17 miles finally

I decided that if I were to wait for the weather to improve, my 17 miles would be postponed forever, so I finally braced myself and faced the wind and rain. What a horrible experience! The rain lashed against my face for 2 hours and I was running into a howling gale for most of the time. I ran right down into the bottom of a valley to avoid the wind but then at mile 16 I had to run up a mile long steep climb to get back to the car. Anyway, I can tick that one off now. One more 20 and then I can start tapering down for the BIG DAY...just one month to go.

I made an exceptionally tasty stock with a guineafowl at the weekend, so we have had some delicious soup this week. I also used a ladleful in my very simple penang curry last night (sorry no photo as yet).

Quick Penang Prawn Curry with Soba noodles

Soba noodles are actually Japanese, so I am not claiming this recipe to be Thai authentic. The noodles do however go really well with this recipe, they are really healthy and have a low G.I. factor. Soba noodles are brownish buckwheat noodles, they have a nutty flavour and are rich in fibre and minerals such as selenium and zinc and contain 84% carb, 14% protein and 2% fat - see http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c21V9.html. I used Clearspring organic soba noodles which contain wheat, but you can also buy completely wheat-free gluten-free versions.

This curry only takes about 15 minutes to make and although this combination of veg worked really well, you can use whatever vegetables you fancy really. The quantities are for 2 hungry people and the curry should have a soupy consistency:

50g penang curry paste (use red curry paste if you cannot find penang paste)
1 tin coconut milk
2 cups water or stock
Bunch of spring onions, chopped into 3-4 cm lengths, include the green stems
3-4 mushrooms
1 yellow/orange pepper
1/4 fresh pineapple chopped into 1-2 cm cubes
Pack of jumbo prawns
1 desert spoon fish sauce (add gradually to taste)
1/2-1 tsp palm sugar or brown sugar
5 kaffir lime leaves, sliced thinly into lengths (I buy these from the Asian supermarket and keep them in the freezer)
2 fresh birds eye chillis, sliced thinly into lengths
Big handful of basil or Thai basil
200g soba noodles

1. Mix the curry paste with the coconut milk in a large pan or wok and heat until boiling.
2. Add the spring onions and vegetables, add the water or stock and cook for a few minutes.
3. Add the pineapple and the prawns and cook for a couple of minutes. Be careful not to overcook the prawns - you do not want them to be rubbery.
4. Taste and then season with the basil, kaffir lime, chillis, fish sauce and sugar - you want to get a balance of sweet, sour, heat and salt.
5. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the soba noodles and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse immediately with cold water. Add to the curry, reheat and serve in large soup bowls or big flat pasta bowls.
6. Sprinkle with some kaffir lime and chilli that you have kept aside.