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Day Nine: March 24

Food:

Breakfast: Egg Scramble

Snack: Cashew Butter and a banana

Day Nine: Reboot

Lunch: left over Sausage Escarole and White Beans

Snack: Texas Caviar

Dinner: Pan fried pork chops in balsamic glaze and garlic asparagus

Snack: To be updated

Exercise:

I should do something tonight.. but my joints are still pretty achy.  I’m going to chalk that up to hormones because my weight is up as well.   We’ll see what happens. I’m going skiing this weekend so I need to take it easy so I can actually ski when I get up North.

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KicknKnit March 24, 2011 March 2011 3 Comments

Day Eight: March 23

Day Eight: Cheater Cheater

Food:

Breakfast: Egg Scramble

Snack: Cashew Butter

Lunch: Left over Turkey Chili

Snack: two wheels of baby bel cheese

Snack: a small bag of Wheat Thins veggie chips (CHEAT!)

Then I went grocery shopping after work. It was an extremely frustrating experience. Three stores to hit.. long story.. but it sucked.  I bought a Cadbury Egg. (CHEAT!)

Dinner: Sausage Escarole and White Beans

Snack: Chocolate Ricotta Cream

No exercise today.  Every joint in my body aches and my hamstrings are still touchy from the deadlifts.

weight
KicknKnit March 23, 2011 March 2011 1 Comment

Day Seven: March 22

Food:
Breakfast: Egg scramble

Snack: Red pepper strips and hummus

Lunch: left over Middle Eastern Shrimp

Snack: Chocolate Ricotta Cream

Snack: Small salad with cucumbers and mushrooms

Snack: packet of nuts

OMG I’m STARVING today.

Drinking lots of water too.. 

Snack: (yes again) two wheels of babybel cheese and cashew butter

Dinner: turkey chili

Snack (I was still hungry!) : The blasted mug cake.. 

weight
KicknKnit March 22, 2011 March 2011 2 Comments

Day Six: March 21

Food:
Breakfast: Egg scramble with turkey bacon, spinach feta, onions peppers

Snack: two wheels of babybel cheese and a packet of nuts

Lunch: Big ass Salad

Snack: Hummus with red pepper strips

Dinner: Middle Eastern Shrimp

Snack: time for the Ricotta dessert I think

Exercise:

3×8 Double Hand Squat 20lb bell
3×8 Torso circles 20lb bell
3×10 Romanian Deadlifts 20lb bell
3×5 Squat/stand figure 8 20lb bell
2×6 (each side) plank row pass on knees 10lb bell

weight

See that spike? It’s only a pound.. seriously.. but it looks like a lot.  I had way to much salt and too many off plan foods over the weekend.

KicknKnit March 21, 2011 March 2011 2 Comments

Day Five: March 20

Food:

Breakfast: one fried egg with a slice of American cheese and one slice of Canadian bacon on a whole grain english muffin

Snack: none.. busy cleaning the house

Lunch: Big ass salad.  Mixed greens, spinach, c hickpeas, chicken, cucumbers, red pepper, eh, I don’t remember what else.  It was a big ass salad.

Snack: a Few spoonfuls of the Hummus I made

Dinner: I roasted a chicken and made “French Onions” side dish.  It sucked.  Don’t do it.

Snack: eh.. I’m having some tea and a handful of nuts

Exercise:

I moved some furniture and swept under it.  That counts.

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KicknKnit March 20, 2011 March 2011 No Comments

Hummus for Real

Dear Alton Brown,

You have redeemed yourself in my eyes.  After the great sugar cookie debacle of 2003, I had a hard time trusting you again.  I mean, I’m sorry but those were the worst sugar cookies I have ever made.  The Great God of Good Eats fell from the pedestal right then and there.

Hummus for Real

And then there were the Orange Glazed Chicken Wings that were quite tasty, but it took me months to get the chicken grease out of my steamer basket.

And lastly, there was the Turbo Hummus fiasco of 2006.  Seriously, dude… Peanut butter?  Peanut butter does not belong in hummus.  Like, ever.

Now, don’t get me wrong.  I enjoy your show.  I like to learn the science-y bits.  So when you did a show specifically on Chick Peas, one of the bestest beans in the world, I tuned in.

And there it was… a REAL Hummus recipe.

Now, I’ve made a few hummus recipes here and there.  And they are all “okay”.  But I worry about the salt from the canned chickpeas.  Also?  I’m not so great with cooking beans.  Dried beans and I do not get along.

But you said I could make dried chick peas for hummus in the crock pot, and once again, I found myself hopeful.  I thought, yanno..  maybe I should give good Ol’ Alton another try.

So, I did.. I followed your Hummus for Real Recipe, right to the letter.

Dear Gods! It’s amazing!

Dude, you are back on the pedestal. This is the best hummus ever.

I’m so thrilled with this recipe, I feel you need a special tribute.

Just for you: The Hummus Rap

Sincerely,
Kick’n Knit

KicknKnit March 20, 2011 Featured, Recipe Reviews , 1 Comment

Day Four: March 19

FOOD:

Breakfast:  one fried egg on whole grain english muffin, cheddar cheese and a slice of canadian bacon. A smidge of mayo.

Snack: um..nothing.. I had breakfast at 11:00 AM

Lunch: We had lunch at Biryani. Many off plan things were eaten.

Snack: Still stuffed from lunch.  Had some coffee

Dinner: Left over sloppy joes.

Snack: to be updated

Exercise:

2 x 8 (each side) Rack squat. 20lb bell

1×8 (each side) Rack squat 10lb bell

1×10 each side bent over row 20lb bell

2×10 each side bent over row 10lb bell

2x 15 tricep press 10lb bell

1×8 Double arm high pull 10lb bell

1×8 double arm high pull 20lb bell

3×10 each side Russian twist 10lb bell

weight
KicknKnit March 19, 2011 March 2011 No Comments

Day Three: March 18

Food:
Breakfast: Egg beater scramble.

Snack: Nutrition mix (cashews, macadamia nuts and almonds)

Lunch: Left over steak mixed in with Texas Caviar

Snack: Green beans, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar and a splash of soy sauce. UPDATE: I never ate these.

Dinner: Tonight will be an cheat meal.  I believe we are getting sushi for dinner. UPDATE: Sushi was had.   I tried soft shell crab.. didn’t like it.  Had my Pink Panther roll. Totally of plan.

Snack: Peanut Butter and Jelly Smoothie

Exercise:

UPDATE: I didn’t do jack squat.  I was still too sore from Wednesday

Also? Choosing not to be annoyed by one tenth of a pound.

weight
KicknKnit March 18, 2011 March 2011 No Comments

The Bees Knees

Lots to go yet

So I got this brilliant idea that I wanted to knit a pair of knee socks.

I have no idea why.

I mean, lets face it.

I’m 38 and I work in a conservative business office.

Also? I’m 38.

Ah fuck it.. I’ll figure out someplace to wear them.

I fell in love with this colorway last year.  It’s called “Brach’s Candy. I can totally see it.  They remind me of those coconut Neapolitan candies.. you know the ones that were in bins in the grocery store?  Back when Brach’s had a display.

Damn I loved those candies.

I remember walking by those bins and thinking that if it wasn’t for my fear of getting caught, I would totally nick one of those and pop it in my pocket.  I actually watched, dumbfounded, as another kid did exactly that. I kept waiting for the lightning bolt to strike him dead.

Never happened.  I still never took one though.

When I saw this yarn, I totally had to have it.

Mmmm... YUMMY!

HAD TO HAVE IT, I SAY!  *ahem*

When it arrived, I hugged it and squeezed it and pat it and pet it and rubbed it and caressed it and  and called it George.

And then stuck it in the stash bin with all the other gotta haves.

When March rolled around and I needed to make something for the Old School Sock Knitters KAL and I cast on for three different things and none of them really appealed.. so I dug through the stash and found this yarn.

It wanted to be knee socks. So with only a month to make them, I decided to cast on and go for it.

They are gonna be so awesome. If I don’t fold the cuff over, they go over the knee!

Only the toe left!

I really do have a plan for how to wear them.. I’m thinking maybe a jean skirt that covers just the tops and wear them like tights.

One Down.. one to go

The pattern is Long Socks By DROPS Design (Ravelry Link)   (DROPS link to pattern).  The original pattern is not in English and the translation confused me a smidge.  So basically, I made up my own way of reducing stitches for the ribbing and also did my own heel, foot and toe.

KicknKnit March 17, 2011 Featured, Fiber Arts, Knit , , 3 Comments

Day Two: March 17

Food:
Breakfast: Egg beater scramble.

Snack: Nutrition mix (cashews, macadamia nuts and almonds) and two wheels of low fat baby bel cheese

Lunch: Left over steak mixed in with Texas Caviar

Snack: I threw some frozen cut green beans into a container with some sesame oil, rice wine vinegar and a splash of soy sauce. I’ll microwave that later and hope for the best. I was out of ideas

Dinner: Middle Eastern Shrimp  strike that we were out of shrimp. We had sloppy joes instead.

Snack: um.. yogurt again probably.

Exercise:

Nothing planned for today. Rest day.

weight
KicknKnit March 17, 2011 March 2011 No Comments

Day One : March 16

This is my quick and dirty record of my diet and exercise for the day. I’m doing a personal challenge to eat salad twice a week, a veggie salad twice a week and work out twice a week. I want to  lose 5 lbs  by the end of March.
Food
Breakfast: Eggbeaters with spinach, onions, peppers, turkey bacon and feta
Snack: cashew butter
Lunch: mixed green salad with chicken, chick peas, cucumbers and smoked provolone
Snack: Texas caviar
Dinner: grilled steak with broccoli and cheese sauce.
Snack: yogurt with stevia

Exercise
Stretch
50 jumping jacks
3×12 Squats : 20lb bell
3×10 halo 10lb bell
2×15 lunge twist 10lb bell
3×10 2 handed swing 20lb bell
Plank 20 seconds
Stretch
Walk dogs

weight
KicknKnit March 16, 2011 March 2011 No Comments

Whole Wheat Pizza

In case you haven’t figured it out yet, we are doing the South Beach Diet here in this house.  Which means more veggies, lean protiens and complex carbs.  The white stuff is out.  No white flour, white rice etc.

You may not know that I took some culinary classes about 6 years back, which ended up serving me very well when I got laid off.  I was drawn to baking and pastry and after the job loss, I did a stint at a local artisan bakery.  So, essentially, I know bread.

Making bread isn’t complicated, but I personally think that you gotta get a “feel” for it.  Flour can hold more moisture on any given day, which will affect your final dough.  Yeast ferementation changes based on temperature and other factors.  Bread is simple… but bread making can be complex.

Take away my white flour and now you’ve got a whole ‘nuther bag of hammers.

Whole grains can be bitter.  If you’ve ever had a slice of whole wheat bread that made your mouth pucker, you know what I mean.  I do think it’s the reason most people don’t like whole grain bread.

It’s also the reason that most commercial whole wheat breads have a ton of dough conditioners as well as added sugars like High Fructose Corn Syrup.  It’s an attempt to cut the bitterness and to give the dough some elasticitiy.

Most commercial breads are made quickly.  You know why Wonderbread is so freakishly white and flavorless while an artisan bread has a lovely cream color?  Because the flour in the Wonderbread isn’t given any time to go through enzymatic changes that develop the flavor and color.

During my culinary classes, I discovered Peter Reinhart and promptly went out and bought his book The Bread Baker’s Apprentice which I  recommend very hightly for someone just getting into bread baking.  He has all the chemistry..  the “why” of things.  And he talks a lot about using preferments to coax out flavor and texture.  The foccacia recipe is amazing and I used it when I worked a local farmers market for a while.  It sold like mad.  LB says there is heroin in it, it’s so good.

Alas, bread making has been off the list since starting the South Beach Diet.. at least until I discovered that Peter had a new book out called Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Breads.

But wait, there’s more!

KicknKnit March 9, 2011 Book reviews, Food, Recipe Reviews , , 1 Comment

Kibbeh-inspired Pot Roast

I love kibbeh.  If you’ve never had it, it’s a Middle Eastern dish of spiced ground meat  with bulghur wheat.  Much like hummus and falafel, how it’s spiced is regional.  In some areas it’s even served raw.   By the way, if you are local, the best kibbeh that I’ve found in the area is at Phoenicians, which I cannot recommend highly enough.  (They are closed on Monday’s even though the website says “open daily”)

I also happen to love pot roast.   Not only is it cheap but it’s easy.  But I wanted something a smidge different than the every day Yankee pot roast.

So, I combined my love of Middle Eastern Spices with the traditional pot roast recipe to come up with something mildly spiced but very flavorful. I’ve also substituted white potatoes for sweet potatoes for a little different flavor (and to be more South Beach Diet friendly- sweet potatoes are phase 2 only and are considered a “starch” because of the amount of natural sugar in them)

This is done in the crock pot. I usually just load it up and move on.. But, you can always sear your pot roast first to add that bit of flavor that come from browning your meat.

Kibbeh Inspired Pot Roast

Ingredients

  • 3-4 pound pot roast.
  • 1 medium onion
  • 3-4 medium sweet potatoes
  • 1 cup beef stock/broth
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flake (can bump up to 1/2 if you like a bit more heat)

Directions

  1. Trim the fat from your pot roast. This can be difficult since it’s usually marbled throughout.  I just get the hard fat off the edges.  If desired, sear all sides in a hot pan.  Put the pot roast in the bottom of your slow cooker.
  2. Slice the onion and spread over the top of the roast
  3. Peel the sweet potatoes and place them whole on top of the onions.
  4. Stir the cinnamon, allspice and red pepper flake into the beef broth and pour over everything in the slow cooker.
  5. Cook on high for about 5 hours.  I don’t know how long on low (sorry.. I’m always shoving this in the crock pot around 11AM on Sunday mornings).  Turn the sweet potatoes over about 1/2 way through.

Once everything is cooked through, remove sweet potatoes and cut up for serving.  Remove the pot roast and cut up in chunks, I usually remove as much fat as I can at this point. You can take some of the broth from the crock pot and thicken it with cornstarch for a gravy or you can just pour a smidge over your plate as is.   I usually nuke some broccoli for a side dish.

KicknKnit March 7, 2011 Recipes , , 2 Comments

Tekki whut?

Last night’s karate class was small. It was me and two other people (one of which was Sensei’s son).   Reminded me of Sunday classes of the past.   I kind of like small classes because when classes are small, Sensei get’s creative.

We warmed ourselves up and started basics.  Because there were so few of us, we faced the mirrors and I got a real good look at my front kick.    I noticed that I’ve been sort of bending my foot in when kicking with my left leg.  My left leg is definately less “smart” than my right. We won’t even talk about my side snap kicks.  It’s not pretty.

We then started practicing blocks while moving.  We did some combinations that involved blocking with the same arm twice. This is difficult because you have to get your whole body involved in the block.  It’s easier to do this when switching arms because you have to shift your hip to change arms.  A little more tricky to block twice with the same arm.

When we moved onto sparring, we applied these same ideas.  Blocking with same arm to defend oncoming punches.  I did pretty well, except for the time I punched to face instead of chest.. oops..  at least I didn’t connect.

For kata, we went through all of the Heian Kata.  I am still forgetting which kata are which.  Remember them was easier when I only knew three (and went to class on a regular basis).  There are 5 Heian Kata.  I’m currently learning Tekki Shodan  which was what we moved onto after the Heian Kata.

Then, Sensei threw in a curve ball.  Tekki Nidan.  I knew there were more than one Tekki Kata, but I haven’t ever really seen them.   Evidently, they aren’t taught until Dan examinations (who knew!? I certainly didn’t)

So, I followed along.. sort of.  Then we did Tekki Sandan.. whut? Moar!? Fun!

Yah, I couldn’t keep up.. but it was interesting to have the opportunity to see new kata.  They were all done in “horse stance” which is a stance I struggle with.  My hips do not like it.

Tomorrow, I’m going to take a yoga class to see if I can’t loosen things up a bit. My hamstrings hate me and are super tight and painful when stretched..  and my hip flexors are weak. WEAK!

KicknKnit March 2, 2011 Fitness, Karate , 3 Comments

Lapland Lake Redux

Not many pics this time. I really need to get a small backpack so I can show you how beautiful the trails are. Here are a few pics of the road on the way there. It’s slightly remote.

You could fit two cars here.. sort of.

The Long and Winding Road
Also, how cool is this? I uploaded these pics directly from my phone using an Android app.  No more saving  in different places.  I refuse to use a flickr app because if I delete a pic from flickr then it breaks my blog pics.  I’ve done that more times than I can count.
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KicknKnit February 28, 2011 Fun , No Comments
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