Link Love

I've added three more links on the right.
It keeps amazing me how neat it is to build virtual friendships.
Meeting and engaging with people that have the same interests and outlook.
It's really cool.


I've mentioned him before but please make sure you visit:
http://www.smoketheblowfish.blogspot.com/

Mike's writing style is just fantastic and if you like a little dose of sarcasm from time to time, you're in for a treat.


Mark Lepper at http://www.dadrewrite.blogspot.com/ shares his life openly and you will find recipes and thoughts about living the primal/EF/paleo way. He's totally genuine and it comes across clearly through his posts. I get the feeling that Mark's life has changed over time due to following the ef way. Very cool stuff.


Jeff Erno at http://www.ernoj.blogspot.com/ has detailed and frequent posts describing his workouts and eating the paleo/primal/ef way. What I like about Jeff is that he's obviously and completely open minded to new ideas. He's not afraid to try new things and will take what's useful and leave behind what's not. Very much in line with my way of thinking. And he's a tennis player, so he can't be all bad ;-)



Lastly, these two links Rusty's Fitness Black book and Applied Mastery are all ready there, but make sure you visit them, loads of quality info there.



Have a wonderful day everyone

"FAT, it does a body good"

Are you trying your hand at eating paleo/primal/ef?

My advice to you, make sure your "fat" intake is plentiful.

If you are trying to "lean" out you do need to watch your portion size.

Take a look:

99.9 % of nutritionists would have a field day with this meal right?

Guacamole, one and half an avocado with some spring onion, pepper (see picture below),cilantro and lime juice. Ground Kobe beef sirloin sauteed in butter with spring onion, garlic and pepper. (about 4 ounces)

This was breakfast on Sunday morning at around noon. What do you think the "fitday" breakdown would be?

And then of course there's this when it comes to fat:

Chop some spring onion, garlic and pepper. Does anyone know the name of this pepper??

It's very mildly spicey (seeds removed) It's locally grown.

Mix all with some ground beef (I used the Kobe beef again.) Make a nice little log.

Wrap in 4 slices of bacon

Put this on the grill using indirect heat or you can make it in your oven, but first sear it on your stove in a pan if you do.

Easy # 4

Here's the last recipe in the easy series for now.

Try this dinner with some guests if possible. They will sing your cooking praises ;-)

3 pounds skinless chicken thighs

8-10 chopped garlic coves

1/2 cup chopped onion (shallots work best, but don't sweat it if you don't have them)

1/4 cup of honey

2 tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice

1 tbs red pepper flakes

1/2 cup of evoo or coconut oil.

Sea salt to taste (1 teasp is plenty)

I know I'm not reducing my carbon footprint with this, but using a gallon size zip loc bag works well for tossing it all together and letting it marinate in the fridge. 6-8 hours will work, overnight is best.

Get the grill nice and hot. If you don't have a gas grill, keep an area for indirect heat clear. Sear the thighs for about 3-4 minutes on both sides, then move to indirect cooking surface and close the lid to let them cook. I served it it with grilled zucchini,yellow squash and red onion.

1 large zucchini

2 medium yellow squash

1/2 a red onion

2 tbsp evoo

2 teaspoons Mrs. Dash Italian medley

WARNING WARNING; would you believe Mrs. Dash has friggin MSG in it???!!!! You can make your own italian spice blend....toss the Mrs. Dash like I did. Swoosh!!

In a bowl combine everything and let it sit for a few minutes at room temp. (don't cut it all too small, or it will fall through the grids of your grill basket)

Grab your grill basket toss it in there and grill it up.

For your guests enjoyment, sprinkle some fresh feta on top of the veggies before serving.

Almost forgot to take a picture it all tasted so good. In regards to primal/paleo/ef, the honey/sugar is negligible in relation to the 3 pounds of meat and cooking. This recipe works well with bone in pork chops also. Just pound the chops thin so they can cook quickly. You can also experiment with pounding the chicken thighs nice and thin.

Try this one for EASY;

Turn your oven to 400 degrees.

2 tbsp of bacon grease on a cookie tray (you do save your bacon grease right???)

Let the bacon grease melt

Add a pound of brussel sprouts (ends trimmed)

Carefully shake the cookie tray around a bit so the sprouts all get coated.

When all look a little bit crispy, remove from oven, eat hot and enjoy!!!

Have a great Wednesday!

Play, Exercise, my thoughts and Mr. G. Jones

I played some tennis Saturday morning with my good friends George and Tom.

It really got me thinking. There is so much discussion and disagreement and lately posturing about the "right" type of diet and exercise. What supplements to take, the ultimate food model. Strength training, skill training, sport specific training, and the list goes on and on.

How does this all relate to George and Tom you Ask? Let's take a look.

Here is George. George is 65 years young. I'm sure he never really swilled down protein shakes or cycled creatine. I'm also sure he never flipped back and forth between the zone diet, atkins or Ornish. George being older then most of us, didn't have the onslaught of information that's available to al of us today. He did instinctively live his life the way many of us are trying to do. Basically he stuck to the simple and straightforward. He's kept active his whole life. He consumes a diet that works for him. He is always in a happy and positive state of mind. He enjoys his work and his family and has a loving and respectful relationship with his wife. He learned by trial and error. He examined his life regularly (and still does) and kept what was useful and dropped what wasn't. The end result? See for yourself. 65 years young and look at his posture. Overweight? No. Muscled? Check. Happy? Affirmative. At age 65 George will tear through many a younger opponent.

Here below (in the black shorts) my friend Tom. Tom played college ball for a division 1 school. He is the chairman (former CEO) of a major corporation. Like George, Tom is devoted to his family. I believe he has 10 grand kids, and it's not unusual for him to have all 10 for a sleep over pizza party. He never runs out of energy. His wife and he play tennis together also and walk and bike plenty. Boat trips, trips with the kids, beach walks. They do it all. Tom is also 65.

Just like George, even though they are very different people, Tom lives basically the same way. Wholesome foods, happy and positive attitude, regular exercise, loving relationships.

Tom runs shots down that most people over 35 never get to. Take a look;

Great posture, muscled, not overweight and hitting a topspin forehand with the kind of pace you would expect from a guy 30 years younger. Tom has been my doubles partner many a time, and we've competed fiercely against much younger opponents and much to their dismay, beaten them regularly. We have won tournaments together in the USTA 4.5 category at sanctioned events. So I'd like everyone to consider this. DON'T OVER COMPLICATE THE SIMPLE STUFF. Eat real food, find resistance exercise/play that makes you feel good. Identify play like tennis or ulitmate frisbee, that let's you move, think and enjoy. Be a positive part of the world around you. Love your family. Smile, be happy and help out where you can. Just my little rambling for the weekend.

Here are my raquetss. They are Babolat. You can see I broke my strings yesterday. They were a new kind I tried. They are like the "luxilon" variety, just a bit more feel. These type of strings are to hard on the joints in my opinion.

I'll be posting some new recipes for you to try and would like your feedback on them. I'm getting to the video. This is my first try at one. It's of my beach friend Mr. G. Jones. I've blogged about him before. He keeps me company when I fish.......or mostly I just watch him fish. Like here. Enjoy.

Easy # 3

Kalamata olive and garlic aioli coleslaw.

This is my variation on coleslaw.

I make a lot of it, it keeps well in the fridge.

Once again EASY..... so here we go.

Organic green and red cabbage. 1 cup of each. I use a mandolin slicer to shred it

2 cloves of garlic

10 kalamata olives (no pits)

1 tbsp yellow mustard

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 egg yolk

3/4 cup evoo

sea salt & pepper to taste

I used the handy dandy magic bullet (once you stop smiling over its pornographic name....you'll love having it in your kitchen arsenal. Trust me!) to chop the garlic and the olives then added 1/4 cup of olive oil. So now you have a 1/4 cup of heavily flavored olive oil.

Now make your homemade mayo. Combine the egg yolk, mustard and lemon juice then slowly drizzle the the remaining evoo and your kalamata/garlic olive oil while mixing. A hand held or immersion blender makes this easy and quick. Mix your tasty mayo in with the cabbage. Add a few dashes of oregano and dill.

This is a great side dish with meat, chicken or fish!

"Work hard, do your best, keep your word, never get too big for your britches, trust in g'd/spirit/universe, have no fear and never forget a friend!"

H. Truman.

Disclaimer, I added spirit and universe in there.

Easy 2

Ready for another easy meal?
Follow along.......

1 zucchini (the one showing is called Italian zucchini. They are great for grilling as they are bigger) slice, drizzle with evoo and sprinkle paprika, garlic powder, sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

NEXT

1/2 pound ground turkey

1/2 pound grass fed beef

2 cloves of chopped garlic

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

1 egg

1/4 cup of feta

2 teasps oregano

fresh ground pepper to taste

Make two burgers and grill. Small side salad.

Enjoy.

Also part of the easy series, I had some strawberry vinaigrette thanks to Elizabeth.

Delicious. It's great how we all learn from each other in our primal/paleo community.

I'm sure most of you have seen the new amazing paleo video. But just in case I put a link on the right. I will be forwarding this little gem to many.

Thanks for the continued feedback and comments everyone!!!

Easy #1

I'm going to do a little series. I'm going to post step by step Feel Good Eating recipes, with the intent to illustrate how EASY it really is, to make a tasty wholesome meal. My question and possible weekend project; would a cooking video be something you would like to see?

Dinner;

3/4 pound of ground turkey

1/4 of a de-seeded jalapeno.

2 cloves of garlic

3 scallions/green onion

1/2 cup of coconut milk

1 tsps red or green curry paste

1 cup shredded green cabbage

2 tbsps of butter

Fresh cilantro

On medium heat saute in butter,garlic, green onion, and jalalpeno. Next add the ground turkey. Dissolve the curry paste in a tiny bit of warm water and add to the pan. When turkey is no longer pink, add the coconut milk and turn down the heat to low. Mix and let simmer for a few minutes. Add the green cabbage, mix and cover. Let simmer on low until cabbage is soft and ready to eat.

You can add a few sliced scallions and fresh cilantro on top before serving.

EASY?

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend.

Pressed for time 2

Love this type of salad when I'm short on time.

2 slices of bacon. I cut them with kitchen shears into little strips. Small pat of butter, 2 garlic cloves, sliced spring onion and 2 chicken sausages. Squeeze out of casing. Cook until almost done then add about 6-8 sliced kalamata olives. Break up sausage into bite size pieces. You can use kitchen shears for this again.

In a big salad bowl, mix some green leaf lettuce, cucumber, tomato and a pinch of feta. Add evoo and a tbsp of dijon mustard, mix.

Then add the sausage dish on top of the salad and once again mix it all together.

Very tasty, satisying and full of flavor.

What do you make when pressed for time?

Pressed for time.

Was hungry last night and short on time.

Didn't get to eat until after 8:30, as I joined my girlfriend for one of her "Boot Camp " sessions with her group. Post to follow on that. I think you will enjoy it ;-)

Bratwurst and a salad. These Bratwurst are one of my favorites. They have them at Whole Foods and most health food stores.

I remembered to take a picture after I at one of them. Some yummy salad with it.

They are fully cooked so I warm them in a skillet with butter and onion.

Roasted garlic. Slice off the top of a bulb, drizzle with evoo and put in the oven at 300 for about 15 minutes. Show you tomorrow what I'm using it for.

Functional vs Show

We all have seen the big body builder types with hulking shoulders and small boulders for biceps, yet they can't do a pull up. So that got me thinking about my favorite subject; Feel Good Eating. The same functional vs. show model plays out in my kitchen quite often.

When I grew up, a good french baguette with butter, boiled egg and tomato was one of my favorite sandwiches. They looked so pretty in the display cases, next to similar varieties either with salami or brie or ham and cheese. The "show" was great but the "functionality" diminished by white flour and yeast.

I still eat my favorite "sandwich" but have converted it to purely functional ;-)

Try this:

Two soft boiled eggs (my preference), some fresh diced tomato and a few pats of organic butter (if you can find raw butter locally, even better. Fresh ground pepper.

Mix well.

The SOG and I have talked about "delivery mechanism", or as he calls it "delivery vessel". Uncooked butter and egg make a wonderful taste combination, just leave out the bread/delivery mechanism.

Back to Functional vs. Show; I'm not sure this would look to appealing in a display case.

But oh boy is this delicious. You can of course boil your eggs longer so that they are not runny. I tossed a few fresh chives on top from my herb garden.

Eating whole foods is really expensive...........

YEAH RIGHT!

Here;

From the farmers market, 5 organic lemons, 3 organic cucumbers, 3 organic tomatoes, organic onion, organic spring onion and an organic Italian zucchini. It tastes exactly like regular zucchini, but this variety lends itself perfectly to slicing and grilling. Easier to handle bigger slices for the grill.

Total cost? $4.75

What does a Big Mac cost these days?

"Smile a lot today, it's very important"

mvd

Humbled by the unexpected

The nice pleasant cul de sac where the school bus turns to pick up my daughter. The yellow flowering tree is a tababouia . They are spectacular!

One of my climbing trees below. Notice the circle and arrow....it's where I reach up and climb to the large branch I like to do some pull ups on.

With perfect timing, as my daughters school bus drove by, I was hanging from the branch looking all cool and primal and pumped up from push ups, burpees and now some pull ups. The branch snapped and this cool dad tumbled ass over heels onto the grass. It really made me smile all day. My daughter told me the entire bus cracked up. (including her)

Here you can see where it snapped.

Sharing my "Kalamata olive and garlic aioli" recipe with you this weekend.

Link Love

You will be noticing a new link on the right. Applied Mastery

This blog is written by my close friend Steve. I've known Steve for a long long time.
We've experienced a lot together. From great meals, to bogus Aikido teachers, to meeting and training with true martial art masters, to relaxing kayak excursions.
He has always pointed me to great resources that made me think, evaluate and many a time changed the very course of my life. He is also the one that introduced me to Art Devany over 4 years ago.

Please take a look at his latest posts. Especially the last one on "patience"
ENJOY.

Stand by for my next post shortly. How I fell out of my climbing tree this morning ;-)

Zucchini Hummus

I just updated Twitter so thought maybe this would be helpful.

In the food processor combine one large peeled zucchini (cut into a few chunks before putting in the processor), 2 small cloves of garlic, 2 tbs tahini, 1-2 tbsps of lemon juice, fresh parsley or cilantro and some sea salt.

Delicious with steak, chicken, fish or just on it's own.

Enjoy!

Iceberg lettuce = Salad?

If you look at different countries "salads", you'll notice the amount of variety in the ingredients that make up the "salad". Sadly here in the U.S. "Salad" has become a cold plate with ice berg lettuce 2 slices of tomato and french/ranch/blue cheese/italian dressing. I try and always tell my family and friends to make "real salads". It's one of the easiest ways (for those that have some type of aversion to cooking their own food) to incorporate real foods into your diet. The options are endless, and instead of the "franken oil dressing" you get to add some good for you fats to your creations. Have you ever made "tahini dressing" for example? Take a look at Elizabeth's great blog for a wonderful easy recipe. Tahini can be used in so many way. Try experimenting with it. Buying organic raw tahini is best.

So here is a salad I made last night;

Daikon, celery, olives, cucumber, chives, scallion, cucumber, arugula, and red leaf lettuce.

To make the tahini dressing, I took 2 tablespoons of tahini, squeeze of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon evoo, 2 small gloves of garlic and splash of water. Mixed it in the magic bullet.

Make it a great day!