Good morning!

Wow, quite the morning it has been over here! I woke up to the doorbell ringing again, only this time it wasn’t teenagers playing nicky nicky nine door, but it was Kristin here for her work shift and wedding favour consultation! For some reason my alarm hates me and didn’t go off this morning. I really missed those two hours of productivity I could have had…they are forever lost in the abyss…lol.

I guess my body needed the sleep perhaps, so all is not lost. I am really excited because next week I am doing custom Glo Bars for Kristin’s wedding. They are going to be fun!

After that, I had some major issues with the shipping module when I was trying to get my packages shipped out. Some mornings are just ‘one of those mornings’ I guess. It is 10am and I still have not had breakfast yet.

Let’s get to this delicious power snack recipe I told you about last night!

Healthy Carrot Cake Power Scuffins

I call these ‘scuffins’ because they are a hybrid between a scone, cookie, and a muffin! They are packed with nutrients, healthy fats, protein, and fibre and make an excellent power snack when you need a burst of energy. If you like these you should also try my Pumpkin Chia Spelt Scuffins.

Adapted from Pumpkin Chia Spelt Scuffins and Carrot Cake Breakfast Cookies.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole grain spelt flour
• 1/2 tsp baking power
• 1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
• 1.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice (OR: 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp ginger)
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup* (note below)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• Chia/flax egg: 1 tbsp ground chia seeds + 3 tbsp water OR 1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water, mixed and set aside for 5 mins
• 1/2 cup regular oats
• 1 cup shredded or grated carrots (approx 2 medium)
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup toasted, chopped walnuts
• Coconut, for garnish

Directions: Preheat oven to 350F. In a small bowl, mix the chia/flax egg and set aside. In a large sized bowl whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Using a food processor or grater, process/grate the carrots. In a medium sized bowl mix together the wet ingredients (carrots, vanilla, oil, maple syrup, chia/flax egg). Add wet to dry and mix until just incorporated. Stir in the walnuts and raisins. Scoop mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or greased with oil. Scoop about 1/4 cup for each Scuffin to make 6 large scuffins. Wet hands and shape into a circle if desired. Sprinkle with coconut. Bake for 25 minutes at 350F. Top with coconut butter for an extra treat!

Nutritional info: (Per scuffin, Approx) 265 kcals, 9 grams fat, 1 gram sat. fat, 5 grams fibre, 4.4 grams protein, 61% vitamin A, 10% iron, 59 mg calcium, 180 mg potassium.

Note: These are not overly sweet baked goods, so if you prefer your baked goods quite sweet, I would maybe add a couple tbsp of sugar in addition to the maple syrup.

Before going into the oven…

and after baking for 25 minutes!

They are just delicious! I will definitely be making these again. The recipe makes 6 large scuffins so it is the perfect recipe to make on a Sunday afternoon…you get to eat one out of the oven and then wrap up 5 leftovers for each day of the work week!

I did have a bit of time last night to read EPL and I am almost finished! So good. I’m hoping to have another quote in tonight’s post…it is going to be a good one so stay tuned.

Ok, I am finally going to make a Green Monster and then back to work.

Have a great day!

Well, we got to see a pretty cool sunset last night!

I asked Eric if I could take him on a date last night…

‘Can I take you on a date tonight?’ *grin*

‘Why do I feel like this is a trick…?’

He knows me too well, my friends….too well.

He reluctantly agreed to go on a run with me, so I threw on my gear and sat at my desk until he was ready. He has been working on renos in the basement this week, so the fact that he agreed to a run was nothing short of a miracle. We didn’t have time to work on the food photography collage, but I will be updating tonight or tomorrow on it!

I pumped myself up by listening to ‘Magic’ by B.o.B- my newest favourite running song!

You have to fake it til you make it, especially for evening runs!

I really wasn’t that excited, I just pretended I was! Seemed to work.

Did you know that smiling- even when you aren’t happy- increases the release of endorphins in your brain? When you are unhappy, the simple act of smiling can help you feel better!

Before we left it looked like this….

2 miles into the run it looked like this…

The sun was a blazin’! I had one of those zen + oohhhhh + ahhhhh moments for a brief 10 seconds as I watched the sunset. It was beautiful. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone and I was back to huffing and puffing and hauling my butt up the crazy hills. I take what I can get.

By the way, I am still LOVING my Pearl Izumi running hat! It is the best hat I have ever run in. It is mesh, so it breathes and I swear it keeps me cooler than my previous hat did.

The run:

• Distance: 3 miles
• Time: 27:01 mins
• Avg pace: 8:59 min/mile

Mile splits:

• Mile 1: 9:24 (warm-up)
• Mile 2: 8:56 (pick-up)
• Mile 3: 8:39 (in the groove)

After returning, I made a Post-run Juice. It is an all veggie juice packed with nutrients and just a pinch of sea salt to replenish what was lost during exercise.

It is sooooo good. Like V8 only much tastier and fresher!

Athlete’s Vegetable Juice

Ingredients:

• 3 tomatoes
• 4-5 romaine lettuce leaves
• 1/3 English cucumber
• 1 stalk celery
• 1/3 of a small beet
• 2 medium carrots
• 1 clove garlic (optional)
• 1 pinch of sea salt

Directions: Juice the vegetables and pour into a large glass. Add a pinch of sea salt and stir well. Serves 1.

This morning I made Raspberry Vegan Overnight Oats!

Unfortunately, raspberries in a banana soft serve are quite sour tasting (at least mine were). I think the only thing that saved this was that my banana was very ripe (hence, sweet) before freezing.

For the VOO I used: 2 tbsp chia seeds, 1/3 cup oats, 1 cup Almond milk, 1/4 scoop Amazing Grass chocolate powder.

Deelish!

Some overflowage, of course!

The ‘hat’: 1/2 tsp Unsweetened coconut, 1/2 tsp cacao nibs, and 2 raspberries.

So refreshing on this hot morning!

Eat Pray Love Quote #3

[For the previous two discussions, see the bottom of my quotes page.]

I have another favourite quote from EPL that I wanted to share with you this morning! On page 54, Elizabeth talks about how she spoke with a comforting presence when she was deep in her depression. She would sit on the bathroom floor at 3 in the morning and ask for help or she would scribble her thoughts in a notebook in Rome.

She writes: “This is what I find myself writing to myself on the page: ‘I’m here. I love you. I don’t care if you need to stay up crying all night long. I will stay with you…There is nothing you can ever do to lose my love. I am stronger than Depression and I am braver than Loneliness and nothing will ever exhaust me.’

Tonight, this strange interior gesture of friendship- the lending of a hand from me to myself- reminds me of something that happened to me in New York City. I walked into an office building and dashed into the elevator. As I rushed in, I caught an unexpected glimpse of myself in the mirror. In that moment my brain did an odd thing- it fired off this split-second message: ‘Hey! You know her! That’s a friend of yours!” And I actually ran forward toward my own reflection with a smile, ready to welcome that girl whose name I had lost but whose face was so familiar. In a flash instant, of course, I realized my mistake and laughed in embarrassment at my almost doglike confusion over how a mirror works. But for some reason that incident comes to mind again tonight during my sadness in Rome and I find myself writing this comforting reminder at the bottom of the page:

Never forget that once upon a time, in an unguarded moment, you recognized yourself as a friend.”

This story in the book and most notably the quote at the end really hit home with me for a few reasons. 

Firstly, that whole embarrassing mirror experience has happened to me (thank goodness I am not the only one!!). I actually remember when it happened to me because I was in university at the time and I considered myself the enemy. I remember seeing ‘a friend’s reflection’ in the window of a store and I had that same gut reaction as Elizabeth did. I remember feeling a sinking feeling when I realized it was ‘just me’ in the reflection and that sense of happiness faded quickly. As I recognized myself, I remember saying something negative about myself almost immediately, when just before, I had seen a beautiful, smiling friend looking at me.

Reading this passage in the book made me sad for that experience that I had, but it also made me happy that I no longer get that sinking feeling when I see my reflection in a window or mirror. I see a friend looking back at me, and for years this wasn’t the case. This only changed when I started treating myself like a friend instead of some annoying pest that was constantly screwing up her life and doing everything imperfectly. Make no mistake, our thoughts define how we perceive the world, including ourselves.

I think this quote is so powerful and I almost did a dance when I read it over: “Never forget that once upon a time, in an unguarded moment, you recognized yourself as a friend.” I think this shows that when we leave our negative thoughts out of the picture and let our instincts take over, we will find that we love ourselves and that we see ourselves as a friend. Only when we let the negative thoughts ‘win’ do we start to entertain the thought that we are something else other than a friend.

Some questions today…Do you consider yourself a friend? Can you relate to the experience that Elizabeth had in the mirror? Have you ever had a shift in how you perceive yourself over the years?

Good morning!

Date night was fun last night. Eric took me to the beach to watch the sunset.

It was such a gorgeous night out. Gotta make use of all these summer nights before they are gone!

Sadly the trees blocked the sunset, so we only got to see bits and pieces of it while biking home! But it was still beautiful.

Hmm how did my Raw Energy Cookie Bite end up in my pocket…the cookie fairy must have put it there!

Yum.

Biked home.

Removed sand from sneakers.

Ate a Frosty No-Bake Glo Cake.

Made Lavender tea.

Read Eat Pray Love.

Finished Book 2 India.

Dreamed about having an effortless run.

Woke up and did not have effortless run (maybe later?).

For the most part I enjoyed the India Book in Eat Pray Love. It has actually made me want to re-visit meditation in my own life. While many of the things Elizabeth talked about at the Ashram were a bit extreme for my taste, I realize that not every form of mediation is the same and one thing isn’t going to work for everyone. I appreciate the overall message of the book and I think it was a worthwhile read. I am really excited for Bali! I found by the end of the India book I was ready to move on.

Frosty No-Bake Glo Cakes (Trial 2: Carob Peanut Butter)

In this version I sweetened the cakes with carob powder, took out the maple syrup, cocoa powder, and chocolate and I added more peanut butter. It was delicious! For the original recipe, see this post.

Ingredients:

• 1 large very ripe banana
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/4 cup crisp rice cereal
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1-2 tbsp cacao nibs
• 1.5 tbsp carob powder
• Shredded unsweet. coconut, for garnish (optional)

Directions: Mash banana in a medium sized bowl (I use a potato masher!). Add carob powder and peanut butter, and stir until fully mixed. Now stir in oats, cacao nibs, and rice crisp. Divide into 4 Glo Cakes by spooning the batter into a muffin liner. I used reusable muffin liners are they worked perfectly. Sprinkle with coconut and place in the freezer for 60-80 minutes. Do not over-freeze them. You want them a bit chewy and not too hard. They will however melt quite fast so please serve immediately.

They also have a great nutritional profile!

[Includes all ingredients above except the coconut garnish]

The reusable muffin liners worked awesome!

I realized why I love these so much…they are basically like eating frozen vegan overnight oats!

All kinds of yum. I had one after the bike ride and it was so refreshing.

I am off to get back to work..have a wonderful day and I’ll see you later!

Happy Monday!

I was just reading through the new comments on yesterday’s ‘life question’- what a great way to start the week. I am constantly inspired by the journey that you share with me on the blog!

I also appreciated that some of you voiced your honest opinion of the book. Some of you said that you couldn’t get through the book and you didn’t like how the tone/message changed after Italy. I got about 1/3 of the way through the India book last night and I did notice a shift. The tone got more serious and Elizabeth really delved into meditation, yoga and the history behind it. While I did find a couple parts have been slow in India, I found the part about where she struggles with meditation absolutely captivating as I have struggled with meditation and quieting my mind for a long time. I found that I was taking a few notes for myself and I hope to re-visit meditation in my own life (I will blog about it!). It will be interesting to see how my opinion of the book changes as I read through India and Bali. I hope I will enjoy it!

I told you last night that I would be sharing with you this fun raw cookie recipe that I made yesterday! They are so yummy, I hope you will enjoy them as well.

Raw Energy Cookie Bites

Inspired by That’s Fit.ca’s Raw Seed Cookies.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup of almonds
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
• 9 medjool dates, pitted
• 4-5 dried apricots, chopped
• 2 tbsp cacao nibs 
• 1/2 tbsp pepita seeds (pumpkin seeds)
• Pinch or two of sea salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions: Place pitted dates and almonds into a food processor and process until the mixture is ground up. You can leave a few larger pieces if you prefer. Remove mixture from the processor and place into a medium sized bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well with your hands. Form into mini cookies or balls. Makes 8 mini cookies.

Nutritional information (per mini cookie): 136 calories, 4 grams fibre, 5 grams fat, 2 grams protein.

I am in love with these mini energy cookies! So delicious and packed with so many healthy foods.

You can also double the recipe and pop them in the freezer for quick snacks!

Here is another quote that I loved from Eat Pray Love, page 115. Elizabeth is talking about pleasure and how our society typically feels guilty for pursuing pleasure in our lives. In this quote she speaks to a ‘glimmer of happiness’ that she started to feel after being in a deep depression for a couple years. She was on the path to ‘mending her soul’.

“It was in a bathtub back in New York, reading Italian words aloud from a dictionary, that I first started mending my soul. My life had gone to bits and I was so unrecognizable to myself that I probably couldn’t have picked me out from a police line-up. But I felt a glimmer of happiness when I started studying Italian, and when you sense a faint potentiality for happiness after such dark times you must grab onto the ankles of that happiness and not let go until it drags you face-first out of the dirt- this is not selfishness, but obligation. You were given life; it is your duty (and also your entitlement as a human being) to find something beautiful within life, no matter how slight.

I came to Italy pinched and thin. I did not know yet what I deserved. I still maybe don’t know fully what I deserve. But I do know that I have collected myself of late- through the enjoyment of harmless pleasures- into somebody more intact. The easiest, most fundamentally human way to say it is that I have put on weight. I exist more now than I did four months ago. I will leave Italy noticeably bigger than when I arrived here. And I will leave with the hope and the expansion of one person- the magnification of one life- is indeed an act of worth in this world. Even if that life, just this one time, happens to be nobody’s but my own.”

I thought that was one of the more powerful quotes in the book so far. I absolutely loved this quote ‘you must grab onto the ankles of that happiness and not let go until it drags you face-first out of the dirt’ it gave me such a great visual and helped me understand her sentiment. I also agree that sometimes happiness comes from the little things in life. I think many of us get overwhelmed by assuming that we need to do all of these huge and crazy changes to be happy, but sometimes happiness comes from a small decision to just pursue something that you enjoy- even if it has no practical purpose.

For me, my glimmer of happiness was starting Oh She Glows. On October 31, 2008, I started Oh She Glows. It was one of the most difficult times of my life and I was struggling with my career and graduate school. I was depressed and I cried in bed so many nights. The blog was my glimmer of hope each day- a distraction from the unhappiness that I felt with my career choice. It was something so simple as writing a few words each day and hoping for that connection with others to help guide me though.

Little did I know that something as simple as writing a blog would have been the thing that gave me the courage, confidence, and desire to seek out happiness, not just for a few moments every day, but for my entire day. Sometimes, these little glimmers of happiness can be the seeds for amazing change and transformation in our lives.

I also loved her analogy about ‘putting on weight’. When Elizabeth went through her divorce she lost about 25-30 pounds and was skeletal. Putting on weight was not just a representation that she was getting healthier, but it was a metaphor for the growth that was happening on the inside of her as well. I thought it was so interesting because so many women denote weight gain with a negative emotion or loss of control, but sometimes weight gain represents a time in your life when you are enjoying the pleasures of life and just…happy.

I appreciate hearing your own thoughts on this quote…Do you have any ‘glimmers of hope’ in your life right now? Have you ever experienced any small pleasurable activity that got you though a difficult time, like the blog did for me? Are there things in your life that you could do to create these small bits of happiness in your day?

You may have heard the saying that goes something like, ‘Horses sweat, men perspire, but women merely glow.’  (or is it glisten?)

If this saying is true, I was surely glowing & glistening today!

Our crazy heat wave continues here in Ontario. With humidity, it felt like 41C today. I was thanking my lucky stars that I got my run in early this morning. I don’t even think an evening run after sunset would work in this crazy humid weather- it is now 7:30pm and still 31C outside.

When it is hot outside the only thing I want is cold, light, and healthy food, specifically cold treats (muhauha) and the only appliance I want to use is the freezer!

I have been thinking of a way I could make a healthy and tasty frozen treat that would be great for summer and before I knew it these Frosty No Bake Glo Cakes were born!

Mmmmmmm. Oh yes, I did!

This is only TRIAL 1, but I thought I would share it anyways because I know how much you guys love playing around with recipes just like I do. There will be many more versions of these Glo Cakes, I can assure you that!

Frosty No-Bake Glo Cakes (Trial 1: Chocolate peanut butter with cacao nibs)

Prep time is just 2-3 minutes for these healthy & addicting frozen treats. It doesn’t get much quicker than that! I would suggest making a batch before you start cooking dinner as they take over 1 hour to firm in the freezer. If you want to make a full dozen, just triple this recipe below.

Ingredients:

• 1 large banana
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/4 cup crisp rice cereal
• 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1/2 tbsp peanut butter
• 1-2 tbsp cacao nibs (optional, but they give it a great crunch)
• 1-2 tbsp dark chocolate chips (optional, See notes below)
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• Shredded unsweet. coconut, for garnish

Directions: Mash banana in a medium sized bowl (I use a potato masher!). Add cocoa powder, peanut butter, and maple syrup and stir until fully mixed. Now stir in oats, cacao nibs, and rice crisp. Divide into 4 Glo Cakes by spooning the batter into a muffin liner or just in a muffin tin. I used an ungreased muffin tin and I had no problems getting them to come out. Sprinkle with coconut and place in the freezer for 60-80 minutes. Do not over-freeze them. You want them a bit chewy. They will however melt quite fast so please serve immediately.

These took much longer to freeze than I anticipated- just over 1 hour, but they were worth the wait! I really enjoyed them. Very fun. They do melt fast though! I estimated them to be around 100 calories each, but once I firm up the recipe a bit I will likely do the full nutritional info for those who are interested.

Changes I will make for Trial 2:

• No chocolate chips next time: Trust me, I didn’t think I would ever say those words either! I am not a fan of frozen chunks of chocolate so next time I will leave out the chocolate chips. I prefer my chocolate to be melty and soft and feel that the taste is wasted when it is frozen! However if you enjoy frozen chocolate you might want to add some chips to yours. I found the cocoa powder was enough to give it a slight hint of chocolate flavour.
• Muffin Liner instead of muffin tin: I used a muffin tin and while it worked great, I think next time I will try using my reusable muffin liners to save me washing a dish! Alternatively, you could take a plate, some parchment paper, and make frozen drop cookies! That would be fun.
• Fun add ins: The options are endless with what goodies you could add to these! You could make peanut butter, jam, and banana, raisin spice, carob, maple butter, coconut butter, other nut butters, etc. The sky is the limit, have fun with the experimentation and let me know what you make!
• Other options for rice crisp: I expected the rice crisp to be crispy, but I found that it actually got soft and didn’t provide any crunch. You might want to play around for other substitutions!

I will definitely be playing around with these fun Glo Cakes! I had three cakes and it took all of my will power to save one for Eric. 

Updates:

• Check out this Glo Bar raffle for charity over at Fit This Girl!

I’m shutting down the laptop for the night and disconnecting. This gal needs some down time!

I have some new Farmer’s Market goodies to show you tomorrow. Enjoy your evening! 

Goooooood afternoon!

Great discussion going on in the ‘Is Your Desk Job Harming Your Health?’ post! It was interesting to read everyone’s experiences. I was asked about what kinds of stretches to do at a desk and I came across this awesome visual guide that you can print and put in front of you! Click to enlarge.

[Source]

I am a very visual person, so I think this will be a great reminder for me!

I’m a personal fan of #10, although it always creeps me out when my back cracks!

I am going to start taking stretching breaks every hour or so when I am doing desk work- or even doing physical work in the bakery. My back/shoulders are so tight it’s a bit ridiculous. I have a timer on my desk, so I think I will start setting it to remind me. Goodness knows I need reminders!

Onto today’s lunch, which was fabulous…

First I should mention that my Green Monster this morning with Purslane gave me so much energy! I honestly felt amazing this morning. It held me over for about 3 hours before having a mid-morning snack of apple + cashew butter. Who knew a tiny weed could pack so much punch? This weekend, I shall be buying out the dear farmer’s stock of Purslane and Nettles.

I am loving cooking with this Cold-pressed organic sunflower oil. It seems to adapt to everything I make it with, including the amazing Cherry, Banana, and Coconut Butter Bread. By the way, I did manage to freeze half of it, and that is the only reason why it is still in my house. I dream about taking it out of the freezer about 6 times a day. I think I might take it out over the Canada Day long weekend for a treat!

Today is once again our CSA pick-up day and I discovered that we still had a ton of veggies to consume before tonight’s pick-up! The theme of Wednesdays is definitely VEGGIE-riffic!

One thing that Eric and I have noted since having our CSA weekly half-share is that we have only gone to the grocery store ONCE since we got the CSA! Now that we are buying from the farmer’s market and have the CSA we find there really isn’t much to buy at the grocery store. It is such a cool feeling! A lot less waste too.

Garlic SNAKES!

Not to be confused with Garden snakes, although almost equally as scary! Today I opened the fridge and a garlic ‘snake’ had somehow slithered out of the crisper trying to escape!!!! It was everything I could do to remain calm.

I’m not sure if we are going to see more garlic scapes this season. I guess we will find out tonight! One reader told me that she went to buy them this week and the farmer said they are already out of season. That one musta hurt!

Prepare for the entire kitchen to smell amazing when you make this…

Boom…

Zucchini, Tomato, and Garlic Scape Stir-fry

Ingredients:

• 1 large zucchini
• 1/2 large tomato
• 3-4 garlic scapes
• 1/2 tbsp cold-pressed sunflower oil
• 1 tsp paprika
• Kosher sea salt, to taste
• Freshly ground Black pepper, to taste
• Parsley flakes, for garnish

Directions: Pour about 1/2 a tbsp of Sunflower oil (or oil of your choice) into a skillet and heat at low-medium. Chop veggies and throw into skillet along with seasonings. Cook for about 10 minutes or until veggies are tender. Sprinkle with dried or freshly chopped parsley.

I served it along with two seedy Cracker Glo Doughs and 1/4 cup of roasted red pepper hummus! Mmmmmmm!

I loved eating it on a bed of hummus, but I couldn’t resist making a hummus hat…

Hummus makes my world go round.

I also cracked open a brand new spice that I bought in bulk the other day…PAPRIKA!

I am so happy to have Paprika back in stock. I ran out of it last year and never got around to buying any. I love Paprika because it is a spice that you can use quite liberally and it doesn’t overwhelm the dish.

Benefits of Paprika include:

• High in Vitamin C
• Antibacterial
• Can help normalize blood pressure and improve circulation
• Can increase the production stomach acids to aid digestion (always good for peeps with stomachs like me!)

The stir-fry was also excellent! So much flavour. The garlic scapes were fabulous in a stir-fry too.

My afternoon powersnack was better than my wildest dreams…

I made Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream using 1 frozen Glo Dough chopped up and banana soft serve. It tasted just like choc. chip cookie dough ice cream.

Updates:

Glo Bar Canada Day SALE- July 1st at NOON EST.

• In honour of Canada Day tomorrow, Glo Bakery will be having a Glo Bar Sale! The sale will begin at NOON EST and quantities will be limited, so come early to the party! At noon EST I will put a post up on OSG as a reminder, linking to the Canada Day sale.
• Local Readers: Susan and I are hosting a get together at Calico Cafe in Toronto on July 11th. Please email Susan at thegreatbalancingact [at] gmail.com if you would like to join us!
• Can everyone see my Recipes tab at the top of my page? I had a couple reports that it was hiding the other day…

Not sure what is on the workout agenda today. Yesterday was a rest day and today I am really lacking motivation! Sometimes I find it is hard to workout the day after a rest day. It is almost as if my body forgets what the endorphins feel like or something. I know I need to get in a good lap swim because my motivation for lap swims has been WAY down.  I’m hoping that Eric and I will get out for an open-water swim on Friday. As for tonight…time will tell! It’s probably best not to think about it too much and just get dressed and get out there!

See you tomorrow for lots of fun Canada Day recipes!

Happy Friday!

I just couldn’t resist!

I told you last night that I discovered a fun post-workout treat. I decided to make a twist on the classic banana and nut butter ‘sandwich’.

I’m sure this snack is not new to many of you, but it was a first for me!

Chilly ‘Naner, Nib, ‘n Nut Butter Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 1 banana, sliced along the length to create 2 halves
• 1-2 tbsp peanut butter (or nut butter of your choice)
• Cacao nibs or chocolate chips for sprinkling

Directions: Slice banana along the length to create two halves. Spread with a layer of nut butter and sprinkle with cacao nibs. Assemble the banana back together by placing the halves onto each other. Pop into a container and place in the freezer for 1-4 hours, making sure not to allow it to completely freeze. Enjoy whole or by slicing into rounds, after a hot + sweaty workout!

Mmmmm! Loved this after my run yesterday! It was so refreshing. The key is to not freeze it for too long. The goal here is cold, but not hard and frozen completely.

The cacao nibs gave it a great texture too!

I started this morning with a fresh juice composed of 1 large beet, 2 carrots, 1/2 a lemon, small piece of ginger, and 1/2 a cuke:

Along with Japanese Sencha green tea…

I got to work making Glo Dough and Chocolate Macaroons for the Oakville Organic Farmer’s Market tomorrow.

I am having fun experimenting in the kitchen with new goodies!

The rest of the day will be devoted to making Glo Bars for tomorrow, paper work, and banking. I also need to call the government and find out how the new HST tax is going to effect my business.

Word on the street is that Eric is making me breakfast this morning so I am eagerly awaiting getting my tummy (haha I just wrote ‘yummy’!) filled.

Today’s question: What are your favourite desserts or treats, if you could have anything in the world?

I am a pretty classic girl…I love cupcakes or a slice of cake with tons of delicious piped, thick, frosting. I also love pumpkin pie, rich and moist banana bread, macaroons, soft ginger cookies, and cookie dough. Mmm, this just gave me a huge craving to make banana bread now!

I’ll see you later. Have a great Friday!

Greetings! (aka: Hellllloooooooo)

What a day!

So interesting to read all of your comments about your earthquake experience today. The news is now reporting that it was a Magnitude 5.0 earthquake that originated in Quebec from 18 km in the ground. Crazy!

However, I carried on. I had a race to fuel for and lots of work to do!

The theme of my pre-race eats = Green, Carbo, Clean!

Ezekiel toast with curried couscous and basil…

I got up from the table and promptly put some salsa on it. Perfect-o!

With a Green Juice

Note- this is the first time my juicer has ever gotten any juice out of a leafy green before! I have tried juicing kale before and did not get a drop of juice out of it. I’m not sure what I did differently with this spinach, but it came pouring out. I think it might have been due to placing a couple items on top of the spinach (lemon, apple) to hold it in place…

The juice contained spinach, 1/2 a lemon, 1/2 a cuke, and a tiny apple.

Yum!

Dessert was Trader Joe’s Fair Trade Dark Chocolate! LOVE this chocolate so much. My heart goes pitter patter.

8 squares for good measure!

Afternoon fueling snacks were a Liberate Raw + GF Glo Bar…

A TJ’s Raspberry Fruit Leather…

I used to eat fruit leather all the time as a teenager. I’d like to make my own in the food dehydrator, actually! Specifically dried mangoes…oodles and oodles of dried mangoes. Mmmmmm.

….and late afternoon, a Green Monster. I wasn’t sure how to fuel for an evening race, so I figured Green Monsters were always fine with previous races so I decided on that! Can’t go wrong with a monstaaaa.

It contained: 1 tbsp peanut butter, 2 cups Red Russian Kale (that was the mystery veggie from last week’s CSA!), 1 cup hemp milk, 1/2 scoop Amazing Grass Chocolate Amazing Meal Powder, 1 tbsp chia seeds, ice, ice, baby.

It was thick and chewy. I might have good news on a new blender coming soon though…

So yes, I was fueled up.

But I was still undecided about the 5-mile race in Toronto. This called for a phone call consultation to OSGMOM. She was less than thrilled for me to be going given all the crazy circumstances today. I also consulted Karly.

She said…

I think there have been enough warning signs today to give yourself permission to not go to this race:
1. Earthquake
2. Crazy protests in Toronto
3. Sweltering heat
4. Torrential downpours/severe thunderstorms expected tonight
5. Possible looming tornado!!!!!

Do you need anymore reasons?

Sometimes all you need is a worried mother and friend to tell it like it is. Reluctantly, I made the call to skip the race, BUT to make things fun for myself, I hosted my own race, much like Caitlin did with the Chickpea Masala 10k Race.

I called it….

The Earthquake Run & Shake 5 Point Oh…No

I didn’t have much time to advertise though, so the turn out was a bit less than expected!

I approached the start line and checked the mailbox while I was waiting. Awesome.

To my surprise, I was in the FIRST Corral, so that right there was a confidence booster. Sadly, I did not see any elite runners though. I think they were ‘running’ late.

Then, the horn sounded and off I went, filled with adrenaline!

Mile 1:

Right from the start of this race I knew it would be a struggle. The air was thick and humid and the temperature was 29C with a humidity of 37C! The air felt like a damp cloth that had been sitting in a steam room. Gross. Luckily I had my Camelbak on me and it was full with COLD water, so I was good to go. The Camelbak has made my runs SO much better. Having water easily accessible on a run is truly amazing. I am used to the extra weight now too so that is not a factor.

• Mile 1 time = 8:15 min/mile
• Avg heart rate = 162 bpm
• Max heart rate =  174 bpm

Mile 2:

The storm clouds rolled in and the wind picked up!

Hence, ‘OH NO’

I knew right then and there that I had to turn back because the storm was approaching quicker than expected. I pictured the ground opening up and swallowing me whole, but I persisted on. I figured if it did, that would be a pretty cool way to kick the bucket. The wind was refreshing, yet it made the run much more difficult. I was able to pick up a bit of speed despite this.

• Mile 2 time = 8:12 min/mile
• Avg heart rate = 167 bpm
• Max heart rate =  174 bpm

Mile 3:

It started to rain during the last 0.5 mile stretch and this was great inspiration to boot it home! I ran fast and I ran hard. I decided a 5k race would have to do! During the last 1/4 mile it POURED rain and I felt like I was in the Amazing Race or something. That, or I was Rocky. Probably Rocky actually.

3 mile race stats:

• Time: 24:17 min/mile
• Avg pace: 8:06 min/mile

[That is not all sweat… it was raining too! But yea, it’s mostly all sweat I guess. lol]

As I approached the ‘finish line’ no one was in sight and amazingly, I WON the race! I even took home this awesome 1st place ribbon!

I can assure you, I will not be taking this bad boy off for a while.

I have some post-race fuel waiting to be consumed. Have a good night!

Good morning!

We have another situation here.

I love coconut butter. My favourite kind is the Artisana Raw Coconut Butter. It is smooth as silk and subtly sweet.

However, heavenly bliss comes with a hefty price tag. Granted, it lasts me forever, but when Ashley told me that I could actually make my own coconut butter very easily, I knew I had to try it myself!

All I did was put 2 cups of shredded organic coconut into the food processor…

Process your little heart out. Use a spoon to scrape down the side of the bowl. This takes about 10 minutes or so.

Then you will be left with beautiful coconut butter!

Who knew!?

I compared the homemade coconut butter to the to Artisana and the Artisana brand was definitely smoother and a bit sweeter and overall better tasting. I have a feeling it has something to do with the way they process it. I’m guessing you could also get it smoother in a Vita-Mix or Blendtec blender. This did the trick though and was sure delicious!

Homemade Coconut Butter

Ingredients:

• 2 cups shredded coconut

Directions: Process in a food processor (or capable blender) for about 10 minutes until a butter forms, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Yields: approx 1/2 cup coconut butter.

I can’t wait to try this in VOO!

I also made Carob Coconut Butter because I LOVE carob and coconut together. My Heaven Glo Bar is based on this combination.

The carob powder gives it a bit of natural sweetness too.

Carob Coconut Butter

• 1/4 cup or more of homemade coconut butter
• 1 tbsp of carob powder

Directions: MIX!

If you are a coconut fan, you will love it!

Needless to say, breakfast was AWESOME this morning…

I was in HEAVEN.

I’m drooling. Again.

Well, this gal is getting back to work. I hope you have a glowing Tuesday and I will see you later today!

Good morning!

I’m writing this post at 6am on a Saturday because I am just that excited to tell you about it!

First, I need to get this off my chest…

GARLIC SCAPES!!!!!!!!!!!!

“The garlic plant has more than one usable portion. While many people are aware of the many uses for the garlic bulbs, not as many persons are aware that the stalk of the garlic plant is also edible.” [Source]

I eat a lot of veggies, however I am always over the moon when I can discover a new veggie and figure out what to do with it!

Second, thank you to everyone who told me what this scary but magical veggie is and offered some recipe ideas! I think my CSA post is going to become a weekly feature. It was so fun to read everyone’s thoughts on new recipe ideas! Maybe we can start a recipe club.

Third, what I am about to show you is life-changing. I do not joke about these things. This recipe left me ohhhing and awwwing and talking about it all night. Eric even scarfed it down!

I will get right down to business.

Easy Vegan Garlic Scape Pesto

Inspired by Kalyn’s Kitchen.

Ingredients:

• 3 garlic scapes, rinsed and chopped a few times to break up
• 1.5 cups of my 3-minute parmesan cheeze (I tripled the batch so I would have lots leftover!)
• Juice of 1/2 a fresh lemon (approx 2 tbsp)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• handful of fresh spinach

Directions: Make the 3 minute vegan parmesan cheeze, by toasting 1.5 cups of sesame seeds in the oven until lightly golden in colour and then throw seeds, nutritional yeast, and salt into a blender. Process for 30-60 seconds. Parmesan cheese is complete! Step 2) Remove cheese from processor and set aside. Now throw in the garlic scapes and fresh lemon juice and process until fine. Add the vegan parmesan slowly in 1/2 cup increments, alternating with the extra virgin olive oil. Process until smooth or desired consistency. As a final step take your rinsed spinach and throw in and process. It will turn into a lovely green colour. Serve and enjoy! Makes 1.5-2 cups.

I figured it needed a little pop of GREEN, don’t you?

Much better.

I cannot even tell you how DELICIOUS this is!!! I just can’t. You have to make it for yourself to understand. I think I inhaled half of it on spot.

This was quite possibly the best thing that has ever come out of my food processor.

I am in love with garlic scapes! Their flavour is out of this word- they are very, very garlicky and to my delight they did not give me stomach pains like regular garlic does. You have no idea how happy I was to be able to eat something garlicky and not suffer afterwards! This also marked the first time that I have made pesto and actually was impressed by it (the first time I made it a while ago it was very off tasting).

I still have a ton of garlic scapes leftover and I can’t wait to throw them onto salads, roast them, and make a stir-fry with them. YUM.

If there is one thing you do this weekend RUN to your local market, pick up some garlic scapes (they aren’t in season for long!), and make this pesto. You will still be glowing from ear to ear come Monday morning.

Speaking of the Farmers Market, I am off to the orientation! My plan is to woo the farmer’s with Glo Bars and bring home copious amounts of strange veggies every week.