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!

Happy Wine for a Happy Dinner

Friday, September 30th

Happy Wine from a Happy Friend to Celebrate a Happy Engagement Enjoyed with a Happy "Dinner and A Movie Night at Chez Calasanz"

On Thursday, September 30th, 2010, the wonderful gang from

A Runners Circle

threw a little party after the Thursday night Fun Run for the two of us in celebration of our recent Engagement.

Notice the devilish gal in the background?

That's Tricia. 

She's a hoot! The Hostess with the most-est! And she is the one who inspired our Friday dinner by sending us home with two bottles of wine that evening.

Feel free to check out more pics from the night at A Runners Circle.

Started making dressing for the salads.

I use avocados as the base for my dressing.

They are an excellent way to get your good fats, fiber,

and delicious flavor to stick to your lettuces.

And yes, I freshly grind my pepper for all of our meals.

Chopping some radicchio, purple cabbage, and radishes. 

 Add as much natural color to a salad (or any meal for that matter) to ensure that you are getting a variety of flavors, textures, and nutrients.

Plus, all those colors make any meal look pretty snazzy.

: )

See

Notice the 5 Favorite Ingredients in the background?

: )

I could look at this colorful salad all day.

What do you love to put in your salads?

 I wasn't joking about the "Happy Wine"

How can you not smile with a bottle smiling back at you

and a table full of colorful goodness

 

: )

The Menu

Spicy Garlic/Ginger Shrimp over Jade Pearl Rice and Steamed Spinach

Served with Baby Romain lettuce salad with fresh carrots, cabbage, radish, tomatoes, radicchio, and avocado dressing

Andrew is in charge of all the heavy lifting in our house

The glass on the left is filled with Barley Tea

The one on the right is the Happy Wine

: )

 Thanks Andrew, for filling my glass...

 ...and for the nice view across the table

: )

Such class

We took the wine to watch the movie along with some pop corn.

The wine worked well to cut the heat of the spicy shrimp and did a fine job with the saltiness of the pop corn

Thanks Tricia!

: )

Guilty Pleasures

We all have our guilty pleasures.

I am no different.

Luckily, I don't crave them often, but when I do, I make it count.

My motto

"If you're gonna get suspended for fighting, you may as well knock out a tooth."

I figure that even if it tastes good, if it's not going to contribute to my health and well being, it sure as heck better taste really good.

Here are my guilty pleasures:

Hot Dogs!

My favorite Hot Dogs happen to be

Let's Be Frank Hot Dogs

Luckily these dogs are almost guilt-free thanks to their philosophy:

"Animals raised on pasture, living the lives they were meant to.

Working with local producers and artisans.

Food free from hormones, antibiotics, nitrates, and nitrites."

The Dogs are as Delicious and The Woman Behind the Dogs is Wonderful!

Enjoying a glass of wine with the

Wonderful Sue Moore of Let's be Frank at Silverlake Wine

after one of the A Runner's Circle Thursday night Fun Runs

Now that I'm living in the OC, it's pretty much impossible for me to enjoy a Frank Dog when the urge hits.

So when Andrew was craving dogs last week, I made some at home...

...because Andrew LOVES Hot dogs.

Don't tell anyone, but Andrew ate 7 Dodger Dogs in one afternoon.

No joke! I was there. I witnessed it.

Even though these are not dogs of the same quality I crave from the Frank Dogs, I decided they should at least look good even though they aren't good for us.

The only thing missing is the Devil Sauce

I must remember to pick some up the next time I'm in town!

Total Disciplined Indulgence

Notice the rice cooker doing it's job in the background

making some Quinoa for the week.

 

We try to eat healthy 80-90% of the time so we don't do too much damage when we throw some junk into the mix.

 

I've been known to eat Pizza and drink a Beer

This was the perfect indulgence after

the 2010 Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon in San Diego.

Wow, cold pizza and beer never tasted so good.

I LOVE grilled Marrow Bones...

...with a glass of Bubbly!!!

Some of the cholesterol guilt is offset by knowing that

McCall's Meat and Fish Co. ,where I buy my bones,  source their meat from ethical farms that don't use hormones or chemical enhancements.

Read more

and

I also love Tatertots

Tatertots Rock!

and so does

Bubbly!

What are your guilty pleasures?



5 Favorite Ingredients and then some...

I've been accused of many things, but boring is not one of them.

My choice of flavors can also never be accused of being boring thanks to the 5 ingredients that always seem  to find their way into my dishes.

The 5 Usual Suspects for Flavor

From left to right:

Garlic; Ginger; Green Onions; Shallots; White or Yellow Onions

I love to use all these wonderfully flavorful ingredients for almost all of my favorite dishes.

I love them raw in my quinoa salad (minus the ginger); I love to saute or sweat them when I make my shrimp dishes; I use them in soups; they are the ultimate ingredients in many of my baked fish dishes, or chicken dishes; they are excellent ingredients to add to any salad dressing.

The options are endless.

I love Cucumbers!

I Can't get enough of them!

I eat about 4 cucumbers a week.

They add crunch, they are so refreshing, and the have a high water content and loads of potassium.

I add them to my salads, to my quinoa, to my tuna, and I love to have them nearby to cool off my mouth when I've made an exceptionally spicy dish.

Tomatoes are Wonderful!

They add color, flavor, and possess many health benefits.

You'll notice that tomatoes make an appearance at almost all of my dinners...you should invite them to your dinners too!

 :)