Halloumi, Zucchini and Sundried Tomato Penne

 

This month has a been taxing on the wallet so I've been avoiding buying groceries and trying to make do with whatever I have in the house. That, combined with the fact that Matt and I have opposing schedules this week and haven't been eating together, allowed me to be rather creative in the kitchen. This recipe is one of my creations that actually turned out. I would actually make this intentionally now. So should you.

When I was googling zucchini recipes trying to figure out what I could do with the 3 I had in the fridge I saw this recipe for sundried tomato zucchini rounds and was all excited because I actually had sundried tomatoes too! But I didn't have goat cheese or chives. Then I thought "YAY I have halloumi!!" so that's how I came up with this dish!

Ingredients

250g package of halloumi, sliced into 3/4" slabs
300-400g of dried penne
3 small zucchinis, sliced in 1" medallions, then chopped in half again
2 gloves of garlic, crushed
1/4 of yellow onion, diced
4 tablespoons sliced sundried tomatoes in oil
1 tbsp oregano
olive oil
salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Boil penne until al dente, and set aside.
2. Grill halloumi on a greased grill, or in a frying pan with a bit of olive oil. This should take about a minute a side, and the cheese should be golden and firm where the grill/pan has touched it. Set halloumi aside on a plate.
3. Put a large frying pan on medium heat, drizzle with olive oil, add your diced onions and cook until soft. Add the crushed garlic and mix around for 30 seconds.  When chopping the zucchini try and make your zucchini slices the same size as the penne. Add the sliced zucchini to the pan, mix well and add more olive oil if it looks dry.
4. Season zucchini generously with salt and pepper and the oregano. Cook zucchini until firm yet soft on the outside, for about 3-5 minutes.
5. When the zucchini is done, add the pasta, sundried tomatoes, break up the fried halloumi into bite-size pieces and mix it all together. Fry until all the ingredients have heated up and married into a lovely harmony of flavours. Then eat! It's great the next day too.

Owl Mittens

I made these mittens as a part of a class at Stash Needle Art Lounge. I had done fair isle knitting before but I taught myself and I have been known to make some things up so I wanted to take a class to learn the right way. Low and behold, I did make some stuff up with my own creative fair isle technique. Before the class, I couldn't figure out how to wrap the main colour when working along patch of contrasting colour, so I would twist the yarns awkwardly which involved getting the two colour threads tangled most times, as my way to wrap the main colour. It seemed to work, but it defeats the purpose of fair isle two handed knitting, where your threads never get tangled. So I learned how to do that properly in the class (yay! no more tangled yarn cakes!) and I also learned how to do Kitchener Stitch properly! I found out that I also made up my own little way to do that. Trust me, the proper way looks a whole lot neater! Also a fun little tip I learned for when you join the first round on double pointed needles to avoid the little hole in joined-in joint.

Here's the tip:

1. Ok so you've cast on your stitches and distributed them around on your DPNs.
2. To join in the round, take the first stitch off the left hand needle and place it on the right.
3. Take the second stitch on the right hand needle over the first stitch on the right hand needle and place it on the left hand needle.
4. You have now joined the round by crossing over the stitches. And there's no little hole or jog on the seam edge! Wahoo!

I'm actually a little scared to post this because I already have 3 or 4 requests for a pair of these from people who have already seen them. I guess it is pretty hard to resist the cuteness!!

For information on yarn and the pattern you can see my ravelry project page. I've committed to actually recording my finished projects on Ravelry now because eventually I want to start test knitting so the project page of my Ravelry account will serve as a resume of sorts to showcase my soon-to-be-acquired-mad-knitting-skills.

more baby knits

 

Baby season is coming to a close. Which I am happy for because there is a bite in the air which is making me eager to work with woolly worsted weights. This cardigan was pretty easy and I really enjoyed the yarn, obviously, it is Quince & Co. after all.

I did the second size which looks to fit a 3-6 month old. But what do I know about babies. The yarn was tern in columbine. I loved the strength, twist and softness to this yarn. It seems like it would keep the baby really warm without being scratchy. The silk has a nice drape too that I could see translating well into wispy sort of cardigans. Q&Co. actually has some designs for tern just like this which includes the Abigail Cardi. Which I need to make btw. Right, I was talking about the baby cardigan....the pattern is Wee Brock. You can make Wee Brock as just Brock to be an adult size. I don't think that shape of cardigan would be flattering on me, but it is a super cute cardi.

eeee yarn!

I'm making my first men's sweater! I'm knittin' up Slade for Matt. It reminds me of a smoking jacket. The lovely lovely Brooklyn Tweet yarn, Shelter, in Nest arrived this week and I am in love with the colour and the everything about it. I am NOT in love with tubular cast on though...

Asian Stylez Chop Chop Salad

My brother came over for dinner and said he would do the main while we did the rest. He wanted to do an Asian meal so he made Carrot Ginger Rice and Garlic Ginger Chicken which was amazing btw. So I thought this was the perfect opportunity to make a chopped salad!

Ingredients

Serves 4 as a side salad


Here is the whole meal!

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 crushed garlic clove
juice of 1-2 limes
salt and pepper to taste
small bunch fresh cilantro, torn
1 red chili, thin sliced
3-4 green onions, diced
2 handfuls bean sprouts
2 small carrots, grated
1/2 cucumber, julienned
1/4 cup salted peanuts, smashed
1 romaine heart, diced

Instructions

1. Make your dressing by combining in a jar or salad dressing shaker if you're fancy like that, the olive oil, crushed garlic, juice of 1-2 limes depending on how juicy, sesame oil and salt and pepper to taste. Shake well and set aside. The ratio of olive oil to lime juice should be 3:1.
2. Chop, dice, julienne, dice etc. all of the salad ingredients as described above and combine in a serving bowl. Right before serving drizzle with the salad dressing, toss and serve.

oooo I just had a good idea! This would make a complete meal out of this salad if you grilled some chicken breast with some sort of satay peanut or almond butter sauce!!! oh-em-gee need to make NOW...

Indian Roasted Cauliflower with Fenugreek Salmon

This is a dish I made for my lunches on the weekend. I am so obsessed with roasting veggies and having them with fish for lunch. I particularly like roasted cauliflower, the texture is so hearty and crunchy and roasting it adds so much flavour. Not: do not pick up with cauliflower with your hands after roasting because it will stain your fingers. I just got my nails filled and they are soooo pretty with sparkles at the tip so when I greedily ate the cauliflower with my hands I stained the tips yellow so it looked like gross yellow sparkles. But its ok because it faded now so I am no longer angry at this dish.

Ingredients

Yields 2 servings

Salmon:
2 single portion salmon filets
2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp melted coconut oil

Cauliflower:
1 head of cauliflower, washed and cut into bite-sized florets
1 tbsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp mild curry powder
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
a drizzle of hot sauce (I used sriracha)
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Salmon:
1. Preheat a medium sized pan to medium heat.
2. Make a rub with the melted coconut oil and all the spices. Rub on the salmon filets.
3. Grill salmon in pan with a lid on it for about 6 minutes on one side. Flip to the other side and grill for another 2 minutes. Cook times will depend on salmon thickness, but each side should be golden and the middle flaky and juicy.
4. wow I thought there would be more steps...but you're done here!

Cauliflower
1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. In a big bowl mix the cauliflower florets and all of the spices, hot sauce and coconut oil so that the cauliflower is well covered.
3. Put the coated cauliflower in a large casserole dish or even a cookie sheet and roast in the oven for 10 minutes.
4. Take it out and check to see if it's getting soft. Stir it around so that the other sides get roasty. Bake for another 3-5 minutes. The done texture should be firm but a little soft on the floret side. They should also look a little golden and roasted.

Pattypan and Halloumi Salad with Mint and Oregano Dressing

Do not be intimidated by the title if you've never heard of those ingredients. pattypan is a beautiful summer squash, also called star squash and halloumi is a Greek cheese that is best served fried. So really its just a squash and cheese warm salad. Okay that sounds even worse...its really really good trust me.

I made this for a dinner party and people started eating it before I could get a pretty picture! 

If you've never had halloumi cheese you need to try is RIGHT NOW. And good news Calgarians! Your local Safeway carries it! Shocking, I know. The flavour combinations really jive in this salad and I highly recommend having a bite of the halloumi together with the pattypan. Delicious. This recipe was adapted from a Big Girls Small Kitchen recipe.

Ingredients

Yields 4 served as a side dish.

4 medium-to-small sized pattypan squash
1 250g package of halloumi
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
olive oil for drizzling
juice of half a lemon
1 red chili pepper, seeds removed
small bunch of fresh oregano
small bunch of fresh mint
small bunch of fresh chives, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Make your dressing: add the extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, garlic cloves, half the mint, all the oregano, half the red chili and season with salt and pepper into a food processor and give it a good buzz.
2. Heat up a medium sized frying pan on medium heat. Cut up the pattypan into approximately 2x2" squares. I just followed the star pattern and made them into wedges.
3. Drizzle some olive oil in the pan, add your pattypan then season with salt and pepper. Move around to get it coated with olive oil.
4. Mince half of the red chili pepper with seeds removed and add to the patty pan. Let the pattypan cook for about 5 or 7 minutes to the point that it is still firm but gives way a little when you poke it. Some of the sides should look golden.
5. Remove the pattypan from the pan into a serving dish and cover it with a plate or something to keep it warm while you grill the halloumi.
6.  Slice the halloumi into 3/4" slices, and then slice the slices into 3. It should make them about the same size as the pattypan. In the same pan you fried the pattypan in which should have some residual olive oil, add the halloumi and fry each side until golden brown.
7. Add the halloumi to your serving bowl with the pattypan, pour the dressing over it and combine. Tear pretty remaining mint leaves and garnish the salad with the remaining mint and fresh chives. Serve immediately! and EAT!

Baby Season

All I have been knitting lately is adorable little baby stuff. Which has been great in the unseasonal hot September we've been having because it's much more pleasant to knit something small while sun tanning on the balcony.

This little number was for friends of mine that just had a baby girl. For months I had been planning on knitting sweaters for their cute Chihuahuas but I never got around to it so I suppose the human child warranted something hand knit.

The Tee

The baby tee is a Quince & Co. (sqweee!!!) pattern called Immie Tee and I did it in Knit Picks yarn called Cotlin which is a DK weight 70% cotton and 30% linen in Crème Brule. It is super soft and has a lovely breeziness to it. I quite liked the pattern once I got my hands on this handy dandy little gadget for following charts.

The Booties

I used the same yarn as above for the booties and the hat. The pattern is called Easy Mary Jane Booties. Soooo this was the second time I made these booties and the pattern is really NOT HARD at all, but I am retarded, and the first time I made these I had to re-do the left 3 times and the strap kept being on the wrong side and in frustration I just gave the booties as a gift anyway even though I gave them two right hand feet. Shame on me! I know! Babies don't know which way straps are supposed to go right? Anyway, so this time I was determined to get it right and made the left hand bootie 3 times again and then realized that it had been inside out the whole time. Seriously, it took me 6 booties to figure that one out. Good thing cotlin comes in enough yardage to support my mistakes!

The Hat

I wanted to a lacy hat to tie in the look of the tee. I started making this hat called Bonnet and Booties and I cast on and did the whole fancy boarder thing and it was looking great and then I couldn't figure it out from there. So I unraveled and looked for an easier lace hat pattern and made Baby Leaves Hat which was actually the better choice aesthetically because the leafy pattern on the tee was picked up in the hat. so YAY. I wanted to make it look like an outfit so I had to find a way to incorporate the bootie buttons (look at them! they have penguins on them!!!!) into the hat so I found a flower pattern to stick on it and use the button as the flower centre.

I can't wait to start making sweaters! Fall is coming!!!

05/09/2013 Training and Juicing Disaster

I'm sick. So training as been abysmal:

 

Tuesday I tried this:

 

AMRAP in 25 minutes:

Row 300m

15 DB Thrusters @ 15/hand

50 Double Unders

 

and got to 20 minutes with 5 rounds and felt like I was going to pass out because I had no air.

Today I tried this:

 

Snatch moderate + Jerk moderate + Clean moderate

A. Above Knee Hang Squat Snatch, 2 reps x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing over 65lbs, focus on speed

50/55/60/65 felt better today than I have with snatch lately. power snatched the last rep. oops.

B. Push Jerk. Split Jerk, 1.1 x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing over 90lbs

70/80/85/90 felt heavy today...

C. Above Knee Hang Squat Clean, 4-3-2-1, 1 min - start @ 65lbs, add 5lbs total per set

65-70-75-80

 

And I'm done with running with weights in my backpack. No matter how I wrap the dumbbell, it still bounces around and bruises me. I have so many bruises on my tailbone/lower back right now! I don't really understand why this Goruck challenge makes you carry bricks in your bag, a sandbag or water or something would be less ouchy and bruisy. Maybe carrying the bricks wont be as bad.

 

Ok so on Tuesday I was determined to get better and I just started to get into juicing so I thought "I'm going to make a cold-busting juice" so I packed it with all the things I know to blast through colds. Here is the recipe that you should NOT make. It tastes as disgusting as it looks, and I'm still sick, so it obviously is not the magical cure I thought it would be:

 

Ingredients

2 kale leaves

1/2 green apple

1/2 lemon

big finger sized piece of ginger

1 orange

 

Turns out ginger is a VERY strong flavour. It felt like I was drinking pure spicy acidic ginger. That burning must have done something damaging to the cold germs....

05/04/2013 Training

Snatch intense + Clean and Jerk intense + Horizontal CP

A. Power Snatch, build to a 1RM

70 75Fx2. Gah! what is wrong with me lately!

B. Squat Clean and Split Jerk Cluster, 1.1 x 4 sets, 3 min - start @ 85lbs

85/90/95/100

C. One Arm DB Rows @ 20X0, 4-6/arm x 4 sets, 30 sec b/t arms - heavy

22.5 6 reps/ 27.5 6 reps / 30 6 reps / 35 5 reps

D. 10 Push-ups per minute for up to 10 minutes - does not have to be unbroken, but must achieve 10 reps in every minute, if not, stop

complete! unbroken each time. should up the reps each time.

BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches with Radish/Beet/Carrot Coleslaw

The coleslaw was inspired by my lovely and creative friend Taryl who was telling me how she shredded carrot and beet to make a salad with quinoa. Sounds amazing doesn't it? Clearly I needed to find a reason to grate carrots a beets. Viola! My version of a Coleslaw! Matt did the chicken bit all by himself, so the recipe is all his idea!

BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

Serves 2

 

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts
28oz can of tomato sauce
2-4 big buns
1 small yellow onion, diced
5 picine peppers, crushed up
1 tsp cayenne
2 tsp chipotle chili powder
2 tsp paprika
1 tbsp cumin
salt and pepper

You can adjust the above spices to the level you prefer.

Instructions

1. Get out your slow cooker.
2. Trim any fat on the chicken breasts and place in slow cooker.
3. Add the spices and chopped onion to the tomato sauce and mix around. Put the tomato sauce mixture into the slow cooker.
4. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4.
5. Once the chicken is fully cooked and juicy as hell, take the breasts out of the sauce and shred all the chicken meat.
6. Remove all the sauce from the crock pot and reserve in a bowl. Place chicken back into the crock pot and add back as much sauce as you desire. The more sauce, the more sloppy your sandwich will be! Discard remaining sauce.
7. Serve on buns and top with coleslaw. For gluten free version, just eat the chicken in a bowl with the coleslaw on top - its SUPER good that way!

Radish/Beet/Carrot Coleslaw

Serves 2

 

Ingredients

1/2 beet
2 carrots
4 radishes
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
juice of one lime
salt and pepper

 

Instructions

1. With the big side of a box grater, grate half a beet, the carrots and radishes.
2. Add grated veggies to a bowl and add cilantro, and all the other ingredients.
3. Mix up and top the chicken burgers with it! Also tastes good on its own.

05/2/2013 Training

Wednesday - DL intense + Vertical CP + Row Sprints

A. DL Cluster, 1.1.1 x 3 sets, 2 min - start @ 135lb, drop each rep

135/140/145

I'm happy I can do this, I was very skeptical! Felt good though.

B1. HSPU, 2-3 reps x 3 sets, 1 min - adjust height

w/ skinny side ab mat 2" away from wall: 3 rep / 3" away: 3/3

B2. Kipping Chin-ups, AMRAP (-2) x 3 sets, 1 min - focus on stringing good reps together, consistent

6/6/8 really working on that darn linking

C. Push Press @ 11X1, 3 reps x 3 sets, 1:30 min - start @ 75lbs, heavy

75/80/85

D. Row Sprint 30 sec ALL OUT x 4 sets, 2 min rest

124m/123/126/123

 

Also today on my run to and from the gym I put a 10# dumbell in my backpack to start preparing for the Goruck Challenge on August 30th. It wasn't too bad. One thing I noticed was the importance of a good backpack with good straps to keep the pack against your back to prevent it hitting you as you run.

Stranger Cardigan - Part 2

I actually finished this quite some time ago but work is crazy busy and we went to Mexico etc etc so this is the first time I've had a moment to take pictures of the final product! My goal was to finish this in 4 weeks but it took 7 weeks total, with a break to go to Mexico in there, so really 6 weeks. I'm okay with that! Once I was cruising on the cable panels it was smooth sailing from there.

The most annoying part of this project was the blocking. I don't have blocking mats or wires so that added an element of complexity. Plus I was so excited to wear it that I didn't want to soak it overnight like the patterns said to, so I only soaked it for a couple hours in the tub. Then the drying took like 18 hours. Seaming was fine, I got lots of practise on mattress stitch!

I really loved this pattern, and I would totally make it again. Since there is no shaping and a lot of stockinette stitch it's an easy pattern with a big payout on the pretty. Cables are just so damn pretty.

Pattern: Stranger Cardigan by Michiyo
Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes 100% worsted weight wool in Bramble Heather (25073)
Needles: 5mm 32" circulars

I am happy with the yarn, especially for that price. There's nothing about the yarn that makes you melt or feel all warm and fuzzy inside like some yarns do, but its sturdy, fairly soft for 100% wool, the colour was saturated, nice twist and I really loved the colour. It's a greyish brown that can go with anything, which is great because I plan to (and have already!) wear this a lot. Since I've already worn this for a couple of weeks I have been paying attention to the pilling, and it is pilling in the usual spots, but I'm not sure if it is more or less pilling than any other kind of wool yarn. I'm looking forward to experimenting with other brands of wool to see how much they each pill. I need one of those buzzer de-pilling things. One downfall of the yarn is the low yardage. Yes, you can make a whole sweater or cardigan for around $30, but you're going to need 11 or more balls which means there are 22 tails to weave in. Brutal! To end on a positive note, I would definitely use this yarn again, its good value for low cost.

Now that I've made my first cardigan nothing is stopping me from making the 15 or so that I have saved to my Ravelry library muahahaha!

03/28/2013 Training

Wednesday Thursday- DL intense + Vertical CP + Row Sprints

A. Romanian DL @ 30X0, 2 reps x 3 sets, 2 min

New movement for me and had trouble touching plates to ground and didn't go as heavy as I should have... 115/125/135

B1. Press @ 11X1, 2-2-1-1, 1 min - start @ 50lbs

2 reps for all - 50/55/60

B2. C2B Chin-ups, AMRAP x 3 sets, 1 min

6/6/6

C. 1 tough HSPU every 20 sec for 10 minutes - adjust height

up until minute 6 the skinny side ab mat was 2" from wall, after that, 1.5"

D. Row Sprint 20 sec ALL OUT x 6 sets, 1 min rest

82m/82/82/81/80/82

03/25/2013 Training

Monday - Snatch moderate + Jerk moderate + Clean moderate + DU tester

A. Above Knee Hang Squat Snatch, 2 reps x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing over 65lbs, focus on speed

45/55/60/65

B. Push Jerk. Split Jerk, 1.1 x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing over 90lbs

65/85/90/90

C. Above Knee Hang Squat Clean, 4-3-2-1, 1 min - start @ 65lbs, add 5lbs total per set

65/70/75/80

 

Smoky Chipotle Bean and Turkey Burritos

This is so good that we ended up making it into chili the next day with the left overs. Using a whole can of chipotle chilies made a big difference in this dish, separating it from the usual flavours of a standard burrito.

Ingredients

1 can red beans
1 can black beans
1 small can chipotle chilies, diced
700 g ground turkey
1 and 1/2 cups corn
1 yellow onion, diced
2 Serrano chilies, minced
1 tbsp cumin
2 tsp cayenne
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp paprika
salt and pepper to taste

Toppings:
Queso fresca cheese
diced tomatoes
diced red onion
guacamole
salsa
cilantro

Instructions

1. Satay diced onion and Serrano peppers with a bit of olive oil in a medium sized pot or high sided pan on medium heat, until onions are translucent.
2. Add the ground turkey to the onions and peppers, breaking it up as it cooks. Add the spices and chipotle to the pot - chopped chipotle chilies, cumin, cayenne, chili powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Mix well. Keep stirring turkey mixture for about 15 minutes or until the turkey is white and cooked through.
3. When the turkey is almost done, add the rinsed beans and corn to the pot and mix well. We put about 3/4 of each can of beans in this mixture and reserved the rest of the beans for the chili the next day.
4. Cook for an additional 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all the beans are heated through.
5. Serve with warmed burrito tortilla shells, queso fresca cheese, diced tomatoes, red onions, guacamole, salsa and cilantro!

03/21/2013 Training and Guest Blogging!

Saturday Thursday - Aerobic tester

AMRAP in 25 minutes:

Row 300m

15 DB Thrusters @ 15/hand

50 Double Unders

 

6 rounds.

 

I'm happy I managed to get a few unbroken 50 DUs sets which used to be standard for me. Not so much lately! I did this wod this morning even though it was scheduled for Saturday because it was a faster wod. This morning I laid in bed for half an hour debating if I should get up and knit, or get up and go to the gym. Since it was plus 3 out this morning, the gym won, but I had less time.

 

By the way, The Loop, my favourite local yarn shop asked me to be a guest blogger for them chronicling my journey as a new-ish knitter. Check it out.

Yarn Bowl Attempt Number 2

I tried a different method this time instead of the swirl. The swirl is really hard to do and time consuming. When the pot was bisqued it was still perfect and not sagged, but after I glazed and fired it, the top was all sagged! My pottery teacher said it was because they fire it at high fire and would have done better in Raku. Oh well, it still works. I also love how the glaze came out.

I put holes in it too in case I'm working with multiple colours. 

This has inadvertently become my knitting shelf. There's also knitting drawers...knitting cubbies...a knitting box...and maybe one day a knitting room, wouldn't that be cool!?



03/20/2013 Training

I'm happy to be doing my real program from Mike because it turns out I should never design my own workouts. Monday's tabatta workout killed me. I am still limping. And all Monday afternoon and evening I was walking around like the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I totally didn't realise that all the things I chose to do (abs, push ups, lunges, squats) all use the lower back, butt and quads. Well, I didn't clue in until all those muscles were screaming at me!

 

Friday Wednesday - Snatch intense + Clean and Jerk intense + Horizontal CP

A. Power Snatch, build to a 1RM

75 80(Fx2)

B. Squat Clean and Split Jerk Cluster, 1.1 x 4 sets, 3 min - start @ 85lbs

85/90/95/100 - felt solid. Haven't done 100 in awhile so I'm happy it didn't feel terrible.

C. One Arm DB Rows @ 20X0, 4-6/arm x 4 sets, 30 sec b/t arms - heavy

6@25/6@27.5/6@30/4@35

D. 10 Push-ups per minute for up to 10 minutes - does not have to be unbroken, but must achieve 10 reps in every minute, if not, stop

with all the tabatta push up on Monday I took a miss on this one...next time!

03/18/2013 Training

Did a 4k run on Saturday with the pooch. Off Sunday. This morning I was excited to play with weights but nooooo it was -24 with windchill at 4:30 this morning. My cut off is -15. So I did some tabatta stuff in my living room instead:

lunges: 13/14/15/14/14/14/15/14
push ups: 14/15/15/14/12/14/14/14
squats: 17 for all

then did 5 minutes of abs no rest:
1 min crunch
1 min back bridge
30 sec side bridge left side
30 sec side bridge right side
1 min leg raises
1 min running man

Tomorrow is only -11 in the morning and getting up to 0 boyaaaa!
I can't believe I'm excited about that.

Stranger Cardigan - Part 1: Right Front Panel

Here is the Right Front Panel I finished last night. I budgeted 7 days for this but it took me 10. I always see on Ravelry that people finish entire sweaters and cardigan in about 3 weeks, and then there's these amazing bloggers that have it done in like two. I wonder if these bloggers and avid knitters have more time on their hands or if they just knit faster. I'd like to say they just have more time on their hands. With working a full time job, getting up at 4:30 am to workout, cooking healthy (or trying too!) every day, juggle a social life and family etc., it's hard to fit in a significant amount of knitting. But really, who am I to complain, I don't have kids or work an 80 hour week like some people, and my life is pretty balanced. I think if I had an infinite amount of time I would still complain about not having enough time to knit.

There's some a lot of mistakes in this panel. I got the hang of it about half way through. This is the second thing I've made with cables, and I've never had to work off two cable charts in each row. It's not hard, but it took me a bit to figure out that I couldn't remember which cable chart to start with from row to row, so I started taking notes, telling myself what I just did and what I should do next. The first 3rd was annoying because I kept messing up and fixing it was taking so long and I just wanted to keep knitting so that I would make my deadline. I'm not the type of knitter to re-do and re-do until it's perfect. Don't get me wrong, I love it when a piece is perfect, but I just can't stand not moving forward. Plus, I hope the mistakes aren't so noticeable......just don't look directly at the 1 cm round hole in the centre. THAT my friends, is what happens when you drop a stitch in the middle of a cable and don't know, or have the patience to figure out how to fix it.

The things I've learnt so far are things that I should really know by now. Up until now I have been making tonnes of cables and just faking it until I make it. Once you start to do more complicated things like sweaters, instead of just recording WS and RS on your pattern, its really time to just learn to recognise it.

Things I've learnt from this project so far:
1. Attention span is a good thing.
2. Long tail cast on.
3. To pay attention to right  side and wrong side.
4. Picking up dropped stitches sucks when its in the middle of a cable.
5. Buy extra yarn in case you have so many mistakes in the first fraction of a portion that you want to start over again.
6. Have patience. The mood you're in is reflected in your knitting. Frustration and rushing results in too-tight stitches and split stitches.
7. Do a swatch in the cable pattern. I know that you're supposed to do this, but I ended up just doing the stockinette stitch swatch. Matt made a comment the other day that I should do a practise run for about 3" because he says it always takes me about 3" to figure out and memorise the cable pattern and those first 3" are always riddled with mistakes and cursing. Such a wise man.

Random side note: There have been some really good movies out in theatres lately and I have been disinclined to actually go to a theatre because a) its really expensive and b) most importantly, you can't really knit in a dark crowded theatre, so why not stay at home to watch movies where you can knit freely! We went to see Django Unchained last night and the report is:  you can knit during the previews (which were a half an hour!) but certainly not during the movie. It's too dark. I thought that in bright scenes I'd be able to see my knitting, but no dice.

Here's Loki, the biggest snuggle bum. Defiantly snuggling my yarn after her failed attempts to sit in my lap while I knit.

Spicy Tuna Noodle Casserole

This is a classic dish that everyone seems to love and have a version of their own. We took Matt's family recipe and tweaked it a bit to keep it interesting. We added Dijon mustard and jalapenos to the regular recipe and it added a creaminess and a zing, if that makes any sense! The flavours compliment each other very well, so don't be afraid to try the unconventional combination.

 

 

Ingredients

serves 4-6

 

500 g elbow pasta (or pasta ends like we did!)

3 cups of shredded mozzarella

1 cup shredded cheddar

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp medium curry powder

3 jalapenos, minced

8 shakes Worcestershire sauce

4 shakes Tabasco sauce

4 cans tuna, drained

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup bread crumbs

 

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

2. Prepare your ingredients: grate cheese and mix the two kinds together, mince jalapenos,drain tuna, and cook your pasta 3 minutes less than al dente.

3. In a huge mixing bowl, add the cooked pasta, 3 cups of mixed cheese, mustard, jalapenos, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, tuna, chicken soup and curry powder. Mix well.

4. In a greased casserole dish, spread out the mixture. Top with bread crumbs and remaining 1 cup of cheese.

5. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the top is crispy and the cheese bubbly.

6. Eat with a green salad to balance the delicious out.

03/13/2013 Training

Wednesday - DL intense + Vertical CP + Row Sprints

A. DL Cluster, 1.1.1 x 3 sets, 2 min - start @ 135lb, drop each rep

135/140/145 - not as hard as I was expecting, will go up next time

B1. HSPU, 2-3 reps x 3 sets, 1 min - adjust height

to skinny side of ab mat an inch from the wall - 4/3/3

B2. Kipping Chin-ups, AMRAP (-2) x 3 sets, 1 min - focus on stringing good reps together, consistent

gah! I'm only allowed to do good, linked kipping pull ups so on a account of that... 3/4/4 gotta work on kipping coordination and tempo!

C. Push Press @ 11X1, 3 reps x 3 sets, 1:30 min - start @ 75lbs, heavy

75/80/85 - felt good

D. Row Sprint 30 sec ALL OUT x 4 sets, 2 min rest

122m/124/122/122 - too impatient to wait the full 2 min, more like a min in between.

03/12/2013 Training

I got my new program from Mike yay!

Week 1

Monday - Snatch moderate + Jerk moderate + Clean moderate + DU tester

A. Above Knee Hang Power Snatch, 3 reps x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing too heavy, start @ 50lbs

50/55/60/60

B. Split Jerk. Behind the Neck Split Jerk, 1.1 x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing over 80lbs

65/70/75/80

C. Squat Clean Cluster, 1.1.1 x 4 sets, 1 min - nothing over 85lbs

70/75/80/85

D. 5 3 rounds for time:

only had time for 3 rounds...damn this daylight savings! So hard to wake up these days!

12 OHS @ 45lbs

50 Double Unders

4:15

Meal Prep

This is what my Sunday afternoons consist of:

From left to right: chicken broth quinoa, wilted garlic kale, baja fish taco, lemon roasted brussel sprouts, lemon basil salmon, pumpkin pancakes.

Making food for the week. And this is only for breakfast and lunch for two days!
 

Chicken Broth Quinoa:

Rinse 1 cup quinoa and boil  in two cups of chicken broth with some salt and a drop of olive oil until all moisture absorbed. Top with sliced green onions.

Wilted Garlic Kale:

Put a drizzle of olive oil in a pan on medium, add a clove of crushed garlic and a dash of red chili peppers then a couple handfuls of baby kale. Move around for a bit, then add a tsp of water and cover with a lid to steam the kale.

Baja Fish Tacos:

For the fish: heat up a pan with coconut oil, add the Baja fillet, season with del orbo chili, chili powder, salt, pepper and lime juice. Cook until you can break it up. Top with sliced green onions. Eat with tortilla and guacamole.

Roasted Lemon Brussel Sprouts:

Cut the brussel sprouts into quarters and rinse well. Heat your oven to 350 F. Put brussel sprouts onto a cookie sheet preferably with a non-stick slip mat or parchment paper. Drizzle sprouts with olive oil, season with salt, pepper, lemon and herb spice mix, zest of 1 lemon, and lemon juice. Mix with your hands. Bake for about 20 minutes, moving the sprouts around a couple times, until the sprouts are soft and some of the loose leaves are roasty.

 

Lemon Basil Roasted Salmon:

Line a pie tin or something similar with a large piece of parchment paper. Place a salmon fillet in the centre. Drizzle fillet with olive oil, season with salt, pepper,  bit of lemon zest, and chopped basil leaves (4 or so), and some lemon juice. Wrap up with salmon in the parchment paper so that it creates a totally sealed packet. The fish will steam inside and keep the basil leaves moist instead of charred in the oven. Bake at 350 F for 15 minutes or less, depending on the thickness. I did this at the same time as the sprouts above.

Weight Watchers Pumpkin Pancakes:

 

For 1 serving: mix together 1/3 cup rolled oats, ½  cup egg whites, ¼ cup pumpkin, cinnamon to taste. I put sooooo much cinnamon in mine. I also let it sit for a bit so that the oats swell up and absorb the egg whites. This creates a more solid texture more similar to ‘real’ pancakes instead of feeling the oaty texture. Then you just bake them like normal pancakes with some coconut oil. Then serve them with a bit (as little as possible) maple syrup, mixed berries and fat free cottage cheese.

03/05/2013 Training

Today I did the first crossfit open wod - not to compete, but just to do it for fun. Since my 1RM is 80# for snatch, I was doubtfull I'd be able to get many reps at 75# after all those burpees and 45# statches so I decided to just repeat the 40 burpees - 30 snatch - 30 burpees sequence and repeate for 17 min.

I ended up getting 1 full round of the above, plus 40 burpees, plus 20 snatch. I'm pretty happy with that. I don't think the rules would allow for the way I did it if I was for real competing, I think you'd have to attempt the 75# snatch to move on.

Here is the full wod:
WOMEN - includes Masters Women up to 54 years old Proceed through the sequence below completing as many reps as possible in 17 minutes of:
40 Burpees
45 pound Snatch, 30 reps
30 Burpees
75 pound Snatch, 30 reps
20 Burpees
100 pound Snatch, 30 reps
10 burpees
120 pound Snatch, as many reps as possible

03/06/2013 Training

Today I followed the "She" program from OPT.

she

A. Hang squat clean from below the knee; 2, 2, 1, 1; rest 2 min

65/75/90/90

B. Hang squat snatch 2, 2, 2; rest 2 min

the trainers took all the bumper plates so I was using the hard ones and since they are smaller in circumference, I swear it put off my balance...so I just did tech work at 45# and 65# because everything felt off.

C1. Front squat @22x1, 2, 2, 2; rest 90 seconds

90/100/105

C2. CTB chin ups; amrap unbroken x3; rest 90 seconds

6/6/6 this needs to get better.

Wheat Free Blackberry Milk and White Chocolate Muffins

Blackberries and white chocolate just go soooo well together, but you can't forget about the milk stuff too! This recipe combines both!

Ingredients

Makes 12 muffins

1/4 coconut oil, melted
1 cup coconut flour
6 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup white chocolate chips or 50g chopped cubes of chocolate
1/2 cup honey
6 oz container blackberries, washed and chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.
2. Mix all the ingredients except for the white chocolate into a mixing bowl.
3. Divide batter into the liners.
4. Bake for a total of 20-25 minutes but half way divide the white chocolate on top of the muffins and put back into the oven to finish cooking.
5. Enjoy! With butter if you feel naughty ;-)

03/4/2013 Training

Snatch
45# x 3
50# x 3
55# x 3 x 4
complete
I was so tired this morning that on the 50# set, I put a 2.5# plate one one end, clip, then on the other side, I just put the clip on without the weight and wondered why the left side felt so light. Seriously, how do you put the clip on without the weight!?! No idea, but in my groggy state I managed to do it. People at WHC must think I am insane.... 

 

For time:

50 Front Squats @ 45lb

25 Burpees

50 Box Jump Overs - land on top of box, then move to other side

25 Burpees

50 Back Squats @ 45lb

14:28

This was so much harder than expected. The front and back squats were the hardest which is odd because squatting is one of my strong points. The other week I was front squatting 95# for 10 reps, and after the first 20 reps of front squat at a mere 45# I had to take a break, wtf?! Also, I did not appreciate the 25cm of snow I had to trudge through on the run to and from the gym thanks to those people and businesses that did not shovel!

My First Socks

Everyone says that once you knit your first pair of socks you will become addicted. I really enjoyed making these, mostly because of the gorgeous yarn, but if I am already addicted to knitting in general how much more can I become addicted? I ended up going on an unexpected business trip and fortunately had a sock cast on and ready for easy transport so I could knit them on the plane. I think socks are the best travel project because they are small and the dpns are so tiny (toothpick sized really!) that I don't think customs could misconstrue them for weapons. Maybe weapons for mice?

I used Misti Alpaca Hand Painted Sock Fingering yarn in I think Noir Noir, but I lost the tag. I LOVE  LOVE LOVE this yarn and the colour. It's made up of 50% Alpaca 30% Merino, 10% Nylon and 10% Silk. This was the first time that I knit something with the specific yarn recommended in the pattern. And since I didn't do a gauge swatch (bad Char, bad!), it's a good thing I did that! Here is the free pattern from Misti Alpaca. The pattern is really easy to follow and is a good pattern to use as an introductory sock since it's all stockinette stitch except for the top lace detail for the women's pattern. I also lost track at how long I was making the ankle portion and made it quite a bit longer than what the pattern said, so I just made the pair the same length. After the Turn Heel section that is worked flat, I got a bit confused by the foundation row since you aren't working all the stitches on that needle right away. But if you just do what the pattern says and don't over think it like I always do, everything will be peachy.

Now since I know how to do cables AND socks, guess what's next?! CABLED SOCKS!

Atomic Curry

This will make you grow hair on your chest...or something. We like it hot hot hot so please adjust the spice level to your preference.

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

1 yellow onion, diced
4 chicken breasts, diced
1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1.5 to 2 cans coconut milk
3 tbsp medium curry powder
2 tsp Cayenne pepper
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
small bunch of cilantro, chopped
lemon, cut into wedges
2 Serrano chili peppers, minced
4 habanero peppers, minced
1 tbsp coconut oil
salt and pepper
1 cup plain yogurt

Instructions

1. Heat a large pot (preferably cast iron) on medium high heat and melt the coconut oil.
2. Season the diced chicken breast with salt and pepper and add to the hot coconut oil. Brown on all sides. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
3. Add all of the spices (curry powder, Cayenne, mustard seeds, cumin seeds) to the oil and stir around for a minute or so. Add the onion, garlic and minced peppers and cook until the onion is translucent.
4. Now add back the chicken to the pot. Add the chickpeas and the coconut milk (we used about 1.5 cans but you can determine what ratio you want) and stir well. Give it a smell and re-season if necessary.
5. Bring the curry to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low to keep it on a gentle simmer for 45 minutes to an hour to allow it to thicken and develop the flavours. Before you serve it, add the chopped cilantro and stir well. If some people do not like cilantro you can just save it for an optional garnish.
6. Serve with rice, paleo rice or pasta. Garnish with lemon juice, cilantro and yogurt.

Note on paleo rice: I had mine with paleo rice and when I got to the stage where you satay the cauliflower, I added 1 tsp of garlic chili paste, 2 crushed garlic cloves and 1 tsp turmeric and it was delicious.

02/27/2013 Training

I'm done my 6 week program from Mike so I'm picking up on part of a Catalyst Athetics cycle and combining it with some of Mike's past arobic testers.

Power Clean 70% x 3 x 5
complete at 75#

Push Press 70% x 5 x 5
complete at 65#

AMRAP in 15 min:
5 toes to bar
10 push ups
15 air squats

10 rounds complete + T2B and 4 push ups