Quick and Skinny Egg Salad!

This egg salad is perfect for a quick lunch or afternoon snack!  Instead of using fatty mayo, I used some sour cream.  If you like, you can even mash up some avocado and use it as a binding agent!

You will need,
3 hardboiled egg whites
1 hardboiled yolk
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 teaspoon chipotle powder (or hot sauce)
2 teaspoons ranch dressing mix
2 teaspoons water

Chop up the eggs and yolks.
Combine the sour cream, chipotle, ranch mix, and water.

Add all the ingredients together, and voila!  Delicious egg salad.  Creamy, rich, and zesty.  Eat it by itself, add it to a green salad, or make a sandwich or wrap!
As I mentioned earlier, you can use some avocado instead of the sour cream!
Cheers!!

Greek Salad!!

This salad is one of my favorite things to make.  It's so easy and goes with almost any meal! I even make it for grill outs, for potlucks, and as a random afternoon snack!
It's simple, healthy, and most of my friends love it because it's so damn tasty.

For the Salad you will need, 
1 large English cucumber
1 cup Kalamata olives
1 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons minced red onion
5 or 6 ounces of feta cheese

For the dressing, you will need, 
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon vinegar (I used balsamic)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried dill
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic OR 1/2 a garlic clove, finely minced
1/2 tablespoon Greek yogurt

In a bowl combine all of the dressing ingredients, and mix well.  Let it sit and move on to assemble the salad.
The yogurt is optional in this situation.  However, I use it because not only does it add a nice little zing to the dressing, it makes all the ingredients emulsify and stay together.  Without it, the oil and vinegar would separate, and would not really stick to the salad ingredients.  I really recommend that you add the zingy clingy yogurt!  :) 

Chop up the cucumber, skin and all,  into bite sized pieces.

Cut the tomatoes in half, and squeeze out the inner seeds into the sink.

Pit and chop the olives.

Crumble the feta. 

Combine the cheese, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, and onion into a large bowl.

Add the dressing and gently mix it all up!  This refreshing summer salad will make you so happy.  If you want, you can even add some chicken!  Enjoy!!

Delicious Egg White Scramble!!

Egg whites are amazing.  A single egg white has only 17 calories, yet has 3.6 grams of protein!!
I go through tons of eggs every week.  I usually buy 90 at a time from Costco.  It is way more affordable to buy them in bulk, and as I usually use only the white, I don't have to feel bad about tossing the yolk and wasting too much $.  Occasionally I'll use the yolks for deviled eggs, egg salad, or a fritatta. 
Earlier I posted about how to make the perfect hard-boiled egg.  Perfect for a breakfast on the go!!
One of my go-to meals is an egg white scramble.  You can put a bunch of different veggies into it!  Add some spices and it will pack a mega flavor punch that fills you up, and energizes you!

In this scramble I used,
3 egg whites
1/2 cup cooked spinach
7 cherry tomatoes, halved and squeezed
1/2 an avocado, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
dash of garlic powder
fresh ground pepper
about 2oz pepper jack cheese
olive oil
A corn tortilla (or 2!!)

In a non-stick skillet over medium , heat the oil and saute the spinach and tomatoes for 2-3 minutes.

Add the egg whites, garlic powder, and salt.  Scramble it all up in the pan until the eggs are no longer runny.  Take it off the heat and add the avocado and cheese.  The heat of the scramble will melt the cheese and warm the avocado.

Microwave or toast up the tortilla and put it on the bottom of your bowl.  Dump the scramble on top and gobble it all up!  Enjoy!!

Legs Workout!!

Alrighty, Today's workout wasn't half bad.  Different and delicious.  But I can guarantee tomorrow, legs will be mega sore.
You will be using machines for part of this routine.
Three triple sets.
Do each set 3 times, without resting.  Boom Boom Boom
Then take a 1 minute break, and blast out the second set three times.  Take another minute break, and finish hard with the ab portion.  You don't need to use heavy weights in the first two sets, you will get tired too fast, and you want to be able to complete your third set at fatigue.  It should be easy-ish the first time, difficult the second, and the third, you should barely be able to finish.  Oh and you  might want a towel...You're going to get sweaty.  Hehehheh. Cheers!!

Do a quick 5 minute warmup.  Sprinting, elliptical, jumprope, whatever.  

Set 1
12 squats w/overhead press (25lbs)
12 leg curls
12 leg extensions
Repeat 3 times

Rest for 60 seconds

Set 2
12 romanian deadlifts
10 walking lunges (each side) (all the way down, no cheating!!)
12 leg presses 
Repeat 3 times

Rest for 60 seconds

Set 3 10 regular pushups
10 chataranga pushups
10 spread-eagle leglifts*
30 russian twists
20 crunches
40 standing calf raises
Repeat 3 times

*Flat back on the ground, arms under your rear.  Lift your legs off the ground to 45 degrees, lower to 6 inches off the ground, spread your legs apart, bring them back together, and repeat.  Do not let your feet touch the ground.  

The Perfect Hard Boiled Egg!!

Hard boiling eggs can be so tricky.  Even if you can manage to get the shell off with the white intact, chances are you'll cut it open only to find an icky green film on the yolk.  Unpleasant and stinky.  
Making the perfect hard boiled egg is actually quite simple if you follow these tricks.  

When it comes to peeling them with ease, it is always best to use eggs that have been in the fridge about a week.  Why? Well, as the days pass, the shell and membrane become more porous.  Because of this, the acidity in the egg white decreases and pulls away from the inner membrane.  Ergo, it is easier to peel.  
It's also interesting to note that fresher eggs make better fried eggs.  If you cook up a day-old egg over easy, you will find that the egg white is more bonded to itself and it stays together.  If you cook up a week-old egg, you will find that the egg white is more runny and spreads out all over the pan.  This makes for a not-so-pretty over easy egg.  So if you are going to fry one up, make sure it's fresh.  Neato, ehh??
So.  Back to hard-boiling.  
You will need eggs that are a few days old.  
Place them in a saucepan and fill it with water to about an inch above the eggs.  Next, you'll want to add a teaspoon of baking soda to the water.  Remember what I said earlier about allowing the acidity of the egg to decrease?  Well, the baking soda increases the alkaline of the water, essentially counteracting the pH of the egg even more!
So you have your pot of water with eggs and baking soda.  To that, add a tablespoon of vinegar.  Any kind will do.  Why?  When the water boils, it can jostle the eggs about.  Sometimes it even causes the eggshells to crack, resulting in messy little egg white strings floating about in the water.  The vinegar easily counteracts this.  

You will have,
A pot 
Eggs
Cold water filling the pot to above the eggs
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 tablespoon of vinegar

Cover the pan and place on the stove over high heat.  Watch it carefully, and when it begins to boil, let it do so for only one minute.*  Turn off the heat and move the pan.  Set a timer for 10 minutes.  
When the 10 minutes have passed, uncover the eggs, drain off the hot water, and let them have a nice rinse with some cold water.  Drain them again, recover the pan, and give it a nice side-to-side shake.  Not too hard, you don't want to break them in half.  This will crack the shells perfectly.  
After this the eggs will literally slip out of their shells!  Enjoy the easiest, most perfect hard boiled egg ever!!

*You don't want to overcook them.  That's what causes the green film around the yolk and that stinky, stanky sulfuric smell.

Steamed Artichokes!!

Artichokes are an amazing thing.  They are soooo weird looking though...  Every time I see one, I have to wonder who figured out it was edible in the first place!!  They are spiny, tough, and actually a lot of work!  In spite of all that, they are still delicious and I buy a ton of them when they are in season.  
They're actually pretty easy to prepare.

Take your whole artichokes and give them a nice 15 minute soak in some cold water.  Then, with a sharp knife (possibly even a serrated one) cut the top 2 inches off, as well as the last 1/2 inch of the stem.  

Place the artichoke upside down on the cutting board, stem up, and cut it in half all the way. 

In a large pot place a steam basket or a pie cooling rack.  Add water to just below the rack.  

Place the artichokes, cut side down, onto the basket or rack.  Remember, we don't want the water to touch them.  

Cover and turn heat to medium.  Allow the 'chokes to steam for about 25 minutes.  Youcan check them periodically by poking a fork into the meaty heart.  If there is little resistance, they are ready to eat!!

I usually eat mine with chipotle aioli or clarified butter.  Another good dipping sauce is 1/2 mayo and 1/2 dijon.  
 Enjoy!!

Thursday Circuit!!

Sometimes I wonder if I really am in good shape.  After these circuits I'm usually sweating ballz, dead on my feet, and petrified my legs will give out if I take another step!!  The intensity can get overwhelming, stay strong and don't cheat yourself!! Go 110% at all times, and good luck!

For the warmup, set the treadmill to a 3.0 incline, speed to 8.5.
Sprint for 60 seconds, stand on the sides for 15 seconds. 
Repeat 8 times.  And be careful.  No one wants to get hurt in a freak treadmill accident.  That would be embarrassing.  


15 kettlebell swings (25)
30 calf raises
25 plies while holding 2 (5)lb weights
30 mountain climbers
10 jump squats (make sure to touch the floor with your fingertips!!)
30 calf raises
20 switch-jump lunges


60 second rest


20 inverted bridges* 
20 pushups
12 chest flys (15)
12 chest presses (15)
20 tricep dips
20 pushups
20 bicep curls


60 second rest


10 crunches, 20 bicycles, 10 toe crunches, 10 reverse crunches, 10 toes, 20 bicycles, 10 crunches
30 second reverse plank
10 crunches, 20 bicycles, 10 toe crunches, 10 reverse crunches, 10 toes, 20 bicycles, 10 crunches
30 russian twists

60 second rest


REPEAT once (except the warmup)


*Inverted Bridge
Lie on your back with your butt near the wall, your arms at your sides, and your knees bent with your feet up flat on the wall.  Firmly plant your feet on that wall and raise your butt, lower, and mid-back off the floor, keeping your shoulder blades on the ground.  Keep your rear end squeezed the whole time, and suck in your stomach the whole time as well.  Form a straight line through your body and with control, lower yourself back down 90% of the way (don't go all the way down).  Repeat.  If you want to make it more of a challenge, cross one leg over the opposite knee.

Crab Quesadillas!!

Heyya!
My favorite foods are dairy and swine.  Suffice to say I love anything made from them!  In fact, if I ever get any tattoos, I've decided they would be on both inner wrists and in a delightfully difficult to read Edwardian script they will say Butter and Bacon, respectively.  Hehehhe, one day, perhaps.  
As cheese is oh so very dairy, I eat it nearly every day.  One of my best go-to foods are quesadillas!  They are so versatile, and you can put almost anything in them, cheese (DEFINITELY), sausage, swine, chicken, steak, veggies!  Endless possibilities.  
Well, I had a hankering for crab the other day.  That, and I still had a bunch of avocados from my sale frenzy.  
So I did what I do best and made something amazing! 

You will need,
3 corn tortillas
1/2 cup grated cheese (I used pepper jack, so ZINGY!)
1/2 cup crabmeat
1/2 an avocado, diced
pat of butter

Preheat a ginormous skillet for 3-5 minutes over medium-low heat.  When the pan is hot, add three pea-sized bits of butter.  When the butter is melted, place the tortillas flat in the pan and make sure the flat side of each is nicely coated with the butter.  Sprinkle the cheese evenly on the top of each tortilla.  When that gets a bit melty, divide the crab and avocado evenly on only half of the melty, cheesy surface of each tortilla.  

When the bottom of each starts to crispify and brown, fold them in half and flip, letting the insides gooify for another minute or so.  

Transfer to a plate and eat with sour cream, or my personal favorite, cottage cheese and sriracha!!
In this pic, I ate them with some leftover chipotle aioli!!  
Enjoy!!!

Avocado Salsa!!

I luuuuuurve avocados.  They've always been one of my favorite fruits.  Back in California, my uncle had an avocado tree in his backyard!.  We'd just go and grab a few and snack on them.   You could buy 4 for a dollar at the roadside veggie stand, it was amazing.  They are one of the few produce items I really miss over here.  Yeah, most stores have them, but they're usually gnarly spensy, and I'll have to wait a week before they're ripe!  However, when I can find them on sale, I snatch up as many as I can and eat myself into an avocado coma!!

There are so many benefits to this fruit.  It has a high fat content, but it's mostly monounsaturated fat, which is quite good for you, especially in an animal-fat-free vegan/vegetarian diet.  It has a rich butteryness and a distinctive flavor.  While not sweet like other fruits, it has a decent amount of fiber. 
A universal use of avocado is in guacamole, which is easy and delicious!  Avocados, mashed with a fork and mixed with lime juice, salt, and some minced jalapeno.  You can add garlic if you want some extra punch! 
Since avocados are so smooth, you can spread them on toast or add to a baked potato.  Sometimes I even replace the butter or oil in a recipe with smooshed avocado!!  It turns out wonderfully.  Rich and moist.  
Well, on to the salsa, ehh?  I learned this recipe years ago, and I used to eat it way more back when I had access to bountiful, inexpensive avocados.  There was a sale the other day, so yes, I bought up pounds and pounds and this is the perfect way to enjoy them!  It's a complete 180 from the way most people have experienced avocado.  The flavors are definitely not south-of-the-border inspired.  
This salsa will go wonderfully as a side to any meat or veggie dish.  


You will need,
3 ripe avocados
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
1 teaspoon red pepper flake
dash of salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
the juice of 1/4 lime


Halve, pit, peel, and chop the avocado into 1/4 inch pieces.  Chop up the olives.  

In a small bowl combine the red pepper, salt, oil, garlic, and juice.  
Gently mix that together with the olives and avocado.  Serves 4-6.  Enjoy!

Eat with a grilled pork chop or chicken breast!  It will go with so many different things!