 It happened again. The sun came out, the thermometer rose above 70 and I went into full blown Spring mode. I spent this week planting lettuce in my garden, shopping for flowers to put in my containers, dragging plants that have been spending the winter in the basement, out to the patio and decorating the house for Easter. I embraced every glimpse of Spring that I could find. 🌷 I even washed my car in the driveway. 🚙 Then I took a look at the forecast. 😭As much as I wished that our Spring-like weather was here to stay, it turns out, I was a little hasty in putting away my winter jacket so soon. I was drawn into the hope of Spring by bright sunshine and blooming daffodils only to have my dream shattered by the threat of rain and near freezing temperatures. 🥶  The dip in temperatures next week is making me rethink my menu for the week. Warm soups and hearty oven roasted vegetables is exactly what I'm going to need to stay warm on the upcoming cool March days. 🥣 Do you think if I pour hot soup on my garden, it will save my newly planted vegetables? 🤷🏻♀️ Although I'm disappointed that the thermometer isn't going in the wrong direction (according to me), I'm looking forward to some warm and soothing Chicken Pot Pie Soup next week. This creamy vegetable loaded soup is hearty and delicious AND it's healthy. No cream, no dairy, no butter - just lots of yummy vegetables.  Chicken Pot Pie Soup 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 1/2 pounds uncooked boneless skinless chicken thighs, diced Freshly ground salt and pepper 1/2 tablespoon olive oil 1 white onion, chopped 2 large carrots, sliced 3 cups diced yukon gold potatoes 3 cups finely chopped cauliflower florets 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme) 2 cups of unsweetened almond milk 3 cups low sodium chicken broth 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste Freshly ground black pepper 1 cup frozen peas 1 cup frozen corn 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
 Transfer mixture back to pot and add peas and corn. Simmer 5-10 minutes.  I'll keep you posted on the status of my overhasty planting. 😬 🥬 In the meantime, I'll be dragging all of my patio plants back into the basement for the week. 😅
On another note - I made this soup at my parents house. Don't you agree that they have the prettiest dishes around? This beautiful bowl really stepped up my soup picture game. Thanks for letting me use your dishes mom. 😅 Ciao!
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 I'm a numbers person. I am the absolute worst at remembering names but if you tell me a number - it's permanently written on my brain. For a long time, I assumed that everyone memorized their drivers license number, license plates number, credit card numbers and the phone number of the best pizza place in town. 💁🏻♀️ Like I said - I like numbers. So here are the numbers for my newest chocolate cupcakes: 10 the number of minutes that it took to consume all of these delicious cupcakes 9 the number of times I walked past these cupcakes and snatched a chocolate curl 8 the number of cupcakes that I made in a half batch 7 the number of pictures of these cupcakes that I posted on my blog 6 the number of times I said "mmmmm" while eating this cupcake 5 the minutes that I let these cool before sinking my teeth into one 4 the number of eggs that it takes to make a batch of these decadent cupcakes 3 the trifecta of chocolate in these beauties: cake, frosting and sprinkles 2 different types of chocolate are combined to make these amazing cupcakes 1 the ranking that I would give this cupcake against all other recipes
I've been making chocolate cupcakes from scratch for a long time. Why change up my tried and true recipe now? In short: thecupcakeproject.com is boldly claiming that they have created the "perfect" chocolate cupcake recipe. Obviously - I had to try it for myself. 🧁 I honestly expected to find something very similar to my old standby chocolate cupcake recipe when I checked out the "perfect" chocolate cupcake recipe. I was super surprised to discover a list of ingredients that were actually quite different from my recipe. It certainly peaked my interest enough to give them a try.  Chocolate Cupcakes 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 cup cocoa powder 1/4 cup butter room temperature 1 cup sugar 2 ounces chocolate 2 large eggs room temperature 2 large egg yolks room temperature 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon canola oil 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/3 cup sour cream 1/2 cup water room temperature
 Bake 18 minutes at 350.  Frost these beauties with your favorite frosting. I chose a chocolate, whipped cream and cream cheese frosting. 😋
I decided to only make a half batch of cupcakes because - well, honestly - I have zero will power when it comes to chocolate cupcakes and I didn't trust myself to have too many sitting around the house. 😅
Ciao!  Who couldn't use a little more energy to get through their day? 🙋🏻♀️ For the past 8 weeks, I have been participating in a test group for a new Open Fit workout program. It's really exciting to be a part of the beginning stages of a new workout program and participating this group has been a great form of exercise accountability. Let's just say, there's nothing that motivates me to stick to a workout routine more than having to submit weekly selfies and measurements. 😬 Five days a week, the Open Fit trainers are introducing me to new moves and workouts that are kicking my butt. I've got sore muscles in places that I didn't even know I had muscles. 💪🏻🤣  I'm doing my best to keep my nutrition on track while I'm in the test group so that I can get the most out of the program. Somedays it's a struggle - but, like I said - I'm doing my best. 💁🏻♀️ The biggest obstacle for me isn't eating healthy meals - it's snacking. I'm trying to train myself to incorporate more healthy snacks like fresh fruits and lean protein into my day instead of reaching for a handful of chocolate chips. 🥕 To help myself avoid unhealthy snacks - I've started stocking my frig with these super delicious s'mores energy bites. They're filled with all the good stuff that I need to keep up my energy levels and a little bit of the sweet stuff too. Just one is enough to fill me up and satisfy my undeniable sweet tooth. I've made several different versions of these little peanut butter balls but I think this one might just be my new favorite.  Check out these amazing ingredients. I mean, how could these NOT turn out to be the most beautiful and amazing little snack bites ever?  S'mores Energy Bites 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats 1/3 cup finely crushed graham crackers 2 tablespoons chia seeds A pinch of sea salt 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter 1/4 cup honey 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips 1/4 cup marshmallow bits
 Store in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Making s'mores over the campfire is already on my bucket list for summer 2021. While I wait for the ice to melt and the temperatures to rise, I'll have to make my own (indoor) chocolate, peanut butter and marshmallow creations. I imagine that these energy bites are just about as close as you can get to actual s'mores - minus the campfire.
Ciao!  I do the majority of the grocery shopping for our family but on the rare occasion that my husband does happen to find himself in the supermarket - he finds the most unusual things. 😂 I go to the grocery store at least 3 times a week and I probably walk down the dairy aisle every time I go. I can honestly say that I've never seen the "pancakes in a can" on the shelf just above the butter, until my eagle eye husband pointed them out to me on a grocery date. (Yes, we go on grocery shopping dates.) 😅 My forward thinking husband was so fascinated by the concept of squirting a pancake out of a can - there was no way we were leaving the supermarket without purchasing one. 🥞 As luck would have it, we were headed to meet my family that weekend so he decided to test our new squirtable pancakes out on the group. Spoiler alert - pancakes in a can was a disappointment. It's a novel idea but they didn't really live up to our expectations.  To be honest, that wasn't the only time that we've been fooled by genius marketing. Anyone else jump on the frozen dinner bandwagon? They're delicious but holy sodium batman! 😂 I've been fooled by recipes too. There was a one pan chocolate cake that ended up all over the bottom of my oven because apparently, my 8" pan wasn't big enough. And an "easy" apple pie that took no less than 3 hours to assemble. 🤣
I have to admit that when I read this recipe, I had serious hesitation about making a nut bar with only 3 ingredients. I didn't want to walk into another - too good to be true scenario but, in a moment of rare boldness, I decided to tackle this simple nut bar recipe anyway. I had no idea if this was going to work but what did I have to lose? Only 3 ingredients that I already had on hand - nuts, puffed rice and syrup. 🥜 This nut bar took under 5 minutes to put together. Sound too good to be true - doesn't it? Plot twist - it's not. 👏🏻 It's actually super EASY to make and it is DELICIOUS!  Nut Bars 1 1/2 cups roasted nuts (I used 1 cup almonds and 1/2 cup peanuts) ½ cup puffed millet cereal ¼ teaspoon salt (optional) ¼ cup pure maple syrup
 Let cool 1 hour. Remove from pan using parchment paper. Cut into bars.  I've added honey, agave and brown rice syrup to granola bars but I've never baked them using maple syrup as the binder. Who knew that maple syrup gets hard when you bake it? 🤷🏻♀️
There's a lot of room for interpretation in this recipe. I chose almonds and peanuts for my bars and since my peanuts were salted, I didn't add any additional salt to the recipe. Ciao! |
