dressed up

I love dresses. I have been living in scrubs or workout clothes lately so it is nice to get dressed up on the weekends. Here are my most recent faves from Ann Taylor:

1 - 2 - 3

 

 

gluten-free vegan shortbread cookies

Who doesn't love cookies? I am always looking for healthy cookie recipes so when this recipe came out on Tone It Up last week I knew I had to try it. They turned out so well I thought I would share the recipe with you!

1 1/2c almond flour

2T coconut oil, at room temperature

1t Mexican vanilla

1/4t salt

1T maple syrup

1/4t coconut sugar

 

Mix together dry ingredient in a bowl. Make a well and add wet ingredients. With a fork, mix together ingredients until dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Place the dough between 2 sheets of parchment and refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat oven to 375. Remove dough from fridge and roll out between sheets of parchment until dough is 1/8" thick. Use cookie cutter to cut shapes (I used sea shells) and place on cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.

For icing, mix a small amount of coconut extract with plain Greek yogurt. Spoon into a small bag. Cut corner and add icing to make lines of sea shell!

 

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neutral home

As we transition to "winter" when we spend more time inside, I love to think about home decor. I love neutrals. Here are some of my current obsessions:

entry - canisters - puppy - dining table - fireplace - corner table

Clearly the puppy is the best pat of all of this!

 

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ordinary

This semester has been busy. Yes, I know I have said that many times. Sometimes, by the end of the week blogging gets put aside for school work... or a nap. Instead of a recipe or other inspiration, Thursdays may vary between nothing and something I saw online. Or maybe not. It really depends on the week.

Since Grey's Anatomy starts tonight, I thought this quote is very appropriate to share with you today. Don't be ordinary, be extraordinary.

 

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pass the veg

Fall semester starts next week. That means back to meal plans, busy weekdays, and planning ahead to keep healthy eating on track. We all know I love vegetables. Here as a couple recipes I found online that are jam packed with all of the nutrients I need to get me through a busy week:

zucchini pasta with avocado sauce - beet salad - BBQ cauliflower salad - pan seared brussels sprouts - polenta with roasted tomatoes - sweet potato oven omelet - shaved broccoli salad

Hopefully we can make one of these per week... that gives us 7 weeks of deliciousness!

 

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30" please

I have been in the market for some new accessories. Why? Because its summer. I really do not have a reason, but that's okay. I have wanted a new necklace for a while... a long one with a turquoise stone to be exact. I finally found one I liked online and contacted the designer to make sure they could make it longer so it was exactly what I wanted. I had an answer within 10 minutes that it would not be a problem to include a longer chain. Success! I ordered the turquoise one on a 30" chain for $24!

j.crew tassel necklace - turquoise pendant necklace - necklace length guide

I hope my new necklace arrives in time for our vacation in a few weeks. I really like the J.Crew tassel necklace too. I think they would look great layered together. The other one I have had my eye on is an initial necklace.

eggs

We have some eggs that need to be used up. Thank goodness I feel like eating eggs all weekend... breakfast, lunch, dinner... anytime! Are you like that with breakfast food? We LOVE to go out for brunch but I find I can make healthier versions at home that are just as delicious. Here's a few recipes I have been eying up to use up the eggs in the fridge:

kale, tomato & feta baked eggs - scrambled egg molletes - crustless broccoli cheddar quiche - squash crusted asparagus quiche - baked eggs in avocados

Now I just need to convince B we should eat eggs all weekend!

 

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garlic rosemary polenta fries

When I first discovered that I love polenta, I pinned tons of recipes for future use. This past weekend I decided to try out another new one: polenta fries!

ingredients:

1 tube garlic polenta

Pam spray

black pepper, to taste

manchego cheese

Preheat oven to 425. Line cookie sheet with parchment. Cut polenta into 36 fries. Spread out on cookie sheet then lightly spray with Pam. Bake for 45 minutes, flipping half way through. Remove from oven. Top with crushed black pepper and grated manchego. Serve & enjoy!

We had ours with tomato, basil, mozzarella salad and it was a great combination!

cucumber salad with roasted chickpeas

I find the best recipes online. Seriously. 

Sometimes those recipes come from vegan blogs. Those are the ones B raves about for days... I think he is a closet vegan.

This cucumber salad was amazing. Honestly, I am not going to give you the recipe because I copied it exactly. You should just head on over to Oh She Glows and follow along yourself. This would make a great side dish or an entree. We ate ours as an entree and had multiple extra servings to eat for lunch.

My bowl was vegan...until I added some blue cheese crumbles. It was a great addition!

run

Shhh... I have a secret. I have been working towards my goal of running 5km. It was one of my NYR and since half the year is past I thought I should get working on it. Yes, I know June in Louisiana is not the best time to start running but I find it quite enjoyable in the mornings. I can teach 2 hours straight of Zumba but I cannot run for more than 1 minute. Nuts! I did some research and I decided to start with the couch to 5k program. Its only 30 minutes of training 3 days per week, the app on my iPod tells me exactly when to run and when to walk, and I can listen to my fave music at the same time. 

Week 1 was successful! B even joined me on Friday (even with the excess humidity). This week I increase my running time. I'll let you know how that goes.

To keep me motivated I have pinned a bunch of running quotes. Here are some of my faves:

Time for week 2 day 1!

snacks

Summer session starts next week! This means this week has been busy with class prep, getting ahead on my thesis work, and doing everything else I try to achieve every week. Next week gets even busier with a new schedule for the next 2 months: teach 2 classes in the morning, class in the afternoon, and work or volunteer in the evening. With such a busy schedule I will need to plan ahead to ensure I am eating healthy snacks throughout the day. Here are some of my fave snacks that are portable, simple, and quick:

pb chia seed cookies - healthy and decisions

nuts - you can take them anywhere

hummus & veg - we eat this every day

frozen chocolate pb bites - a delicious sweet great that is sugar free!

green juice - just put it in a mason jar and you can take it with you

 

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obsessed

I made a new discovery this week: chia seed pudding.

I saw the recipe on Skinnytaste and knew I had to make my own version.

1 c almond or coconut milk

2T chia seeds

1t Mexican vanilla

1/2c fruit of your choice (I used raspberries, banana, strawberries, or mango)

Combine first 3 ingredients in a mason jar and shake until combined. Let rest 15 minutes and shake again (this is easy to do while making your lunch for the next day). Store in fridge over night. Add fruit in the morning and enjoy!

This breakfast kept me full until lunch all week.

Here is why YOU should be eating chia:

Chia is gluten free.

It is super high in dietary fibre, making it great for digestion and healing digestion issues.

It contains 20% Omega 3 ALA, making it a super food for the brain and heart. Chia has eight times more Omega 3 than salmon!

It boasts 20% protein.

The protein is a complete protein with all 8 essential amino acids.

It is high in antioxidants (It has a four times higher ORAC value than blueberries).

Chia contains five times more calcium than milk.

Chia contains seven times more vitamin C than oranges.

It contains three times more iron than spinach.

It contains twice the potassium content of banana.

It is food for healthy skin, hair and nails.

It has a positive impact balancing blood glucose levels (making it awesome for diabetics).

Speaking of obsessed, have you read Mika Brzezinski's new book titled Obsessed? It is on the list of books of I would love to read this summer.

land of leggings

Oh I love Canada. And I love Lululemon. It must not be a coincidence that Lululemon is a Canadian company. In Canada, it is very acceptable to wear leggings as pants... and I like to follow that motto no matter where I am in the world. During my 3 trips to the Regina store, I made some amazing purchases. Check this out:

reflect pullover in burning yellow - cool racerback in bold stripe zippy green - studio crop in dune - ebb & flow crop in light flare - u-turn reversible pullover in clarity yellow

3/5 items were on sale... add in my R&D discount and my mom at my side... I did not have to spend very much for all of this!

Thanks mom & Lululemon!

P.S. Going to a store with such amazing selection made me want to buy so much! Thank goodness I only had a carry-on or I would have bought way more. I may have to post my new wish list of everything I did not buy.

 

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peanut sauce spaghetti squash & broccoli

I have been on a roll lately with meals. B has asked for this one 3 times since I made it a week ago. We have been obsessed with vegetables lately so I wanted to try a new vegan dish. Well it was supposed to be vegan... until someone threw in a handful of cheese. It was also supposed to be gluten free until someone threw in some raw ichiban noodles. That someone was not me. Conveniently, the cheese and noodles completed the dish so it was worth the modification!

ingredients:

1 medium spaghetti squash, cooked & "spaghettied"

2 heads of broccoli, cut into florets & steamed

1/4 c Parmesan cheese

1 package raw ichiban noodles, without seasoning, crushed

1/2 red onion, caramelized

6 kale leaves, stems removed & steamed

1/2 t ground ginger

1/2 t powdered garlic

8 drops hot sauce (we use one from Mexico)

4 T almond butter (we did not have pb on hand)

3 T lime juice

1 T rice wine vinegar

2 t honey

2 T low sodium soy sauce

1 t sesame oil

1/4 c evoo

 

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to combine. Combine all other ingredients in a small bowl, wisk until combined. Top spaghetti squash and broccoli mix with peanut sauce. Serve immediately. This recipe also made leftovers for lunches which were just as good the next day.

 

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green & navy for spring

I am obsessed with green and navy right now. The most recent J.Crew catalogue is probably why. Here are my fave pieces that may (or may not) be on my wishlist:

perfect shirt in linen dot - rugby stripe dress - collection cashmere sweater in punk floral  - linen baseball sweater  - collection pleated maxi skirt

The first two are my faves. I will probably wait until they go on sale... unless I come across a boatload of money... then I will buy it all! Kidding...

this dress

Have you seen this dress?

I am obsessed. Isn't is perfect? It has been all over my Pinterest feed. I have also seen it on multiple fashion blogs this past week. With the 30% off sale at The Gap last week, I went online to order my size only to find out that it is sold out. I called customer service who did a search and my size is sold out in the entire company! I swear this dress was released 2 weeks ago. Now I need to watch thegap.com for more stock to bee available. Until then, I will just dream out this dress and how great it would be for every occasion this summer.

spicy rigatoni with broccoli & sausage

We made this for dinner last week while B's bestie was in town... you know I love to encourage the boys to eat their vegetables. It was a hit!

ingredients:

1 package whole wheat rigatoni

2 heads of broccoli, cut into florets

1 lb chorizo sausage

1T evoo

1t lemon juice

3cloves of garlic, minced

pepper, cumin & paprika

1/8c grated Parmesan per person

 

Cook rigatoni according to package. With 2 minutes left, add broccoli. Strain in a large colander. Cook sausage in the pasta pot. Once cooked, add pasta & broccoli back in and mix thoroughly. Wisk together evoo, lemon juice, garlic, and spices. Add evoo mixture to pasta and toss. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan.

 

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light up my life

Things are slowly coming together in our new place. I have realized we need to upgrade our lighting.  Our array of Ikea lighting from our university days is out of control. Anyone want to buy 6 different lamps? I have a feeling they will need a new home very soon. I am looking for new lamps for by the bed, by the sofa, on the desk, and maybe even an accent piece on the dresser as decor.

Here are some of my favorite inspiration photos:

 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7

You can clearly see I have found my style of lamp. Round and neutral. Some of the places I have been looking at lamps include Z Gallerie, West Elm, Crate & Barrel, and World Market.

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7

I need 5 lamps and I have so many amazing choices. Now I just need to make a decision and some purchases. Let's be honest. I will not be buying $300 lamps and I will not be buying all the lamps at once. But once the light upgrade is complete, it will make a big difference for our decor.

more veggies please

A vegetable never made anyone fat. Okay, maybe they can depending on how they are cooked.

I love pizza. Not the crust. I like the crust. But, I love the toppings. So why not get rid of the crust and add an extra vegetable? We have made this recipe before. The crust needed some perfecting, it needed less liquid. With a few small changes, perfection occurred.

Cauliflower crust pizza:

ingredients:

1 head cauliflower, boiled, drained, and mashed

2 eggs

2t italian herb mix

2c mozzarella cheese

toppings of your choice: tomato sauce, caramelized onions, green pepper, mushrooms, cooked ground turkey, and more cheese is what we chose

Strain mashed cauliflower further using cheese cloth. Mix in egg, herbs, and cheese. Spread out on a rimmed cookie sheet that is lined with foil and sprayed with pam (oops, forgot this part!). Bake at 450 for 15 minutes. Add toppings. Bake until cheese is bubbly and browned. 

Yours will stick less to the pan because you will remember to spray it. Mine, well it was still amazing even thought it did not look perfect. But we do not always judge on looks. I mean, I take my photos with an iPhone in a kitchen with no natural light. Health come first, then maybe I can perfect my food presentation and photography. Keep it real.

Wait, have we had this exact conversation before? Not about real life, but about this pizza recipe?

color me

Today is an exciting day! I have an appointment this morning to get my hair colored. I usually only color it once per year but it has been 15 months since my last hair color! I am definitely overdue. 

Here are some ideas, although they all look the same so I bet I will be going for an ombre look today!

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5

Hopefully it turns out like I envisioned and I will be able to post a photo soon!