Here goes…

Brrrrrrrrr It’s pretty cold here today in Tennessee  today and I lack motivation to get up and moving but duty calls so I must. I love my job but there are days that the world of retail just doesn’t excite me. It will prove to be a fun and productive day though.

This is a quick post to check in and say I hope wherever you find yourself this Saturday that you make the most of it and have a great day You deserve it! If you were among the thousands that participated in the Black Friday Shopping then you will probably find yourself  just taking it easy today Enjoy!

I am starting my half marathon training tomorrow and I’m a little intimidated. Although I am a regular runner I run a lot on the treadmill and there is quite a difference with that and road running. Plus I have to start training on hills Before I started running I used to walk hills a lot but have gotten out that routine a bit so now let the fun begin. I will be posting my stats here on my blog  just to keep me accountable and on track. I really am excited and know it’s the beginning of an adventure. Wish me luck

Well it’s off to work for now. I’ll be stopping back in this evening to share something yummy with you

Have a great day !

Traditions and Special Memories

I think we all have traditions that we share with our families and friends. I get very sentimental around the holidays because that’s where a lot of traditions are born. Most of my holiday traditions growing up were centered around my grandmother’s house. I had always been closer to my grandparents on my mother’s side. We called her mamaw. Both sets of grandparents were affectionately called mamaw and papaw. I believe it’s a thing of the south

I remember fondly of being in her house around the holidays and it was always so warm and cozy and smelled of the most delicious aromas. You always felt welcome there and never needed an invitation to come in. Her door was always open. Although my family still gets together for the holidays, she was definitely the glue that held us together. I miss her very much and can still hear her funny little laugh she had. We still carry on the traditions around Thanksgiving and Christmas but it’s still just not the same.

I don’t know of too many grandmothers who don’t have recipes to hand down even though the dishes don’t come out like grandmas. I found this to be true of a lot of recipes that were my mamaws. I’m sure it was that extra pinch and dash of love they put into everything they made. I used to love to watch my mamaw cook. She rarely used a mixer because everything she did she either had her hands in it or she used good ole elbow grease. I love my kitchen gadgets but I do find myself just using my own two hands a lot.

My husband and his family didn’t have a grandmother or a mamaw they had a Gabby.I never was fortunate enough to meet Gabby but from the stories I hear she was a vivacious ,spunky little woman who was always the life of the party. Sometime after her passing one of her granddaughters compiled a book of her recipes  to give away to the family as gifts. It’s full of all kinds of recipes that were very much traditions for their family and most of them are in her original handwriting which makes it even more special

I love recipes. I love looking at all kinds of cook books. I know I definitely get that from my mother. She has a huge collection of them. I am always scanning tons of them for inspiration. I like to take the recipes that were childhood favorites and convert them to being vegan. Some are challenging but I love a challenge Tonights challenge is a Gabby favorite and it’s a Moravian Sugar Cake. Before marrying my husband I had never heard of such a thing. He is from Ohio and it is very much a holiday favorite. My challenge is not so much about making it vegan but downsizing it. Her recipe makes a huge quantity. So here goes  Gabby……

Moravian Sugar Cake

( Note I halved everything to make a smaller batch) This is her recipe as it reads

Pre-heat oven to  375

3/4 cup Earth Balance

1 cup mashed potato

1 cup sugar

2 eggs( I used chia eggs 1 Tbsp chia seeds to 1/4 cup water per egg)

2 packages yeast in 1 cup warm water

1 tsp salt

Mix above ingredients and add 3 cups all-purpose flour and let stand 5 minutes

Add an additional 2 cups of flour

Place into 8 inch pans and punch holes in tops. Drizzle melted butter and 2 cups brown sugar + 5 tsp cinnamon.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Behold the wonderful flavor of a yeast cake with a brown sugary crusted top. Can you smell it?

Do you have favorite traditions in  your family ? What are they?

Life is short so cherish those that you love Have a great evening!

Thankful…..

I am thankful for a lot in my life and wanted to share some of those things with you through pictures. Some of the things I often take for granted but I am very thankful for (These are not in any order

 Little furry babies

 

 

 

A husband who loves,supports,and is always cheering me on

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A huge family that loves and supports me

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grace because I couldn't and wouldn't want to live without it.

 

Fruits,veggies and all the whole foods I love

 

 

 

Hands that have the ability to mix,blend,stir and whisk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Warmth....enough said

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

running water or just water for that matter

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ability to use my legs for walking and running.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I could go on and on but that would make this post enormous! I had a friend who had posted on her Facebook status this morning that said…..”Thinking about all you have to be thankful for makes you happy It’s hard to be negative when we focus on being thankful”. I thought that was a great thought.

I wish you and your families a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

When trying to decide what I want  to blog about most often  I get an  inspiration from a song or things I have read during the day. Today I had this little saying dancing around in my head. You know the one that goes……..

“What are little girls made of?

Sugar and spice

And all that’s nice,

That’s what little girls are made of “

I believe deep inside each girl , lady and woman there is a little princess. I think that is why we are  drawn to the color pink and love everything sparkly. There lies in each of us the desire to know we are beautiful and that we are worthy of the time and pursuit for relationships. We are emotional and detailed oriented. We are excellent at multi tasking and have that instilled gift to nurture and protect. This is how were created and designed. We know we were created for so much more than what most of us live from day to day.The world and its views that are thrown at us each day has a way of bruising those things to the point where we can lose sight of  things that are deep inside us. Our little princess crowns get beat up a bit . We are bombarded on daily basis of what the perfect size and shape for us should be and how we should dress and how we should look.We try to live up to that with such fervor that we will harm ourselves just to try to keep in line with that image. It’s very exhausting !

Living with a distorted view of myself and having had an eating disorder I have such a heart for women who struggle with the same thing. I have such a compassion and a desire to see people live free from this lifestyle. If you are reading this and you  struggle with disordered eating and have a  distorted view of your self. I want you to know that you are beautiful and you do have what it takes. There is more in you then you realize It’s ok that we are not perfect because none of us are. I am learning everyday that it’s ok to be me There is only one me and only one you so we do the world a favor when we stop trying so hard to be somebody else and just be ourselves It’s also very freeing

As I was in the kitchen this evening creating my Pumpkin Stack Cake I had these thoughts going through my mind and I just wanted to share and encourage you.This week I am thankful for a  lot , especially for a  healthy body that really shouldn’t be with all that I have put it through. I am thankful for family, friends and a very patient loving husband I could go on and on but I will get straight to the that decadent cake I just made.

Ok so maybe it wouldn’t win an award for prettiest but let me tell you…it’s delicious

Pumpkin Stack Cake

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 can pumpkin (2 cups)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup molasses

1 ripe banana (puree)

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

3 chia eggs ( 3 Tbsp Chia seeds + 3/4 cup water)

1. Pre-heat  350

2. Grease 2 round baking pans

3.Mix all ingredients until well blended and divide and pour into pans.

4. Bake for 45 minutes.

Pumpkin Butter By  Oh She glows

• 1 (29 ounce) can pumpkin puree, approx. 3 1/2 cups or fresh
• 3/4 cup apple juice (I made fresh but you can used pre-made)
• 1.5 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup Sucanat (or brown sugar)
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Juice of half a lemon

 

Directions: Combine pumpkin, apple juice, spices, and sugar in a large saucepan and stir well. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until thickened. Cover with lid and stir frequently. Remove from heat. Adjust spices to taste. Stir in lemon juice, or more to taste. Once cool, pumpkin butter can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge. Makes enough to fill one large mason jar or about 3.5 cups.

*After the cakes have cooled a bit carefully slice into  layers and then layer with pumpkin butter. 100 % vegan and my hubby very much approved

I just wanted to encourage you this evening ! I hope you have a great one

When the moon hits your eye…..

When you hear that song  it makes  you want to be spending a lovely romantic night in Paris sharing a big pizza pie huh?

Well since I am not in Paris I will settle for home sweet home. My husband and I have started a cute little tradition in our home on Saturdays. We call it Pizza Saturday Even though I eat a vegan diet and he is pretty much a carnivore we separately create our own individual pizzas on Saturdays. He is usually keeping up on all his football teams and I am usually kicking around in the kitchen or taking a cat nap. Even so it’s a fun little thing we have started on Saturdays.

I got cranking this morning with the preparations for my pizza today because when it comes time to eat I’m always READY I sautéed yellow squash, broccoli, onions, green peppers and I then chopped up quite a few black olives ( I love black olives ).To top it off I shredded some vegan cheese.

 My newest creation to add to my pizza came when I cut open my first young coconut.

I have purchased them before but I always would let them go to ruin before I ever got around to using them I bought a mature coconut last week and tried my hand at hacking it open to no avail.

Let me tell you I had coconut shrapnel all over me and my kitchen I am still finding pieces of that little sucker everywhere! I educated myself this time around by watching some helpful hints on you tube and I’m proud to say I won The beautiful coconut juice flowed and I was able to scoop out all the meat  inside. I chopped it up into little bits and made a marinade of  Braggs Liquid Amino , smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper,and maple syrup. I let it sit an soak up those juices for about 4 hours then when it came time to assemble my pizza I drained it and sautéed it until crispy. After I created my beautiful vegan pizza I spread those delightful little coconut “bacon” bits on top and it was so delicious. My belly was happy

Our home smelled of a fine italian restaurant and we snuggled up on the couch to watch t.v and enjoy our pizza creations. It was a great Pizza Saturday

” I would do anything for love “

Ahhh meatloaf and no I’m not talking about the rock star; however I do like some of his  music I even had this song playing in my head as started thinking about how to create a yummy vegan meatless loaf I think some of the lyrics go on to say “I would do anything for love, but I won’t do that” . Well I won’t  have meat in my meatloaf but I was craving comfort food again today and meatloaf was one of those dishes I grew up with that I loved.I don’t  miss meat but I’m always thinking of how to recreate those comfort foods.

  I got into the kitchen and got my creative juices to flowing . I don’t think I have ever had so much fun trying to create food before The great advantage of creating vegan dishes like a meatloaf is that you can actually test it out as you go along. You can’t really do that with dishes that start with raw meat. EWWW , unless you happen to like tartar , and again  I say EWWW !

Those little hamsters were reeling and I was excitedly going through my pantry pulling out beans, spices, and grains. I started out a little apprehensive but once I got going there was no stopping me .I was on a roll or you could say loaf

My meatless meatloaf goes something like this:

1 small beet cooked( I used canned beets)

1 150 oz. can of pinto beans

1 1/2 cups chickpeas

1 stalk of celery

3/4 cup chopped carrot

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 cup rolled oats

1 Tbsp Vital Wheat Gluten

2 Tbsp Braggs liquid amino (or soy sauce)

1 Tbsp onion powder (not salt)

1 Tbsp garlic powder(not salt)

1/4 tsp smoked paprika

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Chia egg (1 Tbsp ground chia seed+1/4 cup water)

Organic ketchup for topping

salt & pepper to taste

1. Pre-heat oven to 375

2. Saute onion, celery and carrots until tender

3. Take drained beans and beets + all spices,Braggs and olive oil and mash

4. Add in rolled oats, Vital Wheat Gluten and chia egg and blend

5. Place in a greased loaf pan and bake for 35 minutes

The end result was quite delish if I do say so myself. Who says vegans don’t have options when it comes to high protein meals? This meatloaf has lots of protein from the beans and has loads of nutrition from all the other veggies + the rolled oats :D I think the next time it could use a little more moisture I would probably add a touch more olive oil,but otherwise the texture and taste were great!

Serve this baby with your favorite vegan sides like mashed potatoes or anything your heart desires and enjoy

It’s been a long day and I haven’t even done my run for the day so off I go

Next week I am dedicating my whole blog to things I’m thankful for . Thanksgiving week is one of my favorite times of the year It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside

What are you thankful for this season ?

I hope you realize you are beautiful and you have tons of potential on the inside of you ! Never give up on you

Amazing Graze

One of the definitions of the word graze is : to eat a variety of appetizers as a full meal. That pretty much describes how my eating habits are. Just like a cow (Don’t you think cows have the sweetest eyes? )  I love variety and I could simply graze on food all day long. Yes I am a grazer and proud to be If you were to look inside my little lunch tote everyday you would find all kinds of stuff  I pack just incase. There is always a banana ,apple or some kind of chopped up veggie and now that I eat a vegan diet nuts and dried fruit have become a favorite of mine. I find they give me lots of energy and keep me satisfied until lunch or dinner. Being a grazer however I like to have variety and I don’t like to get stuck eating one certain thing all the time.

Thus brings in this post about granola and granola type bars. I have tried so many different kinds and brands and there are some good ones out there ,but I still like to know exactly what I’m putting in my body. Besides you can have fun creating your own with the things you love the most   ‘That’s what I found myself doing this evening. Creating the my perfect granola bar. They are baking right at this moment and I can’t wait to try one They smell divine!

I really don’t have a very specific recipe I just combined all the ingredients that looked yummy to me. That is the grace you can have  with granola , you can be as creative as you like. Mine were :

• 2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
• 1 cups of whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 TBSP. of flaxseed 
• 1 1/2 TBSP chia seeds
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 TBSP Molasses
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 3/4 cup of shredded coconut
• 1/3 cup of brown sugar
• 2 oz. of chopped pecans
• 2 oz. of english walnuts 
• You can also add chunks of dark chocolate or raisins (optional which I did)
• Pre-heat oven to 350 and bake in a greased pan for about 25 minutes

Pretty yummy! I can’t wait to pack my lunch for tomorrow.

Are you 3 meal a day kind of person or are you a grazer? If you are a grazer what your favorite snacks?

Yes grazing is amazing but truly grace is even more I couldn’t live without it. Wishing you a warm and toasty night