A Climbers Blog

Personal sized Spinach Chicken Pizza

2011-09-01T15:33:00.000-07:00

Really simple, and really good for you.

Ingredients:

Flatbread

Marinara Sauce

Basil

Feta cheese

Tomato

Onion

Chicken

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 375 and cook for 10-15 min.

Its pretty easy to do really. Put your marinara sauce on the flatbread and add the rest of your ingredients.

Squash Spaghetti

2011-09-01T15:30:00.000-07:00

You are probably thinking Spaghetti with out noodles?!?! Your freaking crazy.. Your also probably thinking. Squash as noodles, you have lost your freaking mind. Well maybe I have.... Actually, I'm pretty sure I have. But in any case. I made this dish last night and was really impressed with how it turned out. I did question the squash as a replacement for the noodles though. As a professional chef, it feel the key ingredients to making a good dish, is to stay open minded. So open minded I was and made this delicous squash spagetti. So go ahead and give it a try. I know you will like it. O and if you don't I will kill you (only kidding)

Ingredients:

1 Lb ground grass-fed beef. (the fattier the better);
2 tbsp butter, lard, tallow or duck fat;
1/4 cup chopped bacon;
1 large onion, chopped and diced;
3 cloves garlic, minced;
3 carrots, diced;
2 celery sticks, diced;
2 tsp dried oregano;
2 tbsp tomato paste;
1 bay leaf;
The equivalent of 2 cans whole meaty tomatoes;
Optional heavy cream (makes the sauce less acidic);
Optional salt and pepper to taste;
Fresh parsley for garnishing.

Technique:

Heat a large dutch oven or pot and add cooking fat. You can use less fat if your ground beef is fatty, but it’s really a question of taste. Cook the ground beef and bacon for about 5 minutes.
Remove the meat with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Use the same dutch oven or pot to cook the other ingredients (carrots, celery, onion, garlic and oregano). Cook the vegetables until soft at medium heat.
Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, ground beef, bacon and bay leaf. You can break the tomatoes a bit, but the cooking process will break anyway.
Optional: season with salt and pepper. You can also add some chili or hot pepper flakes for more heat.
Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 45 minutes.
In the mean time, heat your oven to 350 F.
Cut your spaghetti squashes in half length-wise, remove and discard the seeds.
Put the halves cut side down on a baking sheet and put in the oven for about 28 to 35 minutes. Check on them at around 25 minutes with a fork. It should easily break in strands to form pastas. Make sure not to overcook them because they will become mushy and won’t make pastas.
Once your bolognese sauce is cooked, you can add about 1/2 cup to a cup of heavy cream. This will make the sauce less acidic.
You can now pour a generous amount of the sauce directly on the squashes halves so that it forms its own bowl or you can break the squashes in strands yourself and serve on a plate with the sauce.
As a final touch, when you put the sauce directly on the squash half, you can add some grated pastured and grass-fed cheese on top and broil in the oven for about 5 minutes. This is completely optional and only do this if you consume cheese.
Garnish with fresh parsley and enjoy!

Chicken Fajitas

2011-09-01T15:27:00.000-07:00

INGREDIENTS

3 lbs chicken breast, cut in thin strips;
3 bell peppers;
3 onions, sliced;
2 tbsp oregano, chili powder, cumin and coriander;
6 chopped garlic cloves;
Juice of 5 lemons;
4 tbsp cooking fat (coconut oil, tallow or ghee are excellent here);
Butter lettuce to serve;
You choice of toppings: diced tomatoes, fermented pickles, sauerkraut, sliced avocados, salsa, guacamole, mayonnaiseand/or salsa verde;

PREPARATION

Combine the chicken, bell peppers, onions, spices, garlic and lemon juice in a bowl and mix well;
If preparing ahead of time, let marinate in the refrigerator for about 4 hours.
When ready to cook, heat a large skillet on medium heat and cook the whole preparation with the cooking fat until the chicken is cooked through and the onion and bell pepper are soft.
Put the hot chicken preparation in a large bowl and let the people prepare their own fajitas on top of lettuce leaves with their favorite toppings.

Brown Sug Salmon

2011-09-01T15:22:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds salmon fillets
lemon pepper to taste
garlic powder to taste
salt to taste
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Directions

Season salmon fillets with lemon pepper, garlic powder, and salt.
In a small bowl, stir together soy sauce, brown sugar, water, and vegetable oil until sugar is dissolved. Place fish in a large resealable plastic bag with the soy sauce mixture, seal, and turn to coat. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Preheat grill for medium heat.
Lightly oil grill grate. Place salmon on the preheated grill, and discard marinade. Cook salmon for 6 to 8 minutes per side, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork.

Note:

I only allowed the fish to marinate for a half hour, and the fish turned out just fine.

I also didn't have time to cook on the grill. What I did was baked the fish at 450 degrees for 12 minutes, then broiled it for another 5.

Spicy Thai Chicken with Red Bell Peppers and Peanuts

2011-09-01T15:19:00.000-07:00

I have found a love for cooking Thai food. I do not know what it is about it, but the flavor comes are fantastic.

Ingredients

1/3 cup olive oil
2 large red bell peppers, seeded, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
3 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 14- to 16-ounce package extra-firm tofu, drained well, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 green onions, thinly sliced on diagonal
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1 6-ounce bag baby spinach leaves
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1/3 cup lightly salted roasted peanuts

Preparation

Heat oil in wok over high heat. Add bell peppers, ginger, and garlic; sauté until peppers just begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Add tofu and green onions; toss 2 minutes. Add next 3 ingredients. Toss to blend, about 1 minute. Add spinach in 3 additions, tossing until beginning to wilt, about 1 minute for each addition. Mix in basil. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle peanuts over.

Double Chocolate Cookies

2011-09-01T15:14:00.000-07:00

These came out tasting awesome, but they were super dry and feel apart rather easy.

Ingredents:

1 cup almond butter
1 tbsp melted butter, coconut oil
1 egg
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
2 tsp vanilla extract
a pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees.

2. Mix all ingredients well together in a bowl.

3. Scoop out pieces of dough about 1 tbsp in size and press them on a baking sheet in the shape of a cookie. The cookies won't expand or change shape when cooked.

4. Place in oven to bake for 12 minutes, or until just cooked.

Whole Grain Pancakes with Wild Blueberry-Maple Syrup

2011-09-01T13:16:00.000-07:00

I thought I would make some some what healthy pancakes for breakfast, but my girlfriend and I never had time in the morning since we work different schedules. We just turned breakfast into dinner.

Ingredients:

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 cup frozen wild blueberries
2 cups whole grain complete pancake and waffle mix
2 cups buttermilk
6 tablespoons wheat germ
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter

Preparation:

Boil 1 cup syrup and blueberries in heavy medium saucepan until reduced to generous 1 cup, about 13 minutes. Cool to lukewarm.

Meanwhile, combine pancake mix, next 4 ingredients and 2 tablespoons maple syrup in medium bowl and whisk to blend (batter will be thick).

Melt 1 tablespoon butter on griddle or in 2 large nonstick skillets over medium heat. Drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto griddle or skillets and quickly spread with back of spoon into 3- to 4-inch rounds. Cook pancakes until brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to plates. Repeat with remaining butter and batter. Serve with syrup.

TEST-KITCHEN TIP: If you can't find whole-grain baking mix, substitute 2 cups whole wheat flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 egg whites.

Banana Ice Cream

2011-08-31T19:57:00.000-07:00

If you are watching your figure and craving ice cream this is the solution, and it is really simple to make. All you need to do is freeze a few banana's put them in a food processor with a little milk to start it off. Start the process and slowly add milk to your liking then stop once it thickens up. This is super healthy and super good!

2010-05-25T03:55:00.001-07:00

"One does not climb to attain enlightenment, rather one climbs because he is enlightened." — Zen Master Futomaki.

Hangboard training

2010-05-24T19:43:00.000-07:00

Now, I will give you the training that I'm doing on my hangboard. I don't have one set for any specific purpose, but I feel after the years of experience sets in I'll be able to map out my own training program. As of right now, I'm doing a 10 minute sequence training guide by Metolius. I'm currently doing the intermediate guide. Intermediate:

Time (minutes) Task

1st minute 15 second hang,
3 pull-ups, Large Edge

2nd minute 2 pull ups, Round Sloper
20 second hang, Medium Edge

3rd minute 20 second hang, Small Edge
15 second 90º bent arm hang,Pocket

4th minute 30 second hang, Round Sloper

5th minute 20 second hang, Large Edge
4 pull-ups, Pocket

6th minute 3 offset pulls each arm (high arm jug, low arm small hold),
Jug/Small Edge
Change hands and repeat

7th minute 15 knee raises, Jug
15 second hang, Medium Edge

8th minute 25 second hang, Medium Edge

9th minute 15 second hang, Slope
3 pull-ups, Jug

10th minute Hang as long as you can, Round Sloper