The versatile asparagus dip on baked sweet potato with braised vidalia onion and wild mushrooms.

Say good bye to Jersey strawberry, and say hi to Jersey peach!

Warm up:

• 400 meters freestyle
• 300 meters flutter kicks
• 300 meters pull buoy
• 8 x 25 meters back stroke kicks

Pre-set:

• 5 x 100 meters pull buoy with hand paddles

Main-sets:

• 3 x 50 meters sprint
• 3 x 75 meters sprint
• 3 x 100 meters at 90% of race pace
• 2 x 200 meters - alternate between freestyle and breast stroke every 50 meters, at 85% of speed

Warm-down:

• 100 meters reach-n-pull

Total distance: 2875 meters

Note to myself: a little burnt out at the end; I need some sleep.

With my recent spur of interest in baking, I got distracted from studying for organic chemistry finals and baked some blueberry muffins.

Right out of the oven.

Ready to eat…I only had the muffin top (my favorite part of a muffin).

My muffins are actually not that sweet and have a subtle nutty and rich flavor from the organic butter that I used for baking. For texture, which I will need to find out more by eating more than just the muffin top, I will try cake flour next time instead of all purpose flour to compare the difference.

What is your distraction from doing you work?

Baked sweet potato with spinach, wild mushrooms, and Manchego cheese.

Warm up:

• 1 minute plank (front and sides)
• 20 bicycle crunches
• 20 BOSU obliques
• 20 lower back lifts on a stability ball

Main sets:

• Bench press: going down the weight: 135 x 8, 115 x 8, and 95 x 8 for 3 rounds with no rest between each set.
• Step down: 3 x 20 with holding 10 lbs. of dumbbell in each hand, s/s with 15 reps of overhead squat with 10 lbs. plate
• Push press: 3 x15, 65 lbs. s/s with 20 leg lifts
• Overhead barbell push: 3 x 2, 55 lbs. s/s with pull-ups (12 reps)
• Stretch cord swimmers: 3 variations, 4 x 60 (20 reps for each variation) s/s with v-ups
• Stability ball push-ups: 2 x30 s/s with v-ups

What’s your short-term goal?

Every weekend, I will be visiting the green market and buying fresh groceries. I will share my shopping list and the cost with my readers. I hope to promote eating locally and bring back the enthusiasm of hands-on cooking.

Vegetables:
1 bunch of carrot: $2.50
1 bucket of sweet potatoes (farmer’s bucket): $4.50
1 bunch of spinach: $2.00
1 bunch of asparagus: $3.50

Fruits:
1 quart of strawberry: $5.00
1 pint of blueberry: $3.00

Meat:
1 free-range chicken: $10

Dairy:
1 slice of Manchego: $4.50

Total: $35.00

What’s in your shopping bag?

My school, Rutgers University, has opened a new farmers’ market recently. I paid my first visit there on Friday and was amazed by the variety of goods sold there.

The schedule, feel free to join me! And I picked up a copy of the magazine that has a long list of Jersey farmers’ market.

Anyone knows how to cook with kohlrabi? Please let me know!

I snack on fresh zucchini and squash; they are loaded with vitamin A, C and dietary fibers (low calories too, ladies). Just slice them and dip them into pesto, peanut butter, guacamole, or sprinkle a little salt on them for some flavor.

Carrots. Carrot cake after my banana bread?…perhaps.

Jersey cherries and blueberries are “in”!

Something I’d like to try soon.

Last but not least…cheese made from sheep milk. Cheese - I can’t live without it.

For more information on Rutgers farmers’ market, please visit http://www.rutgersgardens.rutgers.edu/farmmarket.htm.

The banana bread tastes better if served the next day. I fought my urge of devouring the bread last night when it came out of the oven (ok…i had a small slice, not big enough to call it a serving though) and wrapped it with foil and let it chilled overnight in the fridge.

This morning, I toasted a slice of the banana bread and served it with yogurt and fresh Jersey berries. My patience is finally rewarded. Cheers to you, banana bread!

What did you have this morning for breakfast?

I always enjoy eating baked goods made by fruits. My friend, Melanie, makes the best banana bread. After moving back to Jersey, going to Brooklyn to visit her has become a rare event. Therefore, I purposely bought some extra banana this week and let some of them ripe until I can make a banana bread to fulfill my craving. I got my recipe from foodnetwork kitchen.

Ta-da!

I can feed an army…well a small one…or maybe just myself!

Banana bread is darn good!