-ground whole-grain flours (the one I have is a wheat, spelt, and buckwheat blend), so I came up with this:

• 1 1/2 c. canned pumpkin
• 1 1/2 c. whole-grain flour
• 1/3 c. buttermilk
• 1/4 c. egg beaters
  
• 1/2 c. ground flaxseed
• 2 T molasses
• 3 T brown sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/3 c. craisins
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• You just beat all the moist ingredients (add the flax here) and fold in the dry ones until they're just moistened/mixed in, and bake it at 350 until it passes the toothpick test. It made 12 bars and according to the online calculator I used, they worked out to be 120 cal/2 g fat/4 g fiber.
  

Sorry, no photo documentation. My camera, memory card, or computer (or possibly all three) is still being a brat.