Not your Mom's Brussel Sprouts

Tonight's dinner was actually going to be a new recipe and kind of elaborate, but after a loooooong Monday and Rudy's total body assessment, I ended up choosing a more familiar fave of mine.....chicken and brussel sprouts.  

I hope most of you that are reading this aren't thinking, "ewwww brussel sprouts", because these things ARE GOOD! If you are, I dare you to try and prepare them the way I do and then judge! I really just discovered my love for brussels in 2009 when my bf bought them on a whim. They were so cute - little mini cabbages packed full of vitamins and minerals. Did you know that each sprout has 1g of protein AND 1g of fiber? whoah.

My prep includes:

- About 1 tbsp of walnut oil (I've played around with this, sometimes I'll use EVOO, or garlic infused EVOO)

- 1/2 cup of pine nuts

- 1 bag of brussel sprouts from trader joe's (approx. 12-14 sprouts)

I put the oil in the pan first, let it heat up a little, then add my pine nuts. Toasted pine nuts add a rich flavor to any vegetable dish! Once they are roasted I take them out and place them in a bowl while I cook the brussels. BE CAREFUL, pine nuts burn very easily, so use low heat and watch them.

Wash your brussels under cool water and then cut off the ends. If there are any brown spots or wilted leaves trim them off. I then cut each sprout in half and add it to the pan and oil. Once the brussels are semi-soft, add your pine nuts back for a minute or so to heat them back up. I do not like overcooked brussels. The best is when they are soft, but still have a little crunch to them.

**The chicken was cooked in a similar pan with less than a tbsp of garlic infused olive oil and seasoned with cayenne pepper. YUM!

Today's Food Log:

BREAKFAST

1 hard boiled egg

1 banana

4 jicama slices

SNACK

Apple

LUNCH

Salad from whole foods – kale, spinach, grape tomatoes, cilantro, small amount of sunflower seeds, small amount of bacon, small amount of roasted artichokes, roasted chicken, light drizzle of sesame seed oil, red wine vinegar, cayenne pepper.

1 Handful of cashews

SNACK

3 Handfuls of cashews (too many!)

DINNER

Chicken and brussels

Today's Workout Log:
Overall body assessment with Rudy tonight

Goals 

1) Get lean
2) Improve my upper body and back strength
3) Get faster and improve body weight excersices - box jumps, handstand pushups, pullups, reg pushups, vertical leap, etc.
4) Work on back and ankle mobility/strength

 PR's 

Back Squat - 195
Front Squat - 145
Deadlift - 215
Bench Press - 125
Power Snatch - 85
Power Clean - 105