Life Update

Hello! Okay I went away AGAIN...I am known for taking lots of trips…what can I say I like to  travel and see friends and family! This trip took Kevin, Kona (my dog) and I out to British Columbia to visit my sister and brother in law.  My parents and 2 brothers were there as well. It was great to visit with my sister since she is 8 months pregnant. I am so excited to be an Auntie very soon!!  Road trips are always fun - it is a 20 hour drive which we split into 2 days. Canada is a very beautiful country which I try not to take for granted since we drive across it so much.


Here are a few recent photos...

Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Cream Cheese Frosting that I made for Jenna's baby shower

Exploring the woods around Jenna & Mike's

I took maternity photos for them! Fun stuff

Baby shower that Jenna's friends hosted - she got some good loot!

Myself, Jenna and Mom

Simple dinner I made last night - Tom Kha Gai which is a Thai Coconut Soup.  I adapted this recipe by omitting the chicken, adding red curry paste, using ginger instead of galangal and adding basil and green onions.  Soup-er yummy!! Pardon the pun.
For the salad I stuck with the asian theme.  Mixed greens, purple cabbage, carrots, green onions, sesame seeds (white & black). Dressing: Olive oil, splash of sesame oil, rice vinegar, garlic, fresh grated ginger & pepper.
I love making homemade salad dressings - super simple, yummy and WAY better for your then store bought.

Since I last posted I started a 21 day meditation - okay I may have missed a few days in a row and I'm still getting used to shutting my brain off completely (seems impossible right now but practice makes perfect right?) Overall I'm enjoying taking 20 minutes per day to focus on myself, silence the brain and relax!

I am back to work getting the restaurant ready to re-open next Thursday!

I should be back to more regular posting and maybe even attempting some outfit photos now that the weather is warming up.

Have a FABULOUS weekend everyone!

Danielle

Whoops where has the time gone?!

Hello there!
I have gotten out of doing my regular posts since our kitchen renos - whoops! Also Kevin and I were away for a 3 night x-country ski getaway to Maplelag Resort in Callaway, Minnesota to ring in his 30th Birthday last week! 

Here are a few pics from the past week…

This Carrot Ginger Soup from my Joyous Health Cookbook was phenomenal and so easy!

Maplelag Resort! An amazing x-country ski getaway! They take care of all the meals and dishes you just have to show up! Days went like this….Wake up, Eat breakfast, Ski, Eat lunch, Ski, Afternoon relaxation including drinks and cards, Dinner, Drinks and relax in steam room and sauna, go to bed and repeat! Also we almost completed an 1000 piece puzzle while we were there. It was great to getaway for a few nights and relax! 

Kevin at the top of his favorite hill at the end of the Twin Lakes Trail

Bottomless cookie jars = trouble! 

We slept in a caboose!

My handsome hubby!

Beautiful winter decorations in the lodge

Entrance to the lodge

Fun on the trails!

I will hopefully be back to my regular posting this week. Have a great weekend!

Bye for now

Danielle

This weeks food highlights - Week 6

This week started off with a delicious lunch at 'Boon Burger'!  Boon Burger has 2 locations in Winnipeg (Bannatyne Ave & Sherbrook St.).  They are a Vegan Burger restaurant with AMAZING food! I had lunch with two friends, one of whom is vegan and the food was absolutely amazing. Whether you are vegan, vegetarian or neither the combination of flavours and fresh ingredients results in a very satisfying meal! We had a sample of the vegan chocolate coconut milk ice cream - OMG to die for!

The rest of the week at home included lots of experimentation in the kitchen. I made homemade granola bars (post on that to come soon!) and some yummy dinners.  I should add things are not always super healthy around here…. on Thursday we made hot wings with crumbled blue cheese and last night we went snowmobing with some friends and cooked smokies and grilled cheese on the wood stove at a warm up shack! My eating philosophy is to balance healthy meals and indulgent meals to satisfying all my food cravings ;)

Top Left: Chili Fried Butternut Squash Tacos with Mango Pineapple Salsa Top Right: Mango Pineapple Salsa! (I used canned pineapple and frozen mangos - added an amazing fresh tropical flavour to the tacos!
Bottom Left: Sweet Potato Coconut Curry Soup - if this sounds at all appealing to you then MAKE IT - super simple - came together in 30-45 minutes and was so delicious! Bottom Right: Boon Burger lunch - Pictured was the daily Special - Surf & Turf Burger and House Salad

HOMEMADE PIZZA!! We had our friends Derek and Ashleyy out on Saturday night and we collaborated to make 4 delicious pizzas! Top Left: Pesto, Sundried tomatoes, onion, goat cheese topped with fresh arugula and balsamic glaze Top Right:  Roasted Veggies, Prosciutto, Mozzarella & Parmesan Bottom Left: Roasted Veggies, Prosciutto, Spicy Prosciutto, Banana Peppers, Jalapeños, Cheddar & Parmesan Bottom Right: Roasted Veggies, Mozzarella, Fresh Basil  

Danielle

This weeks food highlights - Week 4

Adding to my cookbook collection is very exciting! I see it as an investment to my health and my culinary journey! Here are the two latest additions to my collection

1) Joyous Health - Eat and Live Well Without Dieting. 

'Joy McCarthy is a Holistic Nutritionist, author of JOYOUS HEALTH: Eat & Live Well without Dieting, professional speaker, nutrition expert on Global’s Morning Show, Faculty Member at Institute of Holistic Nutrition and co-creator of Eat Well Feel Well.'

2) Joy of Cooking - 75th Anniversary Edition. In my opinion this is a culinary bible that every person interested in cooking should invest in!

I'm so excited to dive into these books and try out new recipes to share with you. Oh and it's a complete coincidence they both have Joy in the title!

Top Left: Thai Coconut Curry Soup - Pure heaven in a bowl and my favorite go to soup
Top Right: Homemade Hummus (I recommend doubling the roasted garlic) & Veggies
Bottom Left: Toasted Sesame Ginger Salmon, Oven Baked Onion Rings & Roasted Sweet Potato Rounds with Goat Cheese & Balsamic Glaze
Bottom Right: Lemony Lentil Soup with Dill and Feta & Spinach Salad with Shredded Yellow Beets, Avocado, Toasted Sesame Seeds & Glory Bowl Dressing

Glory Bowl Dressing from Whitewater Cooks

1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup tamari or soy sauce
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 tbsp tahini paste

*Mix well in blender or processor and keep in a mason jar ready to drizzle when ever you need a good kick of yum.

This dressing is unbelievable! Super creamy and tastes like there is cheese in it because of the nutritional yeast!

Danielle

This weeks food highlights - Week 3

Last week was pretty meat free for dinners around here….except for the delicious deer smokies we chowed down on Thursday night! 

Last weeks menu:

Monday: Crunchy Cabbage Salad with spicy peanut dressing & Sautéed Bok Choy

Tuesday: Crispy Autumn Veggie Burgers with Slaw (I used some left over slaw from the night before and added avocados instead of mushrooms to my burgers)

Wednesday: Sesame Crusted Tofu (Reaffirming I'm not a huge fan of tofu) & Salad

Thursday: Deer Smokies courtesy of Sayer! Delicious!!

Friday: Roasted Tomato & Basil Soup (I took advice from a few different recipes and invented a delicious pot of garlic-ey, tomato-ey, chees-ey, basil-ey goodness!

Saturday: Delicious greek feast at Sayer & Carly's with Ian & Marney followed by Balderdash & Cards Against Humanity

Sunday: Kale Caesar Steak Salad

Fudgy Vegan Double Chocolate Beet Muffins - Give these muffins a try they are so yummy! I am not vegan but love trying new healthy recipes and these were fudgy and completely satisfying.

Danielle

This weeks food highlights - Week 2

Okay so I missed a week…or two of this post over the holidays but what can I say I barely ate at home! I am back into my routine of cooking at home and loving it!! Trying lots of new recipes.  Here are a few food highlights from the past week or so.

Tacos with Homemade Tortillas! Once you make homemade tortillas you will never go back to store bought (well unless your feeling really lazy or just don't have the time.)  It takes about half an hour to make the dough, roll it out and cook the tortillas! Here is the recipe I use - Homemade Tortillas
Toppings for my tacos are varied but usually include: some sort of crockpot chicken or beef or veggie tacos with black beans being the protein,  avocados, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, salsa, red cabbage, lettuce,  jalapeños, chipotle sour cream, cheese, lime

Top Left: Spinach & Mixed Green Salad with Granny smith Apples, Blue Cheese and Pecans.  Top Right: Homemade Pizza: Roasted Veggies with Asiago cheese and fresh mozzarella.  Bottom Left: Cashewgurt - yummy dairy free Cashew "Yogurt". Delicious snack with blueberries, vanilla and cinnamon.  Bottom Right: 1) White Bean, Spicy Italian Sausage and Kale Soup from Whitewater Cooks - these cookbooks rock!  2) Winter Abundance Bowl - oh my goodness…so healthy and so delicious!

Danielle