watermelon radish

Recently, I watched an episode of Iron Chef, where White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford teamed up with Bobby Flay to challenge Emeril and Mario. (Yeah. First names because we're cool like that.) The challenge was to create a meal focusing on the ingredients from the White House garden. fathlete confession: I was completely envious at the gorgeous variety of produce from the garden. The chefs mentioned that in less than a year, over a thousand pounds of produce has been picked. In DC, there are educational programs where local school kids pick from the garden and learn to cook with their delicious finds. When I become rich and famous, I'd like a garden just like that. Yes, I'd invite anyone to help my family and I eat the goods from mother nature!

One of the things I fell in love with was the watermelon radish. The contrast between the limey green and magenta caught my eye and aroused my taste buds. I wondered if this radish was available locally. A few days later, I found watermelon radish at the farmers' market. I nearly died! Look at it. It's so pretty!

On the show, Bobby Flay pickled the radish. As a child, my favorite thing to eat was pickled daikon. They used to sell the stuff all over the place on Guam - grocery stores, the ice cream truck, the mall... Inspired by the show and my childhood, I decided to create my own pickled radish. Here's the end result: I simply washed and sliced the radish (no peeling). Then, I soaked it in 1 part regular vinegar, 1 part seasoned rice vinegar, and a helping of red pepper flakes. This was pure awesomeness! Eaten raw, the radish is bitter and peppery. Soaking it in vinegar cuts that. I loved how the radish stayed crisp, even after sitting for a few days. Most importantly, it was definitely like the stuff back home. The radish goes great with heavier, oily dishes because the vinegar helps to cut the fat. Personally, I ate it alone as a snack or for breakfast to add a veggie and lighten up the bacon.

Small Victories
1) I showed up!
2) Over the weekend I managed to be "good" even though I went to several social events where there was an abundance of dessert offerings.

Warm-up
Run 400 meters
Prep for WOD

CrossFit One World WOD
Back Squat 5/3/1/1/1
95#x5 / 165#x5 (PR) / 175#x3 (w/ spot) / 165#x3 (w/ spot) / 170 / 180 / 185 (fail)

Press 5/3/1/1/1
50/60/65/70/75/80(fail)

Notes (to myself) about this workout:
I completely forgot how the max reps go. For some reason, I kept thinking that we had to hit our max at the 5 rep, the 3 rep and then figure out our 1 rep max. This is why my weights are so screw-y and I didn't hit a PR. You'd think that after almost a month I'd be acclimated to the strength training. Unfortunately, nope. I'm not.

I just figured out the secret to the OH press. With that, I knew that I wouldn't be able to hit more than 75#. Tonight felt off. I felt like I should be lifting more. This adjustment isn't quite as smooth for me. Bleh!