Sometimes I love the quiet calm of our morning walk, but other times I could use a little stimulation!
Our morning walk is usually right around a mile – nothing crazy – but I think I would enjoy it a lot more, and perhaps walk Sadie a little farther, if I had something to stimulate my mind a little bit.
I love walks with a friend (I miss my morning walks with you, Merri!) and figured that listening to an audiobook or podcast might pique my interest and make me look forward to my morning walks on days when I am feeling antsy.
After reading your recommendations through Twitter and Facebook, I downloaded my first podcast! (Am I behind the times or what!?)
This American Life podcasts were recommended by a handful of people and after listening this week’s podcast on a lunchtime walk with Sadie, I can see why!
I planned to take her for a quick 20-minute walk and ended up walking for nearly an hour because I wanted to hear the entire podcast.
Just in case you’re in the market for some podcasts, here a few others that were recommended to me this morning:
- NPR Programs: Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me
- The Moth
- How Stuff Works
- Jillian Michaels
- Freakonomics Radio
- Coffee Break Spanish (Learn Spanish!)
Lunch
Yesterday I received an email from a blog reader asking me for meal ideas for one person.
Ask and you shall receive!
Today I made myself a butternut squash, cauliflower and spinach wheat berry bowl for lunch.
The recipe itself is pretty similar to my butternut squash and wheat berry mock risotto, but it includes cauliflower and the ingredients were adjusted to serve only me.
Butternut Squash, Cauliflower and Spinach Wheat Berry Bowl For One
- Serves: One
- Cook Time: Approximately 25 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/4 cup wheat berries (barley will also work)
- 3/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth (vegetable broth may also be used)
- 1 cup butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into small cubes
- 1 cup chopped cauliflower florets
- 1 large handful fresh spinach
Directions:
- Heat oil in a medium size pot over medium heat. Add onions and cook until onions are slightly soft, about five minutes. Add wheatberries and allow to cook, stirring constantly, for approximately one minute.
- Turn the heat to medium-high. Add broth, butternut squash and cauliflower. Stir constantly and allow to simmer until broth is nearly completely dissolved and butternut squash breaks down and becomes creamy (somewhat like mashed potatoes), approximately 20 minutes.You may wish to break the butternut squash down with a fork to help it cook faster once the squash is tender. You may also add more chicken broth if needed.
- Add spinach and stir until leaves are somewhat wilted.
- Enjoy!
Can you tell someone was a little peeved about the inclusion of onions in this recipe since that meant doggie samples were off limits?
Doesn’t it look like her world is over? She’s not dramatic at all.
At least I gave her a small bite of the ricotta cheese from my post-lunch snack.
I really am such a sucker for her puppy eyes.
Questions of the Afternoon
- Do you listen to podcasts?
- What is your favorite podcast?
- Any highly recommended healthy food or fitness podcasts out there?
I’d love to hear your favorite podcast recommendations so I can load up my iPod for my morning walks with Sadie! I’ll be sure to report back on any that I love.
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I love listening to Jillian Michales podcast’s while I run. Some times I listen, other times I tune her out. But they really help me focus on being in the moment.
Since I’m a self-help author, I tend to listen to a lot of other self-help authors. Over the past few months, though, I couldn’t listen to anything but the study CDs for my comprehensive counseling graduate program exam!!
Nice looking lunch, I have been looking for something fun to bring to work to eat at my desk and I think I will try this!
Hi Julie,
My favorite podcast is The Sporkful – it’s a fun, HILARIOUS food podcast. Each week, the hosts discuss a different topic – old episodes include Oatmeal, Ice Cream Toppings, and Popcorn-Eating Etiquette. Hope you enjoy!!
I usually walk our dogs with my friend in the morning, because time flies when we talk. Sometimes I do walk alone though and listening to a podcast or audiobook sounds like a great idea!
Jillian Michaels (there are Jillian Michaels’ show and Jillian Michaels Podcast) and Freakonomics podcasts are great!
Ooooo that lunch looks absolutely delicious! And I love the podcasts by the Marathon Training Academy! Great running info, even for beginners!
PRI To the Best of Our Knowledge also has interesting podcasts.
This American Life podcasts are gooood! One that I used to listen to allll the time is Naked Talk Radio… it’s not quite as scandalous as it sounds. She’d touch on some current news/gossip topics, then usually have a guest on, and a lot about dating/relationships/love etc. Interesting!
I like to listen to the Food Podcast on NPR– it’s a complilation of all the food related storied played throughout the week!
You need to listen to “Dishing up nutrition” by Nutritional Weight and Wellness. Great nutrition info! (My husband gets annoyed by the ladies’ Minnesota accents… but it is great info!!)
Oh! And also The Dave Ramsey Show for great financial advice.
Oh man, I just had to Google “Podcast” to confirm that my internal definition of it was correct…28-year-old FAIL. Now I need to go download some!
xo,
thecrazyfat.blogspot.com
I am such a sucker for puppy dog eyes too! I’m sure it was already mentioned, but Joy (the Baker) has a whole slew of awesome podcasts at http://www.homefries.com. Thanks for the new recommendations 🙂
I haven’t listened to podcasts before but I love the idea of them! I walk between 2 and 4 miles a day to get to and from school and would love to have something to listen to! What sort of things are talked about in the one you listened to today?
I love, love, love the NY Times Book Review podcast! A great way to learn about the latest books and analysis.
As a blogger, you might enjoy WNYC’s “On the Media”. It’s one of my favorite podcasts. It’s a phenomenal variety of stories each week covering media coverage, blogging, free speech, social media, computer science, telecomm, and so much more! Just to give you an example, a few weeks ago, they did a segment on the death of the laugh track. Always very interesting. Enjoy!
Coffee Break Spanish is one of my favorite podcasts ever!!
If you like learning languages, Coffee Break French is pretty good. I majored in French in college, but the old adage is true – use it or lose it. I listened to this podcast to brush up my skills after years away from the language.
I love podcasts! I listen to them while I’m working at the lab between classes 🙂 My favorite is the Vegetarian Food for Thought (obviously a veg-cast), as well as NPR Health, Jillian Michaels, An Organic Conversation, and Ben Greenfield Fitness.
I love to podcast sermons from the young adult’s service at my church in Dallas. It’s called The Porch at Watermark. They are fantastic, and I really like spending more time in the Word!
Hey Julie!
I am a longtime [stalker] reader and for some reason felt compelled to comment today! I highly recommend downloading TED talks if you are interested in podcasts. You can browse speakers based on popularity, speaker or subject matter…and the best part is that most videos have the option to download them as audio (mp3 files) directly to iTunes!
I recently downloaded Malcolm Gladwell’s talk on spaghetti sauce and I think you would really enjoy it. Here is the link: http://www.ted.com/talks/malcolm_gladwell_on_spaghetti_sauce.html
Cheers!
awesome! thank you, rosa!
i’m obsessed with Podcasts. But i’m a tech nerd so I love tech podcasts. I recommend anything from Twit.tv The Social Hour is a great one to start with. They talk about all things social media related.
Were you listening to the TAL episode that was on the radio last weekend, about the man who was abused as a child and then as an adult plotted to murder his abuser? I was listening live and had to turn it off when my daughter walked in. I was RIVETED!! I’ll have to go back and listen to the podcast.
YES!! oh my gosh. i was so captivated!
I LOVE listening to podcasts while I walk my puppy too! Definitely encourages me to walk a little further too, as I always want to finish an episode! My favorites are the Jillian Michael’s Podcast and Two Fit Chicks and a Microphone (run by Carla from MizFit and Shauna from DietGirl). I love the second one because it’s a lot of blogger news and information. And they are just hilarious!
I absolutely love listening to the Jillian Michaels podcast–she covers all things health related and I truly trust what she’s saying! I listen to podcasts when I run because they keep me so much more distracted than listening to music!
I love This American Life! Every Sunday on the way home from church I listen to Ira Glass. 🙂 Your dog is the cutest!
I love listening to NPR on my phone (I have the app and you can pick and choose what podcasts to listen to) and, in addition to Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, I really like Weekends on All Things Considered and Car Talk. They’re great to listen to while doing the dishes or other boring chores!
I know I’m hitting this late, but I’m a huge podcast listener and had a few additional suggestions for you:
– Stuff You Missed in HIstory Class is SUPER fun. PRetty short episodes but very informative and never boring.
– I love all the podcasts from Slate.com, esp. the Double X gabfest and Hang Up and Listen, which is their sports podcast, even though I don’t really pay attention to sports all that often.
– Filmspotting – This was my first podcast and I really enjoy it. Movie talk, with lots of little fun moments scatter throughout each episode.
– Desert Island Discs- This is a radio show from the BBC, where they interview celebs under the guise of discussing what music these folks would take with them if they were stranded on a desert island. George Clooney’s interview was a real eye opener, and I really found Alice Cooper to be facinating. Short but really riviting.
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Love the lunch recipe! I made this for dinner and featured it with a few modifications on my blog!! thanks so much!