Recipes

Ripped Flavor Profile: Greek Yogurt with Fresh Orange Juice, Fresh Black Pepper, Cinnamon and Fennel

You could just go the simple route:

6-8oz plain Greek yogurt (I like full fat)
2-3 Tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
6-8 grinds black pepper
Scant quarter tsp ground fennel
Cinnamon to taste
Touch of honey, if desired

…or you could get creative and put this flavor profile to work in your own bigger recipe. Feel free to leave a comment about how you might remix these flavors.

Ripped Salad: Dandelion and Arugula with Honeydew, Prosciutto and Aged Provolone in a Warm Banana-Coconut-Bacon-Dijon Viniagrette

I like recipe names to be descriptive.

I’m also not fond of florid, 400-word descriptions of what a recipe tastes like. I’ll figure that out after I taste it. I just want to get to the good stuff!

But I will say that this bitter | salty | sweet freakshow of a salad is not only tantalizingly intriguing, but worthy of the “full meal” label. In fact, I just ate this for dinner. It’s my second favorite salad after the Vietnamese style arugula mint orange sardine one I posted a couple of days back, but only because it takes longer to prepare. Taste wise, they’re so different and both so freakin awesome.

What do these seemingly disparate ingredients have to do with one another? This salad. That's what.

What do these seemingly disparate ingredients have to do with one another? This salad. That’s what.

Ingredients
1:2 ratio of dandelion greens to arugula. I like to eat enormous portions, so I fill a family-size salad bowl. If you like it more bitter, up the dandelion.
1 wedge of honeydew, large diced
2 oz. prosciutto, sliced thin strips
1 oz. aged provolone, not the mild stuff
2 strips bacon (I prefer uncured organic stuff)
1/4 ripe banana
1 Tbsp good strong Dijon mustard
1 tsp virgin coconut oil
1.5 Tbsp or so of white wine vinegar (or whatever kind of vinegar you prefer)
1 Tbsp minced shallot
1 Tbsp bacon fat, reserved from pan
1 Tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Preparation

    1. Put bacon on to cook until crisp in small frying pan (start it on the cold pan and let heat slowly).
    2. While bacon’s going, place greens, melon, cheese and prosciutto in large salad bowl.
    3. In a small bowl, smash ripe banana well with the back of a fork, then add mustard, shallot, vinegar and coconut flakes. Mix well.
    4. When bacon is cooked, pat dry with paper towel, chop, and sprinkle on salad.
    5. Add 1 Tbsp bacon fat from pan to bowl with other dressing ingredients, along with the coconut oil.
    6. Microwave dressing until just warm. Pour on salad and toss. Add salt and fresh pepper to taste. Eat.

Nutrition
~530 cal, 37g fat, 33g carbs, 22g protein (none of this really matters for getting ripped as long as daily protein intake is adequate)

Ripped Recipe: Savory Garlic Romano Apricot Oatmeal Polenta With Ginger Dusted Watermelon and Maple Syrup
A truly unique twist on polenta.

A truly unique twist on polenta.

I enjoy polenta, but 1) I’m not into the cooking time, and 2) I don’t eat corn anymore. Sort of.

Anyway, I have a sneaking suspicion that most people believe oats are for breakfast (oatmeal), or dessert (cookies), or simply a flavorless filler/ moisture holder for meatloaf. Let’s smush that stereotype.

Ingredients
1/2 cup 1-min oats
1 cup unsalted chicken stock
1-2 Tbsp milk
3 Tbsp grated Locatelli Romano or other good hard Italian sharp cheese
1 small palmful of chopped dried apricots (preferably unsulphured organic)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp nutmeg
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
watermelon cut into 1″ cubes
ground ginger

Preparation
Mix oats and chicken stock; microwave for a minute or so until the mixture becomes thick. This is half the liquid normally used to make oats.

Stir in Romano, apricots, garlic powder, nutmeg, salt and pepper. The mix should be very thick like corn polenta. If it’s too thick, just add a little milk.

Spread onto plate or tray and set aside or in fridge to cool. Once cool, it can be cut into squares, but they wont stay together like traditional polenta. You could alternatively just serve as a scoop on plate.

Plate by setting watermelon cubes next to polenta. Dust watermelon with granulated ginger. Drizzle a little pure maple syrup on oat polenta. Eat.

Ripped Dessert: Cinnamon-Cayenne-Fennel-Spiked Chocolate Coffee Coconut Protein Balls

Part of my process of learning how to get ripped was to learn how to think even more creatively about food. Although I call this a dessert, it’s not sweet by dessert standards, but it’s a neat little protein snack and a flavor excursion.

A sneaky trio of cayenne, fennel and cinnamon set these chocolate coffee coconut protein balls off!

Ingredients
1 scoop (34g) chocolate casein protein
4 tsp coconut flour
3 tsp instant coffee
5 Tbsp milk
2 tsp virgin coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 + 1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/4 + 1/8 tsp ground fennel
1 gram stevia
1/2 to 1 tsp honey
2-3 Tbsp coconut flakes

Preparation
Mix coconut flour, milk and instant coffee in small bowl with stevia and sugar or honey. If you don’t like stevia, you can sub in a little more sugar or honey. I prefer honey because it adds a bit more moisture.

Add protein, cayenne, cinnamon, and fennel along with the coconut oil. Mix well until it forms a sort of doughy paste. Form into balls. Roll in coconut flakes. Eat.

~230 calories, 26g protein, 10g fat, 4g carbs

A couple of notes:

  • If you really want to go berserk, I think you could probably smash some banana and mix it in. It might require a little more coconut flour to keep it tight though.
  • In case you were wondering, since it’s just finely ground coconut meat, coconut flour doesn’t have to be cooked.
  • If you’re going to make this, you can play with the amount of coffee. Also, I know that some individuals aren’t fond of stevia because it can be a little bitter. If that’s the case, add a little extra honey.
  • Vanilla casein can also be swapped in for the chocolate casein.
  • I wouldn’t try using whey protein for this. I’ve found that whey really doesn’t work well with recipes because it doesn’t gel the whey casein does.
  • Try swapping the fennel for ground coriander.

Ripped Salad: Vietnamese Italian Spinach Arugula and Mint with Sardines and Oranges

I know, I know. That recipe title is a mouthful. And so is this incredibly delicious and unique salad. This is completely my own creation, and it’s my favorite salad ever. Vietnamese and Italian flavors are combined with oranges and sardines to create an incredible flavor profile. Perfect for a first recipe post.

These ingredients combine to create a unique and delicious flavor profile.

These ingredients combine to create a unique and delicious flavor profile.

Ingredients

  • For the salad:
    • Several handfuls each of organic baby spinach and arugula.
    • One quarter of a large navel orange, sliced
    • A half cup of roughly torn fresh mint leaves
    • One half of a cucumber, sliced, peeled or unpeeled, but peeled if not organic
    • 3 Tbsp Grated Locatelli Romano cheese or any other sharp, hard Italian cheese (Romano, parmiggiano regianno, etc.)
  • For the dressing:
    • One can of sardines (I only buy in extra virgin olive oil or water, never soybean or other vegetable oil)
    • 1 Tbsp black or white sesame seeds, toasted in a dry pan for a few minutes
    • 3 Tbsp of one or a combination of apple cider vinegar (preferably raw unfiltered), rice wine vinegar, or white vinegar
    • 2 tsp Thai fish sauce (can be found in the international aisle of any decent grocery
    • 2 tsp soy sauce (I prefer to use reduced sodium)
    • 1 tsp Sriracha
    • 1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil
    • 1 tsp garlic powder
    • 1 tsp red chili flakes (or to taste)
    • 2 tsp of one or a combination of dried Thai basil or sweet basil
    • 1 tsp brown sugar

    Preparation
    Add greens, oranges, cucumber and mint to salad bowl.

    Begin the dressing by roughly smashing the sardines in a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Spoon over greens/ oranges/ cucumber/ mint mixture. Sprinkle with grated cheese. Toss well and enjoy.

    ~280 calories, 20g protein, 15g fat, 5g carbs