Raw, vegan, cashew pesto!

I used to make this mean roasted red pepper, walnut, basil pesto, but I can't find the recipe anywhere, nor can I remember it. So I found a recipe in "Eat, Drink, Be Vegan", and adapted it to my tastes!

Cashew Basil Pesto:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 2 cups chopped basil
• 1-2 garlic cloves (depends on taste, I used 1.5)
• 3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon sea salt (I used Himalayan) 
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 4 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons water

Directions:

In a food processor, blend all ingredients! Add more liquid if you feel you need it. I served this on top of brown rice elbow noodles,with toasted pine nuts (they look burnt, but they were very good)!

This dish was very easy to make. The part that took the longest was boiling the noodles!

Onto the running front! I planned to do a 12 km run today. I started running and felt like I had all of this acidity bouncing around in my stomach (from the green juice today?) and said, "well, maybe I'll just do a fast 5k". So I picked up the pace, and then felt like I was actually going to throw up. I stopped for a second and then said, "i'll just slow it down a bit and do 10 k". After slowing it down my stomach started to feel a bit better. By the time I hit the 4 km mark, my stomach hurt three times more then it did initially, so I immediately turned around and somehow made it home. I don't remember much of the return half of the run, I just knew that I had to get home. I finished 8 km, and it was probably the worst run I've done yet. My shins didn't hurt very badly during the run, only a bit afterward. So I did a little ice-ice-baby. So my 12 km, to 5 km, to 10 km, to 8 km run didn't go as planned but I'm not going to let it bother me!

Time: 45:30
Distance: 8.01 km
Max HR: 165
Average HR: 156
Calories: 488

I took a few hours to rest up, ate a clementine, red pepper with hummus, and a piece of yesterdays cornbread. I got up and did day 7 of the 30 day shred on level 2. I thought it might get easier everyday I do it, but it really doesn't. I had to stop once or twice!  And because I was feeling a little bit too ambitious, I followed this up with Jillian Michaels Shred It With Weights (Kettle-bell). It was intense.

So now Im just going to bask in the fullness that the pesto gave me, do some dishes, then maybe make some spelt crackers.

:)