On my way home from hanging out with my peamate on Tuesday, I decided to pop into Mourelatos on the way home. I finally found some coconut oil to my amazement (couldn't for the life of me find it anywhere else). I don't need it anymore, but I picked some up as I'm curious about baking with it. =D
I had a super awersome time at my friend's this past weekend and I'm stoked for the upcoming weekend... it's comic con time again!! The cupcakes were a hit! Ariane nommed them up as did my friend.
I'm back to feeling super drained again though. Not too pleased about that. I'm sure the lack of healthy food helped in that, as did my lack of sleep.
I didn't get to do my weigh-in on the 10th, which kind of bummed me out. But I decided I would skip it this time around and just log all next month.
As the days get cooler, I've decided to up my exercise time. I'll take advantage of the outdoors as much as possible, but will start getting into the groove of exercising indoors (at home).
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Gluten-free & Dairy-free Choco Cupcakes
Heading out to my friend's place this weekend, I decided to bring some nummy baked goods. Her eldest daughter, who I like to call my niece has a lot of food allergies.. gluten, dairy, soy, most beans.. =S what to do, what to do!! After a bit of searching for nummy recipes and then more searching for good substitutes I was able to find a recipe that didn't call for all these weird ingredients (that I had no idea where to find..unless maybe in an organic food store).
this is the recipe which I mostly followed.. but made a few modifications to it, to make it dairy-free:
http://jessicakesblog.blogspot.ca/2011/08/gluten-free-chocolate-cupcakes-and-more.html
Gluten-free & Dairy-Free Choco Cupcakes (makes about 2 dozen)
In a bowl sift together:
1 cup rice flour (white)
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup glutinous rice flour
1 cup cocoa powder (I use Fry's)
1.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp baking soda
2 cups sugar
1 tsp sea salt
In a separate bowl, mix the following together:
2/4 cup Mott's unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup oil
2 eggs + 2 egg whites
1 cup almond milk
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
In a third bowl, mix (mix together until it looks like melted choco):
12 tbsp cocoa powder (I sifted it because it was clumpy)
4 tbsp vegetable oil
Add choco mixture to the egg mixture, stir until combined. Then add the liquid ingredients to flour ingredients and whisk together.
Pour into muffin tins.
Bake at 350F for aprox 15mins.
Watch carefully.. I made a batch of cupcakes and as I only have 1 muffin tray, the rest I placed in a 9"x2" springform pan. The cupcakes were done after 13mins, the cake took a little longer.. maybe 18mins or so.
It's done when you can insert a chopstick and it comes out clean (or still a little moist but not overly so)
I left out the coffee as I didn't think my friend would be pleased to have her toddler bouncing off the walls all night long. haha
I will be making another batch of this upon my return. And intend to make a few more mods.
I'll be replacing the sugar with honey, only using applesauce instead of applesauce & oil and will remove the vanilla extract, as I'm out of regular almond milk and will be using vanilla flavoured almond milk. =3
I'll also be adding espresso to it, where the coffee was left out.. not sure if I'll add it in powder form or actually brew a cup of it (okay 1/4 cup haha)
and I'll be making some mocha buttercream to add on top!
I'm actually really eager to play around with this recipe some more, it turned out really tasty!
Yup! I totally had a taste test *drools*
Here's a picture! they turned out really dark, but don't let the colour fool you.. they're oh so yummy!!
this is the recipe which I mostly followed.. but made a few modifications to it, to make it dairy-free:
http://jessicakesblog.blogspot.ca/2011/08/gluten-free-chocolate-cupcakes-and-more.html
Gluten-free & Dairy-Free Choco Cupcakes (makes about 2 dozen)
In a bowl sift together:
1 cup rice flour (white)
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup glutinous rice flour
1 cup cocoa powder (I use Fry's)
1.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp baking soda
2 cups sugar
1 tsp sea salt
In a separate bowl, mix the following together:
2/4 cup Mott's unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup oil
2 eggs + 2 egg whites
1 cup almond milk
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
In a third bowl, mix (mix together until it looks like melted choco):
12 tbsp cocoa powder (I sifted it because it was clumpy)
4 tbsp vegetable oil
Add choco mixture to the egg mixture, stir until combined. Then add the liquid ingredients to flour ingredients and whisk together.
Pour into muffin tins.
Bake at 350F for aprox 15mins.
Watch carefully.. I made a batch of cupcakes and as I only have 1 muffin tray, the rest I placed in a 9"x2" springform pan. The cupcakes were done after 13mins, the cake took a little longer.. maybe 18mins or so.
It's done when you can insert a chopstick and it comes out clean (or still a little moist but not overly so)
I left out the coffee as I didn't think my friend would be pleased to have her toddler bouncing off the walls all night long. haha
I will be making another batch of this upon my return. And intend to make a few more mods.
I'll be replacing the sugar with honey, only using applesauce instead of applesauce & oil and will remove the vanilla extract, as I'm out of regular almond milk and will be using vanilla flavoured almond milk. =3
I'll also be adding espresso to it, where the coffee was left out.. not sure if I'll add it in powder form or actually brew a cup of it (okay 1/4 cup haha)
and I'll be making some mocha buttercream to add on top!
I'm actually really eager to play around with this recipe some more, it turned out really tasty!
Yup! I totally had a taste test *drools*
Here's a picture! they turned out really dark, but don't let the colour fool you.. they're oh so yummy!!
Monday, August 20, 2012
Bananananers nom!
Had a few bananas getting ripe on my fridge.. was feeling a bit down today, so what better than to make noms! Baking soothes me and cheers me up, so I was able to kill two birdies with one stone so to speak. *nods*
I had 5 bananas, just enough for 2 separate recipes. The first I tried for a first time, chose to modify the recipe with tips from someone who had commented on the recipe, it was fun and so I was inspired to play around with the second recipe (one I've previously made).
The first was a Zucchini-Banana Bread, I'll give the recipe I used below, followed by a link to the actual recipe.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp + a bit more baking powder (I put 3/4 and then maybe a little less than half of 1/4 tsp)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
1 cup mashed ripe banana
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp banana extract
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chipits semi-sweet choco chips
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the first 5 dry ingredients. Set aside.
2. In small bowl, beat egg, banana, oil, honey & extracts. Stir into dry ingredients until moistened. Fold in zucchini and choco chips.
3. Transfer to greased loaf pan (I used two 9"x4" bread pans, but you could easily fit it all into one).
Bake at 325F for 40-45mins or 'till chopstick (toothpick/fork) comes out clean.
Cool for ~ 10mins before removing from pan(s) to wire rack.
Yields: 1, 2 or 3 loaves (depends on the size of pan you use)
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/zucchini-banana-bread (modification taken from "bvsk"'s comment)
I pass all my recipes through myfitnesspal.com, so I can keep within my total # of calories & carbs per day. The above picture is the amount per portion, aproximately half inch slices. 10 per loaf, making a total of 20 portions(slices) for the above recipe. I obviously won't eat all of them, one loaf is going to my bestie lil' Drago, but it helps to give me an idea of how much I can eat. =3
====================================================================
The second recipe is for Choco Espresso Banana Bread
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp espresso powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup very ripe bananas (~ 3 large bananas)
a little less than 1/4 cup honey (around 3/4 of a 1/4 cup)
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted (~ 4 tbsp)
1/4 cup Silk True Almond (Unsweetened Almond Milk Original)
1 egg
1 cup choco chips
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F and grease 9"x5" loaf pan
2. In large bowl, whisk flour, espresso, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
3. In bowl, rapidly beat butter & honey until light and fluffy... (ok, butter and honey don't really get light and fluffy, but mix until it looks well incorporated). Add egg, beat until well blended. Beat in mashed bananas and almond milk.
4. Add dry ingredients to wet, stirring until just combined. Fold in choco chips.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Place in oven, and bake for 55-60mins or until chopstick comes out clean.
Let bread cool in pan for aprox 10mins before transferring to wire rack to cool completely. I find it's easier to pass a knife or icing spatula along the side, so when you turn it over after 10mins have passed, it comes right out.
Yields: 1 loaf
The original recipe can be found here: http://www.brighteyedbaker.com/2012/01/12/confession-46-i-have-a-family-of-monkeys-chocolate-espresso-banana-bread/
I only made 1 loaf, only had 1 clean pan left as the other 2 had the above bread in them.. again, my slices are usually pretty constant. 0.5" slices, made 11 portions in this loaf (the pan's a tad bigger than my other two). So the above pic, is the nutritional value for 1 portion.
Sorry if I'm a tad redundant or if my ramblings aren't making much sense.. I'm about to "tomber dans les pommes" aka pass out. I was tired to begin with (before I started baking) but I just had some of the espresso choco cake and it made me drowsy. (caffeine makes me drowsy/sleepy/klunk out, etc..)
I had 5 bananas, just enough for 2 separate recipes. The first I tried for a first time, chose to modify the recipe with tips from someone who had commented on the recipe, it was fun and so I was inspired to play around with the second recipe (one I've previously made).
The first was a Zucchini-Banana Bread, I'll give the recipe I used below, followed by a link to the actual recipe.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp + a bit more baking powder (I put 3/4 and then maybe a little less than half of 1/4 tsp)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
1 cup mashed ripe banana
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp banana extract
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chipits semi-sweet choco chips
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the first 5 dry ingredients. Set aside.
2. In small bowl, beat egg, banana, oil, honey & extracts. Stir into dry ingredients until moistened. Fold in zucchini and choco chips.
3. Transfer to greased loaf pan (I used two 9"x4" bread pans, but you could easily fit it all into one).
Bake at 325F for 40-45mins or 'till chopstick (toothpick/fork) comes out clean.
Cool for ~ 10mins before removing from pan(s) to wire rack.
Yields: 1, 2 or 3 loaves (depends on the size of pan you use)
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/zucchini-banana-bread (modification taken from "bvsk"'s comment)
I pass all my recipes through myfitnesspal.com, so I can keep within my total # of calories & carbs per day. The above picture is the amount per portion, aproximately half inch slices. 10 per loaf, making a total of 20 portions(slices) for the above recipe. I obviously won't eat all of them, one loaf is going to my bestie lil' Drago, but it helps to give me an idea of how much I can eat. =3
====================================================================
The second recipe is for Choco Espresso Banana Bread
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp espresso powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup very ripe bananas (~ 3 large bananas)
a little less than 1/4 cup honey (around 3/4 of a 1/4 cup)
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted (~ 4 tbsp)
1/4 cup Silk True Almond (Unsweetened Almond Milk Original)
1 egg
1 cup choco chips
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F and grease 9"x5" loaf pan
2. In large bowl, whisk flour, espresso, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
3. In bowl, rapidly beat butter & honey until light and fluffy... (ok, butter and honey don't really get light and fluffy, but mix until it looks well incorporated). Add egg, beat until well blended. Beat in mashed bananas and almond milk.
4. Add dry ingredients to wet, stirring until just combined. Fold in choco chips.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Place in oven, and bake for 55-60mins or until chopstick comes out clean.
Let bread cool in pan for aprox 10mins before transferring to wire rack to cool completely. I find it's easier to pass a knife or icing spatula along the side, so when you turn it over after 10mins have passed, it comes right out.
Yields: 1 loaf
The original recipe can be found here: http://www.brighteyedbaker.com/2012/01/12/confession-46-i-have-a-family-of-monkeys-chocolate-espresso-banana-bread/
I only made 1 loaf, only had 1 clean pan left as the other 2 had the above bread in them.. again, my slices are usually pretty constant. 0.5" slices, made 11 portions in this loaf (the pan's a tad bigger than my other two). So the above pic, is the nutritional value for 1 portion.
Sorry if I'm a tad redundant or if my ramblings aren't making much sense.. I'm about to "tomber dans les pommes" aka pass out. I was tired to begin with (before I started baking) but I just had some of the espresso choco cake and it made me drowsy. (caffeine makes me drowsy/sleepy/klunk out, etc..)
Friday, August 10, 2012
decisions, decisions
I can say, this month, I "let myself go" a bit... and I see the difference. Not positive -__- So, I've decided to use it as more motivation! I CAN DO THIS!! YESH!! It's time to figure out a work out plan, a more regular one and to look into fitness with a trainer.
Good "YIPPEE!!" moment was that I lost a pants size. Down to a 12 from a 14!! I'm really very proud of myself *nods* But now, the question is.. "what MORE can I do?"
I've been doing more walking recently, mainly because I'm on vacation so I can up and go as I like. But what else can I do? What other types of exercises can I do to tone down? While I will keep at the crunches and half sit-ups I've been going with, I think more is in order. It's time to shop around. Do I want to join a YMCA or a gym? I've read up on how some YMCAs have trainers as well as personal trainers. It's time to decide, do I want a full-time trainer or just someone who gives me a workout schedule and checks back with me periodically. Also, which one I can afford?
There are a lot of changes coming about me recently. If you read my other blog, you'll learn all about my mishaps and from where my decision to get therapy comes from. Yes, therapy. Outside help, for me, because I am broken in so many ways but am stumped as to how to go about fixing the broken parts.
So my workout expenses, as well as my schedule, will have to coincide with my therapy and its expenses, my work and my Korean (self-teaching). And if the funds are there as well as time, driving lessons.
Good "YIPPEE!!" moment was that I lost a pants size. Down to a 12 from a 14!! I'm really very proud of myself *nods* But now, the question is.. "what MORE can I do?"
I've been doing more walking recently, mainly because I'm on vacation so I can up and go as I like. But what else can I do? What other types of exercises can I do to tone down? While I will keep at the crunches and half sit-ups I've been going with, I think more is in order. It's time to shop around. Do I want to join a YMCA or a gym? I've read up on how some YMCAs have trainers as well as personal trainers. It's time to decide, do I want a full-time trainer or just someone who gives me a workout schedule and checks back with me periodically. Also, which one I can afford?
There are a lot of changes coming about me recently. If you read my other blog, you'll learn all about my mishaps and from where my decision to get therapy comes from. Yes, therapy. Outside help, for me, because I am broken in so many ways but am stumped as to how to go about fixing the broken parts.
So my workout expenses, as well as my schedule, will have to coincide with my therapy and its expenses, my work and my Korean (self-teaching). And if the funds are there as well as time, driving lessons.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
New Weight Goal July 10th 2012
After entering my weigh-in today, I was prompted that since I had lost over 10lbs to recalculate my goals. So, I changed the goal weight from 150lbs to 135lbs. I had been thinking about it for a long time, but had been telling myself that I wanted to wait until I reached 150lbs before lowering it. But why wait? Kind of felt like I was just putting in an excuse. So, when the site prompted me to re-evaluate my goals since I've lost over 10lbs I decided now was a good time to change them. New goals set and away we go! Continuing on with mah perseverance!
I've dropped everyday meal smoothie/thickies. I'm going to start back with the green smoothies but the thickies was too much and usually turned out being overly sweet. I ended up waisting the last one I made because it was too concentrated and had too strong of a coconut taste. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE coconut, but if the taste is too strong, I've found I can't drink more than 1/4cup of it and then even if I try to go back to it later, I get a woosy feeling. Not cool. =S
I've dropped everyday meal smoothie/thickies. I'm going to start back with the green smoothies but the thickies was too much and usually turned out being overly sweet. I ended up waisting the last one I made because it was too concentrated and had too strong of a coconut taste. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE coconut, but if the taste is too strong, I've found I can't drink more than 1/4cup of it and then even if I try to go back to it later, I get a woosy feeling. Not cool. =S
Thursday, June 21, 2012
something new..
Ok, so I've been trying these new "concoctions" over at greenthickies.com. Picture a green smoothie but with oats and other stuff added to it to make it a full meal. The first one I tried was Almond milk smoothie (thickie) and it was good, albeit it could've used a tad more blending.
I have some left over, was going to eat it yesterday but it seems to have frozen at the back of my fridge O.o makes me wonder if it isn't too cold in there. I tried eating some as slush, but it was weird.. almost as though the kale parted from the rest of the slop.
I went off to blend me another this morning. "Morning Mango"... it was lovely until I got about 1/4 of the way into my cup. TOO SWEET! Dx and I LOVE sweets, but this was mother of pearl sweetness! *dies* I think I know what the problem was, I was supposed to use unsweetened (desiccated) coconut.. but I ended up buying unsweetened fine coconut (still desiccated, only smaller bits). Like the kind you would use to roll desserts in? Ya, that kind. So, while initially it might not be super sweet, it becomes an overbearing taste of coconut, mixed in with sweet sweet mango.
Now I need to find something I could mix in there to divert the taste a little. Or drink it in small portions, like quarter cups =P
I think, I might just stick to the smoothies for the time being! Leave the thickies for another time. I like how the thickie is a full meal, and useful if say I don't have time to cook or it's too hot or something but otherwise, when I first wake up, just a regular smoothie is enough to keep me until my supper.
I bought all these fresh fruits and berries. mmmm I can't wait to make nummy smoothies. California push over! Because Quebec strawberries are FINALLY back in season and those are by far THE best!
Smoothie ideas from greenthickies.com:
http://www.greenthickies.com/recipes/green-smoothie-recipes/
So far my favourite green smoothie is the PB&J green smoothie from frantically simple.
Link here: http://franticallysimple.com/2011/07/green-smoothies/
Behold, Mew, unsure about ze green substance (PB&J) I made XD
I've just been given a wake up call that websites don't stick around indefinitely. So just in case my fav recipe decides to fly the coop as some other recipes on other websites have, I'm posting the ingredients herein. (edit: April 11th 2018)
PB&J Green Smoothie (not pictured)
Author: Heidi
Recipe type: Breakfast
Prep time: 10 mins Total time: 10 mins
Tastes great, great for you, and a color that will freak out the neighbors. What more could you want in a smoothie?
Ingredients
Apple juice
Kale
Spinach
Fresh or frozen strawberries
bananas
natural peanut butter
Instructions
Drink.
Feel great!
I have some left over, was going to eat it yesterday but it seems to have frozen at the back of my fridge O.o makes me wonder if it isn't too cold in there. I tried eating some as slush, but it was weird.. almost as though the kale parted from the rest of the slop.
I went off to blend me another this morning. "Morning Mango"... it was lovely until I got about 1/4 of the way into my cup. TOO SWEET! Dx and I LOVE sweets, but this was mother of pearl sweetness! *dies* I think I know what the problem was, I was supposed to use unsweetened (desiccated) coconut.. but I ended up buying unsweetened fine coconut (still desiccated, only smaller bits). Like the kind you would use to roll desserts in? Ya, that kind. So, while initially it might not be super sweet, it becomes an overbearing taste of coconut, mixed in with sweet sweet mango.
Now I need to find something I could mix in there to divert the taste a little. Or drink it in small portions, like quarter cups =P
I think, I might just stick to the smoothies for the time being! Leave the thickies for another time. I like how the thickie is a full meal, and useful if say I don't have time to cook or it's too hot or something but otherwise, when I first wake up, just a regular smoothie is enough to keep me until my supper.
I bought all these fresh fruits and berries. mmmm I can't wait to make nummy smoothies. California push over! Because Quebec strawberries are FINALLY back in season and those are by far THE best!
Smoothie ideas from greenthickies.com:
http://www.greenthickies.com/recipes/green-smoothie-recipes/
So far my favourite green smoothie is the PB&J green smoothie from frantically simple.
Link here: http://franticallysimple.com/2011/07/green-smoothies/
Behold, Mew, unsure about ze green substance (PB&J) I made XD
I've just been given a wake up call that websites don't stick around indefinitely. So just in case my fav recipe decides to fly the coop as some other recipes on other websites have, I'm posting the ingredients herein. (edit: April 11th 2018)
PB&J Green Smoothie (not pictured)
Author: Heidi
Recipe type: Breakfast
Prep time: 10 mins Total time: 10 mins
Tastes great, great for you, and a color that will freak out the neighbors. What more could you want in a smoothie?
Ingredients
Apple juice
Kale
Spinach
Fresh or frozen strawberries
bananas
natural peanut butter
Instructions
- Fill your blender to the 2 cup line with apple juice (or water and a couple of tablespoons of apple juice concentrate.)
- Add some kale and spinach leaves. Pulse. Keep adding greens and pulsing until your blender is filled to the 4 cup line.
- Add about 1½ cups of fresh or frozen strawberries, two or three bananas and a tablespoon or two of natural peanut butter.
- Blend.
Drink.
Feel great!
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Yay!!!
I was able to lose 9.6lbs for my 1st weigh-in! I am one happy camper!! =D
I'm still using myfitnesspal.com every day, it's become a way of life. Everything I eat, even before eating, I find myself calculating if I can have some and how much I can allow myself to have for that day. It's become a way of life, a habit I can say I'm proud of!
I'm sure I've said this before, but I'll emphasize it again, I am SO proud of myself!! *pats self on back*
I'm still using myfitnesspal.com every day, it's become a way of life. Everything I eat, even before eating, I find myself calculating if I can have some and how much I can allow myself to have for that day. It's become a way of life, a habit I can say I'm proud of!
I'm sure I've said this before, but I'll emphasize it again, I am SO proud of myself!! *pats self on back*
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
3 weeks soon!!
I can't express how proud of myself I am! It'll be 3 weeks soon that I've been keeping track of what I eat. Eating healthier, eating 3 times a day and doing exercise. Yay!! I've never kept to anything like this before for so long before, that's why I'm proud *beams*
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Still going..not dead yet!!
So it's been a little over a week and I'm still going strong with the cals/carbs tracking. Exercise is a bit harder to give myself a kick in the arse, but I've still been managing to get my lazy butt out there.
The only thing I've been having a problem with recently is eating enough cals a day.. the system has been telling me, for the past 2 days, that I'm in "starvation mode" because I have under 1200 cals intake. Ugh. I'm finding it hard to find foods that will fill me but not go over and now that I have, I need to eat more or find something that contains more cals. meeeeeeh lol
It's challenging and I likes it *nods* but just a tad frustrating.
I also keep changing the weigh-in times, at first I was like "oh I'll do it every day" but then was like, no, that won't do much. Then I was like, oh I'll do it every week. And when it came time to weigh in I was like, nah I'll weigh-in every month instead. I'm sticking with that one!! I swear I am =D
But I've also been thinking that maybe I shouldn't weight myself before breakfast. See, I work graveyard shifts so my "breakfast" time isn't when I first get up. Rather, it's like 3hrs before the end of my shift. Then I go to sleep. I know that if you weigh yourself at different times during the day, you weight differently. And supposedly the "best" time would be right after you wake up in the morning, after your morning pee and before you eat. Because that's when your tummy's empty. But then, if I'm doing it during night, which for a "normal" person would be somewhere between breakfast and lunch, is that wrong? Well, maybe not wrong, and I did originally weigh in on my start day at like 5amish.. so I guess I can still do that. Hmm.. ya, anyhooo.. talk about over thinking unnecessary things. The story of my life.
Oh and my wrist doesn't hurt quite as much anymore, been like that for a few days. I've been, every so often, lifting weights to give it more strength. I think it's working. But I used the can opener today (it's manual) and something moved yet again in my wrist and shot pain right through =( so it's not healed yet. Kinda hurting a tad. Still haven't been called back for an appointment for an MRI. Hopefully they'll call soon, I don't really want to wait a whole 2 months before I can get one.
The only thing I've been having a problem with recently is eating enough cals a day.. the system has been telling me, for the past 2 days, that I'm in "starvation mode" because I have under 1200 cals intake. Ugh. I'm finding it hard to find foods that will fill me but not go over and now that I have, I need to eat more or find something that contains more cals. meeeeeeh lol
It's challenging and I likes it *nods* but just a tad frustrating.
I also keep changing the weigh-in times, at first I was like "oh I'll do it every day" but then was like, no, that won't do much. Then I was like, oh I'll do it every week. And when it came time to weigh in I was like, nah I'll weigh-in every month instead. I'm sticking with that one!! I swear I am =D
But I've also been thinking that maybe I shouldn't weight myself before breakfast. See, I work graveyard shifts so my "breakfast" time isn't when I first get up. Rather, it's like 3hrs before the end of my shift. Then I go to sleep. I know that if you weigh yourself at different times during the day, you weight differently. And supposedly the "best" time would be right after you wake up in the morning, after your morning pee and before you eat. Because that's when your tummy's empty. But then, if I'm doing it during night, which for a "normal" person would be somewhere between breakfast and lunch, is that wrong? Well, maybe not wrong, and I did originally weigh in on my start day at like 5amish.. so I guess I can still do that. Hmm.. ya, anyhooo.. talk about over thinking unnecessary things. The story of my life.
Oh and my wrist doesn't hurt quite as much anymore, been like that for a few days. I've been, every so often, lifting weights to give it more strength. I think it's working. But I used the can opener today (it's manual) and something moved yet again in my wrist and shot pain right through =( so it's not healed yet. Kinda hurting a tad. Still haven't been called back for an appointment for an MRI. Hopefully they'll call soon, I don't really want to wait a whole 2 months before I can get one.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Greek Cookies - Kourambiethes
I was feeling ein yesterday (Thursday), like I've been feeling off in the sense of not really restless but not fully stressed out yet, but ein. The best thing I've found that can relax me is to bake. So that's what I did yesterday. I found a recipe for Greek cookies, they're kind of like shortbread cookies covered in powdered sugar.
I found it cool this recipe asked for vanilla powder, which I have only because I bought the wrong thing once and then was like "the heck am I ever going to use this for???" aaaand so that's why I chose this particular recipe but then when I actually made it lol I forgot it said "powder" and just used extract. haha ça vallait la peine!! haha silly girl! anyhoo, here's the recipe:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 tbsp Crisco vegetable shortening (to grease the pan, I just used parchment paper instead)
½ cup sugar
1 egg
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla powder (can use extract)
6 tbsp almonds chopped
3-4 cups flour
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
Beat butter and sugar until creamy or aprox. 15 minutes. Add eggs, vanilla, baking powder, almonds. Mix well. Gradually add flour to make soft dough. Mix to incorporate.
Pinch off pieces of dough and shape into small mounds or crescent shapes and place on greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until very light brown. Cover cookies with powdered sugar.
My butter was fresh out of the fridge, so what I usually do in those cases is melt it down a bit in a small saucer on the stove (don't own a microwave). I did this yesterday as well, but ended up melting it completely so then I had to cool it by sticking said saucer in a bowl of cold water. Wouldn't want hot butter to cook my egg. That would be bad.
When it was cool enough, I added it to my sugar and mixed well. You never quite get that creamy texture when it's still warm. I ended up putting 3 cups of flour because that's what the recipe said, but I think if I make this recipe again, I'll stop at 2.5 cups.
The cookies turned out really good regardless of the differences from what was supposed to be and what was. I didn't bake the full batch, I filled 1 baking sheet and put the rest of the dough in the freezer for some other time. Works out well, I have a friend who wants to meet up with me in a week and she wants some. It'll be a lot faster to just bake and dress 'em than to make them from scratch again.
And what's great about all of this, is that I can still eat 1 a day and be within my "limit" of sorts on the road to my weight loss goal =D How awersome is that!
I found it cool this recipe asked for vanilla powder, which I have only because I bought the wrong thing once and then was like "the heck am I ever going to use this for???" aaaand so that's why I chose this particular recipe but then when I actually made it lol I forgot it said "powder" and just used extract. haha ça vallait la peine!! haha silly girl! anyhoo, here's the recipe:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 tbsp Crisco vegetable shortening (to grease the pan, I just used parchment paper instead)
½ cup sugar
1 egg
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla powder (can use extract)
6 tbsp almonds chopped
3-4 cups flour
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
Beat butter and sugar until creamy or aprox. 15 minutes. Add eggs, vanilla, baking powder, almonds. Mix well. Gradually add flour to make soft dough. Mix to incorporate.
Pinch off pieces of dough and shape into small mounds or crescent shapes and place on greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until very light brown. Cover cookies with powdered sugar.
***********************************************
I always make things by hand, it's more fun that way. Or you could just say I'm too lazy to wash the mixer hahaMy butter was fresh out of the fridge, so what I usually do in those cases is melt it down a bit in a small saucer on the stove (don't own a microwave). I did this yesterday as well, but ended up melting it completely so then I had to cool it by sticking said saucer in a bowl of cold water. Wouldn't want hot butter to cook my egg. That would be bad.
When it was cool enough, I added it to my sugar and mixed well. You never quite get that creamy texture when it's still warm. I ended up putting 3 cups of flour because that's what the recipe said, but I think if I make this recipe again, I'll stop at 2.5 cups.
The cookies turned out really good regardless of the differences from what was supposed to be and what was. I didn't bake the full batch, I filled 1 baking sheet and put the rest of the dough in the freezer for some other time. Works out well, I have a friend who wants to meet up with me in a week and she wants some. It'll be a lot faster to just bake and dress 'em than to make them from scratch again.
And what's great about all of this, is that I can still eat 1 a day and be within my "limit" of sorts on the road to my weight loss goal =D How awersome is that!
I don't know why, but I keep getting idiots at work... ugh. Like really, they're SUPER rude and I'm keeping my cool and then they accuse ME of being rude W.T.D??? (yes! that's what the duck! 'cuz I'm trying to reduce my swearing =P)
I'm getting soooooo stressed. Didn't help that I was reading up on the stupid rioting manifs going on in the city. Ugh. I realized I was getting edgy so I stopped reading up on it for now.
I can't tell you how tempted I am to eat choco right now just to calm my nerves!! Buuut I just started my weight loss goal thing and I don't wanna give in to temptation. Like sure I cooould eat some, but I wanted to have puffycorn (popcorn) later (au naturel) which would fit nicely into my cal/carb count but if I eat this choco bunneh... I'll have to give up the puffycorn T~T I don't wanna do that.
So it's been sitting next to me for the past hour haha I refuse to be defeated!!
myfitnesspal asks you (when you register) how often you'll be exercising. I chose 3 times a week for 30mins, although before I wasn't really doing any. It was more like, meh once in a blue moon. So I decided my exercise days would be Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Sitting here contemplating this choco bunneh, I was even starting to think "if I eat all of this, how much will I have to exercise to burn it off.." haha yea.. I don't think I'll eat it.
Maybe I'll make rations out of it though. Going to need to buy more zippylock baggies. For now, je me contente à boire mon thé miam miam =3
I was feeling pain in my lower back today, still am a bit now. I think I need to re-think the exercise time per week. In the sense that, I think I'm going to need to up it. Obviously I don't want to just say that I will, because I've done that in the past and then..nothing. But it will have to be upped.
I fell a few years back, it was a really bad fall and hurt my back really badly. Had to do physio and I was supposed to continue with my exercises for like.. life. Kinda didn't go as planned. I was told that I'll always have pain and the more weight I gain, the worse I'll feel it. I was doing okish because I had been keeping off some weight but recently it's just been jumping forward. Dx I have a throbbing pain right now. ;_; But ya, so basically, I need to start back. I'm thinking ya sure, 30mins 3x a week is better than nothing. But at the same time, I need to pick back up my physio exercises and I think maybe walking at least an hour a day. The thing is to start, so that's why I'm mulling it over for now. Yet, the more I think about it, overall, it's for my health right? so I should do this! *giving self pep talks* Not sure how long I'll increase it to just yet, I'll figure it out later today once I see how long my physio exercises take.
This is good, I'm feeling good about this =)
Oh I also wanted to add.. you know like yesterday (Thursday) I went over on my cal/carbs/proteins I should be eating in a day but today (Friday) with the pre-planning what I could eat, I was under by 266 for cals, only 5 though for carbs, 27 for fat and 1 for protein. And by under, I mean that I had that much remaining that I could've potentially still eaten *nods* I'm all proud of meself
I'm getting soooooo stressed. Didn't help that I was reading up on the stupid rioting manifs going on in the city. Ugh. I realized I was getting edgy so I stopped reading up on it for now.
I can't tell you how tempted I am to eat choco right now just to calm my nerves!! Buuut I just started my weight loss goal thing and I don't wanna give in to temptation. Like sure I cooould eat some, but I wanted to have puffycorn (popcorn) later (au naturel) which would fit nicely into my cal/carb count but if I eat this choco bunneh... I'll have to give up the puffycorn T~T I don't wanna do that.
So it's been sitting next to me for the past hour haha I refuse to be defeated!!
myfitnesspal asks you (when you register) how often you'll be exercising. I chose 3 times a week for 30mins, although before I wasn't really doing any. It was more like, meh once in a blue moon. So I decided my exercise days would be Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Sitting here contemplating this choco bunneh, I was even starting to think "if I eat all of this, how much will I have to exercise to burn it off.." haha yea.. I don't think I'll eat it.
Maybe I'll make rations out of it though. Going to need to buy more zippylock baggies. For now, je me contente à boire mon thé miam miam =3
I was feeling pain in my lower back today, still am a bit now. I think I need to re-think the exercise time per week. In the sense that, I think I'm going to need to up it. Obviously I don't want to just say that I will, because I've done that in the past and then..nothing. But it will have to be upped.
I fell a few years back, it was a really bad fall and hurt my back really badly. Had to do physio and I was supposed to continue with my exercises for like.. life. Kinda didn't go as planned. I was told that I'll always have pain and the more weight I gain, the worse I'll feel it. I was doing okish because I had been keeping off some weight but recently it's just been jumping forward. Dx I have a throbbing pain right now. ;_; But ya, so basically, I need to start back. I'm thinking ya sure, 30mins 3x a week is better than nothing. But at the same time, I need to pick back up my physio exercises and I think maybe walking at least an hour a day. The thing is to start, so that's why I'm mulling it over for now. Yet, the more I think about it, overall, it's for my health right? so I should do this! *giving self pep talks* Not sure how long I'll increase it to just yet, I'll figure it out later today once I see how long my physio exercises take.
This is good, I'm feeling good about this =)
Oh I also wanted to add.. you know like yesterday (Thursday) I went over on my cal/carbs/proteins I should be eating in a day but today (Friday) with the pre-planning what I could eat, I was under by 266 for cals, only 5 though for carbs, 27 for fat and 1 for protein. And by under, I mean that I had that much remaining that I could've potentially still eaten *nods* I'm all proud of meself
Pre-planning meals helps to work out the cals and carbs. Very efficient ^_^ Now all I have to do is remember to chew slower, I eat waaaay too fast. I'm told if I eat slower, I'll feel more full even if I'm eating less. Time to find out if there's truth in there.
Finishing supper and off for a mini walk before work.
Finishing supper and off for a mini walk before work.
Waaaah Dx
This is way harder than I thought! I totally went over the Calorie intake for yesterday. Note to self, make portions beforehand, eat and then record. I kind of just ate without really regulating and totally went overboard. =S
I know better now. I'm planning what to eat today, making sure to check the calories of things I'll be eating and going to try to make portions to fit within my recommended daily.
Today is also my exercise day! Waaaaah >.< I guess it's good, I need to go out to get some ingredients for supper >=D I will kill 2 birdies with 1 stone mwahahahahaha!
Introducing my new "best friend" *drum roll please* http://www.peertrainer.com/dfcaloriecountera.aspx
very good site to help me find nutrition info for foods I don't have readily available, because they're not always listed in myfitnesspal database. *nods*
I be a very happy camper, my life has just gotten easier =3
I know better now. I'm planning what to eat today, making sure to check the calories of things I'll be eating and going to try to make portions to fit within my recommended daily.
Today is also my exercise day! Waaaaah >.< I guess it's good, I need to go out to get some ingredients for supper >=D I will kill 2 birdies with 1 stone mwahahahahaha!
Introducing my new "best friend" *drum roll please* http://www.peertrainer.com/dfcaloriecountera.aspx
very good site to help me find nutrition info for foods I don't have readily available, because they're not always listed in myfitnesspal database. *nods*
I be a very happy camper, my life has just gotten easier =3
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Start date - Weight loss goal
So, in keeping track of my weight loss I've decided to keep a record.
My "weigh day" will be once a month, every 10th of the month, in the morning right before breakfast. I work nights, I have no idea how that affects your weight. Supposedly you weigh differently during different times of the day, but I figure, if I weigh myself every month at the same time it ought to be ok.
Start weight: 202lbs Thursday May 10th 2012
My monthly weigh-ins will be posted in the "Getting Fit" page.
My "weigh day" will be once a month, every 10th of the month, in the morning right before breakfast. I work nights, I have no idea how that affects your weight. Supposedly you weigh differently during different times of the day, but I figure, if I weigh myself every month at the same time it ought to be ok.
Start weight: 202lbs Thursday May 10th 2012
My monthly weigh-ins will be posted in the "Getting Fit" page.
Ok, so I was reading someone's blog (this one to be more specific: http://timmoyoungfatboythin.blogspot.ca/ ) and I've been convinced (by myself) to take on a weight challenge. There I was, on my other blog, complaining of sorts on lack of motivation and almost right after posting my entry I fell upon his new blog; I used to follow the old one and was browsing thru blogs I follow aaaanyways long story short, I decided I wanted to list out goals for me and take it a step further.
By a "step further" what I mean is, I've decided to embark on the weight loss journey on myfitnesspal.com which seems to have good results and best of all, it's freeee and there seem to be lots of people there in the community ready to give motivation and tips, etc etc so it looks promising. I'm going to do this. I have decided to push myself to the best of my ability and then some. I also decided I wanted to do a bucket list of sorts. Not sure if I've ever done one, but I will now. And will go about knocking off those I complete along the way.
I've decided to create pages so I can list my weigh-in/week as well as have one page for my bucket list. It'll be easier for me to find whereas they may get lost on the main page if I suddenly start writing more *nods*
By a "step further" what I mean is, I've decided to embark on the weight loss journey on myfitnesspal.com which seems to have good results and best of all, it's freeee and there seem to be lots of people there in the community ready to give motivation and tips, etc etc so it looks promising. I'm going to do this. I have decided to push myself to the best of my ability and then some. I also decided I wanted to do a bucket list of sorts. Not sure if I've ever done one, but I will now. And will go about knocking off those I complete along the way.
I've decided to create pages so I can list my weigh-in/week as well as have one page for my bucket list. It'll be easier for me to find whereas they may get lost on the main page if I suddenly start writing more *nods*
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Tortellini with broccoli, feta and artichoke hearts
Here's a recipe I came across that I've modified to feed 1. The ingredients have been changed with what I have on hand.
Ingredients:
double the amount of chopped Chinese broccoli
olive oil
salt*
fresh garlic, minced
freshly ground black pepper
feta cheese, crumbled**
marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
fresh parsley, finely chopped
Preparation:
- In a pot, bring water to a boil. Add tortellini, salt, stir often, until al dente.
- Reserve some of the pasta water, then drain pasta and return it to pot.
- In a non-stick pan over medium heat, heat olive oil then lightly fry garlic. When garlic is golden, add broccoli and the reserved pasta water. Cover and cook until broccoli turns bright green, aprox 1 - 2 mins.
- Uncover, continue cooking. Stir often, until the water has evaporated and broccoli is tender yet still a little crunchy, aprox 1-2 mins. Add in artichoke hearts, cook until warm.
- Add broccoli mix to pasta, toss to combine. Stir in parsley and sprinkle with feta.
Bon Appetit!
* I use herbal salt as I find it gives the pasta more flavour.
** I'm not big on goat tasting cheeses, so I use either feta made with a combination of goat and cow milk or made with sheep milk. Sheep milk feta is by far my fav!
One step at a time..
A new year begins and with it, I've decided to keep a journal of sorts. I've been wanting a blog that concentrates on my cooking (I'm still a beginner), my baking, healthy eating, craft projects I take up and of course my kitty =3 I live alone with Mew, this is our blog *nods*
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