The Life of Pizza John

After messing around with this recipe a lot, I have finally figured out how I like it.  This makes a big portion and feeds probably about 6 people (or lots of leftovers).  I like the end result to be smooth(ish), so that is how I make it. (whole process takes about 120-150 minutes) First, marinade the protein for at least a couple hours or overnight. Mix the following together, then add protein. 1 tsp turmeric 1 tsp cayenne pepper 1 tsp salt 3 TBS olive oil --24oz Paneer OR 6 Chicken Breasts (cut into bite size pieces) In a food processor, blend the following until it is a semi smooth mixture, then set aside: 2 white onions 2 serrano chilies with only the stems chopped off (about 6 inches long) 3 inches ginger, peeled 4 TBS garlic Then in the food processor (I don't bother cleaning it in between), blend 30oz chopped spinach with 1 C water and blend until smooth. In a small cup, make the following spice mix: 10 tsp coriander 10 tsp garam masala 5 tsp cumin ...

I like doing this race every year for a couple reasons. First, it is early in the year so it forces me to train through the winter. Second, it gives me a base line of improvement from the year before.  This year I killed my previous times by a huge margin and had a huge PR for the Half distance.  I finished in 4:21:01 and was 14th overall.  I'm slowly working my way to the top of the age groupers and once I have my run dialed in a little more I think I will be able to crack the overall podium. Swim: (31:40) I felt great from the start of the swim.  I felt like I was moving along pretty quickly, but when I got out of the water, I noticed I was slower than the year before. I thought this was strange, but at the time I just pushed it off as possibly a longer course or not swimming in straight lines.  Once I looked at my Garmin later, I realized that I swam straight and the distance was right on so I must have just been going slow! Bike: (2:15:36) I had the...

After a winters worth of hard work, I've had the chance to race a couple times and I've been pleasantly surprised by the results. First race of the year was the Gate River Run (15k).  I don't do many running races (if any), so this was a great test of my stand alone running.  I finished in 57:31 and had pretty even splits so I was excited about that.  The second race of the year was the Great Clermont Triathlon.  I had a good race including the best bike split overall and ended in 4th place overall (1st in age group).  It had rained earlier in the day so it was wet and humid which made for a challenging bike.  A few familiar faces were there and I have loved watching my name rise above theirs in the results over the years.  Splits were:  Swim: 24:02 Bike: 1:00:42 Run: 40:31 Total: 2:07:51 Off to a good start to the year and I have Florida 70.3 in a few days so that should be fun. Following that will be St Anthony's, then onto ...

Occasionally I look back at the pictures I have taken and am reminded of all the good times I have had. I don't know many people who get to experience as much of life as I do.  I'm very grateful for the life I have created for myself.  I was running on the beach a couple days ago and I was the only person in sight for miles.  It was sunny and beautiful out and I had this wonderful beach all to myself.  Where else does this happen?  How have I gotten so lucky?  While I have had my challenges lately, life has never been better.  Life is goood.

I make this in a big pot and it turns out like a stew. 3 TBS Olive Oil 2 White Onion, Diced 2 inch Ginger, minced 8 Cloves Garlic, minced Small bag of colorful potatoes, chopped in quarters 8 Carrots, Cubed 2 Jalapeno, minced 6 TBS unsalted cashews, ground 8 oz tomato sauce 4 tsp salt 3 TBS Curry Powder 2 cups frozen peas 1 Green Pepper, chopped 1 Red Pepper, chopped 2 Cans Coconut Milk Heat oil in pot over medium. Stir in onion, cook till tender. Mix in garlic and ginger and cook for another minute. Mix in potatoes, Jalapenos, carrots, cashews, tomato sauce, salt and curry powder and cook for 15 minutes, until the potatoes can be stabbed.  Add peas, peppers and coconut milk and simmer for a bit.

4 Eggs 3/4 C Olive Oil 1/2 C Plain Applesauce 1 C White Sugar 1 C Brown Sugar 3 tsp Vanilla Extract 2 C Flour 2 tsp Baking Soda 2 tsp Baking Powder 1/2 tsp Salt 3 tsp Cinnamon 1/4 tsp Nutmeg 3 C Grated Carrots 1 C Chopped Pecans (in food processor) 8 oz Can of Crushed Pineapple, drained Grease a big glass pan and heat oven to 350. In big bowl, beat eggs, oil, apple sauce, sugar and vanilla. Mix in flour, BS, BP, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in carrots, Fold in Walnuts. Fold in pineapple. Bake for 40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool before adding the below frosting. Frosting: 1/2 C Butter Softened 8 Oz Cream Cheese Softened 3 1/2 C Powdered Sugar 1 tsp Vanilla Extract Beat all together in a mixer and add to top of cake! Sometimes I'll make the whole recipe, then freeze half of the batter and save it for later.  If you do this, use a 9in square pan and cook for 30 minutes.

1 Bag Frozen Broccoli from Costco, chopped in food processor (thawed) 1 Cup Raisins 1 Red Onion, chopped in food processor 1 Cup Sliced Almonds (or chopped in food processor) 1 Cup Veganaise 3 TBS White Wine Vinegar Mix first block in big bowl, then mix second block in small bowl. Add the liquid to the big bowl and mix a little more!  

4 Avocados Juice of 1 Lime I Jalapeno diced 2 Cloves Garlic minced Half Purple Onion (dices in food processor) Salt to taste Cumin to taste Red Pepper to taste 2 Roma Tomatoes, without seeds and juice Mix it in the order above and don't smash the tomatoes!  

Lots of crazy stuff since I last posted so this will mostly just be to catch up on pictures.  My last race of the season was Rocketman and I flatted twice so had to DNF. I was kinda bummed, but had a pretty good season so I have no complaints.  Zoot has resigned me to race with them again so I'm excited about that.  I'll have a similar first half race year to last year so I'll get to see how I compare to last year. I have been meaning to post a bunch of recipes I have been enjoying so hopefully there will be a short list of them after this!

Short on time so will update later... Swim was good. Bike was fun.  Run was amazing.  Glad I was able to run the whole time. Barcelona in general was a very cool city and I would love to go back and see more of Spain. Nutrition: Standard pre-race. On bike had 6 bars(quarters and fifths) on timer and 5 gels(half each time). On run had flask with 4 gels and water, then lived on aid stations. I had two salt tabs the night before, then two in the morning and one every 1:20 on the bike. ***In the future, I'll just use the two bottles and have 4 extra amounts of liquid nutrition.