Quality vs Quantity

You'll find the best quality Meats and Fish at

McCAll's Meat and Fish Co.

And you'll leave with a really cute bag filled will amazingly delicious treats.

This bag had the prettiest piece of Salmon and a split Marrow Bone.

Some of you know that salmon is my least favorite fish.

I have the hardest time finding High Quality, FRESH salmon, so I am usually turned off by salmon...

If Salmon is even a hint low rent

it tastes and smells like broke-down-stripper-a**!

And it's usually hard to tell if you're really getting good salmon because, just like "broke-down-stripper a**", many sins can be covered with good lighting and all kinds of other smoke and mirrors...you can't always tell till it's too late.

I was in the neighborhood today

visiting the gang at A Runners Circle to pick up my "Potty Like a Rock Star Pass", courtesy of Brooks, for the The Los Angeles Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon when the gang from Heartbeat House called me and asked if I could teach the 4pm Contemporary Dance Class.

I had been thinking of grabbing marrow bones from McCall's

for the last 3 weeks

but time and traffic just hadn't been on my side.

Today was my lucky day!

I was going to have a little extra cash in hand from teaching the class

so I had to go to McCall's.

I was really craving a piece of fish for dinner tonight.

I was feeling hopeful and was praying that they'd have the best of both worlds:

Marrow bones

and

Fish

and they did!

Even though Salmon rarely makes me smile,

I was smiling the moment I saw it in the display case...the skin looked so good.

Sorry there is no pic of the skin

I toasted it and ate it before taking the pic...what can I say, I have no restraint.

I had to keep it simple

Crisped up some of my favorite ingredients

Placed the pretty fish on top

and baked it at 325degress with a sprinkle of flake salt and freshly ground pepper.

I forgot to take a pictures after adding the heirloom tomatoes

they were baked with the fish

Served the fish over Jade Pearl Rice

and sprinkled with fresh chives

Topped it off with one of my favorite Cavas

which I picked up from my all time favorite boutique wine shop

Silverlake Wine

A perfect meal for the evening before a 1/2 Marathon

Cheers!

: )

What is your favorite meal the night before a big run?

BTW

The Salmon was

AMAZING!

I wish I saved some for breakfast!

How to Make Chicken Soup Even Better...

Poach an egg in it and serve it over crisped toast

Dont forget to rub the bread with a little bit of butter and garlic
and make it extra crispy

Makes the perfect "Breakfast of Champions", mid day snack, lunch, or if you're like me, dinner!

I love eggs for dinner!

What are your favorite random snacks that you think work great no matter what time of day or night?

Chicken Soup

What to do with the bones after baking

Chicken with tons of garlic and onions?

Make chicken stock for the most wonderfully rich Chicken Soup

Just put the bones in a pot with a bunch of onions, celery, garlic, salt and pepper.

Let simmer till the water is barely covering the goodies.

Strain

Discard the limp veggies

Add fresh chopped yellow onions, whole cloves of garlic, celery, carrots, and chicken breasts

Add more water to cover all the goodies

 Simmer till you're happy with it

Add a bottle of wine from Anne's Boutique Wines

and you've got a perfect meal for a rainy evening

Nothing more to say except that it tasted even better today!

Stay tuned to see what we did with it tonight!

Please share what you think makes an amazing chicken soup.

: )

Garlic Chicken, Carmelized Onions, Fresh Vegetable Pasta, and Ghetto Garlic Bread

Amazingly Easy Sunday Dinner
with lots of garlic and onions

5 Bulbs of Garlic, 5 Yellow Onions, 3 Carrots, 4 Stalks of Celery,

and some Rosemary from the Garden
That's pretty much all I had in my vegetable drawers and bowls so I decided to put them to work

Had a 1/2 of stick of butter so why not chop up 3 cloves of garlic,
mix it with the butter, then spread it on the chicken
Got the chicken at 99Ranch for $0.69 a pound for their
Anaheim Location Anniversary Celebration

I'm a little frightened to think of where it came from and how it was raised

but wow was it fresh and delicious

Couldn't figure which was a better view

Mmm, baking at 350 degrees and getting crispy

Done
and ready for eating

Gotta have the freshly grated Parmesan for the pasta
there is no better tool than the Microplane-Everyone should have one!

Plating it Up!

Hey, Chicken, the caramelized onions are waiting to meet you at the table

along with the "Ghetto Gourmet" garlic bread

Dinner is Served
How many bottles do two people need for one simple dinner

As you can see, there is work looming in the background
Mondays usually begin at the studio at 6am, that means I have to get on the road by 4:30am to drive from Anaheim to Glendale-had to get their programs finished and printed for the early morning

But work would not keep me from enjoying a wonderful meal
Fuel the Body. Fuel the Mind

Notice the addition of the caramelized onions?
They were amazing! 

Looks like Mister Andrew C enjoyed the meal too
What better way to finish off a great meal
than with some Nutella and Pan DeLeche!

I chose to skip dessert...I prefer savory snacks for dessert and sweets at breakfast time

Here's lunch for tomorrow!

I'll post the pasta dish at a later time.

It's filled with tons of fresh mushrooms, carrots, spinach, roasted tomatoes, onions, and garlic!

Mmmmm,
this dinner made it possible to make 3 completely different meals.
Stay tuned
: )

You Get What You Give

New Post on the

Controlled Burn Fitness Blog

"Give your body tragic looking crap your body will deliver the same..."

Warning, this is more of a rant/scolding than an article, but I am certain many of you can relate
Read More

Your comments are encouraged

Thanks for Reading

-Melissa Adylia Gutierrez

Owner/Personal Trainer

Controlled Burn Fitness

The typing behind Disciplined Indulgence

Check out the Latest "Breathtaking Hike"

A Breathtaking Hike in More Ways than One

Posted on

The

Controlled Burn Fitness

Blog

I'd love to hear about your favorite hiking/running trails.

: )

Enjoy!

Presentation is be Everything (Sometimes)

Not every meal at "Chez Calazans" is labor intensive

Sometimes, it's good to keep it simple.

It leaves time for more delicious activities.

Glasses of refreshing Sancere from Silverlake Wine, paired with cherries, brie, toasted whole grain "Seeduction" bread from Whole Foods, lean ham from Whole Foods, and the best Homemade Beef Jerky from the best massage therapist around, Mister David Iler.

(yes, he is a friend and client...don't think that I'm easy on him just because he brings the most amazing jerky or that I'm just saying he's an amazing massage therapist...he is! )

When you're too tired to cook, this is a simple and elegant way to fuel yourself after a long day and also make your evening and your loved one feel special.

Cheers!

: )

19 Pomegranates...Now What?

Over a week ago, I was given 19 pomegranates

See them on the left of the picture? I dreaded the mess, but really wanted to get to those tasty seeds.

They sat and mocked me for ages as I had mentioned in my last post

 They were given to me from my dear friend Tina Heinz

on the day went to the Fullerton Arboretum

check out Tina next to the amazing cacti!

What to do? What to do?

Take out the seeds!

I read somewhere to submerge the pomegranate under water

It really did make a difference to avoid making my kitchen look like a crime scene

Check out all the seeds!

The measuring cup holds 4 cups and so does the bowl on the right.  The bowl on the left holds a bit more.

Any suggestions on what I should do with the Chayotes in the top left corner?

Andrew's favorite quinoa got a refreshing new spin

Fresh pomegranate seeds in quinoa

with black lentils, dried cherries, and cashews.

A perfect fall dish that can be enjoyed as a healthy meal, hearty snack, or side dish. It goes great with a roasted chicken or pork loin.

I had to make juice!

Who knew that the seeds wouldn't get mashed up in the food processor...ugg, lots of straining, and straining, and straining...these suckers are a pain in the a**!

Oh, so worth it!

Let me tell you, fresh pomegranate juice tastes nothing like that sour/bitter cr*p you get in the cute little bottle

This juice was refreshing, tangy, and absolutely delicious!

I got over 5 large wine glasses full of juice

after using plenty of seeds for meals and snacks

Can't wait to get more!

What are your favorite ways to enjoy pomegranates?

Kelly, Thanks for the Champagne! : )

There is something about Champagne and something spicy

that makes an ordinary evening something special.

Andrew and I received a beautiful bottle Champagne

from my dear friend and client Kelly

(owner of The Pilates Body)

in honor of our recent engagement.

I'm a sucker for Champagne

and I cannot resist making some of Andrew's Favorites for dinner.

On this evening I asked if he wanted spicy shrimp with noodles or rice, his answer:

Yes

Instead of making him choose

I made both

with lots of crunchy fresh cabbage, onions, and carrots, along with some steamed peas.

Topped with Spicy shrimp

with red chili flakes, onions, garlic, and shallots

Don't forget, the blog does say:

"Taking Terrible Pictures of Beautiful Food While Living a Happy, Healthy, and Balanced Life."

Bring on the Bubbly!

The Table is set

(and 19 pomegranates mock me)

: /

Please excuse the mess

It was a week night  and I still had several programs to type up for clients

Mmmm, the hot noodles topped with fresh goodies

The noodles next to the rice topped with the shrimp

Thanks Kelly!

Cheers!

: )

Magic Tuna?

"Magic Tuna" isn't really magic

and it doesn't come out of this totally cute can

But it really is good, good for you, and tastes great!

As the Owner/Personal Trainer of The Controlled Burn Fitness Studio

it is may passion to share with my clients that health and fitness go hand in hand with what we eat.

My dear client and great friend Kelly Turgeman...

...is the Owner of  The Pilates Body in Glendale...

We find ourselves talking about food quite often when I'm kicking her booty in a Personal Training Session.

We both know the importance of a meal that will fuel our body to endure intense workouts; but both of us don't have much time between clients to prepare an elaborate meal; we also know how hard it is to workout if a meal leaves us feeling stuffed, heavy, bloated, and uncomfortable; and we both love fresh and delicious meals that have flavor and are good to eat at any time of the day or night.

So what does the above have to do with "Magic Tuna"?

Since Kelly and I are committed to include delicious, balanced meals that will  nutritionally fuel/replenish our body to to help us stay focused and energized throughout the day and during our workouts, it's no wonder that we both came up with our own version of a dish that includes tuna and many similar ingredients.

That's where the Magic Tuna comes in

and this is how my "Magic Tuna" begins.

Yes, a can of ghetto tuna, which can be purchased at Target for cheaper than anywhere other than Costco.

The large bowl is filled with 3 stalks of diced celery, a diced English cucumber (sometimes a whole one if I am out of celery-sometimes a half), and some chopped purple cabbage.

Kelly likes to put curry and other delicious spices in her recipe. I love curry in mine too, along with red onions and all the other goodies, but then my clients wouldn't really like me if I ate that before seeing them.

She also puts a bit of a "Mediterranean" spin on hers too. When you visit her at The Pilates Body, ask her for her recipe.

There is

NO SHAME

when it comes to my love and use of

MAYO!

"Magic Tuna"

and egg salad are the only things I use mayo for, since I rarely ever eat sandwiches, and what else is mayo good for anyway?

I usually put 1 big tablespoon in mine, then mix it up along with some salt and freshly groun pepper.

Kelly HATES mayo...not for any dietary reasons, she just thinks it's gross so she sometimes uses plain Greek yogart (yum!)

I love to serve it with a few slices of toasted Millet and Rice Mana Bread

So, getting to the point
"Magic Tuna" got it's name over the years of training Kelly. Some days she would come in with such amazing energy and she was unstoppable. I began to see a pattern when I looked at her charts-I always ask about my clients meals to see how their energy level and mental clarity are affected by their food choices.
On the days where she completely kicked A**, she had eaten some tuna salad.
I told her how when I make my tuna salad, I have the best days too.
We started calling it "Magic Tuna" after that.

I would love to hear about the "Magic Dish" that helps you stay fueled, focused and ready to work hard.

Wishing you a Happy and Healthy Day!
-Melissa

"The Love of My Life"

Before there was Andrew

there was

"The Love of My Life"

No, not the car...

...the yellow kayak on top.

: )

I love my kayak so much, I even wrote a love letter to it

(sad, I know)

Originally written 3/4/2009

My Kayak,

I love you.

It's been about a year since we first met after a great dinner at Bashan.
I came to you in 4 inch heels and took you that night, never to be used again by Jet Set Playboy, though he's eyed you many times since.
You are the most exciting and physically pleasurable relationship I have ever had.
You are good to me.
You understand me and are so responsive.
You've been there for me whenever I have wanted you.
You respond to my whim and are ready to be tied up (to the top of my car) and paddled (I'm still talking "kayaking", people) at a moments notice.
I've gotten you dirty and didn't clean you up; left you out in the rain; used you multiple time in 24 hours for my pleasure with no regard for your needs, and still, you are there for me.
You make me feel good.
You make my body feel amazing.
You make my body look amazing.
You make me happy.
You make me feel proud, capable, impressive.
You always feel good no matter where I put my legs...in you, around you, on top of you...you're a great ride no matter what.
We enjoy the gentle and slow times as much as when it's rough.
How I've loved the days where my face, arms and chest are left with a salty glow after we've spent hours in the sun, sweaty, panting, and stroking till exhaustion...I keep coming to get you, so you can take me to where I love to go...to get wet in the sunshine and to make my muscles ripple and glisten...oh, how I love it when they all watch, sometimes cheering at me "faster, c'mon on, faster...damn, she's fast, she looks good".
You are there for me when I am happy.
You've been there for me when I've been sad, hungover, tired, confused.
Some have come to heckle you, try to tell me that you are not good enough for me, that I need something that looks better, is faster, more powerful.
They don't know.
We've bonded over rough seas, quiet sunrises and sunsets.
You've taken me to meet some wonderful people.
You've still taken care of me even when I've neglected to bring protection (stay with me people, I'm still talking about kayaking, ya know, sometimes I forget my spray skirt and PFD), and when I've made you take it from behind when it's been too big...I know, I know, I have to remember, you're not designed to take the big stuff from behind...you still ride it well and you make me feel safe when we take it there.
I cannot get enough of you and know that we will spend many more glorious times together and I look forward to them.

With love,
M

Thank goodness the kayak doesn't have a jealous streak

becuase since I've found Andrew

even "The Love of My Life" cannot compare.

: )

Time to hit the water!