Savory Sweet Potato & Veggie Hash

Originally the dish was served to me with Salmon - I love it that way too, but it is just SO versatile!

Five years ago, I took my first big trip as a mom - a cross-country flight to Seattle, SOLO with my 10 week old daughter. To say I was nervous heading into it would be the understatement of the century. I thought "She's going to cry, or just make a lot of noise and everyone around me will be so mad to be near us..."  I contemplated cancelling the trip, but it was an exciting opportunity to check out a new city and meet my husband there for a long weekend tagged onto his work trip.  We went for it.

Essentially the opposite of all of my fears came true on my travels.  People can be so good to one another.

I stepped onto the plane and the flight attendant immediately ushered me to the front row so I'd have extra room to move around. When I turned to the man next to me to preemptively apologize for the next four hours, he assured me that he too, a dad, had been in my shoes and he was there to help if I needed anything. Later on in the flight, too timid to ask for help, he saw me shifting to get up for a bag and told me to sit down and relax as he got my bag for me. And my daughter, she was happily nursing or sleeping the entire time. I always think back to that trip and remember the angels that helped me get through one of my first experiences as a mom.

The other thing I remember from that trip is a meal I had. Kind people and yummy meals. That'll do it. Every fall since then I have done my best to recreate the autumnal meal and every fall, it takes me back to that Seattle hotel room when my husband was at a work meeting, my newborn was asleep next to me, and a delicious room-service meal assured me that even as a new parent I would be able to enjoy grown up things.

Each year I change the ingredients a bit and I encourage you to do the same. This is the first time I added asparagus (not exactly a fall veg) as the market had some that looked good. Next time I think I'll try some parsnips... the possibilities are endless. Enjoy!

Savory Sweet Potato & Veggie Hash
2t Olive Oil
1 Medium Sweet Potato, peeled & diced (2 cups)
1c diced onion
1c diced baby Bella Mushrooms
1c asparagus, trimmed and cut to 1cm "diced sized" pieces
2c de-stemmed, chopped Kale
Salt & Pepper to taste

Dice the Veggies.

Heat the oil over medium heat.

Cook the onion until slightly translucent, about 2 minutes.

Add Sweet Potato to the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes until it starts to soften, just slightly.

Add mushroom. Cook another 2 minutes.

Add asparagus.

Add chopped Kale. Stir veggies until the kale is wilted. Turn off heat.

Season the Hash with salt & pepper, to taste.

Serve Hash alone, with Salmon, Eggs over-easy, scramble it in eggs for breakfast - this hash is SO seasonal and versatile!

Do my kids eat the entire hash? Sadly, no. 

But I make some of the sweet potatoes alone and they will happily munch on those!

Good ol' fashioned chicken noodle soup. In 10 minutes.

As the temps start to drop, I get excited for the crockpot and all the roasted veggies. But to be honest, some of the stuff I am most looking forward to (chili, stew...), it would be shocking to me if my kids ate it. I always do my due-diligence and require they take a bite of new things. (They are not otherwise allowed to say they don't like it.) Sometimes the bite is all it takes to make a fan, sometimes they still aren't interested. In any event, they still need to eat, and mama is a vegetable pusher.

So one of my favorite ways to push veggies is with a batch of good ol'fashioned chicken noodle soup. But it also needs to be fast. So I have been making a 10 minute chicken noodle soup that is loaded with veggies and every person in my family asks for seconds. Mama's pusher-dreams come true.

10-minute Chicken Noodle Soup
Serves 4-6

6-8c low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth (add more if you like once the noodles are al dente)
1c Frozen corn
1/2c frozen peas
1c sliced carrots (i have been using fresh because I always have them on hand but frozen would work just fine)
2c chopped broccoli (another veg I almost always have fresh on-hand, but save the chopping step and use frozen if you like!)
2c uncooked noodles (I'll use whatever I've got but whole wheat rotini is a good go-to. Bonus points for using Banza chickpea noodles - in soup my kids don't notice a difference)
2t Flavor God Garlic lover seasoning
Salt & Pepper to taste
2-3c No salt added, rotisserie chicken, chopped

Add broth to medium saucepan and turn heat the medium-high. Add all veggies. Once broth is at a boil, add uncooked pasta and seasoning. Cook until al dente, about 8min. In the last few minutes of pasta cooking, add chicken. Serve. (I throw an ice cube in each kid's bowl so I can save my breath cooling it down for them and still eat mine warm! Magic.)

Rise and Grind, Mamas.

Once I had it in my mind that I'd be starting a new job, I knew that getting into a routine once the school year started was going to be key in keeping health and fitness a top priority in a busy day.  As much as I wished there was another option, I knew that early mornings would be the most consistent opportunity for me to workout.  In the afternoons the kids have different schedules and activities each day of the week, in the evenings there are often times I can't get away for a workout or I want to focus on family time. And I really didn't want to have to shower more than once a day... so the mornings seemed to make sense. 5am is early, really early.  Luckily, while I wouldn't lie and say "5am is natural for me," it is doable.  If forced to decide, I have always been more of a morning person than a night owl.

The first week back to work I think was pure adrenaline.  I was pulling double workouts of lifting and a run each morning and still having time to relax on the porch with my coffee.  By the time week two rolled around, the new schedule was catching up to me. I started hitting snooze a few extra minutes most mornings, but still getting the work in, though it wasn't quite a "bounce out of bed" experience.  By week 3, however, I could tell the habit was starting to stick.  I'm a solid month in now and I have grown to love the "me time."  I love that my kids know mommy gets up before everyone to exercise.  I love the energy and endorphins that I get to start my day. I love that my 5 year old asked me if I would wait a little later to exercise on Saturday so she could go for a run with me. #hearteyeemoji

When I was deciding on what my routine would be, I made sure to do it prior to the changes.  I wrote down my intentions and reminded myself of why it was important to me. I made specific goals regarding how often, the duration, and the focus of my workouts. I shared my goals with my accountability partners. I can promise you that if I hadn't have made my goals known, there are at least a few mornings that I would have opted for the extra snooze, but instead I answered the bell.

Rising before the sun and greeting the day with a run.

There have been some pretty awesome side perks to my early workouts too.  In addition to the energy boost I get, I notice that my eyes are way less puffy and awake after a morning workout. I get to drink my coffee while its HOT because the children are still asleep.  I feel so good after my workout that I find the rest of my day filed with a string of good-for-me-choices.

And one more thing. No one is perfect. The snooze button may win some days. This VERY day that I am writing this to you was a morning-after-vacation-and-late-flight-Monday when 5 am just came way too early and a afternoon workout won.  Sometimes you just listen to your body.  When you have routines, you can know that this time, you need the extra hour, but it's going to get you back on track so that tomorrow, a fresh start, you're back to the routine that works best for you. No matter what time of day you decide works best for you: Listen to your body, Trust your strength, Dominate your goals.

On the vacation that made me too sleepy to get up this morning, I got in a long bike ride with friends, and a nice run with the desert mountains.