Creamy Yogurt Smoothie

I am currently obsessed with this smoothie. No protein powder, just creamy, tangy goodness.

Serves 2 | Recipe by Lauren Larson

1 cup plain lowfat kefir (Nancy’s is my favorite)

1 cup frozen mixed fruit (e.g. mango, peach, strawberry)

1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 tablespoons hemp seeds

2 teaspoons honey (optional)

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth, using a tamper/turning off the blender and pushing down fruit as necessary. Add more almond milk/water to thin if necessary.
2. Pour into two glasses and serve.

Approximate nutrition information per serving (excluding honey): Calories – 165 kcal; Carbohydrates – 17 grams; Fat – 7 grams; Protein – 10 grams.

Perfect for an afternoon snack on a hot summer day.

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Crawling My Way Out

I spent a majority of my weekend trying to devise a plan for getting out of my “you name it rut“. To start, I made a study plan for finals week to help myself feel on top of it. I got in some movement even though my low back is still hurting; I did some core moves from a pilates video and previous physical therapy episodes; went to the rec center to sit on an upright stationary bike for 30 minutes; and did some foam rolling, glute, and core work. I enjoyed one of my favorite home cooked Mom meals (Chicken Parmesan) and Dad cocktails (Pomegranate Martini) on Saturday night with the husband. And, in between studying today, I spent prepared healthy meals and snacks for the week and made sure I got in my greens!

For lunch, I used of my favorite tactics for clearing leftovers from the fridge: scramble them in eggs. These leftovers included diced potato, diced ham, black beans, cheese, and salsa, and I added a scrambled egg and some chopped kale for greens.

Mid afternoon, I took  a study break and prepared Dreena Burton’s Chickpea Ratatouille for lunches this week.

I added kale for some extra green, and it wilted in nicely.

Meanwhile, I made up a smoothie with…more kale, oh and a banana, 1/2 cup of Fage 0% Greek yogurt, some water, cinnamon  and a few ice cubes too. Tip: if you wash, cut, and refrigerate your greens immediately after buying them from the grocery store, you will be more likely to incorporate them in meals throughout the week.

For dinner, I made some Italian Meatloaf with some 100% grass-fed ground beef for some brain boosting omega-3s. The only changes I made to the recipe were using 1/2 of a fresh red bell pepper instead of a roasted one and I added 1/4 teaspoon of granulated garlic to the meat with all the other seasonings.

On the side we enjoyed some pureed cauliflower that I made by steaming cauliflower and blending it in my Vita with 2 pads of butter, a splash of milk, 1/4 teaspoon of Spike seasoning, 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic, and freshly cracked black pepper.

I thought they were pretty heavenly and so was the meatloaf!

Followed by a half piece of flour-less chocolate cake to share.

I am getting there…back to studying.

Do you use food to improve your mood? If so, what are your go to’s? 

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Slow

This week has been all about getting in the swing of things…and it will probably be that way for a few more weeks. I was in New Jersey celebrating my cousin’s graduation from high school last weekend, and after a red eye flight out there and a 5:30 am flight home, I made it just in time for the first day of summer classes. Over the next 8 weeks I am taking 3 summer courses in addition to working part time, planning a wedding and training for a triathlon. It could get interesting, but I think it is do-able. I hope to be used to my new schedule and workload by the end of next weak. In the meantime…happy What I Ate Wednesday (WIAW)!

I woke up bright and early to do some reading and take an online quiz before eating breakfast and getting ready for the day. My day started off with my morning ritual of “naturally” decaffeinated Irish Breakfast tea with steamed and frothed cashew milk and cinnamon.

After my quiz I whipped up an egg scramble for breakfast.

In the mix:

• Coconut oil
• Cabbage
• Red pepper
• Yellow onion
• 2 farm fresh eggs + 1 egg white
• Cherry tomatoes
• Fresh oregano, salt + pepper
• Leftover BBQ Beef Brisket from dinner at Oskar Blues the night before
• Refried black beans

Before lunch I snacked on an apple while walking around campus.

And after getting settled in at the library I had a caprese inspired quinoa salad with a dollop of hummus for lunch.

Inspired by this recipe, I cooked up 1 cup of quinoa in water, and combined it with halved cherry tomatoes, 2 leaves of blanched sliced kale, diced cucumber, fresh mozzarella pearls, fresh basil, salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons garlic infused olive oil.

For my afternoon “sensible” snack I had a classic green monster smoothie that I had prepared in the morning and brought with me.

What went in the Vita:

• 4 ounces water
• 4 ounces cashew milk
• 1 banana
• 1 scant scoop Garden for Life Raw Protein
• 1/2 tablespoon chia seeds
• Sprinkle of cinnamon
• 1 leaf of kale

And what came out:

After finishing up on campus I set out for an evening ride with some girl friends. Despite being over 90 degrees out and somewhat smoky from the High Park Fire on Ft. Collins, it was a beautiful evening out. However, I think the stress of having a cold, travelling and training really caught up with me…I was moving slooooowwww. It worked out okay though, because it gave me the opportunity to catch up with a friend and relate to each other about managing busy schedules!

After my ride I came home to a ready-to-eat slow cooker meal: chicken teriyaki with brown rice and sugar snap peas.

I may have probably said this before, but this was definitely the best chicken recipe I have ever made in the slow cooker! The flavor satisfied my craving for teriyaki and it was extremely simple to put together in the morning. I modified the quantities a bit, but the original recipe can be found on Cooking Classy.

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

#ratingval# from #reviews# reviews

Print

Recipe Type: Slow Cooker, Main

Author: Lauren A. adapted from Cooking Classy

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 5 hours

Total time: 5 hours 15 mins

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 1 pound chicken breast
• 1.5 pounds chicken thighs
• 2/3 cup Bragg’s liquid aminos (or soy or tamari)
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 3 tablespoons orange marmalade
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 1/2 tablespoon cold water
• 1 1/2 tablespoon corn starch
• Sesame seeds for garnish
• Hot cooked short grain brown rice

Instructions

1. Trim chicken of excess fat and place in slow cooker.
2. Combine liquid aminos, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, honey, orange marmalade, ginger, garlic, and black pepper with a blender. Add to slow cooker, stir, cover and cook on low for 5 hours.
3. Remove chicken from slow cooker to a cutting board and shred. Transfer sauce to a medium saucepan. Combine cold water and corn starch and pour into sauce mixture. Heat over medium heat until just boiling, stirring constantly. Allow mixture to boil gently for 20 seconds then transfer back to slow cooker with chicken and stir to combine.
4. Serve over hot cooked brown rice and garnish with sesame seeds.

Notes

Transferring the sauce to a sauce pan and boiling with the cornstarch mixture is probably optional. You could probably just add the cornstarch mixture to the slow cooker and turn it on high for a few minutes to achieve the same effect without another dirty dish.

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2.2.7

Check out my article on Girl Bike Love on compression tights!

What is the best thing you have made in the slow cooker lately?

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Seconds

I got up bright an early yesterday to hit up the farmer’s market before it got overly crowded. In addition to the farmer’s market this weekend there is also the Boulder Creek Festival, which draws quite the crowd, and I am not a fan of large crowds. I knew exactly what I wanted, so I got in and out. I picked up some grass-fed sirloin steaks from our favorite beef guy, some salad greens, a tomato, and treated myself to some peonies.

If you are looking to save money at the farmer’s market…ask the farm stand if they have any seconds. If they don’t have them on display, they may have a hidden bin or box with items that aren’t quite perfect, but are half the price! When I saw the beautiful peonie bouquets I wanted one, but at $10 I couldn’t justify it. After looking closer, I found a small bin of seconds that were 3 for $2. I picked out three descent ones and still felt special. I also picked up a tomato for 0.50 cents with a tiny blemish, but since we were going to eat it that night it was no big deal. So, next time you go to the farmer’s market as for their seconds, and you’ll save some money!

Before heading to the farmers market I made some buckwheat and millet porridge with chia seeds, blueberries, cardamom (I actually think I used coriander on accident), and nutmeg. After cooking the porridge, I stirred in 1/2 cup Greek yogurt and topped it off with some freshly ground flax seeds, a drizzle of honey and almond butter.

Mid-morning I snacked on a 1/2 of a sunbutter banana muffin before heading out for a swim. One of my favorite things about the weekend is being able to exercise anytime of the day! It was such a beautiful day for an outdoor swim. I put my longest swim of the season in the books at 2700 m. By the time I was done, it was time for lunch!

I had a giant bowl of leftover thai chickpea curry with sweet brown rice. This recipe comes from my newest obsession: Dreena Burton’s new cookbook Let Them Eat Vegan!.

The original recipe can be found here, but here is how I modified it.

Thai Chickpea Sunflower Butter Curry

#ratingval# from #reviews# reviews

Print

Recipe Type: Vegetarian, Main

Author: Lauren A. adapted from Dreena Burton’s Let Them Eat Vegan! Cookbook

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 1 pound dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 limes
• 1 14 oz. can coconut milk
• 1/4 cup sunflower seed butter
• 1/2 tablespoon Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (or tamari)
• 1 1/2 inch piece ginger, peeled
• 1 tablespoon thai red curry paste
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
• 2 zucchini, quartered
• 1 fist sized sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4″ dice
• 1 cup spinach, roughly chopped
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced
• 2 kaffir lime leaves
• Fresh basil for serving
• Hot cooked brown rice

Instructions

1. The night before, soak chickpeas in enough water to cover. The next morning drain, rinse, and add to the slow cooker with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and set on low for 7 hours. Before preparing the rest, drain chickpeas, reserving cooking water, and let cool separately.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
3. Add garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, juice from 1 1/2 limes (reserve the rest for garnish), coconut milk, sunflower seed butter, liquid aminos, fresh ginger, thai curry paste, and 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes to a high speed blender like a VitaMix. Blend on high until garlic clove and fresh ginger have been ground up and incorporated. Pour into a large rectangular baking dish.
4. Measure out 4 cups of cooked chickpeas, and add to baking dish. Place remaining cooled chickpeas in a container with their juice and either refrigerate or freeze for future use. Add zucchini, sweet potato, spinach, green onions, and lime leaves to baking dish. Stir to combine. Cover and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 5-10 more minutes.
5. Serve over brown rice topped with fresh basil and a squeeze of lime.

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2.2.6

We did some major spring cleaning in the kitchen all afternoon. We took everything out of the cabinets and drawers, sorted out the stuff we wanted to get rid of, wiped everything down, and re-organized. In between the cabinets and the drawers we took a break for a smoothie for two.

Banana and Blueberry Smoothie For Two

• 1 cup 2% milk
• 1 cup cold water
• 1 very ripe banana
• 3/4 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 scoop Garden For Life Raw Protein
• 1 large handful of spinach
• 1 large handful of ice cubes

After a nap we started dinner: spice-rubbed sirloin steaks from a recipe that promises to turn a “cheaper” steak into “choice from Cook’s Illustrated magazine with salad and refried beans.

They sure kept their promise!

Workout plan for the week:

• Monday: Boulder Boulder 10K race
• Tuesday: 60 minutes vinyasa yoga and a 30 minute recovery walk
• Wednesday: 75 minutes swim
• Thursday: 60 minute run
• Friday: 55 minutes swim + 60 minute bike
• Saturday: 2 hour bike ride with plenty of climbing
• Sunday: TBD brick workout

Meal plan for the week:

• Monday: Memorial day grill sesh’ with the fam
• Tuesday: Slow cooker coconut chicken curry
• Wednesday: Leftovers
• Thursday: Spanish quinoa
• Friday: TBD
• Saturday: TBD
• Sunday: Out

How are you celebrating Memorial Day?

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Heart Rate Zone Training

Its Saturday morning, lets talk heart rate zone training…

The key to being successful at any endurance sport is to train both your aerobic (with oxygen) and anaerobic (without oxygen) systems. Your anaerobic system runs on a limited supply of quick burning carbohydrates, and training it will give you strength and speed during those hill climbs or when your competitor is coming up on your rear. On the other hand, your aerobic system runs on sustainable fat storage for fuel, and training it will give you the necessary stamina for you to be out there racing for 3+ hours. For triathlons longer than a sprint distance, training your aerobic system becomes the most important. However, this is challenging because it requires you you to slow your pace a bit, and go for longer periods of time. This also becomes mentally challenging, because it is hard to understand how you can get gains from training at a pace that is slower than you normally could go. But patience and perseverance will pay off in your overall fitness ability, improvements in your performance, and the prevention of over training.

There are a multitude of metrics out there that can be used for training your aerobic an anaerobic systems (perceived exertion, pace, heart rate, lactate threshold, power output, etc.) and they all have their benefits and drawbacks. But this cheapest, most accessible, and understandable method is to train with heart rate. Your heart rate is a reasonable indicator of your fitness level, whether or not you are over training or stressed, and can be used as to gauge your improvements. As you train in different heart rate zones and your fitness level improves, you will find yourself able to swim/bike/run at a faster pace with the same or an even lower heart rate.

Aside from getting a descent heart rate monitor, the first step in training with heart rate zones is to get a rough estimate of your heart rate in each zone. This may require you to test your resting heart rate, maximum heart rate, or do a time trial. There is no exact method to calculating your heart rate zones, so a rough estimate is sufficient. There are a few online calculators you can try here, here, and here and there is a great article about doing a field test, various formulas used to calculate zones, and a discussion of the various zones here. Personally, I used this calculator after doing a 20 minute bike and 4 mile run time trail. Once you have your heart rate zones you can get out there and focus on training the energy system (aerobic, or anaerobic) you will predominately use in your race, and/or your weaknesses.

My two big weaknesses are hills and running at a sustainable pace without my heart rate jumping too high, which is most likely because I haven’t spent a lot of time training my zone 1-2 system. This week I focused on my weakness on hills and did 12 hill repeats in my maximum heart rate zone with a recovery in between.

And…lets just say it hurt! But the hope is that it will make me better at running on hills. Next up is a slow, long run in zone 1 and 2 to train my other weakness.

Now, lets talk food…

For breakfast I had an egg scramble with some leftover crumbled jalapeño spoon bread and cream cheese! Have you ever tried putting a little bit of cream cheese in scrambled eggs just after they have set? If you haven’t had breakfast and happen to have some cream cheese on hand…try it now!

In the mix:

• Red onion
• Kale
• 2 large eggs + 1 egg white
• Crumbled jalapeño spoon bread
• Salt, Pepper, oregano
• 1 tablespoon cream cheese
• Nutritional yeast

The cream cheese gets all melty with the eggs, it is incredible. Before my mid-morning run, I was feeling a little hungry, so I had one of my favorite pre-workout snacks: rice cake + almond butter. Then I went out for my run.

Post run craving…Pad Thai with shrimp from Noodles & Co! Busted!

Afternoon sludge smoothie.

 

• 3 oz. water
• 3 oz. milk
• 4 ice cubes
• 1/2 cup frozen cherries
• 1/2″ nob fresh ginger
• 1 serving Raw Protein
• 2 leaves of kale

Packed up with my dinner before heading to campus for class.

Dinner was a salad made with leftovers from this incredible slow cooked chipotle shredded beef from the Slow Cooker Revolution.

Chipotle Shredded Beef Filling

#ratingval# from #reviews# reviews

Print

Recipe Type: Slow Cooker, Main

Author: Adapted from Slow Cooker Revolution

Prep time: 25 mins

Cook time: 8 hours

Total time: 8 hours 25 mins

Serves: 8

Slow cooked smoky chipotle shredded beef that can be used on tostadas, in tacos or burritos, or on salads.

Ingredients

• 1 onion, minced
• 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce
• 1 tablespoon grape seed oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 jalapeño chile, stemmed, seeded, and minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 8-oz can tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
• 1 3/4 pound boneless sirloin tip roast
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Microwave onions, chili powder, chipotles, oil, garlic, jalapeño, tomato paste, and cumin in a bowl, stiffing occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes; transfer to slow cooker.
2. Stir tomato sauce, sugar, and liquid smoke into slow cooker. Season beef with salt and pepper, add to slow cooker, ad coat evenly with sauce mixture. Cover and cook for 8 hours on low.
3. Transfer beef to a large bowl, let cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces, discarding excess fat; cover to keep warm. Let braising liquid settle for 5 minutes, then remove fat from surface using a large spoon.
4. Toss shredded beef with 1 cup braising liquid; add more liquid as needed to keep meat moist and flavorful. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

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2.2.6

We served ours in tacos with some spicy no mayo coleslaw and a glass of Avalon cabernet sauvignon on the side.

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Please Vote!

Thank you to Make and Do Girl for nominating me for Best Healthy Cooking Blog on the Kitchn.

To vote for my blog, all you have to do is:

1. If you don’t already have an account on the Kitchn, register here.*
2. Log in to the Kitchn.
3. Cast your vote for Newest Obsession as Best Healthy Cooking Blog!

*I know it is unfortunate that you have to create an account with the Kitchn to vote, but I would really appreciate your support.

Voting ends TONIGHT, March 2nd at 11:59 PM EST, so get on it!

To give you some voting mojo I leave you with an energizing smoothie recipe.

Apple Cinnamon Green Smoothie

• 3/4 cup milk of choice
• 1/2 apple, cored and cut into large chunks
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 serving of protein powder of choice
• Giant handful of spinach
• 3 ice cubes
• Granola for a crunchy topping

1. Place all ingredients in a blender, preferably a VitaMix, and blend on high until combined.
2. Top with granola of choice for added crunch. I used Love Grown Foods Apple Walnut Delight.

Now GO VOTE!

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Wammel

Last night was a “wammel” night, where i just put together a meal with whatever I have in the fridge that needs to be used. To my surprise, most of the time it actually turns out pretty good.

To start, I made up a serving of Tinkyada’s gluten-free brown rice spaghetti while cooking up a slice of turkey bacon in a non-stick skillet. When the bacon was finished, I removed it from the pan, added 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil, and some diced red onion. When the onion was soft, I added a minced clove of garlic, thinly sliced red cabbage, and a handful of chopped spinach. I turned down the heat to medium-low and sauteed the mixture until the spinach wilted. I then added some leftover thai peanut sauce, 1/4 cup frozen green peas, chopped turkey bacon, and continued to heat on low until pasta was done. When the pasta was complete, I drained and combined it with the sauce mixture, transferred it to a bowl, and topped it with cilantro and sriracha hot sauce.

Not too shabby. After dinner I curled up with The Beekeeper’s Lament while the fiance was out with a friend.

I started off this morning quite early with a warm cup of tea with steamed cashew milk and some studying for the GRE. Upon finishing my tea, I took a break for some pumpkin brown rice porridge for breakfast.

Pumpkin Brown Rice Porridge

• 1 cup cooked short grain brown rice
• 2 ounces cashew milk
• 6 ounces water
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened dried cranberries
• 1 teaspoon molasses
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon all spice
• dash of salt
• 3 ounces pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
• nut butter and coconut flakes for topping (optional)

1. Combine rice, water, and cashew milk in a small saucepan. Bring to a light boil and reduce heat to medium-low. Add cranberries, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, all spice, and salt. Continue to cook until desired consistency is reached.
2. Stir in pumpkin puree and ground flax seeds and bring up to temperature. Transfer to a bowl and top with nut butter and coconut flakes.

I topped mine this morning with an awesome nut butter variation I have been obsessing over for the past few weeks. The inspiration…Chocolov’s Chillies & Cherries in Dark Chocolate.

Chili-Cherry-Chocolate Almond Butter

• 2 cups raw almonds
• 2 tablespoons coconut sugar (or maple syrup)
• 2 tablespoons carob (or cocoa) powder
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste*
• 1/3 cup unsweetened dried cherries, copped

1. Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place almonds on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 30-35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until a lovely smell is coming out of the oven. Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 1 hour.
2. Transfer almonds to food processor. Process until a creamy almond butter texture is achieved, scraping the side of the bowl as necessary; about 10-15 minutes.
3. Add sugar, carob, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper. Process until well combined, about 3-5 more minutes. Taste to see if the cayenne heat is to your liking, adding more if desired.*
4. Allow almond butter to cool for about 30 minutes. Add chopped dried cherries and pulse to combine.

*I ended up adding 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne and I liked the heat level, but the fiance says it was too spicy. I recommend starting with with 1/4 teaspoon and going from there. You may have to let the almond butter cool before being able to truly taste the spiciness, so be cautious.

The heat from the cayenne is just enough to make your lips burn a little, which has made my breakfasts quite interesting.

After breakfast, I did some more studying, meal planning, and headed out for a swim. In an hour we did:

• 5 minute warm up
• 6x25m drills, 2x25m right arm only (breathing on the left), 2x25m left arm only (breathing on the right), 2x25m fists, and 2x25m kick, 10s rest
• 12x50m, 6x50m moderate freestyle, 6x50m fast freestyle, 10s rest
• 4x4min swimming freestyle moderately, 20s rest
• 6x25m drills, 2x25m right arm only (breathing on the left), 2x25m left arm only (breathing on the right), 2x25m fists, and 2x25m butterfly kick on back, 10s rest

Whew! This was the first time since the week of my triathlon in Steamboat that I made it an hour in the pool. I am working my way back to it and loving it.

To refuel, I picked up a packet of Garden of Life’s Raw Protein from Whole Foods, because I was all out of protein powder at home and had already ordered some that was on the way. When choosing a protein, I look for minimal ingredients, no artificial sweeteners, no stevia, no lecithin (particularly soy), no gums (guar and xanthan), and good quality sprouted protein. This was the first time I have tried this protein powder, and I loved it! It met all of my standards and blended up to an excellent consistency and flavor. I’ll definitely be buying this one next time.

Cherry Chocolate Recovery Sludge

• 6 ounces cold water
• 3 ice cubes
• 1 serving Raw Protein
• 1/2 cup frozen cherries
• 1 tablespoon carob powder
• 2 large handfuls of spinach

After re-fueling and doing some grocery shopping I settled down for lunch.

Tuna salad sandwich with 1 can tuna, 2-3 tablespoons greek yogurt, 1/2 diced celery rib, 1 tablespoon minced red onion, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Solute, fresh cracked black pepper.

Served on top of a slice of gluten-free brown rice bread with dijon mustard and sliced tomato, with a slice of red cabbage as my top “bun”. Diced carrots, celery, and tomato with hummus on the side.

After lunch, I became highly distracted with the website Goodreads.com; it is a social website for book lovers! You can create virtual shelves of books you’ve read, want to read, and are currently reading. You can also rate books you’ve read, get recommendations, and connect with friends to see what they’re reading. The fun part was scanning all the books on my bookshelf with their bar-code reader in the Android app! Check it out! You can follow what I am reading here.

After some book shelf stacking and more studying, I settled down for a snack.

1 small sweet potato roasted at 425 degrees for 50 minutes (rotating half way through), topped with sunflower seed butter.

Tonight, we’re off to celebrate my Mom’s birthday with some Italian small plates and bowling! Wish us luck :-).

Aside from Facebook and twitter, what social networking websites do you frequent? Which are your favorites?

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Wammel

Last night was a “wammel” night, where i just put together a meal with whatever I have in the fridge that needs to be used. To my surprise, most of the time it actually turns out pretty good.

To start, I made up a serving of Tinkyada’s gluten-free brown rice spaghetti while cooking up a slice of turkey bacon in a non-stick skillet. When the bacon was finished, I removed it from the pan, added 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil, and some diced red onion. When the onion was soft, I added a minced clove of garlic, thinly sliced red cabbage, and a handful of chopped spinach. I turned down the heat to medium-low and sauteed the mixture until the spinach wilted. I then added some leftover thai peanut sauce, 1/4 cup frozen green peas, chopped turkey bacon, and continued to heat on low until pasta was done. When the pasta was complete, I drained and combined it with the sauce mixture, transferred it to a bowl, and topped it with cilantro and sriracha hot sauce.

Not too shabby. After dinner I curled up with The Beekeeper’s Lament while the fiance was out with a friend.

I started off this morning quite early with a warm cup of tea with steamed cashew milk and some studying for the GRE. Upon finishing my tea, I took a break for some pumpkin brown rice porridge for breakfast.

Pumpkin Brown Rice Porridge

• 1 cup cooked short grain brown rice
• 2 ounces cashew milk
• 6 ounces water
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened dried cranberries
• 1 teaspoon molasses
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon all spice
• dash of salt
• 3 ounces pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
• nut butter and coconut flakes for topping (optional)

1. Combine rice, water, and cashew milk in a small saucepan. Bring to a light boil and reduce heat to medium-low. Add cranberries, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, all spice, and salt. Continue to cook until desired consistency is reached.
2. Stir in pumpkin puree and ground flax seeds and bring up to temperature. Transfer to a bowl and top with nut butter and coconut flakes.

I topped mine this morning with an awesome nut butter variation I have been obsessing over for the past few weeks. The inspiration…Chocolov’s Chillies & Cherries in Dark Chocolate.

Chili-Cherry-Chocolate Almond Butter

• 2 cups raw almonds
• 2 tablespoons coconut sugar (or maple syrup)
• 2 tablespoons carob (or cocoa) powder
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste*
• 1/3 cup unsweetened dried cherries, copped

1. Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place almonds on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 30-35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until a lovely smell is coming out of the oven. Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 1 hour.
2. Transfer almonds to food processor. Process until a creamy almond butter texture is achieved, scraping the side of the bowl as necessary; about 10-15 minutes.
3. Add sugar, carob, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper. Process until well combined, about 3-5 more minutes. Taste to see if the cayenne heat is to your liking, adding more if desired.*
4. Allow almond butter to cool for about 30 minutes. Add chopped dried cherries and pulse to combine.

*I ended up adding 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne and I liked the heat level, but the fiance says it was too spicy. I recommend starting with with 1/4 teaspoon and going from there. You may have to let the almond butter cool before being able to truly taste the spiciness, so be cautious.

The heat from the cayenne is just enough to make your lips burn a little, which has made my breakfasts quite interesting.

After breakfast, I did some more studying, meal planning, and headed out for a swim. In an hour we did:

• 5 minute warm up
• 6x25m drills, 2x25m right arm only (breathing on the left), 2x25m left arm only (breathing on the right), 2x25m fists, and 2x25m kick, 10s rest
• 12x50m, 6x50m moderate freestyle, 6x50m fast freestyle, 10s rest
• 4x4min swimming freestyle moderately, 20s rest
• 6x25m drills, 2x25m right arm only (breathing on the left), 2x25m left arm only (breathing on the right), 2x25m fists, and 2x25m butterfly kick on back, 10s rest

Whew! This was the first time since the week of my triathlon in Steamboat that I made it an hour in the pool. I am working my way back to it and loving it.

To refuel, I picked up a packet of Garden of Life’s Raw Protein from Whole Foods, because I was all out of protein powder at home and had already ordered some that was on the way. When choosing a protein, I look for minimal ingredients, no artificial sweeteners, no stevia, no lecithin (particularly soy), no gums (guar and xanthan), and good quality sprouted protein. This was the first time I have tried this protein powder, and I loved it! It met all of my standards and blended up to an excellent consistency and flavor. I’ll definitely be buying this one next time.

Cherry Chocolate Recovery Sludge

• 6 ounces cold water
• 3 ice cubes
• 1 serving Raw Protein
• 1/2 cup frozen cherries
• 1 tablespoon carob powder
• 2 large handfuls of spinach

After re-fueling and doing some grocery shopping I settled down for lunch.

Tuna salad sandwich with 1 can tuna, 2-3 tablespoons greek yogurt, 1/2 diced celery rib, 1 tablespoon minced red onion, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Solute, fresh cracked black pepper.

Served on top of a slice of gluten-free brown rice bread with dijon mustard and sliced tomato, with a slice of red cabbage as my top “bun”. Diced carrots, celery, and tomato with hummus on the side.

After lunch, I became highly distracted with the website Goodreads.com; it is a social website for book lovers! You can create virtual shelves of books you’ve read, want to read, and are currently reading. You can also rate books you’ve read, get recommendations, and connect with friends to see what they’re reading. The fun part was scanning all the books on my bookshelf with their bar-code reader in the Android app! Check it out! You can follow what I am reading here.

After some book shelf stacking and more studying, I settled down for a snack.

1 small sweet potato roasted at 425 degrees for 50 minutes (rotating half way through), topped with sunflower seed butter.

Tonight, we’re off to celebrate my Mom’s birthday with some Italian small plates and bowling! Wish us luck :-).

Aside from Facebook and twitter, what social networking websites do you frequent? Which are your favorites?

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Denver Outings

Yesterday afternoon the fiance and I took the bus to Denver to get away for a night (and use up some expiring Marriott points). After arriving, we walked around the 16th Street pedestrian mall before heading to ChoLon for and early dinner/happy hour. I scoped out a bunch of restaurant menu’s downtoan and didn’t really find anything that was grabbing me or featured items that seemed simple enough for me to modify for my elimination diet. I asked a friend and she recommended ChoLon for a great happy hour–and she was right. Since their menu didn’t really include anything that appeared to be easily modified to accommodate foods I have re-introduced to my diet, I decided to test the waters a bit, while still avoiding gluten/wheat, dairy, and soy. I asked our waiter what menu items avoided these common allergens, and luckily he was just the right person to ask, because his girlfriend also suffers from the same sensitivities. He recommended the chili crab spring rolls with charred corn salad and sriracha mayo and the green papaya salad with tamarind sorbet and long beans. I recommended the Garnache ;-).

Everything was delicious. There was no real way to know that gluten, dairy, and soy were not in either of these dishes, but I really wanted to enjoy a nice dinner out and I did the best I could do with making sure my waiter was aware of my sensitivities. Lucky for me I felt okay throughout the night.

After happy hour/dinner we went to see the Colorado Rockies take on the San Francisco Giants at Coors Field.

We only stayed until the 7th inning stretch, because (a) it got chilly and (b) baseball is boring. Although, I think we missed some action since the Giants won 6 to 5. Either way, I’m glad we can check that one off the “to do” list for the year!

The next morning we got up bright and early to go to a ever so popular breakfast place called Snooze. Last time we tried to go at 8:30 and ended up waiting 2 hours for a table, of which we didn’t get because I had to be somewhere at 11:00. Instead, we ended up scarfing down bagels at Einstein–waaaaa! This morning we arrived around 8:15 AM and there was already a wait out the door, but luckily we got the last two person table available. Score! Even though they have a gluten free batter for their famous pancakes, their recipe contains dairy, so they were out. Instead, I went for the huevos rancheros with over easy eggs, avocado, spinach, and no cheese. I looooove Mexican flavors + eggs.

(Taken after I had already dug in!). When they first brought out our meal, mine was covered in cheese, so I had to send it back. They were nice enough to whip up a new one quickly and comp 1/2 our bill. There is one opening up in Boulder soon, so I am sure we will be paying them a visit again.

We took the bus back to Boulder, did some grocery shopping and Costco browsing and I came home starving! Naturally, I made a vat of salad.

In the mix: spinach, romaine, cucumber, green pepper, carrot, red onion, green peas, basil, 2 slices deli smoked chicken (pinwheeled), sauerkraut, and cumin vinaigrette. And a giant organic granny smith apple for dessert.

I walked to a nearby coffee shop to meet my mom for some tea, where I sipped on some Sencha Green tea while we chatted about canning tomatoes, the wedding, and new ideas for snacks. From there I jogged ~1 mile to the gym to do She Rocks Fitness‘ back and core workout. This was a great workout and it only took about 40 minutes. I can’t wait to see how I feel tomorrow. I jogged another ~1 mile home and made a recovery smoothie.

Blueberry Recovery Smoothie

• 4 ounces cashew milk
• 4 ounces water + more if necessary
• 2/3 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 serving vanilla brown rice protein powder
• 1 handful spinach
• 2 teaspoons chia seeds
• sprinkling of unsweetened coconut flakes

Tonight was another Sunday pizza night for us, because it worked out so well last time! This time I made a Middle Eastern inspired pizza while the fiance made a Canadian bacon, pineapple, jalapeno, dairy and gluten full pizza.

For the base I used an idea from Clean Eating Magazine and roasted a salted eggplant, roma tomato, onion, and garlic (which got charred) at 450 degrees for 30 minutes.

Cooled, pealed, and roughly chopped the veggies (and a fresh clove of garlic), and pulsed it in a food processor with 1/4 teaspoon sea salt. Then I added 1/2 lemon juiced and 8 mint leaves and pulsed some more.

For the crust, I modified the recipe from last week a little and doubled it for leftovers:

• 1 1/4 cup chickpea flour
• 1 1/4 cup quinoa flour
• 2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt

Mixed well and poured in a parchment lined 9×13 baking dish. Baked at 375 for 40 minutes. While the crust was cooking, I browned up 1/2 # lean ground turkey with 1 clove of garlic, minced, and 1 teaspoon shawarama seasoning. When the crust was done, I spread it with the eggplant spread and topped it with the turkey, red onion, green pepper, tomato, kalamata olives, dollops of cashew “cheese” and tahini. Baked it for 8 minutes at 400 degrees alongside some asparagus with sunflower oil, balsamic vinegar, sea salt, and black pepper. Finished it off with some chopped fresh parsley.

There was a little too much flavor going on with the eggplant spread and the shawarma seasoning on the turkey. I think skipping the seasoning on the turkey would have been a little better. The crust was a little thicker this time too, since I doubled the recipe but not the size of my baking pan. I didn’t mind it though, it was kind of like a bruschetta pizza with Middle Eastern ingredients.

The fiance feasted on this guy. Jeal Jeal.

What I am looking forward to this week:

• Trying out a new yoga class
• Trying some new recipes from Clean Eating Magazine
• More fall weather
• Morning tea

What did you do this weekend? What are you looking forward to this week?

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Dealing With Burnout

I am definitely feeling a little burnout from my triathlon training. But I am totally okay with it. Why? Well, my race is one week from today, so I just wrapped up the peak of my training, and this burnout is just going to motivate me to change things up a bit and start a new routine. I have been training consistently with at least two days of each discipline (swim, bike, run) since February–that is a good solid 8 months. My plans for after the triathlon are to really take a full weeks of rest; where I do not feel like I have to do anything, and any exercise I do do will be because I simply felt like it. After that I want to completely give myself over to yoga, strength training and anything else I simply feel like doing. This was definitely giving me something to look forward to as I wrapped up another week of intense training.

I started Saturday off with two colorful and nutrient rich local, pasture raised eggs, served over a bed of quinoa porridge cooked with cashew milk, and topped with a dollop of hummus and a fresh grind of sea salt. Hummus + Eggs–don’t knock it until you try it!

I threw a whole chicken in the slow cooker to have with dinner and for leftovers later in the week.

And went out for a beautiful 6 mile run down the local creek path. The cooler temperatures are making morning runs a bit more enjoyable. I came home and refueled with a refreshing smoothie:

• 8 ounces coconut water
• 1 cup frozen green grapes
• 2 inch piece of English cucumber
• 1 handful baby spinach (Food Of The Day on Saturday!!)
• 15 g brown rice protein powder
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened dried coconut flakes

I am definitely missing adding chia seeds and xanthan gum to my smoothies to thicken them up a bit.

And on to the real Food Of The Day–Salad! I am a salad FREAK! Whenever I am in the need of some comfort food I head straight to the Whole Foods salad bar and load myself up with pure crunchy heaven. I used to be in a routine of eating a salad a day, but until this weekend, lettuce and spinach were not on my list of allowable foods. So of course I had to have a big old crunchy salad the day I added spinach back in to my diet.

• Spinach
• Carrot
• Green Pepper
• Cucumber
• Black Olives
• Garbanzo Beans
• An un-photogenic piece of leftover sunflower seed crusted cod
• A dollop of homemade hummus
• Homemade balsamic vinaigrette

Lets just say I was like a rabbit in heaven. Later that evening we had my parents over for dinner. My sister just moved out to go to college this past week, so I figured my parents could use a dinner made by someone else for the evening. I started them off with some baby carrots, English cucumber and homemade hummus while I cooked.

I decided to try making Pupusas, an El Salvadorian dish. We have had these at our local farmer’s market and a local restaurant and I really loved them. I would describe them as a stuffed corn tortilla. I used plain old corn flour because masa harina is typically laced with lime, which was not tested in my food sensitivity test and therefore I cannot eat it. I made a variety stuffed with some combination of: chicken, re-fried pinto beans, chopped spinach and cheese (except for mine). I topped mine off with a bit more re-fried beans and spinach, while the rest of the crew topped theirs off with cole slaw, salsa and Fage 2% Greek Yogurt (in place of sour cream). And we had some steamed green beans on the side.

Making these was a great experiment, but they turned out a little dry. Next time I will add a little more water and try to make them a little thinner. I’m sure the salsa and Greek Yogurt made them a little more moist. Nice change of pace though.

Sunday morning I decided to make Tea the Food Of The Day, in the form of decaf Earl Grey topped with steamed and foamed cashew milk. Tea and steamed milk used to be a daily morning routine for me. I would get out of bed and head straight for the tea kettle. I felt like I could not do anything without my warm tea, even though it was just decaf. There was something about the warmth of the tea and milk that was made the start of my day better. But since it has been so hot out and I started my elimination diet I have been replacing that morning tea routine with leukwarm water with 1/2 of lemon. I have found really taken a liking to starting my morning off this way–I find it very cleansing. But this morning, I decided to bring back the ritual.

It was comforting and warm. However, I still got a little low blood sugar/shaky from the hint of caffeine (even though it is decaf)–I am just super sensitive like that. I think I will save it for cooler mornings or afternoons when I need a break. But I had something else in mind today when I added tea to my diet ;-). You will find out verrrry soon! For breakfast/pre-workout I had some quinoa porridge with a fresh apricot, a small spoon full of sunflower seed butter, and a hard boiled egg.

I hesitated to head out for my swim (hello burnout), but then I reminded myself that I wanted to do this and told myself I will give it a try for at least 10 minutes and if I still did not feel like it–I would stop. Turns out after I did a 300 meter warm up, I felt great! I ended up doing 2000 meters total, practicing some flip turns and doing some speed work. I came home, ate two aprinut balls, and went out for a bike ride with the fiance. The opportunity to ride with the fiance are seldom, so I gotta take advantage of them when I can! We did a little over 22 miles and it was lovely. I was sweating (a.k.a. “glowing”) like crazy though! Must have been residual sweat from my swim. I came home feeling extra hungry, so I made up 1.5 servings of brown rice pasta, cashew cream, green peas with 4 ounces of chicken and extra sea salt.

I spent the afternoon checking out my Sister’s dorm room, pantry stock (think a carton of Goldfish, Top Ramen, Bagel Bites, Uncrustables, Cheetos, Double Stuffed Oreos and Arizona Green Tea) and walking around campus helping her find all her class rooms. I cannot believe she is all grown up. Going to college is such an exciting time…until class starts ;-).

How was your weekend? How do you change up your routine when you start to get bored or burnt out?

Maybe my burnout is a result of not having a glass of wine for three weeks ;-)!

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