Team Laser Cats

Folks in Philadelphia who love bikes, cats, and snacks.


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Krista’s Avocado Pesto Pasta

I sometimes have a hard time getting greens into my diet, so I’m a fan of blended sauces that let you throw a bunch of healthy foods together real quick. This whole meal takes about 20 minutes to whip up!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

  • 1lb pasta (any variety)
  • 1 large avocado
  • 1 – 3 cloves of garlic (raw or roasted), roughly chopped
  • 2Tbsp white or yellow miso paste
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 cup raw, unsalted walnuts (or cashews)
  • big handful of greens (I use spinach, but you can use basil, kale, etc)
  • 1 cup of reserved pasta water
  • nutritional yeast to taste

Directions:

  1. Boil water and add pasta. Cook until al dente and drain, reserving a cup of the pasta water. Lightly rinse the drained pasta with warm water.
  2. Place avocado, garlic, miso paste, lemon juice, walnuts, and greens into blender. Add about half of the reserved pasta water and blend until smooth. Add more water if the sauce is too thick, and keep adding to your desired thickness. I usually use about 3/4 cup in total.
  3. Toss the pasta with the sauce, either in individual plates or in a large pot. I like to add the nutritional yeast while mixing, and then add more on top. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Optional add ons: sundried tomatoes, tempeh, Sriracha, spring peas, red pepper flakes.
  5. Enjoy!

This could also be great as a spread in sandwiches and wraps.

Adapted from http://kblog.lunchboxbunch.com/2016/02/raw-avocado-pesto-pasta.html


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Team Laser Cats partner with Bicycle Therapy as homebase for expanded Rocky project

Why choose between cats and dogs? The women of Team Laser Cats are happy to announce the addition of a familiar pup’s face on their kits — Bicycle Therapy’s shop dog, Diego.

donut+diego is hybrid

In keeping with Team Laser Cats‘s mission to introduce more women to riding and racing, Bicycle Therapy will be helping the team expand the reach of the Rocky Souperprestige (Rocky CX) community cyclocross bike program. Rocky CX, founded by TLC’s Sophia Lee, provided an opportunity for many Philadelphia women to try cyclocross racing for the first time. Continue reading


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Michaela and the Women’s Bike Mechanic Scholarship

When I was eleven years old, I was finally tall enough to just barely fit on my mother’s road bike and having seen my father kit up and ride so many times, I told him I wanted to try road riding with him. Being his favorite activity, he was thrilled! He got me my own pair of cycling shoes outfitted with SPD cleats, and my first jersey and cycling shorts. The jersey was orange, pink and covered in palm trees, a thing of beauty, really. Turns out I fell in love with the sport, riding every weekend with my dad, and doing some occasional longer sponsored rides (my longest being 50 miles, not bad for an 11 year old!). I started waking up early during the summer to watch stages of the Tour de France, and had all sorts of stats and facts memorized about the riders. Probably the embarrassingly funny bit was that my AOL screenname was “FutureProCyclist.” Continue reading


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Elisabeth’s Hummus

I’ve had a few requests recently for my hummus recipe. An old boyfriend, for some reason, thinks it tastes like baloney, though I have no idea what he’s talking about and can assure you it’s fully vegan. Apologies to people who work with exact measurements; my recipe is going to have some estimates. Try it, tweak it, refine it.

1 large can garbanzo beans, drained
2-3 cloves of garlic
1-2 tablespoons tahini
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4-1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
grapeseed, sesame, or olive oil
a little bit of water to help emulsify, if necessary

Throw the garlic in your food processor first, chop it a bit, then add garbanzo beans. Process. Add tahini, lemon juice, and spices, process more. Now, you’ll note there’s no quantity on the oil added. You’re going to add this gradually as you process it until you get to the consistency you desire — less oil if you’re using it for sandwiches, more if it’s going to be for chips or veggie dip. You can also adjust the amount of tahini, as more will make it smoother. Let it sit for about an hour, then check the salt and garlic levels before serving, as these flavors will really “bloom” as it settles. Devour your delicious protein source!


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Braver Philly

rapha btte logo

On December 12, please join Team Laser Cats for a Philadelphia edition of Rapha’s Braver than the Elements ride.

Our route will be roughly 40 miles, with a mixture of pavement and gravel. We’ll meet at the Paine’s Park trellis for a 9 AM departure. You can expect some Gladwyne hills, and if the weather permits, we’ll make some coffee outdoors in the woods. (Your ride leaders Elisabeth & Taryn will bring camp cooksets, but if you have your own, you’re welcome to bring it along! If it’s not so suitable for outdoor coffee, we’ll find an indoor location.) Continue reading


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My Weekend “Off” from Cyclocross

I’ve been racing a cross race every weekend since Granogue (which was the first weekend in September), so since I wasn’t registered for any race on this particular weekend, I was going to take a nice chill Sunday off to not race. Roz then told me she was doing Stoudt’s, her second race since the broken collarbone, and our neighbor Louis was going to race too—his second CX race ever. Well, looks like I am going to race after all. Continue reading


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How to Make a Perfect CX Donut

Swashbuckler Brewing

Team Laser Cats @ Swashbuckler! Photo by Hana Elum

We at Team Laser Cats tend to have unusual jobs and talents. For example, we have bike shop cats, hair stylist cat, chef cat, organic food coop food buyer cat, Laser Cats and Such cat boss: you get the idea. Up to this point, my profession (architect / adjunct professor) was definitely on the more “quotidian” or “normal” end of the spectrum. But this cat’s got some ~secrete talents~ that she’s been keeping under wraps for a little while, namely, a lifetime of making and designing. And when a lifetime of origami crafts, years of art classes in drawing/mixed media/ceramics, and a couple architecture degrees get harnessed, one can cough up a pretty awesome donut costume for Halloween (not to be humble about it or anything). Continue reading


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Junior racer Tamia joins up with TLC for her first CX Race

Team Laser Cats is very proud of the fact that our very own Sophia Lee started the Rocky CX project — a cyclocross bike designed to be used by women interested in giving cyclocross a try. Rocky was put together by loving donations from members of our community, including a frame from bona fide pro Arley Kemmerer. A couple weeks ago, Rocky traveled to West Chester CX #1 with Tamia Santiago, a junior road racer with the Cadence Youth Cycling organization who also works with Laser Cat Taylor Kuyk-White at Neighborhood Bike Works. Read on for Tamia’s first cyclocross experience, then hop on over to the Rocky blog for more stories on the bike’s adventures this season, or to chip in a donation Continue reading