Top Marin Eating and The Best Brownies

As of 2011 there's now a 4th restaurant in Marin with a Michelin star, the Lark Creek Inn.

This is the Shaved Vegetable Salad I got. Celery-Dill Vinaigrette killing it and epic fennel and cleverly sliced zucchini and other root veggies.  They really take advantage of seasonal quality veggies which is awesome.

 I got to sample my other family member's choices as well!

Roasted Beet Salad

This was a standout compared to your average beet salad because it had 'cashew dust' sprinkled on and an epic kale chip on top.  And the beets were perfect of course.

Heirloom Tomato Salad

Heirloom tomatoes are on fire right now! and whatever the red and green vinaigrettes they did on this were awesome as well.

Marin Sun Farms Burger

I took advantage of the grass fed red meat on the menu, hold the bun, fries, and aioli (replaced with quality braised carrots/green beans).  I'm not experienced with meat enough to know how to describe how good it was, but trust me. You are what you eat, and animals are what they eat. Top notch.

Luckily I got to taste their veggie burger, which I was stoked on as well. The grilled mushroom/onion in the patty gave the best flavor, while the lentils/bulgur wheat offered texture and shape for veggie patty perfection! I will definitely be returning for everything above soon. Michelin star worthy fasho.

And the main show: Brownies don't even rank high on my list of desserts, but I wanted to try this recipe with some grain free modifications and boy am I stoked!

 These turned out to be good brownies, ESPECIALLY for how healthy they are. I didn't even remember to add chocolate chips. They will be substantially better, if that's even possible. They also made me feel awesome not because of the taste. Not too rich, they were easy to digest and I felt a boatload of energy.

No good brownie pan = glad because these came out as nice little brownie bites.

 Rich, chocolatey, a hint of banana, and a bit crispy on the outside like a muffin top and slighlty fudgy and pudding like on the inside. A few crunchy chocolate chip morsels and these will be through the roof.

Adapted from: Happy Herbivore

• 1 150z Can Black Beans completely drained
• 1 Banana (mine was mildly ripe, more ripe=more sweet)
• 1T Allspice (out of cinnamon)
• 1/4c+1T Agave Nectar
• 2T Coconut flour (instead of oats)
• 2T Garbanzo flour (instead of oats)
• 1/4c Unsweetened Cocoa
• 1t Vanilla
• 2 egg whites (taking place of 2nd banana)

Mix all ingredients in a blender/food processor (I used my Smart Stick in a bowl) and bake 25 minutes at 350º (could go a hair more) in your pan/muffin tin of choice. Makes 9. Congratulations! Dairy free-Grain Free Brownies (sub more egg white for banana for fruit free, and/or chia eggs for bananas for vegan!)

You could do a date puree to get rid of the banana flavor if your not a fan. And if they aren't sweet and delicious enough I would make any Avo-Fudge spread but haven't tried it yet (simple avo+cocoa powder+agave mix).

What seasonal produce do you look forward to most? What's your favorite healthy dessert recipe?

Whistler Final Eats

I have to get this out of the way before I continue with my at home creations! There will be some good ones coming as I am getting deeper into The Paleo Diet Fort Athletes! But first some more splurging from my travels:

Mmmm! I had to try the Banana Toffee Pecan Chocolate Chip edition from Mogul's. The banana goes with pecan and toffee and oats so well! Toffee chips add the sugary touch that berries do so well in the usual cookies, just in a more decadent desserty less tart kind of way. This version ranks high on the mogul cookies list!

The Fuji Market is my savior. I got an epic bag of mixed Japanese boiled root vegetables (refridgerated, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and much more!) and supplemented with Kale. Plus my experimental/always thinking about what to make/eat nature. Still didn't buy any oil/dedicated ingredients for cooking.

I used a soy sauce packet and left over kim chee juice and pickled ginger juice with some lime to make the best flavor/cooking agent! It was a little salty-little spicy-not really a little tangy but sort of. I love the super good kale and root veggies/mushrooms/shoots. The 'cheap' fish ($5 for sushi grade salmon!) tasted good raw and especially yummy with the pickled ginger. So crunchy and delicious all around with the nuts and seeds. Cashews definitely rule butt. Stoked to satisfy my craving for expensive fancy fish and stir fry without the cost!

The perfect 'final' cookie. I was hoping for the rare banana-toffee-pecan, but ended up with the never before seen Raspberry Toffee Pecan Chocolate Chip!A perfect suprise/end of my trip after my last big ride 4 hour xc ride (the most challenging of the trip for sure). I decided to hit up all the post ride routines in one. Coconut water, Gu recovery drink and cookie sesh.

  Combine the classic go-to raspberry with the sweet nuttiness of the toffee/pecan!   The extra crunch and flavor from the toffee chips and pecans brings the raspberry cookie to a whole new level.  Nuttier/sweeter/crunchier yet STILL tart and chewy.

 

This was actually the last cookie, I had to try the Apple Cinnamon since before I had Apple Pecan and thought how good it would be with some cinnamon. It really was just like a slightly denser chewier muffin top and made for the perfect oaty doughy breakfast cookie (half with dinner half in the morning).

And i'll end with some brief randoms

The Last Splitz Grill Wrap

Buffalo Burger with almost every topping

• Sprouts, Lettuce Tomato, Cucumber, Pickles
• Baba Ghanoush, Hummus (lots of it), Dijon

 Daifuku

A Japanese Mochi Red Bean Paste Cake from the Fuji Market! Sweet, gluten free, and delicious.

Fuji Market/My own Combo Salad

• Fuji Market: Seaweed Salad (Arame), Spinach Goma Ae (Sesame Sauteed), Pickled and Sweetened Pickled Ginger
• Turkey, Romaine Lettuce, Cashews, Almonds, Blueberries
• Lemon Juice

Mogul's Mega Muffin (Blueberry Oat Bran)

Plenty of deliciousness to choose from!

Whistler II Home-Mades and More of the Best Ice Cream/Cookies/Burgers

It's so easy to make an awesome creation at Splitz Grill.  I was bummed at first at the no longer avialable gluten free bread, but the wheat wrap slightly toasted actually ended up being delicious.

I got:

• Spicy Lentil Burger
• Baba Ghanoush
• Hummus
• Sprouts
• Cucumber
• Tomato
• Peppers 
• Onion
• Relish

A total Med theme.  Just a bit spicy, it definitely tastes like a burger with just a hint of garden that matches the sprouts. The best additions are the sweet and creamy ones to tame the spice, and the banana peppers were surely too spicy for me, at least on top of the burger.

 The Fuji Market is the best Japanese market ever! Inexpensive freshly made sushi/other foods and more Japanese groceries/items than any other market I've been to. Even than Japan town. I go on the regular.

Another Massive Cookie

There was one Apple Pecan Oatmeal Cookie left so I had to give it a try.  Pecan goes with the roastedness of the oats so well! And there were plenty of them (places often hold back). No chocolate chips and not as sweet as the other cookies.  Combine that with the dense mushiness added by the apple (less airy) and it reminded me of a delicious muffin. It would be even better with a kick of cinnamon! 

The only time i've eaten dairy ice cream in over two years! It's that good.  Cow's only.  At first I wasn't used to it (too sweet/creamy) and didn't care for the taste, but then harniced the flavors. 1 split single scoop in a waffle bowl.

• 1/2 Messie Bessie 
• Chocolate Ice Cream, Moo Crunch, Oreo Cookie, English Toffee
• 1/2 Half Gooey Mooey
• Burnt Sugar Ice Cream (Vanilla+Toffee), English Toffee Marble, Caramel Cups, Chocolate Flakes

    The burnt sugar ice cream tasted like yummy brown sugar or roasted maple syrup, caramelized and delicious. Which of course went with all the carmel and toffee elements.  The on the spot made waffle cones definitely taste like almond oil is a key ingredient and I love it. I could easily go in and buy just the cones. They use all real high quality ingredients and you can tell. The vanilla was epic. I was wishing for more cookies though (my true weakness).

   Unfortunately I found that I still can't digest milk or straight dairy well, only yogurt. I felt this ice cream in my stomach for almos 3 hours!  I also hate the taste of butter since I'm not used to it anymore, and could also taste it/cream on my lips for the rest of the night. Not my favorite feeling, but the ice cream was damn good.

 I went for a turkey burger this time, which is different from the buffalo burger but just as good if your in the mood for it. Also non-corn-fed from B.C.!  I did a sort of sweet spicy Mexi theme. 

• Turkey Burger
• Grilled Pineapple
• Baba Ghanoush
• Salsa
• Guacamole
• Tomato
• Onion
• Pickle
• Dijon Mustard
• Cracked pepper 
• Wheat Wrap

The pineapple, pickles and salsa (little spicy) go so well together along with a bit of onion and then some vegginess from sprouts (my favorite sort of rare burger/sandwich topping).  Gotta have the delicious garlic and roastiness from their epic baba ghanoush as well.

I of course need to get my veggies in and threw lots of salads like this together in the room.  Nothing with real prep or complex ingredients. I dress with lemon mostly because it's not worth buying a whole container of olive oil I know I won't finish!

• Sugar Snap Peas
• Tomato
• Mixed Romaine Lettuce
• Sunflower/Pumpkin Seeds
• Kimchee from the Fuji Market 
• Lemon

Another similar salad, except with these additions:

• Avocado
• Corn
• Spring Mix instead of Romaine
• Cucumber
• Hummus

And the main items were Baked Sweet Potato w/ Greek Yogurt of course and some deli turkey breast. Simple and delicious. Hotel room dining at it's finest.

This is where I could almost say I got tricky. No cooked chicken breast at the market = how to cook chicken without buying oil? I used some kimchee and the liquid from the container it comes in with a bit of extra water and sort of sautéed/broiled the breasts in it. Flavor and spice in one simple ingredient (sort of)! Enjoyed with a sweet potato/hummus and another basic lemon salad. The kimchee tasted even better (more sweet/less spicy) after it got cooked with the chicken.

The usual Bungalow Munch Breakfasts! Easy on the go fosho.

The additions I had were generally:

• Blueberries
• Almonds/Sunflower Seeds/Extra Cashews/Pumpkin Seeds
• Dried Cranberries
• Dates
• Crystalized Ginger/Pineapple
• Dark Chocolate!

With Almond Milk every time! This last one was pre race!

Only in Whistler! Part I

My favorite time of year! Racing in Whistler, B.C. I try not to dream or think about it because it's so good all around that it's painful for me to not always be here. I'll start with Mogul's Coffee/The Gone Eatery.

 Begin: favorite cookies in the world!

 Holy Wow! (salt shaker for size ref)

I thought about these cookies for one year. I was almost a little worried my taste would have changed  and I wouldn't appreciate them as much. But they are just as good! Even bigger than I remember. I've pretty much had one per day. That's impressive considering they are 1400 calories for a whole one (word on the street is). At least there's oil instead of butter and they do have fruit/oats/wheat flour in them!

Raspberry Blueberry Oat Chocolate Chip

I never want it to end when im eating it and it almost never does! it has all the best aspects of a raspberry, oatmeal, chocolate chip, and sugar cookie somehow. The raspberry is strong and sweet yet fresh and moist. The texture is perfect. Not overly airy or dense. The baking time is perfect creating ease to break apart sans crumbling and with delightful chewiness. Damn. I'd pay a lot of money for the recipe!

The outside gets more cooked so the middle is like fruity tart chocolate chip cookie dough while the outside remains more crunchy less sweet oatmeal choco chip. Stoked on both blueberries and raspberries together although solo raspberry is just as good. Bite into what ever section your in the mood for!

The popular banana version is quite delicious as well.  The doughyness comes out more and the banana pairs nicely with the slightly salty oaty goodness!

I discovered they make the cookies from a mix and just add fruit. I bought some but think it might be a Canadian Quaker product re-labeled. More on how that goes soon!  I also need to try the apple pecan and strawberry editions (they are more rare)! Checking for availability every day... But onto the muffins!

They do epic XL Muffins.  Massive Blueberry Oat Bran are delicious, and many more.  Of course I got my idea for pumpkin oat bran pecan muffins from these last year! They pair so well together. So big and mostly muffin top, the way it should be! Also such a delicious spice combo of nutmeg and cinnamon and cloves with raisins too! I think some hints of roasted maple too? I enjoyed with a little extra nuttiness from Almond Butter and some blueberries for my daily fresh fruit/antioxidant fix.

The Morning Glory Muffins are pretty sweet as well. Literally. A carrot muffin gone occasionally tart with apple, currants or golden raisins, and pineapple. So moist and delicious with just the right amount of chewy crunchy morsels!

 Bring on The Splitz Burger.

 With the best burgers to choose from such as Spicy Lentil, Buffalo, Lamb, Turkey, or regular, Splitz is the coolest burger place ever.  You can also get chicken breast, or teriyaki salmon.  With or without Yam Fries! Served on white or multi grain bun, or a wheat wrap, OR GLUTEN FREE BREAD! You choose your burger and then move down the line with all sorts of toppings.

 My first was the local B.C. Buffalo (grass fed). It tastes more earthy/gamey which pairs perfectly with the semi earthy gluten free bread by Food For Life.

• Baba Ghanoush
• Grilled Pineapple
• Guacamole
• Carrot
• Sprouts
• Pickles
• Cucumber
• BBQ Sauce

The baba ghanoush was amazing, exploding with garlic and roasted eeggplant. The bbq sauce from the burger with the pineapple paired a perfect sweetness.  I will be going back for the lentil and turkey burgers (so be ready for some more epic combos!). 

 

The 2 dollar meal! Local trail/race organization, WORCA, puts on 'Loonie Races' every Thursday night. They cost a loonie (Canadian $2 coin) and include apres meal and beer. And the winner gets $50! 150-300 people usually attend. I only made it 1/4 of the way through the race due to a flat tire, but was in around 6th with 300 people behind me! Sponsored by the Lift Coffee Company this time, the meal after was delicious. Pretty gourmet for $2! I want to make all 3 of these items! They also had wraps and cookies which I skipped.

• Quinoa Salad (Black Beans, Corn, Parsley, Tomato) 
• Roasted Cauliflower (Lemon, Red Pepper, Fennel)
• Kale Salad (Garbanzos, Barley, Tomato, Onion)

Another well known: The Mongolie Grill

 Get your bowl and put in your ingredients!

 Choose your sauces/flavorings!

What I got:

•  Broccoli
• Cashews (for the crunch and source of fat)
• Water Sprout Shoot (white things?)
• Water Chestnuts (I love them and they are so rare!)
• Carrot
• Lemon 
• Coconut Milk
• Onion
• Olives (had to give it a shot for stir fry b/c I could)
• Shrooms
• Garlic 
• Ginger (such bomb flavor)
• Chicken
• Zucchini
• Asparagus

 And it gets stir fried and mixed up right in front of you!

 Most people go with various noodles/meats and sugary sauces but I opted for the more veggie-base flavor options.

 My veggie combo stands out among the rest...

All done! Topped with Sesame Seeds, a tid bit of soy sauce, and accompanied by your choice of jasmine/brown rice, and miso/hot 'n sour soup.  I love that you can get it exactly the way you want. So customizable in every way!  My garlic-ginger-coconut-lemon flavoring was bomb and I got my veggie fix for sure.

 Next up will be everything I actually made (didn't eat out all the time, gotta save some $$$) and the remaining foods I have to try!