Food

February 18, 2015

Brown Sugar and Molasses Cookies

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These cookies are sinful.   They stay a little doughy after baking, they have a rich molasses and brown sugar taste, and pair perfectly with a mug of hot pomegranate green tea, or if you are my husband, a glass of milk.

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Just LOOK at those perfectly rounded cookies and cracked tops.

I see you drooling right now.

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As is with most of the recipes I share, they are fairly simple to create.  Just be sure to place the dough balls in the refrigerator for at least an hour before baking, otherwise they will just be runny blobs.

But, then again, if you don’t follow the directions you could create one of those hilarious Pinterest #nailedit Memes.

Enjoy!

brown sugar molasses cookies

February 9, 2015

Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

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I spent 8 hours in my kitchen last Wednesday.  No joke.   My work closed due to the snow so I had a full day to myself as my permanent roommate (… read that somewhere last week and thought it was hysterical) and his crew were out working.  Snow days are a perfect time for me to bake a bunch of goodies!    I made three loaves of banana bread, 4 batches of cookies and a 3 layer cake with buttercream frosting.  All from scratch, folks.  None of that boxed crap going on in this household.

And for the record – ALL of that went home with Clint’s crew minus one mini loaf of bread and a bag of cookies that stayed with us and the layer cake that went to work.

So, about these cookies.

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Coconut Oil replaced the butter and cooking oil and Truvia replaced most of the white sugar, leaving these cookies slightly better for you than your typical choco chip cookie.   You could even use whole wheat flour for an extra nutrition boost!

 

 

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As for the baking time, when I say that you must pull these cookies out of the oven when the centers still look not quite done, I am serious.   Take them out.  Let them cool on the cookie sheet for a bit before transferring to a cooling rack.

Oh, who am I kidding?  I don’t own cooling racks.  I just place the cookies on a sheet of foil or parchment paper and call it good.   Let’s be serious.  How many people really use a cooling rack?   I am betting the percentage is pretty low.

Don’t lie to me.  You don’t use one either.

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I suppose, if you are all about the crunchy cookie, leave them in the oven a bit longer.  But, if you like a slightly crunchy cookie that still has a little melt in your mouth softness to it, then yank them out of the ol oven early.

Enjoy!

coconut oil and choco chip cookies

January 6, 2015

Superfood Bites

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These little nuggets are packed full of nutrition, minerals, fiber and vitamins… not to mention they are SO FREAKING YUMMY!

Let me give you a little breakdown of what is in these babies.  <Links embedded in food titles>

Chia Seeds

  • Omega -3
  • Fiber
  • Antioxidants

Flaxseed Meal

  • Omega -3
  • Fiber
  • Lignans – Natural antioxidants.  To get the lignans that are in 2Tbsp of flaxseed meal you’d have to eat 30 cups of boccoli

Vanilla Shakeology

  • High Protein
  • Vitamin A, C, D, E and K1
  • Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B6 and B12
  • Calcium
  • Biotin
  • In a nutshell – one scoop has high protein and amino acids, antioxidants, digestive enzymes, prebiotics, vitamins and minerals, phytonutrients and NO artificial sweeteners.

Peanut Butter

  • Healthy Fats
  • Protein

Raw Honey

  • vitamins
  • minerals
  • antioxidants

Did you know?  Raw honey has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal properties. It promotes body and digestive health, is a powerful antioxidant, strengthens the immune system, eliminates allergies, can stabilize blood pressure, balance sugar levels, relieve pain, calm nerves, and it has been used to treat ulcers.

 

 

Directions

  • 1 cup natural peanut butter
  • 1/2 – 3/4 cup raw honey ( start with 1/2… add as necessary)
  • 1 scoop vanilla shakeology
  • 2 Tbsp. Flaxseed Meal
  • 1 Tbsp. Chia Seeds
  • 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

Stir together.  Mixture will be thick!   Scoop into mini baking cups or as is onto a plate.  Store covered in the refrigerator for a quick and easy snack before or after a workout or if you NEED a sweet treat. 🙂

 

ENJOY!

 

 

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January 3, 2015

You have two weeks off? What are you going to do?

Yes…. I had two weeks off from work during the Holiday’s.  It was pure bliss!    People asked me what on earth would I do with that time..  Uh, are ya kidding?  Fill it with fun stuff, of course!   I promise – I had no trouble filling my days.

Let’s take a little walk down memory lane.

December 19th – my last day of work and first official evening off.   Spent the evening with fellow 24 Hour Group X instructors working out!

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December 20th – bought a new Jeep Wrangler.  Totally got a smoking deal on it, plus they gave me more then what I owed for my Grand Cherokee..aka soccer mom car… so ya, duh.  I am going to buy it.

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December 21st – Traveled to Mt Ayr, IA with this hunk-of-a-man for a family Christmas dinner

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December 22nd – Taught Insanity, shopped, got a new tattoo

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December 23rd – Taught Insanity, spent the morning at my friend Sara’s, snuggled on her baby Ady, watched Kaeleen run around like a wild woman and then subbed another Insanity class at Northpark 24 Hour and baked my little heart out!

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December 24th – Two Family Christmases!

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December 25th – MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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December 26th – Day After Christmas 5 mile Run.   Whew!  Holy carbohydrates and wine.

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December 27th:  Treated myself to a Starbucks, shopping and another run.  Only 4 miles this time around.  😉

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December 28th – Last Christmas with the Pirtle’s!

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Some wrestling happened.  Kind of like on Four Christmases but without the family drama.  ha!

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December 29th:  Lunch date with my girl, Claire!   Then home for our new appliances delivery!  WOOT!  These were an extra special gift.  Thank you. 🙂

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December 30th: Traveled to Clarinda to get my hair done – I went back blonde – and then had lunch with Kayla and Nicole. That turned into 5 hours, plenty of cocktails and a ton of laughter.  Gosh I love time with girlfriends. I don’t have a recent pic of the three of us, so I will do a fuzzy throwback.

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December 31st:  Lunch date with my girl Jessica – you’re welcome for yet another throwback.

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And then it was time for NEW YEARS EVE celebrations, baby!

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January 1st:  A day spent at home organizing my new Insanity schedule and chatting with multiple folks about my next 21 day challenge!  We’ve got a LOT of peeps committed.   So excited for them and the transformations that are about to take place!

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I am teaching a total of 8 classes.   There are two more that aren’t listed above because they are being offered to a private group.  I have my work cut out for me!  Whew!

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January 2nd: A little Insanity practice, followed up by a lunch date with my girls Tyree and Sarah -> we taught together for several years at Buffett Middle School <- and her daughter Kennedy.  So great to catch up!

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And THAT brings us to today!   I am actually picking UP my new Jeep this morning.  Finally, she is coming HOME!!!

EEKK!!!!!  

And the rest of the weekend will be cleaning, laundry, packing for my new work schedule and meal prepping.

 

Have a super weekend, y’all!  I will catch back up with you again on Monday!

 

Cheers!