GRAPEFRUIT WITH GINGER SYRUP & MINT

To everyone who took time to vote about which recipe you'd like to see more of on this site, thank you!  I will try to add more breakfast options.  Most of the time I eat breakfast in my car, & I tend to grab the same things every day: 

FLEXIBLE, HEALTHY, DELICIOUS GRANOLA

Granola is so easy to make, I often wonder why anyone ever buys it pre-made.  I make a modified version of "the absolute best healthy granola" recipe from The Family Chef.  See the "More" section below for substitution ideas & serving suggestions.  This can be made gluten-free if gluten-free oats are used.  My version is gluten-free.

GINGER SYRUP

The first time I ever had ginger syrup was when I made ginger gelato last November.   The recipe called for ginger pieces simmered in simple syrup for an hour.  The pieces went into the gelato, & the sweet/spicy ginger-infused syrup was left over.  I used it on pancakes, in oatmeal, in green tea, & with plain yogurt with fruit.  Now, if I have ginger root left over from preparing a meal, I make ginger syrup.  Ginger syrup can be used to make easy ginger ale, & the pieces can be used in baking (for example, Lemon-ginger walnut bread), in granola, making ice cream, or as a simple treat.  

TURKEY (OR TOFU) CURRY with POTATO, CARROT, & GREEN PEAS

I used to love yellow curry with potato, carrot, & chicken from Thai restaurants.  A while ago my coworker described a simple meal her mother-in-law makes which tastes similar to my favorite Thai dish, but doesn't have coconut or chicken.  I made it from memory for dinner tonight with ground turkey.  If you prefer chicken, roasted turkey, tofu, or no meat at all,  you can use my recipe as a starting point.  If you don't have the exact ingredients or quantities, use what you have; this is a very flexible recipe.  

INGREDIENTS (Yield = 6-8 servings) 

AWESOME WORKOUT by BODYROCKER TEE

Tonight I did a rep-based workout made up by a Bodyrocker.  It can be done using a dumbbell, kettleball, or weight-filled bag if you don't have a sandbag.

TEE'S 1000 REP WORKOUT
100 high knees with jump rope
25 pushups with 2 knee tucks

CAJUN SALMON SALAD WITH TANGERINES & PECANS

I love this salad!  The spicy salmon is beautifully offset by the sweet tangerine & toasted pecans.  This can stand alone for a meal, & also goes well with rice on the side.  When I first served this to my salmon-hating brother, he told me he liked it.  I wish I could find the original recipe to give credit, but I cannot find it anywhere.  

BEET GREENS, CARROT, & HERB SALAD

I threw a salad together for lunch today, & it turned out delicious.  If you don't have these ingredients, improvise with what you have.  I have a 5lb bag of carrots I'm working on, & beet greens left over from roasted beets I made earlier in the week*, so I used them in this salad.  I like to make dressing in a bowl, then add all of the salad ingredients to that bowl.  

INGREDIENTS (1 serving)

BAKED PEARS WITH CURRANTS, CRANBERRIES, & PECANS

I started making this dessert from Bon Appetit a few years ago for holiday family gatherings.  It's easy, flexible, delicious, & perfect when food allergies or Celiac disease are an issue.  It's a great dessert, but it also is wonderful with oatmeal for breakfast.  I always make a few extra so that I can have breakfast pears!  The version I'm posting contains pecans, but typically I do not use nuts in this recipe.   

INGREDIENTS (yield = 6 pears)

ZUZANA'S CARROT GINGER SAUCE (or soup) WITH TURKEY, B+ modified

I wish I could say this was a Jessica original, but that would be a lie.  It is a modification of one of the tastiest meals I've ever had: Zuzana's chicken in ginger carrot sauce.  I first made this meal before beginning to eat per my blood type.  Four of the original recipe's ingredients (chicken, chicken broth, coconut milk, & cinnamon) are foods that I am supposed to avoid, so this has been on my 'to modify" list.  Organic carrots were a STEAL at the grocery store this week, so last night I did a makeover on Zuzana's awesome recipe.

This sauce can easily be a soup if you prefer; just add more liquid.

QUINOA PRIMAVERA

A well-stocked kitchen has advantages.  If you forget to defrost meat (like I did today), but have quinoa & some fresh vegetables, you have ingredients to make a healthy, balanced meal.  Tonight I used quinoa, fresh vegetables, & herbs from my balcony to make what I'm calling Quinoa Primavera.  If you don't have the exact ingredients I used, use what you have.  This was an improvised meal, so change it to suit your supplies &/or taste!

INTERVAL WORKOUTS

When I don't have time to look for a workout online or I forget my workout log at home, I make up my own routine.   Here are some interval workouts I've made up (I'm sorry that there aren't pictures or videos). 

2/2012: PARK WORKOUT

Equipment: Mat & Timer

PART 1 & 3 10/30 x 6 rounds = 4 min per Part	PART 1		PART 3
	1	2	1	2
1-leg side hop + side kick, alternating
side burpee + knee tuck
Reptile + leg lift (lift up for glutes)
PART 2 & 4 3 min countdown, maximum reps of:	PART 2		PART 4
1 rep =  10 jump lunges à plank à 2 push-ups à rollover à 10 knee hugs à roll over & power up

REP CHALLENGE WORKOUTS

Sometimes I make up my own workouts.  Here are some of them.  I don't have videos or pictures to accompany these...sorry!  

5/17/2011: MAY PARK WORKOUT 
Equipment: Timer, Jump Rope, Mat

Time Challenge: Finish all exercises as fast as possible with good form.   Do 2 rounds for time			TIME	1	2		TOTAL
Jump Rope, med intensity	100 jumps	Side Plank Twist w/3sec hold				20, alt
Forward-Backward Lunges	15/leg	Jump Rope, high knees				100 jumps
Jump Rope, high knees	100 jumps	Sumo Squat with overhead press				15
Push-ups	15	Jump Rope Jacks Each jump apart = 1 jumps				50 jumps
Jump Rope Jacks Each jump apart = 1 jumps	50 jumps	Tricep Dips + leg lift, alt				20

9/14/2011: I LOVE MY NEW FITBALL! WORKOUT

Equipment: Timer, fitball or medicine ball/dumbbell
This is a great at-home quiet workout that I did barefoot.
As a bonus, do 1 round.  For a workout, do 3 rounds.

Reps	Exercise	Time
300	Ball pulse squeezes (Lie on back, knees bent with ball between knees.  Squeeze knees together & squeeze glutes, lifting butt off the ground.
50	Reverse plank knee tucks, hands on ball
20	1-arm on ball push-up alt (knees)
20/leg	1-leg squat with other foot lightly balanced on ball
30	Ball pass (lie on back, pass ball from hands to feet)
25 per leg	1-leg bridge leg lift on ball
10	1-arm on ball push-up alt (knees)
15	Ab Chopper with ball

Get your workout gear here.

Please see the disclaimer at the bottom of this site regarding workouts posted on this site. 

Pin It

WALNUT ENCRUSTED ORANGE ROUGHY WITH HERBED MILLET & GREEN BEANS

Tonight I made a fish recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, The Family Chef.  I barely modified the original recipe, changing only the recommended spice blend.   We ate our wild-caught fish with organic green beans sauteed in a little olive oil & garlic with herb-garlic millet.  My meat-&-potato-loving-husband has been very patient with my kitchen adventures & the new grains showing up on our dinner plates.  We both really enjoyed this meal!

TANGERINE GINGER BAKED SALMON (with BROWN RICE, MILLET, & PEAS)

I am still working on my tangerines.  Tonight I used them with salmon, & was very pleased with the result.  I wasn't sure how to make a tangerine sauce, so I consulted my new favorite book, The Improvisational Cook.  I didn't find anything obvious in there that said, "tangerines are great paired with these flavors," so I decided to get creative.  This is delicious with either fresh or powdered ginger, but having made it twice, I recommend

TANGERINE VINAIGRETTE

My Grandmother grows the best tangerines.  Recently she sent me home with more than I can eat.  This is my first attempt to turn them into something else beside a snack.  

ROASTED TURKEY BREAST & BUTTERNUT SQUASH

Saturday night I had a half turkey breast, butternut squash, & fresh herbs waiting to be made into a meal.  I roasted them all together for dinner, toasted the squash seeds for a snack, & made curried soup with the left-over squash.  If you don't have fresh herbs, dried will work too.  

BLUEBERRY PINEAPPLE SMOOTHIE-TINI

Who says gin, vodka, & vermouth are the only liquids worthy of a martini glass?  I made a post-bike ride/pre-workout smoothie the other day & decided to drink it from this funky glass (which has never had a martini in it).  This is the simplest smoothie I make.  It has only 4 ingredients & makes a wonderful breakfast or snack.  For breakfast, I would double the ingredients listed below.  Everything about this is flexible, so add or subtract as you see fit. :)  

BLOOD TYPE GENETICS

Tonight someone asked me if you can determine your blood type based on that of your spouse & kids, if you know all of theirs, but not your own.  If someone reading this can answer better than my attempt, please correct me or add to this post!  

I dusted off an old biology text book & looked for the section on blood type genetics.  (Campbell, Neil A. Biology. 4th Edition. Riverside, CA; The Benjamin/Cummings Publishing Company, Inc. 1996.)

Basically, there are 4 blood types: O, A, B, & AB.  Blood type is determined the absence or presence of a blood protein on your blood cell.  Which protein you do or do not have is controlled by multiple alleles of one gene.  There are 3 alleles: i (recessive), Ia (co-dominant with Ib) & Ib (co-dominant with Ia).  You get one from each parent, & the combination of the two alleles is your genotype.

DELICIOUS CABBAGE SALAD

Once in a while I buy lunch from a delicious Armenian restaurant.  The main reason I go there is to have a refreshing, light, lemony, cabbage salad.  Tonight I successfully recreated my favorite lunchtime side dish!  I made a gigantic batch because I plan to share. I used twice the ingredient quantities below.  

EASY & DELICIOUS OATMEAL PANCAKE

Most mornings I rush out of my apartment with something healthy I can eat in my car & wonder if I'll ever be a "morning person."  Days that I don't have to work, I like to spend more time making breakfast.  Oatmeal pancakes are one of my favorite things to make.  While I'm not a fan of diets, some of them have great recipes, & the South Beach Diet Oatmeal Pancake is no exception.  The only thing I change about their version is that I use 2 whole eggs rather than 4 egg whites, & I always add fruit.  Today I added 1/2 banana to the pancake batter, dropped frozen blueberries into the pancake,  & served with honey the other banana half sliced.  I plan on going for a long bike ride, so that's why I added banana & honey.  Sometimes I top the pancake with 100% maple syrup, just honey, mashed berries, or apple butter. 

EATING HEALTHY WHEN YOU'RE BROKE & PRESSED FOR TIME

Tonight I went to Bodyrock.tv to log my workout scores for today, & instead have ended up writing a new post.  The first thing I read in the recent comments was a question I used to have to answer for myself all the time:  how do you eat healthy when time & money are scarce?