Six Miles Accomplished… and I did some cooking & baking!

Saturday was a busy day.  We kicked off with a 6 mile run… yes I said WE… Ryan decided to run with me.  He hasn’t run 6 miles since last September… and hasn’t run more than 3 miles in several months!   He helped me out by pushing me the first two miles and then by mile 3 we dropped back to my normal pace… and then came mile 5, the most brutal mile.  Not that it was the last mile… I was fine, but the wind was coming straight at us and it was COLD wind… then semis kept going by… practically knocking you over as you were running!  I was pleased with our finish… 6 miles in 1:06:32.  This week’s mileage climbs… 3 miles tomorrow, 5 on Thursday and 7 on Saturday.  I am praying we don’t get the snow they are calling for… I run so much better without snow!

After our run, we headed home to get ready then traveled down to Neenah to spend the weekend with Tyler & Ashley.  (My mom and step-dad are in Mexico for a week & I also had to go down to pick up their 2 dogs, which I now have at my house until next Sunday :)  Good thing they are good dogs… my small house gets tight with 3 Labs!)  We spent the day shopping in Appleton, picked up some snacks & headed back to the house to relax a bit from 4-9pm.  This is the kind of shopping we did...

We ordered pizza and sides for dinner and then went bowling with my cousin Marc and his fiancée Sarah.  Ryan and I both had record scores:

Ryan: 196

Rachel: 159

On Sunday we packed up and cleaned up the house… Ryan, myself & 3 dogs hopped in the car and headed back to Green Bay.  We spent the day lounging at home, played some games & got subs for lunch.  I decided I hadn’t baked in a while… and Ryan was craving Peanut Butter Cookies… so that’s what I made.  Gotta keep my man happy ;)

I also decided I wanted Chicken Pot Pie for dinner…

Chicken Pot Pie:

Ingredients

1 package Pillsbury pie crust (or similar)

½ lb cooked chicken breast, shredded

½ bag Frozen mixed vegetables (corn, carrots, green beans, peas)

¼ bag frozen broccoli cuts

1 can (10 ¾ oz.) cream of chicken soup

Directions

Spray 8x8 pan or pie pan with cooking spray.  Line with one pie crust.  In a mixing bowl, combine chicken, frozen veggies and cream of chicken soup.  Once combined, spread into crust.  Take second crust and lay over the top (I cut the excess dough off – or it become way to bread-y).  Pinch the outside crust together around the outside of the pan.  Cut two slits in the top of the crust.  Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes, or until top is golden brown.  Cut, serve and enjoy!

I had made additional chicken (I boil my chicken from frozen if I need to use it in soups or pies, etc) so I decided to help myself out by preparing chicken soup for later in the week.  I cheated when I made my soup this time because I didn’t have all the fresh veggies available, only frozen… so I modified the recipe & cooking time.  When we eat it this week, I will put it back on the stove to heat & add dumplings to it.

Chicken Soup

Ingredients

1 packet McCormick Chicken Noodle Soup (seasoning packet)

5 c. water

¾ lb. shredded cooked chicken

1 bag Freshlike “Vegetables for Soup” frozen veggies

1 small onion, chopped

Cook on high for 30 minutes… and prepare dumplings.

Dumplings Recipe:

3c. flour

1/2 c. water

3 eggs

1 tsp. salt

1/2 c. margarine

Directions

Mix dumpling ingredients together and drop spoonfuls into soup.  Allow soup to simmer for 20-30 minutes once dumplings are added.  Eat immediately or save in refrigerator or freezer. (I’d recommend holding on the dumplings if you’re planning to eat later in the week or freeze).

Running Stats:
Miles Ran this week: 0 (scheduled run tomorrow)
Miles Ran in February: 39.15
Miles Ran in 2012: 85.1