Healthy Holiday Snacks for the Hungry Runner....Cheesy Paprika Pepita Party Mix and Tangelo Tomatillo Salsa

Cheesy Paprika Pepita Party Mix

And

Tangelo Tomatillo Salsa

Hello, happy holidays, I'm going to keep this one short and sweet since we all have tons of things to do like buy Christmas and/or Kwanza and/or Festivus and/or New Year's dinner and/or party groceries, clean the house before the arrival of guests, rinse off the dusty china, wrap presents, mail cards, get that work deadline in, prepare delicious food to nourish said guests at said dinner/party.....and go for a run in YakTraks in crunchy, slippery, icy roads and trails! 

These silly "shoe chains" as a friend so aptly described them, have saved my sanity over the past 2 weeks ever since we had a beautiful snow storm that at first coated our trails in a magical, Narnia like mystique that made for winter trail running bliss, but now have caused my "runs" to be more like post-holing, ice-axing, butt-sliding, snow-cone making expeditions.  (Ok, I exaggerate a wee bit, but these things really are amazing, haven't slipped, once, yet....) 

 I don't know if its the extra work of running/jogging slowly/trying not to fall to my death/shifting into 4-wheel drive, etc,  in the hardened ice and snow, or my evolutionary, hibernating response to the short, cold days, but I have been a little hungrier during the day.  Snow and clouds and frost make me want to eat more.  Also, its nice to snack on something while doing one of above said errands/chores, and its also nice to have healthy munchies to put out for visiting guests that are pleasing to the winter palate but do not make one feel, as my good friend said once after a series of holiday meals with her family " a bloated seal"....

Who knew!? Vitamin E is found in all of the following forms: in Pepitas: alpha-tocopherol, gamma-tocopherol, delta-tocopherol, alpha-tocomonoenol, and gamma-tocomonoenol.    There is some research that suggests that since Vitamin is available in these multiple forms in Pumpkin Seeds, the bioavailability (the percentage we actually absorb from eating them) may be greater than foods with just one or two forms.  Vitamin E is a strong antioxidant (be careful not to take too much in the form of supplements since it is a fat soluable vitamin).  Pumpkin seeds are also high in Manganese, the "feel good" tryptophan, magnesium, and zinc.

After coming home from work on Monday I was craving something salty and spicy and crunchy, and I was saddened to see that we had no popcorn, not even the whole kernel, cook on the stove type.  We had probably abolished the white, fluffy stuff in my crazed-carb-clean-out blitz when we moved and I got rid of all bread, white rice, crackers, popcorn....sigh, hindsight is 20/20...   but, I did have a ton of fresh dried Pepitas, or pumkin seeds, nuts, and some cheese powder, salt, and spices, and olive oil...and I was getting a very yummy idea!  Here it is.  It was super easy to make and my eyes were definitely bigger than my tummy so I have plenty of leftovers for when family comes to visit next week to munch on while we are playing silly Apples to Apples or watching the Christmas Story Marathon.:)

Cheesy Paprika Pepita Party Mix

(warning: this recipe is absurdly easy and fast, so if you have hours and hours of idle time on your hands and want to create something much more involved and intricate and time-consuming, this recipe may not be for you) 

Ingredients:

Two Iterations:

Bold =  more savory, European herb flavor

Italics= more Indian/Tropical flavor

1 cup of dried raw pumpkin-seeds (pepitas)

1/8 cup of pine nuts or choped macadamia nuts

1/8 cup of raw, shelled pistachios or coursely chopped dried pineapple or mango

2 tsp of either  garlic infused Olive Oil* or melted Coconut Oil  *If you don't have garlic infused Olive Oil, just press a few cloves of garlic into a small bowl, pour the 2 tsp of oil over, and let sit while you're making the spice mixture then strain the oil over the pepitas after they are toasted)

1/4 tsp of regular white wine vinegar or white balsamic vinegar

Spice Mix:

1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste or if you just did a long training run, ride, or ski)

2 tsp of cheddar cheese powder* (if you have a box of Kraft or generic mac and cheese, you can use cheese powder from one of the packets that come in the box, but the real stuff is better) *can get in a local spice shop or bulk section at your grocery store.

1 tsp of sweet smoked paprika or hot smoked paprika

pinch of fresh or ground marjoram

pinch of fresh or ground chives or coriander

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/2 tsp of sugar

Directions:

1. Spread pepitas in a single layer on a toaster-oven tray and toast for 3-5 minutes, until you hear a few of the seeds popping.  Check after starts popping to make sure no seeds are scorched.  Alternatively, spread in even layer on a dry saute pan over medium heat and, toast for about 3-5 minutes, gently stirring the whole time.

2. Pour (be careful not to burn your self!) toasted pepitas while still warm into medium sized serving bowl, immediately pour the oil over and toss to coat.  Then pour the vinegar over and toss to coat.

3. Mix salt and all spices together in a small bowl until evenly combined, then sprinkle evenly over pepitas and toss to coat thoroughly.  

4. Add nuts ( and dried fruit, if applicable) and toss to coat even more.

Serve, munching until your heart's content.  Goes very well (either version, savory or tropical) with Barley-Wine from your local brewery:)  Make sure you are in for the night, this is strong stuff (the beer is strong, too;)

If, like me, you love the chocolate/spice combination, and a steamy cup of cocoa sounds more appealing than a frosty adult beverage, this party mix goes well with hot chocolate, too!

 Tangelo Tomatillo Salsa

This appetizer/dip was another invention that came from the mother of necessity (doesn't sound the same when you say it that way....hmmmm....).  I was making Butternut Mole Enchiladas with Vegetarian Refried Black Beans and Queso Fresco ( be on the lookout for that post, soon to come!) and needed something green and tangy to complement the deep, earthy flavors of the mole enchiladas.  I wanted to make Tomatillo Salsa but only had two tomatillos leftover from when I had made black bean oatmeal burgers a few days ago and definitely was not going back out to the store, so I spun my head around my kitchen, spying for something, anything that I could use to substitute or use to make my salsa, and I spied a pile of tangelos I had bought for healthy snacking last week...that I had forgotten about since they were buried beneath avocados and limes and lemons and pears in my fruit bowl.  Here follows the new, improved salsa which I literally made on the fly.  

My good friend was over for dinner that night and she made me promise I would put this simple, yummy green salsa recipe on my blog.  It goes well with SO many different things...tacos, veggie burgers, real burgers, black beans, grilled Mahi Mahi, butternut mole enchiladas....Its a nice, cool condiment to put on or next to a warm, steaming main dish.

Ingredients:

2 medium to large Tomatillos, paper skins removed and fruit rinsed.

2/3 cup of cilantro leaves, rinsed (no need to chop, your food processor will do that!)

2-4 cloves garlic (more or less per your preference)

1-2 jalapenos, stemmed, de-seeded, and coursely chopped

2 medium or 4 small tangelos, peeled (if seeds, remove first) 

1 tsp ground cumin

juice of one lime

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Toast whole tomatillos on dry skillet over medium high heat, moving around pan every few minutes with a spoon, until browned in several spots, remove from heat.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients to food processor, when tomatillos have cooled enough to touch, add to food processor.  Pulse several times until chunky but still "salsafied":)

Tomatillos serve up a good punch of flavor, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Lycopene, Potassium, Flavonoids and Folate

3. Put in serving bowl, put in fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes, then serve as a hearty, healthy, low calorie dip with chips, crudites, or use as a garnish as described above.

 

 

 

 

The day after the big storm, we skied from our house up to the trails in the National Forest, first to set out on these untouched trails of pristine, fresh powder

 

 

 

 

 

Healthy Holiday Fruit Pie

Winter Celebration Pie 

Sometimes I surprise myself by how much I love this time of year.  This morning I went on a run from our downtown park up into our local mountain's watershed, and by the time I got up to about 3000 feet there was a fresh dusting of snow on the pines and manzanitas, the trail was crisp and slightly frozen, and in the distance Mount Ashland glowed pink and misty with the Southern Oregon sunrise.....I was in December trail runner heaven.  It was the first run all season I've done without having to strip off layers due to overheating, by the time I started descending down my last hill into my neighborhood my fingers were still chilly, the moisture on my sunglasses had left a little coating of ice crystals, and my breath hung like a little cloud in the below-freezing air.  During my run, I began scheming about Christmas dinner this year.  I wanted to try out some new ideas, with the goal of sweet, satisfying yet still healthy and guilt-less desserts such as this winter fruit pie below.  

My husband and I went home to Virginia for Thanksgiving and had a wonderful time.  My mother baked FOUR delicious pumpkin pies in one day, which were quickly devoured within the next 48 hours by a bunch of hungry, happy runners.  So Mike doesn't leave me, I'm still going to make a pumpkin pie for Christmas, but I am also going to throw in this pie which combines the colorful, bright, tart produce of our state's late autumn harvest, cranberries, pears, apples, oranges (well, at least in Florida they are in season....) and some crunchy pecans to honor the Texan part of my past.

Last summer when Mike and I made our first trail running trip to the Oregon coast, we were surprised to learn that the area near Port Orford, this remote, Oz-like piece of quiet, wild coastline, was surrounded by cranberry bogs.  I am addicted to cranberries.  Most people use cranberry sauce as a relish, I usually plop about 3 huge servings that take up half of my plate.  This cranberry farm near a local state park, Cape Blanco Cranberries, supplies a significant amount of the local harvest of this tart, deep mauve holiday berry.

Ok, now its time to get a little medical....Cranberries are a winter wonder food.  They have antibacterial properties.  There is some evidence that cranberries may help prevent urinary tract infections due to their proanthocyanidins, which act as a barrier to bacteria against the lining of the urinary tract.  There is also some early evidence that due to proanthocyanidins preventing attachment of bacteria to the lining of the stomach, cranberries may also help protect us against a common type of bacteria called H. Pylori, a known cause of stomach ulcers.  Cranberries, in their whole, unprocessed form (like dehydrated, juice-extracted supplement form), as they are featured in this pie recipe, have also been shown to have cardiovascular and hepatic (liver) protecting properties.  And like most wonder-foods, yes there is some evidence that they have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer benefits, especially when the whole berry is consumed. 

I also love this recipe because it brings back wonderful memories of the day my husband proposed to me on my parent's farm in central Virginia.  The autumn leaves were at their peak, surrounding the fields with a kaleidescope of golden/orange/purple/red and the pears were falling ripe from the trees.  There was an apple cider making festival going on up the hill from the pond where he proposed.  I can still taste and smell the pears and apples and homemade baked goods wafting from the kitchen inside the 100 year old log cabin.  I was in a state of wide-eyed bliss with a new ring on my finger as I watched my fiance crank the old-fashioned cider press outside in the crisp Virginia autumn air.

So, for your holiday meal, save some room for this zingy, fiber-filled, colorful Christmas dessert! 

This recipe is Gluten Free if you use GF pie crust.  You don't have to.  If you can find vegan pie crust, then this recipe is also vegan!  If you're Martha Stewart, and you have the desire and time to make your own pie crust, by all means go ahead, knock yourself out with all that chilled butter chopping and kneading and kneading and kneading....and rising...and rising...and kneading again.....

 Ingredients:

12 oz (1 bag) of fresh whole cranberries
1 cup of golden raisins
2 cups of chopped ripe (but not mushy) pears
2 tbsp of corn starch
2 tbsp of coconut oil (solid not melted!)  cut into small pieces
zest of 1 orange
1/3 cup of apple cider
1 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 tsp of nutmeg
1/8 tsp of allspice
1/2 cup plus 1 tsp of sugar
1 double-pie crust shell ( I use pre-made Gluten Free ones from our local grocery store
1 cup of pecan halves or pieces
1 tbsp of almond milk
whip cream or vanilla ice cream if desired for serving

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 
2. Put cranberries, raisins, chopped pears, and 1/2 cup water in a medium saucepan. 


3. Heat over medium high heat until the mixture starts to boil and fruit softens up a bit, about 5 minutes.  Don't let fruit get mushy!

4. Combine cornstarch and 1/2 cup water, mix well.  Add to boiling fruit, stir well until fruit mixture is thickened slightly.


5. Remove pot from heat and add coconut oil, zest, cider, and spices and 1/2 cup sugar.
 


6. Line a pie pan with one crust.  Sprinkle pecans evenly over the bottom pie crust.
7. Pour fruit mixture over bottom pie crust, spread to distribute evenly.


8. Lay the second crust over the top, pressing the edges of the top and bottom crust together to seal.  Make a few thin knife slices in the top crust (to let the steam out during cooking). 
9. Brush with the almond milk and sprinkle with a few pinches of sugar to make it pretty and sparkly:)
10. Set pie on a baking sheet (to catch any juices that bubble over during cooking) and put on middle rack of oven.  Bake for 10 minutes then turn oven temperature down to 375 degrees F.
11.  Bake for 35 to 40 more minutes until top crust is golden .  If you have one of these: a pie crust shield (thanks Mom!) this would be a good time to put it on to prevent the crust rim from burning.
12. Remove from oven and put on cooling rack.  Let cool for 20-30 minutes, serve with your favorite whip cream or ice cream if desired, or cover with a kitchen towel and save for later. Will stay fresh if kept in the fridge for up to a week.  Can reheat in the oven at 250 degrees F for 20 minutes to serve warm.

 

 Happy Chanukah, Happy Winter Solstice, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanza, Happy New Year! 

good question!

he he....couldn't help it...:)