Mother knows best

When I was a young adolescent I was pretty awkward. For those of you that knew me then, you know that "awkward" is an understatement, but whatever I was (big purple glasses, loud voice, crooked teeth and all) I was me, and my mom really loved me.

That being said, I was not a kid that was excited about any sort of exercise. I joined sport teams but suffered through the long conditioning runs we had to do for practice. Slightly plump and not in shape, I was far from fit during most of my teenage years. My mom on the other hand, was running 10Ks every month and finishing at the top of her age group- and, she had (and still has) the legs to prove it.

Man oh man, did she try to get me to love running. But, no matter the pep talks, the testimonials, and even my friends doing it, I still hated it. I hated how awful
I was at it and I HATED how amazing she was at it all the time. Blame it on the high school mom daughter relationship but I wasn't going to change my mind. I was stubborn.

It's probably not much of a surprise that now, 20 years later from when she first tried to show me how great it was, I am a runner. Today, I love running. I love that all you need to do it is a pair of shoes and a hair band. I love the pavement under my feet, the breath I maintain, and the stride that I have developed. All it took was a really awful break up back in my mid twenties to prove this to me, but really I should have known- because my mom knows best.

This week, with the awful happenings in Boston, I have been so grateful to be a runner. Not only have I felt a solidarity with those runners but I have been able to process their pain, their anger, and my own grief on many long runs this week. It's given me the space and the time to truly give homage to a city I love and a population of people that are weeping for their loss. I am proud to be a runner this week- thanks, mom.

Turns out she not just good for exercise mentorship. Today, as I was driving to Whole foods she told me "if you see the halibut, buy it." And then, after I bought said halibut and had no clue what to do with it she said, "make this sauce- it's the best thing you've ever had". She was right, Jayne Adair really does know best.

Jayne Adair's special sauce:
Perfect for two- great on fish but really could go on anything.

1 shallot
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups chopped herbs (basil and parsley are perfect)
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Cook shallots in oil until soft. Add water and simmer until reduced, about 6 minutes. Add cream and whisk to mix, simmer 6 minutes more. Blend together in food processor with fresh herbs. Return to pan and reheat, add lemon, salt and pepper to taste. Put on top of anything but is really wonderful on grilled halibut.