Kale, Broccoli, and Sesame Noodle Salad

This Kale, Broccoli, and Sesame Noodle Salad is bursting with flavor. The veggies and homemade dressing fancy up those inexpensive packages of ramen noodles (no need to use the soup base flavor packets as they are packed with sodium and not needed in this recipe). Serve this salad at room temperature or make ahead, refrigerate, and serve chilled (the leftovers are even more flavorful!). Add your favorite protein and you have a flavor-bursting balanced meal.

Kale, Broccoli, and Sesame Noodle Salad

By Joey Mock, RD, LD, CLT

Shopping list

• Head of broccoli 
• Garlic cloves (2)
• Sweet chili sauce
• Red wine vinegar
• Canola oil 
• Kosher salt
• Black Pepper
• Scallions (3)
• Ginger 
• Kale (large bunch)
• Dried ramen noodle packages (2)
• Optional: Mint, sesame seeds for garnish 

Ingredients

• 1 large head of broccoli, cut into medium sized florets with some stalk attached
• 2 garlic cloves, minced, divided
• 1½ teaspoons sweet chili sauce
• 1 tablespoon plus ½ cup red wine vinegar, divided
• 2-3 Tablespoons plus ½ cup canola oil, divided
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus additional to taste
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus additional to taste
• 3 scallions, green parts only, thinly sliced, plus more for serving if desired
• 1 3-inch piece ginger, peeled, cut into 1-inch matchsticks
• 4 cups fresh curly kale (about a bunch) leaves only, stemmed and chopped (or Tuscan kale leaves)
• 2 x 3-ounce packages dried ramen noodles (discard flavor packets)
• Torn mint leaves and toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 450°. Toss broccoli with 1 clove minced garlic, sweet chili sauce, 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar, and 2-3 Tablespoons oil (until broccoli is lightly coated) on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing occasionally, until tender and starting to brown, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, whisk scallions, ginger, 1 clove minced garlic, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, remaining ½ cup red wine vinegar, and ½ cup oil in a large bowl. 
3. Add kale; toss to coat. Massage until the kale starts to soften and wilt, about 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside at room temperature. 
4. Cook ramen noodles according to package directions (discarding flavor packets and skipping that step on the package). Drain noodles and rinse under cold water. Add noodles and broccoli to kale and toss to coat. 
5. Divide amongst bowls and top with mint, sesame seeds, and additional scallions if desired.

Adapted from: bon appetit recipe.

Pomegranate Kale salad with Lemon Tahini dressing

If you are looking for tips to eating healthier or getting your diet back on track after overeating, I have one best tip for you: Meal Prep.

Before you start another busy week of life, set aside time today to prepare a few meals (or meal components). Let's get real - when you are completely exhausted, pressed for time, hungry and tired, the last thing you want to do (and will do) is spend time preparing a meal. This is why prep is key. Do the extra work now so that later, it's easy to properly nourish and fuel yourself.

I prepared a delicious salad for Thanksgiving and thought it would make the perfect prep/plan ahead salad for your upcoming week. The best part is the dressing!

Pomegranate Kale salad with Lemon Tahini dressing

Ingredients
Salad
6 cups rinsed and chopped kale
Seeds of 1 pomegranate
1 large mango, chopped (or 2 small pears)
1/2 cup chopped pistachios

Dressing
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup tahini
3 tbsp GF tamari sauce
3 small cloves garlic (minced)
1 tsp cumin

1/4 cup water

1. Mix together kale, pomegranate seeds, fruit of your choice (mango or pear) and pistachios in a large Tupperware container. 
2. In a food processor or blender, mix together ingredients for the dressing.  Pulse into smooth and creamy. 
3. Pour the dressing into a glass jar. 
4. When you are ready to eat your salad, serve yourself a hefty portion of the salad and pour dressing (to taste) over the salad. 
5. Yum! 

For a balanced meal, I suggest to combine this salad with a protein of your choice and a starch/whole grain.

If you are in need of more breakfast/lunch/dinner ideas, check out my book Essential Sports Nutrition for athlete-friendly recipes. We are currently offering a Trimarni Holiday Special. 

Cheesy kale stuffed mushrooms

As a vegetarian, I just love the "meaty" texture of Portabella mushrooms.

Plus, as an athlete, mushrooms offer a nice nutritional boost to the immune system while providing fiber, protein, copper, selenium, B2 and B5 along with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

For proper storage of mushrooms, keep them in your fridge in a loosely closed paper bag wrapped in a damp cloth. Try to keep your mushrooms from touching one another by layering the mushrooms on the damp cloth. This will help the mushrooms stay fresher for longer. When mushrooms become soggy with a slimy layer on top, they are no longer fully fresh.

Since mushrooms are very porous, they will quickly absorb water and become soggy when cleaning them. The best way to clean mushrooms is with a mushroom brush and just a little water.

When using the cap of the mushroom, remove the stem with your hands.

Although mushrooms are great in sauces, on salads (raw) and as a side dish (sauteed), I really enjoy "stuffed" mushroom caps. My friend Katie Malone turned me on to a yummy creation of pesto, tomato and melted mozzarella stuffed mushrooms (it was ah-mazing) last summer and since then, I have been experimenting with different ways to stuff mushrooms. 

I hope you enjoy this recent creation of mine which will be sure to make you yum out loud.

Cheesy kale stuffed mushrooms 

Serves 2

Ingredients
2 large portabella mushrooms (stems removed)
Olive oil
Salt, curry powder, pepper
1 small yellow onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
2-3 cups chopped kale
Panko crumbs (~1/4 cup)
Shredded Parmesan and Asiago cheese

Cooking instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

2. In large skillet on medium heat, saute chopped kale, garlic and onion in olive oil (about 1 tbsp to start) until soft and onions turn golden brown. Add a bit of water to help soften kale if it begins to stick to skillet.
3. Season with 2-4 pinches of curry (depending on how much you like curry), a few pinches of salt and pepper. 

4. Place mushroom caps in glass baking dish (sprayed with non stick spray), bottom side up. Drizzle each cap with a little olive oil before layering on the kale mix. 

5. Spoon the kale mixture on each cap to cover most the mushroom. You can pile it on as much as you wish!
6. Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the kale (as much cheese as you wish) and bake for ~8-10 minutes (mushroom will soften and shrink a little). 

7. Remove dish and sprinkle with panko crumbs and another drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Bake for another 2-3 minutes.
8. Remove mushrooms from the oven and enjoy!

(Any leftovers of the kale mix, save for breakfast the next morning and combine with scrambled eggs and your favorite type of bread with butter and jam). 

Trimarni Thanksgiving eats - YUM!

We hope that you had a lovely Thanksgiving and filled your body with love, laughs and lots of yummy food. 

Karel, Campy and I celebrated Thnksgiving with my mom (in her new home just 10 minutes away from me - yay!) and my aunt, uncle and cousin. The Thanksgiving day was not the same without my dad but we made sure to share to not forget the impact he had made on all of our lives. 

For Karel and me, our Thanksgiving started with the TreesGreenville Turkey Day 8K which happened to be our very first event to participate in since moving to Greenville in May.
The event was in downtown Greenville so we woke up at 6am and after our pre-race snack we did a little foam rolling and dynamic warming up and then around 7:20am we ran to the start/finish which was around 1.3 miles away. My morning pre race snack was nothing out of the ordinary as I consume the same ingredients before training. A rice cake, smear of PB, cinnamon, raisins and banana slices. I didn't add any honey this morning. I sipped on a cup of coffee and glass of water and brought a flask of water (5 ounces) with me to carry for the race.
I will be sharing our race recap in another blog but it was a lot of fun to start our morning with other Greenvillians!

The morning started off chilly but then we got warm during the race and then we got cold again. We ran a total of around 7.5 miles or so and when we got home we were both ready for a recovery drink and Epson Salt bath.
My smoothie consisted of:
1 cup milk  + a little water to help mixing
1 chopped celery stick
A few pineapple chunks

1/2 cup frozen berries
Handful kale

Cinnamon/Ginger
1 heaping scoop Whey to Go protein powder (I add my powder last so it mixes smoothly)
Ice

After warming up, I started my cooking/baking for our late afternoon meal. For lunch I had leftover egg salad.

Egg chickpea salad
6 eggs (4 whole, 2 just whites)
Dallop or two greek yogurt
A little horseradish
A spoonful spicy mustard and spoonful olive oil Mayo
3 stalks chopped celery
1 carrot chopped (large)
1/2 can chickpeas
Pepper

1. Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate.

Now on to the baking!

My contribution to the Thanksgiving meal was a dessert and veggie dish.
I couldn't help myself as I was feeling extra happy in the kitchen so I made two desserts. I'm not as passionate about baking as I am cooking (although I AM passionate about eating desserts!) since I love to be creative in the kitchen and not be tied to following recipes. But this was a special day and I made full use of my time in the Trimaarni kitchen. 

Oatmeal apple and walnut crisp
2 cups old-fashioned oats (not instant)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup walnuts (chopped)
1/2 cup raisins
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

2 large eggs
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp unsalted butter (melted)
2 sweet baking apples (ex. honey crisp) chopped

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 9-inch baking dish with non stick spray (or use butter).
2. In medium bowl, combine oats, brown sugar, 1/2 of the nuts, raisins, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and mix well. 

3. In another bowl, whisk eggs and then add the milk and vanilla. Whisk until well combined. 

4. Add milk mixture to oat mixture along with melted butter. 

5. Place apples on bottom of the baking dish. Pour oatmeal/milk mixture over the apples and spread evenly. 

6. Sprinkle remaining nuts on top.
7. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the oats are set and top is golden. 

Kale, onion and corn salad
Kale
Frozen corn
Onions
Garlic
Olive oil
Garlic balsamic

1. In medium skillet, on medium heat, cover bottom with corn (defrosted and soft) and 1 tbsp or so of olive oil. 

2. Add 1/2 onion (chopped or sliced). 

3. Add fresh or jarred garlic to your liking. 

4. Cook corn and onion mixture until onions begin to turn a little brown. 

5. While corn is cooking, use a wok for Kale (or large skillet). Cook kale on low-medium heat in a little olive (I recommend to toss in bowl ahead of time for even coating) and cook until soft. 

6. When kale is soft, add corn mixture in wok and toss with a little balsamic and let cook for a few more minutes. Kale should remain soft, it should not brown. 

Garlic balsamic tempeh
Tempeh

Garlic balsamic

Olive oil
Salt

1. In skillet on medium heat, chopped tempeh.
2. Cook in a little olive oil until slightly brown. 

3. Add balsamic and toss. Tempeh should get a little soft. 

4. Add a pinch of salt. 

Yummm...pomegranate seeds and chocolate. 

Pomegranate Brownie bites
(Without compromising taste or texture, I tried to make these as "healthy" as possible but still be real brownies)

1 4 ounce package baking chocolate
1/2 cup butter
3 eggs
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 pomegranate, seeded (my trick for seeding the pomegranate is to cut it in half and then place each half, seed side down, in a bowl of water. This will help the seeds come out a little easier. Then quarter each half and break with hands. Be careful to not stain your clothes)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a non stick baking pan (8 or 9 inch) with cooking spray. 

2. Melt together butter an chocolate in microwave (or double boiler) for 2 minutes (butter will melt first and may start to crackle after 1 minute but chocolate needs longer). Set aside and let cool. 

3. In another large bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt. 

4. Add cooled melted chocolate/butter mixture to egg mixture, whisk together. 

5. Stir in flour, mix until combined. Then stir in most of the seeds (save about 1/4 of the seeds for the top). 

6. Pour batter into pan. Sprinkle rest of the seeds on top and lightly press into batter but not too much that you can't see them. 

7. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Top of brownies should be firm but middle should be very moist. 

8. Cut into small chunks for brownie bites. 

Trimarni tip:
Always drink water with meals. If you like sparkling water, you can sip on sparkling water during your meal to help with digestion and indigestion. A calorie-free, carbonated beverage with no sugar sweeteners or alcohols is also a safe and healthy way to promote fullness while eating.

Make sure your fresh snacks are always handy. If healthy snacks aren't available then you can't eat them. 

This is Karel's cabbage recipe, inspired by his mom. Karel doesn't follow a recipe so he says it turns out a little differently every time. 

Here's a recipe I found that uses the same ingredients (minus the stock, Karel uses water and adds a few pinches of seasoning) as Karel's Czech-inspired recipe. 
Braised cabbage with apple and caraway seeds

We also had stuffing outside the bird. But my mom accidentally added a little seasoning that wasn't vegetarian and she didn't realize it until she checked the package. Oh well, bummer for the vegetarian at the dinner but more for everyone else to enjoy! 

I love my mom's sweet potato dish! This is the only time of the year I will yum over Marshmallows. Did you know there are vegan marshmallows that don't use gelatin?
My mom just cooks the sweet potatoes in a pot of boiling water until soft and the removes the skin. She mashes and then adds a little butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Then she puts it in the oven for 20 minutes (220 degrees) and then boils the marshmallows for a few minutes (you must watch the marshmallows and keep the oven door cracked open so you can see them. If you leave it in 10 sec too long you will burn them).

And guess who else got a delicious plate for Thanksgiving? 

Yep, Mr. Campy got his own plate of real food. Lucky doggy!! This is a tradition since we got Campy and this year I captured it all on video. You can check it out on my Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition Facebook page. 

Poor Campy, he didn't even make it up passed 8pm. 

22 years as a lacto-ovo vegetarian and I still love this holiday. I just love creating a meal that taste great when I eat it and makes me feel even better after it is is consumed. 

Karel's plate with turkey, potatoes and roast.

Hopefully you have lots to be thankful for this year and you didn't forget to thank your awesome body on Thanksgiving!

Leg burning trainer workout and fueling the triathlete

Trimarni lifestyle change tip: 

If you have between 10-30 min when you come home from work before an evening workout or meeting/event, start your dinner prep and finish as much as possible so you don't come home starving and convince yourself that you can't wait the time to cook a real food, balanced meal. 

Here's a creation that I prepared in 25 minutes before our evening swim practice on 1/15 (I planned for leftovers):
Tempeh, mushrooms, frozen veggie mix (corn, peas, carrots), onions, garlic, balsamic, olive oil, kale, turmeric, pinch of salt, chili pepper, slivered almonds. Also, 1 pot of quinoa (1/2 cup dry to 1 cup boiling water). 

The final creation!

Swim workout Main set (at the very end of our 75 minute practice):
3xs (with fins):
3x100s fast swim on 1:30
3x50s fast kick on 1 minute
Continue 2 more rounds.
Total yards: 3800

After my morning fuel (8 ounce skim milk + 1 spoonful chia seeds + 1/2 cup cheerios - a new creation I have been using for the past few weeks which seems to be working really well for energy and recovery. I tweak for longer workouts over 90 minutes. + water and cup of coffee.) and dynamic stretching/foam rolling, it was time to break a sweat....and wow o wow, did I ever!

Thanks Karel for the leg burning workout!

Our Bike Trainer: 

CycleOps PowerBeam Pro - I will let DC Rainmaker give the details about this awesome trainer with specific wattage resistance control.  

WU (warm-up): 30 min, including 10 min of one leg drills to wake up my glute medius
Main set:
5 x 30 sec ON/OFF @ Z4 watts  (cadence 90+ rpm)
2 min EZ spin
5 x 1 min ON/OFF @ Z4 watts (cadence 90+ rpm)
2 min EZ spin
5 x 90 sec ON/OFF @ Z4 watts  (cadence 90+ rpm)

5 min EZ spin 

5 x 2 min ON/OFF @ Z3 mid to upper watts (cadence 90+ rpm)
Rest of the ride is just EZ spin.

This was one challenging set - the intervals are short but you really have to stay focused for each interval during that time. Because I can adjust my watts on the trainer, I use the resistance control to put in the watts I want to hold as a minimum and then I am forced to hold those watts for each part of the set. No cheating on the trainer when you train with power.
This is also a great set to use RPE if you do not have a power meter. HR training will not be a valuable tool in this set because the HR will not rise to specific zones in that short of time with the recommended effort. Focus on a high cadence but strong pedal stroke and you will gain a lot from this workout. 

If you can't get through the entire set due to fatigue, that is OK. The goal is not to nail every workout but to give your best effort and get excited for the next go around.
I recommend 20-25g carbohydrate sport drink during this workout w/ electrolytes + additional water as needed.

After this workout I did a short brick run (3.77 miles):
10 min warm-up run
Main set: 

5 x 2 min @ 7:30 min/mile w/ 1 min walk in between
Cool down

Post workout I had 1/2 cup greek yogurt + cherries, apples and banana slices on top + 1 slice bakery bread (nuts, raisins inside) + Smucker natural PB (A good smear) + water and coffee. 

Pomegranate, apple and hazelnut pancakes and ginger strawberry smoothie

In the Trimarni house, we eat for fuel and for health. And most of all, eating is a happy time so we also eat for pleasure.

The same foods that fuel our active lifestyle, also keep our immune system healthy. Most of all, they are mostly whole and are found in a farm/garden so they also reduce our risk for disease.

There are no bad, off limit or temporary foods. We don't diet, cleanse, fast or do anything extreme wit the diet.

The only thing extreme about us is that we enjoy racing for 140.6 miles and Campy gets waaaaay too much love (but that will never stop).

We love whole foods that offer the nutrients that we need to support our healthy and active lifestyle.

We don't count calories, we count training hours. We enjoy the rewards of what a well-fueled, healthy and strong body allows us to do - year round - whether we are training for starting lines or moving for health gains.

We don't have a working scale. We eat for fuel, health and pleasure and after a few years of understanding our individual needs and best style of eating, we've discovered that it is possible for the body to take care of itself.

We don't believe in restricting food (especially whole foods) but instead, move the body more (ex. walking).

Whether we are enjoying the off-season, peaking for an Ironman or traveling the world, food enhances our life and doesn't control our life.

Why do you eat what you choose to eat? 

Ginger Strawberry Smoothie "meal"

10 ice cubes

30g protein powder (I used Solgar Whey To Go)
Dash of cinnamon
1 celery stick (chopped)
1/2 ripe banana
1 tsp fresh ginger (chopped or grated)
4 strawberries (stems removed)
10 baby carrots (mini)
1/2 cup Kale (Washed, chopped)
1/2 square 90% Dark chocolate
1 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup water

1. Blend ingredients in 6 cup blender for 90 seconds (this will make more volume and a more frothy smoothie.

I use the Oster Fusion blender. 
2. Pour 2.5 cups in large cup and enjoy.

Makes 2 servings (5 cups total)

Pomegranate, apple and hazelnut pancakes

1/2 cup apple (shredded) - I used gala
1/2 cup rye flour (you can use any flour)
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds (I slice in half and then soak each half under cold water for a few minutes and then use a knife to cut pomegranate into segments and then pop out seeds with my hands into a bowl).
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1 egg
1 tbsp hazelnuts
1 tbsp honey
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup 0% Fage Greek yogurt
1/2 cup Skim Milk
1/2 cup oats
2 tsp oil (for pan)

1. Heat large skillet to medium heat. Drizzle 1/2 - 1 tsp oil and spread around pan for even coating.

2. Mix ingredients in large bowl and stir until evenly combined.

3. Use 1/4 cup and pour batter onto heated pan and press down to make flat pancake.

4. Cook 4-5 minutes on one side (or until golden brown) and flip and cook other side for 3 minutes.

Makes 7 servings

I have not had time to figure out calories as I like to do for some of my creations where I actually measure ingredients for cooking purposes. I will notify everyone when I put nutrition facts on this blog. For now - enjoy mindful eating as I always do.