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9-Miler on Halloween - Now That's Scary

Chili for a Chilly Evening 
As I mentioned yesterday, we decided on chili for dinner since it was going to be a chilly evening. Plus, chili and football sort of go hand-in-hand. Oh, and the fridge is rather empty, but we did have what it took to throw together a chili. So I went with a Chipotle Tempeh Chili since the tempeh is gluten-free, and my sister is now on a glute-free diet. 
 
Chipotle Tempeh Chili
Ingredients:
1 package tempeh
To taste for tempeh: liquid smoke, chipotle flakes, salt, pepper, garlic powder
1/2 red onion, diced
2 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
17-20 oz low-sodium vegetable broth
1.5 cups red beans (1 can, rinsed and drained)
1.5 cups black beans (1 can, rinsed and drained)
1 can no-salt tomatoes

3-4 chipotle peppers in adobe (plus 1-2 tsp adobo sauce), minced
To taste: salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, chipotle flakes
3 oz tomato paste


Directions:
In non-stick skillet, crumble tempeh and saute with liquid smoke and spices. You can add a splash of vegetable broth as well.

In large soup pot, saute onions, peppers, and garlic until soft. Add in remaining ingredients up to tomato paste and let simmer until begins to thicken. Add in paste and tempeh and let continue to simmer until thickens to desired consistency. Add more broth if needed.
 

We topped it off with Daiya Vegan Cheddar. This turned out really well and was perfect for the evening. In fact, there were no leftovers ;-)

9 Miles and Pooped
This morning Sarah headed out around 9:30. I was so sad to see her leave. I had such a great time with her this weekend. So perhaps things really and truly do happen for a reason like Seattle being canceled for us. Though, I will say that it wasn't for the best for our friends sadly. His father passed on Friday.

This morning it was still rather chilly (45 degrees) so I wanted to wait until it warmed up a bit before going for my run. Jason wanted to ride today, but said he'd run a little bit first. So we ran 3.5 miles together before he dropped off to switch to his bike. I kept on and managed my longest run so far - 9 miles.

I won't lie and say it was the best thing ever. It was pleasant out in regards to the temps (75 degrees) but terribly windy. Sometimes it felt like I was just running in place. Around mile 4 is when my sciatica started bothering me, but it later eased up. Around mile 7 the inside of my right knee started to kill me. It's never hurt there before, but feels fine now. So I feel very accomplished. I am very proud of pushing myself and realizing how capable I am. I also managed to maintain an 8.37 average pace, which is what I've been holding for my 8-mile runs. What's even better is that it felt comfortable (relatively speaking of course).

We got home around 1:30 or so and got cleaned up. Jason had an order to pick up from Best Buy, so we decided to splurge and eat out for a super late lunch. We went to a place called Razorback Pizza. I always start with one trip to the salad bar. My plate was overflowing today I will say. While I did eat after the run (half of a Clif Bar right after the run and then some cottage cheese at the house) I still ended up feeling yucky about an hour later. I think I am going to have to have something either during the run or before I get started (other than breakfast). I may not being fueled up enough so that means I've got nothing left after the run. I feel like I must be doing it all wrong or something.

Anyway, late lunch, feeling much better - but super pooped now. I've got my feet propped up and I'm watching a Ghost Hunters marathon. I feel like I'm wasting away a gorgeous day right now, but I'm too tired to worry about it even. I think dinner will likely be a light soup, perhaps pumpkin for Halloween. We don't really celebrate Halloween, so the porch light is already turned off. For now, I'm calling it done for the day.

Do you guys celebrate Halloween? Are you looking forward to handing out treat?

Happy Halloween!

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