This cold grain salad is yummy, refreshing, and perfect for a summer BBQ. You probably already have all of the ingredients in your kitchen!

For the dressing:
juice of one lemon
1 teaspoon mustard as an emulsifier
1/2 cup olive oil
1 garlic clove minced fine
1/4 cup fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon salt (more to taste)
1–2 teaspoons honey

For the salad:
1/2  bunch kale (finely chopped, without stems, to yield about 1 1/2 cups)
1 tomato chopped
2 carrots grated
1/2 cup red cabbage
1 small cucumber
I /4 cup dried cranberries
1 chicken breast cooked (I used some leftover grilled chicken)
1 1/2 cups cooked and cooled brown rice (or millet, quinoa, wheat berries, or spelt berries)

Directions:
1. Shake up the dressing ingredients in a large jar. 
2. Dice and chop all the veggies and chicken.
3. Add veggies, chicken and grains to the dressing jar
4. Shake it all up.
5. Garnish with 1/4 cup chopped almonds and an avocado 
6. Enjoy!

Thanks to T3 Coaching for this recipe!

While this peanut butter toast is super simple, it is extremely delicious, has low sugar, is super digestible, and hits all the nutrition zones to fuel your morning. 

Ingredients

• 2 slices of your favorite bread, toasted to your liking. I used Big River Pugliese, normally I use a couple slices of Dave's whole grain bread.
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter, one tablespoon for each slice. My favorite is Earth Balance, it has flax seeds in it for a some ALA Omega 3s, and it is sweetened with agave.
  • Allergic to peanuts? Almond butter works great too.
• Blueberries are just starting to ripen in Oregon and they are delicious! You can get fresh PNW blueberries at many locations:  farmers market, Market of Choice, even Freddy's!
• Add a banana or add some fresh dark cherries when they come into season!

Directions

• Smear nut butter onto toast
• Plop berries, cherries, and/or bananas on the toast
• Enjoy the delicious breakfast toast!

Thanks to Coach Taz of T3 Coaching for the recipe!

These potatoes stuffed with smoked salmon is a great choice for dinner when you don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. My sports nutritionist who we have partnered up with, gave me this recipe to try and its delicious and healthy. To save time, make the potatoes up to a day ahead, refrigerate, and reheat in the microwave. This meal is loaded with carbohydrates, protein, and potassium, making it an excellent choice for post-workout recovery.
 
 
Serves: 2
Prep time: 10 mins | Cook time: 60 mins | Total time: ​1 hour 10 mins
Ingredients

• 2 large Yukon Gold potatoes (or 4 medium-sized potatoes)
• 1 tablespoon organic canola oil, olive oil, or melted butter
• 4 ounces smoked salmon, cut into smaller pieces
• 3 tablespoons nonfat plain Greek yogurt
• 3 scallions, rinsed and chopped

 
Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Wash and dry potatoes. Place on a cutting board and line up another cutting board behind them so that it touches the potatoes. Slice almost all the way down, using the extra cutting board to prevent you from slicing all the way through. Make slices about ¼-inch apart.
3. Place potatoes on a baking sheet or glass baking dish. Brush a little of the oil or butter onto the area beneath them and then brush the tops.
4. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes and brush the tops, which should be starting to open up a bit, with more oil or butter.
5. Continue to bake for another 15-30 minutes, until soft when pierced. Brush with oil once again once during the remainder of baking or at the end.
6. If saving potatoes for later, let cool and then transfer to an airtight glass container and store in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave when ready to serve.
7. When ready to serve, stuff the smoked salmon between the potato slivers as pictured. Top with Greek yogurt and scallions. Enjoy!

Thanks to Rogue Tri Performance for this delicious recipe!

This is one of my favorite recipes since I am a huge taco fan. You can pre-make everything (except cauliflower) so all you have to do is warm all the ingredients up while the cauliflower is cooking and you will have a great lunch in no time.

Servings: makes 5-6 tacos

Ingredients:
2 cups cauliflower florets 1 & 1⁄2 Tbsp olive oil
1⁄2 tsp garlic powder
1⁄2 tsp paprika
1⁄4 tsp black pepper
1⁄2 cup Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wings Sauce
2 stalks celery, finely diced
2 large carrots, finely diced
6 small flour tortillas (corn for gluten-free)

Directions:
Creamy Avocado Sauce*
1 small ripe avocado
1⁄2 cup chopped cilantro
Juice from 2 limes
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp salt & black pepper
To make the creamy avocado sauce, add all ingredients to a food
processor/blender. Add water too thin it to your desired consistency. Add additional lime juice, cilantro, or salt based on taste preference.
*Use Ranch Dressing if you prefer something faster*


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare baking sheet by spraying with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, toss together cauliflower florets, olive oil, garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, and 1⁄4 cup buffalo sauce (other 1⁄4 cup will be added after baking).
3. Spread cauliflower out evenly on baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Flip them over after 10 minutes. For crispier cauliflower after baking for 20 minutes turn the broiler on for about 3 minutes, until they're as crispy as you'd like.
4. Heat the additional 1⁄4 cup buffalo sauce up in a microwave-safe dish for about 20-30 seconds. Toss the crispy cauliflower back in the large bowl and mix in the warmed buffalo sauce.
5. To assemble tacos, fill each tortilla with buffalo cauliflower, diced celery, and diced carrots. Drizzle the creamy avocado sauce (or ranch) and any additional Frank's Buffalo Sauce on top. 

Thank you to Rogue Tri Performance for the recipe!

These low sugar, high Omega-3 bars are perfect ride food, or just a post ride snack! No baking required! Thanks to Rogue Tri Performance for the recipe!​

Ingredients
1.5 cups Dry Oats
1 cup Enjoy Life Perky’s Crunchy Flax (or grapenuts)
1/4 ground flax
1/4 cup mini semi sweet dark chocolate chips
1 cut dried cherries
1 cup nonfat dry milk
1/4 cup agave (or honey)
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup Nutella
1/4 cup chia + 1/2 cup water - let sit to make a gel for a few minutes
 
Directions
Mix all ingredients & chill to set. Makes 20 bars. Cut 5 rows & 4 columns in 8x11 pan. Individually wrap and freeze.

Nutrition Facts 
Per bar: 159 calories, 7gm fat, 1gm sat fat, 22gm CHO, 5 gm protein, 3gm fiber, 46mg sodium, 716 mg omega - 3. ​

Rogue Tri Performance knows how to spice up breakfast. Yum!
 
This is one of my favorite breakfasts to have. I sometimes add hash browns or sliced potatoes with some sourdough toast to make it complete.  It does take some time to make but if you pre-make the Hollandaise sauce and have everything else ready, you can cut the cooking time down.
 
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 25 mins
 
Ingredients

1. 3 English Muffins cut in half
2. 6 slices Canadian Bacon, bacon or ham
3. 6 eggs
4. Hollandaise sauce (recipe below)

 
Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400º F. Spray a muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Place bacon on a fully rimmed baking sheet (edges on all four sides) that has been topped with a wire cooling rack. Bake until the meat has browned, about 15-20 minutes.
3. Add 2 tablespoons of water to each cup of the muffin pan. Crack an egg into each individual indention, taking care not to break the yolk of the egg. Place in the oven along with the bacon the last 9-10 minutes of cooking.
4. Place English muffins on another baking sheet. Spread with butter and place in oven at the same time as adding eggs.
5. As your bacon, eggs, and muffins are baking, prepare your hollandaise sauce. Pour into a serving container.
6. To assemble Eggs Benedict, place English Muffins on each plate, top with one slice of bacon. Using a silicon spatula, gently remove a poached egg from the muffin tin, draining on a thick kitchen towel before placing on top of the bacon.
7. Drizzle with hollandaise sauce and serve warm.

 
 
 
 
**Hollandaise Sauce 5min
 
Easy Hollandaise Sauce Recipe
 
This recipe for easy blender hollandaise sauce is a quick and simple version of the classic hollandaise sauce recipe.
 
Prep Time 5 mins
Total Time 5 mins
 
Servings: 1 cup
 
Ingredients

• 3 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 8 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 tablespoon hot water
• pinch of cayenne pepper optional

 
Instructions

1. Melt the butter in microwave or in a small pot over the stove. Allow the butter to begin to bubble, but not reach a full boil.
2. As butter is melting, add egg yolks and lemon juice into your blender. Blend at a medium to medium high setting until the egg yolk lightens to a light yellow color. This will take about 20-30 seconds.
3. Slowly drizzle the hot butter into your egg yolks while your blender is at the medium setting.
4. Add hot water as a final step in blending your hollandaise sauce.
5. If you prefer your hollandaise sauce a bit thinner, add hot water a tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition until the hollandaise reaches the consistency you prefer.
6. You may add more lemon juice if you prefer more lemon flavor in your hollandaise, as well.
7. Add a pinch of cayenne pepper to final hollandaise sauce (optional)

I scream! You scream! We ALL scream for ice cream!!

Can you hear the jingle from the ice cream truck? Summertime is coming and that means its time for sweet and delicious frozen treats! But, of course, we athletes do like to keep things healthy - for the most part :-)  So, here are three easy-peasy and totally delicious "ice-cream" recipes. All you need is a blender and a freezer! 

Hazelnut Dark Chocolate 
(approx. 12 ½-cup servings)

• ½ cup blanched hazelnuts
• ½ cup pitted dates
• ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons cocoa powder
• 1 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt*
• 1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder
• 2 cups 1% chocolate milk*
• ¼ cup dark chocolate chunks

1. In a blender or food processor, puree hazelnuts, dates, salt, and cocoa powder until a chunky paste forms.
2. With blender running, slowly add yogurt, protein powder, and chocolate milk until everything is combined; stop blender.
3. Add dark chocolate chunks and pulse.

Peanut Butter and Honey
(approx. 8 ½-cup servings)

• 1 ½ teaspoons arrowroot starch
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• ½ cup lowfat plain Greek yogurt*
• 1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
• ½ frozen banana
• 1 ½ tablespoons peanut butter
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup chopped peanuts
• ⅛ teaspoon sea salt

1. In a sauce pot over medium heat, whisk arrowroot starch and unsweetened almond milk for 2 minutes or until thick; set aside.
2. In blender or food processor, puree yogurt and protein powder until smooth; blend in banana, peanut butter, honey, and unsweetened almond milk mixture.
3. Stir in peanuts and sea salt.

Avocado Toasted Coconut
(approx. 8 ½-cup servings)

• 1 ½ teaspoons arrowroot starch
• ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 ½ teaspoon coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons honey
• ½ can full-fat coconut milk**
• 1 avocado, peeled and seeded
• ¼ cup toasted coconut
• ⅛ teaspoon sea salt

1. In a sauce pot over medium heat, whisk the arrowroot starch with the unsweetened almond milk, coconut oil and the honey. Once the honey has been incorporated and the mixture is thickened, transfer the liquid into the blender.
2. Add the coconut milk and blend on high until frothy.  Add the avocado and continue blending until smooth and thick.
3. Stir in the toasted coconut and sea salt.

Couple of notes: 
You'll put ice cream mixture in small bread pans or muffin tins to freeze. Scoop out like regular ice cream -- or heck, dig your spoon right in!
If you can't do dairy: You can replace chocolate milk with chocolate unsweetened almond milk. And replace yogurt with regular unsweetened almond milk.
​If you want to cut fat and calories: You can replace regular coconut milk with the same amount of low fat coconut milk or unsweetened almond milk. Lower fat options will end up less creamy and more icy. 

​It IS possible to eat real food while working out! 


Try this homemade "gu" recipe inspired by Run Fast Eat Slow for your next long run/ride: 
•1/2-3/4 c cooked sweet potato 
•1/2 c dates, no pits
•2 T nut butter
•1 t chia seeds
•1/2 t cinnamon
•1/4 t sea salt 
•Optional 1-2 T cocoa powder or 1/2 to 1 T fresh grated ginger
•Water as needed for desired consistency

Blend all in food processor and eat from a reusable pouch such as @rei Coghlan’s squeeze pack (6 oz).  

On a long run, I take a few squeezes every 40-60 min, more frequently as I go longer, always sipping water as I eat.


You can freeze extra in the tubes and defrost in the fridge the night before you run.

Steelhead Coaching stole the show on this one!! We can't wait to try it out! 

Do you eat the same way on days you train or workout super hard or long and days you rest and take it easy? 
Sure, you want to always keep the quality of your diet primo but should you eat more or less depending on how active you are or focus on different foods? 
Probably, yes. Make sure you give your body the fuel it needs to work hard and recover after tough sessions, this might mean more calories and more energy-dense carbohydrates. On rest and recovery days focus on filling up on nutrient rich foods like fruits and veggies and lean proteins to restore and get strong! 
You may notice you feel EXTRA hungry on rest days. That's legit! Remember to hydrate as well as you would on training days. Feed your hunger but try not to over-do it with ALL the snacks. Eat well-rounded healthy meals and give your body what it needs to get ready for tomorrow. Here's a fave recovery day meal of mine from EatingWell magazine.  NOTE to lazy cooks like me: I use Annie's "Green Goddess Dressing" instead of making my own. 
Reach out with any questions on how to adjust your nutrition plan to your training plan :-)


Roasted Salmon with Smoky Chickpeas and Greens
Ingredients

• • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon salt, divided, plus a pinch
  • 1 (15 ounce) can no-salt-added chickpeas, rinsed
  • ⅓ cup buttermilk
  • ¼ cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh chives and/or dill, plus more for garnish
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper, divided
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • 10 cups chopped kale
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1¼ pounds wild salmon, cut into 4 portions

Directions

1. Position racks in upper third and middle of oven; preheat to 425°F.
2. Combine 1 tablespoon oil, paprika and ¼ teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Very thoroughly pat chickpeas dry, then toss with the paprika mixture. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake the chickpeas on the upper rack, stirring twice, for 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, puree buttermilk, mayonnaise, herbs, ¼ teaspoon pepper and garlic powder in a blender until smooth. Set aside.
4. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add kale and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Add water and continue cooking until the kale is tender, about 5 minutes more. Remove from heat and stir in a pinch of salt.
5. Remove the chickpeas from the oven and push them to one side of the pan. Place salmon on the other side and season with the remaining ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Bake until the salmon is just cooked through, 5 to 8 minutes.
6. Drizzle the reserved dressing on the salmon, garnish with more herbs, if desired, and serve with the kale and chickpeas.

Thanks to Steelhead Coaching for this awesome recipe! Be sure to check them out!

If you know me  - you know how much I LOVE pizza. There's a tradition amongst my crew to gather the evening before events for what we call simply "pre-race pizza". Occasionally, this also becomes post-race pizza. And because I can't always wait for these special occasions I'm often whipping up these easy pita pies whenever I feel like it! No race needed. Super fast to prepare, perfect for quick lunches and they are darn good anytime! Try this...
​
Grab yourself some whole grain pitas, they come in various sizes so you can go small for snacks and bigger for main meals. 
Decide what toppings you're in mood for today. Some of my favorite combos are...
Margarita: mozzerella cheese, sliced tomatoes, italian herbs and fresh basil.
Country style: thin sliced salami, roasted red peppers, feta and spinach
Fancy pants: sliced pears, blue cheese and bacon crumbles
Olive bar: sometimes I'll fill a tub of goodies from the olive bar at the grocery, sliced it all up, top with shredded cheese and call it YUM! 
You can cook these in the oven at about 400 degrees for 6-8 minutes or use a toaster over or even a grill. Easy peasy! Give it a try and share your pita-pizza ideas! 

From Remy Maguire, USA Triathlon and Precision Nutrition certified coach. Reach out to Remy for a free 15-minute nutrition planning consult or to learn more about her coaching services.