Cycling Foodie

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It is an absolutely gorgeous morning in Davis! I am realizing that this may be the last week that I’ll get to ride before work. Alas, it’s back to the gym … next week. Enjoy this beautiful day! I hope you get the chance to ride.

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What the ... ?

Fighting the wind today along Tremont Road, heading away from Davis towards Winters, I looked down and saw this …

It was windy, and I was cranky and not enjoying the ride too much today, so I was especially delighted and amused by this sight. I welcomed the excuse to stop for a moment to investigate.

Lotsa' Wild Watermelons!

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Huevos Rancheros, sort of … 

Fried Eggs with Salsa Verde

Heat 2 corn tortillas on a cast iron griddle. Top the warm tortillas with a little cheddar cheese and leave on the griddle on low. Warm some salsa verde, either in the microwave or on the stove on low heat. Fry two eggs to your desired doneness. Top each tortilla with one fried egg, then spoon a little salsa over top.

How good were these? They were gone before I even had the chance to mix my own breakfast together. Hmm … I have a feeling these will be requested again.

My New Favorite Pre-Ride Breakfast …

My Special Blend

Place a handful of whole rolled oats in your bowl, then add about 1/2 cup of Trader Joe’s High Fiber O’s*. Spoon over two tablespoons of Qi’a and stir together. Serve with non-fat milk. This blend sits well in my belly during even the most rigorous ride and keeps me full for a long time. I happen to like how it tastes, too, because it’s not too sweet.

*A few months ago Trader Joe’s discontinued this product. I was so unhappy about that that I wrote to corporate! It is back on the shelves now, so apparently I am not the only one who missed it. It’s healthy, has a good blend of protein and fiber, and is loaded with heart healthy whole grains.

Qi’a  is an interesting blend of Chia, Buckwheat, and Hemp Cereal. I recently discovered this at Costco. The Cranberry Vanilla blend is a nice addition because it adds a little sweetness, 6 grams of protein, 4 grams of fiber, and 1.9 grams of omega-3’s.

Now you’re all set for a great ride!

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Along Road 29 between Davis and Woodland

I had a nice little ride today, 46.6 miles. The air is much better today, but there was still a bit of haze. It was a beautiful morning and I had a very lovely surprise a few miles into my ride. Tomatoes are being harvested, and the fields are being cleared. I heard it was a bumper crop this year. I rode past field after field of drying corn and sunflowers, and then just when I thought the sunflowers were done blooming for the year, I happened upon this lovely surprise!

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To follow-up on last night’s post, here are the recipes you’ll need to make these fajitas.

Fajitas

Not to toot my own horn, or anything, but I was told that these were the BEST fajitas ever.

Grilled Flank Steak (recipe follows – best if you start to marinate the night before)

Salsa Verde (recipe follows)

1 red onion, sliced into strips

1 bell pepper, sliced into strips

1 avocado

8-12 shiitake mushrooms

1 package Artisan-style corn tortillas (I used blue corn tortillas here)

To assemble the fajitas:

1. Prepare the salsa.
2. While the salsa is cooking on the stove, grill the flank steak.
3. Prepare the mushrooms for grilling. Rinse them well and allow to drain a few moments. Then skewer them, drizzle with a little olive oil, and grill.
4. While the steak and mushrooms are grilling, slice the onions and peppers.
5. For medium rare steak, cook until about 130 degrees. It is very important that you allow the meat to rest about 10 minutes before slicing. If you slice it too soon, the juices will run out of the meat and it will be dry.
6. While the meat is resting, cook the onions and peppers in a hot cast iron skillet. You can cook them together, but since I cannot eat bell peppers, we had to cook them separately. You want the onions to caramelize a bit, but not get too soft. The peppers, you’ll want to get a little char on them, but be careful to not overcook them. They can very quickly go from bright, colorful, and tender-crisp to overcooked. Remove from the heat, cover and keep warm.
7. While the onions and peppers are cooking, cut the avocado into slices or bite-sized chunks.
8. Heat the tortillas either on the grill or in a cast iron pan.
9. Thinly slice the meat. Thinly slice the mushrooms.
10. To assemble your fajitas, place a corn tortilla on a plate, then top with a few slices of the steak, some onions and peppers, mushrooms, avocado, and a generous dollop of salsa.
11. Chew, savor, smile, swallow, smile, repeat.

Shiitake Mushrooms

Red Onions

Bell Peppers

Grilled Flank Steak with Lime, Cilantro, & Serrano Chili

Marinated Flank Steak

2 limes, freshly squeezed
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1-2 tablespoons of agave nectar
1 large serrano chile pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 pound flank steak
salt and pepper to taste

1. Whisk together the lime juice, cilantro, agave nectar, and chile pepper in a bowl. If you want more heat, then leave all or part of the serrano seeds. I prefer to seed chiles.
2. Lightly salt and pepper the flank steak and place into a zipper bag. Pour in the marinade.
3. Refrigerate and marinade at least a few hours or up to about 24 hours.
4. Remove from the refrigerator no more than 30 minutes before grilling.
5. Grill to desired doneness (I like medium rare, at most), which for beef is about 130 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Remove from grill and let sit for about 10 minutes before slicing.
7. Thinly slice against the grain.

Roasting tomatillos, serranos, & onions.

Salsa Verde

1-1/2 pounds of fresh tomatillos
1 bunch green onion
4 (or more) large serrano chile peppers
A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro leaves
salt and pepper to taste

1. Husk the tomatillos, rinse well, and set to drain in a colander.
2. Trim off the root end and about half of the green stem of the onions.
3. Cut off the stem end of the chile, slice in half length-wise, and scrape out the seeds.
4. Rinse the cilantro well, drain, and strip the leaves off the stems. Place the leaves on a towel to drain well.
5. Place the tomatillos, green onions, and serranos in a roasting pan, and drizzle with a little olive oil.
6. You can roast the tomatillos, green onions, and serranos on a grill or under a broiler. You’ll want to get a bit of char on them for flavor, but not too much.
7. The tomatillos are ready when they’re softened and a little bit charred. Remove from the grill or oven and set aside to cool a bit. You don’t want to try to process them while they’re piping hot. I destroyed a blender one time by not waiting. It was a very sad and expensive culinary discovery that my KitchenAid blender was no match for piping hot tomatillos. It melted the base! Very sad, indeed.
8. For this amount of salsa, you’ll want to blend it in 3-4 batches. It doesn’t really have to be evenly distributed per batch at this point because it’s all going to end up in one skillet to cook.
9. Cook on medium-high heat until the mixture begins to bubble, then reduce the heat to low. You’ll want to stir frequently to avoid scorching the bottom. I cook it until it’s slightly thickened, but still a pretty green color. The color will vary a lot from batch to batch due to the natural variation in tomatillos, how much char you have on them, and how long you cook the sauce.
10. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

This salsa is really easy and incredibly good either hot or cold. I love it on grilled chicken, carnitas, with rice, with tortilla chips, on eggs … it is am incredibly versatile sauce.

My fajitas, no bell peppers!

The Final Product!

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Coming soon …Fajitas.

... with peppers ...

and without!

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I got a few good rides in this weekend. They were shorter, but more … intense? I think I need to mix things up a little more. Some long, paced rides. Some shorter, faster rides. Some intervals. Definitely more hills.

I also made some good food this weekend, but my camera isn’t working very well, so no photos.

I’ve got a long, busy week ahead of me, and more stuff to do before sleep tonight, so … Good Night Friends!

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Sunrise on a Davis Greenbelt

I have been so busy lately, that I’ve been neglecting CyclingFoodie. I’ve been riding almost every day:  every morning before work and weekends.

Just lots of stuff going on, some fun, lots of work, and some just stuff.

There is only time for a quick post this morning, because I’ve got to get going for work, but I wanted to share a couple of photos from this morning’s ride.

Morning scene from a Davis country road.

It’s not supposed to get too hot today, and there will be a “gentle Delta Breeze,” so for those of you who don’t like the heat for cycling, today is for you! I hope you have the chance to get out and ride today!

Here’s wishing you a beautiful day!

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We’ve had some beautiful cycling weather here in Davis the past few mornings. I got a lovely little pre-work jaunt in this morning and it was perfect! A lovely sunrise, cool temperatures, not too dry, not too humid, and a gentle breeze. Yesterday morning was about the same, and I also got a quick post-work ride in after work last night. I wish I had stopped to take some photos, but I need to maximize my ride time right now.

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Yesterday I rode from Napa almost to Healdsburg and back for a total of 87.6 miles. Originally I had planned a century ride, but got a bit of a late start because my alarm didn’t go off in the morning. That’s OK; 87.6 miles turned out to be just enough yesterday. I rode a modified Napa Valley Tour de Cure route: starting from Luna Vineyards up the Silverado Trail to Calistoga, then up Hwy 128 to the Jimtown Store for lunch, then back.

The ride from Napa up the Valley on the Silverado Trail was, as always, beautiful. The day started a little chilly, and the breeze was a little more than expected, but for the most part not too bad on the way to Calistoga. I discovered a great place to stop in Calistoga for a quick break – the Sharpsteen Museum. There was a spot of shade to have a snack, a water fountain, and a clean restroom.

I haven’t been riding hills much recently, and haven’t really done any since the Napa Valley Tour de Cure, so the hills on Hwy 128 between Calistoga and Healdsburg were just right. These are confidence building hills and I think I rode pretty steadily on them yesterday. I’m not going to win any races, but that’s not why I ride.

Lunch at the Jimtown Store …

Icy cold and refreshing!

Upscale PB&J …

Perfect!

This fueled me almost all the way back to Napa. I did stop once and grab a quick gel at about 77 miles. The menu at the Jimtown Store looks beautiful, but that foodie adventure will have to wait for a day when I’m not cycling. I eat pretty light when I ride: carbs, a little protein and very little fat.

By the time I got back to the Silverado Trail in Calistoga, the winds had kicked up a bit and I fought a headwind pretty much the entire way down Valley back to the car. I was hoping to get back to the car in time to stop in and pick up a bottle of wine at Luna Vineyards, but the ride back took longer than expected. I got there moments after the last guests were leaving and they had already closed out the register for the day. Oh, well. This is an excuse to head back another day!