John Broz Philosophy

John Broz Philosophy
- work up to a 1 rep max every day.
- back off 20-40 pounds or so and do 20-50 reps (sets of 2 or 3). Vary the weight based upon how you feel.
- do at least 1 rep max on big rowing or running days or if time is tight.

Squat to a daily 1RM, drop 15-20kg and do volume. That's all. When you lift more weight you work more weight in volume. When you feel like crap, just work up to a daily 1RM and skip the volume for that day. The body will regulate the weights you can lift but at the same time make you mentally exhausted.

The 1RM teaches you how to fight with max, but the 2's and 3's with 10-20kg less are what give you the power to go up.

The answer is simple. The squat is the most basic of exercises. Sit down then stand up. whatever happens with your ankles, hips, butt or whatever - don't over analyze. Just sit down and stand up.

Make sure you are sweating before you add weight to the bar. Squat the bar as many times as needed to get warm.

Training lifts will eventually start to go backwards as you enter into the "dark times". When you are so sore and fatigued that you cant even imagine lifting weights. This time is CRUCIAL to training. You MUST persevere and continue to train! Eventually your lifts will begin to improve and you will make progress and PR's while in a totally fatigued state. When you can make progress when feeling like this, this is when you are going somewhere.

To quote Antonio:"the day will never come when you can't lift the bar"

To quote my first coach:" If you wait til you feel good with no aches or pains to train, you will never be here"

Train til you can't walk, eat, sleep, repeat.

IF you cant' squat everyday, lift heavy everyday then you are not OVERTRAINED, you are UNDERTRAINED!

Look up at the ceiling. The body follows the head. If you are looking out or down this is usually the result.

When you get set to un-rack the bar, look up. Walk out and don't EVER look down to see where your feet are. If you maintain your head up, your upper back will stay tighter and your chances of keeping your hips under you increases.

day 1,2,3,4,5,6: squat to max (best weight at perfect competiotion technique) + back off sets of minimum 3x2, upto max of 50 reps. going back up to max or beyond if the weights start to feel light enough

The more often you attempt max, the more opportunities you are giving yourself to feel what max feels like, make max attempts, hit PR's, and it builds confidence. Eventually max is usual and as routine as walking down the street. Every morning I would squat at least 220 (usually more, but that was my "minimum" I HAD to do regardless of how I felt) like clockwork. I could do it just as easy as walking to my car to drive home. Pat is currently doing 250 every morning. It is so routine that at any given time, night or day 7 days/wk he would be able to do it without even blinking.

NOT training everyday leads to more injuries! IF you train everyday then your entire body is fatigued. Muscles, tendons, cartilage, ligaments, etc. When you train every other day, then the muscles and avascular tissues don't recover at the same pace. What happens is the muscles become fresh and recover but all the connective tissue is NOT. When the additional stress put on these weakened tissues (that never really got a chance to recover) by fresh muscles = injury. Lifting everyday keeps everything in a state that is equal and consistent within the system. A balance or harmony within. The fatigued muscles can't contract enough to harm the other tissues. The weak link moves from body part to body part, and in a sense is not letting the other parts max so that's when they are resting!

The progress from this program is because of the volume. Most people don't even come close to the amount of volume that it demands in regular workouts. The progress is wrongly attributed to the %'s and reps scheme. It's not. IT's the workload.

Squats take no or very little mental energy or stress on the CNS. squatting heavy should become as regular as a walk down the street.

The BS or FS only 1 or rarely 2 misses is allowed to daily max.

jump in with both feet! You don't necessarily have to go max every session, but doing them daily - even up to 80% or so just to get used to the work is a good start. You will see that you will adapt faster than you realize. Squatting will be just like walking. Progress the weights to max as soon as you realize that squatting daily is a joke.

don't take days off if you have access/availability to train. Go in and at least squat 30-40% or something. Squat the bar for 30 reps. Something! it will hurt, but it will help the adaptation progress faster. Don't abandon days if you can help it, simply just go in and bob around and do something - anything! Whatever you can do is better then riding the couch.

"Every time you touch the bar it is a +. when you take a day off it's a -" -Krastev

This applies to any weight lifted, even if it's just the bar.

It's very hard to coach a program based on shear #'s. Without seeing how the attempts were done, with how much enthusiasm, speed, overall attitude - it's almost impossible. this is where having a coach will help. Just keep pushing yourself as much as you can. Your legs hurt? Forget pain. Like I explain to every lifter...

"The lifter that can endure the most pain will be the most successful"

Again, since doing squats daily is new, start going for maxes daily then add volume. If the thought of going max feels discouraging (take the bar out of the rack and it feels like a ton, bad night sleep, etc) then go to where you could at least do the dubs at and put in work.

There was this time when I was supposed to C/J and S max. I was tore up. Krastev told me he was gonna be a nice guy and just let me BS. I was soooo happy. I went up to a max. I was so crushed that it was only 190 and it was a griiiiiind! He told me to do it again. Well, that ended up being my workout for 3 1/2 hours. doing 190 for singles over and over again. I'm not even sure how many I did. I would venture to say over 60 singles. 3 days later I did 235 for a PR.

feet position is not super important. experiment with what feels the most comfortable/powerful for you in the bottom position. whatever that is, just keep it consistant.

When you are training 2x/day, everyday you never really get that tight that requires "stretching". When we warm up we use a stick (or the bar for bigger guys) in the lifts. by doing the lifts over and over with a stick you sit in the positions. In essence this is our way of "stretching". I usually don't let them take any weighted attempts until they have broken a sweat from using the bar/stick.

This is one of the reasons I suggest doing squats everyday. It's important that you go up to maximum, but you must condition yourself to daily squatting or doing a combination of squats and the full OL. I commented on this earlier in the other thread about circulation of muscles vs connective tissue and the dangers with taking days off. When any of my guys miss a day I never let them go max the first session back.

I can almost guarantee without even seeing you lift that if you focus on keeping your air when you go down (which helps the torso stay big and rigid) and keep your chest up and out, you will probably add 10-15 kg immediately to your BS.

A typical session to max might look like this:

bar x 5 x 2 sets (warming up positions)
70 x5 (possibly a 2nd set here as well depending on how fast and the overall positions)
120x3 (possibly a 2nd set here as well depending on how fast and the overall positions)
160x3
190x3
210x3
225x2
235x1
245x1
250x1
230x2 x 8

John Broz:
Train til you can't walk, eat, sleep, repeat.
The day will never come when you can't lift the bar
If you wait til you feel good with no aches or pains to train, you will never be there

When the dark times pass then you feel better mentally - except for the "floating pain"

This you have to play by ear. I ask each of my lifters daily how they feel. sometimes multiple times during a session. I try to use my instincts to feel how they feel - to push but avoid injuries at all costs. There is a HUGE difference training through discomfort and training through an injury. You will be the only one to know how hard you can push yourself through your recovery.

Ideally, a 1RM followed by 90% or greater for multiple sets of 2-3 reps. 14x/week.

Elbow, wrist, knee, back, hip, etc. There will ALWAYS be something that is hurting.

My coach used to look at me and ask "do we need to go to the hospital or can you train?" there was no other option. If I was injured and needed medical attention then we must go to the ER, if not - then I had to be on the platform. There were countless times that I thought my knee was going to tear or my elbow snap because they hurt so bad. Just the THOUGHT of squatting down or straightening out my arm made me cringe. I would be instructed to "put something on it". Usually like bengay, equiblock, nicoflec, etc. If it hurt so bad that I would start to twist or really favor it a lot then we would skip that exercise and continue with something else to train around it (for that session). The next session we would try again. If the same thing happened, then we would respond identically. Every session was like this until I could continue with tolerable pain and without the possibility of injuring something else. There were numerous occasions when I felt a terrible pain in my right elbow. After warming up longer and putting some cream on it, I could manage to get through the session. Looking back years later I don't remember exactly how painful it was, but I do know that I went through it and I have no long term issues. My elbows, knees, back, hips, etc. are all fine.

People might take this the wrong way, so I'll try to clarify:

I'm not suggesting that you train if you are seriously injured. If you can't hold the bar and are twisting all over the place then skip it for that day and just do pulls, squats or something that doesn't irritate it further. What I am suggesting is that you push yourself a little harder then you typically would. Everyone's pain threshold is different. When is too much? For ME it was if I knew it was an "injury" and had to seek medical attention. There were dozens of times that I was feeling considerable pain, didn't want to train, felt compelled to and ended up setting a PR.

Doing some BB exercises always seemed to help too. After the session if I had some issue that needed attention, I would address it by doing an exercise that would pump blood into the area. ex. for elbow, I would do curls with the empty bar for sets of 15. Work the joint through it's full range of motion to get it working normally while increasing circulation to help to get it flushed out.

Training with this philosophy is not fun! It WILL test your determination and fortitude down to the last degree because you will fail- a lot. That's the point. People who talk the talk will have the opportunity to walk the walk. Most times it's out the door.

If the volume work is 10-20kg less than the daily max, then do singles. Just get the reps in for total work volume

The volume is equally as important as the max attempts. The 1RM fatigues you, while teaching you to fight with "maximum" weights, but when you drop down to get the "volume" you are also fatigued so it teaches you how to become more efficient and quicker under the bar. Both the Max and Volume are important. Again, if they get difficult and you start missing too many, then drop a few more kg, or do singles.

Yes. There were times when I was so mentally drained that I couldn't drive home. Taking a nap on the gym floor sounded better than to have to drive. Eventually I would get home, sit in a chair and stare at a blank wall for hours. Starving, with food already pre-made in the fridge but too exhausted to get up and toss it into the microwave. 4 hours later I was somewhat functional. During that time I couldn't talk to anyone because the energy to listen or just move my lips was too much.

As far as literature, it is sparse. I have seen bits and pieces of things around, but nothing that truly captures the essence of the program. I suppose the quote from Ivan sums it up best - "continue to the maximum"

on the day that the 180 felt easy, after 2 reps, go 190x2, then maybe 200x1 continue to the maximum -whatever that might be.

When training all the time, you always have some sort of ache or pain. Because of this, you try to compensate by twisting or tilting one way. I watch VERY closely to these things. They will only lead to a serious injury or missed lifts.

Squat daily, but don't go max for at least 4 weeks. Just do sets of 3+ reps, no doubles or singles. after you begin to build a base, then you can add one max day/week and continue to either add intensity or volume as time passes. Take your time and build a strong foundation.

When I was a young kid I had to promise my coach that I would come train everyday that the team was lifting. I literally had to beg him for 3 years to coach me. After this, I gave my word I would go in everyday no matter what. The rules were simple: show up, bring your bag/gear and lift. If you couldn't make it for some unexpected reason you had to call and let him know.

One day I was so crushed - my back was so sore that I had to kneel on the floor to brush my teeth cause bending over was too painful. There was NO WAY I could train. I called him and his reply was simple: "come here and watch. You can always learn technique and be involved." Ok, so I grabbed my bag (following the rules) and walked to the gym. After I got there I sat down to watch other lifters. As they were lifting, they all began, one at at time asking me why I wasn't training. After making up excuses for the 7th and 8th time I began to feel like such a puss. One lifter finally said "hey, why don't you just stretch with the stick. you can work technique and warm up. Might make you feel better?" Ok - so I put on my shoes and began to warm up. After about 10 min another lifter says "Hey Broz, why not come over here and do some snatches with us. We are just starting and you can jump in. surely you can do 40kg!" So here I go doing 40kg. I eventually keep doing more work up and setting a lifetime PR!!
As I was getting ready to leave the gym my coach looks at me and says "If you wait for the day to train when you feel good, you will lift about 2x/year. Those days are few and far between." As I walked home I was elated but still in shock that as horrible as I felt earlier, I actually set a PR and felt better then before I walked in the door. That was a lifelong lesson I will never forget. YOUR MIND PLAYS TRICKS ON YOU! Learn to ignore it and keep training.

Since that time I have seen that happen to hundreds of lifters, thousands of times. It just happened last Sat with a master lifter in our gym who, during warmups another master asked him if he was going to hit a big one and his response was negative. He had already determined his daily fate. I questioned him and said "how do you know? Do you have a crystal ball at home?" After about a 2 min conversation about his ability to not be able to see in the future he went on that day to set lifetime PR's in Snatch, C/J and total!

The mind of a champion is developed just like your body.

One of my guys now has a hand injury and can't do anything but squats and pulls, so he squats for 2 hours. I don't count the sets. If you can keep going then keep going. every single rep you do puts you 1 step closer to your goals.

2 dumbbell clean and press

The two dumbbell clean and press works the entire body from head to toe. The lower body muscles are needed to pick the weight up off the floor, the core stabilizes the lift, and the upper body lifts the weight overhead. If you could only do one weight lifting exercise, a strong argument could be made for the clean and press to be the one.

With the emphasis on weight machines the last couple of decades, old school exercises like the clean and press are much less popular. In fact, I couldn't find a youtube video that shows the proper form - so I made my own.



An old time strongman, Sig Klein, called the two dumbbell clean and press the one best exercise because of its simplicity and tremendous training effects. His challenge to athletes was to do 12 reps with 75 pound dumbbells. Of course, Sig was about 5'5" and 150 pounds, so this challenge amounted to 12 bodyweight reps, which is amazing.

John Grimek, another old time weightlifter, wrote an article about the clean and press.

The Clean and Press with Dumbbells

Here are a couple of key points from the article (which was written in 1972):

...lifters who wanted to stay in shape with just a minimum amount of training found that the clean and press movement supplied the need. Today this exercise is still the favorite among many who train with weights primarily for keeping in shape.

Sig Klein who ran a gym in New York for years was often pressed for time, and had to include those exercises that gave him the best results for the time he exercised. He reasoned that because it took more strength and ability to use a pair of dumbbells, the results would be equally as pronounced, consequently used dumbbells in his training almost exclusively...even to this day. Dumbbells do increase and pack greater power into muscles -- and much faster -- especially when heavy dumbbells are employed. Among his favorites was the clean and press with dumbbells which is illustrated here. His method was simple. He would clean a pair of dumbbells to this shoulders and pressed them overhead, then returned them to the starting position and repeated the movement. At times in his gym he would begin with a pair of 30s or so and work up to the other end where the 100s were.

Here is another article about the clean and press (he also discusses kettlebells here, but for me the exercise is far more effective with dumbbells).

Sig Klein Clean and Press Challenge - Mike Mahler

Here are some highlights from the article:

Executed with heavy weights and low reps, the Clean and Press is an incredible strength developer. Done for high reps (12-15) the Clean and Press is an incredible strength-endurance builder. Done with heavy weights and high volume the Clean and Press is a great size and strength developer.

In an issue of Brooks Kubiks' "Dinosaur Files", (www.brookskubik.com) Brooks mentioned that old-time strongman Sig Klein considered the Dumbbell Clean and Military Press to be one of the best exercises for measuring all around strength. Sig stated that twelve reps with two 75lb dumbbells separated the men from the boys.

For those of you that are not familiar with the Dumbbell Clean and Press here is how it works. Place two dumbbells on the floor just outside of your feet. Rip them off of the floor and get them to your shoulders in one motion. This is the lower body portion of the drill. If you swing the dumbbells back behind your feet to initiate the clean you place the focus on the hamstrings. If you rip them straight up the quads come more into play. Once your legs are locked out press the dumbbells overhead until your arms lock out. No leg drive is permissible. The legs must be locked out during the duration of the press. Lower the bells back to your shoulders and take the dumbbells back to the starting position. You just completed one rep.

What should your goal be with the Clean and Press? Simple, take the Sig Klein challenge and work on achieving twelve reps with two 75lb dumbbells.

Clean and Press Performance Tips
-Place two dumbells outside your feet just past your toes.
-Stick your butt back as if you are trying to sit in a chair behind
-Look forward at all times.
-Breathe in at the same time that you clean the bells.
-Hold your breathe and tighten up every muscle in the body
-Look up slightly and press the bells overhead.
-Breathe out in the lock out position and breathe in as you lower the weight back to the rack position.
-Contract your lats and lower the weight actively rather than letting them flop down

My most effective form tip is to keep your weight on your heels. You will have a tendency to get on your toes and arch your back when the weight gets heavy. If you keep everything over your heels, it helps you keep your abs, lower back and upper legs (quads and hamstring muscles) tight when lifting the weight overhead. That gives you a strong foundation, and helps keep your back straight.

Here is a picture of Sig Klein, the guy behind the 12 reps with 75 pound dumbbells challenge.

Burpees

In my opinion burpees are one of the most productive exercises you can do. They require no equipment, and you can get an amazing workout in less than 10 minutes. I think of them as the desert island exercise -- if I were stuck on a desert island and could do only one exercise, it would be burpees.

They provide a great blend of cardio, strength and mental training, and it hurts like hell to do them. Burpees require a ton of mental discipline. When your muscles and lungs are burning and screaming for you to stop and you don't think you could do one more rep, you actually can.

I typically do either 50 reps or 100 reps for time. My current best time for 100 reps is 6:17 and for 50 reps is 2:25.

Here is a video of me doing 50 burpees.



Here is the fastest time to 100 burpees I have seen (3:54):



This is also a good video (100 burpees in 4:49)

Individual Goals

This is an ongoing post where people can detail their fitness goals in the comments section below. You will always be able to find it under Individual Goal Tracking in the articles section on the right hand sidebar.

I will periodically keep an eye everyone's goals and bring them up in the main blog to remind everyone about their commitments. The intent is for people who need a little extra motivation to publicly state their goals, so they have a better chance of following through.

To keep things simple, please include only one measurable goal with a due date in each comment. For example, a goal might be "I will run the Reno Journal Jog under 40:00 and the race is on September 20, 2009." or "I will lose 5 pounds by July 31, 2009."

You will be amazed how a little peer pressure keeps you focused... Have fun!

About Me

Ken Lambert

Age - 38
Height - 5′10″
Weight - 175

Fitness philosophy - I enjoy training, and feel like something is missing in my day if I don't get a workout in. I believe that training is as much a mental exercise as a physical one. Showing up, giving 100% effort, discipline and consistent improvement are key elements of a successful training program.

I try to keep my training program simple, emphasizing just a few exercises. I also prefer high intensity, 100% effort, training routines versus long, slow aerobic workouts.

My grandfather was a farmer, and he was one of the strongest and most fit people I have ever met. He didn't follow a training program, he just worked hard all day every day. Using that example, I am not too worried about periodization, muscle balance or all of that other complicated stuff you hear from trainers or read about in magazines. I just work hard every day and believe that over time I will be able to continually improve and stay in great shape.

Some Personal Bests -

Row 500 meters in 1:29.8
Row 2000 meters in 7:01
Run 1 mile in 5:43
100 burpees 6:17
50 burpees in 2:25
34 pullups
65 pushups
7 handstand pushups (nose to floor)
2 dumbbell clean and press 70 lb x 1

Recent Race Results

Journal Jog (8k) 2009 -- 34:54 89th overall
Reno Rock n River Half Marathon 2009 -- 1:37:56 41st overall
Lake Tahoe 10k 2009 -- 44:45 12th overall out of 501 (top 2%), 2nd place age group
Big Sur Half Marathon 2009 -- 1:40:32 323nd overall out of 4796 (top 7%)
Sparks Turkey Trot 10k 2009 -- 45:38 76th overall out of 860 (top 9%)
Reno Rock n River 10k 2010 -- 43:36 23rd overall out of 477 (top 5%), 3rd place age group

Best Diet Foods List

Here are my “best foods” by category. The criteria is completely unscientific and is based on my personal experience of foods that are good nutritional options that either taste good, or at least taste good enough that I can eat them regularly. I openly admit taste is probably number 3 or 4 on the priority list here.

Best cereal - Kashi Go Lean – (13g of protein per serving, 10g fiber, low fat and sugar)

Best quick snack bar - quaker oats chewy granola bar - the key is to eat just one (90 calories, 1.5 g fat, 1 g protein - buy these in a big box at costco)

Best dessert - fat free sugar free instant chocolate jello pudding made with fat free milk and topped with cool whip free topping

Best dessert 2 - chocolate fudgesicle bars (only 40 calories each), again the key is to eat just one
Best protein - halibut (190 calories per serving, 1g fat, 35 grams protein)
Best protein 2 - chicken (230 calories, 5g fat, 43g protein) - eat it boiled, grilled, etc. Just eat a ton of it. I eat a ton of chicken because it is easy to cook, pack and it is cheap.
Best protein 3 (maybe) - canned tuna (very high protein, no fat, low calorie) you could live off this stuff — except Steve has me freaked out because he says that tuna is high in mercury and if you eat it too often you will get mercury poisoning. Some internet research confirms that many sources recommend tuna no more than once every two weeks and never for pregnant women. However, wouldn’t the FDA be having a cow if this was the case? I am confused. Nevertheless, proceed at your own risk.

Best breakfast - egg beaters with canadian bacon - add 1 egg or a couple of egg yolks and it will taste more like regular eggs (my serving size has about 200 calories, 50 grams of protein, 3 grams of fat)

Best fast liquid protein supplement - Premier Protein drink from costco - (a little more expensive,about $1.5 per drink, but they are 160 calories, 3g fat, 30g protein, 5g carbs and 1g sugar)

Best alcohol drink - vodka with club soda and a lime — no sugar, you can get drunk and still look good

Best relatively portable, natural protein source - costco organic chicken breasts or costco regular chicken breasts. Organic costs twice as much and you have to decide for yourself how much you care of about the whole organic thing. Either way you can barbeque or boil a bunch of these up and be set for days. Since I pretty much live off these if Steve tells me that I am going to get mercury poisoning from chicken I may have to shoot myself.

Best fast food - McDonalds grilled chicken sandwich with no sauce (about 300 calories, 1g fat, 30g protein) the key is to get it without the mayo.

The Ab Circuit

The ab circuit is a 22 set ab workout that hits all of the muscles of your midsection. Jason Martinelli from Anatomie originally gave me the workout.

The goal is not to get a “six pack” (you get that from diet, not exercise) but to maintain a strong core for general health and fitness. This supports all of my other athletic work, especially rowing. The rower engages a lot of your lower back muscles and the ab circuit helps me keep a balance between my abs and back.

The list below is the original ab circuit. The goal is to do the whole thing without ever letting your heels touch the ground. After you can do all 22 sets in a row, then the goal is to double all of the reps for each set. I am currently doubling the reps for the first 10 sets.

Here it is:

1. 15 knee hugs
2. 20 crunches
3. 15 leg raises
4. 10 crunches
5. 10 jackknives
6. 10 crunches
7. 10 bicycles
8. 10 crunches
9. 10 jacknives
10. 20 crunches
11. 10 crunches
12. 15 bicycles
13. 10 crunches
14. 10 jackknives
15. 10 straddle sit ups
16. 10 jackknives
17. 20 crunches
18. 20 leg raises
19. 10 jackknives
20. 10 hold crunches (3 second hold at top)
21. 20 crunches
22. 15 leg raises

Recipes

Here are some healthy recipes that I recommend. If you can only buy one recipe book, I recommend Eating For Life by Bill Phillips. The recipes below are just a collection of additional dishes that people have shared with me. Feel free to add your favorites to comments or send them to me and I will post them.

Healthy Cioppino

1 shallot finely chopped
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dry italian seasoning
1/4 cup red wine
Pinch of red pepper flakes (only if you want it to be a bit spicy)
1 halibut fresh and cubed (you can use shrimp or scallops too)
1 1/2 cans chicken broth

1. Put olive oil into 3 qt saucepan on medium heat
2. Add shallots, saute until translucent
3. Add garlic - 1 minute only
4. Add red wine to deglaze pan (reduces)
5. Add italian seasoning & saute 1 min
6. Add tomatoes and broth (1 can only)
7. Cook for 20 minutes - medium heat, light simmer
8. Add seafood & poach for about 3-4 minutes
9. Season with salt and pepper and serve over rice or pasta

Amy's Purse

Ingredients/Components:

4 8 oz. Filets Atlantic Cod (or halibut or other firm white fish)
½ T. Olive Oil
1 Garlic Clove, Smashed and Chopped
1/4 tsp. Ground Cumin
¼ tsp. Sweet Paprika
1/2 lb Tomatoes, seedless and chopped (one can chopped tomatoes works well)
2 sprigs Chopped Fresh Cilantro
1 T. Chopped Fresh Parsley
½ T. Chili Pepper (or pinch chili flakes)
4 Yukon Gold Potatoes, cut ¼ inch thick and steamed (or parboil for 5 minutes)

Preparation Method:
Heat oil in medium pan over medium heat. Add garlic, cumin and paprika and sauté until golden, about 2 minutes. Add tomato and cook until tomato tastes balanced, about 15 minutes.

Cut 4 individual sheets of parchment paper (available at grocery stores) big enough that you will be able to create a package for the fish fillet and other ingredients.

Drizzle olive oil down the center of each of the sheets and add potato disks in a line, seasoning with salt and pepper. Add ¼ C. tomato sauce, cilantro and parsley.

Add splash of white wine. Season fish separately with salt and pepper separately and place on top of sauce—drizzle the remaining sauce over the top of each of the fillets of fish. Wrap the fillet in the parchment sheet by folding two sides together and tucking the ends underneath (the idea is to get a closed pouch so the fish will steam inside the pouch).

Place the pouches on a cookie sheet and in the oven at 350 degrees for 10-to 15 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillets.

Cut with scissors for service and garnish with chopped cilantro and chives.

Three Bean Salad

Ingredients
1 15-oz can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-oz can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-oz can green beans, rinsed and drained
2 celery stalks, chopped fine
1/2 red onion, chopped fine
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Method
In a large bowl, mix the beans, celery, onion, parsley and rosemary.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, sugar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add the dressing to the beans. Toss to coat.

Chill beans in the refrigerator for several hours, to allow the beans to soak up the flavor of the dressing.

Serves 4 to 8.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

3 tbsp oil
1 onion diced
8 cloves garlic minced
1 jalapeno, diced
6 cups chicken broth
1 can fire roasted diced tomatos
1 can corn drained
1/2 cooked chicken shredded
2 limes (plus wedges for garnish)
Salt & pepper
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Corn tortilla’s cut into strips
1 avocado, pitted and sliced
Mexican mixed cheese (Kraft)


Large sauce pan add the oil & onions, cook apprx 2 min. add the garlic and jalapeno, cook approximately 2 more min.

Pour in tomatoes, corn, and broth, bring to a boil. Then lower heat and add cooked chicken.

Once heated through, add lime juice. Ladle into serving bowls with the cilantro, avocado, lime wedge, grilled or fried tortilla strips and cheese.

Fruit Crisp (not the healthiest dish, but yummy)

1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup Quaker 1 minute oats
1 tsp cinnamon
5 tablespoons butter (cut in small chunks)
3/4 cup brown sugar

Mix all of the above together until butter is the size of little BB's.

Then cover the bottom 2/3 of a cooking dish (9x9 or 8x8) with fruit like apples or peaches. Mix in 2 tbsp tapioca and 1/2 cup sugar with the fruit. Then cover the fruit with the topping mix.

Put the dish on a cookie sheet in case it bubbles over in the oven.
Cook at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes until bubbly around the edges and the top is crispy