WOD-MOD wk 10 {try, try, try again}

After last week's WOD-MOD our special guest, Jonah-Kai, offered to host the MOD part of the evening. We happily excepted.  Jonah, thank you for hosting and putting up our antics! 

WOD{there is no "i" in team}

Meredith and I paid a visit to Stoneway Crossfit.  A while back we bought 30 classes for $39 - an awesome deal at a great gym! It is always nice when you can actually purchase and use one of the million daily deals that fill our email boxes every day.

It was a fantastic WOD.  

Strength: Shoulder Press

5 x 50%

5 x 60%

5 x 70%

Team WOD!!

AMRAP 20 Minutes

(Teams of 4)

250m Row

Push-ups

Goblet Squats

Rest

*Each team rotation is dependent of the rower.

*Tally total reps per team

This was a great WOD!

MOD {try, try, try again}

So, Merideth and I decided we would let Jonah-Kai deal with the menu and do most of the cooking. We were put in charge of the yam fries (upon Jonah's request), aioli and wine. As soon as we finished up our WOD we jetted off the the store to get some wine and a few more ingredients for the aioli. Prior to heading to the gym I cut up the yams and had them sitting in water in a snap ware bin in my care - I am a planner!! made our purchases and made the 5 minute drive to Jonah's house.  As we were gathering our goods from the car something very tragic happened....the wine slipped out of Meridith's hand!  

WOD-MOD wk 9 {the bear with fish and chips}

Last weeks WOD-MOD was super fun. Meredith and I a fun WOD at the Y then returned to my place for dinner. This evening we had a special guest, Jonah-Kai. He is a friend of Meredith who is a coach at the crossfit gym Meredith and I are going to these days.  He invited himself over, which I must say is awesome! It was a pleasure to have his company and the tasty wine he brought (I didn't drink much of it, it was mighty tasty- Meredith, Jonah-Kai and Vivian can attest to the tastiness).

WOD {the bear}

Soooo, Meredith was a little dead from her crossfit workout the day before.  As a result, she had to modify the WOD a little. This was a super great lesson, listen to your body!! If it hurts too much, modify, no need to push too hard if it is going to hurt.

Strength: front squat
5 x 40%   3 x 70%
5 x 50%   3 x 80%
5 x 60%   3 x 90%

WOD
"The Bear" AMRAP 10 minutes
only 10 minutes?? don't you worry...10 minutes is enough.

5 dumbbell dead lifts
5 dumbbell hang power cleans
5 dumbbell thrusters

We followed this up with some core work, tricep pushups and STRETCHING!!

Notes:

• Check out this link for more info on The Bear.
• I used 20# dumbbells.

 

MOD {fish and chips: clean kitchen style}

What a fantastic meal. Meridith and I enjoyed cooking up this meal with great conversation from our special guest, Jonah-Kai.  To make it even more fabulous, as we were getting ready to sit down to eat, my roommate, Vivian, walked in and joined us at the table.  We had a delicious meal full of great conversation and laughter. 

the menu:

ginger-garlic alaskan turbot in parchment

tamari ginger bok choy

yam frites with basil aioli and red pepper basil aioli

yam frites with thai basil and red pepper aioli's
Now really, who doesn't love yam frites (aka sweet potato fries)??

2 large yams
olive oil
cayenne pepper
s & P

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425 F (we baked them at 375, because that is what the fish was going to be cooked at).  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2.Wash and evenly slice the yam. Soak in a bowl of cold water for at least 30 minutes to allow all starch to be removed. Drain and pat completely dry.

3. Toss dried pieces with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and cayenne.

4. Place yam pieces on the prepared baking sheet, making sure to not overcrowd the pieces, or else you will have soggy fries - they need to breath.

5. Place in preheated oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes, tossing half way through.

6. Toss with a little salt. Serve with your red pepper and basil aiolis, or dip of choice.

Tips/tricks:

• We let the sliced yam soak in the cold water while we were at the gym. 
• If you have time reduce heat to 200, and bake for another 15 minutes to allow the fries to dry out.  
• A trick I recently found and tried few days before: Whisk 2 egg whites until frothy, add the yam/sweet potatoes, herbs, salt and pepper - toss well. It worked pretty well! I baked these at 425 for 30-40 minutes, but did not do the last 15 minutes at 200.
• Tossing the fries in corn starch prior to baking is another trick I want to try. 

                                                                                                                                                                                              
thai basil and red pepper aioli's 
two aioli's for the price of one!

We used the tried and true Mark Bittman's food-processor mayo technique, making sure to use pure olive oil, not extra virgin..

Near the end of adding the oil, we added finely chopped thai basil and ginger.

Once it was finished, we placed the aioli into two separate bowls and added red pepper to one.
                                                                                                                                                                                            
ginger-garlic alaskan turbot
adapted from Rachel Ray's Ginger-Garlic Fish in Parchment

Alaska turbot, (6-7 oz filets) or fish of choice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch scallions, cut into 3-inch pieces on an angle
1/2 pound crimini mushrooms, thinly sliced
handful thai basil, thinly sliced
3 to 4-inch knob ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
3 tablespoons tamari sauce

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.

2. Rip off pieces of parchment to form packets each about 12-inches long.

3.Season fish with salt and pepper.

4. Combine vinegar and tamari in a small bowl.

5. Place a piece of parchment in a shallow dish.  In the the center of the paper layer: a few pieces of the scallions, criminis, slices of ginger, thai basil and garlic and top with fish. Top fish with a few large spoonfuls of the sauce.  Fold over the top of the parchment then roll the sides in to form a sealed pouch. Repeat with the remaining filets.

6.Arrange the pouches on a baking sheet and roast in hot oven 12 to 14 minutes.

Tips/Tricks:

• Make sure to thinly slice the mushrooms and ginger.
• Make sure to not overcrowd the pouches with too many mushrooms, ginger, etc. We did this and found that it extended the cook time. 

Variations:

• This has been a great technique I have used to "steam/bake" not only fish but vegetables. So tasty!

                                                                                                                                                                                              

tamari ginger bok choy

2 bunches of bok choy 
1-2 tablespoons coconut oil
1-2 teaspoons ginger, grated (we used my frozen ginger paste)
1-2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1/2-1 cup sliced crimini mushrooms
1/4 red onion, finely diced
2 tablespoons tamari sauce (gluten-free soy sauce)

 Method 

1. Trim the stem off of the bok choy- don't trim too much - just the end. Separate the leaves, and clean leaves under running water. 

 2.Place wok or frying pan on your stove with oil, garlic and ginger. Heat to medium-high. Let the ginger and garlic gently sizzle. After a few minutes, add the onions and mushrooms and saute until tender. Now add the bok choy leaves. Toss very well to coat each leaf with the garlicky, gingery oil for 15 seconds. Add tamari sauce, lower heat to medium and cover.  Let cook for 2-3 minutes, until bok choy is tender. Season with salt.

Done and done! {21DSD}

Yesterday marked the end of our 21DSD, see this post for more info.  I am so glad I took the challenge of the 21 Day Sugar Detox. I really enjoyed this detox and love having a buddy to do it with.   It was definitely work, more mentally than physically.  If you have been reading our post from the detox, it is clear that biggest thing we both gained over the past three weeks was the mindfulness in eating and being present with our bodies.  Here is Sarah's reflection on the past 21 days.  I will share mine later in the week.

Sarah's two cents{more like four or five cents}

"21 days of extremely little sugar and clean eating, done and done!  And awareness to keep it going.  I would consider this detox successful.  Though it is not something highly or easily sustainable for long term living as strictly as set as set forth in the rules of the detox, but the awareness gained, and lessons about one's body, eating habits and general reality check at least for me, provide the basis and foundation for some positive changes and points for improvement that have stemmed from some concrete observations the rigidity of the detox rules provided.  

In these last three weeks, I have not only paid more attention to the food items going in my mouth, but also how I have felt before and after, and making some fairly significant observations about how I have felt during and after eating certain foods.  I found myself contemplating the psychological aspects of the foods we eat, how we eat them, and attempting to explore why they make us feel a certain way.  (Less in the physical aspects and more in the mental aspects).  Like what foods leave you feeling physically sated, but not fully satisfied, and what plays into with a greater overall feeling satisfaction.  Why do we feel psychological, or psycho-chemically sated with some foods and not others?  My scientific explanation would be that certain foods (particularly sugar and fat) cause a release of endorphins in the brain.  Since sugar is and easy flavor to distinguish it causes a very quick chemical response in the brain.  Ok, but we know that some people react more to sweets than others, and that you can also get these feelings from other foods.  Can you condition your brain to react pleasurably to healthy foods?  My answer would be yes.  I have seen it over the past months of eating Paleo, as well as within the last three weeks of the 21DSD.  So much is actually about mindset.  Not to say it is easy; it has required a great deal of consciousness and let me tell you, maintaining consciousness takes a lot of energy, especially from a sleep deprived, stressed out, right-in-the-middle-of-finals grad student.  BUT placing some energy there, was actually calming and stress-relieving. 

Small time investment in- much greater benefit out.  That benefit being a greater awareness of when I actually need that cupcake to feel satisfied, or when I can reach that feeling of satisfaction with half of Leah's Ah-mazing Green Smoothie (if you freeze it, and eat it when its beginning to thaw, it's a fairly good substitute for ice cream (yeah, really. I was surprised too). I discovered I CAN eat less fruit and be fine.  I don't NEED 2+ servings of fruit a day, and a green apple provides the same effect as a fuji apple, that I'm actually looking for something juicy and crunchy rather than the sugar content.  

So before I ramble on and on, the biggest things I have gotten out of these three weeks, is the conviction I don't need that much sugar, and have some more ways to stay in tune with my body and cravings, and implement some of the changes from the detox into my day to day life going forward. "

WOD-MOD wk 8 {tabata and tacos}

Go with the flow! Life doesn't always go as planned and you just have to go with it.  This WOD-MOD was a clear testament to this. Meredith got off a little later than expected, then missed the bus up to my place...so we were running late on our workout. Our plan was to hop in my car and go to the Y for a workout but because it was pushing almost 7pm when she arrived at my place I put together a little workout and we did an impromptu at home WOD. No excuses

WOD {touched by tabata}

We did a little warmup and stretching, turned on a Lady Gaga Pandora station  (don't hate, she is amazing to workout to) and got to 24minutes of some tabata awesomeness.

8 rounds of: 20-seconds work w/ 10-seconds rest for each exercise

• squat
• jumping pull-ups (could substitute pushups or dips) 
• sit-ups 
• burpees 
• hallow rock 
• mt climbers

WOD {off the cuff fish tacos}

Just like the WOD, we had to do a little ad-libbing with our meal-of-the-day.  As planned, Meredith brought some fish for us to make some delicious fish tacos, which we had been craving for a while.  Since we didn't leave the house to go to the Y, we didn't pass by the store to pick up the ingredients that we still needed for our planned fish taco meal, nor did we have the desire to go to the store that is a measly 1-block away from my place.  So, we just made due with what we had. We had the intention of making an avocado sauce/dip to put on top of the tacos...but did not have any avocados. Time to get creative. We raided the kitchen and pulled out ingredients that we could throw together for little sauce/dip concoction. 

The off the cuff tacos were a hit. We enjoyed our spiced cod pieces in a lettuce "shell" on top of fresh carrot, zucchini and cabbage slaw and topped with a cilantro-mole sauce. It was a success! You will notice that we don't have many measurements with these recipes. It was a lot of "a little of this and a little of that."  This can be such a fun way to cook.  You start by adding a little, tasting and adding more if you want. You don't always have to follow the rules...just go with the flow or taste in this case. 

The fabulous meal for the evening! 

Perfect meal, not too heavy but sooo tasty!

carrot, zucchini and cabbage slaw 

1 small head of cabbage, thinly sliced

2-3 carrots, julienned (if you don't have a julienne peeler, grating them would be fine)

1 zucchini, julienned

dressing:
1/3ish cup apple-cider vinegar

1/2-2/3ish cup olive oil

1-2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

salt and pepper

lemon juice

Method

1. In a large bowl combine the cabbage, carrots and zucchini.
2. In a separate bowl whisk together the dressing ingredients. Taste and add to it if desired.

3. Pour over the vegetables mixing well. Coleslaw is best if you let it set for a while. 

Additions/Variations: 

• Cilantro would had a nice touch.
• Play around with what vegetables you add.  Red cabbage, beets, celery...
• Apples would be tasty as well!
• Orange juice would add a nice tang!

guacamole cilantro-mole (pistou)

aka Meredith's concoction 

cilantro 

sun dried tomato

red pepper 

garlic 

hot sauce

squeeze of lime

cumin

pepitas

salt and pepper

2-3 tablespoons full-fat coconut milk

"Method"

1. Process all the ingredients, except the coconut milk, in the food processor until well blended. 
2. Add the coconut milk, add more or less depending on how creamy you prefer.

Notes:

• This was totally off the cuff. We, mostly Meredith, threw in a bunch of goodies into the food processor and processed way. She tasted it and added to it as she saw tasted fit.
• This was a great way to use up produce that was on it's last leg!

blackened fish tacos 

cod pieces, from good ol' trader joe's!

1ish tablespoon cumin

2ish teaspoons red pepper (more or less depending on preference)

salt & pepper, to taste

a little lemon juice

for taco assembly:

lettuce for wraps: cabbage, leafy green

zucchini, carrot and cabbage slaw

cilantro-mole

hot sauce

Method

1. Heat skillet (cast iron preferred) over medium-high heat and lightly coat with oil.

2. Mix together cumin, red pepper, salt and pepper.  Sprinkle fish with a little lemon juice and very liberally with the spice mixture making sure all sides are covered withe spice.

3. Once the skillet it hot, cook the fish, be careful not to move it too early, about 3-4 minutes per side.

4. Enjoy the fish pieces in a taco or by themselves. 

Variations:

• Other fish options: halibut, tilapia, blue marlin, mahi-mahi.
• Have fun with the spices! Curry (I love curry) would be a tasty one!
• We used large romaine lettuce as our shell. Other options: butter leaf, cabbage, endive, tortillas...or you can make a salad!

Tips/tricks:

• To get the fish "blackened" make sure to liberally coat the fish with the spices.  I think we needed to add a little more spice to ours.
• Make sure your skillet is hot - this will also help in "blackening" the fish.

sugar detox {week 2 recap}

We are in the home stretch! Today marks the beginning of week 3 of the 21 Day Sugar Detox.  We are both still alive and have not died of sugar withdraws - thank goodness. If you have been following the journey of Lean and Sarah on the 21DSD, then you know that last week we gave ourselves some goals to work on.  (We both like goals, it gives us something to work on!)  

Week 2 was a very slow and laid back week for me - much needed after the previous week - so I found it really easy to focus on the goals, be conscious and take time to enjoy food. On the other hand, Sarah - the PhD student - found week 2 much harder than week 1, with a combination of being more tired and the excitement of the challenge of the detox wearing off, it by far harder. 

{week 2 goals}

• Be conscious of food choices - think about how you feel and what you feel your body needs (not what your eyes want).
• Sit down to eat. 
• Take small bites and put the utensils down while you are chewing - and really chew!
• Take time to eat.

• All in all, we need to be conscious, mindful and slow down!

{be conscious, be mindful}

Sarah:  “I found it hard at times to maintain mindfulness during busy days and being stressed out, not having much time to eat in the first place, and with the expectation that I slow down, take my time, focus on my food.  Forcing myself to slow down, and to focus on the moment ultimately made me more conscious of not only my food, but how often I am not paying attention.  Making time to slow down during the day also made for a less stressful afternoon.  Taking time to really pay attention, engaged with and smell, feel, taste the details of my food, I left the meal feeling more satisfied."

Leah -I also noticed I paid more attention to the meal components and amounts, making sure it was enough food to sustain me or not too much to overfill me. I definitely had to do a lot of self-talk to keep myself mindful. My habit of mindlessly grabby food out of the fridge and standing in front of the fridge and eating was way less this week -go me! I also was super impressed with myself while cooking. I often snack on food mindlessly while cooking leaving me too full to enjoy the delicious meal – not this week. It is such a fantastic feeling to have an appetite to sit down and really enjoy the meal I just created. Whodathunk?!

{sit down, slow down and enjoy your food}

We both noticed that when you are more conscious in slowing down and making time to makes for a little less stressful day (afternoon especially), but you become much more engaged with the smell, feel, taste the details of my food.  As a result, we both were left much more satisfied. Taking time to eat, your body is able to really feel when you are full.  I really noticed that I was eating far less in between meals. This was probably a combination on not mindlessly eating, but also being more mindful of what is in my meals.

Not only does sitting down and slowing down to eat give you time to enjoy your food, but it allows you to have a peaceful moment in the day. Sarah and I both really enjoyed this aspect and noticed that we often forget to just have a moment enjoy the simple things in life.

Sarah said it well "I hope to continue this goal into next week [and beyond] and continue taking some time to just sit, and enjoy the fruits of my hard work, that of course are ultimately done for me to begin with, so why not continue to enjoy them?"   

So really, why not? Why not make it a daily practice?!

{favorite grub of the week}


Leah - obsessed, I mean really obsessed with the Gratifying Green Smoothie I posted about last week.  It is just so tasty in filling. I have had it for breakfast at least 5 times over the past week. It keeps me full until 1 - amazing!!

Sarah - She has enjoyed microwaved sweet potatoes as a post workout snack. Her favorite meal of the week was: Slow Cooked Cilantro Lime Pulled Chicken with Paleo Enchilada Sauce - I think we may need the recipe for this one!

a good ol' sleepover {a fantastic time}

As I mentioned in a while back, I had the pleasure of having a sleepover with my two favorite young ladies.  This girls rock! They are so full of energy and so much fun to be around.  I am truly blessed to have them (and their parents) in my life.  Now that I am not their nanny, I like to have little dates with them so I can keep up on their busy lives and see their shining faces.  :-) One thing we love to do is have sleepovers - their parents really enjoy the time too! I often will just have one of them, but it was time to up the game and really make it a party with the both of them.

Let me break it down.

After getting off work, I jetted over to their house. I opened the door to them standing there ready, rolling bags packed and all.  They were soooo excited (I was too).  We were informed to take the brown bag - stapled shut - labeled "Super Secret Sleepover Surprise!" and open it when we got home. oh- the anticipation!

We continued on with our sleepover routine. We hit up Jamjuree Thai for dinner and followed it up with the regular trip to 15th Video. The girls picked out Oliver and Company. I tried steering them to other movies but they wouldn't budge - oh well!

We finally made it to my apartment. Now this is where the party gets started!

a little nudge from a friend

 "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, 

catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." 

 -Mark Twain

You know, sometimes you just need a little nudge from those close to you in order for you to really take the first step to follow your heart.  Following our heart can be scary as it often forces us to step outside of our comfort zone.  But really, why just settle? Yes, settling is the easy way out, or is it?  Is it that easy to feel stuck in a place you aren't happy just because you are scared to take a risk and work hard?  Life is about taking chances, growing from our mistakes and our successes; not sitting around wondering "what if?"  If we just settle, there isn't much room to explore, dream and discover.

"Progress always involves risks. You can't steal second base and keep your foot on first."  

-Frederick Wilcox

 It us quite ironic that I have to remind myself to take risks.  Working with young children, I constantly encourage them to take risks.  A child doesn't learn how to walk if they just sit around or we just carry them everywhere. They learn to walk by taking steps (risks) on their own, with the chance that they may fall and mostly likely they will fall but they will get right back up and try again.  The same can be said for the grownups.  If we allow ourselves to take risks, fall and get back up, we are able to walk a lot further in our happiness by learning from these experiences.  Yes, we may fail and realize it was the "wrong" choice but it is way better than being stuck back in a settled (and unhappy) state wondering "what if."And on the flipside, in taking that chance we may truly succeed!

"Life is a journey, not a destination."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Too often in our society we forget about this.  We get fixated on the end result rather than the experience. In my case, you graduate from high school thinking you must go to college, get your degree and have your career - simple.as.that, right?  Man, if that were the case I think I would be so bored. The journey I have had over the past 10 years since moving to Seattle (and my entire 28 years of life) has help mold the person I am today. From different jobs (both good and bad), wonderful world travels, the ups and downs of relationships, trying and failing new skills and much more has taken part in helping me learn what are and are not my passions.  It is a constant journey and the journey is that much better when we really listen to our heart!

                    

I recently had a very good friend question why I was hold back on something (I will share this something in a later post), I proceded to give every excuse in the book from time, money and confidence. But in my hearts of hearts I wanted to take the step forward, I was just scared.  With her insightful words and uplifting spirit I said "Really, why not go for it? Yes, it will take time, but it I will be moving forward and it is what I really want to do." So I am taking a risk, exploring a dream and constantly discovering a lot along the way.  Thanks for the little nudge! (You know who you are!)

Are you willing to take some risks on the journey of life in order to follow your heart?

WOD-MOD {WK 7}

This was a great WOD-MOD night. This workout was 25 minutes of craziness followed by some tasty, now I mean tasty steak.
 
WOD {the bike and the medicine ball: oh joy!}

WOD 
Set interval timer for 6 rounds of:

3min/10seconds/1min15seconds/10seconds

(last round you will only do the 3min spin)

3min spin - go hard!!!

10second transition 
1.25min Thrusters w/ 12# medicine ball

10second transition

3min spin

10second transition

1.25min bomber push ups (here is a video and another)

10second transition

3min spin

10second transition

1.25min Russian Twist w/ 10-12# med ball

10second transition

3min spin

10second transition

1.25min lunges w/ 10-12# med ball overhead

10second transition

3min spin

10second transition

1.25min Prisoner Get-ups

10second transition

3min spin

Variations:

• No bike? You can easily replace spinning with running, rowing or jump roping.    

We topped off this 25-minute joy of a workout with 10 minutes of core work. 

 

MOD {Alton Brown's broiled top sirloin w/ walnut pesto}

Alton Brown is incredible, just sayin'. Often times when I need a little inspiration for cooking, I just make my way over to google (what would we do without google?) and type in whatever I am craving followed by "Alton Brown"- I really do love him. You should really try this, you will thank me. It was Wednesday morning and I was craving a little red meat for the WOD-MOD festivities, sooooo I went to google and typed in: steak + Alton Brown. Boy was my mouth salivating while looking at the search results. There was one recipe that caught my eye.  It was for top sirloin in the oven and the I was very intrigued by the cooking method. I had found inspiration and was ready to eat some steak....I just had to wait about 12 hours to cook it. :-)

The menu:

broiled top sirloin w/ walnut pesto

spicy butternut squash

simple spinach salad

spicy roasted butternut squash

1 butternut squash

olive oil

1-3 teaspoons of Tosca Reno's exotic spice mix* see bottom of post

spicy curry salt (or salt of choice)

1.  Preheat oven to 400 and lightly oil or line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

2.  Peel and cube the butternut squash.

3.  Transfer to prepared sheet. Toss with olive oil, spices, salt and pepper. Spread out in a single layer.

4. Place in the oven. Roast, tossing occasionally, until just tender and golden brown, about 25-30 minutes. 

5. Cover with foil until you are ready to eat. 

*if you are cooking the steak after, immediately turn the oven to the broil setting.

Variations:

• If you prefer less spice, add just salt and pepper or spices of choice.

alton brown's top sirloin (one of many)

from foodnetwork.com- it even includes a video!

2 top sirloin steak, 1 to 1 1/4 inches thick

olive oil

salt and pepper

Method

1. While you roast the squash, let steak rest at room temperature for 20-30 minutes. After it has rested, brush all sides of the steak with oil. Salt and pepper, to taste.

2. Place one rack in the bottom position with a rack directly above it. 

3. Preheat oven to the broiler setting. With some foil, make a "foil snack. This will be used to keep the door ajar so that the oven wont get too hot. Make a foil "tray" for the bottom rack of your oven - making sure to have edges.

4. Turn your fan on and maybe open a window- it can get a little smokey! Place the steaks directly onto the rack (the one directly above the bottom one). Cook for 4 minutes. Flip and cook for another 4 minutes. 

4. Move the rack with the steaks to top position in oven, moving rack with foil and drippings just underneath, and cook for 1-2 minutes per side. 

5. Transfer steak to wire rack (or cutting board in our case) and rest for 3 to 5 minutes. The cooking times gave us medium rare doneness - adjust times as your desire.

 We topped our steaks with with Everyday Paleo's dairy-free Walnut Pesto.

*exotic spice mix
   from Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Cookbook

1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoon paprika. sweet paprika is prefereed
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon anise seeds
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
2. Store in an airtight container.

A note on Alton:

• Alton really is amazing. His recipes are so tasty. Not only does he do savory dishes, he also has some phenomenal dessert recipes! Many of his recipes found on the Food Network include funny and quirky how-to videos.  -check.him.out-

Mindful Eating and a Green Smoothie {21DSD wk 2}

woot woot. One week down! Sarah and I have been rockin' it. We both had a great weekend with the 21DSD.  We also had a wonderful 2-hour phone date on Sunday night - I just love our phone dates!  It was filled with the normal girly chit-chat but also some great conversation around food and nutrition.  We had a great discussion about being mindful while eating, which we had both touch on last week in all of our check-ins with each other. As a result of our marvelous conversation, we both decided to have a few goals for week 2 of the 21DSD.

a workout and a road trip {bliss}

This past Saturday was spectacular, it was just what the doctor ordered.  Last week was pretty mentally draining for me, I was ready for the weekend.  I couldn't think of a better way to "getaway" from it all than road trip up to Edison, Washington in the Skagit Flats.  But, before this could happen I enjoyed a small cup of decaf coffee and a much needed workout!

{wod}

AMR in 20 minutes

10 Body Blasters
     1 rep = burpee, pullup, knees to elbow
20 strict sit-ups
10 tuck jumps
1 block run, about 200-250meters (+ a flight of stairs getting in/out of my apt)

It was awesome, I highly recommend doing this workout!

{road trip}

Now that I had that fun little number out of the way, I could focus on the task at hand: the road trip.  I got myself ready, scooped up my road trip buddy, Laura, filled up my little civic with some gas - $39 eeeek - and we hit the road.

Let me give you the history of Edison and myself.  This was my fourth time making the 80 minute drive. I love this little gem of a town. I discovered it this past September while I was doing the MS150 ride with the Multiple Sclerosis Society (will touch on this in a later post).  Edison is a cute, quaint "town" in the Skagit Flats in the middle.of.nowhere.  While riding 50 miles, I biked through this "town" - it literally took me 30 seconds to bike through it - I said "This place is soooo cute, I have to come back here."  I mean, this town is small- there are two bakeries, a cafe (Tweets), two bars and a few art galleries...that is about it.  It is so cute.  There is one other establishment that really sold me on this town but I will get to that later.  So, I really had to go back to this place and clearly I have, seeing how this was my fourth time.  My first true visit was on my birthday. Right before my birthday, while in line at Whole Paycheck Foods I glanced over to see the recent issue of the Seattle Met Magazine and on the cover read "30 Perfect Day Trips."  I was very intrigued, I opened it up and lo and behold Edison was in it - how perfect! It also recommended taking a drive up Chuckanut Drive from Edison which winds along the water and spits you out in Fairhaven (old Bellingham).  My birthday turned out to be amazing, so I have made it up to Edison (mainly for Tweet's Cafe) on a regular basis and typically take someone who has never been, like Laura.

Tweets Cafe the reason I keep going back to Edison, well and it is just a cute town!

photo courtesy of settlement.com

Oh, remember how I said there was something that sold me on this cute little town while riding the MS150?  Well, as I was exiting the tiny town, I looked over to my right and saw this:

The liqour store! It is connected to the side of someone's house. How awesome! :) Ok, now that I shared that with you I can get back to Tweets and Edison.

Good ol' Tweets!

 This place is great, I walked in and the owner asks "How are you feeling?" With a very large smile I replied "Very well," especially since I had arrived at Tweets.  He was referring to the elimination diet I was doing the last time I was in.  He was so accommodating then,  just like this time. I ordered the Smoked Yukon King Sandwhich w/ hard boiled egg: potato bread, aioli, shaved fennel and red onion.  Like I said, this was my fourth time at Tweets - they know me and my diet restrictions- thus he knew I gluten and grain free...so he modified my dish. So amazing. Oh and did I mention this was HOUSE smoked salmon?!! P.H.E.N.O.M.E.N.A.L.

We then made our way up beautiful Chukanut Drive to Fairhaven and made a little stop at Drizzle Tasting Room: an olive oil and vinegar tasting room. We discovered this place on my birthday road trip. I have a few infused balsamic vinegars and salts from here and couldn't wait to buy a few more.

Pure heaven!!
The walls are covered with bins full of Extra Virgin Olive Oils (infused and plain), Vinegars,  flavor fused Balsamic Vinegars, infused sea salts and much more!

My loot: 

Persian Lime Fused EVOO, Roasted French Walnut Oil, 

All-Purpose Spice Blend, Spicy Curry Salt, Alaea Sea Salt and Espresso Sea Salt. 

 I am so excited to use all of these. I love the spicy curry salt. I use it in my curried walnut butter. And I cannot wait to use the espresso sea salt on some steak. nom nom.  I love fun and interesting ingredient buys.

We topped off the day by driving into downtown Bellingham and having a late lunch at Boundary Bay Brewery and Bistro.  It was a great atmosphere. I had a lamb burger (no bun, of course) and a salad - very tasy!  Laura had fish tacos, which were also quite tasty. It was a great way to cap the day off.  Sorry no pictures, I totally spaced!

This was a fantastic Saturday. Sometimes you just need to get away to hit the reset button after a long week!  It was much needed. {bliss}

**If you are in the Western Washington area or plan on making it this way, 

I highly recommend making a trip to Edison and up Chukanut Drive**