Sock Shortage

As I was packing my gym bag, I noticed a sock shortage. I finally put together a pair but couldn't believe that I was down to the undesirables i.e. the mismatched along with the ones that need to be darned.

I have about 30 pairs of socks but most of them are currently residing in the hamper. You know what that means? Yes, I need to buy more socks. Of course not. I have enough irregular Nike socks with the swoop in the front and/or back and my real gems -- comfortable Champion socks that I found at Big Lots.

I thought about taking back-to-back classes even though my glutei are quite sore. I didn't nix the idea completely until I saw that the class, Drills to Make You Sweat, was packed. The step platforms made the space even more compact so it wasn't as bearable as the crowded Cardio and Muscle that I took yesterday.

Despite the sore glutei and tender hamstrings, I hopped on a StairMaster and went for 47 minutes (six for cooling down). I climbed 141 floors with an average level of five.

My goal is to, eventually, stay on the StairMaster without stopping for 60 minutes.

When I got home, I did the stretch portion of 10 Minute Solution: Tone Trouble Zones! As always, stretching felt very good and I already feel less sore.

For Dinner? Leftover Senegalese Peanut Stew that I made on Sunday. There was a whole lot of chopping going on but it was totally worth it. A clichéd symphony (cayenne, cloves, garlic & ginger) of flavors, I tell you.

The Counterpoint of Carrots

I had Senegalese Peanut Stew for dinner and it was incredibly good. The cayenne pepper was sitting in the back of my throat, present but not overwhelming. Then, I would run into ginger which also had a little power to it but it was tamed by the sweet in the potato. The carrots provided a nice counterpoint to the sweet potato. Mmmmm, mmmm. I did miss the cornbread though.

I remember my grandmother would add butter and syrup to her cornbread and my mother would tell her that there was already butter in the cornbread and to add more was pure decadence. I guess that everyone needs to be decadent every once in awhile.

Senegalese Peanut Stew

2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
1 large sweet potato (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 carrots, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
4 cups vegetable broth (preferably no-salt)
1 cup creamy natural peanut butter

Heat a large saucepan over a medium flame. Pour in the oil, wait a second or two, then add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and golden, about 2 minutes.

Add the sweet potatoes, carrots and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.

Add the ginger, cloves, salt and cayenne. Cook for 10 seconds, then add the broth. Bring the mixture to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.

Stir in the peanut butter until smooth. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer until the sweet potato is tender and the soup is quite thick. Stir often to prevent scorching. Cool for 5 minutes off the heat before serving.