Recent runs, recent pizzas

Dare I say our weather is taking a turn for the better? 

We got perhaps 4 inches of snow on Friday.  However, the temperatures over the weekend have been in the low 30's.  Icicles are hanging off of my eaves, and there is a whole lot of melting going on.

I got in 16 miles yesterday, and another 5 today.  Running was slightly challenging, as the guys who plow the streets and the guys who plow the sidewalks are never on the same page.  The sidewalk plow guys have done a nice job getting after it right after a snow.  However, the street plow guys always make additional passes and undo all the good work the sidewalk guys have done!  It's an eternal struggle.

The runs were tough, but good.  I continue to see little signs that spring is closer.  Yesterday the red-bellied woodpeckers started chirping with their familiar "kwirrrrr!"  It was the first time I heard their call this season, and they were doing it everywhere I went.  That, coupled with the sounds of the jubilant cardinals, chickadees, blue jays, and even the cackling wild turkeys, gives us all hope.

Speaking of hope...

I haven't made pizza in quite some time, so I needed to change that.  I made a couple this week.  My 13 year-old sourdough starter, "Hope," is alive, well, and quite feisty.  And my sourdough pizza recipe continues to produce some tasty pies.

This pizza I made on Tuesday, topped with Calabrese salami and crimini mushrooms.

Pizza, pizza!

And here is Friday's pizza, also with Calabrese salami, but I added artichoke hearts and Beldi olives as well.

Tasty stuff

The first pizza was really good, but the second pizza even better.  Love the addition of some briny ingredients like the olives and the artichoke hearts.  

It was nice to have pizza on the menu again.  It was also a reminder that I need to get back into a more regular pizza making schedule!