[Eating Clean.]

For the last couple of months, I've been "clean eating".

What does that mean?  Well - basically, it's staying clear-away from processed foods.  My pantry looks MUCH different, and so does my fridge *smile*.    I go to the market at least twice a week to restock fruits and veggies - and have done my best to take all refined sugar out of my diet.

The standard rule is, if there are more than five ingredients on the package - I don't eat it.  If I don't know what the ingredient is, I don't eat it.   Period.

This has been a long, long journey for me to get here.  To figure out what works for me.  Between diets, and points, and no-sugar and no-wheat, and calorie counting ... I've been in bondage.  Angry at myself when I fail.  Angry when I don't see results fast enough.  Just basically, disappointed in myself.

"Why can't I be disciplined??" I would growl at myself.

So for me - clean eating ... it works.  How I do it, for me, it works.  

I'd love to tell you that I've lost 20lbs, grown four inches taller and now look like a 20year-old-super-star.  But alas, I'm still just me.  BUT.  I feeeeeel amazing.  I have lost 2.5inches around my waist in these past 8 weeks.  I've only lost a few pounds - but it's steadily declining and since I am living this way forever  ... my weight will be what it will be. 

I am FREE.

I have found something that works, that I can do.  What it looks like for me, the choices I make, may be different for someone else who eats "clean".  But I am happy with my choices, I am living far better than I have - ever.

And when I can't eat perfectly clean?  When we go to friends homes for dinner, or out for a meal?  I simply do my best.   I do not beat myself up, because I've made many right choices that allow me to be free when I cannot.  I'll ask the waitress to omit certain things, and still choose wisely.  No one needs to adjust their lives for me - I have relearned how to eat.  I am not allergic, although I am much much more sensitive to sugar and wheat.  I don't enjoy the sickening feeling from having ANYTHING with high-fructose-corn-syrup.  Did you know Menchie's has HFCS in their frozen yogurts??  I had just a sample and my face began to tingle.  TRUE.  

One point I will make, is that my skin is now detoxing.  It isn't fun.  Cystic acne (aren't I too old for this??) is painful ... but I know it will pass.  At least - it should, right??

I have a recipe site, called "Make - by Homemakingirl" ... today I posted a new recipe that I adapted from another website.  I have made it "clean" - go check it out and add it to your repertoire.   Totally worth it *smile*.    It's called :: Clean Eating Cocoa Applesauce Mini Muffins with Carrot Puree

So.  That's my story.  I still exercise when I can, but I am no longer bound to "I ate a bad dessert so I need to run 5km today".  I am living life ... and am enjoying it so much more in this new way of eating.  

If you have any questions - I'd be happy to answer.  And - let me also say - that my friend Char is who taught me SO much about this lifestyle as she started her journey with clean eating before me.  She has a blog of recipes as well - and I have tried most of them.  They're fantastic!!

Have a great one!

[make: Meal Planning with Pinterest.]

OOPS.  Forgot to share this with you!  A couple days late ...

***

My life is made simpler when I take just a few minutes to do this.  Why oh why I took a break from it, I'll never know.  When I don't plan, I'm panicked - and more importantly, BORED.  I love to cook, I love to create ... and I love to plan.

So it just makes sense.

This week, I've decided to broaden my "little-black-box" (that's what I call my recipe box, which has actually turning into an online-box where I can access it from anywhere ... ) with some new recipes I've pinned on my Pinterest boards

Here's what our week's going to look like:

Monday:  dinner @ in-laws.

Tuesday: shredded chicken casserole, brown-rice penne pasta, salad w/avocado and goat cheese.

Wednesday:  Chicken Vegetable Soup (made from rotisserie chicken) and Open Faced Grilled Cheese

Thursday: mongolian beef, brown rice, green beans and peppers (haven't tried this yet - if it gets the thumbs up, onto my recipe-box blog it shall go)

Friday:  company (haven't thought this one out yet ...)

Boom.

Cross that one off my list ...

Have a great one!

[make: Meal Planning to the Rescue]

I have so much to blog about.  I have no time to blog ... 

So, why am I here?  Because life spins around and a crazy speed and if I don't meal-plan, my kids are liable to resort to crackers and tins of tuna ( ... mmm ... there's an idea) for dinner.  SO.  I have a friend who asked if I would start doing these again, and you know what - I was thankful for the reminder.

My hubby and I are both watching our weight right now - so that's a bit tricky.  The meals are more like "duo-meals" starches/carbs for the kiddies and protein and greens for us *cough* adults ... 

Monday:   dinner @ my parents

Tuesday:  cauliflower soup, salad, buns with melted cheese

Wednesday:  avocado, goat cheese, candied almond salad for potluck @friends for Halloween

Thursday: maple pork tenderloin, cous-cous, steamed broccoli with slivered almonds

Friday:  butter chicken (low-cal version), jasmine rice, salad

Saturday: dinner @friend's

Sunday: pizza @church

A pretty easy week, definitely not the norm for us being out for dinner ... and you know what?  All I did was go to my MAKE recipe site and chose things from there ... 

I love it when my hard work pays off and makes life easier.

Ok ... I'm off ... 

But before I do, a shameless plug for you to head over to my RedHanded Photography blog HERE ... *grin*.

Have a great one!

[talk: Reality.]

Well.  It's been a few days ... where am I at?

BUSY.

I've redone my RHP site (launching April 1, 2012) ... pretty excited about that.  Why?  Oh, just because it's fun *grin* ... and because I feel like it really represents me well.  I like it ... so yeah, I'm excited.    I'm also in the process of redoing my RHP blog ... I've hummed and hawed about doing this for over a year ... but when Blogger is FREE, why would I pay??

Well ... I decided to put up the coin and buy a template that I can manipulate into what I want.  Why?  Because I wanted my blog to flow with my site - and for it to appear more professional.  Plus, my new blogsite allows me to do far more than my current Blogger one.  

And when I bought it, it gave me the option of using the template for another site (that being, this one).   But then I'd have to register Homemakingirl ... yadayadayada. I don't know ... this doesn't get near the traffic that I think it would need to, to do that.

Beh.  

Not worried about that today ... 

Instead, I've been getting dinner ready all day.  We're having both sets of parents over - and every thing I've made is right from my Make By Homemakingirl blog.  And I see that I've had over 900+ hits??  Crazy ... 

What else?  Well - I haven't been running.  Or exercising, for that matter.  Hmmm ... that's not entirely true.  For some reason if I haven't exercised intentionally in the last 2 days, I feel like I haven't done it ever.  So, yes.  I have exercised - like only three times in the last 7 days.  I've been riding the stationary bike ... (yuck).

And I've made an appointment with my doctor.

Why?

I've decided it's time to look into orthodics for my running shoes.  I haven't run much at all lately, and for some reason it feels like my shins are getting worse??  So sad, as I feel like everything goes a bit downhill for me when I don't run.  I know that I should be having a more diverse exercise schedule, but I just love running so much ... I hate that my ankles and shins are causing me so much grief.

I get down ... stop working out ... start eating nutella out of the jar ... get mad at myself ... eat another scoop *grin*.  Feel worse ... you know how it goes *laughing* ... 

So I have an appointment next week with my doctor, who will hopefully recommend a good place to go to get my legs/ankles FIXED.  I've talked to so many people, and they've all said that orthodics changed everything for them.

I hope it will for me too.

Have a great one ...

[make: New Blog.]

SO.  For years I've thought my friend, Char, had it going on with her "Entertaining My Way" blog.  It's a place where she uploads recipes - so she has access to them wherever she may be.  She doesn't publicize them ... it's for her.  And anyone else who's lucky enough to know the site's there.

You should check it out ... her recipes rock.  

Well.  Last night, I spent my quiet evening trying out my own little "recipe box" online.  And by the end, I created "MAKE by Homemakingirl".

The idea is that this will be where I upload recipes from now on.  They will all be tried and true. They will be recipes that I've had in my recipe box, or stolen from my mom's ... or maybe even from you *grin*.

I do not claim rights to these recipes, nor to the photos that I found randomly online.  Again, this is for me - so I can have my recipes wherever I may be - but you are WELCOME to come and check it out ... 

The link is:  http://www.makebyhomemakingirl.blogspot.com

I'm kinda excited about this ... mainly because it means I can do away with the "re-writing the messy cards of my recipe box" project that has been hovering over me for years.

Obviously, it's still in the baby stages.  Last night I put all the recipes from THIS blog, onto that one.  And over the days and weeks, I'll be continuely adding recipes from my recipe box at home.  I'll be sure to let you know when new recipes have been added.

If you stop by, please let me know what you think *smile* ...

Have a great one!

[make: Apricot Ginger Chicken.]

** written on Tuesday ... obviously *wink* **

It's Tuesday.  I like Tuesdays.  It usually means there's fresh produce in the house, my hubby doesn't have hockey, and we don't have to rush anywhere ...

On Tuesdays I actually enjoy cooking - and it's usually the night that I put the most effort into during the week.   My hubby really likes this one, and so I thought that I'd delay in getting to my photo-editing for the night, and share with you tonight's recipes.  

I like to call it "Apricot Ginger Chicken".

If you're like me, you follow Pinterest.  It's a cool way to see what people are into - and recipes are no exception.  I saw a recipe for an apricot chicken ... and then I found another and another.  After some humming and hawing, I came up with my own version.

I've made it 3x now ... and it is a massive hit around here.  (This is NOT my image ... but it kinda looks like this when it's done *grin*)

Apricot Ginger Chicken

1 cup apricot jam

1 tbsp soya sauce

1 tbsp grated fresh ginger

4 chicken breasts

Directions:  

- Preheat the oven to 325, prepare a 9x9 baking dish lined with foil.

- Combine the jam, soya sauce and ginger.  

- Arrange the chicken and pour over prepared mixture, being sure to lift up the chicken and let the mixture coat the bottom.

- Cover with foil.

- Bake for 1hour.

It's fall-off-a-log easy, and yummy enough to serve for company (which I have - including my parents).  Tonight I served it with steamed broccoli and jasmine rice (cooked in coconut milk - amazing.)

Let me know if you try this, and how it worked for you :-).

Have a great one!

[make: Pumpkin Spice Muffins]

These are baking as I type this.  My little girl and I had a morning of spilling flour and egg whites on the counter.  I try and be patient *grin* ... she is, after all, only two.  And old enough to help stir and pour ... I want her to have a love of cooking and helping - so I guess it starts now *grin*.

This recipe is out of a Canadian Living Magazine from 2008.  Yup.  I still had it ... and this morning I noticed a dog-eared page - and voila.  Pumpkin Spice Muffins.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins (yields 12 muffins)

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp cloves

2 eggs
3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1.  Line or grease muffin tin.
2. mix dry ingredients in a bowl
3. in a separate bowl, mix wet ingredients.
4. add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just mixed.
5. scoop in to prepared muffin tin
6. bake at 375F for 20-25min

So ... I haven't tasted them - but my house smells incredible, and Katia keeps going to the oven and turning the light on and off, on and off.

Six more minutes ... mmmmmm.

Have a great one!

[make: The Perfect Playdough.]

So.  It's raining (boo), and Katia's sleeping ... so what to do with the boys?  


Well, we thought making playdough would be fun ... and it was ... except I now LITERALLY look like "RedHanded Photography" *grin*.   I found the recipe online ... and it was super easy and took less than 10min total. I highly recommend it!!


Playdough Recipe


1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 tbsp cream of tartar
1 tbsp oil
1 cup water
food colouring

Mix first 4 ingredients in a pan. Add water and mix well. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 3 – 5 minutes. Dough will become difficult to stir and form a “clump”.  Remove from stove and knead for 5 minutes–add food coloring during kneading process. Play dough will keep for a long time stored in a covered plastic container or plastic sandwich bag.

It made the perfect amount for the boys and neighbour friend.  Siah chose red *duh*, Tias chose yellow and the neighbour friend also chose red.

What else?  Well, I have a lot on my mind ... and with the boys heading to their grandparents for a sleepover, and Katia having a fairly early bedtime - tonight I intend on sitting in my music studio with my piano, my guitar, a pot of tea, a pad of paper and a purple sharpie.  Tonight - I write.  

It's hard to enjoy so many things, like photography, like digiscrapping, like hosting, like cooking, like writing music, like going out with friends, like preparing for a 1/2 marathon (oh.boy.) ... there's never enough time to do it all once the kiddies are asleep ... so.  Today, I just decided WHAT I was going to do tonight ... and writing is what  it's going to be; after my hubby leaves for hockey, I should say *grin*.

Not sure if it's going to be "worship" or just "life" music ... time spent at the piano is something that I've shared with you all before (click "worship" on the right under "filing drawer") ... It calms me and energizes me all at the same time *grin*.

Ok ... well ... as usual, I'm writing more than I have time for.  This was a playdough post, not a "sorting-out-my-schedule" post.  

I hope you have a great one, wherever you are, whatever you're doing ... do it to the best that you can today.  Even if it's "just" laundry and playdough making *grin*.  Because if you love what you're doing, it's NEVER "just".

Have a great one!

[make: Old Fashioned Pancakes.]

I am a little embarrassed to say it - but I hadn't ever made pancakes from scratch.  I mean, why would I?  Costco always has a bag of some sort of pancake mix for sale ... add water and poof: pancakes.   The spelt flour brand was our family staple.

But they stopped selling our favourite mix ... and instead, a multigrain one replaced it.  It was full of flaxseeds and whole grains.  I bought it ... and the kids HATED it.  

Boo.

So ... this morning I googled "pancake recipe" and found this.  It had rave reviews and I AGREE.  My kids LOVED them ... and it actually made its way into my recipe box (where only my tried and true recipes live).

Here's the recipe ... go grab some paper *grin*.

Old Fashioned Pancakes

1 1/2 cups flour

3 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 1/4 cups milk

1 egg

3 tbsp melted butter

1 tsp vanilla (my contribution to the recipe)

Directions:

In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients.  Make a well.  Add wet ingredients; mix well.  Lightly grease  griddle on medium heat ... scoop approx 1/4 cup of mixture onto griddle.  Flip.  Eat.  Be happy.

I'm going to try it with the spelt flour I have ... if the recipe needs to be adjusted, I'll let you know *grin*.  

But these ones?  They were fluffy and most of all ... completely devoured.

AND.

"Weddings: Sam and Lana Part II" is up ... check out my RedHanded Photography blog HERE ...  here's a teaser *grin* ...

Ok ... SO.  I'm in Starbucks as I type this ... waiting for a bride for a 2012 wedding consult ... can't wait to hear what the plans are *smile*!  And then?  Off to a photoshoot downtown at Kits ... eek.  Honestly?  Today is INSANE ... soccer camps, photoshoots, ... I even set the alarm and ran this morning.  Feel good about that ...

Tomorrow?

Another photoshoot at Campbell Valley Park and ... everything else that needs to be done.  Except dinner ... going to my in-laws for some incredible Italian food.  Hmmm.  Better run tomorrow too.

OK.  The bride should be here any minute :-) ...

Have a great one!!

[make: Kale Chips.]

I had heard about Kale Chips ... they're supposed to be killer great, packed with an amazing amount of nutrients.  I thought I'd give them a try ... 

I read a few recipes online, and came up with something on my own.  All the recipes were pretty basic ... 

Kale Chips:

I started with some kale.  Duh.  

... washed it, broke it into bite sized pieces - removing the stems.

... placed the pieces onto a baking sheet, covered with parchment paper.

... I poured 1 tbsp of olive oil in a measuring cup, and tossed in a tsp or so of some cajun spices I found.   Sure Slim ... ha!!  

... I painted the leaves with my mixture ...

... and baked them at 375F for about 13minutes ... 

Were they good?  Hmmm ... well - they were far from being a chocolate-fudge sundae.  But they weren't awful. They are very, very thin ... and the initial bite almost has the texture of perfectly baked phyllo  pastry.  I liked that ... but what I didn't like, was the veins of the leaf after the crispiness was gone ...  Maybe I didn't bake them long enough?  And because they're so thin, they were un"dip-able".  Originally, I had thought I would use them with guacamole ... but there is no way they could scoop anything.  They were far too fragile.

But I'm willing to try again ... 

And next time I'm going to increase the spices too.   I'm also thinking that maybe a mixture of honey and garlic would be good to paint on the leaves too.  Plain salt wouldn't be enough for me ... kale is a little bit too "green" tasting for my liking *grin*.

So ... what do you think?  Is this something you'd be willing to try??  Would your kids eat it?  Not sure if mine will ... maybe.

Ok.  That's it for this post ... well ... 

I'm CRAZY excited for the Canucks game tonight.  It's Game 5, and my hubby and I are heading into Vancouver for the game.  It's my final game of the season ... my hubby has a ticket for Game 7 - if it ends up happening.  Awe man ... we are SO close.  Anything less than a win tonight is going to be disappointing ... 

GO CANUCKS GO!!

And hey - have a great one!!

[make: Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies]

CEW - this one's for you ...

I actually thought I already shared this recipe - boo on me.  It's a freakin' fantastic cookie ... a thin crust on the outside and chewy goodness on the inside ... The oatmeal makes them hearty, and the peanut butter makes them amazing.

Here's the recipe ...


Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies
350F for 9-11minutes

3 eggs
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup chocolate chips
2 tsp baking soda
4 1/2 cups quick cooking oatmeal

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350F
- combine eggs, and sugars.  Mix well.
- add salt, vanilla, peanut butter and butter.  Mix well.
- stir in chocolate chips, baking soda and oatmeal with a wooden spoon.
- drop onto cookie sheet (I like to use the pampered chef "large scoop"  ... makes the perfect size, and then I flatten with a fork).
- cook for 9-11minutes.

Yeah, yeah ... there's a small barrel of sugar in it.  But there's noooo floooour *singsong*.

Enjoy.

I dare you to eat just one :-) ... have a great one!

[make: Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream. And A Rant.]

So.  I wrote some of this last night, and now I'm editing this morning ... I'm sitting in a quiet house for the first time in three weeks.  The boys are off to school and Katia is singing to her "baby" ... I'm in my workout gear (Jillian, you have permission to beat me into submission in a few ...) and I'm having my morning shake.  It's a meal replacement shake that I've added frozen strawberries, pineapple and peaches too.  Then I've added 2tbsp of ground flaxseed and 2tsp of 3-6-9 oil blend.  I been having these shakes for the last 3 weeks or so and I love them. 
Plus, I've been running.  Yesterday's 5km was done without 10/1's (I ran straight, with no breaks) and I did it in under 33min.  Barely.  But I'm proud of that ... I'm not just a wanna-be runner anymore.  I am a runner.  I love it.

And yet ... the scale was up this morning.  133.4lbs.  UP, I said.   Ughhhhh.

It's so freakin' discouraging.  Will I ever be 124lb again?  Heck - will I ever be IN the 120's??  I'm guessing I'm getting stronger, my clothes are fitting well - so that's a sign that things are getting tighter.  But still.  

It's funny - because friends have been noticing a physical change ... I had a friend comment this past Sunday morning.  She hadn't seen me in a while and gave me a lovely compliment - and asked how much weight I'd lost.  And I knew that I had actually gained a bit over the last 2 weeks ... and if I look back at my posts here - the difference since Sept 2010 is only a couple of pounds.  That's it.  In fact - it's been less than 10lbs in a whole YEAR, if I check a post I wrote in March of 2010.

So.  I get frustrated when people say, "You've had four babies," or "You're body's not the same as when you were in your 20's," or whatever.  I feel like NOW is the time.  This is it.  If I don't get myself to where I want to be, it'll never happen.  I'm going to be thirty-shhmmmsffff (hand covering mouth) in a few weeks.  I want to be the strongest, the healthiest, the loveliest that I can be.  I don't want excuses.  

I get frustrated when people have reached their goal and I'm feeling like I'm standing still.

My biggest source of contention is the tire that sits on my waist.  I have NEVER, in my life, had a flat tummy.  It's where I've always carried my weight.  Oh.  That and my arms.  I can never wear shirts that are made for skinny-armed people.  Mine are ... guns *grin*.  Minus the rips.  

I remember seeing girls with tiny waists when I was a teenager and in my early twenties.  Girls in bikinis with hips and a bellyring.  Ok.  And they had long legs too *grin*.  That was NOT me.  I had to try and find my waist *grin*.  Bikinis are a curse ... and I actually own a few.  But ... ugh.  Whatever.  And now - a bunch of pregnancies later, that stretched skin with the added "padding" just won't go away.  Or should I say - it hasn't as of yet.

I'm all for my medals ... the odd stretch mark (I was really blessed to not have any with my pregnancies) ... but this tummy just HAS to go.  I'm guess that cardio and time will do it?  I mean, if I'm working at it - it can't stay forever.  Can it??  I know that I know that I know I have at least 7-10lbs to lose.  Heck, according to the doctor's "height/weight" chart I'm supposed to be between 105-118lbs.  Good-freakin-grief.  That's more than 20lbs??  I haven't weighed 105lb's since elementary school.  So, I'm hoping that if I can lose that 7-10lbs that I know I should, at least 4 or 5lbs of it will be from my gut.  Please and thank you.

Phewf.

Thank you for letting me rant. The tire's still there, but I WILL do my Jillian DVD right after I finish this ... 

Ok ... the next part of this post was written last night *grin*.  Ice cream.  Ok Ok Ok ... I know.  Ice cream and weight loss don't go together ... I hear you.

But I just had to post on this.  It seems as though my home-made-ice-creaming-blogs have changed a few homes from processed, expensive,  store-bought ice cream to make-their-own ... I LOVE that.  And now here's another ice cream addition for your repertoire ... 

* * * * * 

If you know anything about ice cream - you can make it with or without eggs.  With eggs - it's got a much better texture and custard-like smoothness.  It has a richer, fuller, thicker taste.  Oh boy.  Doesn't that sound good??

I rarely make it with eggs, though.  First off - time.  Making ice cream with eggs requires time, and more than just that, it requires me KNOWING that I'm going to be making ice cream.  See, with eggs, you've gotta create a warm milk base to cook the eggs in ... blah blah blah.  Then it has to cool down before placing it in the machine ... you get the idea.  Yummy - yes.  Time consuming - yes.

The other thing about eggs in ice cream is the extra calories and cholesterol.   Boo on that.  So - when I make ice cream after dinner, it's usually just milk/sugar/vanilla.  That's it.  Not as rich, but still satisfying. 

Why the speech on eggs?  Well.  As you have just read, they need to be cooked before consumed.  So - when coming up with a Cookie Dough Ice Cream recipe (Tias LOVES cookie dough ice cream at ColdStone and I wanted to surprise him one night with my own version) - I wasn't sure how to do that??  I mean - cookie dough has EGGS in it.

Or does it?? *wink*.

Lookie what I found ... an eggless cookie dough recipe that you FREEZE in little balls or whatever, ready for your ice cream maker when you're ready to make it!!  That is, if you don't eat it all first ... 

Are you as excited about this as I am?

Hmm.

Didn't see any jumping up and down.  I'm sorely disappointed.

*wink*.

Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough for Ice Cream
5tbsp brown sugar 
6tbsp sugar
4tbsp butter, softened
1tsp vanilla
3tbsp whole milk
1 cup flour 
1/2tsp salt
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

This is enough to make 24 small melon ball size of chunks that can be put in the freezer. When ready to add to icecream, you can cut each ball into quarters.

I made this - and can attest to how FANTASTIC it is.  I currently have a little tupperware container with dough-balls in it for the next time I make icecream.  Tias is gonna DIE.  I'll be his favourite mommy forever *grin*.  

It's a true treat ... and hey - if you just like to EAT cookie dough, this is a safe version.  Although - flour, sugar, butter ... you may need to up your cardio *wink*.  I know that I won't be able to have this in my freezer without a nibble here and there.  So treat it as a special treat ... if you want.

Enjoy - and let me know if you give this a try :-).

Have a great one!!

[make: WHY I Make Ice Cream & Coconut Ice Cream made with Almond Milk]

We make a lot of ice cream around here.  Well - let's change that.  I make a lot of ice cream around here.  For me, you just can't compare it to store bought.  

Here's why I chose to invest in a machine ( ... it runs about $99.00CDN at Sears.  I have the Cuisine Art one.  It's stainless steel and sharp lookin'.):

1.  I know what's in it, plain and simple.  

2.  I can control the sugar and fat content.

3.  It allows me to be creative - experimenting with flavour combinations and sugar products (cane sugar, agave nectar, splenda, honey ...).

4.  There are never any left overs - I make enough for 1 serving each for our family ... and then it's gone.  There's no waste, no throwing money down the drain.

5.  I don't snack on it ... because there are no left overs, I'm not tempted to scarf down spoonfuls during the day.

6.  Store bought icecream is expensive ... I can make homemade for less than half the cost, depending on the ingredients.

SO.

There you have it ... 

Now - last night we had company over (big surprise *grin*), and they both had sensitivities to dairy.  Hmmm.  So - my hubby booted up to the grocery store and bought a 2litre Almond Milk (for about $4.00CDN).  I know that dairy-free ice cream is really expensive - so this is a steal.

I decided to try something else that I've done before ... coconut milk.  I had a tin of it ... and here's how I made my first "Coconut Ice Cream with Almond Milk".

Coconut Ice Cream with Almond Milk

1 tin of coconut milk

3 cups of almond milk

1/4 cup cane sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a blender ... blend.  Then pour into the ice cream maker and follow ice cream maker instructions.

THAT'S it.  And in about 30minutes, fresh ice cream.

Was it good?  My hubby LOVED it ... it had a great consistency because of the coconut milk.  It wasn't super sweet, so I could up the sugar next time if I wanted.  I also like smooth ice cream, but you could easily toast some coconut in a small frying pan and dump that in during the ice cream churning process.  Also - eggs can really make ice cream rich and custard-like.  BUT that would've ruined the whole "non dairy" thing ... and you must cook the mixture first if you have eggs in it.  So it's more time consuming. 

So ... it was all eaten, all gone, no leftovers.  

I'd say it was a hit.

Have a great one!!  

[make: Toy Story Birthday Cake with Woody, Buzz & Rex]

So.  Josiah's birthday is January 1st ... yup.  He was the New Years baby for our city ... born at 12:14am.  Trust me ... if I could've, he would've been out earlier *grin*.  I tried.

It's so hard to believe that was  four years ago ... and here he is, my little man, full of spunk and light.  He's the witty one in the family ... he's super intelligent and knows he has the charm to knock someone's socks right off ... 

And here it is, February, and we're finally getting around to his kiddie birthday party.  I've had to remind him that he's not turning five *grin* ... he thinks he's having another birthday, rather than just a late party.

Every birthday, for every child, I try and create a special cake.  Now - this is just something that I just decided was important to me ... I am far from a cake decorator.  I've made an aquarium cake, a broken road Cars cake, a Cars racetrack cake, a Mack the Truck cake, a ladybug cake ... and they are all special to me - despite their obvious imperfections.

I should preface this, with fondant and I are not friends.  I know moms who create the most spectacular cakes with fondant.  Me - I prefer buttercream frosting and props.  I find it so much easier ... because it is *grin*.

Josiah's party theme is "Toy Story" ... I had to persuade him to change his mind from Cars for the third year in a row.  But coming up with a cake made my brain hurt.  Because my skills are limited, I like to create "scenes", rather than making a single character ... 

So ... I started with two 10x2 round cakes.  One vanilla, one chocolate.  

Then ... I stared at them for about 10 minutes.  No joke.

I decided to try and create Andy's bed ... and cut the edges of the vanilla cake, to make a square and use the leftover pieces to make a pillow.  Then I cut the chocolate cake in half to make the head and foot board.

... as soon as I did that, Josiah was crazy excited.  He loves watching things being created out of nothing.

I made some simple buttercream frosting and tinted it blue for the bed cover.

I made another batch of buttercream frosting and melted chocolate wafers to turn it into yummy, brown chocolate frosting ... and then I grabbed the bag of coloured star candies that I bought at Scoop and Save (and had no clue what I'd do with them at the time ... ) and began a pattern for the bed cover.

Then out came the props ... the Woody, Buzz and Rex are Siah's and the star badges and Bullseye were borrowed from a friend ... 

I added the candles, looked at the clock and realized that it was late as I was finishing up the last details. But Josiah and Mattias were desperate to see what it looked like ... so I let them out of bed *grin*.  It's not like they were going to sleep any time soon ... 

I had some black liquorice strings ... and I thought it would look good to outline the edges (totally a quirk of mine).  The liquorice wasn't soft, though ... and a bit twisted - it didn't really want to do what I wanted it to ... and the lines it made weren't perfect.

But hey.  It's a FOUR year old's bday cake, not a wedding cake, right??

... then I added some writing, "Happy 4th Birthday Josiah" in red gel.

I say this every time, but I think this one's my favourite.

Happy birthday, Josiah - again *grin*.  Now, Mattias is saying he wants a Bayblades birthday cake ... oh dear.  At least I have until August to figure that one out *grin* ...

Have a great one!

[make: Yummy Baked Chicken]

Ok.  So I named this recipe ... and Yummy Baked Chicken is all I could come up with *grin*.

I'm always looking for new recipes, especially BAKED chicken recipes.  I love preparing the recipe hours in advance, and setting the oven timer.  It means that dinner can be prepared in the morning, and clean up is  a cinch if I foil the pan.

But there actually aren't too many "baked" chicken recipes.  Well, there ARE, but they're all so close to each other that I get bored.  I make a dill chicken, with sour cream; a sticky baked chicken with preserves; a mushroom chicken with onion soup ... so I decided to mix them.

I had my folks over for dinner last week and served it to them - I figured we could all be guinea pigs *wink*.  And MAN.  It was goooooood.  And fall-off-a-log simple.

Here's the recipe. 

Tawn's Yummy Baked Chicken - serves 4

4 large chicken breasts, halved (I like smaller portions ..)

2 cups lite sour cream

1 cup preserves (I used orange marmalade - but had thought it was peach jam *grin*)

1 package of onion soup mix

Directions:

- foil a baking dish (9x9 or 9x13  (whatever works for you)

- place cut up chicken in the pan (see ... this is triiiiicky)

- in a bowl, mix the sour cream, preserves and soup mix

- spoon over the chicken

- cover with foil

- bake at 300F for an hour ... 

If you try it, let me know what you think. 

Enjoy!!

[make: Spicy Peanut Sauce]

My last few posts have been heartfelt - but today, I sound like Elmer Fudd (insert nose blowing sound here) - so nothing deep ... just yummy.

Hmmmm.

Wait.

But before I go into the yumminess - I just want to say that since I've taken up the word "intentional" for the year - I cannot BELIEVE how every single day something happens that makes me think of what I'm doing or why I'm doing it.  I've been so thankful - been learning lessons about my own heart, my own motives and in that, it's been so much easier to not let things fester and to just give it back to God ... I feel empowered and because I'm constantly checking my heart - I'm feeling like there's growth happening that I hadn't realized I  needed ... 2011 is gonna be a great year.

Ok.  So ONE deep paragraph *grin* ... 

ANYway - every New Years we have a party.  New Years Eve is my hubby's bday so - at his request -we have not just any party, but a FONDUE party ... and I'm always in charge of the dips.  This past New Years, I decided to add a spicy peanut sauce to my repertoire.  The problem was, I couldn't find any recipes online that sounded yummy enough ... 

So.  I made my own, and made sure to write it down as I went - just in case it turned out scrumptious.  

Lucky for me, it did *wink*.

Here's what I did:

Spicy Peanut Sauce:

2 cups smooth peanut butter

1 cup hot water
3 tbsp brown sugar - dissolved in additional 1/2 cup hot water
4 tbsp soya sauce
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced.

Directions:

Place all the ingredients in the blender.  Blend.  Chill.  Serve.  Makes about 4 cups or so ... I'm just guessing here - it was a bowl full *grin*.

I used it as a dipping sauce for the fondue ... I'm sure the possibilities are endless, though.  That is - if nobody in your home has a peanut allergy!!  *smile*

Enjoy .. and have a good one (which sounds like "hab a goob whon" for me today :-)

[make: Sinful Caramel Popcorn]

... ok people - gimme a sec here :-).

I posted a pic of a yummy pan of caramel popcorn in the oven about 15 min ago on Facebook and people started asking if there was a recipe to share.

Why yes, yes there is *grin*.

And I thought it would be easiest to post it on this site than have it up in a convo on Facebook. 

So here it is ... and I warn you - I've eaten about 5 handfuls in the last 10 minutes.

Caramel Popcorn

5 cups fresh air popped popcorn 

1/2 cup butter

2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup corn syrup

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the brown sugar, corn syrup and salt.  Stir constantly until it begins to boil - then let it boil UNTOUCHED for 4 minutes.

2. Add the baking soda and vanilla; stir.

3. Pour over the prepared popcorn in a large baking pan (or two).

4. bake in 200F oven for 1 hour, stirring every 20minutes or so ... if you like it CHEWY, then bake less.

It's super easy ... but I will also warn you that I've been typing this with one hand as I accidentally poured the boiling sugar on my hand ... and it stuck - couldn't get it off - screaming craziness.  Yup.  I'm a classy cook with an icepack inbetween my stinging fingers *yuck*.. 

Enjoy!

And hey ... have a good one :-).

[make: Ladybug Birthday Cake]

So ... Katia's birthday, part deux:  The Birthday Cake.

For the last few weeks, I have been checking out various websites for ideas for Katia's birthday cake.  Of course, with a "ladybug" theme - it needed to represent.  I was so excited to do this ... a little girl's cake was a far cry from the Mack Truck cake, CARS Race Track cake, CARS Broken Road cake etc that I've been making the last few years ... 

Where did I start?  With a whole bunch a baking.  I did two 15x10x1 ... nice and thin, with the plan to fill with buttercream icing, a 9x9 and a couple of "ball" cakes too ...

... I added finely grated chocolate chips to the the buttercream frosting.

... and then started creating the shape of a leaf.

... and frosted the top with GREEEEEN frosting.   Very happy.  Very green.  Very "leafy."  *grin*

... Katia wanted to check it out too *smile* ...

... then I outlined with green candy shoelaces for the veining of the leaf ...

... and started adding details around the edge.  I chose to use rock candies ... but I won't lie.  They were super expensive.

... then came the ladybug.  I baked a "ball" cake and used the extra half for the "face" of the ladybug.  Then, I iced it BEFORE I put it on the leaf cake - to try and keep it less messy.

...  I added black liquorice shoelaces to outline the wings, and little yellow dotted candies to to outline the leaf veins.

Then I sprinkled black sugar to fill in the black places.  I put wax paper down to protect the leaf cake.  Unfortunately, I came up with this idea AFTER I put the ladybug on the cake ... I should've done all this BEFORE putting in on the cake ... it was such a mess.  Ah well.

... then more details.  I used pipe cleaners for the antennae and mixed in the black sugar with the red icing to make a textured brown/purple icing for the face.  The circles are chocolate coins, painted with frosting and dipped in the black sugar ... I loved the way they turned out.

... the final touch:  writing her name and adding a candle.  I didn't do "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" as there wasn't any room ... and hey, everyone knew it was her birthday, right?  *grin*.

Oh, I LOVED this cake.   Not because it was perfect - but because it was perfect for our little bean's birthday. I made it the morning of her birthday,  so within a couple of hours it was cut up and eaten ... But that's what a birthday cake is for, right?

Happy birthday, sweet little Katia.  You are so loved!!

Have a great one!