I wrote about my last long run in my Weekly Rundown, but because I felt it was getting a little too long, I left out a couple things I did that worked really well during that run. The first is…
I’ve never tried salt pills before, so this was an experiment. Instead of carrying a bottle of LMNT, I took one of these every hour. I guess it worked? I think the only way you would say these didn’t work is if something bad happened, like getting nauseous or cramping up. Neither of those things happened, so I’m going to say salt pills are the way to go in the Florida heat. It’s just easier than relying on an electrolyte drink.
After all my complaining about gels, I ate this at mile 16 of my run, and WOW. It was like instant happiness in my mouth. It was sweet and tangy, and the taste alone gave me a jolt of energy. I think this is a new flavor, and I highly recommend!
This next one isn’t something I did, exactly, unless you count being observant on the trail. It had been several weeks since I ran on this trail, and it was fun to see little things that had changed.
This cactus had flowers! We don’t get lots of colorful flowers on our trails, so little bursts of color like this are fun to see.
Okay, let’s move on to PIZZA. On Friday night my son and I decided to make pizzas. When I texted my sister that’s what we were making (yes, my sister and I regularly text back and forth about food) she said THEY were making a pizza as well. Oh, yeah? Well, in that case, we challenge you to a THROWDOWN!
My son and I took this very seriously, and I went to the store in search of unique ingredients. One thing I didn’t mention to my sister (and I hope this doesn’t disqualify us) is that I used dough from the grocery store. They sell it in the refrigerated section, and it has the same ingredients you would use if you were making it at home. I just let it sit out in a bowl on the counter for a couple hours before rolling it out.
We made two pizzas, and here’s our official entry to the throwdown:
Homemade pizza sauce, vegan cheese, spicy Beyond sausages, roasted garlic, banana peppers, garlic butter (Earth Balance vegan butter) brushed on the crust, and finished with mango hot sauce, fresh basil and arugula!
Our other pizza was less stellar, but still delicious:
Half with just sauce and vegan cheese for my daughter, and the other half for me had Field Roast sausages (Beyond sausages taste too meat-y for me) and roasted broccoli, onion, garlic and black olives. Topped with fresh basil and arugula, and again the crust was brushed with garlic butter before baking.
These were SO GOOD!!!
Just for the record, here’s my sister and BIL’s entry:
Pizza sauce, vegan cheese, Beyond meat crumbles, garlic, veggies, pesto and olives. And they put Trader Joe’s Everything seasoning around the edges of the crust.
Of course we realized the fatal flaw to our throwdown- without being able to taste all the pizzas there was no way to declare a winner. Well, we were ALL winners! It was fun and delicious. So delicious, in fact, that my son devoured his ENTIRE PIZZA, causing my sister to suggest he become a competitive eater. My daughter and I, on the other hand, were able to enjoy leftovers of our pizza the next day.
I’m thinking about future throwdowns when my son is home for the summer- Ultimate Vegan Burgers, perhaps?
What are your favorite pizza toppings? Any unusual ones that you love?
Have you tried the Beyond vegan “meat” products? – I’m the only vegan I know who doesn’t like them.
29 Responses
Pizza throwdown… what a fun idea. I’m a traditional margarita girl – tomato, cheese and basil.
Gu is my only fuel because it has caffeine, sugar and electrolytes but I have not tried that flavor, though.
Yes, and the only drawback to that flavor is that it DOESN’T have caffeine. I agree that usually if I’m going to take a gel, I want it to have caffeine. I love the espresso ones.
So you probably would have voted for my daughter’s half of the pizza! With a little added basil.
Yup. I want caffeine too.
Clearly your son won the pizza throw down since he ate his entire pizza! All of the pizzas look yummy.
Back when I was single, I used to make pizza nearly every Friday, including the dough from scratch. But somehow I’ve lost my dough making skills and every time that I make dough now it doesn’t turn out right. That’s why I’m 100% on the bandwagon of just getting premade dough. It’s not going to break the bank and it makes life easier.
GREAT point! I’ll let him know he’s been declared the winner.
Yes, premade dough just makes life so much easier. And it’s not expensive, so why not?
I love your pizza throwdown! Pizza is one of my favorite foods. I love (smooth) red sauce with cheese, pepperoni, red onion, and mushrooms. But I also love caramelized onions, goat cheese, mushrooms, and arugula. YUM!
As a non-runner, I am so curious — how do you maintain your stride while getting gel out or swallowing salt pills? Maybe this is simpler than I am imagining, but in my head it would at least slow you down. I would trip for sure if I tried to focus on anything but running!
Ah, I have a mushroom issue- I hate them. Much to the dismay of everyone else in my family.
I’m pretty good at getting gels out while running- maybe it’s just from practice. But the salt pills I took every time I stopped at my car. For the type of race I’m doing, I’ll be stopping (briefly) at aid stations, so I’m mimicking that for my runs.
So, I have a confession to make. I think arugula is disgusting. The previous owners planted it all over our yard and it’s impossible to kill and it stinks and I hate it. I am not a big pizza fan in general (I think actually that I don’t like red sauce on pizzas, but if you give me a pizza with white sauce, I actually enjoy it) and the idea of it being slathered with arugula made me wince. Sorry, Jenny, but I think your sister wins the throwdown for me!
Ha ha, I’ll let her know! Yes, arugula has a strong taste- how unfortunate that it’s growing all over your yard.
I’m interested in your “Beyond Meat” view because quite a few of our clients have invested in the company. Subsequently, they lost quite a bit when the shares fell. Since then, they have never been able to pick up again. I always wonder why their products aren’t doing well. Maybe because many vegetarians/vegans feel exactly like you do?
I love your pizza photos!! So delicious, ALL of them!!
No, I think most vegans and vegetarians like those products! I don’t know why they wouldn’t be doing well??? I think they’re good products- just not for me.
I very much dislike fake meats. I never liked meat, and so it stands that I don’t like fake meat either. I love the black bean burgers from Costco though. If there is no other option I will have a “burger” but it’s not my first choice by any means. And any kind of sausage or crumble…no, no thank you! Not for me.
We have pizza every week but I make it with pitas as the crust so it is a super quick and easy meal – then I make extras for the boys’ lunches the next day. Works a charm!
Yes, it’s funny when people are trying to convince me to eat the Beyond sausage “because it tastes just like meat.” I don’t LIKE meat! I don’t want tomsething that tastes just like meat! I like burgers, but only if they taste like beans and vegetables.
This is hilarious! I had homemade pizza tonight for supper (my parents are still in town and my Mom made it just like she used to when I was growing up and it was DELICIOUS).
I’m not a fan of pineapple on my pizza and I prefer not to have olives or bell peppers; other than that, I’ll eat just about anything!
I like olives and bell peppers, but I also prefer not to have pineapple. How did that become a thing, anyway?
Oh wow these look amazing! We pretty much always do olives/onions/mushrooms. I need to get way more creative with my pizza toppings.
Sometimes we use leftover taco stuff to make taco flavoured pizza – that goes down well!
Also, I don’t think store bought dough is cheating. I used to make dough and it was an awful process that was usually very messy and sticky and often undercooked (possibly an oven fault, not a dough fault). Recently we started using the beadmaker to make dough and it’s so much better and easier! But I don’t think what I get from my beadmaker is any different to what you get from the store.
Yes, I’ve made my own dough. It comes out alright, but it’s much more time consuming- you really have to plan ahead to let it rise, etc. Much easier to just buy it.
Ooh, the pizzas all look tasty! My favorite toppings are pepperoni and sausage, but a friend recently turned me on to pepperoni with pineapple. Total YUM! I have a mean wheat crust that I make from scratch, but have not done so in a long time. It makes a real thick crust 😉
Oh yes, my son likes pineapple on his pizza. We haven’t done that in a long time though- we’ll have to put it on next time.
There was a place when I worked in Colorado that did a spicy Hawaiian pizza that was so good: pineapple, ham, and pickled jalapenos.
My standard pizza must have, though, is mushrooms. And lots of veggies, particularly olives. And garlic. And I do like anchovies, though no one else does, so I don’t get that a lot. And I don’t like more than one kind of meat, if any.
My husband makes a really tasty corn and cheddar pizza that I like a lot too.
Your pizzas look so good! I love that idea of mango hot sauce drizzle.
Ha, I hate mushrooms! It’s huge problem being vegan because mushrooms are used a lot as a “meaty” substitute.i do love olives and garlic though!
Ooh, those pizzas look yummy.
I’m glad you got your hydration and fuelling sorted ready for your race.
I don’t know if it’s completely sorted out yet! I’m getting closer though.
How fun! That first pizza with the arugula looks especially amazing! Your sister’s looks great, too! I have never made pizza from scratch. Maybe if I wasn’t GF I would. But it would be a pain to have to make or buy 2 different doughs. Maybe I will try that some day when the kids are older. I am sure they would love making their own pizzas! I love that you and your sister text about things like this!
Are you the only GF one in your family? I wonder if there’s a good recipe for GF pizza dough that everyone could eat? I can eat gluten, but I don’t mind GF products. Or when the boys get older you could just have them make their own pizzas on store-bought crusts- there are some good ones out there.
Those pizzas look delicious! I can’t remember the last time I made homemade pizza, but now you have me inspired to do so sometime soon! I love that your family and your sister’s family did homemade pizzas the same night – serendipity!
Remember you can get the dough at Publix, in the refrigerated section of the bakery. It’s basically like homemade dough that someone else made, and it makes it sooo much easier.
Here’s a pizza topping that always gets a surprised stare: I love tuna on pizza… it’s a staple (!) in Italy, yet, you can’t find a pizza tonno anywhere in the US (well, not true, you might get lucky in some “Italian quarters”, like in North End in Boston). You should try it sometime.
P.S. all the pizzas look amazing!q
Ha, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of that!