The Marin Double

Since I'm off to live in Whistler soon i've been trying to hit all my favorite Marin spots. Cafe Gratitude is a must!

 I convinced my sister to get the BLT i've been meaning to taste and a milkshake. Coconut Maple Bacon is quite delicious. Definitely equal to some of the best tempeh versions.  I will definitely order this in the future, except on a gluten free bun option.  The Mint Chocolate Shake was even better! Their home-made coconut/hemp/chia/cashew ice cream definitely makes it and the cacao-mint-vanilla bean-vitamineralgreen combo tastes exactly the way mint chocolate chip should.

Of course I got my standard I Am Whole Bowl.

As usual, the slightly sweet Teriyaki Almonds balance the Garlic Tahini Sauce perfectly and I love the Sea Kelp, Kale, and Kim Chee (which I stock in my fridge from Whole Foods!).

After the epic mint chip shake  and wanting to try their cacao smoothie (figs and dates sound too good) I had to make one at home for breakfast. Especially b/c I had figs which I went out of my way to get b/c they are so good!

Raw Cacao Breakfast Smoothie

It turned out like an amazing chocolatey creamy smoothie with a hint of berry and pushing the boundaries of smoothie-milkshake without adding ice cream or any dedicated sweetener! A little like pudding and perfectly accompanied by a Bungalow Muncher (think of it like a breakfast muffin, or a dessert cookie, or a granola snack, so versatile!).  I chose one with less carob chips for a more breakfast like cookie and some Herbal Chai as well.

• 1-2T Chia seeds
• Glass of Almond milk
• 1-2T Cacao cacao powder
• 2 Scoops Tera's Bourbon Vanilla Whey
• 2 Fresh Figs
• Handful of Blueberries
• 1 Date
• 1t Vanilla 

I also added a little extra Bungalow Munch on top of the smoothie for some more yummy crunch factor.

It's a little bit expensive and fancy for lunch but I had to do it before I leave. Another Michelin starred restaurant.

Insalatas

 Mediterranean cuisine wins. The Vegetarian Middle Eastern Platter comes with so many goodies.  There's literally so many different epic flavors and spices in each portion it's unbelievable.  Lemony lentils, pistachio in the roasted tomatoes, curry in the sautéed veggies, and possibly paprika in the couscous? I love it. Enough said.

Syrian Fattoush Salad

This isn't just a normal fattoush. It's the best you can buy. The lemon and cumin in the dressing and the mint/cilantro are insane. I did mine sans-pita croutons/feta cheese, so normally it looks like this:

You can sub salmon for chicken and I bet that could be even better. I haven't attempted to make it because I don't think I can do it justice, but the recipe is online. My family has the cookbook as well so I could potentially make the other dish but have the same apprehensiveness. One day...

Is there a cafe gratitude in your area? If so what's your favorite thing?

Sweet Potato for Days

Sardines sound gross but 1 can=convenient healthy protein for one, packed with omega 3's/calcium! You sort of become accustomed to the taste. My classic tahini mixture along with sauteed kale gone stir fry.

Pop the sweet potato in the oven and saute the kale with garlic/lemon/olive oil and then added the other ingredients to turn into a stir fry. Some favorite ingredients in this one all around:

• Sweet Potato
• Tahini, Ginger Juice, Reduced Sodium Temari, Lemon, Water
• Garlic Hummus
• Kale, Olive Oil, Garlic, Lemon, Carrot, Sardines, Olives

Making a batch of sweet potatoes as usual leads to some damn quick but mighty breakfasts.

Blueberries actually go with sweet potato amazingly! Trust me.  And yes that is purple skin with yellow flesh: A Japanese Sweet Potato. They rule butt. Sweeter once refrigerated and slightly chestnutty/flowery. It's quite hard to describe the difference but I am definitely a big fan. I used a little All spice on part and also had some ready to go hard boiled egg whites w/ Avo and Matcha Salt too accompany. Such a good savory protein/fat combo at breakfast.

More sweet potato breakfasts! This one was a real pleasant surprise. I could eat this combo all die. Grains, even granola, are just lame in comparison. Yeah, I just went there.

All mixed up, it's so sweet all around with some nuttiness and all the best textures. Reminds me of cotton candy for some reason.

• 1/2 Sweet Potato
• 120g Plain Coconut Yogurt
• 1 Scoop Tera's Bourbon Vanilla Whey
• 1 spoon More AB
• Blueberries
• Pinch of Allspice (optional, i'm out of cinnamon!)

I think the yogurt combo sans sweet potato may become my go to dessert/after dinner snack. Amazing.

One more thing foreshadowing of things to come: Chocolate Chip Pecan Vegan Oatmeal Cookie from the Farmer's Market.  I wanted to give it a shot so I got the last one. It's vegan via avocado instead of butter/eggs, and my god that's genius! Surprised I haven't tried or come across it yet. Can't wait for my own.

Have you ever used avocado for baking?
Does anyone else pretty much always get to eat their favorite foods or am I just special (i.e. sweet potatoes)?

4th of July?

I know i'm behind but i'm about to catch up! 4th of july = must bbq. Turkey Burgers, Bacon (not for me), watermelon, and salad for everyone.

• Turkey Burger
• Garbanzo Balsamic Salad w/ Artichoke Hearts
• Garbanzo Cucumber Mint Salad
• Annie's Goddess Dressing
• Avocado
• Brown Rice
• TJ's Everyday Seasoning

I enjoyed part of the festive treats but also a bunch of leftovers. The Goddess Dressing goes perfect on sandwiches, just like in Ashland. A little Fresh Lemon pepper and seasoning on everything!

 Officially one of my favorite meals. I wanted some greek yogurt AND tahini topping for my sweet potato so I went half-half. Both epic individually as well as mixed together! The TJ's Tahini sauce was better suited to the chicken/kale because it adds more flavor.  I topped everything with resh grated lemon pepper for some kick. Everything in this meal tastes amazing, makes you feel amazing, and is amazing for you! And is easy to make! And the leftovers...

• Chicken Breast Baked (Olive Oil, TJ's Gyoza Sauce, Basil, Pepper)
• Kale Sauté (Olive Oil, Garlic Powder, S&P)
• Baked Sweet Potato
• Nonfat GReek Yogurt/TJ's Tahini Sauce/Tahini 
• Lemon Pepper

I'm stoked on this simple yet unconventional breakfast.  A rest day calls for more protein and I get to eat yogurt since I usually avoid it before training due to it's mucous forming properties.

Adding a ton of cinnamon to nonfat greek yogurt is delicious, just as it is to Almond Butter with a hint of Sea Salt. Both also go well with blueberries and sweet potatoes, so combine all of the above and vuoala!

• Nonfat Greek Yogurt
• Sweet Potato
• Blueberries
• Almond Butter
• Cinnamon/Sea Salt

Tastes like plenty of cinnamon and creamy sweet nutty goodness all blended together. I'm toying with the idea/looking into a more paleo-oriented diet (mostly just vegetables/nuts/meat) and this fits the bill perfectly!

And i'll leave you with a leftovers lunch:

Kale and garbanzo beans to make the world go round with the epic Tahini-Nutritional Yeast combo. I also finally got some Coconut Butter melting onto my Sweet Potato and it is amazing.  Tomato is a must include in this plate.

Tahoe Training Camp II

More good eating to do some quality acclimating in Tahoe with the team!

After enjoying a TJ's Raspberry Blueberry Oat Bran GF Muffin and a Max Houtzager leftover Oatmeal Muffin with Almond Butter gone Cinnamon/Sea Salt (sprinkled), I decided to hit up a mid morning protein leftover scramble.

• 3 Hard Boiled Egg Whites
• Leftover Veggie Sauté
• Avocado
• Sea Salt, TJ's Everyday Seasoning, Lemon Pepper

The veggies are sweet, tender and pair perfectly with the creamy avocado and egg whites yet still have some kick from their original spice plus the additional seasoning! Like a fancy egg white scramble or omelet only thrown together in 1 minute!

 Such a delicious post race dinner of baked polenta, cooked veggies and more baked chicken.

• Polenta cut into rounds baked w/ Olive Oil and Dried Basil
• Broccoli, Cauliflower, Bell Peppers, Zucchini, Squash, Onion Saute
• Chile Powder, S&P, Garlic Powder, Olive Oil
• Rainbow Chard Sauté
• Chicken Breast with Marinated Artichoke Hearts, S&P, Basil, Garlic Powder, Chile Powder
• TJ's Tahini Sauce

Polenta is so good and so easy when you buy it ready to heat and serve. I really need to get on doing some pesto and/or sun dried tomato versions soon! All of the components to this dinner were delicious, even mixed together, and especially with a bit of TJ's Tahini sauce.

I enjoyed some of the best leftovers after we (1st place in my category!) did the Peavine Challenge XC Race in Reno. It was hot and long and the juicy sweet potato, hummus, kale sauté, salad, and herb baked chicken hit the spot perfectly. I had about a whole 1.5 sweet potatoes... Next up a 4th of July BBQ and more tasty Sweet Potato Eats!

Thrown Together

I've been sort of throwing food together fast with little prep recently.  I decided I am totally down with Fava Beans! I also raced!

As Leftovers!

They are like giant more flavorful peas and really fun to eat for some reason.  For lunch the next day my steamed favas combined with other steamed vegetables made a great easy lunch wrap.

• Steamed Fava Beas, Squash, Yellow Carrot,
• Some Spring Mix Salad/Cucumber/Avocado
• Tahini, Braggs 24 Herb Seasoning, Sea Salt and Pepper
• Amy's Salsa

The Bragg's Seasoning I got is such a great fast meal saver.

For Dinner

When I originally prepared them: with a bunch of steamed vegetables and salmon. A delicious wrap combo for sure.  I could eat them plain but some tahini and herbs go even better.  

• Salmon Saúte with Olive Oil and Parsley
• Steamed Purple Onion, Squash, Fava Beans, Yellow Carrot
• Baked Sweet Potato and Brown Rice/Lentils
• Some Tomato
• Braggs 24 Herb Seasoning and 

After adapting to eating yogurt in order to consume mass amounts of Muesli in Germany, i'm stoked on introducing  Non fat greek yogurt back in to my diet. I  just won't have it in the morning before training/racing (mucous forming).  I just discovered it is so dialed on sweet potatoes!

No that's not sour cream, and if I told you it was you'd probably trick your mind into thinking it is! Sweet potatoes are amazing on their own but sometimes even better with some nonfat greek yogurt! Accompanied by a Hummus/Balsamic Turkey Salad with my favorite turkey.

• Baked Sweet Potato w/ Nonfat Greek Yogurt
• Diestel Farms Pastrami Turkey
• Spring Mix, Tomato, Cucumber, Carrot, Olives
• Hummus, Olive Oil, Balsamic, S & P

I'm pretty excited for my next use of Greek Yogurt, so stay tuned.

Popped Amaranth Cereal for the first time! The healthiest cheapest quickest cereal.

• 1/4c Amaranth 
• Coconut Milk
• Almond Butter, Coconut Butter (melted on, mmmm)
• Honey, Bee Pollen
• Blueberries

Popped amaranth is super healthy and faster to make than oatmeal! It's super crunchy kind of like popcorn. I definitely burned it a bit but ate it anyways and it was perfect with honey and bee pollen. Bee pollen adds delicious crunchy granules and is super healthy.  I didn't even add any spices! Can't wait to do it proper in the future.

Vanilla Power Bites, Super Grain Combos and Awesome Choco Tahini

I am upping my protein intake to 120g per day so these are so convenient!

On the Go Power Vanilla Bean Bites

I haven't made my No Bake Bars in a while and wanted something that was mostly protein with some fat for supplementation/snacking. I was motivated to try this recipe since it seemed even easier than the bars! Plus I got to make changes to my liking! I used the stevia for baking as well but it was too much combined with the stevia that's in my whey powder so I'll leave it out next time.
(Makes 12)

• 1/2c Coconut Flour
• 3 scoops or 1/2c Tera's Vanilla Bourbon Whey
• 1/2c Oat Bran
• 3T Almond Butter (I used creamy but will def go crunchy next time)
• 1/4" Ground Vanilla Bean
• 1T Chia Seeds
• Plenty of Water
• Lemon Poppyseed Option (use 2-4T Lemon Juice for the water)

They are quite mushy if you eat them completely defrosted-not too dry or floury at all! I enjoyed them a lot more nearly frozen so you can really bite into them like a cookie.  The Chia Seeds are key! Sort of a Super Sweet Vanilla flavor with yummy granule-ness to it from the Chia Seeds, like a PoppySeed Muffin! I can't wait for Lemon Poppyseed Muffin edition!

For some reason I really wanted this for breakfast.  A Matcha Salt Egg White Avo Nori Wrap!  Takes 2 seconds to make if you have the ingredients ready from before.  I have a supply of hard boiled eggs in the fridge at all times (super convenient protein source).  Super tasty notes of seaweed and green tea, with creamy avocado and savory sea salt!

Choco Tahini Grain Bowl Beginning

After seeing a Whole Athlete Coach John Hunt munching on a bowl of mixed grains on the way to the race the other weekend, tahini, avocado, chia seeds, and whey protein powder on the way to the race the other weekend, and then seeing this creation, I had to try out this new frontier! I already wanted to try some grain combos in the ricer cooker, and be able to use more leftovers for breakfast too.

The Choco Tahini Beginning

First more experimental try had Avocado, 70% Cacao Chocolate, Carob Chips, Chia Seeds, leftover Brown Rice, Almond Milk, Tahini, Vanilla Plant Protein, and Strawberries/Blueberries. I also tried a bit of ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric sprinkled in.  I love biting into the broken choco chunks.  The Chia Seeds play a key crackily crunch role and the Avo-Tahini-Milk-Protein Powder makes a nice thick creamy mix.

Choco Tahini Bowl Attempt #2

 The real deal. Creamy, mushy, and chocolatey goodness! I got to use my delicious grain combo from dinner (below) and don't have any unsweetened baker's chocolate yet so used some Carob Chips.  They were a bit too sugary so for me the unsweetened chocolate will be good.  The sesame from the Tahini combines with a chocolate flavor perfectly. 1c Quinoa, Buckwheat, Millet

• 1T Tahini
• 1T Carob Chips
• 2T Chia Seeds
• 2T Vanilla Plant Fusion Protein
• 1/4c Blueberries
• Almond Milk
• Ginger/Cinnamon/Turmeric (Optional)

I recommend adding the Tahini, Protein Powder, and Almond Milk in the morning for optimal mixing (less grain absorption/solidifying). The avocado doesn't look the best but is totally worthy if your into it/have it on hand.

Super Grain Combo and Basil Pomegranate Chicken Salad

Pretty much a repeat except in the oven, I didn't have avocado for my pomegranate spinach chicken salad, but it was a sweet flavorful feast anyways! The grain combo takes quinoa and makes it more like brown rice, but much healthier (more protein, fiber and nutrient dense). Red onions baked with the chicken get so sweet, glazed and delicious!

• Chicken Breast, Dressing below as a marinade, Pine Nuts, Cactus, Red Onion, Basil, S & P,
• (1c cooked) Millet, Quinoa, Buckwheat (equal parts)
• Hummus
• Spinach, Radicchio, Tomato, Olives
• Dressing: Olive Oil, Pomegranate Juice, Balsamic Vinegar, Basil

Power Pancakes 2.0, Gratitude, Super Dal

     Along with all the baking I did this weekend, I also whipped up and froze my 2nd time batch of protein pancakes, and without protein powder!  I switched them to the fridge the night before I wanted them. 

Coconut Power Pancakes

The nutrition is off the hook with a solid amount of fiber and protein, yet still super tasty (click nutrition-without seeds/fruit added in).  #1 The key is garbanzo, coconut flour, and egg whites.  They were a bit dry so maybe coconut milk, and less garbanzo flour and baking powder. The pancakes alone were actually quite tasty, fluffy and light, flavorful and a little sweet!

• 6T Garbanzo Flour
• 2T Coconut Flour
• 2t Baking Powder
• 2t Cinnamon
• 2 Egg Whites
• 5 Drops Stevia
• Vanilla
• Fair amount of unsweetened almond milk (until good consistency)
• Add in pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, raspberries, blueberries, dried fruit, cacao nibs...

 Seeds were the best addition to during cooking and although I ate on the go, sauces/toppings would help  the moisture factor. More fresh fruit cooked in would benefit as well! This breakfast kept me full for a while so I would maybe make 2/3 of the recipe for one person (the above changes would probably do the trick). Just mix ingredients and pour 3-5" pancakes on a griddle, flipping after bubbling for a while (if you roll non-greased like me!).

Some more Gratitude:

I Am Whole

 Probably now my go to grain bowl at Cafe Gratitude. I love it.  The Kim Chee is just a bit spicy and not too acidic, and the Teriyaki Almonds sweetness and nice crunch balance out the Garlic Tahini Dressing!

 Sea vegetables and kale, steamed quinoa or local brown rice, house-made kim chee, carrots, and sprouts with tahini-garlic sauce and teriyaki almonds.

 I made Channa Dal pretty well for the 2nd time as well!

 Channa Dal Houtzager 

It ended up perfectly sweet, spicy and creamy oozing with flavors and went with the salad and dressing perfectly. 

• Cardamom, Garam Masala, Basil, Turmeric, Ginger Powder, Ginger Juice, Olive Oil, Agave Nectar
• Garlic, Fennel, Onion, Dal, Butternut Squash
• Almonds, Fennel to Garnish
• Chicken broth and Coconut milk
• Spinach Avo Salad w/ Ginger-Lemon-Olive oil Dressing

 #2 I did the dressing quickly without thinking and it is so good for how simple it is to throw together (when you have home-bottled ginger and lemon juice in the fridge!). Just saute the vegetables and garlic with the spice combo and then add in steamed butternut squash, rice-cooker made Dal, and extra Chicken Broth and Coconut Milk to make it your desired consistency.  Top with the yummy garnishing and enjoy! #3 The agave nectar is key to sweeten it up just a bit.

Back into Baking! Buckwheat. And another Race!

I luckily got to do plenty of baking in the past few days, the cooking that started my passion so many years ago! It really is therapeutic. and fun to mess with different combinations and creations. like chemistry but 100x better. and tastier. I also raced!

I will master the buckwheat bake. I made 3 so far, one on Sunday morning and two on Sunday night to eat today and yesterday at school.  They are truly awesome, so many customizable themes and so many convenient options to your liking.

Buckwheat Bake 3.0

I am using egg whites for these on the go buckwheat bakes instead of chia eggs because I need to up the protein content as I mostly sit at school. This one was Mixed Berry with some Stevia to sweeten and the Pumpkin option instead of Banana. Plenty of crunchy Pumpkin seeds for even more protein and healthy fat (the most protein packed seed)! 

• Buckwheat Bake Recipe
• 5 Drops Stevia
• 1/2c Blueberries/Raspberries + additional fresh Raspberries

I like the pumpkin instead of mashed banana because the flavor is subtle and contributes less sugar/carbs (good for school, not for pre-ride).  The berries and stevia made it totally sweet enough to be yummy topping free!

The Inside: Delicious Tart Cooked Berries!

Besides the normals, this is worth including to mention the grain combo. Just enough protein for a not hungry-Max from lots of greens, quinoa, and tahini.

Clean and Tasty

  I mixed a 1:1 ratio of Quinoa and Wheat Berries in my rice cooker and it made a fluffy, nutty, almost corny mix! Way better and more nutrient dense than either one on their own. Also settling into a dialed standard Tahini Sauce mix!

• Grilled B-Sprouts (Mustard Seed, Olive Oil, S & P)
• Steamed Broccoli
• 1/3c Quinoa, 1/3c Farro, 2c water
• 1/2 Baked Sweet Potato
• Hummus and My Tahini Sauce (Tahini, Ginger Juice, Lemon, Cider Vinegar)

My second try involved a cocoa/carob-banana theme!

 Buckwheat Bake On the Go 2.0 

  The banana option and included fresh raspberries, which brought an occasional touch of tart! Raspberries get so much more tasty when cooked. The bake had tons of chocolate/carob/banana flavors working together and the carob chips made delicious melted morsels scattered throughout. One healthy chocolate muffin wanna-be for sure! This was the perfect amount of food to hold me over until lunch! (8am to 12pm)

• This Buckwheat Buckwheat Bake Recipe
• 1t unsweetened Cocoa Powder (didn't have carob)
• Egg White instead of Flax Egg
• 2t Carob Chips
• 2T chopped Almonds/Pumpkin Seeds instead of Walnuts
• Some Raspberries

Sweet enough from the Carob Chips/Berries to not need any topping. 

My first was a tasty nutty blueberry muffin! Not as protein heavy and definitely more sugar but that is perfect for pre-ride.

Basic Blueberry Buckwheat Bake 1.0

For attempt #1 I used coconut milk instead of almond milk, the chia seed egg option, and blueberry as the central focus. It was a bit mushy so I think almond milk works better.  I topped with my favorite blueberry jam and some agave nectar because it wasn't sweet enough, so for the future bakes (like above) won't have toppings on the go I will bake in additional goodies/sweetness. Who doesn't love biting into some tender cooked blueberries that explode with sweetness and flavor?

• This Blueberry Buckwheat Bake
• Chia Egg Option
• 2T Almonds/Pumpkin Seeds/Sunflower Seeds (not walnuts)
• Coconut Milk

Eating bread gluten and wheat free! When I saw this recipe and recently invested in buckwheat I had to give it a go.

Tasty With Toppings

 Before Topping

 I haven't been eating any bread for a while since i've been enjoying a wheat/gluten free spell, and this REALLY hit the spot. It tastes almost liqorice-y from the delicious black pepper combo and is moist, nutty, and not crumbly. I followed the recipe except with amaranth flour instead of millet flour. I had the same meal for lunch at school except with Wasabi Dijon Mustard and Hummus and it was just as good.

• 1 Serving of Buckwheat Millet Amaranth Bread
• 1/2 Block of Tempeh in the Toaster
• Gai Lan Broccoli steamed with Sesame/Sesame Oil
• Cucumber, Tomato, Green Onion, Avocado
• Lemon/Tahini, Hummus, Nutritional Yeast, S & P

Nutritional yeast combined with Hummus or Tahini and Avo is officially awesome as an almost salty-cheezy sauce and I love it. 

 Post Race Delight

Enjoyed some Futomaki Sushi leftovers (Sushi Ran) as a treat when I got home from the race. Accompanied by some leftover vegetables, brown rice, and tahini. Totally splurging...

 Recovery Muscle Brownie Treat

Lenny and Larry treats don't let me down after a super hard effort! 20g of Protein for the win.

 Pre Race O'Oats

Same pre-race overnight oats, added vanilla, Bing Cherries, Raspberries, Cocoa Powder, and more Almonds instead of Almond Butter.

Pre Race Dinner Out?

I went to Lydia's Kitchen for pre-race dinner, and got this French-Mex Buckwheat Crepe Wrap and House Salad. A moist soft buckwheat crepe around avocado, black beans, salsa, greens all topped with a cashew sunflower seed chile sauce! The first time Mexican food will taste light.  It wasn't filling enough so I ate some more at home, and the race was low key and mainly for training so I didn't make a special dinner. I went super fast feeling great so it definitely still worked! It's comforting to know that a variety of things won't fail me.

New Clean Eating = Super Fast! Mango Blueberry Coconut Superbowl, New Granola Review, New Race Food

I got a new White Iphone 4! It's so fast and sleek and I love it. Finally my pictures will now be near D-SLR quality. I was out of town and racing this weekend, here is the report from the race!

In a bowl

 I got home pretty late and had little in the fridge so decided to give Cafe Gratitude in San Rafael another shot by getting a take out bowl. And I'm glad I did. It hit the spot perfectly.

I Am Whole

 I got this bowl for the seaweed and japanese influence. The Kimchee and Tahini Ginger Dressing were amazing. Not too strong of pickle flavor on the kimchee and the right ginger-bite to creamy ratio on the dressing.  The Teriyaki roasted Almonds added the perfect amount of sweetness. Then add in a bunch more delicious sea vegetables, fluffy quinoa, and kale! It was expensive but worth it.

• Quinoa, Kale, Teriyaki Almonds
• Sea Vegetables, Housemade Kimchee (Japanese Pickled Cabbage), Kombu Seaweed
• Tahini Ginger Dressing

Post Race Lunch

For once I decided to not go with a massive cookie or bar after my recovery drink post race and tried eating real food. I was just kind of in the mood I guess, and it worked out just fine. The Mexican Black Beans, Chicken, and Vegetables looked pretty appetizing too. I went with that, some salad, salsa, hummus, and pita chips (the tortillas were white flour). I digested it all fine but missed out on having some delicious sweets because of it (could have had them but would of felt bad).

New Pre Race Dinner

I can't take credit for this, I was late joining my coach Julia Violich for dinner. She prepared this light and clean meal, a nutritious pasta and salad. There was no salt and pepper (still super tasty) and not too much protein, so I made the exception to eat feta cheese, which is arguably the healthiest cheese, especially if it comes from goats not cows due to easier digestion.  The salad was only dressed with olive oil and the pasta sauce was just olive oil, a bit of tomato paste, and a bit of feta and it all tasted amazing anyway! #1 The benefits of including a bunch of quality ingredients. I went heavy on the Quinoa Salad to try and get the protein and still had a rice cake with almond butter before bed, but felt really good and clean.

• Penne pasta (the only forgotten ingredient so had to suffice with what the closest store had)
• Zucchini, Squash, Mushroom, Red Pepper, Tomato Paste, Olive Oil, Feta
• Spring Mix, Quinoa Salad, Cherry Tomatoes, Fresh Basil, Olive Oil

I was planning the usual Overnight Oats Race Breakfast, but the only milk available was almond milk, which has minimal protein in it, so I opted to try out the From The Fields Granola that Julia had! I'd been wanting to try out this brand, and this was the perfect opportunity since it has the protein from quinoa flakes that I desired.  Plus I also learned from Julia that soy is a mucous forming food, and am now into a relatively new realm of nutrition for me.  I won't ramble about it forever, the article pretty much explains it. It's especially relevant to me right now because I've been coughing recently and haven't been able to completely clear my throat, which ends up being quite annoying during training/racing.

Cherry Almond Granola

So many clusters of quinoa crunchy love!  It seemed like it wouldn't be sweet or flavorful but it was, and formed clusters around lots of yummy roasted almonds.  The cherries were high quality and full of flavor, making such a clean delicious bowl. I'm stoked to finally try it, and all thanks to not having access to soy milk! It paired perfectly with almond milk and i'm also glad to open a new window of cleaner eating for when I feel like it. I definitely do feel cleaner eating almond milk over soy. The amount of sweetness is perfect (from honey and maple syrup), although occasionally I'd see my self adding in a date (recently learning from the mucous linked article that is the only non-sulphured dried fruit and is therefore less mucous forming). The touch of saltiness is awesome as well. And it's even wheat free and oil free. I can't wait to try the other flavors like Cardamom Rose or Orange Lavender!

• 1c From The Fields Cherry Almond Granola
• Almond Milk, Blueberries

Along with the theme of more clean eating, I only used a tiny bit of soymilk for this seedy-bowl of oatmeal.

Super Seed Mango Blueberry Coconut Bowl

    I wanted a super seed-y epic bowl of oatmeal this morning, and my craving was perfectly satisfied.  All the flax and chia seeds made it taste nutty and almost chocolatey on its own! #3 I love the way they gel up do to their hydrophilic properties. It makes the oatmeal much more voluminous.  All the additional toppings just magnified the crunchy nutty seedy delight! Mango, coconut, and blueberry are awesome together.

• 1/3c oats , 2/3c coconut water, 1-2t flax, 1-2t chia, 3 drops stevia
• 1/4c cooked quinoa
• coconut, dried mango, blueberries, cacao nibs, a bit of soy milk

The quinoa added that much more fluff. A tiny bit of soymilk for a touch of creaminess.