Summer in Winter.

Thank you Prophet Mohammed's mama for making you be born on this day so we can have a 3 day weekend! YAHOO!

The weather right now is incredible! I mean high 70's, low 80's with a cool breeze and no clouds in the sky. It's absolutely beautiful. We took full advantage with a few of our fellow Burn Roomers and we had a picnic in the park. It was NOT paleo. We took a walk on the beach for a bit and enjoyed the sunshine!

I made some yummy treats for the picnic and I am so happy to share one of them with you! I just ask for one thing in return! My wonderful friend Carmen, gave us a very sweet thank you gift! A CROCK POT! In this crazy place, she found one! So if you have any simple ideas/recipes, I would love it if you shared them with me!

Our awesome view in the mornings! Sunshine by 10 am :)

Strawberry/Applesauce Muffins (click for the recipe)

I used whole wheat flower instead of all purpose, but upped the baking soda a little bit and they turned out great!

An afternoon sesh at The Burn Room pre picnic! (Showing off my new shin skins from the hubs)

Us girlies on the beach!

A beautiful Summer day in the middle of Winter!

Hope you're having a great end to your week!

God Bless!

Goody bags.

The name's Crocker. Betty Crocker.

Since we have moved into our new place all I want to do is cook and bake. On Monday night I made my very own rendition of Broccoli and Cheddar soup. I would give you the recipe, but I didn't measure out anything or write any of it down! I know it had: onions, milk, flour, broccoli, salt/pepper, and tons of cheese. Simple! And delicious! Next time I won't use so much onion, too much for my taste buds! And Tuesday night I made homemade chili!! Can you tell I am on the hot food/soup train!?

Then I started the first part to my goody bags that I am giving the second grade teachers this year. It will include Oreo Brownie Cupcakes, Buckeyes, and my rendition of 7-layer bars. I have a bit of a challenge because 2 of my teachers are gluten free eaters, and it is almost impossible to find coconut or almond flour here. Paleomg, I wish I could make half of the delicious recipes you create! The gluten free things they can eat are the Buckeyes and the 7-layer bars.

Anyone else doing some pre holiday baking?

God bless!!

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

One of the greatest gifts I have ever gotten (besides a rock on my finger and a hottie hubby) was a cookbook from my mom. She had combined all the recipes I grew up with, plus new ones she thought I would enjoy making and wrote out each one on a cute piece of stationary. She combined them into a book and gave it to me as a wedding present. I love to cook. Whether it's baking or cooking, I love the joy food brings to people. 

One of my favorite recipes (Ok, Justin's 2nd love of his life) is my mom's chocolate chip zucchini bread. Seriously, it's to die for. If you are looking to make this recipe a little healthier, I am sure you can sub a few ingredients like apple sauce and such, but the original recipe is SO good, SO easy and SO delicious just the way it is. Even if it's full of sugar and nummyness.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

2 cups grated zucchini
2 1/2 cups of sugar (this time I used 1/2 cup splenda/brown sugar mix)
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1 1/2 c. vegetable oil (I use 1 c. EVOO)
4 eggs
3 c. flour (I sub whole wheat flour)
2 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
Chocolate Chips (go ahead and pour as many as your heart desires!)

Mix zucchini, sugar, oil and eggs. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Add chocolate chips. Pour into greased pans. This makes two good size loafs.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.

*Zucchini bread was one of my Grandpa Altman's favorites :) Love you and missing you always!

God bless!! Hope this makes a great start to your week!

Do you remember, the 21st night of September?

Ok so I really couldn't wait until the 21st of September to write this post because of how much I love September. September, to me, means that I can start listening to Christmas music without Justin getting his Mr. Grinch face on, I can start making the apartment smell of pumkpin and cinnamon, "My future husband" playlist of Michael Buble makes his way back to my ears, and the start of wishing I was home walking through The University of Oregon's campus trees through the greens, yellows, and oranges starts to begin.

I love fall. So much. We WILL be carving pumpkins this year. You can bet your bottom dollar. Though fall here is like having meatloaf leftovers for 4 nights in a row, I like to make the best of it. The weather should start to cool down soon, and I'll be in jeans and a sweater in no time.....??

I already bought an apples and cinnamon air freshener for my classroom so I can have fall everywhere I go :) teehee The only thing that would make my life complete is to be able to order a chai tea from Starbucks and be able to stream in Duck games. Boo overseas Starbucks and TV.

 

You can bet I'll be trying these recipes out the next few weeks (or months....)

• Baked Cinnamon Apples with Ice Cream
• Pumpkin Poppers
• Apple Cider Caramer Cookies (If I can find some apple cider mix)
 
 

I hope you all love fall as much as I do and will be enjoying it to it fullest!

Are you going to be "fall"ing out your apartments or homes this September or will you wait?

 

God Bless!

 



Homemade Muesli.

I have recently discovered that I love muesli. It took me the longest time to figure out how to say it, but thanks to my great friend Emily, I got the correct pronunciation. /moo-z-lee/

haha! That's my best version of Webster's!

When I told her that I was looking for a recipe to make my own granola/muesli she told to just make it myself! Smart girl she is! So here is what I did!

Homemade Muesli:

Yields: One Serving

1/4 c. Organic Oats

2 tbsp. Orange Juice

1 tbsp. Sunflower Seeds

1-2 tbsp. Raisins

1 tsp. Organic Honey

About 10 Crushed Almonds

5 Crushed Walnuts

Directions:

The night before: Mix your oats and orange juice and let sit over night in a sealed container.

The next morining add the rest of your ingredients and mix together.

Feel free to add any other things to this muesli. I honestly don't measure the things out, so if you like something more put more, if you don't like it that much take it out! Easy, peasy!

I eat mine with Greek Yogurt as a morning snack. DELISH!

Additional Add-Ins:

Pistachios

Fresh Fruit

Pumpkin Seeds

Chocolate Chips (mmmm)

You could even add some cinnamon!

Seriously the list goes on and on!

Detox.

I know I am going to get an email from my mother after this post, and maybe even my father, rolling their eyes and telling me I am crazy. Well, sorry fam, you're just going to have to deal with it! :)

It is now 24 days until we are back in the good 'ol U-S-A! We are going to have a very busy summer, including lots of little trips to places like L.A., Hawaii, Portland, and meeting up with our friends from Ireland and The UK in Florence! Yes, that is right, we get to show off our good 'ol state to people from Ireland! Whoop!

Anyways, the reason for this post is to inform you on a new...how do I say this..."eating change" I am going to try. No, no, I am not going to "diet". I know I have no reason to diet, so Mom, get your panties out of a bunch! But I would like to see how my crazy body reacts to something a little different.

I have heard of many juice detoxes and juicing diets, and they have always intrigued me. So I decided to not go overboard, but make up my own rendition. I will keep a journal (here) of how my body reacts (sorry in advance for the "the toilet is my best friend" comments) and tell you any changes that occur. This will also keep me motivated and accountable for sticking with it!

Here is how my menu has turned out:

Breakfast: 2 eggs, 1 fruit smoothie (whatever fresh/frozen fruit we have on hand)

Snack (while the kids are at recess): Greek yogurt and homemade muesli

Lunch: Protein shake and protein bar

Snack (after school): a handful of almonds or walnuts

Dinner: Fruit and veggie smoothie (veggies= spinach and carrots) , protein shake
And if I feel like I am going to starve to death If necessary: a slice of chocolate cake. (kidding)

I am really excited to try out some new smoothie recipes like this, this, and EVEN this.

If you need some helpful hints about different smoothies recipes or what they do for your body, here is a great website/article to check out.

Of course, I will be drinking TONS of water.

Feel free to join me! :)

God bless and stay healthy!

When life gives you lemons, you make dessert!

I LOVE lemon. Not lemons, not even lemon water, but lemon flavored things. Especially dessert. Mmmmmmmmm.

Justin and I have this great tradition (we've done it since our first date) that every time we go to one of our favorite restaurants, The Laughing Planet, we take turns on who gets to eat the lemon. Have you ever tried eating a lemon? My eye starts twitching, my cheeks pinch in, and my attractive scale drops to just about a zero. Justin gets quite the kick out of it, and I, when it's his turn.

Besides this little endevore that we partake in, lemon goes perfectly in any dessert. I can't wait to try out some of these new recipes I found! Maybe you can put a little lemon in your life this weekend!

Lemon Cream Bars

via tasty kitchen

oven: 350

For the Crust:

2/3 cups butter, melted

1 1/2 cups flour                 

1 cup oatmeal

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

pinch salt

For the Filling:

1, 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup lemon juice (fresh please- about 3 lemons)

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.

2. Combine milk and lemon juice. Mix well and set aside for a moment.

3. Mix remaining ingredients until crumbly.

4. Press half of the streusel (dry) mixture into a lightly greased 9×13 baking dish. Pour the lemon mixture over top. Finish by sprinkling remaining streusel over the top of the lemon filling. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool completely then store in the refrigerator.

Lemon Cheesecake Tart

Via: The Dough Puncher

For the Crust:

9 graham cracker crumbs

5 tablespoons melted butter

1/4 cup sugar

For the Filling:

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 1/2 cups milk

3 egg yolks

zest and juice of 1 large lemon

4 oz cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1) Preheat the oven to 350F. In a small bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar. Press into a 9-inch tart pan. Bake for 10 minutes, then let cool while you make the filling.
2) In a medium saucepan, stir together the sugar and cornstarch. Add the milk, yolks, and zest (saving the juice for later), and whisk until well combined. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened. Around 5-8 minutes (don't worry if it's a little longer/shorter). Pour through a seive into a medium-sized bowl, add the lemon juice.
3) In another bowl, beat together the cream cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar until smooth. Add to the lemon custard and whisk until smooth and well combined. Pour into graham cracker crust and refrigerate for several hours until set up (it won't ever set up super thick, but it will be thick enough to cut messy slices)

Is your mouth watering? Mine is.

God bless!