By Henry Gould – May 28th, 2019

Judging by the weather, summer has officially arrived in Vancouver. The days are longer, the willpower to resist patio drinks is basically zero, and the desire to turn an oven on to make dinner is definitely out of the question.

The solution? A lovely chilled noodle salad! This recipe is great for a number of reasons:

• It’s vegan (unless you add other protein)
• It’s gluten free (soba / buckwheat noodles are GF)
• It tastes amazing
• It will keep for a few days
• There is very minimal cooking required
• It’s a blank canvas for any other vegetables or items you want to add

Obviously the base recipe is vegan, but feel free to add whatever protein you like to the finished product (cooked chicken, hard boiled eggs, canned tuna, roasted chickpeas, tofu, prawns, etc etc).

Chilled Buckwheat Noodle Salad w/ Tahini Dressing

• Soba / Buckwheat noodles, 125g per person
• Baby spinach, 1 handful per person
• 1 red pepper, julienned
• Green onions, finely sliced
• 1 garlic clove, grated finely
• 1 small piece of ginger, grated finely
• 5-6 tablespoons Tahini
• 1-2 tablespoons Soy sauce
• 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons Sesame oil
• Honey
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

Get a large pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil. Season the water with salt. Drop the baby spinach in and blanch for 10 seconds then take out with a strainer and drain in a colander and allow to cool. Set aside. Add the buckwheat noodles to the boiling water and cook according to package instructions. Remove from the water and drain thoroughly, then give a quick rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.

To make the dressing, add the garlic and ginger to a bowl along with the tahini, sesame oil, juice of half the lemon, soy sauce, a pinch of salt, black pepper and some honey. Add a little water and then mix thoroughly. If it’s too thick, add a bit more more water and keep stirring. Have a taste and adjust the seasoning with more lemon juice, honey, salt and soy sauce to your taste. You can also add hot sauce / sriracha if you like it spicy.

Add the spinach, red peppers and green onion to your buckwheat noodles in a bowl and dress with the dressing.

The post RECIPE – Chilled Soba Noodle Salad w/ Tahini Dressing appeared first on Yard Athletics.

By Yard Athletics – Feb 19th, 2019

Hope everyone had a restful Family Day weekend! Great news… for the next few weeks, Yard Athletics will be hosting a promotion from EPIC Provisions, giving away some of their famous performance and meat bars, free of charge.

EPIC Provisions was founded by Katie and Taylor Collins in Austin TX, after years following strict vegan and vegetarian diets that left them with many unidentified ailments and health issues. Deciding they needed a lifestyle change that satisfied both their active lifestyles, as well as environmental beliefs, they started EPIC, offering a variety of grass fed meat, fruit and nut bars and other products.

Yard Athletics is really excited about the promotion, so the next time you’re in the gym ask us for a sample and we will HOOK. YOU. UP.

#YardHard

The post Free EPIC Bars at Yard Athletics! Feb 19th – March 8th appeared first on Yard Athletics.

By Henry Gould – Jan 8th, 2019

Warning to all food purists and authenticity snobs: this recipe is likely to cause immense grief and frustration! It’s not quite traditional soba, not really miso soup, and definitely not what might charitably be called “ramen”.

But is it delicious, inexpensive to prepare, and incredibly healthy??? Yes. Yes it is.

Although this preparation takes hints and cues from all of the above dishes (miso soup, ramen, soba) it’s more of a mashup of all 3, using chicken drumsticks as the basis for the protein and soup component. Basically you are roasting chicken drumsticks in the oven, taking the meat off the bones, then boiling the bones with vegetables and flavorings, and finally putting it all back together. It does require a bit of time, so probably better to make the day ahead, store the meat and broth separately, then reheat the next day.

In terms of additions and toppings, those are entirely up to you. I’ve given a big list of ideas, but use your imagination. Perhaps there’s a favorite item you like adding to your ramen? Put it in! Don’t like onions? Take them out!

Recipes like this are a great vehicle for anything you have leftover in the fridge, so long as the core of the recipe is in tact. As well, most of the speciality ingredients like miso, soy sauce and fish sauce can be purchased once and used for months.

Enjoy!

Chicken “Miso Soup” w/ Gluten-Free Soba Noodles

• Chicken Drumsticks (ideally a large family pack)
• Soba Noodles (look for 100% buckwheat, which are gluten-free)
• 1 Onion, peeled and cut in half
• 5 Garlic cloves
• 1 large piece of ginger, peeled and chopped roughly
• Sea Salt
• Black Pepper
• 1 Jalapeno, cut in length
• 1 Celery stick, chopped roughly
• Soy Sauce
• Thai Fish Sauce
• Miso Paste
• Toppings (optional)
  • Blanched spinach
  • Chopped green onions
  • Soft boiled egg
  • Mushrooms (shiitake, enoki, oyster, button)
  • Seaweed
  • Kimchi
  • Bamboo shoots
  • Chili oil
  • Lemon wedges

Heat your oven to 425F. Get a roasting pan or frying pan that can go in the oven, rub some oil on it, then put in all your chicken drumsticks. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Throw in the oven for 30 minutes, then check. The drumsticks should be getting nice and crispy and brown. If not, cook for another 10 minutes.

Remove the drumsticks from the pan and allow to cool. Pour a little water in the pan used to roast the drumsticks, and scrape all the brown “fond” off the bottom with a wooden spoon. Then pour this liquid into a large pot that will be used to simmer the broth.

After the drumsticks have cooled, pull all the meat off the bones and set aside. Throw all the bones into your pot for the broth.

To the pot, add the white onion, celery, jalapeno, ginger,garlic cloves, a little fish sauce and a little soy sauce. Fill to the top with cold water, bring to a boil, then lower the heat all the way and simmer for 1-2 hours, depending how much time you have.

Strain the broth and put back into the pot and bring to a boil. Get all your toppings ready along with your bowls to serve in. Once the broth is boiling, add your mushrooms if you’re using them (raw mushrooms can be toxic) and cook for a few minutes. Add a spoon of miso paste and break it up in the liquid with a spoon. Have a taste, and adjust the seasoning with more miso, soy, fish sauce, salt, pepper, as per your taste.

To the boiling broth, add 100g of soba noodles per person, and boil as per package instructions. They usually cook quick, and will keep cooking in the bowl, so cook less than you think.

Divide the noodles into each bowl, garnish with your toppings of choice, along with the shredded chicken meat and as much of the broth as you like.

The post RECIPE – Chicken “Miso Soup” w/ Gluten-Free Soba Noodles appeared first on Yard Athletics.

Hope everyone had a great Canada Day! Nothing quite like a short week in the summer…

We’ve got a great recipe today from guest poster and friend of Yard Athletics, Ashley Hildebrand. Not your standard bisquick pancakes; these substitute standard wheat flour for chickpea flour, making for a deeper flavor, more protein, and a gluten free alternative to the usual. They also omit dairy in favor of your preferred nut “mylk”, so those with lactose sensitivity – fear not!

Enjoy…

By Ashley Hildebrand – July 6th, 2018

Chickpea Flour Banana Pancakes

V/GF/Grain Free, 70g Carbs, 9g Fat, 15g Protein per serving

Makes 4 Pancakes / 2 big servings

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Cup Chickpea Flour
• 1 Cup Nut Mylk
• 1 Egg OR Flax Egg (2tbsp + 2tbsp water)
• 1 banana, mashed
• 2 tbsp Arrowroot Powder
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• Oil of choice for frying

Place all the ingredients in a bowl or blender and mix.

Melt the oil in a pan on medium heat, and scoop the batter onto the pan in desired pancake size. Cook until bubbles form around the edges and the pancakes are golden. Flip over and cook on the other side for 1-2 minutes.

Serve with your favorite toppings! (recommended: casher butter & strawberries for a boujie PB&J).

The post RECIPE – Chickpea Flour Banana Pancakes from Ashley Hildebrand appeared first on Yard Athletics.