Cycling Foodie

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La Bicyclette … it was love at first bite.

We need you in Davis, California. We are “Bicycle City,” you know!

Review Coming Soon!

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A lovely little ride along the Central Coast from Carmel to Monterey.

More soon … there were some awesome foodie adventures in Carmel.

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True Food Kitchen, Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego

The culinary highlight of my recent trip to San Diego was an exciting restaurant discovery: True Food Kitchen. It was without a doubt the best lunch out I have had in a very, very long time.

I was feeling a little disappointed because some plans had fallen through, so I needed a little retail and culinary therapy. My retail therapy resulted in a very cool pair of shiny black skinny jeans (found on clearance at Macy’s!), so I needed to keep these in mind when choosing my culinary therapy. I wanted a treat, but a reasonably light and healthy one.

Beverages

Cool and refreshing Green Arnie

As I enjoyed my Green Arnie, I relaxed and enjoyed a nice cool breeze on the patio. The setting was lovely and I was quite pleased with the cleanliness and overall atmosphere.

Table centerpiece

Patio seating

Cozy fire pit seating

Fresh herb gardens

There were so many choices on the menu that sounded like exactly what I wanted, but since it was cool outside, a little soup sounded perfect.

Starters ...

Miso Soup

The soup was rich with flavor, but also seemed fairly light. It was so good that I am right now trying to duplicate it at home. Close, but not quite. This will require further experimentation!

When I’m in a new restaurant that serves pizza, one of my tests is to try the most basic pie on the menu. This is the foundation of pizza – if their plain cheese or Pizza Margherita is not good, then it doesn’t matter what toppings you try. Their pizza will not be good. You absolutely have to have the right foundation – the basics: crust, sauce, cheese, fresh herbs.

I am a self-proclaimed pizza snob, but I think for good reason. I started working in pizza restaurants when I was just out of high school. My first was a family-owned restaurant and it was rare for a girl to be allowed to “man” the pizza oven. We girls could do all the prep work, make the subs, and for those of us who so aspired, one day we could run the grill and make the cheese steaks. The pizza men might even let us make the dough. I had mastered the subs. Mastered the grill. I had even mastered the dough. Come on! Let me spin the pies!

One day the “pizza man” called in sick and it was an all-girl crew. I enthusiastically jumped in to take over the oven and proved that a girl can make pizza. The “pizza man” took me under his wing and on occasion invited me to work side-by-side with him so he could teach me his tips and tricks. That’s when my love affair with making pizza really started.

Pizza ...

Pizza Margherita

My Pizza Margherita arrived. The crust was crisp and light. The sauce was rich with fresh tomato flavor. There was just enough cheese and the fresh basil was divine. I had about half of the pizza and saved the rest for later.

My server inquired about dessert. I was not going to have anything, but I love to look at dessert menus. I perused the menu, and politely declined, telling her about my new jeans and how I really should be good. She suggested the Chia Seed Pudding, saying it really wasn’t that bad. Hmm … chia seeds are loaded with all kinds of healthy things like fiber, protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and antioxidants. Hmm … this is a foodie adventure, so I suppose in the spirit of adventure I really should try it.

Chia Seed Pudding with Banana & Coconut

Oh. My. Goodness!

The Chia Seed Pudding was rich and creamy, not too sweet, and the toasted coconut gave it a nice crunch. The creaminess came from coconut milk, so I’m pretty sure it wasn’t as “light” fat and calorie-wise as I wanted to believe, but it was worth it.

I looked up a few chia seed pudding recipes today and have an experimental batch in my refrigerator right now. It will be ready tomorrow. I made it with unsweetened almond milk, low fat lemon yogurt, maple syrup, vanilla, and chia seeds. It thickens overnight in the refrigerator, so we’ll see tomorrow how well it sets up, but an initial taste was quite good!

My server told me that True Food Kitchen will be opening a restaurant in Walnut Creek, California later this year. It will be worth the hour-plus drive to dine there. I am looking forward to dining here again!

The service was awesome – friendly and attentive. The food was fantastic. I look forward to returning.

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We left San Diego for Holtville early Wednesday afternoon. It’s about a 2-hour drive, so we wanted to make sure we got there in plenty of time for our evening event.

The drive was an adventure – rain, wind, sandstorm, beautiful views of the rugged desert landscape.

Leaving San Diego ...

Heading out Highway 8 ...

... first Border Patrol sighting!

Just like home - whirlygigs!

Artsy shot ...

Skies clearing ...

The scenery was quite striking; it possessed a very rugged beauty.

Winds kicking up ...

... into a full blown sandstorm!

The sandstorm looked worse than these photos show … we were in a little rental car that was getting kind of blown about the highway. You could hear the sand grains hitting the car and almost feel them scratching across the paint. Visibility was more limited than it appears here. Fortunately, the sand storm was brief.

Turning into a beautiful day!

Wondering if we're lost ...

Found our destination.

The hotel was … an experience. It was easy to see that it has lots of history. I thought it might be a great candidate for one of those “Save My Resort” type of reality shows. That’s really all I want to say about it.

By the time we got there the wind gusts were dreadful. After checking in, my colleague and I ventured into town for a bite. We ended up at the Food Court in the local shopping mall.

Imperial Valley Mall

Light lunch

My colleague tried the Chinese restaurant – his lunch looked and smelled good. I was looking for something very light and easy on my stomach. I found a beautiful fresh fruit salad at the Italian restaurant, and some fat free frozen vanilla yogurt with toasted almonds. That hit the spot.

In the evening we met an awesome group of students and their families in Holtville. I hope we see many of them here on campus in Fall 2014!

I woke up early and went for a little walk around the property. It was a lovely morning; the wind had mellowed to a gentle breeze.

Just a touch of sunrise left.

Red cabbage?

More fountains.

I packed up early in the morning to head back to the San Diego airport with another colleague. Starbucks for breakfast again. I tried their Hearty Blueberry Whole Grain Oatmeal – it was really good. This would make a wonderful pre-ride breakfast.

Here’s a summary of my flight home …

Leaving San Diego ...

... up ...

... up ...

... cruising altitude ...

Somewhere over California ...

Bu-bu-bumpiest landing ever!

Home Sweet Home! Looking forward to getting back on my bike!

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

We had a terrific weekend for cycling in Davis – loads of sunshine and warm temperatures, and just a bit o’breeze. The 2014 Napa Valley Tour de Cure is just 7 weeks away, so it’s time to start getting some longer rides in. March Madness is in full swing and I’m now about 2/3 of the way to my goal.

Saturday 80 miles, Davis, Winters, Vacaville, Winters, Davis. We rolled out to Winters on Road 29, out to Vacaville through English Hills and Gibson Canyon, then back to Winters via Pleasants Valley Road, and to Davis by way of Putah Creek Road and the Russell Bike Trail. That was about 68 miles, but I also did about a 12 mile warm up loop.

It was absolutely gorgeous out there, but I did not take a single picture. We got a little bit of a late start and I didn’t want to risk not getting back before dark.

We had a nice rest stop at Steady Eddy’s on our homestretch.

By the time we got home, we were pretty hungry. We had started talking dinner while we were still on the road. Salmon. Asparagus. Salad. That sounded like an awesome plan.

Wild King Salmon.

Roasted Asparagus.

Salad.

Never send me to the store to buy salmon when I am this hungry. I came back with enough salmon to feed an army. Though I bought only two filets, they were huge. As hungry as we were, we could eat only one! We nibbled on the leftovers throughout the day yesterday. For dinner last night, I simply crumbled the last bit on top of a light green salad. It was amazing.

Roasted Avocado

I was craving avocado, but none of my avocados were ripe. At $2.49 each at my local market, there was no way I was going to buy one. I have grilled avocados before, so I wondered about roasting one. It was interesting. Simply cut it in half, remove the pit, drizzle with a little avocado (or olive) oil, season with a little salt, and roast until softened.

This avocado was a little dark on the inside to begin with, so this is not the best photo, but it was very interesting and an idea I’ll try again.

Sunday 44.1 miles, Davis, Winters, Davis … easy spin, recovery ride. It’s a really good thing I didn’t venture further than that …

I stopped at Steady Eddy’s for water and a quick stretch and rest. As I was doing my usual Facebook check in there was a loud BANG! That all too familiar sound of a bike tire exploding just as a large group of cyclists was leaving. They checked their bikes, no flats. Then they started looking at everyone else’s bike to see who the lucky one was. They kept looking at my bike and futzing with it. I walked over to see what was going on and asked why they were looking at my bike, but then they found the exploded tire. Mystery solved. They left happy quite it wasn’t one of theirs.

Oh, dear ... not good.

I stayed a few more minutes, then saw the “lucky” cyclist. I was heading out, but wanted to let him know there’s a bike shop just down the block who could fix him up if he needed it. He wasn’t feeling so lucky.

Well, the luck of the Irish was with me because another cyclist happened to be there when all of the commotion happened and he stopped to tell me that on his way in he noticed this …

I am profoundly grateful that he pointed this out to me. I don’t think this tire would have made it home.

Funny. As I was leaving for my ride, I realized that I did not have my debit card with me, but I didn’t want to turn around and get it. “I’ll be fine! It’s just a quick ride.” I thought. So off I rode with just $39 in my pocket.

The Best Bike Shop in Winters!

So I walked my bike down to Mike’s Velo City Bike Shop in Winters. A while back I had to replace a tire mid-ride and it cost me more than $100. Now wishing I had turned around to get my debit card, I thought I might have to walk my bike home 20+ miles to Davis.

The luck of the Irish was with me. Mike’s Velo City Bike Shop fixed me up with a used tire and got me back on the road for $15.75. I was so, so thankful! I love this bike shop. They’ve helped me out before with minor mid-ride adjustments, flat tires, and other basics like this. I took my Trek in there for a full tune-up a while back and they did an awesome job.

So, a HUGE shout out to Mike’s Velo City Bike Shop in Winters!

Here’s wishing you and yours a very Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! May the luck of the Irish be with you!

Wishing you a rainbow
For sunlight after showers—
Miles and miles of Irish smiles
For golden happy hours—
Shamrocks at your doorway
For luck and laughter too,
And a host of friends that never ends
Each day your whole life through!

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I’m bringing some treats to a team meeting at work tomorrow …

**NEW** Cycling Foodie Bars: Peanut Butter, Honey, & Oats

Whole Grain Apple Coffee Cake

That should help to fuel a productive meeting!

It’s been crazy windy in Davis the past few days. Here’s hoping the wind dies down a bit tomorrow so I can grab an after work ride. I might even try an early morning ride … we’ll see how brave I feel when it’s dark at 6:00 am.

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One of my favorite rainy weather recipes is a Pork and Tomatillo Stew. Similar to a Chili Verde, it is rich and satisfying, but with the pork shoulder (or butt) it’s pretty high in fat. I am craving this flavor, but I want to try to lighten it up a bit.

I contemplated using a different, more lean cut of pork, but I think the only one that would produce a decently tender result would be pork tenderloin. I’m sure it would be wonderful, and someday I will try it when I find it on a super sale, but it felt a little pricey for tonight.

My favorite local market in Davis, Nugget Market, had their free range whole fryer chicken on sale, so I was inspired to try this. One of the guys in the meat department (I am kicking myself for not asking his name because his service was so amazing that I would love to call the store management to tell them this) not only did he take the time to chat with me about what meats might make a reasonable substitute to lighten up my recipe, when I settled on a whole chicken he offered to cut it up for me. Really? I love this store. I am perfectly capable of cutting up a chicken on my own, but it was really nice have it done for me. That gave me a few extra minutes to do other stuff this evening. So, thank you!

Chicken and Tomatillo Stew

One whole chicken, about 4 to 5 pounds
2 tablespoons oil
1 to 1/2 pounds fresh tomatillos
1 bunch green onions
2 cloves fresh garlic
3 or more serrano chiles (how hot do you want it?)
1 red onion, diced
1 7-ounce can green chiles
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bunch fresh cilantro, cleaned and trimmed
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cut the chicken into pieces – you will use the drumsticks, thighs, and breasts for this recipe. Reserve the wings, back, and rib bones for stock. Alternatively, you can just use about 4 pounds of bone-in chicken thighs and/or drumsticks, or about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of boneless chicken breast, or a combination of both. Remove the skin and discard. Cut the breast meat into about 3/4-inch cubes and set aside.

Prepare the tomatillos: remove the husks and discard; rinse and drain the tomatillos. Place in a roasting pan.

Prepare the serranos*: trim the stems and place in the roasting pan with the tomatillos.

Tomatillos, serranos, green onions, & garlic

*How hot do you want this dish? I like it pretty hot, so I use lots of serranos, but I seed all of them. I like the flavor of this pepper, but not the seed.  I always wear gloves whenever handling hot peppers. To seed serranos, you’ll want to remove the stem, then cut them lengthwise in half. Using your finger, remove the seeds and discard.

Prepare the green onions: trim the ends and peel the outer layer. Trim off any of the dark green end that doesn’t look good. This is very subjective, but you will know when you look at the green onions you have. Add to the roasting pan with the tomatillos.

Peel the garlic and add to the roasting pan with the tomatillos.

Place the tomatillos, serranos, green onions, and garlic in the preheated oven and roast until lightly charred. Depending on your oven, you may want to broil these, or even better use your grill to roast them. If you use your grill, you’ll probably want to use a disposable pan.

Brown the drumsticks and thighs

While the tomatillos are roasting:

Rinse the cilantro and set aside to drain.

Heat about 1 tablespoon of the oil in a heavy stock pot. Brown the chicken legs on each side, then remove from the pan. Add the breast meat – depending on the size of your stock pot, you’ll probably want to do this in two additions, adding a little oil (if necessary) between additions. Brown lightly and remove from the pan.

Check on the tomatillos – if they’re ready, remove them from the oven. You’ll want them to cool a bit before putting them in your blender to process.

Foodie confession … I once melted a KitchenAid blender because I did not allow the tomatillos to cool before processing. Please don’t do this – learn from my (expensive) mistake.

If necessary, add a little more oil to the pan, then add the onions and saute until softened.

Cube the chicken breast

Chop the red onion

Briefly saute the chicken

While the onions are cooking, blend the tomatillos, green onion, serranos, and cilantro until smooth.

Return chicken to the pot, then add the blended tomatillo mixture. Give a good stir, but remember that you’ll want the bone-in pieces of chicken (legs & things) to be completely submerged so that they cook fully. Add the dried thyme. Allow to gently simmer for about an hour. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the tomatillo mixture

Give a good stir

I like to serve this over brown rice with warm, fresh tortillas.

This also makes a fantastic topping for a quesadilla or burrito filling.

A dollop of plain fat free Greek yogurt will help to cool the heat if you accidentally make it too spicy for you. It may take a few tries to get just the right heat level for you.

Enjoy!

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I logged only 20.5 March Madness miles this morning. I’ve got lots and lots to day, so there was only time for a short ride. It’s cloudy and breezy out there today, but the air feels clean and delightful! There were a few sprinkles on my ride, but I kind of liked it and it gave me a good excuse to wear my new purple rain jacket.

I’m thinking a pot of Pork & Tomatillo Stew might be in order today. I haven’t made this in a long time and this is perfect weather for it. I’m thinking of ways to lighten it up a bit – it calls for pork shoulder, which has lots of fat. I may try a different cut of pork, something much leaner, or even chicken. Hmm …

Well, I’ve got lots and lots to do today, so I’d better get moving.

Have a great day! I hope you get some cycling in.

 

The 2014 Napa Valley Tour de Cure will be here before we know it!

Have you registered yet?

Join me – it’s a wonderful ride for a great cause!

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Start your holidays with a super healthy green smoothie!

Baby Kale, Kiwi, Banana, Mango, Oats, Whey Protein

This year’s menu is going to be a little different – a little heart-healthier and lighter – but it will still be festive and delicious!

Pork Tenderloin with a Port-Cherry Sauce
Roasted Yams
Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Baby Greens Salad with Organic Apples, Spicy Candied Pecans,  & Honey Mustard Vinaigrette

Dessert may be a low-sugar & low-fat orange curd with blackberries. That is, IF my curd sets. I used half sugar & half Monk Fruit. I used one whole egg and replaced the other with egg whites (the ready-to-use kind you get in a carton). The juice of 1 1/2 Cara Cara oranges and one lemon, plus the zest … it tastes OK, we’ll see how it sets when it cools. I’m not 100% sure about the taste of the Monk Fruit yet. I need to play with this a bit more. I tried using 100% Monk Fruit in the last batch of curd I made and it was dreadful. We’ll see how it is with 1/2 sugar & 1/2 Monk Fruit.

If the curd does not set, I’ll have to figure out a way to use it as a sauce for something.

Here’s wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I’ll have limited Internet access, but will do my best to get a few posts in here and there.

Please be SAFE – remember – NO drinking and driving!

P.S. Santa brought me a very cool new helmet! A Rudy Project Technically Cool and super comfy green/blue helmet – it’s like the one that one of the cycling teams wears that every time I see it I say, “I have to find one of those!” And, it will go great with the Ireland jersey Santa brought me last year!

Thanks, Santa! You’re the BEST! I’m looking forward to riding with you again soon!!

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I’m looking for some lighter recipes these year, so I’m playing around with meringues. These are based on a recipe by Emeril Legasse’s  “Forgotten Kisses.” His recipe reminded me of a childhood favorite that a neighborhood mom used to make; she called them “Forgotten Cookies” because she left them in the oven overnight. As I recall, she left them in a 200-degree oven, but my memory may not be serving me correctly. The technique I used was based on this article from Fine Cooking.

Here’s my version:

2 extra large egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
2/3 cup super fine sugar*
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Very, very close to stiff peaks.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Separate the eggs while cold and set the yolks aside and refrigerate for another use. Set the whites in your mixing bowl – make sure the bowl is very, very clean because even a tiny amount of fat will prevent the whites from properly whipping up. To ensure that you achieve the best volume, allow the egg whites to come to room temperature. Using your whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until foamy, then add the cream of tartar. Whip to blend, then add the sugar about 3 tablespoons at a time. When you’ve added about half the sugar, add the peppermint extract. Whip to combine, then add the remaining sugar in several additions. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes glossy and forms stiff peaks.

Gently fold in the chocolate chips.

Ready to scoop.

Scoop onto a parchment lined baking sheet, using either two spoons or a small portioning scoop. Depending on the size of your scoop, this can make up to 48 small cookies.

Place in the preheated even and turn the temperature off.

Place baking sheets in the oven and turn the oven off. Leave them undisturbed for at least two hours, or overnight. I found that after two hours they were quite lovely, but the inside was not quite dry yet, so I’ll be leaving mine in the oven overnight.

These are very sweet. I want to find a way to make them a bit less sugary, so you’ll probably be seeing a few more versions here until I get them just the way I want them.

After two hours ... the center was still a little moist.

* You don’t need to spend extra for “super fine” sugar – simply pulse regular granulated sugar in a food processor for a few seconds.