Raw Coconut Cookies (with a dash of crossfit & climbing)

The better the weekend the harder the Monday. After I let my children free into the wild this afternoon, I stood alone in the quiet hall. Oh my, tomorrow is only Wednesday......wait a  s e c o n d.. Tomorrow is only Tuesday! 

Here's some of the weekend fun:
Saturday - Team comp a Crossfit 6th Ave. I brought these treats plus some paleo cake pops to share with the athletes.

Go Bears!

Sunday - Tree climb & Tyrolean across the river

        To the Guppy Pod! The ledge in that little blue circle is where we hung out at all afternoon.

Sam leading out of the guppy pod. There was some rock climbing as well.

Finally to the food! Here's the raw coconut cookies They are very easy and quick to make. I used the big Fancy chunks just because it’s what I had on hand. I shredded it down in my food processor. Next time I’ll use just regular unsweetened shredded coconut. If you try this with honey in place of maple syrup, let me know how it turns out. Discalimer: These aren't technically raw- Maple syrup is not a raw ingredient and the type of almond flour I use is blanched. 

Raw Coconut Cookies Recipe ( I forgot to take a picture!)

Ingredients

2 Cups of unsweetened coconut

3/4 Cup almond flour

1 Tablespoon vanilla

1/4 Cup melted coconut oil

1/4 Cup Maple Syrup

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

- Mix the oil, syrup and vanilla together

- Mix almond flour, coconut and salt

- Mix it all up!

- Use a spoon or ice cream scooper to mold into tight cookies.

Enjoy!

Pineapple Cucumber Salad

Because of posts like this it may seem like I always eat super healthy.

Not so. 

This is not news to my friends. Stress leads to sweets. Lots of sweets. I've finished a package of Oreos since Sunday. Yesterday, I stopped at the store to get shrimp for this delicious Tomato Coconut Curry Soup, and ended up with a churro and a strawberry iced donut. Yeah, my local grocery store sells churros. Dulce De Leche or Cream filled. And I have this thing for pink strawberry frosted donuts. I ate both on the way home, before I could stop myself. Tonight, Sam and I are well on our way to finishing a carton of Red Velvet ice cream. Blue Bunny, Duff created- So good! You should go get some tonight!

I slightly regret those donuts, but not this ice cream, yet at least.

Speaking of regrets, I let a spider live last night and now I know it's waiting in my bed. What happened was I grabbed my hoodie from the bed post and put it on when something black fell in front of my face and onto the floor. It was a huge black and white spider. It was in my hoodie!! Insert overly dramatic scream here. Did I mention, it was in my hoodie, or maybe my hair?! It could have been there for who knows how long. Did I mention it fell in front of my face, from me head!? I wanted to stomp, but I always catch and release spiders in my classroom for my kiddos. I know spiders are actually helpful because they catch annoying and harmful bugs. But it was in my hoodie! I tried to get the dogs to eat it. No go. So I watched it crawl under my dresser.

Here's a recipe that I did not regret eating. It's sweet, tangy and slightly spicy. Perfect for summer bbqing. I served it with a pre-spice rubbed salmon fillet from Costco. So Good. To duplicate it myself, I'll use this recipe or just buy the dry rub Whole Foods has.

Pineapple Cucumber Salad

Ingredients
2 Cups chopped Organic Pineapple
1 large cucumber, sliced (peeled or unpeeled. I peel half to keep some color and nutritional benefit)
1 red bell pepper, sliced
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 Tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 very small Jalapeno, diced
1 small lemon or lime, juiced
1 slice of orange juiced - optional

Mix and Serve!

Cheers!

Indian Creek Part II: Not the adventure I expected.

This is a journal of the 6 Shooter Climbing Day through my eyes. 

                            (The South Six Shooter and the North Six Shooter)

         The South Six Shooter! Yes let's do it! We're finally gonna climb a classic desert tower.  We've talked about doing this every year in the creek and now we are. I'm nervous and excited. This will be our rest day. A long hike sure, but easy climbing. Around the campfire, we finalize our plans. I'm now only slightly troubled by the fact that in our rush to pack, we forgot our guide book. (I was pissed earlier in the week, but had gotten over it.) By head lamp, I read the description in a friend's Falcon guide over and over, paying close attention to the approach and descent. You see, I've had a few frustrating and terrifying experiences on multi-pitch climbs. So now, I try to memorize the approach, climb topo and descent route. Falcon guides are notoriously insufficient and inaccurate. But it's all we've got. Drive between the north and south towers. Hike up to the south side. Three short 5.6 pitches. Two rapels to get down. It seems simple enough. I suggest we start between 8 and 9. We compromise with 9:30. The next morning we leave camp at 10:52.
            Cody and I are undoubtedly the most excited. We're down to five climbers, since one member decided to enjoy the rest day in Moab. Soon we embark down the dusty 4-wheel drive road.  After seemingly make a wrong turn, we end up at a No Motorized Vehicles sign. Sensibly, we turn around and find another wash turn-off that heads between the North and South Six Shooter. This looks good, exactly what they book said, 'drive between the two towers to the end of the road'. We've been bumping along for about an hour when the road just ends in some trees. Discussing our options, we decide to head back to a turn-off we spotted that seemed closest to the South tower. Even though this is not the south side, we presume we can head up to the mesa and wrap around to the base of our climb.
      I've tried to mentally prepare myself for this daunting approach. There should be a relatively short hill to get to the top of the mesa, then a slog up the scree slope where the tower sits. Packs on, we head up the hill. Soon we find ourselves in this boulder garden, amongst massive black and tan rocks poised on red sandy stacks of sandstone.

Cairns! We spot little stacks of rocks hikers and climbers use to mark trails. We're on the right track! As I realize that this approach alone is going to take a couple hours, I ask if anyone brought a head lamp. I've forgotten mine.Thankfully Kevin has one and Cody brought two.  

      Finally, we come to a short cliff that guards the mesa top. Jay scales a hand crack in his Sanuks with his pack on, something I'm not willing to do. Kevin finds a secret cave that leads to the top and convinces me to follow. One more barrier to go, a short 2-foot gap in the rock over a dark, deep abyss. My wide eyes clue Jay into my apprehension of jumping over. I toss my pack and Jay thankfully offers a clasped hand. 

(Kevin in the cave)

              We are atop the mesa! Now we've just got to figure out where to scale this scree slope so we can actually start our climb. Generally up seems like a good idea. The hill is getting steeper and looser and we're still on the wrong side. So we convene to deliberate. I'm convinced we should go to the right since our climb is on the south west corner. We gingerly scramble up the steep rocky ridges and traverse the sandy gullies. My heart crumbles when I see the steep gully and mudwall that will prevent us from getting to that southwest corner. The guys decide to go up to the tower from where we're at, the north side. 

                                    (Jay with the North 6 Shooter in the background)

(Sam & I Hiking atop the mesa)

 (The loose ridges and scree to the tower base)

           About 100 feet from the base of the tower the guys cross an incredibly steep gully of sand and gravel. Almost to the other side, Sam slips and slowly slides about 10 yards, with seemingly no way to stop. When he finally comes to a stop, I'm fully petrified. I cannot see a way to cross this gully without falling. And even if I do, it still doesn't get us to the intended climb. Will I have to scramble back down and across? Or climb some unknown route full of loose breaking rock? I refuse to leave my rocky perch. Jay, Kevin and Cody have all made it to the base of the tower and are discussing their options. Sam's trying to convince me to cross over. I'm convinced that I'll fall with my heavy pack pulling me off balance. I feel completely stuck. Jay spies an unknown crack that will lead to the ledge connecting to the correct route. We can see climbers popping out from the other side. They've decided to go for it. Sam crosses back over to me, still clinging to my boulder. Sam can see that I've hit my wall. There are no tears, just a glazed over look of panic on my face. A level of anxiety has taken over, preventing me from thinking clearly. I can feel adrenaline coursing through me. A fog of fear filling my head.  Sam let's me know we can turn back. It's OK. Experience has taught him that at this point, I'm done. Jay & Kevin are encouraging us to continue, asking what they can do to help. I tell Sam I can turn back alone and he should go climb without me. Of course, he refuses. God, I'm such a sissy. I've hiked all the up here to stop 100 feet from the base! I'm gonna make Sam miss this climb. These thoughts just compound the anxiety. I chose this. I don't want to back down. But I feel paralyzed.

                                                        (The view from my perch)

            After a fuzzy 30 minutes of this, we slowly make our way down the ridge. As we reach the mesa top, I can feel my head clearing like a chill wave washing over me. We find some shade under a boulder and sit to eat and watch our friends. Thinking clearly, I regret not being able to continue. But, I now understand what Sam was telling me. There's no continuing once I've hit that level of fear. I feel overwhelmingly thankful for him. Some negative climbing experiences have led to this understanding between us as climbing partners. He provided the way out that I needed without any judgement. 

 

         Snacking on canned sardines and fruit leathers, we watch our friends. Jay, Kevin and Cody are colorful specks slowly ascending the tower. With my cheer returning, I suggest we explore the Mesa top and walk to the south side to watch the climbers summit. 

(Cryptobiotic Soil)

           This place is like another planet. We carefully tread around the cryptobiotic soil. These living ridges of  black-red ground cover is one of the earth's oldest known life forms. It seems as if we are the first people who have ever been here. Tiny curly blades of grass spring from cement hard ground. A boulder tempts us to drop the packs and don our climbing shoes. We stumble upon the most amazing rocks. Amongst a pile of sand and rubble, Sam spies something quite unique. A fossil?! A petrified bone at the least. 

  

         Finally on the south side, we watch climbers scattered over the tower.  From here we can see the parking area below where we should have started. The well marked scramble over the scree pile above, to the base of the climb we should have climbed. Next time, if there is a next time, we'll know where to start. I'm surprisingly satisfied to be down here, below the summit, in this unexpected adventure.

 

         Sam and I make our way back across the mesa. Over the abyss. Down the cave. Through the balancing boulder garden. To the car. We sit in the dirt and reminisce. Not long after, our friends come scurrying down. Their faces lit with satisfaction. We share our experiences. Theirs was quite an epic tale. Cody has been climbing only 6 months. This was his first multi-pitch. From what they share, it was quite an intro. Surely he'll never forget this climb. 

(Kevin, Jay, & Cody's climb & summit)

I only have to give a brief explanation of why we turned back. These good friends understand. Any shred of embarrassment I felt completely fades. We each had our own journey. We are bonded through our adventure, yet each personal experience so individual and unique. We pile into the car and head back home, our home of tents. Re-living the day, laughing and enjoying the beautiful sunset. 

Amazing photos courtesy of Jay Samuelson and Kevin Meurer. Thanks guys!

Rock What You've Got! (Tilapia & Mango Salsa)

Sometimes, when you are a woman, you wear stretchy pants. It is for fun. Also sometimes you watch Nacho Libre when you're blogging. 
Maybe I’m not fit for these duties, cooking duty, dead guy duty. Maybe it’s time I get a better duty. I'm laughing hysterically just typing this!

But anyways, let's get down to the niiitty griiitty.

 Do you remember that one time when everyone was shouting my name and I used my strength to rip my blouse. No? Well I guess it went more like this: In the middle of my Crossfit WOD Tuesday, I found myself in an inferno. Heat was pouring out of me. Me trying to do double unders. Figures. Here's how the internal battle sounded: It's these damned cold-weather running tights! But there's nothing you can do about that right now. Get rid of the shirt! No, you've been binging on popcorn and cookies since spring break. Plus, you haven't shaved your pits! It's so hot, I'm gonna die!
The shirt came off. Victory. Oh my god, I felt so much better. I crushed that last set of snatches (relatively speaking) and even got 9 double unders before tripping. Logically, I know that my brief moment of insecurity was silly. Ridiculous really. I should have taken my shirt off immediately. The only reason I'm revealing it now is to show that we all feel insecure sometimes. But screw that. Rock what you've got. For the sake of my beautiful niece, and my first grade girls, be proud ladies. Of whatever you've got. You're gorgeous.
I rarely see the ladies out climbing or at CFSD ditch their shirts. I don't know if it's modesty or insecurity. Either way, feel free to rip those shirts off girls. I've seen plenty of guys without (and with) perfect 6 packs rocking it. It gets hot in there. Rock what you've got, ladies! And dudes too. That's what I say.

Have I focused too much on my stretchy pants? I'll move on to food.

Why can't we ever have just like a salad?

Well, today is especially delicious.

Three basic recipes here 1.) Sauteed Tilapia (or any mild fish) 2.) Mango Salsa 3.) Fancy Quinoa - One night we ate Mango Tilapia salad and the next Tilapia over Fancy Quinoa with Mango Avocado Salsa. Even though there's so many competing flavors is the latter combination, our consensus was especially delicious. 

Fish note: I use the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Guide buy environmentally conscious seafood. They have an app for your phone with regular updates on fishing practices and mercury levels. Great for when you're shopping. 

Mango Salsa Recipe

Ingredients

1 large mango, chopped

1 large tomato, chopped

1 small jalapeno, seeds removed, diced

1/3 C red onion, diced

1/4 C cilantro, roughly chopped

1 t sea salt

1 lime, juiced (or 1/2 lemon if you must)

1/2 avocado, diced - optional

Directions: Mix it all up!

Sauteed Tilapia Recipe

Ingredients

1/4 Cup onion, diced

1 Tablespoon garlic, diced

1 Tablespoon coconut oil

1 T chopped cilantro or parsley

squirt of lemon or lime juice

2 large or 4 small tilapia Fillets (we like our protein servings big)

Directions

1.) Heat coconut oil in large skillet on medium heat. Add onion and saute for 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more.

2.) Add Tilapia fillets and cook for 3-4 minutes. Flip over, sprinkle with chopped cilantro or parsley and squirt with lemon juice. Cook for 3-4 minutes more, until done. 

Fancy Quinoa Recipe

Ingredients

1/2 Cup organic quinoa

1 scant Cup water (meaning just under 1 cup)

1/4 Cup diced onion

1/3 C chopped sun dried tomatoes

3 cups organic baby spinach

1/4 Cup chopped almonds

Sea salt

Coconut oil

Directions

1.) Mix water and quinoa in a small sauce pan. Cover and bring to a boil on high. Turn to low and let simmer, covered for 15 minutes. Always fluff with a fork to check and stir when it's done.

2.) Toast Almonds- Do it, it's worth it: Put almonds in a dry skillet on medium-high heat. Stir often until fragrant and barely golden. (Careful, I often burn mine) 

3.) Heat some coconut oil in a skillet and cook onion for 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Add spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, sprinkle with salt and cook, stirring until spinach wilts down. 

4.) Add almonds and spinach tomato mixture to the quinoa pot. Use a fork to stir it all together. 

Combine however you want. 

So I revised and edited this post a few nights after Nacho Libre. If you think it's disjointed now, you should have seen the original. Literally a page of hilarious movie quotes. Hilarious.

Hug hug, big kiss, hug hug, little hug, kiss kiss, big hug.