Roasted Salmon with Orange-Herb Sauce

"Anybody who believes that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach flunked geography." Robert Byrne

This meal may not win a man over, but it will for sure keep his heart healthy. Salmon is packed full of Omega 3 fatty acids which have been shown to reduce heart disease.

According to the CDC we can see heart disease is something to look out for ranking in at number 1 for causes of death. Better eat your fish!!

• Heart disease: 631,636
• Cancer: 559,888
• Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 137,119
• Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 124,583
• Accidents (unintentional injuries): 121,599
• Diabetes: 72,449
• Alzheimer's disease: 72,432
• Influenza and Pneumonia: 56,326
• Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 45,344
• Septicemia: 34,234

Roasted Salmon with Orange herb Sauce

· 1 large orange, unpeeled, sliced

· 1 large onion, halved, thinly sliced

· 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

· 6 3-ounce skinless salmon fillets

· 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

· 1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice

· 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

· 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

· Additional unpeeled orange slices

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place orange slices in single layer in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Top with onion slices. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until onion is brown and tender, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven. Increase oven temperature to 450°F.

Push orange and onion slices to side of baking dish. Arrange salmon in center of dish. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and 1 1/2 tablespoons dill. Spoon orange and onion slices atop salmon. Roast until salmon is opaque in center, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix orange juice, green onions, lemon juice and remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons dill in small bowl.

Transfer salmon to platter. Spoon onion alongside; discard roasted orange slices. Pour orange sauce over fish. Garnish with additional orange slices.

from Bon Appétit September 1999

Children are our future

CrossFit LA Kids Program

I remember standing on stage in 4th grade with my best friend singing in the Talent Show. I wanted to be a singer, more importantly I wanted to be just like Whitney Houston. I chose to sing her song: "Greatest love of all". If you are not familiar with it here is the first verse:

I believe the children are our future

Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be...

It's funny to think in fourth grade I was signing this song with lyrics that I am now putting into affect. Fitness is a huge part of my life and I love getting kids moving and teaching them about health and fitness. CrossFit LA is the gym where I train at and they now have a kids program, where your very own Cheeks assist. We hold classes every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for kids ages 3-5 years and then 6-12 years. So, if you've got kids and you want them to get moving send em over. It's not only fitness that we teach the kids about, we also teach about nutrition and build self confidence. It's huge-check it out.

Simplicity is deliciousness.

"It is the sweet, simple things in life which are the real ones after all." ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

Who needs panzenella caprese, sautéed chicken paillards or steak au poivre? Cooking doesn't have to be complicated to be delicious. You don't have to spend hours in the kitchen slaving over a hot stove in order to produce a dinner to delight! Although feel quite free to pretend you did. ;)

Rosemary trout with spinach

12 ounces of spinach

1 1/2 pounds trout, head and tail removed, cut in half with skin still on ( I found this trout in Trader Joes)

2 tablespoon olive oil

3 2-inch pieces of fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon crushed garlic

2 tablespoons slivered almonds

2 tbsp raisins

2 fresh lemons

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Place tin foil on a cooking sheet. Place trout skin side down on foil. Drizzle trout with 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and season to taste with sea salt and pepper. Place the rosemary on one half of the trout and put the other piece on top with the skin side facing out. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes until the trout is flaky.

While the fish cooks, heat 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over medium low heat in a large skillet. Add garlic and then half the spinach. Add almonds and raisins and gently mix everything. Continue to mix while the spinach cooks until it is wilted. Add the remaining spinach and mix and cook until this is wilted too. Season to taste with sea salt and pepper.

Open up the cooked trout and discard the rosemary. Cut the lemons in half and squeeze the juice out over the fish. Serve with the spinach on the side.

Enjoy!

"Eat your veggies!" said Mom.

Better than broccoli.

Are you sick of steamed broccoli? Tired of chewing on green salads? Bored with your bag of pre-cut carrots? Well never fear Sweet Cheeks is here!! Vegetables don't have to be bland. Pick a veggie, any veggie! Take your two favorite sauces, spices, condiments, etc and cook it all up! I chose coconut milk and red chili pepper flakes and came up with this delish dish!! What can you come up with?

Spicy Coconut Cabbage

14 oz can coconut milk

3/4 cup chopped red onion

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon crushed garlic

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon dried red chili pepper flakes

1 head cabbage chopped

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Add onions and cook until they begin to soften, 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add coconut milk, garlic, cumin and pepper flakes, mix it all up and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and mix in the cabbage. Cover the skillet and cook for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Pork Chops and apple sauce-kind of

Pork Loin Stuffed with Apples

Day 11-NO GRAINS

As the no grain challenge almost comes to an end, the So Cal CrossFit Regionals are quickly approaching. In fact, it's about 4 weeks away and I'll be competing with some pretty amazing athletes. I'm nervous but excited to be competing. Since the sectionals I've been working on bodyweight movements like pull ups, dips, handstand push ups and GHD sit ups. These are the "chinks in my armor" and all the work is helping. (as it should) Yesterday we had a 20min AMRAP workout with 7 handstand push ups per round, I did all but the last 9 HSPU strict to one ab-mat. The last 9 I did with a kip (to move a little more quickly)-which I didn't know how to kip when competing at sectionals. This workout felt pretty good and it's great to see the extra work I've been putting in is paying off!

Speaking of extra work it might be take a bit more planning with the no grain challenge, but your body appreciates it. Your taste buds are probably changing and getting used to this no grain lifestyle. Eating less processed food is easier for your body to digest and once you get in the habit, you might just want to stick with it. I have heard it takes 21 days to develop a habit, so feel free to extend the no grain challenge for another 7 days :), we will keep posting tasty recipes that you can whip up easily. After all this you might find that the sandwich and other grains might not be calling you anymore.

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Apple Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

I had purchased a pork tenderloin last week and was still deciding what to do with it. I was talking to some people at the gym and one suggested stuffing it with apples.....so here is what I did.

What you need:

1/4 cup golden raisins
3/4 cup Riesling (or Gewürztraminer)
1 1/2 apples, cut into 1/2-inch cubes,
Pinch of cinnamon
2 lb center-cut boneless pork loin (ask butcher to make a 1-inch incision in the center all the way through)
Sea salt
Vegetable-oil cooking spray
1 medium onion, diced large
1 carrot, diced large
1 celery stalk, diced large
4 stems fresh rosemary

• Heat oven to 375°F.
• Soak raisins in cup wine for 10 minutes.
• Combine raisins (including wine not absorbed), apples and cinnamon in a bowl. Fill pork-loin cavity with apple-raisin mixture.
• Season pork with sea salt and pepper; set aside 15 minutes at room temperature. (If loin splits, tie with kitchen twine.) Meanwhile, coat a roasting pan with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat.
• Sear pork on all sides until golden brown, about 4 minutes total, turning frequently so it doesn't stick. Place onion, carrot, celery, rosemary and apple peels and cores in pan; place pork on top.
• Cook 25 minutes or until pork reaches 150°.
• Remove pork from pan; let rest 10 minutes. Slice pork and divide among plates.

You can prepare a vinegar reduction sauce to put on pork-which would be quite tasty.

Rockin' in a grain free woooorld!!!

Paleo Grand Slam.

Today is day 8 of the Sweet Cheeks No Grains Challenge! Keep up the great work everyone, you're over half way! One question that keeps coming up is what to eat for breakfast, since toast, oatmeal, doughnuts, pastries, pancakes, waffles, burritos, french toast, cereals and granola is off the menu. That's all?!

Here at HQ, breakfast almost always consists of protein - from eggs to chicken to bacon (wrapped around bananas!!), served with fruit and nuts, nut butter or avocado. We loooooove this breakfast. It fuels our workouts and keeps us satiated for hours.

Today's recipe is another protein option for breakfast. My awesome friend Malzone sent this recipe my way for approval. And Sweet Cheeks approved it is! Absolutely delicious, keep cooking Malzone!

(The Cheeks will accept any recipe to undergo our approval process. You too could have a shout out on Sweet Cheeks!!!)

Paleo Chicken Fried Steak

½ diced green bell pepper

½ cup diced shallot

1.25 lbs of ground turkey

4 eggs

2-3 cups Almond meal

Sea salt and Pepper to taste

1 teaspoon Chili Powder

Olive Oil

In a mixing bowl, combine turkey meat, bell pepper, shallot, 1 egg, chili powder, pepper and sea salt to taste. Grab a fistful, form into thin patties and set aside. Beat 3 eggs in a bowl. Put a pile of almond meal on a plate.

Generously coat a skillet in olive oil and heat over med/low heat. Dip patties in the egg, then the almond meal and place in pan. Fry until golden brown on one side, 2-5 minutes depending upon thickness and heat, then flip and fry until cooked through.

Stuff your face caveman style.

Better Together

It's day 5 of the Sweet Cheeks No Grain challenge. Some of you were questioning what am I suppose to eat, but hopefully now you have found there are so many other wonderful foods besides grains to enjoy. Look here, I took two basics and made something quite tasty ( I think) try it for yourself and let us know. Lets hear what's happening with YOU during this challenge!

I was listening to Jack the other day--- and just realized what he was singing about!

There's no combination of foods I could put on the back of a recipe card,

No song that I could sing, But I can try for your heart,

Our hunger, is made out of real pains,

Like a shoe box of photographs with sepia tone loving

Bacon's the answer At least for most of the questions in my stomach,

Like why are we here? And where do we go? And what do we put on everything?

It's not always easy, And sometimes life can be deceiving,

I'll tell you one thing, its always better when we're together (with bacon)

He's talking about bacon right?

well- here is what I made the other day-- such a treat!

preheat oven to 350 degree

What you'll need

2 slices cooked bacon

2 apples

1/8 c chopped pecans

1/8 c dried  pitted tart cherries (trader joes)

1/8 c golden raisins

1 tsp coconut oil

core apple (I used organic fuji) and mix all ingredients except coconut oil in a bowl. Stuff apple (and I mean stuff it in there, there might be a few leftovers to chomp on :) 

top with a small amount of coconut oil. 

Wrap each apple individually in foil and place on baking sheet

Bake for 30min in oven until apple is soft.

Remove from oven-cool for 5-10 minutes then enjoy!

A sweet & savory treat!

Modified what?

my true love-macaroons

Push ups, sure, I've heard of a modified push ups- we call them knee push ups here at CF. Recipes, sure you don't have an ingredient, substitute something else. Workouts, of course, change it into something that works for you, can't do pulls ups try ring rows or sit ups, make it work for you. But modified food starch, what the heck is that?

According to Food and Fitness

Modified food starch is a starch that has been treated physically or chemically to modify one or more of its physical or chemical properties. The 'starch' could be from corn, wheat, potato, rice or tapioca--it depends on the manufacturer. By definition, modified food starch must contain less than .5% protein, but, it's up to the manufacturer to abide by that regulation, and there could be an exception.

Sounds like this modification is OK to miss out on, especially this week. Watch out this stuff is everywhere, check your salad dressing and all packaged goods.

But how about a modified (grain free) dessert? Don't miss out on these tasty macaroons

Coconut Macaroons

6 egg whites

¼ teaspoon sea salt

½ cup agave nectar ( I used 1/8 c agave and a little honey-it's all I had)

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 cups shredded coconut (find at whole foods-it's cheap too)

First- beat egg whites with electric mixer and salt until stiff peaks form

Next-Fold in agave, vanilla and coconut

Drop batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet, one rounded tablespoonful at a time

Bake a 350° for 10-15 minutes, until lightly browned

then try not to eat all of them yourself! oops!

If you want to add a little variation on this recipe you could always dip them in chocolate, use lemon or almond extract, or better yet put chocolate chips in them! yumm.

Grain Free Easter Eats: Part Two

Easter Feaster!

Time for some more grain free Easter food fun! And now on to the main course... with your asparagus wrapped in bacon and your lamb "breaded" with almond meal your taste buds will be so tantalized they won't even miss the grains! Grain...grain who?

Bacon wrapped asparagus

25 thin asparagus

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Pepper

5 slices of bacon

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Put a piece of wax paper on a cookie sheet, it prevents the bacon from sticking. Place asparagus on the sheet, pour the olive oil over the veggies, sprinkle with pepper and mix everything around until the pieces are coated. Take five pieces of asparagus and wrap one piece of bacon around all five. Continue until all asparagus are wrapped.

Cook in the oven for approximately 20 minutes until the bacon is crispy.

Enjoy!

Roasted Rack of Lamb

1/2 cup almond meal

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 (approximately 7 bone) rack of lamb

Sea salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a bowl, combine almond meal, garlic, rosemary, 1 teaspoon sea salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 2 tablespoons olive oil.

Season the rack of lamb all over with sea salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over high heat and sear rack of lamb for 1 minutes on the front and back. Take off the heat, let cool for a couple minutes and then cover the lamb in the mustard. Finally press the almond meal mixture over the lamb until evenly coated.

Cover the ends of the bones with foil, this is to prevent charring. Put the rack of lamb bone side down in an oven safe dish. Cook for approximately 30 minutes or until desired level of doneness. Thirty minutes left my lamb medium rare - pink and juicy! If you have a meat thermometer this will be when the meat reaches 140 degrees in temperature. Let the lamb sit for five minutes when it's finished before cutting into it for optimal tenderness.

Enjoy!

Inspired by allrecipes.com

Grain Free Easter Eats: Part One

Grain free grubbing, I swear.

I love holidays. All holidays - birthdays, Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter, groundhogs day and on and on and on! Everyone should live life like one big celebration! And just because we're not eating grains is no reason not to be excited about celebrating this Easter Sunday. The Cheeks are here to show you some easy recipes over the next few days that are so delightful and delicious that even your holidays guest won't realize they're grain free!

First is a quick and simple moist muffin that's great for Easter breakfast or brunch...

Cinnamon Bun Muffins

Cinnamon topping:

2 tablespoons agave nectar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon grapeseed oil

Muffin:

1 1/2 cups almond flour/meal

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoons sea salt

1/4 cup grapeseed oil

1/4 cup agave nectar

3 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine almond flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. In a large bowl blend together oil, agave, eggs and vanilla. Blend dry ingredients into wet and scoop a ¼ cup at a time into lined muffin cups.

Make the cinnamon topping by combining agave, cinnamon and oil in a small bowl and drizzle the topping by spoonfuls on top of the muffins.

Bake muffins for 8-12 minutes until top is light brown. Cool muffins on rack.

Enjoy!

Inspired by Elana's Pantry.