Monthly Archives: April 2011

Brown Sugar Ginger Cookies

My mixer and I have been spending a LOT of quality time together this weekend. Due to the snow, I’m trapped inside my house with nothing to do but play around with food. Doesn’t sound so bad, right?   In January, sure… but April? Not impressed.
I began tossing random ingredients into the mixer, and before I knew it, I had a bowl full of buttery brown sugar/ginger dough. 
Preheat oven to 375
Cream together
3 Tbsp softened butter
1/4 cup brown sugar 
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
In a separate bowl combine
1 cup flour (I used whole wheat)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ginger
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until well combined. Form dough into cookies, and bake on a non stick baking sheet for approx 12 mins. Makes 10-12 cookies.
These cookies are a sugar cookie x ginger cookie – the best of both worlds, and have a mild ginger flavour.

Springtime Blues & Strawberry Crepes

Winter has overstayed its welcome in Southern Alberta this year, and even though I try to not let the weather get me down, after nearly 6 mos of its lingering presence I’ve had enough. I just want to be outside!

I made Easter eggs last night, but felt like building gingerbread houses would’ve been a more appropriate craft…

After blowing the yolks out to preserve the eggs for seasons to come, I created baby birds. Aren’t they adorable?
 
I discovered this craft idea on Martha Stewarts website- her team is so creative! I placed the birds inside a paper flower “nest” which is currently my kitchen table centerpiece.

Precious.

On Sunday morning I woke up with craving for strawberry crepes.  I made my very first batch! They turned out perfect, and weren’t as difficult as I thought they’d be. I filled the crepes with coconut whipped cream instead of dairy.

Combine:
1 cup flour
pinch of salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
2 tbsp melted butter

Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat, pour in approx 1/4 cup batter, remove  pan from heat and ‘swirl’ the pan until the batter is evenly spread. Using a spatula, gently flip the crepe and continue cooking for a few seconds on the opposite side. So easy!

To make coconut whipped cream, open a can of chilled coconut milk, scoop out the thick cream into a bowl, then add sweetener (I use a tsp of coconut sap), 1/2 tsp vanilla and whip for a few seconds.

Red Velvet Pancakes

One of my favourite activities is food shopping. Not regular Safeway outings, but rather “specialty shopping” at my local health food store. It brings me the same joy and excitement as buying new clothes – I love coming home with new goodies to eat!
“Speciality food” purchases can add up quick ($3 for ONE Larabar? Yikes…) I typically set a budget for myself ($30-$40), and go once in a while. I don’t like dipping into my vacation funds! If I get the urge to spend too much money, I ask myself, ‘Hawaii or quinoa cereal?’ as a reminder.
Before heading out the door to donate blood this morning, I fixed a plate of red velvet pancakes and coconut whipped cream…

doesn’t the whipped cream look like heaven?
Following my blood donation, I stopped by the health food store to pick up some treats!  I’ve been searching for smoothie ‘additives’ lately, and came across Vegn instant smoothies. Since a regular sized container is $25, I decided to try a couple sample packs to see if I actually like them.

I don’t usually put any pre-formulated protein powders into my food, as they’re usually packed  full of suspicious ingredients. These intrigued me, and the ingredient list passed my inspection.
The instructions say to add the package to a cup of water, shake and go. I figured these could be a good snack option when I’m at work and craving something sweet.

Apparently I was subconsciously craving chocolate this afternoon – I didn’t realize until I was home that most of my purchases were chocolate. Aside from the Vegn instant smoothies I bought:

chocolate chia cereal? yes, please!
I was sold by the promise of raw cocoa nibs inside
salty seaweed to balance the sweet
For lunch I had a few slices of thin crust veggie pizza and greens, then snuggled into bed for a couple hours to read and nap.

I’m feeling so refreshed after my nap that I’m tempted to hit up the gym tonight. Nothing like a little cardio to blast away the crappy weather blues I’ve been having.

Overindulge

Last night Court made his best meal yet. Tomatoes roasted in garlic and olive oil atop a bed of greens, and turkey lasagna

Easily the best lasagna I’ve ever had. Brown rice noodles with LOTS of cheese and a huge glass of merlot.

For dessert, 4 homemade chocolate chip cookies. I couldn’t help it – they were so good!

I woke up this morning feeling sick to my stomach. I over indulged and now have a food hangover. Yuck.  When I looked outside and saw THIS I felt even worse

It’s April… how did this happen?!

For breakfast I tried to cure my unsettled stomach with a small bowl of oatmeal and unsweetened almond milk, plus a cup of peppermint tea.

It made me feel a little better, but then I attempted to detox myself with a veggie smoothie.

celery, cucumber, spinach, basil
I combined the veggies with the juice of 1 lemon, 1/4 light coconut milk, chia seeds and a pinch of cayenne pepper.

The end result was  horrific. Worst idea ever! The taste wasn’t bad, but the texture was like watery, chunky applesauce, which caused me to dry heave every time I took a sip.

I keep trying to motivate myself to do something, but the thought of changing out of my pajamas saddens me. Looks like it’s going to be an extremely lazy Sunday!

Chocolate Overnight Oats

My weekend came early this week – I’m using Friday as a personal mental health day. The house is mine aaaallll day tomorrow, and I plan on baking up some goodies with the help of my new KitchenAid mixer!

Okay, so it’s not the Artisan pistachio one I wanted, but apparently this version is better. For $289 instead of $600, fine by me!
I’ve been on an oatmeal binge this week. Last week it was Vans waffles, this week, oats. 
Foodie highlight of the day: chocolate overnight oats

The night before, I combined
2/3 c oats
1 tbsp cocoa powder
pinch of cinnamon
1/2 c water (approx)
In the morning, I added a splash of almond milk to give it a creamy taste with a hint of sweet.

Toppings: vanilla greek yogurt and peanut butter. Desserty.
After todays little Kitchenaid splurge, Court and I had an easyonthepocketbook dinner, takeout veggie pitas and wine.

Tonights agenda: hot tub, tv, bed.