AIDS WALK

I registered to do the AIDS Walk in LA this year. I figured it was a great excuse to motivate myself to continue walking and getting in shape. And it adds a goal to my workout. It's not a very extreme walk, only 10k, so it shouldn't be too bad to do. And as long as it's not 115 out in Mid-October like it was yesterday, I should be able to complete the walk with ease. But I need all of your help as well. I'm trying to raise at least $1000 in donations. I'll be completely honest with all of you, I set that goal for myself so that I can get a Star Fundraiser Crown to wear while I'm walking. Okay that's not the only reason, it is for a really good cause so please help me reach my goal and help continue to fight the good fight against a disease that has affected all of us in some way or another. If you want to give please go to http://aidswalklosangeles2010.kintera.org/cevanmiller and you can donate online. Or if you're more old fashioned you can fill out a donation form and send in a check. I'm really looking to all of you to help me out here. Especially you Deb. Maybe Bigelow Tea would be interested in a little corporate sponsorship for a great cause. I'll wear a Bigelow Green Tea shirt if you guys want. But in all seriousness please check out the site and donate. Every little bit helps...me get that crown...and to continue fighting the battle against AIDS in the U.S.

Liquid Diet Weekend

For those of you who did not know already, Saturday was a day of misery for me. That's right, I had my wisdom teeth removed. Actually it wasn't really all that bad. In fact it was a lot easier than I was expecting. It helps when you have a really good dentist like ours. And the best part was I got to lay around and watch football all weekend. Yay football! But here's the thing though, I wasn't able to eat solid foods for the whole first day and pretty much all of yesterday as well. So instead I survived on protein shakes and soup. Finally later in the day yesterday I was able to eat some grapes and later some chicken. What is it about eating grapes that just always puts me in a good mood? I think it's because it takes me back to the days when I was a kid and I loved to snack on grapes. Or maybe it's because they're really good for you, but still taste like candy so it feels like cheating when it's actually not. Anyways, the weird thing is I thought I'd be starving all weekend long without any substantial food in my stomach, but I wasn't. I think the main reason for that is because I've been focusing on not only what it is I'm eating, but also how much of it I've been eating. So I don't need huge portions of anything to fill me up anymore. So maybe I'm making some progress after all. I may not look like a runner just yet, but at least I'm really making significant changes in my life which will ultimately help me achieve my goal and be happier and healthier.

Halfway Point, New Year & Super Cool News

It's almost two weeks into September which means I am officially at the halfway point time-wise toward the marathon. And I can definitely say that I am no where near halfway ready to run a marathon. I'm just not where I need to be at this point. But I am going to keep on working on it because worst case scenario I'll walk or crawl the whole thing if I have to. I just hope they don't kick me off the course after a certain time period. And speaking of renewal, yesterday was Rosh Hashanah which is more than just the celebration of the New Year, but also a chance to reinvigorate and re-motivate yourself to be a better person. It's with that spirit that I am going to rededicate myself toward my marathon goal. I've definitely hit a downturn in the process and now I'm going to turn it back around.

And finally on a super cool note, Bigelow Tea has come through and they are sending me some samples of their tea. How cool is that. I look forward to trying them and letting you know what I think.

And on a crappy note, I'm getting my wisdom teeth pulled this weekend, so pray for me because I am a bleeder.

Healty Alternative

As some of you may know I've been trying to spend more and more time in the kitchen cooking. It's a something that I've only recently become passionate about. The last year and a half or more. As part of my culinary experiments in the kitchen, I'm always looking for healthier recipes and finding ways that I can take dishes that my wife and I love and try to make them a lot better for us. With that I offer up one of my first eating recommendations for you all. However, in all honesty I can not take too much credit for this one because I learned it from wife, who in turn learned it from her mother. But that's how the best cooking really comes about though. Anyways, my great suggestion for you all is using turnips instead of butter. Not for everything. I don't think you can saute food with a pad of turnip, but I'll look into that one. Turnips, if you've never eaten a raw one before, have a great buttery flavor to them and they go great with other root vegetables. So if you're thinking about making mashed potatoes, try using turnips instead of butter next time. My recommendation is to use about twice as much potato as turnip. If you want it a bit more buttery, use more turnips. Just make sure you boil both of them together and long enough to mash well. Another quick tip. Put them in cold water then let the temperature rise to a boil. Potatoes cook better that way.

I made a great mashed potatoes alternative last night that both my wife and I enjoyed so I figured I would share my first ever recipe with you all. Again, this isn't completely my recipe, I did take some of it from elsewhere, but made it healthier and more my own. My recipe is for Parsnip Puree. Parsnips are those things at the grocery store that look like rotten carrots. They are identical in shape except they're white. They are really delicious if you've never had one, I suggest you do. Here's my recipe, it's one hundred percent dairy free so even vegans can eat. Although I don't condone veganism. I hope you all try it and enjoy.

Parsnip Puree:

6 Large Parsnips
1 to 2 Good Sized Turnips depending on how you want it to taste
6 Cloves of Garlic
1 Large Shallot
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil
Aluminum Foil
Baking Sheet
Food Processor (you can also use a potato masher if you don't have a processor)

Preheat your oven to 350 Degrees

Wash and peel your parsnips and turnips

Rough chop your parsnips and turnips. Try to get the pieces to be roughly the same size if possible for even cooking.

Peel your garlic cut out green stem if needed. (The stem creates a bitter taste if left in, but it is edible.)

Place aluminum foil on baking sheet and place the chopped turnips, garlic and parsnips on top of the foil.

Coat the the turnips, garlic and parsnips with a fairly generous amount of olive oil.

Season the turnips, garlic and parsnips with salt and pepper. It's okay to use less than you may normally here because you can always add more as your pureeing them later.

Cover completely with aluminum fold and fold all the sides so it's sealed.

Roast in oven for 40 minutes or until they are all the way tender and soft.

Peel wash and rough chop your shallot (you can add the shallot to the roasting as well, however I did not).

Pull the vegetables out of the oven and place everything, in the food processor. Even the olive oil. There is a lot of flavor in there with the vegetable juices etc. Put the chopped shallots in the food processor.

Puree the vegetables until they are an even consistency. Check halfway to make sure you don't need more salt and pepper. Add more salt and pepper if necessary.

Serve. Because of the shallots and parsnips, it will be on the sweeter side, so a good savory dish goes great with these.

So that's my recipe. Try it out and let me know what you think. I look forward to your comments. Let me know if you have any questions. And I'll try to post some more recipes as I come up with them.