tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59626994004880400542024-03-05T21:11:55.819-08:00In the Bean ThymeI'm a 20-something girl with a passion for concocting new, delicious and nutritious recipes in the kitchen, fitness, the outdoors and being a little girlie sometimes too! By reading my blog I hope you feel inspired to live your best life to the absolute fullest!Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-39007810529139953852017-02-07T15:30:00.000-08:002017-02-07T15:30:39.343-08:00chai tea<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">i would like to take this time to welcome myself back lol. oh, it feels.so.good. i took a much needed hiatus from my precious blog but am thrilled to be back. let's get back into things. our weather has been so out of whack lately for this part of the island. we have been stuck in what feels like a snow globe for three days. it has been snowing non stop since Friday. my beautiful daffodils and fresh buds on my rhododendron bushes are now covered in a fresh blanket of snow. although i was in spring mode (i bought my seeds on wednesday...) i am loving the snow. i don't think i really have a choice. here are a few things I have been up to lately.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">let's start with saturday. let the snow storm continue. i use the term "storm" very lightly. it was not windy, but boy did it snow. i started off my day with a simple fruit salad of dragon fruit, kiwi and cara cara orange. those colours though!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">after breakfast came the star of the show. there is nothing i love more than a hot cup of chai on a cold, winter day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">my go-to chai recipe is made with whole spices and fresh ginger and has such a rich flavour. it is a chai tea concentrate so you only have to add 1/4 cup or so to each cup. i sweeten mine with local honey already flavoured with nutmeg and cinnamon. this just makes it extra yummy. thank you <a href="http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2014/09/homemade-chai-tea-concentrate.html" target="_blank">the prairie homestead</a> for a recipe i go back to time and time again. i added some steamed milk and sprinkled cinnamon and grated nutmeg and orange zest on top.</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">after a nice, hot mug of chai, my mom, bri, harley (my pup) and i ventured out into the trails for a snow shoeing adventure.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; text-align: center;">it was an absolutely perfect afternoon spent with three of my favourite people. harley is pretty much a person. at least we think he is.</span><br />
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-79329750632231815542015-04-02T16:13:00.001-07:002015-04-02T16:13:10.144-07:00Chocolate Peppy SquaresThese squares are out. of. this. world. They are quite pepperminty, which is great for a huge peppermint lover like me!<br />
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They are extremely easy to make and keep well for a long time, especially when kept in the freezer. Please make them. Your boyfriend/girlfriend, family, co-workers will thank you!<br />
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<b><u>Chocolate Peppy Squares</u></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Adapted from <a href="http://ohsheglows.com/2012/08/07/no-bake-peppermint-patty-bars/" target="_blank">www.ohsheglows.com</a></i></span></div>
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<b><u>Ingredients:</u></b></div>
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2 cups oats (blended into fine flour)</div>
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1/2 cup walnuts</div>
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1/2 cup almonds</div>
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5 tbsp cocoa powder</div>
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1/2 tsp fine sea salt</div>
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2 tbsp soy milk/almond milk</div>
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5 tbsp maple syrup</div>
2 tsp peppermint extract (depending on taste)<br />
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1/4 cup oats</div>
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1/2 cup mint chocolate chips (ohhh yeahhhhh)</div>
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1/2 cup mint chocolate chips (for topping)</div>
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1 tbsp coconut oil (for topping)</div>
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flaked coconut (for garnish)</div>
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<b><u>Directions:</u></b></div>
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1. Blend oats into flour using blender or food processor. Put into bowl (I used my stand mixer)</div>
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2. Process nuts until semi-fine consistency. The consistency is a personal preference. Add nuts to oats mixture.</div>
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3. Add cocoa powder, sea salt, milk, maple syrup (make sure you add all 5 tbsp as this helps bind the "dough"), peppermint extract, oats and 1/2 cup mint chocolate chips.</div>
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4. Mix until well combined.</div>
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5. Line an 8 by 8 baking dish with wax paper. Add mixture to dish. Press down using your fingers until everything is firmly pressed together.</div>
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6. Melt 1/2 cup mint chocolate chips and 1 tbsp coconut oil in the microwave until melted.</div>
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7. Pour and spread over top of mixture.</div>
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8. Sprinkle with coconut. Put in the freezer until chocolate topping has set.</div>
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This is why wax paper is so amazing! Comes out clean without any sticking.</div>
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9. Cut into as many squares as you'd like. </div>
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10. Freeze and enjoy!</div>
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And yes, I realize I am a huge nerd considering I labelled the bag, but I mean, come on...who doesn't love labelling? Am I right? Please tell me I am...</div>
Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-69468124062639399062015-04-01T21:27:00.000-07:002015-04-01T21:31:22.345-07:00Great Greek SaladIt's that time of year again. Out with the comfort food, in with the fresh food. During the winter months, I tend to gravitate towards more comforting food, as I'm sure we all do. Sure, they're delicious and yes, I try to make them as healthy as possible and get my greens in different ways (thank you green monsters) but after awhile it gets old.<br />
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The sunny, warmer weather we have been having has inspired me to create meals using much more fresh produce. I love this time of year for that. </div>
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This greek salad is as simple and delicious as can be. It was supposed to go alongside homemade spelt pita bread...but, as you can see by the pictures below that didn't happen. Note to self: Read <i>ALL </i>instructions before you begin cooking. As I was cooking the chicken, I realized the pita dough needed 2 hours of rising time. Whoops.</div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Great Greek Salad</span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Ingredients:</span></div>
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1/2 cucumber</div>
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1 green pepper</div>
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1 red pepper</div>
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2 tomatoes (or 1-2 cups cherry tomatoes)</div>
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1 shallot</div>
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1 romaine heart</div>
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feta cheese</div>
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olives</div>
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basil</div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Directions:</span></div>
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1. Cut up all vegetables and put them in a large bowl.</div>
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2. Top with feta cheese, olives and fresh basil.</div>
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3. Toss with dressing (recipe below).</div>
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<u><b>Red Dressing</b></u></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>adapted from <a href="http://www.howsweeteats.com/">www.howsweeteats.com</a></i></span></div>
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<u><b>Ingredients:</b></u></div>
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1/4 cup red wine vinegar</div>
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Juice of 1 lemon</div>
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1 1/2 tbsp honey</div>
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2 garlic cloves or 1/2-1 tsp garlic powder</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
1/2 tsp herb de provence</div>
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1/4 tsp salt</div>
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1/4 tsp pepper</div>
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1/4-1/2 cup olive oil</div>
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<b><u>Directions:</u></b></div>
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1. Put all ingredients into a blender and blend (rocket science, I know!)</div>
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<i>The wonderfulness that is olive oil becomes creamy when blended, so this is actually more of a yellow dressing than red...oh well, I'm going to keep the name!</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfXP-JcsKsc5lfaPjUKcj4hEER51MlmVvWF1KWxQv1y6bB1e__2Z_H_ngK_VGpO6xYFwzzHzFw0fniyMAw84aPQI8AVmB8PKhyphenhyphenOUXRTQtM2UhGgGc4pJ8K0ZNtLyI3FWEzIUX9S2PuV3k/s1600/IMG_2646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfXP-JcsKsc5lfaPjUKcj4hEER51MlmVvWF1KWxQv1y6bB1e__2Z_H_ngK_VGpO6xYFwzzHzFw0fniyMAw84aPQI8AVmB8PKhyphenhyphenOUXRTQtM2UhGgGc4pJ8K0ZNtLyI3FWEzIUX9S2PuV3k/s1600/IMG_2646.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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A simple dinner for two</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMlb-bL7WYe_L0PoKWHRSTbeF0PMPh91UYqOsrzyFwQ4J1jpnioQA0uyzQI5jn5SNI22YBZBBZQocAsWokQyGzt9GlxNjYVpuY8jcB5jrd4swyKxR_-lHMq9V6CFWTNCsRxlfiFMa8eUY/s1600/IMG_2649.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMlb-bL7WYe_L0PoKWHRSTbeF0PMPh91UYqOsrzyFwQ4J1jpnioQA0uyzQI5jn5SNI22YBZBBZQocAsWokQyGzt9GlxNjYVpuY8jcB5jrd4swyKxR_-lHMq9V6CFWTNCsRxlfiFMa8eUY/s1600/IMG_2649.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Fresh salad with baked chicken on the side! Mmm...</div>
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What do you like to eat your greek salad with?</h2>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-70213885166157547982015-03-31T09:25:00.002-07:002015-03-31T09:26:41.005-07:00It Finally Hit Me!It finally hit me. I am officially on Spring Break. It hit me yesterday morning when I didn't have to get up hours before the sun. Those of you who know me know that I am a huge early bird, but sometimes 5:00 am is just a tad too early to get the worm everyone's always talking about...<br />
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Yesterday I got up at 7:00 am, made some breakfast and plunked myself on the couch where I<b> slowly </b>enjoyed my breakfast while watching some Netflix! Ahhh...no better way to spend my first real day of holidays!<br />
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I have no real plans for the next two weeks, which I'm kind of loving. At first, I was a bit disappointed I wasn't going anywhere but now I'm perfectly content with my decision! I plan on doing some Spring cleaning (i.e. going through cupboards, closets and drawers), getting my gardens ready, building a kitchen table (pretty excited about this one) and going to as many classes at the gym as I can!<br />
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Now, back to the food! Here's yesterday's breakfast.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWAj83wDbiMunQXDPzVw8YA9XZBJCYbOiixzfkYMyzfdTFG8agHD-MXfcbTg6OM5dSHSPw8NKymbehy677gNNeLaDIkWt6inu5G-Qb83G4-Br19V6-vRPAoBGC3JVQDUm0U6XRuC_SnME/s1600/IMG_2631.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWAj83wDbiMunQXDPzVw8YA9XZBJCYbOiixzfkYMyzfdTFG8agHD-MXfcbTg6OM5dSHSPw8NKymbehy677gNNeLaDIkWt6inu5G-Qb83G4-Br19V6-vRPAoBGC3JVQDUm0U6XRuC_SnME/s1600/IMG_2631.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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Acai bowl with all of the toppings!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDcXitSKrOUaNNQlcrpWw93apjr3uavQBtS0LXOGkdVrwiS4i1OwjQkMKLPplxMJItsBQeEaxGOxCe_h5TJu4TQizsM-lNGmXpfUHY8tR_utSHqyP4KWBNMv1YTcshDIOdZjzxljcuWc/s1600/IMG_2633.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDcXitSKrOUaNNQlcrpWw93apjr3uavQBtS0LXOGkdVrwiS4i1OwjQkMKLPplxMJItsBQeEaxGOxCe_h5TJu4TQizsM-lNGmXpfUHY8tR_utSHqyP4KWBNMv1YTcshDIOdZjzxljcuWc/s1600/IMG_2633.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Acai Bowl</u></b></span></div>
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<b><u>Ingredients:</u></b></div>
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1 package of sugar free acai pack</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqCup22biFYzV59Er_ZOz7i2ZqwEUS2EQvbJj3utvyrDlQ0CHRxwaS5DKa8vyITgA7N8jwyQUv3RDkQ5bbFtQAAvyFm82ZSPgWezxgcnH5pkcDz8YYqw6qiRlABYBcFuFPOO8FGjlfeLs/s1600/IMG_2627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqCup22biFYzV59Er_ZOz7i2ZqwEUS2EQvbJj3utvyrDlQ0CHRxwaS5DKa8vyITgA7N8jwyQUv3RDkQ5bbFtQAAvyFm82ZSPgWezxgcnH5pkcDz8YYqw6qiRlABYBcFuFPOO8FGjlfeLs/s1600/IMG_2627.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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1 frozen banana</div>
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1 cup frozen strawberries</div>
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1/8-1/4 cup almond milk (I used homemade but any will do)</div>
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<b><u>Directions:</u></b></div>
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1. Blend in blender/food processor. The stronger the better! Add more liquid to reach desired consistency.</div>
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2. Have fun with your toppings! I added banana, blackberries, leftover granola from yesterday's breakfast, walnuts and raw buckwheat groats.</div>
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<i>Now, I have never had an acai bowl before, nor do I know what it is them...but this one was phenomenal! </i></div>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<i>Do any of you make acai bowls? Or if you don't, have you ever had one? </i></h2>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-26406417468265286892015-03-30T08:25:00.000-07:002015-03-30T08:25:56.188-07:00Roasted Tomato SoupRewind to dinner last night. Simple ingredients, easy prep, minimal clean up and tons of flavour!<br />
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<b><u>Roasted Tomato Soup</u></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>adapted from somewhere that I can't remember...</i></span></div>
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<b><u>Ingredients:</u></b></div>
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6-8 tomatoes on the vine cut into quarters</div>
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1 yellow onion cut into quarters</div>
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head of garlic</div>
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fresh basil</div>
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fresh thyme</div>
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juice of 1/2 lemon</div>
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2-3 tbsp olive oil</div>
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salt </div>
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pepper</div>
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pinch of cayenne pepper</div>
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<b><u>Directions:</u></b></div>
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1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut top off of garlic head. Put head down on cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 30-45 minutes until lightly brown.</div>
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2. Put tomatoes, onion, fresh herbs (to taste), olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper (to taste) and cayenne pepper (1-2 pinches) into large bowl.</div>
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3. Mix with hands until combined.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ_l8e8QYugdtIbo_zeIzgVR_0JNg7JQTj_Jt9JZiWGdLq6fM1Q_kK1dpZe1_IUP8TqWIR6SNs3b89VgrxhDP4SVXpxrBHB00eZNUpZaJ2F35697TB5rwq8oeEEzU4Jpg3KnBwk3PA354/s1600/IMG_2621.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ_l8e8QYugdtIbo_zeIzgVR_0JNg7JQTj_Jt9JZiWGdLq6fM1Q_kK1dpZe1_IUP8TqWIR6SNs3b89VgrxhDP4SVXpxrBHB00eZNUpZaJ2F35697TB5rwq8oeEEzU4Jpg3KnBwk3PA354/s1600/IMG_2621.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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4. Put on cookie sheet. Bake for approx. 30 minutes. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBSNwooxuiz9qKvWcjkDpGBXK95inpd-L-BjDegaynxDrkJPyJyUQqEMw2UmFSTlvOkp3YE_DKQN7PcjQGBKfL8uPFHTLPI2vZh-viiRMHfYs1_XleHi1wsV68g2phXtUKpoEcZ_1bbj0/s1600/IMG_2622.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBSNwooxuiz9qKvWcjkDpGBXK95inpd-L-BjDegaynxDrkJPyJyUQqEMw2UmFSTlvOkp3YE_DKQN7PcjQGBKfL8uPFHTLPI2vZh-viiRMHfYs1_XleHi1wsV68g2phXtUKpoEcZ_1bbj0/s1600/IMG_2622.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwUjVz3PdkjfOvUHrOUA4SbdW5GP0iO6RrwRpYoLA_Z4zLnMaiISIK1N47IQGtPcmEu8rlPsqaJNjf1KMFgA0AG5Rbo5eXGGF_-kja4695BuumekZ-r2f0ZbEd4AMlZ3p9vjPeZnE3Tmk/s1600/IMG_2624.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwUjVz3PdkjfOvUHrOUA4SbdW5GP0iO6RrwRpYoLA_Z4zLnMaiISIK1N47IQGtPcmEu8rlPsqaJNjf1KMFgA0AG5Rbo5eXGGF_-kja4695BuumekZ-r2f0ZbEd4AMlZ3p9vjPeZnE3Tmk/s1600/IMG_2624.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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5. Add all tomato mixture to blender. Squeeze out roasted garlic into blender. Blend until it reaches your desired consistency. I blended until it was completely smooth and creamy!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD6IT04hyphenhyphenDeWpA3bLH8vZL5t7ASPqI3njgwYYeHoRGmP2b2LYLhynE-tv2LovHB8AYz7155o0uBhQJZOxsYrTC58ouKThPazX790yiOrK29PmHJaCRx7qacn6RMRvY8eGPKC9A8sH7w0I/s1600/IMG_2625.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD6IT04hyphenhyphenDeWpA3bLH8vZL5t7ASPqI3njgwYYeHoRGmP2b2LYLhynE-tv2LovHB8AYz7155o0uBhQJZOxsYrTC58ouKThPazX790yiOrK29PmHJaCRx7qacn6RMRvY8eGPKC9A8sH7w0I/s1600/IMG_2625.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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6. Serve, garnish and enjoy!</div>
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Have you ever made tomato soup this way? </h2>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-29115939804541122372015-03-29T08:36:00.003-07:002015-03-29T08:36:52.981-07:00I'm Back!Well, well, well...look who we have here. Yes, I'm back. Yes, It's been over a year. I still can't believe it. No major excuses and no, I am not going to write a novel about what I have been up to because I have a granola recipe to share with you, and let's face it granola recipe > my whole life story. But, here is a quick little list to get you all up to date:<br />
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<ul>
<li>I am currently teaching at the same school as last year (K-2 class), which is in a very remote community</li>
<li>Francis graduated from UVic with his Engineering degree and moved to Campbell River. He now has a great job working for the Hydro Dam project as a Field Engineer!</li>
<li>We (my dad, Francis and I) renovated and moved into a house on a large piece of property </li>
<li>I am still baking and cooking up a storm</li>
<li>I haven't been running much at all lately but have been going to group classes at the gym (zumba, spin) and keeping up with my pilates!</li>
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Now that that's out of the way, let's get down to business.</div>
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This granola *drool*. So easy, so quick, so healthy, SO delicious. Make it, like now!</div>
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<b><u>Five-Minute Granola</u></b></div>
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<b><u>Ingredients:</u></b></div>
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1/2 cup oatmeal</div>
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2 tbsp coconut oil</div>
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1-2 tbsp sweetener of choice (I used maple syrup but actually prefer agave nectar)</div>
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1/2-1 tsp cinnamon</div>
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<b><u>Directions:</u></b></div>
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1. Preheat oven (I used a toaster oven) to 350 degrees.</div>
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2. Mix all ingredients together. </div>
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2. Spread granola onto non stick cookie sheet or onto a silpat.</div>
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3. Bake for 5-10 minutes or until slightly golden.</div>
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4. Allow to cool and enjoy (if you're impatient like me you can put it in the freezer)</div>
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I love this granola so much that I sometimes make it at 5:00 am before I head off to work. </div>
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Served on top of 2 % greek yogurt and topped with banana, apple, peanut butter coconut oil drizzle and unsweetened coconut flakes!</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">How do you like to eat your granola?</span></div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-92105532764054897692013-10-19T18:32:00.001-07:002013-10-19T19:01:11.267-07:00It's been a very long time...HI EVERYONE!!!!!! I am so excited to be back. I know it has been a super long time since I have posted but the last few months of my life have been some of the best/worst months of my entire life! I won't go into too much detail because there isn't enough room on this page, but I will give you a bit of an update!<br />
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Let's start with June...Francis and I were in the middle of looking for jobs for September. A lot of areas were on our radar: Quebec City, Calgary, Vancouver area etc... It was a really hard time for us. We were trying to find jobs in the same area, which let's face it is nearly impossible. I made a very difficult decision in June to put in my notice at my job. I realized that I needed time to really focus on applying for jobs and wasn't giving it the time that it deserved. After 7 long years at University, I owed it to myself to really concentrate on my future! It was a fun 6 months working with awesome people and having fun but I had the rest of my life to look after! Francis had also applied for a job in Calgary...a VERY good opportunity for him...so I wanted to try to go with him. If he got the job I was going to move there regardless if I got a teaching job or not. We just wanted to be together...<br />
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On my last day of work I got a call from the school district in my hometown! They wanted me to come in for an interview. Umm...what??? I didn't even know what to do! I was so excited and so flipping nervous at the same time! Of course, I said yes. Francis also had an interview at a job in Vancouver! Francis' interview went well and he found out that he got the job (woo hoo). My interview went well but I wasn't offered the job...super bummer, but you know what? I got over it and I realized that it wasn't the end of the world. I was so nervous for the interview that I ended up crying...yup, you heard that right. It was a combination of nerves and getting emotional over the relationship I had with the students in my final practicum class! I'm not embarrassed about that anymore...I did my very best and I was happy that I was completely myself! <br />
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That same day the school district called me again...they wanted me to come in for another interview the next morning. I almost turned it down because I didn't want to be nervous again...but I realized that that would be a huge mistake and that I should just go in there, give it my all and not be nervous. I looked at it as a learning experience and told myself I probably wouldn't get it but that I was very fortunate to have been giving an interview (getting on the sub list is very hard, let alone getting a teaching job with little to no experience). <br />
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Later on that day, the principal of the school called me and said she was trying to get a hold of my references but couldn't. Ahhhhhh she was actually calling my references? I gave her the numbers and became extremely nervous. Over the weekend I was very relaxed because I knew they wouldn't call me to tell me the good or bad news. Monday rolled around and I had just come in from my morning run when the phone rang...I didn't answer it. I was WAY too nervous. I called back and was expecting to be told that I didn't get the job but I was prepared for it. She told me that they would LIKE TO OFFERING ME THE POSITION I INTERVIEWED FOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn't believe it! I got super chatty and the lovely lady on the phone had to ask me...after about 5 solid minutes of my chatter...she said...so, do you accept the position? OF COURSE I DO!!!!! It was such an amazing moment that I will never forget! Completely surreal....<br />
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The rest of my summer consisted of packing, shopping for my very first car (eek) planning lessons, shopping for my classroom (SO FLIPPIN' FUN!). We officially moved out of our place at the end of August and I am now settled into my new life in my hometown. Francis is in Vancouver and we see eachother most weekends, which we both really look forward to!<br />
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My new car :)</div>
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Teacher supply store my good friend, Nicole and I went to in Van! SOOOOOOO overwhelming...I walked out with some stickers...</div>
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Oh the chaos...</div>
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Moved in trying to unpack and get settled asap!</div>
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Starting to come together...walls are still bare but that will change once I make a trip to Emporia for some beautiful prints!</div>
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My bedroom...yes, I have a view of the ocean! I am SUPER lucky!</div>
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The stunning view the very first morning of my new job :)</div>
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View from my office! Seriously? So gorgeous!</div>
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The forest I take my class to everyday...we have so much fun in there!</div>
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There is only ONE stop on the way to my school...and she makes the LARGEST cinnamon buns EVER! This doesn't do it justice...it is the size of my head...not even kidding! It fed about 6 people...</div>
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The beautiful Elk that I get to see at least a couple of times of a week... they are the most majestic creatures I think I have ever seen. They are beautiful.</div>
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And just one of my little B-man looking all cute...he has settled in to his new home quite nicely :)</div>
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I am in love with my career...the people, the atmosphere, the village (yes, it's a village, not a town...it's that small :) and of course my absolutely wonderful class! I look forward to seeing them every morning...the smiles, the hugs, the laughter! It is THE most rewarding, fun career I could have ever asked for and I am so beyond grateful that I was given this opportunity! We have only been in school for 2 months but it has gone by super fast and I feel like that will continue throughout the year! The best part is that I always know I have weekends off and so does Francis...so I work very hard during the week so that I can look forward to a relaxing/fun weekend away or at home!<br />
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I PROMISE I am going to get back to some more regular blogging...and I will include more running/exercise updates and food recipes, of course! I am sorry it has been so long but I have also had a rough few weeks as I have lost a very close family member unexpectedly and it has been extremely tough...trying very hard to cope and I think that just getting back into the swing of things will help...having an outlet like blogging will also be very good for me! Sorry for such a ramble but I had a lot of share obviously! I hope I haven't lost any readers...but if I have I am sorry and maybe I will gain some new ones! :)<br />
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Have a great Saturday night! I am having a nice glass of wine by my fire watching some Gilmore Girls overlooking the ocean with my kitty... perfect!Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-76717319634633098602013-05-05T11:06:00.001-07:002013-05-05T11:06:31.554-07:00Fresh is Best<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: left;">Is everyone else in Victoria absolutely dying over this amazing weather we've been having? It's absolutely phenomenal! We are supposed to break some records today and hopefully it keeps up! So far so good :) </span></div>
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So, after Francis and I finished lazing around yesterday afternoon we had some lunch. He had the locally made, FRESH herb pasta we bought yesterday with a rose sauce (to die for) and I whipped up a nice big salad. </div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Same as yesterday but with grated beets and parsnip, basil infused olive oil and a poached egg on top. I wasn't patient enough to cook it over the stove so I microwaved it? Has anyone done that before? It was a scary experience...a few explosions were involved.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">We spent the rest of the afternoon driving around West Saanich, stopping at a few farms/markets along the way...just to see what they had to offer this time of year. Nothing exciting as of yet but strawberry picking season is next month (TRYING TO CONTROL MY EXCITEMENT). We also drove into Oak Bay to get a new house plant...I killed our love fern...yet again...</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">When we got home, Francis watched the hockey game and I got my bikini on and laid out in the sun to soak in some rays. It felt amazing! I didn't have sunscreen on so I didn't stay out very long...but I am going to be buying some this week so that I can stay out longer next time! My pasty legs need some vitamin D.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">At about 5 pm I whipped up some dins. <a href="http://cookingpinterest.blogspot.ca/2012/06/toasted-sesame-ginger-salmon.html">Toasted Sesame Ginger Salmon</a>, brown rice and a HUGE green salad for me.</span></div>
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His - Sans the salad.</div>
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Hers. His just looked much prettier than mine... The salmon was pretty tasty, but I have to admit I am a HUGE seafood snob. I grew up in the salmon capital of the world and we ate fresh salmon all the time. We would go out on our family boat, put down the prawn and crab traps and then go salmon fishing, sometimes stopping at our favourite islands for a swim along the way (in the summer of course).</div>
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We would bring our catch of the day (Summer Spring's are my favourite salmon) home and cook it that night. Talk about fresh, right? The toppings were always simple. Salt, pepper and dill or fresh garlic and lemon or sun dried tomatoes. We always used very fresh ingredients to compliment the fish not mask it like this recipe did. This salmon also tasted quite fishy, which SUPER fresh fish does not...BUT...it was pretty good but I don't think I will make it again.</div>
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Dessert was, as you know, Rhubarb Crisp. Topped with vanilla ice cream! One word: Incredible.</div>
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Today, Britta and I went to Elk Lake at 6:30 am for a 12 km run. The birds were chirping, the sun was shining, it was quiet and the air smelled fresh and sweet. It was a great way to start the day! Breakfast was a simple bowl of flax flakes cereal topped with some strawberries and banana! Mmmm mmmm good. I really wanted a nice, cold smoothie but forgot to freeze a banana last night (fail), so I guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow!</div>
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Now get out there and enjoy the sunshine!</div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-53724583818226466352013-05-04T11:51:00.003-07:002013-05-04T11:51:29.310-07:00Update and a VERY Special Birthday WishI know, I know...I have been MIA for over a month! Isn't that crazy? I definitely missed my time away from you all and am super happy to be back in action! Not a lot has been going on with me lately...just enjoying life as much as I possibly can! Going to fitness classes I've never been to before (bodybump, step and sculpt and ZUMBA), running, working and hanging out with some of my fav. peeps. So pretty much the same as always... before I get into the goods, I'd like to wish a very special person a Happy Birthday.<br />
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<span style="color: purple; font-size: large;"><i>Happy Birthday to the most beautiful, inspirational and just plain wonderful woman I know. I love you more than words can say, mom and if I can be half the woman you are I will be one lucky lady.</i></span></div>
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Now onto yesterday. It was a great day! Actually...I think it's safe to say that it was one of the best days I've had in awhile. I didn't do anything that most people would find exciting but for those of you who know me know that I live for the simple things!<br />
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I started off my day nice and early at about 6:30 am. I got up, enjoyed some breakfast and headed out the door bright and early grocery shopping! I stopped by the <a href="http://www.therootcellar.ca/">Rootcellar</a> first, which has recently been renovated and expanded and is absolutely AMAZING! I was actually happy that I was shopping by myself because I could take my sweet time looking at each and every product that they had to offer, and I did. TONS of local meat, bread, produce and dairy products!<br />
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After about an hour of looking around the market, I grabbed an americano from the bakery next door and headed over to <a href="http://www.thriftyfoods.com/">Thrifties</a> to get a few things. Let me tell ya...<a href="http://www.thriftyfoods.com/">Thrifties</a> looked terrible compared to the <a href="http://www.therootcellar.ca/">Rootcellar</a> so I spent about 10 minutes in there and was out as quick as possible. Next on my list (<i>yes, I made a list of the order of where to go...let me explain...you see...all of the places I wanted to go opened at different times so I started with the places that opened first and that would have the best selection/deals before I head to the other stores</i>)<br />
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My last <i>THREE</i> stops were <a href="http://lifestylemarkets.com/">Lifestyles</a> (always a favourite), Costco (mostly for the gum) and Fairway for the few things left on my grocery list (still wasn't able to get everything - who would have thought that raw, frozen prawns would be so hard to come by).<br />
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When I got home I immediately cleaned out and restocked the fridge. Boston was also super excited by all of the fresh goods!</div>
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I think I might have got a TAD over excited by all of the deals and great produce that I found...but it will definitely get eaten. Francis and I love us some fully loaded salads, especially this time of year!</div>
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While I was putting the groceries away I sipped on this <a href="http://www.drinkhint.com/products/fizz/">Hint Fizz</a>. I hadn't tried one before but I'll surely be getting one again! Zero cal, zero sugar, all natural! I'll take it ;)</div>
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After all of the groceries were put away I made some stewed rhubarb sweetened with agave. $12 worth of rhubarb = a crap load of rhubarb. I froze a few containers, have one in the fridge to mix in with my greek yogurt AND a huge container of raw stuff left, which I will use up tonight in a crisp!</div>
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In the afternoon, Francis and I went for a walk around Thetis Lake and then made a pit stop at <a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/317/1436755/restaurant/Saanich/Young-Young-Victoria">Young Young's Tea House</a> for a "Bubble Tea" aka fruit slushie with little jelly goobers in the bottom. We both used to get these about twice a month when we lived in that area but hadn't had one in years. They totally hit the spot. They were even better than I remember. I had a mango with coconut jelly and Francis had peach with passion fruit poppers.</div>
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Read the fine print. "Warning: Please be careful not to choke while sucking on the pearls or jellies." How hilarious is that? I guess you can never be TOO safe...</div>
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When we got home we relaxed, watched some hockey (I watched Full House ;) and made up some yummy salads for dins.</div>
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Pre washed romaine hearts (best invention EVER), strawberries, cucumber, grape tomatoes, avocado, natural chicken deli meat, fig goat cheese, strawberry balsamic reduction and pepper. WOW! That's a mouthful. It was so flippin' fresh and delicious. Mmmm...K, I'm hungry now!</div>
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This morning I was woken up early with a nice fury butt all up in my grill (classy, Boston, real classy) so I got up...which I was planning on doing whether Boston stuck his tush in my face or not. I thought about going for a run at the lake again..but I really wasn't feeling up to it. Because I pushed myself so many mornings during half marathon training I am really enjoying listening to my body and doing something active when I feel like it, which, luckily for me, is most days! </div>
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Instead of a run...I made myself a really yummy breaky: greek yogurt, banana, strawbs, stewed rhubarb and a local granola I found in the bulk section at<a href="http://lifestylemarkets.com/"> Lifestyles</a>. I'm happy I only got about 1/2 cup because I'm not lovin' it. Nothing beats homemade granola, am I right?</div>
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After breakfast Francis and I headed out to the <a href="http://www.therootcellar.ca/">Rootcellar </a>again to get a few more things...okay okay...I just wanted to look around at everything again! We came home with some local chipotle turkey sausages, local fresh pasta, local root beer (for Franny Bear), and a beet and parsnip for salads.</div>
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I also wanted to grab a coffee at the bakery next door...and Francis saw a HUGE cupcake that he just had to have for his breakfast! "It's Saturday" he said. I like the way you think!</div>
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This afternoon we are going to do some research on biking trails around here so we can go on a bike ride. The weather is amazing and we both have the day off together. We've gotta take advantage of it! Hoping to do something fun tonight as well but only time will tell what our crazy selves will be up to...stay tuned!</div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-15864670011227762942013-03-21T16:37:00.000-07:002013-03-21T16:37:22.146-07:00Biscotti LoveA couple of weeks ago, my friend Nicole and I decided to spend the afternoon baking biscotti. It was a pretty grey day and there was no better way to spend it. Catching up, drinking tea and baking! Perfect!<br />
<br />
I think we probably went a tad overboard...we made 4 different kinds.<b> Mint Chocolate, Butterscotch, Lemon Lavender White Chocolate, Cranberry Pistachio Dark Chocolate.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
We didn't want to play around with such a simple, delicious cookie. There are so many ways to lighten up these recipes, which I have done in the past, but why change something that is already so perfect. Plus, biscotti's are actually quite a low calorie cookie that you can feel good about treating yourself to!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Lemon Lavender White Chocolate</u></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(adapted from Bon-Bon Bonnie's <a href="http://bonbonbonnie.blogspot.ca/2010/04/lavenderlemon-biscotti.html">Lavender/Lemon Biscotti</a></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Light and refreshing, with a hint of sweetness from the white chocolate. The perfect afternoon treat to have with your cup of tea.</i></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Ingredients:</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
2 cups flour</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
1 1/2 tsp baking powder</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
1/2 tsp salt</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
3/4 cup sugar</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
2 tsp dried lavender blossoms</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
2 large eggs</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
2 tsp grated lemon zest</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
1 tsp vanilla extract</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
1 cup white chocolate chips</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Directions:</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F<br />
2. Process sugar and lavender blossoms in food processor until a fine powder forms.<br />
2. Cream butter and sugar in your stand mixer or large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix well.<br />
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3. Add all dry ingredients (except white chocolate chips) to your stand mixer, or a large bowl. Combine well.<br />
4. Add dry to wet. <br />
5. Mix until well combined.<br />
6. Add white chocolate chips.<br />
7. Split dough into 2. <br />
8. Form each section of dough into a log, approx. 10 inches long, 3 inches wide.<br />
9. Bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet (or use your silpat) for 20-25 minutes until corners are brown and crispy. The centre will be soft.<br />
10. Remove from oven, cut into ~3/4 inch-1 inch slices. <br />
11. Place slices on their side and bake for ~10 minutes on each side.<br />
12. Remove from oven, allow to cool, and serve with your favourite cup of tea. My personal favourite is red rose with milk :)</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Butterscotch Biscotti</u></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u><br /></u></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>We used a plain biscotti recipe and just added 1-1/2 cups of butterscotch chips. These are so beyond amazing. Words can't even describe. These were the first to go out of my freezer...</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Ingredients:</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
2 cups flour<br />
1 1/2 tsp baking powder<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
3/4 cup sugar<br />
2 large eggs<br />
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened<br />
1 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1-1/2 cups butterscotch chips<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Directions:</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F<br />
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix well.<br />
<div>
3. Add all dry ingredients (except butterscotch chips) to your stand mixer, or a large bowl. Combine well.<br />
4. Add dry to wet. <br />
5. Mix until well combined.<br />
6. Add butterscotch chips.<br />
7. Split dough into 2. <br />
8. Form each section of dough into a log, approx. 10 inches long, 3 inches wide.<br />
9. Bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet (or use your silpat) for 20-25 minutes until corners are brown and crispy. The centre will be soft.<br />
10. Remove from oven, cut into ~3/4 inch-1 inch slices. <br />
11. Place slices on their side and bake for ~10 minutes on each side.<br />
12. Remove from oven, allow to cool.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Pistachio Cranberry Dark Chocolate Biscotti</u></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u><br /></u></b></span>
<i>Full of some seriously delicious ingredients. The pistachios add a nice crunch, cranberries add a nice chew and the dark chocolate adds a nice richness to these yummy cookies. </i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Ingredients:</b></span><br />
<br />
2 cups flour<br />
1 1/2 tsp baking powder<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
3/4 cup sugar<br />
2 large eggs<br />
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened<br />
1 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1 cup unsalted pistachios<br />
1/2-1 cup dried cranberries<br />
1/2-1 cup dark chocolate chips<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Directions:</b></span><br />
<br />
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F<br />
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix well.<br />
<div>
3. Add all dry ingredients (except pistachios, cranberries, and chocolate chips) to your stand mixer, or a large bowl. Combine well.<br />
4. Add dry to wet. <br />
5. Mix until well combined.<br />
6. Add dark chocolate chips, pistachios, cranberries.<br />
7. Split dough into 2. <br />
8. Form each section of dough into a log, approx. 10 inches long, 3 inches wide.<br />
9. Bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet (or use your silpat) for 20-25 minutes until corners are brown and crispy. The centre will be soft.<br />
10. Remove from oven, cut into ~3/4 inch-1 inch slices. <br />
11. Place slices on their side and bake for ~10 minutes on each side.<br />
12. Remove from oven, allow to cool.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Chocolate Mint Biscotti</u></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">adapted from Honest Cooking's <a href="http://honestcooking.com/2012/11/29/double-chocolate-peppermint-biscotti/">Double Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u><br /></u></b></span>
<i>'Nuf said.</i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u><br /></u></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Ingredients:</b></span><br />
2 cups all purpose flour<br />
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder<br />
1 tsp baking soda<br />
1 tsp salt<br />
6 tbsp butter (softened)<br />
3/4 cup sugar<br />
2 eggs<br />
1-2 tsp peppermint extract (we used 2)<br />
1 cup mint chocolate chips<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Directions:</b></span></div>
</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F<br />
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix well.<br />
<div>
3. Add all dry ingredients (except mint chocolate chips) to your stand mixer, or a large bowl. Combine well.<br />
4. Add dry to wet. <br />
5. Mix until well combined.<br />
6. Add mint chocolate chips.<br />
7. Split dough into 2. <br />
8. Form each section of dough into a log, approx. 10 inches long, 3 inches wide.<br />
9. Bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet (or use your silpat) for 20-25 minutes until corners are brown and crispy. The centre will be soft.<br />
10. Remove from oven, cut into ~3/4 inch-1 inch slices. <br />
11. Place slices on their side and bake for ~10 minutes on each side.<br />
12. Remove from oven, allow to cool.<br />
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A few stragglers...<br />
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Sooooooo...I'm sorry I waited so long to post these recipes. I just thought it was going to take much longer than it really did. I hope you guys make at least one of these recipes. They are too good to pass up. </div>
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All right...I am off to continue my relaxing day. The couch is calling my name! Trying to get as much rest in as I can before the COMOX VALLEY HALF MARATHON this Sunday! EEK so soon. </div>
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xo</div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-34905398058698800852013-02-19T21:01:00.000-08:002013-02-19T21:01:18.909-08:00Pesto Minestrone Soup with Turkey "Meatballs"All right. Get ready for it. Minestrone soup with turkey meatballs, pesto and white wine. Yes, you heard me right. I made this soup, or rather a variation of it, with my mom over the Christmas holidays. It was absolutely delicious when we made it then...but I must say, it was even BETTER this time around. Dare I say...the best soup I have ever made? Yes, I dare... So Mom, make it again and you'll see what I mean!<br />
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It's a variation off of the Barefoot Contessa's <a href="http://www.cravebyrandomhouse.ca/2012/10/30/winter-minestrone-garlic-bruschetta/">Winter Minestrone soup</a>, which I posted at Christmas time, but will repost now because it is quite different from the original version. <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Pesto Minestrone Soup with Turkey "Meatballs"</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: xx-small;">inspired by the Barefoot Contessa's <a href="http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/articles/web-extras/2012/oct/18/ina-gartens-winter-minestrone-garlic-bruschetta/">Winter Minestrone</a></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Ingredients</u></span></b></div>
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1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil</div>
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1 1/2 cups chopped sweet onion</div>
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2 cups diced carrots (~3)</div>
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2 cups diced celery (~3)</div>
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2 1/2 cups sweet potato/yam</div>
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1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic (4 cloves)</div>
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1 tsp dried thyme (2 tsp fresh chopped thyme)</div>
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4 italian turkey sausages (cut into 1/2 inch wide pieces)</div>
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26 ounce diced tomatoes (partially drained)</div>
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6 - 8 cups of vegetable stock (depending on how think you want it. You can always add more so I'd start with less)</div>
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1 bay leaf</div>
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salt and pepper</div>
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1 15 ounce can of cannellini beans/white navy beans, drained and rinsed</div>
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2-3 cups chopped spinach</div>
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1/2 cup good quality dry white wine (this is key)</div>
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3 tbsp basil pesto</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Directions</u></span></b></div>
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1. Heat olive oil over medium high heat, add onion, carrots, celery, sweet potato/yam, garlic, thyme and turkey sausages. Stirring occasionally, cook until vegetables begin to soften. </div>
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2. Add the tomatoes, vegetable stock, bay leaf 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper.</div>
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3. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 25-30 minutes or until the veggies are tender and ready to eat.</div>
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4. Discard the bay leaf, add the cannellini beans, chopped spinach, white white and pesto.</div>
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5. Cook for another couple of minutes until it is heated through.</div>
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6. Serve and garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese. </div>
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<i>This soup is extremely comforting and satisfying, yet it is extremely healthy. Because of this, it doesn't leave you feeling heavy. The turkey meatballs add a wonderful element, as the sausage pieces puff up into small meatball like thingers as they cook. For those local Victorian's out there, I bought my local turkey sausages from <a href="http://lifestylemarkets.com/">Lifestyle Markets</a>.</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If there is ONE thing you ever choose to make on my blog...this should be it. It's THAT good! This coming from a lady with very high standards when it comes to food...</i></span></div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-82467409442306454612013-02-19T20:04:00.000-08:002013-02-19T20:04:01.228-08:00Citrus Kale SaladSalads. Where do I begin... I seriously love you. I love how simple, yet complex you can be. You are versatile, delicious and can be extremely healthy and satisfying. You also take a long time to eat...and let's face it, who doesn't love a meal that takes a long time to eat...unless of course you are in a hurry, then you might not be the best choice, but in general you are fantastic!<br />
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Last week I was having dinner at <a href="http://rebarmodernfood.com/">Rebar </a>with my friend, Nicole and we got to talking about kale. Vegetables and cooking usually take up about 80% of our conversations but kale hadn't been talked about much lately. Now, I love kale...but I haven't bought it in months. I'm not sure why. Maybe I was just a little bored with it. Regardless, as soon as she said the word "kale" I couldn't get it out of my mind. I had to have some right away. I bought a few heads of organic kale at the grocery store the next day and decided to make a large raw kale salad for my weekly lunches.<br />
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HOLYYYYYY I am so incredibly happy that I did. I haven't been this excited about my lunches/meals in such a long time and it is really refreshing to feel that way. I love looking forward to a yummy meal. I wanted to incorporate some kind of citrus, because oranges are so delicious right now. This isn't really a recipe because I made a large batch of the kale and a separate container of the hazelnut topping and have been making different varieties as I go along. But, here's the recipe for the dressing I used.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Citrus Kale Salad</u></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">inspired by <a href="http://tummyrumblr.com/gluten-free/kale-salad-with-hazelnuts-dates-and-orange/">TumblrRumblr's Kale Salad</a></span><br />
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I started off by ripping up and washing my kale. Then I drizzled some organic extra virgin olive oil on top, dusted it with course salt and freshly ground pepper and massaged it. Yes, you heard that right...I massaged my kale. Everyone needs a little lovin' from time to time ;)</div>
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I then mixed up the following ingredients in my magic bullet. You can use a blender as well.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>2 tbsp apple cider vinegar</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>4 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>1-2 dates (1 medjool)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>1/2 tsp coarse salt</b></span></div>
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Next, I poured this on top of the kale and massaged again. I let this sit overnight. It breaks down the kale and makes it softer, not <i>as</i> chewy, and easier to digest!</div>
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In my magic bullet, again you can use your food processor or another blender, I pulsed 1/3 cup roasted, peeled hazelnuts (they can be raw with their skins on too) and ~6 dates until they were coarsely chopped.</div>
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In the morning, when I was putting my lunch together, I put the kale in a to-go container, topped it with some plain chicken breast, the hazelnut date mixture and some reduced balsamic vinegar. AMAZING. PHENOMENAL. TO DO FOR. FANTASTIC. INCREDIBLE... okay, I think you get the picture.<br />
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Today, I did the same, but I added on some basil vinaigrette, blueberries and feta cheese. Seriously? Too good...I am craving it already and I ate it only a few hours ago. Guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow... Oh well, at least I have something to look forward to :-)<br />
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-16704812704107061942013-02-08T21:47:00.001-08:002013-02-08T21:47:39.979-08:00Inspiration<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
For some reason I really felt like writing an inspirational post. So time for a little ramble...get prepared. Sometimes I feel like we get bogged down by the pressures we face in our daily lives. We let little things get to us and we stress ourselves out over things that really don't matter. And for what? What's the point? Over the years, I have really gotten to know myself and understand how I function on a day to day basis. What makes me happy and what doesn't. </div>
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I definitely try to incorporate the little things that make me happy on a daily basis no matter how small they may be. I enjoy every single day because of these things. Of course, I don't enjoy ever second of every day, and like many of you there are always things that I would like to change but can't. I don't let any of these things bother me. Things I have no control over. Things that <i>really</i> <u>don't matter</u>. If something like this does happen, I stop and think about what it is that is upsetting me at that very moment and ask myself "is it really worth it?" and my answer is <i>usually</i> "No." </div>
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Not only do I no longer let the small things bother me, but I also try to approach every day and everything that happens throughout the day with a <b>positive</b> and <b>optimistic</b> perspective. </div>
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I wake up every morning, some days a tad more tired than others, and know that today is going to be a great day. How do I know it is going to be great? Because I am going to make it that way! I have control over it. I focus on positive thinking and enjoying the little things that make me tick. My morning runs with awesome people (Britta and Max), the nice clothes that I am so lucky to own, having access to wonderful food, the great apartment I live in, my little Victoria family (shout out to Francis and Boston, my kitty), talking to my friends and family who live away from here, the delicious breakfast I always make myself, my health, my coffee/tea pitstop before work, my co-workers/owners smiling faces, watching my favourite shows, listening to great music...and the list goes on and on. </div>
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I want to live a<b> happy</b> and <b>fulfilled</b> life and in order to do so I truly believe that we should stop and smell the roses. It's amazing how the bad things start to fade when we focus on the good things in our lives.</div>
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So tomorrow, I urge you all to start your day on a <b><span style="font-size: large;">positive note.</span></b> Tell yourself "today is going to be a <u>GREAT</u> day." Be optimistic. Find beauty in the small things and get out there and enjoy your life...it's the only one you have so make it the best it can possibly be :)</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Ramble officially ended.</span></b></div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-79202969667716542092013-01-21T08:42:00.001-08:002013-01-21T08:52:43.815-08:00Weekly GloryThis past week was definitely a great one! I worked Monday-Friday and ran before work on Tuesday and Weds, which I thoroughly enjoyed! I wasn't feel well on Thursday so I decided to skip the run. Thursday afternoon I went to a ladies luncheon for my dad's work and it was seriously lovely. My mom and I ate some delicious food, including this sparkly little bad boy below, listened to wonderful female speakers, watched a fashion show and got some free goods! What could be better?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ALMOST too pretty to eat. I said almost...</td></tr>
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On Saturday morning, I met <a href="http://rebarmodernfood.com/">Britta</a> and Max for a nice and easy 7 km run followed by a delicious americano at <a href="http://www.caffefantastico.com/">Cafe Fantastico</a>! After I got back and showered up, my mom and I decided to do a little bit of shopping and then met with the boys for some delicious lunch at <a href="http://rebarmodernfood.com/">Rebar </a>(where else?). We spent the afternoon lazing around and in the evening we left the boys to their hockey game and went to watched Silver Linings Playbook (SO FLIPPING GOOD. GO SEE IT NOW). </div>
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Sunday was another AMAZING day. We started our day off by going to <a href="http://williesbakery.com/">Willie's Bakery and Cafe </a>on Lo Jo. I have gone past here hundreds of times...get my hair done right beside it, eat and shop all the way around it and yet I've never gone in. So, we decided to check it out after Britta recommended it to me! Holy moly was it ever good! I wasn't sure what to order...there were so many amazing things on the menu and I was very excited...so I started off with an americano and decided on the cinnamon raisin french toast. I had 2 slices and left the 3rd for Francis. Stuffed to the brim!</div>
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My mom got the pancakes (BEST I HAVE EVER HAD OUT), an egg and sausage. </div>
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Francis got the huevos rancheros, what else? Isn't he handsome?</div>
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After breakfast my mom and I headed to Costco to get some goods. It was so busy that we were in and out as fast as we could. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd7uPzM-v_v-gtPmhyOuI_75r1oZt3xcj-IAqMI9-kTCpDKgirRfyKPrqVhOgnoKH4jt-CmV24Ee9vOdc7dy0tPfP8AfF1hJNIwfG4xaZ1fBWC0-lviovheEjto-S9jMaOdaGs3e4cFEI/s1600/photo-4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd7uPzM-v_v-gtPmhyOuI_75r1oZt3xcj-IAqMI9-kTCpDKgirRfyKPrqVhOgnoKH4jt-CmV24Ee9vOdc7dy0tPfP8AfF1hJNIwfG4xaZ1fBWC0-lviovheEjto-S9jMaOdaGs3e4cFEI/s400/photo-4.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goods from Costco: yogurt, hummus, mango, lettuce, blackberries, tomatoes, organic eggs and a melon. The only things that aren't pictured are pears, oranges and chicken.</td></tr>
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We spent the afternoon relaxing at home. I had a quick lay down and then met Britta for our long run around 4 pm. We were set up to do 13-14 km but by the time we got to 14 we weren't back to the car yet and it was getting dark and a tad sketchy so we decided to keep running...since we got to the car at 14.7 km we decided to even it out and stop at 15 km! It was an absolutely fantastic run...and we both agreed that we could have kept going, which is always THE BEST feeling :-) I was definitely feeling amazing after this run. Had a HUGE smile on my face for the rest of the night and just feel so fortunate, giddy and just plain great!!!! <b><i>For more info on my half marathon training, check out my <a href="http://inthebeanthyme.blogspot.ca/p/workouts_04.html">Workouts</a> page.</i></b></div>
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When I got home I had a little facetime sesh with my sis, snacked on some mango and made some delicious dinner. Garam Masala Yogurt Chicken it was!!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Garam Masala Yogurt Chicken</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Ingredients</u></span></div>
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1 medium onion, chopped</div>
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3 gloves garlic, minced</div>
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1 tsp grated ginger</div>
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1 tsp tumeric</div>
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1 1/2 tsp garam masala</div>
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3/4 tsp chili powder</div>
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1/2 tsp salt</div>
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1/2 cup greek yogurt</div>
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1 cup grape/cherry tomatoes</div>
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2-3 chicken breasts</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Directions</u></span></div>
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1. Put 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add in onion, garlic and ginger. Cook until onion is soft.</div>
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2. Add in spices and cook for about 2 mins.</div>
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3. Turn down heat to low/medium. Wait for a minute or so until it cools down and then add in the yogurt stirring frequently until it is well combined with other ingredients.</div>
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4. Cut tomatoes in half and add them to the mixture. Cut up chicken breast into strips or bite size pieces and add them in as well.</div>
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5. Stir to combine all ingredients, and cover with a lid. On medium heat, allow chicken to steam for about 20-30 minutes, checking every 10 mins.</div>
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6. Serve over grain of choice, top with greek yogurt!</div>
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Hope you all have a wonderful Monday! Here is my FAVOURITE song right now. Feel free to get up and dance to it...you know you wanna ;)</div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-63643772559388301322013-01-12T16:25:00.003-08:002013-01-12T18:00:38.014-08:00Baking Frenzy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Boy do I love <i>Saturdays</i>...everything about them makes me happy. I think what I love most is that the city sleeps for so much longer on the weekends, making everything much more relaxing and just plain wonderful :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I woke up this morning around 8 am so that I could enjoy a nice, nourishing breakfast before I headed out for my Saturday run! Since I haven't posted in quite some time, I guess I should tell you all that I am training for another half marathon at the end of March! <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta </a> recently moved back to Victoria (eff yes) so we decided to train for the race together!!! EEeeee so excited to have her here!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We are literally doing EVERY.SINGLE.RUN together and I couldn't be happier. It is so nice to motivate and push each other, especially for the super early days! I will be posting our weekly workouts and how things are going on my running page, so make sure you check that out!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Today we met a bit later than normal (around 10 am) for a nice, easy, 5.6 km run along the water! It was an absolutely amazing day...not a cloud in the sky! Her brother, Max (who hasn't run in 7 years) joined us for a run and a wonderful americano from <a href="http://www.caffefantastico.com/">Cafe Fantastico</a>. After our run we took our coffees on a nice, cool down/stroll along the water back to the car. Man, I am absolutely in love with Victoria and so beyond lucky to live in such a beautiful city!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After our run Britta and I parted ways to get showered up and ready for our baking frenzy! After a quick shower, clean up and salad, Britta and I made our grocery lists and headed out to <a href="http://lifestylemarkets.com/">Lifestyle Market</a> to pick up our supplies and a delicious green juice to give us an energy boost!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As soon as we got back to my apartment, we unpacked the goods and got right down to it. We started our baking date by making our <b>Hint of Mint Bars </b>(no bake).</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;">Hint of Mint Bars</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: xx-small;">adapted from Oh She Glows <a href="http://ohsheglows.com/2012/08/07/no-bake-peppermint-patty-bars/">No Bake Peppermint Patty Bars</a></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">Ingredients</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 cups rolled oats, processed into a flour (or 2 cups oat flour)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 cup almonds</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 cup walnuts</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 cup cocoa powder</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 tsp fine salt or to taste</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 tsp - 1 tbsp peppermint extract</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 tbsp packed brown sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 tbsp almond milk</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">10 tbsp pure agave syrup</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 cup rolled oats</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 cup dark chocolate chips</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">150 grams mint chocolate chips</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">2 tsp coconut oil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 tsp peppermint extract</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">shredded coconut, to garnish</span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ingredients</span><span style="font-size: 13px;"> </span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1. Line an 9 by 13 lasagna pan with one large piece of parchment paper. Set aside.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">2. Add 2 cups rolled oats into a high speed blender. Blend on high until a flour forms. <i>We used a magic bullet and did 1 cup at a time and found it worked quite well.</i><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">3. In a food processor process almonds and walnuts until a very fine crumble is formed. Add oat flour, cocoa powder (1/4 cup - will use other 1/4 cup later) salt, and brown sugar. Process until combined. </span><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">You may have to scrape down the sides as it combines together.</i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 20px;">4. Add in the agave syrup and almond milk. Process until a ball forms. Add another tablespoon of cocoa powder if you like that sort of thing ;) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv0tZ_9Vp57hEMcfvhk3W9MivPUHtdk6BPq-5crv4u-MXAb57yWL0-XTLu8SFb20GbrPbEfVG41559SJbu0EeJ70DBFRS3JdCeatFMpURYdytTYFriyBPuDKjHBDyslUEBOX0kwKTLNAM/s1600/P1060621.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv0tZ_9Vp57hEMcfvhk3W9MivPUHtdk6BPq-5crv4u-MXAb57yWL0-XTLu8SFb20GbrPbEfVG41559SJbu0EeJ70DBFRS3JdCeatFMpURYdytTYFriyBPuDKjHBDyslUEBOX0kwKTLNAM/s400/P1060621.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">Process in the 1/2 cup rolled oats and chocolate chips until combined.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 20px;">5. Take the mixture and put in the prepared pan. Flatten the mixture with your hands and a spoon, unless you are a super chef and have a pastry roller to smooth it all out. Once smooth, place bars in the freezer while you make the delicious topping.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 20px;">6. Add mint chocolate chips and coconut oil to a small pot. Melt on low until most of the chocolate has melted and remove from heat. Stir. Remove the pan from freezer and pour melted chocolate on top. Smooth out with the back of a spoon and sprinkle on coconut. Place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes, or until set. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 20px;">This should make 24 small or 12 large bars. Store in the freezer and enjoy the minty goodness!</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIisiT5b-qQZLjUOFH_ea-H6oxZyPeSHlymTqP30RSdxaInNTw0pnR-S4k3ab77EhVlgWbdyrtpoeAzAY7wL_FzXVxPi1NFmA-bHIwlAMeWkZZfWvkCw9PL8dzLt98tTScwAl2qxz7LQU/s1600/P1060643.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIisiT5b-qQZLjUOFH_ea-H6oxZyPeSHlymTqP30RSdxaInNTw0pnR-S4k3ab77EhVlgWbdyrtpoeAzAY7wL_FzXVxPi1NFmA-bHIwlAMeWkZZfWvkCw9PL8dzLt98tTScwAl2qxz7LQU/s400/P1060643.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After we made these bars we were onto the next thing on our list: <b>Vegan Fudge Brownies </b>from the <a href="http://rebarmodernfood.com/">Rebar</a> cookbook...or...<b><i>Almost </i>Vegan Brownies.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYuQE1dZZ5Jz5UJmlj0EiXf2-Jf-qsmzHV8GVCz45gdHBFKWOydEj07oVU_HRdCW2Z6R7P3Ini3pb5TNyV49CL3QH5uuqsbvYF365a7zTkAY3y7Y1dI5aiBgCS72wl8NZMWKGPF9OpGsA/s1600/P1060625.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYuQE1dZZ5Jz5UJmlj0EiXf2-Jf-qsmzHV8GVCz45gdHBFKWOydEj07oVU_HRdCW2Z6R7P3Ini3pb5TNyV49CL3QH5uuqsbvYF365a7zTkAY3y7Y1dI5aiBgCS72wl8NZMWKGPF9OpGsA/s400/P1060625.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;">Almost Vegan Brownies</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">makes ~12 servings</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Ingredients</u></b></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Brownies:</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 1/2 cups flour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 cup cocoa</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 1/2 cup brown sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 1/2 tsp baking soda</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">3/4 tsp baking powder</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1 tsp salt (we forgot this little tid bit)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">3/4 cup coffee</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">3/4 cup almond milk</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/3 cup vegetable oil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 cup walnuts, roasted and chopped</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1/2 cup chocolate chips</span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Glaze:</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">7 oz dark chocolate</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">5 oz vegan margarine</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Directions</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Prepare a 9 by 13 pan by greasing and then covering it in parchment paper.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In a separate bowl, stir together coffee, almond milk and vegetable oil.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">3. Combine the wet and dry in a large bowl or stand mixer. Stir in walnuts and chocolate chips into the batter. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4. Pour into prepared pan...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">...and bake for 20-25 mins (until the toothpick comes out clean).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">5. When the cake is cool, prepare the glaze. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and vegan margarine. Whisk together until smooth and silky. Pour the warm glaze over the cake, smoothing it out over the cake. Place in the fridge until cool.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3yOOJT45EteCyKP6rnJ6BfGIbURk2AFyrrawMNiYdy8wtXEDo7apJCqU0i48FI0X7chV-iQXprQTI1xz1XUZwb1ovkkV-kEzVMhs4SxyOAy_g7izM0pf9fKSHpZGSJUjtKClwZILBDqw/s1600/P1060641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3yOOJT45EteCyKP6rnJ6BfGIbURk2AFyrrawMNiYdy8wtXEDo7apJCqU0i48FI0X7chV-iQXprQTI1xz1XUZwb1ovkkV-kEzVMhs4SxyOAy_g7izM0pf9fKSHpZGSJUjtKClwZILBDqw/s400/P1060641.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After our baking frenzy we obviously had to blog together...just so happened that we were dressed the same...and have the same computers. Promise we didn't plan it that way...or maybe we did? ;)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Tonight calls for ordering in, enjoying each other's company and maybe a little brownie for dessert...I mean...what's a girl to do?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So happy to be back in the blogging world and hope that you all keep reading. As long as you keep reading I will keep on posting!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Enjoy your weekend!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Amy</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">xo</span></div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-76487799402649801502012-11-25T15:49:00.003-08:002012-11-25T15:50:18.713-08:00Healthy Breakfast Cookies<div style="text-align: center;">
Man oh man has it ever been a busy couple of months! This weekend was one of the only weekends I haven't been planning and marking for the following week and I have to tell you...it has been really nice! Yesterday Francis and I spent the day together and today I spent my morning and afternoon tidying up, doing laundry, vacuuming, cleaning the bathroom, dusting...and all of that good stuff. You're jealous, I know. </div>
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I also wanted to prepare some breakfast cookies for the week ahead! These incredibly healthy and filling cookies are the perfect grab and go breakfast or afternoon snack. I actually think they are the <b><u>BEST</u></b> healthy cookies I have ever made...and that is saying a lot!</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><u> Breakfast Cookies</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">adapted from <a href="http://blueberrygirlinoz.blogspot.ca/2010/05/no-sugar-oat-drops.html">Blueberry Girl's <i>No Sugar Oat Drops</i></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Ingredients</i></b></span></div>
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1 1/2 cups regular rolled oats</div>
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1 cup coconut flakes</div>
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1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts, or nuts of choice</div>
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1/4 cup almond meal</div>
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1 cup chopped dried figs, or fruit of choice</div>
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1/2 tsp salt</div>
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1/2 tsp all spice</div>
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1 tsp cinnamon</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Wet Ingredients</i></b></span></div>
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3 medium ripe bananas</div>
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1/4 cup mild and light olive oil</div>
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1 tsp vanilla extract</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Directions</i></b></span></div>
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1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees celsius</div>
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2. Combine oats, coconut flakes, nuts, almond meal and spices in a large bowl or mixer.</div>
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3. Add spices and mixed fruit. Mix well and make sure the fruit isn't stuck together in a clump!</div>
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4. Mash bananas, add oil and vanilla in a small bowl.</div>
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5. Combine wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until very combined.</div>
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6. Bake on a silpat or a sprayed cookie sheet for 20-23 minutes until golden brown!</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Unfortunately I am completely out of space for pictures on my blog. Not sure what to do about that at the moment so I guess you'll just have to make these cookies and see their greatness for yourself :)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Well...I am off to get for a run! The weather is perfect and I need some fresh air. Hope you all enjoy the rest of of your Sunday!</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Amy </b></span></div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-6620130909165988012012-11-12T20:13:00.001-08:002012-11-12T20:13:48.700-08:00Hello and Goodbye<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This weekend was a lot of fun! Francis' cousin Emanuel was in town to visit Francis before he ventured out on his bicycling trip to Chile (crazy, right?). They haven't seen each other in years so it was nice for them to have a chance to spend some good quality time together! It was a quick <b>hello and goodbye</b> kind of trip, but wonderful nevertheless. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I got in on some of the action as well!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Sunday night I decided to whip up a delicious meal for us to enjoy together on Emanuel's last night in Victoria. Vegan enchiladas! Always a hit. Emanuel enjoys photography as well so I asked him to take some pictures of the meal for me! They turned out great :-)</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZd3tKQnQAv7xPJHgPID43eEG8qpHmkWpac53Pw_Wl2k3-WhZxkBhlKbFVZLB0lwh2iL4KstXfRw0dp8tzdcz7zPUSnyRVVrQjiC3eUrvLJqSgNj1m-Ni-675VoQAn-sIt28HTIUTjWb0/s1600/IMGP3266.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZd3tKQnQAv7xPJHgPID43eEG8qpHmkWpac53Pw_Wl2k3-WhZxkBhlKbFVZLB0lwh2iL4KstXfRw0dp8tzdcz7zPUSnyRVVrQjiC3eUrvLJqSgNj1m-Ni-675VoQAn-sIt28HTIUTjWb0/s400/IMGP3266.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All of the delicious innards (this word still weirds me out...)</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX1dCJ_IJCVcuUQ3JFQkdk1W3pWLJ7LTwVqQYvavA6q21pD32pFUrCXblw0M0A_jrP_oxZ4_hUG9RuliTmL-ud9W5O-Bqf8r-JpP46vaPZq-FNevKxBnY-wVt-O3bhc91cXlMUf3iUBGQ/s1600/IMGP3270.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX1dCJ_IJCVcuUQ3JFQkdk1W3pWLJ7LTwVqQYvavA6q21pD32pFUrCXblw0M0A_jrP_oxZ4_hUG9RuliTmL-ud9W5O-Bqf8r-JpP46vaPZq-FNevKxBnY-wVt-O3bhc91cXlMUf3iUBGQ/s400/IMGP3270.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ready for the oven!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicVvIi8AZLgmYanLt0IMuAOzmyLNYdiFyrSPhMsFFi9LqOec1gl8yRqff-NbhetWWtsEbGIAqLeDGDIinPeXAcmimBTGNijtnd48r8LRX0HQlzNTGjD7tUfczrcoDlTJ-VHzL3CjAtrUY/s1600/IMGP3271.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicVvIi8AZLgmYanLt0IMuAOzmyLNYdiFyrSPhMsFFi9LqOec1gl8yRqff-NbhetWWtsEbGIAqLeDGDIinPeXAcmimBTGNijtnd48r8LRX0HQlzNTGjD7tUfczrcoDlTJ-VHzL3CjAtrUY/s400/IMGP3271.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Time to dig in!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Emanuel left early this morning for Port Angeles and we are wishing him the best of luck on his adventure!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for Francis and I, we took advantage of our extra day off! I spent the day preparing for the upcoming week of my practicum from my office aka bed (is there anything better?). After a long day of preparing and doing some household chores, Francis and I went out to run some errands - kitty's gotta have fresh kitty litter to start his week off right ;) When we got back I put together one of, if not the best, stew I have ever had!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Vegan Shepherds Pie Stew</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b>adapted from <a href="http://vegnews.com/articles/page.do?pageId=5133&catId=11">Oh She Glows</a> <i>Sumptuous Shepherd's Stew</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1 large sweet onion, diced</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">4 cloves garlic, minced</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">2 tbsp vegetable broth</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">2 cups peeled chopped carrots</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">2 cups chopped potatoes</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1 1/2 cups chopped celery</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">2 cups sliced cremini mushrooms</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1/3 cup flour</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1 1/2 tsp Herbes de Provence</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">3 tbsp low-sodium tamari</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">3 cups vegetable broth, plus more as needed</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1 14-oz package of extra-firm tofu, drained, rinsed, and pressed</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1 tbsp olive oil</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">2 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar</span><br style="background-color: white; line-height: 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1/4 tsp smoked paprika</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. In a large pot over high heat, add onion, garlic, and vegetable broth and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add carrots, potatoes, celery, and mushrooms. Sauté for about 15 additional minutes, adding more broth if necessary.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Stir in parsley, flour, Herbes de Provence, and tamari until vegetables are coated in flour. Stir in broth and bring stew to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer on low-medium heat for another 10 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender (do not overcook)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. While stew cooks, preheat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Slice tofu into 1/4-inch cubes. Add olive oil to skillet. Sauté tofu for about 5 minutes on each side, or until crispy. Stir tofu into stew. Add apple cider vinegar and smoked paprika. Serve hot.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And now for a few lovely pictures from yesterday's trip to <a href="http://www.goldstreampark.com/">Goldstream Park</a> to watch the salmon run! Enjoy :-)</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4hXqzBUUkn1i024Iup2TrJ4JEa7LqCer1Ro5R-woEHSGvhrU8uqyhT9RwW9CC80bLsWIhDe4wFgO-NnqDWdrFgyr59NwhyIPBbhJSy-m-HcHHMg-0zmlcwzzENkOG8yg8aZLJ6JFWq5Q/s1600/hot+dog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4hXqzBUUkn1i024Iup2TrJ4JEa7LqCer1Ro5R-woEHSGvhrU8uqyhT9RwW9CC80bLsWIhDe4wFgO-NnqDWdrFgyr59NwhyIPBbhJSy-m-HcHHMg-0zmlcwzzENkOG8yg8aZLJ6JFWq5Q/s400/hot+dog.jpg" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhSGYgpkiXvdwNYv_hKXCJ_Hmqctk-Jld9gaqh4zCfblVqPv_OTDqwSgLjBMSmDBqArFcVJ7TJ0c7yS2KmEuOXWd75vsoiJr-g25BCVlO0b7LbS3AEeCpKZX8FXnkHyXH8JDzccey7OBE/s1600/kids.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhSGYgpkiXvdwNYv_hKXCJ_Hmqctk-Jld9gaqh4zCfblVqPv_OTDqwSgLjBMSmDBqArFcVJ7TJ0c7yS2KmEuOXWd75vsoiJr-g25BCVlO0b7LbS3AEeCpKZX8FXnkHyXH8JDzccey7OBE/s400/kids.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For all of you with sensitive eyes I suggest you stop here. There are a couple of pictures of decomposing fish. It really is a beautiful, fascinating part of nature though, I assure you. These wonderful chum salmon swim to the river each year to spawn. Because they move from salt water to fresh water and swim against the current for weeks on end they become exhausted and pass away. Luckily most of them have either laid their eggs or fertilized them before this takes place!</span></div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-71868237470839070002012-10-20T17:02:00.001-07:002012-10-20T17:03:18.329-07:00Apple Spice Oats<span style="font-size: large;">Well hello there! I know, I know I have been MIA for quite some time. I am not promising that will change...in fact, I don't think I will be posting much until sometime in December. I want to give my final teaching practicum all of my energy, so my precious blog will have to suffer another couple of months!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But...here is something delicious to hold you over until then ;)</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Apple Spice Oats</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1/2 cup oats of your choice</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">~1 cup apple spiced juice</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1 small apple, cored, halved and sliced</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1 tbsp brown sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">~2 tbsp apple spiced juice</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Directions</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1) Combine oats and juice in a small pot. Whisk together before the juice warms up (this helps with clumping).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">2) Cook over high heat until boiling. Reduce to medium for about 5-10 mins depending on what oats you use (steel cut take much longer).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">3) When your oats are cooking, put 2 tbsp of juice, 1 tbsp brown sugar and apple in a frying pan over medium high heat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">4) Cook apples until they are tender and most of the juice has evaporated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">5) Top oats with apple mixture!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">6) ENJOY!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It's a perfectly delicious breakfast to warm up anybody's tummy on a crisp fall morning! Unfortunately my bluetooth isn't working, so I wasn't able to share a picture with you...guess that means you'll just have to make it to see for yourselves ;) Darn...I know! Haha!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you don't hear from me for another little while, I wish you all a wonderful couple of months and I look forward to being reunited very soon!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Amy </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">xo</span></div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-34634366811199069602012-09-26T21:52:00.000-07:002012-09-26T21:52:21.777-07:00Healthy Fridge Muffins<div style="text-align: center;">
First of all...Let me sum up my life in one picture....</div>
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Computers, reading, planning oh my! I have literally been on my lap top SO much lately. I have been studying, finishing up assignments, lesson planning...and my life has been looking a lot like this pic! </div>
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And now it looks like more this...a little bit worse I'd say! Oh well! I officially finished my last assignments of my post degree and have my last day of classes tomorrow! EXCITED yet sad...I have been with this group of amazing people every day for over a year and I am going to miss them all very much.</div>
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But I won't get all mushy on ya! Let's get down to business. First of all...don't let the name of this post fool ya! These muffins are probably one of the best muffins I have ever made. Weird, but the best. You'll see what I mean a bit later!</div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Healthy Fridge Muffins</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">adapted from </span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.whitewatercooks.com/">Whitewater Cooks Cookbook</a>, Healthy Fridge Muffins</span></span></h4>
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<b>Ingredients</b></div>
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2 cups spelt flour</div>
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3 cups oats</div>
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4 tsp baking powder</div>
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1 tsp baking soda</div>
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2 tsp cinnamon</div>
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2 whole eggs</div>
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2 egg whites</div>
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2 cups plain greek yogurt</div>
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1/3 cup honey</div>
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1/2 cup grated apples</div>
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1/4 cup grated carrot</div>
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1/4 cup raisins</div>
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<b>For the Drizzle</b></div>
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2 tbsp honey</div>
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2 tbsp apple or orange juice</div>
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<b>Directions</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaIzLuRkNlyplB-cR87LDybX1Ufpjh2ChiZlT6ujXlZdVq1rwR-1Jm9Ei6IJTY_Ku7hQP6PQPI-waQguRR-mNI-I8uzg0dT4I140kzeIz1n4i-uUMqQO-dgz9fJeqLvm_ZVWRryKKw-pO-/s1600/Saanich-20120912-01220.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaIzLuRkNlyplB-cR87LDybX1Ufpjh2ChiZlT6ujXlZdVq1rwR-1Jm9Ei6IJTY_Ku7hQP6PQPI-waQguRR-mNI-I8uzg0dT4I140kzeIz1n4i-uUMqQO-dgz9fJeqLvm_ZVWRryKKw-pO-/s400/Saanich-20120912-01220.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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1) In a VERY large bowl, combine wet ingredients (except apples and carrots). </div>
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2) In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients and add to the wet mixture. </div>
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3) Cover and refrigerate overnight (this is where I thought it was really weird. I have never made a recipe like this)</div>
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4) In the morning add the grated apples, carrot and raisins. Note: the mixture will be quite thick and it will be difficult to combine everything together. Don't be afraid to mix with enthusiasm ;)</div>
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5) Fill muffin cups to the top (these don't rise or fluff up much) and bake at 350 for 35 minutes. </div>
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6) Heat the honey and juice and drizzle over the tops of the warm muffins! Mmmm...</div>
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<b>Note: </b>These are extremely dense muffins so they have a bit of a doughy texture. If this isn't for you, I'd recommend baking them for another 5 mins. Don't take my word for it though, because I haven't do that :-)</div>
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I would definitely recommend making these muffins! I am going to try to make a pumpkin spice version, you know, to keep up with my pumpkin spice theme!</div>
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Off to plan!</div>
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Goodnight</div>
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xo</div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-58778188828465366722012-09-10T19:54:00.001-07:002012-09-10T19:54:16.795-07:00Fall Has Arrived<div style="text-align: center;">
Well, fall seems to have arrived here in Victoria and I am more than okay with that. I recently got back from my vacation visiting Francis' family in California (was an AMAZING trip, I will post about it soon...trying to gather all of my pics first!) and it feels nice to be home. There is something about September that I just love. Everything is fresh. A new school year has begun (in my case anyways), the air gets cooler, cozy sweaters and scarves come out to play as well as warm and comforting meals, most of which include some of my favourite things: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, curry, cumin, PUMPKIN, candles, warm drinks! You also don't have to worry about sweating profusely in your sauna of an apartment like you do when the temps are super hot (TMI?). </div>
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I am finishing up my degree in the next three months (I will be a certified teacher, AHH!), which means I am going to be extremely busy but I am super excited about what's to come. Including...delicious recipes, like this bad boy...</div>
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsNAw8-HNcDsSOZ-xUzhOAQFCLCqVjEdt-2gCp23bmrlwol83tFA2Gv6abel-sZFiKorA25y1QoTw6riVTmhLBd1q2gZHgRPKVLZ4xTPf8iJQ7OwuABgyn3fOSbPiseVDJ6ESh0vhzAm0/s1600/Saanich-20120909-01198.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsNAw8-HNcDsSOZ-xUzhOAQFCLCqVjEdt-2gCp23bmrlwol83tFA2Gv6abel-sZFiKorA25y1QoTw6riVTmhLBd1q2gZHgRPKVLZ4xTPf8iJQ7OwuABgyn3fOSbPiseVDJ6ESh0vhzAm0/s400/Saanich-20120909-01198.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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On Sunday morning I decided to try a little something different. As you all know, I am a TRUE oatmeal lover and could eat it every.single.day, however, when I was away I was eating more cereal and toast and then when I got home I got a sudden craving for eggs. I remembered seeing something online about baked eggs so I played around a little bit. </div>
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I sprayed a small onion soup bowl, or other small oven safe dish (I used a brie dish) with oil and cracked in two eggs. Sprinkled them with salt and pepper. Topped with some steamed kale, chopped fresh thyme and rosemary and freshly grated cheese. Baked for 13 minutes at 375 degrees. Oh man...SO SO SO easy and yummy in the tummy! I may or may not have made this again for Francis and I again this morning...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTyatXVkk754G5Pjd-Dz2rpWVI_aZdPb6YOZB0MePbxNjFxYCuNNBJR95Q2hajj1uvtlYcwqXohdplqXPA7qphoaNY7alkfuEgiIzRE_V139q_ZaiEW1LKSg3XeNNZoC-W9_B34mdEBsGl/s1600/Saanich-20120908-01196.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTyatXVkk754G5Pjd-Dz2rpWVI_aZdPb6YOZB0MePbxNjFxYCuNNBJR95Q2hajj1uvtlYcwqXohdplqXPA7qphoaNY7alkfuEgiIzRE_V139q_ZaiEW1LKSg3XeNNZoC-W9_B34mdEBsGl/s400/Saanich-20120908-01196.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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For dinner on Saturday night I made this simple <b>Mulligatawny soup</b> with panfried chickpeas. I actually followed a recipe almost to a tee, so here is the <a href="http://www.wholeliving.com/132648/mulligatawny-chickpeas?center=0&gallery=136372&slide=132649">link.</a> I topped it with some greek yogurt, green onions and a little cayenne pepper! I ate it alone but I think the spices would balance nicely topped over some brown rice, quinoa or any other grain of your choice. Bulgar or barley are always great, too!</div>
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Now onto a<b> <span style="color: orange;">pumpkin</span></b> related recipe...</div>
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It started with some freshly brewed french press coffee...</div>
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While I waited for it to steep I made...drum roll...<span style="color: orange;"><i>PUMPKIN SPICE</i> creamer!!!!!!!!!</span> Crazy, right? Who would have known!</div>
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<b><u><span style="color: orange;">Pumpkin Spice Creamer</span></u></b></div>
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1/2 cup 2% milk</div>
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1/2 cup half and half</div>
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2-3 tbsp canned pumpkin</div>
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1/2 - 1 tsp pumpkin spice</div>
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1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon</div>
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1/2 tsp vanilla</div>
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sweetener (maple syrup, stevia, brown sugar, sugar, maple flakes, agave etc)</div>
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<i><b>Directions:</b></i></div>
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1) Add milk, cream, canned pumpkin, pumpkin spice and cinnamon to a frying pan over medium heat.</div>
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2) Whisk all ingredients together (as they warm up they will blend nicely)</div>
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3) After it has steamed for a bit and is nice and warm, taste and add sweetener to your liking. </div>
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4) Allow to cool, transfer to a glass jar and refrigerate</div>
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5) The next day the pumpkin will be at the bottom on the jar so you can shake it up and then strain the pumpkin out before you add it to your coffee!</div>
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Last night, my friend Bri came over for a hang out. Her and I have been good friends since high school but haven't spent a lot of time together in the past few years so it is great to have her back again :) We went for a nice hilly walk around Thetis Lake, came home and had some <b><a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/butternut-squash-parsnip-soup-10000001865406/">Butternut Squash and Parsnip Soup</a></b> and salad for dinner.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcgKF_isOI9D9DZtcRBFkLsJd7bYOfz-W_Jux2EN2D4eBsFdm6aCUU5eG5BhhpxSy0ES8Zcj0Btov1sTNm2TYpg6Uu5Kw5rcY9tCcfsv4QrO3UmjOuGMH-jocfAYjiCA1BQ3sJ1ickNmDG/s1600/Saanich-20120909-01206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcgKF_isOI9D9DZtcRBFkLsJd7bYOfz-W_Jux2EN2D4eBsFdm6aCUU5eG5BhhpxSy0ES8Zcj0Btov1sTNm2TYpg6Uu5Kw5rcY9tCcfsv4QrO3UmjOuGMH-jocfAYjiCA1BQ3sJ1ickNmDG/s400/Saanich-20120909-01206.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is Bri, isn't she a cutie patootie? </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimQ6LsM17n6ajJ2CpOpujchhDMpupHoqzOexVjSyaQgtlgGsH3-t_U79kF3VsMdxa7m2izyijCSMWeUCTTm9lgsCG21fnhtqqSZz79vGX-Pj9viKh9oNj0NLj0-sbeDaB_ssE9aG-TClRz/s1600/IMG-20120909-01205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimQ6LsM17n6ajJ2CpOpujchhDMpupHoqzOexVjSyaQgtlgGsH3-t_U79kF3VsMdxa7m2izyijCSMWeUCTTm9lgsCG21fnhtqqSZz79vGX-Pj9viKh9oNj0NLj0-sbeDaB_ssE9aG-TClRz/s400/IMG-20120909-01205.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Soup topped with a dollop of greek yogurt and garnished with some chopped green onion! Delish!</div>
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Dinner tonight actually turned out extremely well! Again, another recipe followed to a tee. This doesn't happen very often because I normally like to change things a bit to suit our taste buds but the last few I have made have worked out perfectly! I also like to experiment with my own recipes most of the time, but when you come across some amazing recipes you can't wait to try, why not, right?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIdpxhMbvalMLt4xFLT98NX799C129H60HoSp-WfDWVCABtc8BGvRpij3GPJh1hgcFD6Dp36cuI8P8Wzh35hajWfuyXkm1o27SPFwOBtcln4wz_QeLpylhJvBzJewIKAtCCH_mu9TdmFz9/s1600/Saanich-20120910-01207.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIdpxhMbvalMLt4xFLT98NX799C129H60HoSp-WfDWVCABtc8BGvRpij3GPJh1hgcFD6Dp36cuI8P8Wzh35hajWfuyXkm1o27SPFwOBtcln4wz_QeLpylhJvBzJewIKAtCCH_mu9TdmFz9/s400/Saanich-20120910-01207.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I made a fabulous pasta with sautéed zucchini, cherry tomatoes and a creamy lemon yogurt sauce. It is a Jillian Michael's recipe, which I found <a href="http://www.ezrapoundcake.com/archives/13338">here</a>. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA1P4Ja5VEc6F-ENRdeXyR5WsTayWreJ5yRdHTIa1iNEQR94q4THUpjIGJ4LcM1a7Vyss4s_67OL-NwYwUhQfgjGiLsl-tPFCmyJAvld3VQwTT5Q1aCqvBdhIWBO-2YlRY_0RELnDs3K1U/s1600/Saanich-20120910-01209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA1P4Ja5VEc6F-ENRdeXyR5WsTayWreJ5yRdHTIa1iNEQR94q4THUpjIGJ4LcM1a7Vyss4s_67OL-NwYwUhQfgjGiLsl-tPFCmyJAvld3VQwTT5Q1aCqvBdhIWBO-2YlRY_0RELnDs3K1U/s400/Saanich-20120910-01209.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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It turned out pretty tasty if I do say so myself and it took about 20 minutes from start to finish to put together. Score!</div>
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Okay, I am not off to enjoy another cup of tea before settling in for the night. I am off for a lovely run around Elk Lake in the morning and then a stroll along the water with a pumpkin spice latte in hand, with one of my faves! I also get to meet my grade 4 class for the first time tomorrow. Super excited/nervous! Wish me luck :)</div>
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Sweet dreams...</div>
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xo</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJLfczH5gIKuRk826z4oMz8sfYQXYuYr90JXxNGsFHVd014nFTxmYYDtDuUd9YHBQOe1vOLqO8Dq0RR3E0-UXY-JUOZKEpzCGGF2hQKj3mG2vQtzGA5PfLNAcjpZ49gw3Anh-1hvFvuz3/s1600/pumpkin1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJLfczH5gIKuRk826z4oMz8sfYQXYuYr90JXxNGsFHVd014nFTxmYYDtDuUd9YHBQOe1vOLqO8Dq0RR3E0-UXY-JUOZKEpzCGGF2hQKj3mG2vQtzGA5PfLNAcjpZ49gw3Anh-1hvFvuz3/s400/pumpkin1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Can I please live here?? It's so adorable...</div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-29210523474619199292012-08-25T10:06:00.004-07:002012-08-25T10:06:39.901-07:00Where to begin...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Where to begin...</div>
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I have been completely un motivated to blog recently...I have been SO busy finishing up summer classes, which means stressing over and finishing up assignments. But, I am happy to announce that I am DONE summer classes!! WOO HOO. After I finished my final exam and handed in my last assignments on Monday I met up with <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> for lunch! </div>
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<a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> and I met back in 2009 only once, but have been keeping in touch over our blog and texting almost everyday. I'll admit I was a little nervous about meeting up, wondering if we would get along or not...but honestly, I knew deep down that we were just meant to be friends and I was RIGHT! We have SO much in common, it's crazy!</div>
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Anyways, after I picked her up and gave her a big squeeze, we headed off to <a href="http://www.rebarmodernfood.com/">Rebar </a>for lunch :) She has never been there and out of all of the places in Victoria, I thought she'd love Rebar the most. They have such wonderful, healthy options. They use fresh ingredients and everything is just so flavorful!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Cb4SSNl9qy1XxQcWIPBZTiY032tDLbcelxGjamoBVAtQ9RiOM9ciMAtOSa7nWA9XlmABgH4IR8jrxqPlQKzaNG828wa9tr8lieS1W8_glv0K5v0NmDqiMN2I3qAbXNFdmR0iGGjIL4Vj/s1600/amy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Cb4SSNl9qy1XxQcWIPBZTiY032tDLbcelxGjamoBVAtQ9RiOM9ciMAtOSa7nWA9XlmABgH4IR8jrxqPlQKzaNG828wa9tr8lieS1W8_glv0K5v0NmDqiMN2I3qAbXNFdmR0iGGjIL4Vj/s400/amy.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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I started off my meal with a shot of wheat grass, chased with a small apple juice (because I am SUCH a baby). I then ordered the wild rice, quinoa bowl.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj70nbMSBZOE2aPVMKp50WfsIo3Xg6Vw5vAIjPrq4-URyz-tf6Fe__zQ4LITcaIXXjfTBfiLnRaGw92mAw_od2D0sBmQfM8LXkoh020bFt9SfGW4OVyOgLU2mPzmGxXdYVckmpslwmlbdOR/s1600/salad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj70nbMSBZOE2aPVMKp50WfsIo3Xg6Vw5vAIjPrq4-URyz-tf6Fe__zQ4LITcaIXXjfTBfiLnRaGw92mAw_od2D0sBmQfM8LXkoh020bFt9SfGW4OVyOgLU2mPzmGxXdYVckmpslwmlbdOR/s400/salad.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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So fresh and delicious. I definitely took some home and had them for leftovers :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhViR69xKDT0C_Mj0iw3874RzpjJ8pgUDtKKTd512NIejjBnE1TvczH2WQODms2ujV2L_fqEi6Cr3V2DFiKHqSBx-v0y78iUSSvUFaEzV4tJoR433xmP_x3M_h6so-5EIhKR6rd2hUUj8Ax/s1600/brit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhViR69xKDT0C_Mj0iw3874RzpjJ8pgUDtKKTd512NIejjBnE1TvczH2WQODms2ujV2L_fqEi6Cr3V2DFiKHqSBx-v0y78iUSSvUFaEzV4tJoR433xmP_x3M_h6so-5EIhKR6rd2hUUj8Ax/s400/brit.jpg" width="290" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> got the Schezuan Noodle bowl and LOVED it! She also bought the <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Rebar-Modern-Cookbook-Audrey-Alsterburg/dp/0968862306">Rebar cookbook</a>, which is AMAZING! She can now recreate this at home whenever her heart desires...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjac5vWvs6db6f-dfuoKcetooQLdLC4-56LgBmTmzO83WOa-tiTl1DGZdczSlpIOU2oh1cAj4PQReDxJggtRBiNyQn2wC0NhlPunUkx2I0OPyTIkY_qCu5JNo2mUknstcbRXpLQsyb1xhYe/s1600/brownie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjac5vWvs6db6f-dfuoKcetooQLdLC4-56LgBmTmzO83WOa-tiTl1DGZdczSlpIOU2oh1cAj4PQReDxJggtRBiNyQn2wC0NhlPunUkx2I0OPyTIkY_qCu5JNo2mUknstcbRXpLQsyb1xhYe/s400/brownie.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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and then this happened, obviously. Two chocolate lovers and a Chocolate Belgium Brownie? What else were we supposed to do? Just stare at it? We devoured this bad boy and enjoyed it til the very last crumb!</div>
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After lunch we wandered around downtown...I showed her a few of my fav. spots like <a href="http://www.violetteboutique.com/">Violette Boutique</a> and <a href="http://emporiaboutique.com/">Emporia Boutique</a>, <a href="http://www.murchies.com/store/">Murchies</a> anddd I think that was it for the day!</div>
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I was happy to show her around and she was happy to pick up a few goodies to bring home with her :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsrCxjf2j4k2PoNPEbxlXnjfTMhghpvg7nyr9Ylx_iQ_oSAS4xMizKiJ8HYI3w9pVxTza0c6TlHy_II3N4o00ggSCVynS-EBPxrrLWE-5ot5KVDjuKIIsSG93vqh76Jw8u6yjsKqPojsCV/s1600/car.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsrCxjf2j4k2PoNPEbxlXnjfTMhghpvg7nyr9Ylx_iQ_oSAS4xMizKiJ8HYI3w9pVxTza0c6TlHy_II3N4o00ggSCVynS-EBPxrrLWE-5ot5KVDjuKIIsSG93vqh76Jw8u6yjsKqPojsCV/s400/car.jpg" width="392" /></a></div>
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And this is me...trying to find my car in the parkeade. It took us about 5 minutes of non stop laughter to find it. </div>
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<span style="color: magenta; font-size: large;">Tuesday:</span></div>
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I picked up <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> SUPER early (6:30 am) to head out for a run. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihxHk4bCfKmAOsEfNyvMhNHwwy187lqtwFwk9pWwr_oz87fQHhsMJdoYawcrlLEMRBFAoP05QpntGTrOGc3JKE_91dhOrXBB7CCXrzRwftN9CU1gNi8K3l8GQxhxtV8rtdGwokmzLRvUbu/s1600/P1060094.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihxHk4bCfKmAOsEfNyvMhNHwwy187lqtwFwk9pWwr_oz87fQHhsMJdoYawcrlLEMRBFAoP05QpntGTrOGc3JKE_91dhOrXBB7CCXrzRwftN9CU1gNi8K3l8GQxhxtV8rtdGwokmzLRvUbu/s400/P1060094.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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We drove out to Elk Lake and had a fabulous 7 km run. We walked the last 3 km of the 10 km loop. We talked the entire time! It was fantastic!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNilCrf_Oh-UG-5AEUpuFDyNlNoRrQ1aY-aYy-JVKdOaizR0FOEirALWZjrOYAtwfvhszD0TiOFWzOkHhFtqbf5uqMB6PZMUFh91o4FX-XZNa_jeLZxwDDQCtno-5hsf8Uhq3c6MbkGpWR/s1600/elk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNilCrf_Oh-UG-5AEUpuFDyNlNoRrQ1aY-aYy-JVKdOaizR0FOEirALWZjrOYAtwfvhszD0TiOFWzOkHhFtqbf5uqMB6PZMUFh91o4FX-XZNa_jeLZxwDDQCtno-5hsf8Uhq3c6MbkGpWR/s400/elk.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I totally stole this from, Britta :)</td></tr>
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We definitely took some pics along the way and after!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbKXQxDBDq5SkY3woNW9lqcYNyEVgOgb_pXQEUH3RbO2VMThHhZ7J4-AkQnd72KDrdlfz-MnXnkpuqQUhTNluloVWz7mqJ8roxFh0h46_0zrOeDQVMy6AS_PGvT10dmf3ySqdyPwJemebq/s1600/P1060096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbKXQxDBDq5SkY3woNW9lqcYNyEVgOgb_pXQEUH3RbO2VMThHhZ7J4-AkQnd72KDrdlfz-MnXnkpuqQUhTNluloVWz7mqJ8roxFh0h46_0zrOeDQVMy6AS_PGvT10dmf3ySqdyPwJemebq/s400/P1060096.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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After our run I wanted to show <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> one of my favourite markets, <a href="http://www.dansfarm.ca/">Dan's Farm</a>. That is where the fun began... </div>
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We browsed around...</div>
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ate a fresh fig...</div>
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very mild, but delish nevertheless...</div>
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...paid for our berries and went out to the car. I went into my purse to look for my key and it wasn't there. We looked everywhere in and around the market and thought it must be in the car, even though we couldn't see it. After about 2 hours of looking we called a towing company to open the doors. The key wasn't there...</div>
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We searched for another 2 hours, high and low, every square inch of the car and the market and the key was no where to be seen. WTF? We ended up calling the Nissan dealership, thanks to the help of one of the market employees, and <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a>'s friend, Cam (it was their idea) and asked if we could get new keys cut, because this was our only key... Then we had to find a ride to the dealership, which proved to be quite a problem since all of my friends are away at the moment because we just finished school and they are on vacation! In comes my friend, Jesse! She came and got us around 2:00 pm (we were there at 9:00 am). While we were waiting we decided to have breakfast and lunch, since we didn't get a chance to have either (crazy for us since we both NEED food, especially after a run).</div>
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All we could find that was reasonably healthy were these B<a href="http://www.beanitos.com/">eanito chips</a>, made of pinto beans and flax (they are to die for) seeds, carrots, granola bars and apples.</div>
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They were actually really really good! I think we both felt better after we had a little food in our bellies! After we were picked up we went to my apartment for some much needed tea (<a href="http://www.bellocq.com/">Bellocq earl grey</a> and milk) and relaxation. </div>
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We then waied for <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a>'s brother, Max to pick us up after work and bring us to the dealership to get new keys, which only cost us $10!!! I was SOOO happy about this!</div>
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Max and <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> were lovely enough to drive us back to our car (Francis met us after work at the dealership - he was on Saltspring Island all day so he wasn't able to help us). <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> and I were both EXHAUSTED after the day that we had...but I will say that we learned a lot about each other and are really good problem solvers ;) We both agreed that it was awesome that we get along really well otherwise the day would have been even worse! I don't know what I would have done without her!!</div>
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I still can't believe this happened...Last week I spilled coffee on my macbook air, they told me I just had to replace the keyboard and then a few days ago they told me that it is worse than they thought and well, let's just say it is going to be extremely pricey to fix. Not sure what to do. And as if that wasn't enough, this silly key situation happened. Hopefully my bad luck is over! I have a feeling that it is :) </div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">Wednesday!</span></div>
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<a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> and I spent yet another day together! What? We have to soak in every last bit of each other we can until I leave and she leaves (going to be so sad).</div>
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I picked her up a little bit later, at 8:30 am and we headed out to Mt. Finlayson for a hike! One of my absolute favourite ways to spend my day!</div>
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STEEP!</div>
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You have to pull yourself up the rocks...it's a tough hike but so much fun! <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> and I both decided that we are runner fit (we are both runners), because as soon as we started our hike up this flippin' steep mountain you are out of breath and your legs are a burnin'. That's okay though, because we both love the challenge!</div>
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When we got to the top we spent about 30 minutes soaking in the gorgeous view, breathing in the fresh air and chit chatting until we made our way down the mountain!</div>
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After our hike we made out way to <a href="http://www.lifestylemarkets.com/">Lifestyle Market</a> for a little browse, picked up a few goodies and then moved onto <a href="http://www.discoverycoffee.com/">Discovery Coffee</a>, nestled in the heart of James Bay, for a soy latte (one of my favourite places for a nice warm drink).</div>
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We sat outside and sipped on our latte's until we were too jittery to finish them... </div>
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We took the scenic route home, stopping for some beautiful pictures and a few errands! It was such a lovely afternoon spent with great company :)</div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Thursday:</span></div>
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I started my morning off with an amazing bowl of pumpkin pie oats! Bought a large can of pumpkin and have been eating it like crazy so it won't be wasted. I <i>guess </i>I'm okay with that. I mean, I <i>sorta </i>like pumpkin...</div>
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Unsweetened almond milk, canned pure pumpkin, rolled oats, drizzle of honey. Topped off with a little chocolatey goodness aka <a href="http://www.enjoylifefoods.com/chocolate-for-baking/mega-chunks/">Enjoy Life Mega Chunks</a>!</div>
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After breakfast, I headed out to pick up <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> for a run! We decided to change things up a bit and run along Beach Drive, which is one of the most beautiful sights in Victoria.</div>
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After our lovely 8 km run, we headed over to <a href="http://www.discoverycoffee.com/">Discovery Coffee</a>, yet again, for some delicious soy latte's, which we enjoyed outside while chit chatting away and people watching! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">recycled pic, but it looked exactly the same and tasted EVER better!</td></tr>
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Later on that evening, <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a>, Francis, Max, Tyler and I went to Willow's Beach for a picnic!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKVpfaDYeAZndzCBQRwOxHkyojmJRU_G5bPuR3VltyLwzjvVs6GGX3iJMVFLueuDNeYJMnz_2hJ20nfGRfSlP4ochPypJkHNuWzdeWIhT22W-C-iJLB-c6zkslAM4D6uz26H9P3zaNRgWQ/s1600/beach5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKVpfaDYeAZndzCBQRwOxHkyojmJRU_G5bPuR3VltyLwzjvVs6GGX3iJMVFLueuDNeYJMnz_2hJ20nfGRfSlP4ochPypJkHNuWzdeWIhT22W-C-iJLB-c6zkslAM4D6uz26H9P3zaNRgWQ/s400/beach5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We chowed down on some HUGE sandwiches from <a href="http://redbarnmarket.ca/">Red Barn</a>, <a href="http://www.beanitos.com/">Beanitos</a> (new fav chips - I think <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> and I ate almost a full bag together, they were THAT good - try the Chipotle BBQ), crackers and hummus! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDn9MpEZ7x0R5pAG7PvIvheqK_Q7LDdr7nCEUzQ080vh9dFCwhgHMiZ9qLTNGWJuP2OFwE9Po535zt6NcwpsSdQK2MRaZ05d0UQMDgoTG7gu5J8dSCMtX6pdQiIoaGsCvT6y9R2qDNFsz0/s1600/beach4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDn9MpEZ7x0R5pAG7PvIvheqK_Q7LDdr7nCEUzQ080vh9dFCwhgHMiZ9qLTNGWJuP2OFwE9Po535zt6NcwpsSdQK2MRaZ05d0UQMDgoTG7gu5J8dSCMtX6pdQiIoaGsCvT6y9R2qDNFsz0/s400/beach4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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It was a great night spent with some great people! Too bad it was absolutely FREEZING OUT! Is that fall I smell? :)</div>
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<span style="color: magenta; font-size: large;">Friday...our last day together :(</span></div>
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Friday morning I had a few AWESOME things happen to me. I say that in the most <i>sarcastic </i>way possible! I sliced my thumb on a vegetable slicer and then I destroyed my favourite running hat in the dryer :( the day after I was professing my love for it... Not the best way to start my day that's forsure. BUT it got <i>much</i> better :)</div>
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After a quick breakfast I headed over to <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta's</a> to pick her up to hang out. We both decided that we were super tired and didn't feel like going for a run so we opted to go to <a href="http://www.discoverycoffee.com/">Discovery Coffee</a> for one last soy latte instead! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSg_ptjziTz415AECThcFtfvac6TOIgXlceC8cQ1UfmSgrF6iS4xoi2AuNuhmCprkaxPAWAP5yQZFGaTKJmwKwd-m1OOLRWfbYJzDmLvUZtilwfF-LqBVOvB9FrCU8XsYXyolDGUsSbQfG/s1600/last+coffee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSg_ptjziTz415AECThcFtfvac6TOIgXlceC8cQ1UfmSgrF6iS4xoi2AuNuhmCprkaxPAWAP5yQZFGaTKJmwKwd-m1OOLRWfbYJzDmLvUZtilwfF-LqBVOvB9FrCU8XsYXyolDGUsSbQfG/s400/last+coffee.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I am <i>definitely</i> going to miss this :(</div>
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Next, we went on a search for a new running hat, which we had a really hard time finding...after we walked around town for a bit, having no luck on our hat search, we both decided to try for a run because it was <i>such </i>a gorgeous day and it was going to be our last run together for at least a year (I know, I can't believe it)...if we weren't feeling it we were just going to walk. I think those coffees gave us the jitters so we had to run to get them out.</div>
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We started off nice and slow and chatted the ENTIRE way, stopping after about 3 km for a nice stretch by the marina. Then we headed back...the 6 km <i>flew</i> by...we didn't even feel like we were working out. It was such a great time! We are both definitely going to be taking the day off of exercise today though (Saturday) which is good because I am busy cleaning up and packing for my vacay!</div>
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After our run, we took the scenic route to <a href="http://www.peninsularunners.com/vic.htm">Peninsula Runners</a> where I found my hat only in a different colour (purpley/pink - not my fav. but it was the only one in the same style). I bought it right away! <a href="http://redbikeinagreyworld.wordpress.com/">Britta</a> got the same one :) YAY for her very first running hat!</div>
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Then I dropped her off at her brother's and we said our goodbyes :( Good thing we have skype, texting and our blogs to keep us connected until we get to see each other next time! We have already discussed baking together over facetime! We are SO cool :) Man, I am going to miss that little lady! We had such a great time together this week! But enough of this sad talk... time to be happy :)</div>
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Today I am going to finish up my packing and cleaning before we head out to Cali for our two week vacation! Francis' parents live there so we are going for a nice long visit! I will definitely be posting while I'm there, so get ready for some fun posts! Ah, I can't wait! My parents are coming for the first week, too so it is going to be a great time :)</div>
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Enjoy your weekend, and I will be talking at you all very soon!</div>
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Amy</div>
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xo</div>
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-8484860029813488812012-08-06T22:02:00.002-07:002012-08-06T22:02:44.918-07:00Chocolate Covered Banana PopsiclesFirst of all, Happy BC Day to all my fellow British Columbians! Let's take some time today to really take pride in this beautiful province we are so lucky to live in. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisx1cz_X6S3xAjV0HtEktN56jNKFnqDZqJc7KWH74fHjcTaAey6PWD_7ggBvMF94unaNf4Bg3nmG79Lq72h3R4dSizjeGEXvF_k1Lzcj_82KXFS-Btn0e-Mqv656kB6rEXupxgm95DcuEo/s1600/BC.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisx1cz_X6S3xAjV0HtEktN56jNKFnqDZqJc7KWH74fHjcTaAey6PWD_7ggBvMF94unaNf4Bg3nmG79Lq72h3R4dSizjeGEXvF_k1Lzcj_82KXFS-Btn0e-Mqv656kB6rEXupxgm95DcuEo/s400/BC.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Okay...now onto some wonderful food related rambling, starting with my love for Overnight Oats. Here is today's breakfast, which has been a repeat for the past week or so (okay maybe 2 weeks).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfp3DI82mGr1LGpkyGxLeWUTREzVuj7c_x7HD8JJWUv1KNGUOPgkkeX4jnUQE5gj7lDFw3iGgJImCJ62VJfdc6K1lPStM0PC1ooUSfIDJm0jq7SFavuJv4yXSdDOhC5rsWFeB3CtXmnVfp/s1600/IMG_1703.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfp3DI82mGr1LGpkyGxLeWUTREzVuj7c_x7HD8JJWUv1KNGUOPgkkeX4jnUQE5gj7lDFw3iGgJImCJ62VJfdc6K1lPStM0PC1ooUSfIDJm0jq7SFavuJv4yXSdDOhC5rsWFeB3CtXmnVfp/s400/IMG_1703.JPG" width="352" /></a></div>
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In the mix: Oikos greek yogurt, scottish oats, almond milk, chia seeds, raspberries and a perfectly ripe peach! I LOVE waking up to to my breakfast already made for me. It's such a treat, even though I am the one who made it, but who's keeping track? ;)</div>
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Another thing I've been LOVING lately, or rather wanting to make lately, <b>Chocolate Covered Banana Popsicles. </b>I used to make them all the time, and for some reason this summer I have completely forgotten about them...that is, until now :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5RP1wgPcYJQ4rFpLFG-V4V1Ehyphenhyphen_9smux125-qtsi48bphns033RNwOFJDGF67lNg6FBa-_tweJW2NSUEAFqu3AbPSQi9rokE8RH2io0DP99p0UkMjevAzYs2lVFA8IPTYJrnqRjpe6vgH/s1600/IMG_1705.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5RP1wgPcYJQ4rFpLFG-V4V1Ehyphenhyphen_9smux125-qtsi48bphns033RNwOFJDGF67lNg6FBa-_tweJW2NSUEAFqu3AbPSQi9rokE8RH2io0DP99p0UkMjevAzYs2lVFA8IPTYJrnqRjpe6vgH/s400/IMG_1705.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I started off by melting some dark chocolate chips over the stove. I used EnjoyLife brand.</div>
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Then I cut the bananas in half and put them on chop sticks.</div>
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Next I got my toppings reading. I crushed up some Extreme Chocolate Flavoured Cookies (SO GOOD)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihZQTNpRtrU7v0e2xBhYyFjGQ4jNdk-CrbXf7c3vULDjmiLuv6WRaKKuKDtSutmlPUV4nsbY0nyZygxw7GE3ZGrM4jQznkRY15-LyGbnNtD1CY2YpETLjCHFly0ZExtSZ9WWbcePJSmSY0/s1600/IMG_1708.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihZQTNpRtrU7v0e2xBhYyFjGQ4jNdk-CrbXf7c3vULDjmiLuv6WRaKKuKDtSutmlPUV4nsbY0nyZygxw7GE3ZGrM4jQznkRY15-LyGbnNtD1CY2YpETLjCHFly0ZExtSZ9WWbcePJSmSY0/s400/IMG_1708.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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which are all natural, wheat and gluten free! So, a fairly "healthy" chocolate cookie, I'd say.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd6b51V7ch_vU2M0g6F9OQPN0w2zOLWcjt3uWYS92ZnjlFAH6lb9wAp1GQaUK8EoZRJtuIpgIqa0eRTwsRsDKEf80C13_91CBYiFAkhmQSJUsjPGjcS6AtIBR-g3dqZVl2bOH_sDpr5pOR/s1600/IMG_1709.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd6b51V7ch_vU2M0g6F9OQPN0w2zOLWcjt3uWYS92ZnjlFAH6lb9wAp1GQaUK8EoZRJtuIpgIqa0eRTwsRsDKEf80C13_91CBYiFAkhmQSJUsjPGjcS6AtIBR-g3dqZVl2bOH_sDpr5pOR/s400/IMG_1709.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Vanilla yogurt</div>
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Cookie crumbs</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg215TbPDkxbW2NAqs_bhRJ9xboevnMYqS-wPf5jTlrGFg_g4a0G4Sl7okLuCUwQ94IncdG7bTtNINtlRSHT6L8bygAXecjBnV2kyLMs5vANfd29ZVAld5tlWQIplGIPUj8wKOLOviuY0ro/s1600/IMG_1711.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg215TbPDkxbW2NAqs_bhRJ9xboevnMYqS-wPf5jTlrGFg_g4a0G4Sl7okLuCUwQ94IncdG7bTtNINtlRSHT6L8bygAXecjBnV2kyLMs5vANfd29ZVAld5tlWQIplGIPUj8wKOLOviuY0ro/s400/IMG_1711.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Crushed walnuts</div>
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Melted chocolate (drool...)</div>
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I then started the process. A little chocolate dip, then roll in cookie crumbs.</div>
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Oh baby...they are SO GOOD!</div>
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I then made about 4 dipped in yogurt and walnuts, topped with a little leftover chocolate. I mean, I couldn't let it go to waste now could I? No, I could not!</div>
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I froze them on a tinfoiled cookie sheet for about 3 hours, then took them out and wrapped them in tinfoil. They are now stored in the freezer for a nice, cool summer treat!</div>
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Okay, now go and make them a.s.a.p. DO IT! You will NOT regret it. </div>
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<b>Have a great night and Happy BC Day to all my fellow British Columbians!</b></div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-49379453746213161962012-08-04T22:25:00.001-07:002012-08-05T10:14:22.454-07:00Blueberry Pickin'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Hello everyone! Firstly, I would like to apologize for being completely MIA for the past month or so. I don't have any excuse other than I have been extremely busy. I am going to school full time and working part time, so all of my free time (which is very little) is spent doing homework, exercising and enjoying the beautiful summer Victoria is having!</div>
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I am going to try to blog more often now, but don't be surprised if they are a little bit sporadic, because that is how my life is at the moment!</div>
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So let's get down to business. Today was my first day off in about a month and I was SOOO excited about it. I wasn't even sure where to start. I wanted to do EVERYTHING. That's how excited I was lol. I slept in quite a bit (until 8:00 am, which is a sleep in for me), got up and enjoyed some overnight oats with fresh berries and then Francis and I decided to go blueberry picking!</div>
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It was a gorgeous morning/afternoon to spend picking berries. It actually got extremely hot.</div>
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What I loved more than anything about these berries is that aren't sprayed and are a very good price. We got about 6 lbs for $16. Pretty darn good if you ask me.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitWvANxKBTl8vWMdC6fn09d_49AcJLDt0AGNR2bXEsDdU3ZthbERN0YjlvIn4ZfpHKfDt63RrhwAuhyphenhyphenMrU_QCGWbGJJESkHxJYeCPM8zy0bQjCJvxdt7wCINNhU98EINSFDvyNNTASPT7y/s1600/2012-08-04+11.42.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitWvANxKBTl8vWMdC6fn09d_49AcJLDt0AGNR2bXEsDdU3ZthbERN0YjlvIn4ZfpHKfDt63RrhwAuhyphenhyphenMrU_QCGWbGJJESkHxJYeCPM8zy0bQjCJvxdt7wCINNhU98EINSFDvyNNTASPT7y/s400/2012-08-04+11.42.46.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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There were a few others there, but it was pretty quiet - just the way we like it. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQMIcwRyXNlMzv_1tqYDFFOrzwzrywF3vOQX5qe3ONOyIK4biAYTzAXCfmNz4xf-CTfPVRz5EyyvSZNwokDF9LzteArqQ1ME2MslMpGsQEcKxLewhywl12RcmGfPUf-1qZIzFXnmWJHCm5/s1600/2012-08-04+11.36.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQMIcwRyXNlMzv_1tqYDFFOrzwzrywF3vOQX5qe3ONOyIK4biAYTzAXCfmNz4xf-CTfPVRz5EyyvSZNwokDF9LzteArqQ1ME2MslMpGsQEcKxLewhywl12RcmGfPUf-1qZIzFXnmWJHCm5/s400/2012-08-04+11.36.13.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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We definitely picked the best berries, even the owner said so himself ;)</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGy3K9xDnigOTIyQ-hyn2yOPn7Pcix7UyqJWCbbhye50gTWcbeADu2mUX1ipcCUe9M6UMX0MZDH307HTywB6zMqE2MOs2FTidMRMK2O6vt-tk4UMMfPwzWIMW1Rrs12KmfIkV7lJ_fNhFC/s1600/2012-08-04+12.11.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGy3K9xDnigOTIyQ-hyn2yOPn7Pcix7UyqJWCbbhye50gTWcbeADu2mUX1ipcCUe9M6UMX0MZDH307HTywB6zMqE2MOs2FTidMRMK2O6vt-tk4UMMfPwzWIMW1Rrs12KmfIkV7lJ_fNhFC/s400/2012-08-04+12.11.42.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">kind of an awkward pic I know...best one out of the loot though, which says a lot ;) lol</td></tr>
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On the way home we stopped by a few different markets. Our first stop was an absolute gem, one that we've been to before. We started off by getting a large flat of raspberries, a container of blackberries and local corn. As Francis was picking out the corn, I was looking around at the fruit and came across sunrise apples from the Okanagan. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbK3hQKBb0pNFx8je_tWitJbAlwOwxRoiK70DhKY5N8CMiYa-KgX6kBKdBEg98T8htidfPBxu24RfyZKiD7I2egHP5yc0ZIkLWssP4leWJTI6_FAt-04ndHv3x-R0FVLNugyQPu4JBb389/s1600/2012-08-04+12.26.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbK3hQKBb0pNFx8je_tWitJbAlwOwxRoiK70DhKY5N8CMiYa-KgX6kBKdBEg98T8htidfPBxu24RfyZKiD7I2egHP5yc0ZIkLWssP4leWJTI6_FAt-04ndHv3x-R0FVLNugyQPu4JBb389/s400/2012-08-04+12.26.45.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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I WAS SO HAPPY! I can't even explain how happy I was. The only one who knows how ecstatic I was is Francis. I think I may have squealed a little bit so I'm sure he has some amazing impression he can grace you with if you ask him one day ;) Yeah...I really love apples. Those of you who know me very well know how obsessed I am and how I wait ALL YEAR LONG for sunrise apples!!</div>
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Anyways, enough of that. We also stopped at a market, where we picked up a HUGE bouquet of local flowers for such a steal and sampled homemade chia chips and hummus!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxcY0TVDHZoJ_54fCpIV1NNk1STSDv-IlM9U2Lm6Y4kk2sTunKmWVkH23lRNA8MEl_JCfWltBeH6i7JFD-3zf50RREF7OgmT7wD5lRE26E7Zso-gCc3xs3Fznd5CT0hYpjy8lMtNZ0B9cB/s1600/IMG_1695.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxcY0TVDHZoJ_54fCpIV1NNk1STSDv-IlM9U2Lm6Y4kk2sTunKmWVkH23lRNA8MEl_JCfWltBeH6i7JFD-3zf50RREF7OgmT7wD5lRE26E7Zso-gCc3xs3Fznd5CT0hYpjy8lMtNZ0B9cB/s400/IMG_1695.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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When we got home I washed up the berries and put some in the fridge and the others in the freezer. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAIdy_TWPnQlegYIpfl44uucoWhj_Y5E3MqHa5L8DtdAK17owRvYG0slqZDKLXm5AfRIdNQ0XbC4uvLP8rGF3K7aEwAoTYSdcXyyYpyBsBYVfUsmEVMaJWMUhW9EY5NOmnektRykjojwhx/s1600/IMG_1697.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAIdy_TWPnQlegYIpfl44uucoWhj_Y5E3MqHa5L8DtdAK17owRvYG0slqZDKLXm5AfRIdNQ0XbC4uvLP8rGF3K7aEwAoTYSdcXyyYpyBsBYVfUsmEVMaJWMUhW9EY5NOmnektRykjojwhx/s400/IMG_1697.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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Here's our loot. We also bought a local tomato!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi7GpTnMRVKOfWhuxNyegxOIpa8pl1Vs9Qk_9rKbvxrjypva3lLipyAOuZm9ShUYAC6az9op0DBqlpVWzf5OPQtlLICK8AGcwJdA6QX8FkB-12HlL9m6pra2oDguEgEVwWvK1tNDqybepu/s1600/IMG_1698.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi7GpTnMRVKOfWhuxNyegxOIpa8pl1Vs9Qk_9rKbvxrjypva3lLipyAOuZm9ShUYAC6az9op0DBqlpVWzf5OPQtlLICK8AGcwJdA6QX8FkB-12HlL9m6pra2oDguEgEVwWvK1tNDqybepu/s400/IMG_1698.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Aren't these absolutely stunning? I made two HUGE bouquets out of them. After a few chores at home, Francis and I both whipped up some lunch.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqJCXBW6Zms0_k_AB959yxSc0MDwDjf1zZm7sdqunvQ6KLPTVIf8sRIkiz-60E0r0_EK_D__mixe5bcZ4EbxmwCYkoUO5dZwYEg_o0bw19PtQ1Wn-sSsNMhrBh0IfvrZx9_elZdt5MnoK-/s1600/IMG_1701.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqJCXBW6Zms0_k_AB959yxSc0MDwDjf1zZm7sdqunvQ6KLPTVIf8sRIkiz-60E0r0_EK_D__mixe5bcZ4EbxmwCYkoUO5dZwYEg_o0bw19PtQ1Wn-sSsNMhrBh0IfvrZx9_elZdt5MnoK-/s400/IMG_1701.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I had a California Burger (Amy's) topped with an almost too ripe avocado, spicy hummus, rice crackers and greens. Topped with a simple dressing made of fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, honey and olive oil. Absolutely amazing.</div>
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Francis and I spent the afternoon wandering around downtown, then we made out way to the mall for a little browse. We made a delicious chicken dinner with the local corn we bought at the market this morning and brown rice. </div>
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After dinner we watched the Olympics while our tummies settled before heading out for an evening run. We decided to go to Elk Lake, where it would be shaded and nice and cool (Victoria hit about 30*C today!!). It was shaded, but it wasn't very cool. It was a mighty hot and speedy 6 km. We both really enjoyed it, though!</div>
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When we got home we had cold showers and lots of ice cold water before changing into our comfies and settling in for the night. </div>
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Overall, it was an amazing day off and I am so happy I got to spent it with Francis! Can't wait for the next one!</div>
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Goodnight,</div>
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Amy</div>
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xo</div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-29156099989258557692012-07-10T17:10:00.002-07:002012-07-10T17:10:57.916-07:00Chocolate Mint Granola Bars<div style="text-align: center;">
What better way to beat the summer heat then to have the oven on for a couple of hours in your already boiling hot apartment. Probably the worst idea I've had in awhile...but it was worth it! I had every intention of going for a run and enjoying the weather but I used every excuse in the book, such as "I'll go later when it cools off...I'll go to the gym later...I'll go to the gym first thing in the morning" ...which eventually lead me into deciding that I just wanted to go home, clean up, get organized and make some granola bars for lunches!</div>
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These aren't just ANY old granola bars...they are something different from anything I have ever made before, using some different flavours. After a lot of taste testing, I finally figured out what combinations I wanted to use!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Chocolate Mint Pretzel Granola Bars</b></span></div>
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<b>Ingredients:</b></div>
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<i>makes 12 granola bars</i></div>
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1/2 cup raw sesame seeds</div>
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1/2 cup sliced almonds</div>
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1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut</div>
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1/2 cup crushed pretzels</div>
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2 cups rolled oats</div>
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1 cup mint chocolate chips</div>
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1 cup natural, unsalted peanut butter</div>
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1 cup brown rice syrup</div>
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1/2 tsp vanilla</div>
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<b>Instructions:</b></div>
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1) Preheat oven to 350. Toast sesame seeds, almonds and coconut in a frying pan over medium high heat, stirring frequently unti lightly browned. Set aside and allow time to cool completely (otherwise it will melt the chocolate chips.</div>
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2) Once nuts are cooled, combine this mixture, pretzels, oats and chocolate chips in a large bowl. Mix well.</div>
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3) Combine peanut butter and brown rice syrup. Microwave for 30 seconds to make it easier to mix. Add vanilla, stir to combine. </div>
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4) Add wet mixture to dry. Stir well to combine. </div>
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5) Spray 8 by 8 square baking dish with spray oil, transfer mixture and press down firmly.</div>
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6) Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Take out, allow to cool completely before cutting.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMRAIQqYfRLUE_r8QsHAouXWiCAvn9gddSRKDLk6YbZqjAACAFV2YwYlkkKsQuRDxpCzInUq9io4tOyerhqX0LxRnmTYiK2kutnFZ545j3V3EgLoOt0P3BJwmx2TTjJVO_QNjvuljZXfx/s1600/IMG_1681.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMRAIQqYfRLUE_r8QsHAouXWiCAvn9gddSRKDLk6YbZqjAACAFV2YwYlkkKsQuRDxpCzInUq9io4tOyerhqX0LxRnmTYiK2kutnFZ545j3V3EgLoOt0P3BJwmx2TTjJVO_QNjvuljZXfx/s400/IMG_1681.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Check in tomorrow for another amazing granola bar recipe. HINT: banana and butterscotch are involved...</div>
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Have a wonderful evening!</div>
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xo</div>
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<br /></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5962699400488040054.post-54556829592194124182012-07-09T17:17:00.000-07:002012-07-09T17:20:16.311-07:00Vegetarian Sausage Pasta Bake<div style="text-align: center;">
Last night, after spending the afternoon cleaning up from our camping trip, paroozing the mall and galavanting downtown (wow, quite a vocab today hey?) Francis and I came back home to start dinner. <i>Emphasis on "I" ;) </i>I had all of the ingredients for a wonderful dish that I knew Francis would absolutely LOVE! Despite the heat, I decided to have the oven on for about an hour and a half...probably not the best idea...we were super hot for the rest of the night! But, it was worth it :)</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Vegetarian Sausage Pasta Bake</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>adapted from Sarah Matheny's </i><b>Baked Penne with Sausage and Peppers </b><i>from </i><b><a href="http://peasandthankyou.com/peas-and-thank-you-the-book/">Peas and Thank You</a></b></span></div>
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<b><u>Ingredients:</u></b></div>
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<i>Makes 8-10 servings</i></div>
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1 pound whole wheat penne pasta</div>
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1 package of Italian Tofurky sausages</div>
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1 yellow pepper, sliced</div>
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1 red pepper, sliced</div>
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1 1/2 cups sliced onions</div>
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2 tsp minced garlic</div>
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4 cups spaghetti sauce</div>
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grated cheese</div>
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basil</div>
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<b><u>Instructions:</u></b></div>
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1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees</div>
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2) Prepare pasta el dente.</div>
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3) Coat a <b>LARGE </b>frying pan (<i>learned from experience...)</i> <span style="background-color: white;">with cooking oil. Add onions, bell peppers and sausages over medium high heat until tender. Add sausages and garlic. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxM-ZfEAYDj3j0uYCbzq9ettAx5UAXYCtRiy1WumgKNucwg9SWGBoz5jxmxCScbgZEK-UsQ80KRlpmaG5t5s2THmaJfUElYP2DS0WqxoEOm0mxP0YmZdcaFo8-JtZOLQGzR6pbd5G9vXC_/s1600/IMG_1662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxM-ZfEAYDj3j0uYCbzq9ettAx5UAXYCtRiy1WumgKNucwg9SWGBoz5jxmxCScbgZEK-UsQ80KRlpmaG5t5s2THmaJfUElYP2DS0WqxoEOm0mxP0YmZdcaFo8-JtZOLQGzR6pbd5G9vXC_/s400/IMG_1662.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Let cook for 5-6 more minutes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Yhgj4ezIXnHKJpKO8SLFpd0261a_iLS5Nuk-xHp72CBOcWytSNvQlr8hVN1-LN_JmcQk7hQzjnNMJVEkfdhe7GaYFsBvvvf7RSejJwrRkT4iDhPcNbj_WvuZprD6xvOHNAqOFMOCY9YA/s1600/IMG_1663.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Yhgj4ezIXnHKJpKO8SLFpd0261a_iLS5Nuk-xHp72CBOcWytSNvQlr8hVN1-LN_JmcQk7hQzjnNMJVEkfdhe7GaYFsBvvvf7RSejJwrRkT4iDhPcNbj_WvuZprD6xvOHNAqOFMOCY9YA/s400/IMG_1663.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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4) Add pasta sauce to the vegetable sausage mixture and mix until combined.</div>
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5) Add 1 cup sliced fresh basil.</div>
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<i>On a side note...is that not the biggest basil leaf you have ever seen????</i></div>
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6) Transfer mixture to 13 by 9 lasagna dish, which has been sprayed with cooking oil.</div>
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7) Grate as much cheese as you'd like on top, put in the oven and cook for 25-30 minutes.</div>
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6) Garnish with fresh basil.</div>
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7) Enjoy!</div>
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Have a wonderful night!<br />
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xo</div>
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<b><br /></b>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18215905667174386850noreply@blogger.com2