Lightened Up Beef Stroganoff

Good morning! I have a lightened up recipe classic that I know you are going to love but first, I want to talk about running.

Previously, I had shared Nick and my decision to run the Ogden Marathon. It was a bit of a crazy choice and I explain what we were thinking in this post. I hit the ground running (<— un-intentional pun) on our training plan and tackled the first week rather well. I put together this big, long post about training – what the goals were, what I ate, how I felt, etc. And I was really proud of myself.

And you might have noticed, that training recap was the first and last such post.

A couple things here…

1. Recap posts that highlight every workout and major meal for an entire week – that’s a lot of flippin work.
2. I hurt myself in Week 2 and was rather embarrassed about the whole thing.

Okay so there you have it, Week 2 I hurt my Achilles and I felt like a giant fool for deciding to do this training plan and hurting myself and then for not being good enough to accomplish the goals I had set for myself.

A couple things here…

1. The point, if you’ll go back and read this, was to keep us active and healthy over the winter AND to improve our overall running abilities.
2. Pushing myself to the point of injury and then not going running at all is the polar opposite of the set intention.
3. I am a fool. But not because I tried to do something outside of my current abilities – I’m a fool for judging myself and beating myself up over my current abilities.

No, I’m not ready to run a marathon. No, I’m probably not even ready to train for a marathon. But, every single day that I get out there and pound the pavement, I get a little closer to that dream and I expand my current abilities that much more.

The thing is, I was looking at this training plan and the runs were so intimidating – 9 miles on a Saturday, 6 miles on a Wednesday, etc – it was so far beyond what I’m currently capable of that instead of going running and improving a little at a time – I just skipped the runs altogether. I literally skipped an entire week of runs. Just didn’t go.

Last week, however, I got my head back into the game and focused in on the purpose. What is the purpose? To better myself. I just had to reconfigure a training schedule that actually works with my life and my abilities.

I ran 14 miles last week. Not the 21 that was on the training schedule but it’s a number I am proud of. A number that is still greater than what I’d been doing before. A number that pushed my boundaries but did not break me.

When it comes to fitness, it is so easy to get caught up in what the cool kids are doing – cross fit, marathons, Spartan races, etc – that we forget the point of physical fitness. It’s not so I’m better than you, or faster than you, or fitter than you. I work out to be healthy – to have a balanced and active life.

Pushing myself so hard that I give up entirely? That’s not healthy or balanced.

I will run a marathon this year. I will run a half marathon in April. I will. I will.I will. And I will love myself, and respect myself, throughout the journey.

Okay, enough about me… let’s get in the kitchen!

Lightened up Beef Stroganoff

I love beef stroganoff but I very rarely order it off a restaurant menu because I know it will likely come chalk full of butter and an overload of fats. I decided why not figure out a way to make it at home and to lighten it up a bit? I used ground beef in place of strip steak and made meatballs which is just a bit more fun I think. Nick was especially happy about the meatballs and he immediately converted my pasta dish into a meatball sandwich. He’s a lover of bread, not noodles.

At any rate, this recipe is a lot easier to make than the recipe looks at first glance – so don’t be intimidated! And feel free to make this recipe your own, meatball sandwich or what have you

Lightened up Beef Stroganoff

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 25 minutes Serves: 4+

Ingredients:

*Please note that there is a total of 3 cups of mushrooms and half of a yellow onion.

1/4 Yellow Onion 3-4 Leaves Kale 1 1/2 Cups Mushrooms*	} combine in food processor
1/2 Cup Chobani Plain 1 1/2 lbs Ground Beef	} combine with processed mixture
4 Cloves Garlic, minced 2 Cup White Wine* 1/4 Yellow Onion, diced 2 Tbsp Butter 1 tsp Coriander 1 tsp Thyme 1 1/2 Cups Mushrooms 6 Ounces Asiago Cheese 2 Cups 2% Milk	} for the sauce
1 Package Egg Noodles (32-40 ounces)

Method:

• In a food processor, combine the yellow onion, kale and mushrooms in the quantities indicated above.
• In a large bowl, combine the processed vegetables with the ground beef and Chobani Greek Yogurt. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
• Prepare a pot of water to boil.
• Form this mixture into one inch balls.
• Drop the balls into boiling water and reduce heat. Maintain a rolling boil, allowing the meatballs to cook for 5-10 minutes.
• While the meatballs are cooking, prepare your sauce.
• In a skillet, combine the minced garlic, white wine, yellow onion, butter, coriander, thyme and mushrooms. Let simmer over a medium heat until veggies soften. Add milk and asiago cheese. Increase heat and stir frequently until cheese is well incorporated. Reduce heat to low.
• Remove meatballs from the boiling water using a slotted spoon (do not discard the water) and place the balls directly into the skillet of sauce.
• Once all the meatballs have been transferred from the boiling water to the skillet, place the egg noodles into the boiling water. We’re using the water we cooked the meatballs in because that water has become a lovely broth from the beef, kale and mushrooms. Allow the noodles to cook for roughly 20 minutes testing for desired texture. Once fully cooked, strain off the excess water.
• Serve the noodles topped with a few meatballs and a light drizzle of the sauce.

*I used Bella Mushrooms because that is what was available locally. For the wine, I used Beach Cabin White made from Puget Sound AVA, a wine which came from Blooms Winery. You can use any white wine, preferably one that is mild and buttery. I chose to Blooms wine because we had it on hand from our Whidbey Island wine tour – enjoying wine from a trip is a great way to maximize the memories made

I served ours over a bed of baby bok choy just to get a few extra greens into our diet for the day.

I’m working from home today and I am just about ready to head out for a meeting with a potential freelance client. I’ll be back this afternoon with a lunch suggestion – a mini recipe for those of you that are following along on Facebook.

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