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Paleo Pumpkin & Carrot Soup

pumpkincoriandersoup

I figured that this Paleo recipe would be fun to try, since it’s so fitting for the Fall season!  According to Paleo Diet Recipes.com, this is one of those little soups that is so easy, and always manages to surprise people.  (The website also advises that the trick to a fantastic soup is to use fresh herbs:  Apparently if you get that right…it’s difficult to mess it up.)

Ridiculously Easy Pumpkin & Carrot Soup

Ingredients:

Half of a small sized pumpkin
4 large carrots
1 large onion
1 cube of chicken stock
a couple fresh leaves of parsley
1/3 a clove of garlic
one sprig of chervil
a couple of leaves of coriander
3 tbs of olive oil

Instructions:

Peel the carrots and the pumpkin.  Cut the pumpkin into large chunks and remove the seeds.  Once the seeds are out, cut it up further into
smaller chunks.  Chop the carrots into pieces of about a 1/2 inch (a good cm) wide, and chop up the onion.  Crush the garlic.

Grab a very large pot for soup and pour in some olive oil.  Add the onion and heat gently until slightly golden.  Add the garlic, carrot and pumpkin. Depending on the size of the pumpkin, you might have too much… If that is the case, you can easily freeze the remaining pumpkin for later use.

Turn down the heat and add some water to the pot. You should fill the pot about halfway up to the height of the pumpkin and carrots. Don’t add too much, as you’ll lose the taste.  Cover the pot and allow it to heat gently.

Chop up the chervil, parsley and coriander.  Hint: try to smell the herbs individually! If afterwards you find your soup tastes too strong, you’ll be able to tell which herb to use less of in future because you know its smell!)  Keep some coriander aside to sprinkle on top after.

Throw the chopped herbs into the pot of simmering soup and give it stir to make sure the herbs are nicely mixed in.  Cover it with the lid and let it do its thing.  After about 25 minutes, check to see if the carrots are cooked.  They should be nice and soft, not soggy.  Grab a heavy spoon and gently crush the pumpkin and carrot – you should have a thick mixture with lots of chunks of carrot and pumpkin.  Turn off the heat and allow it to cool down a bit.

In the meantime, heat a small pan of water and add the chicken stock.  Don’t bring it to the boil, just make sure the stock dissolves.

Now that it has cooled down, thoroughly blend the soup to obtain a lovely, creamy, thick texture. Pour the blended soup into another large pot, or use the same one if you’ve rinsed it from the remaining bits…

You should have a very thick smooth soup now.  Add the warm stock gently, while stirring, until you find the soup runny enough and to your liking.

Sprinkle with some coriander and enjoy!

Today’s Workout

* After receiving some feedback, it is evident that some people don’t require a rest week right now due to different training schedules etc.  If you feel this applies to you, talk to your coach and let them know why you want to push a bit harder than the listed percentages.*

Buy-in:  Get right into the WOD – warmup on your own prior to class

Technical WOD –  Snatch Transitions

The “other” Olympic lift, the snatch, involves pulling the bar from the floor to overhead in one smooth motion.  Athletes can catch the bar near fully standing (called a “power snatch”) or squat under the bar as it travels upwards (necessary for heavy weights – called “snatch” or “squat snatch”).  The snatch in any variation requires efficient force generation through the body from the power centre (hips and upper legs), through the torso and arms and into the bar.  The following techniques will help you learn some of the intricate movements of the snatch and will have you lifting more weight more efficiently in the near future! 

1.  Snatch Grip Deadlift – 4 x 3 (<70% of snatch)

  • The start of the snatch is most important to get correct
  • Knees wide, hips low (think “squat” not “deadlift)
  • Chest facing forward, not down
  • Head up, arms straight
  • Pull the bar up to hips by pushing the knees out and bringing the bar in towards the body as it ascends

2.  “Pockets” Hang Snatch – 4 x 3 (<70% of snatch)

  • Start at a very high hang, shoulders slightly in front of the bar
  • Quick and forcefull movement of the hips and legs
  • Snap the bar overhead, bar close to body the whole time
  • Lead with elbows

3.  Snatch Balance – 4 x 3 (<70% of snatch)

  • Start in partial squat
  • Short “pop” up of bar, fast drop under into full squat
  • Confidence with arms, work on getting under faster each round

Cash-out:  REST WEEK:  2-3 rounds of – 15 wallballs, 10 pullups.  NON REST WEEK:  4 rounds for time – 15 wallballs, 10 pullups, 15 double crunch

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