We are Never Ever getting back together...

What better way to start Spring than with a clean break (up)!  I know I make it sound so easy breezy, but we all know it’s anything but easy.  Hopefully my story will inspire some of you to just…LET IT GO! I knew from the moment I looked in the mirror, that all the answers to my questions were clearly reflected in the mirror. It had been over for the last eight months, but I couldn’t let go, I had worked too hard, spent too much money “investing” in a dead end relationship, and most of all it was a definitive representation of my inability to take care of something that I loved. I know some of you are thinking, this girl is so dramatic. The truth is I am! I constantly reassured myself that it would get better, and that all I had to do was try harder. Big mistake,

Tweet

Im soooo Back!

Hey Guys! Its me.... yeah I know most of you are wondering what the long gap in between my last post and the current is about. Well this little thing called the 2012 Presidential General Election consumed my ENTIRE life, I cant explain how crazy my schedule was, but Im soooo back and have a ton
of new stuff that I will be posting to my blog. Stay tuned!

Tweet

Simple Vanilla Syrup....So Good You'll Think It's From Starbucks!!

My sister sent me this really cool recipe/idea for making your own flavored syrups, she loves, (is)borderline obsessed with Starbucks coffee (who isn't). I thought this was a really cool idea, you can even play around with the flavors, if your not a vanilla fan, try almond extract, white chocolate extract..you get the point. Check it out!

 Here are some Pictures:



What you Need to Know: This cost $6.00 and I can reuse the sugar until its gone!
Heres What I Used:
50packets of stevia (all natural sweetner) it's twice as sweet so it adds up to 1 cup but measures.1/2 cup. I used 1/2 cup sugar in the raw then 1 cup h2O. Medium high heat to dissolve the sugars then on low to simmer for 15 min. Let it cool for 10 then add 1/2-1tsp of.pure vanilla extract! Depending on how much u want a vanilla taste I did 1\2 its powerful. I am trying to get off the Starbucks sugar free vanilla bc it has a chemical sweetner!
Tweet

Grilled Tofu with Pineapple Salsa and Coconut Rice

When you can’t get away for vacation, but still want the feeling of a vacation, this dinner is for you! Better yet, have someone make it for you while you sip a margarita. It’s tropical, refreshing, and perfect for those warm summer nights when you want to change up your go-to meals.
Plus, you simply cannot go wrong with juicy fruit cascading over your dinner plate, especially during a heat wave. This was quite simple to throw together, but still felt like a dish I’d find on the menu of my favourite veg restaurant (only better because it was made at home!).

I’ve never made coconut rice before, but after a quick scour of the internet, I settled on Jaden’s recipe. Only I didn’t have jasmine rice or full-fat coconut milk so I used brown rice and light coconut milk instead. I was a bit worried I’d end up with a “healthy tasting” coconut rice, but it tasted nothing of the sort. It was as creamy and decadent tasting as I hoped it would be. A tiny amount of brown sugar, nutmeg, and toasted coconut really made the flavours pop. Without these it was a bit bland, but with, it’s now a rice dish I’m crazy about.
I’m not sure if you can tell in this photo below just how thick and creamy it turned out. You’ll have to trust me on this one!

I pressed the extra-firm tofu, sliced it into four huge triangles, and brushed oil over all sides with a sprinkle of herbamare. Eric was in charge of grilling the tofu, which didn’t take very long at all. Maybe 5 minutes per side.
We’re both tofu fans and enjoy it plain, but if you think you’d like the tofu spruced up a bit more feel free to use a marinade prior to grilling. We added a bit of BBQ sauce on the side and it was the perfect accompaniment for dipping.

Grilled Tofu with Pineapple Salsa and Coconut Rice

Print, Email, or Text this recipe
Dish inspired by Ashley & coconut rice adapted from Jaden.
Yield: Serves 2-3
For the tofu:

• 1 package extra-firm or firm tofu (I used Sol-Cuisine organic brand)
• Cooking oil, for brushing
• Herbamare or salt, for seasoning

For the coconut rice:

• 1/4 cup shredded coconut
• 1 cup dry/uncooked short grain brown rice
• 1 can (400ml) light coconut milk (yields 1 & 3/4 cups)
• 2 tsp packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp coconut oil (optional)
• Sprinkle of nutmeg

For the pineapple salsa: (this makes over 5 cups so feel free to make a half batch!)

• 1 pineapple, cored & diced (makes about 3 cups diced)
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and diced
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 red pepper, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 orange pepper, diced (about 1 cup)
• 3 tbsp fresh lime juice (1 large lime)
• 1/4 cup packed fresh mint leaves, minced
• Red pepper flakes, to taste (optional)

1. Press Tofu: Remove tofu from package and rinse with water. Press the tofu for at least 20 minutes following these directions. After pressing, slice the tofu block down the middle, lengthwise to make two halves. Now slice each piece diagonally to make 4 triangles total. Brush each side with cooking oil and then season generously. If you don’t enjoy plain tofu try using a marinade prior to cooking.
2. Coconut Rice: Preheat oven to 300F. Toast shredded coconut for about 8-12 minutes until golden. Rinse brown rice in colander and then place into a medium-sized pot. Add one 400ml can coconut milk (equal to 1 & 3/4 cups). Stir. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat immediately to low. Cover with lid and cook for about 25-30 minutes until most of the coconut milk is absorbed and rice is tender. Remove from heat, keep lid on, and let it “steam” for another 10 minutes or so. Stir in brown sugar and optional coconut oil. Garnish with toasted shredded coconut.
3. Salsa: Meanwhile, add all salsa ingredients into a large bowl, adjusting to taste. My pineapple was very watery, so I dumped the pineapple into a colander and let the water drain for about 10 minutes prior to using. Feel free to do this too or just leave it as is.
4. Grill tofu: Preheat the bbq grill for about 15-30 minutes (depending on your grill) on high. Turn heat down to medium/low. Carefully, grease the grill with a cooking oil safe for high heat (e.g., canola, sunflower, safflower, or sesame). Grill the tofu for about 5 minutes on each side (this will vary). Be sure not to overcook the tofu or it will be dry.
5. To serve: Spoon coconut rice on a plate and sprinkle with a dash of nutmeg if desired. Add grilled tofu next and then spoon over a generous amount of pineapple salsa. Sprinkle everything with more toasted coconut and garnish with mint leaves. Feel free to serve with a bit of BBQ sauce on the side to spruce up the tofu.


Source: Ohsheglows.com

Tweet

Veggie Burgers!

How To Prep and Freeze Veggie Burgers: A Tutorial

One of my goals for August (and onward) is to start making big batches of veggie burgers. I’ve been relying far too much on boxed frozen veggie burgers and the cost really starts to add up. I usually buy Amy’s California burgers and they cost between $6-8 for 4 patties, depending on the grocery store. Plus, homemade veggie burgers are just so much better.
On Sunday, I made a double batch of Our Perfect Veggie Burgers and this week I made a double batch of Spicy BBQ Chickpea Burgers. I’ll be bringing a bunch of them to Eric’s big 3-0 birthday party on Saturday. There should be about 40 people!
I must say, these BBQ chickpea burgers are a new fav. The prep is a bit quicker than the other ones and I enjoy them just as much.
(Edited to add: After defrosting the Chickpea BBQ Burgers this weekend, the burgers did not hold well together. They seem to have too much moisture after freezing. I would recommend using the Our Perfect Veggie Burgers recipe, as I have had good results when freezing these.)
Using the Spicy BBQ Chickpea Burger recipe, I doubled all of the ingredients and made 16 patties. I’ve also been making beans from scratch to save more money. I soaked 2 cups of uncooked chickpeas overnight in a huge bowl of water. Once they have soaked, it’s only about 35 minutes or so to cook them on the stovetop (throw in a piece of kombu for easier digestion). You can also make big batches of beans and legumes on the weekend and freeze them for quick weeknight dinners. I’m slowly starting to get into the habit of doing this on a regular basis!
While the chickpeas and brown rice cook, prep the veggies: fresh parsley, red onion, shredded carrot, red pepper, jalapeno, and garlic.

Place everything into a huge bowl. My biggest bowl still was not quite big enough for this double batch, but I managed ok!

Stir in the pepita and sunflower seeds, along with the other ingredients like ground flax, seasonings, breadcrumbs, etc.

Because I made two big pots of chickpeas and brown rice, I decided to throw the rice and chickpeas in the food processor instead of mashing by hand like I did the first time. This saved a lot of time!
Stir it all up – you can even get in there with your hands to mix it up really good! Season it all to taste. Don’t be shy with the salt – this huge bowl of batter needs a good dose to make it all pop. I used 1-1.5 tsp fine grain sea salt.

Now shape the batter into about 16 patties and place on a very large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Cover with wrap.

Clear out room in your freezer and place the baking sheet right in. Freeze the patties for about 45-60 mins or so.

[my freezer needs an intervention…]
Once the raw patties are frozen, place them in a freezer safe bag. If there are any ice crystals on the burgers, scrape them off first. I use Ziplock BPA-free large freezer bags (with the zipper). Don’t forget to wash the bags out and re-use when you are finished with the burgers!
I cut a piece of the parchment to place in between the layers so they don’t stick. Take a straw and suck out the air and seal quickly. Easy!

This is my first time freezing veggie burgers like this (I used to wrap them individually), but I’ve read this method should keep them fresh for up to 1 month in the freezer. Thaw on the counter or in the fridge before pan-frying.

Source

Tweet

Can You Say HELLO! My motivation!

I was kind of in a rut in May so I started doing the 50 squats a day to kick things up a notch.. I hope everyone tries it out.. its just a little thing that takes 5 minutes but its adds up to 1500 extra squats a month…. makes a difference!

(via healthynotskinnny)

Source: chickentuna

Tweet

Tippy's Favorite Things

Tippy’s Favorite Things!

So, I’m no Oprah Winfrey, and there will be no “You get a car, you get a car, you get a car….”moment. Sorry guys not that type of Favorite Things, BUT you will be getting something for free. I figured that would get your attention. One of my absolute favorite websites is FreeFly.com. Look, in my opinion anything with the word free in it, usually isn’t so “free”, there is some catch hidden within the fine print. That was my thinking UNTIL,  I tried out FreeFly.com, before I go any further, these are my own thoughts, I was not paid, nor am I a paid representative of FreeFly, (now back to our regularly scheduled program.) FreeFly is a website that allows you to try new products or maybe you want to receive a free product from your favorite company, then Freefly is perfect for you.

Here’s How It Works:

How can you give away free stuff?
Many brands want you to sample their products. The philosophy is: If they love our products, they may buy them! So they want to give you samples to try for free! Companies love to give out freebies to people - people like you - you know what you like and what you don't. If you like the free sample, chances are, you'll become a valued customer! That way everybody wins! Get your free stuff - register or login today!

When will I get my free brand name product?
You should receive your free sample of a name brand product that you have chosen from our free samples product list in the mail with the address you provided. You will be notified that your sample is on the way. Allow 4 - 6 weeks for delivery of your freebie

How many free items can I get?
You can get as many free items from our free samples list as you want. There is no limit to how many freebies you can request, so go ahead - Login or register and get all the freebies you want. The free stuff never ends!

How often do you have new free brand-name products?
Our list of free brand-name products are changing all the time. For up to date freebies, check our free sample page frequently for new free stuff. Login now to see what's new.

How can I fill out a survey and give my feedback and opinion about products?
When you login to freefly's, you'll see our featured surveys. Not only do you get to give your opinion, you can also GET PAID for it. You may even be rewarded with prizes! Login or register to see our featured surveys!

Here is a sample list of products that’s that you can chose from, remember these free sample list change all the time. The same products aren’t always available to try. IF you notice that one of the free items is a free FULL size of a Philosophy product. If you have ever purchased or even seen their products in a store or online there very pricy per item, so this is an amazing freebie I hope that you all like this website as much as I do. Give it a try and let me know what you think. I would love to hear your feedback.

Source: FreeFly.com

Tweet