Hot Yoga

Hot Yoga is pretty hot  right now (ding!) and it seems like every other Groupon or LivingSocial deal that comes to my inbox has some outrageous deal for Hot Yoga. So last week I cashed in on this steamy form of exercise and bought one month of unlimited yoga classes.

I've done Hot Yoga a couple times in the past however I never been able to fit it in. Here's round two of the Hot Yoga experience!

Disclaimer: If you don't like sweating in a room with a bunch of minimally clothed people, Hot Yoga is probably not for you.

I promise that you will sweat more than you have ever sweat before! Your shins will have rivers flowing down them, your elbows will be dripping, you will be wishing you wore a sexy forehead sweatband and you will probably develop a puddle of sweat on your yoga mat. It's amazing!

For those of you who think that you're 'not flexible', trust me, you will be a little bit more flexible during a hot yoga session. Your skin will feel amazing, your body feels less tense and you'll be nice and relaxed. Everyone should try Hot Yoga at least once in their life!

My advice for first timers: 1. Relax, 2. Bring a full water bottle! If you want to learn about the different types of Hot Yoga click here.

Namaste!

Herb Garden

I have attempted container gardening for two years now, and I have been unsuccessful to say the least. This year I'm giving it one last solid effort and if I'm unsuccessful again I guess the only other option is buying an acreage and having a 'real' garden. (I'll do what I have to do).

My container garden! (Check out that view! I love it!)

In the past I have tried carrots (not the smartest choice considering the container depth is limited, therefore I ended up with tall leafy bits, and scrawny yellowy-orange roots). I've also tried lettuce, onions, and flowers, all with no luck. But this is the year it will be different!! (I hope).

I'm scaling back a bit from vegetables and trying to grow a Herb Garden!

I've planted Stevia, Basil, Parsley, Rosemary, and Broccoli sprouts.

Side note: I decided to use these little 'plant trainers' (seen at the top of the picture). They are pretty neat little things...

You buy them as these little discs of dirt and the instructions say to just add water...

I added the water and left them for 5 minutes...

BOOM! Miniature planters, ready to be seeded. 

Let the germination begin!

I also planted lettuce and chives directly in the planters.

One week later...

Hello Lettuce!

The basil is growing strong! 

May 28: Basil's all grown up and Transplanted!!

June 2, Chives are looking Chivey!!!

June 2, Parsley and Stevia are making an appearance...Where the heck is the rosemary? 

June 2, I'll be having lettuce in no time!!

I'll update the post as more things grow! Happy spring!

Homemade Fruit & Nut Bars

Happy May Long Weekend Everyone!

In preparation for the many fun filled weekends this summer, I thought that I would make a healthy treat that is 'camp trip' friendly. I found this super easy recipe on Pinterest and I wanted to see if it really was 'that' easy. (Spoiler alert... it really is super easy)

The ingredient list... (highly modifiable!)

1 cup Raisins
1 cup Dates
1 cup Almonds
1/2 cup Ground Pecans
1/4 tsp Almond extract
As much cinnamon as you would like :)

Long Live the Food Processor! It has been a while since I've used this little mulcher and when I started it up, that concerning 'hot motor smell' filled my kitchen. If you're familiar with this particular kitchen appliance smell you know that it has to get pretty bad before bakers, like you and I, actually do something about it. But...I had high expectations of the processor so I just let the 'smell' work it's way out. Luckily the smell went away and the motor didn't explode!

Gather your ingredients...

Mulch the dates and raisins (these would taste great with craisins)

Gooey mess...

Add the nuts and mulch it up...

Add flavourings  (I used almond extract and cinnamon)

Keep mulching until you get a sticky clump...

Toss it out onto some saran wrap and mould it into a flat rectangle. 

Chill it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.  

Cut it up!

Perfect road trip/camping trip snack! Enjoy!!

Recipes

Breakfast

Snacks

Side Dishes


Dinner

Dessert

Slow Cooker


Holidays & Special Occasions 


Popcorn

Cakes

Lemon and Cream Roll

I'm just going to cut to the chase... this recipe was a little bit of a fail.

This lemon roll looked great in the picture and seemed easy enough, but there was some language barriers/lack of attention to detail that caused me some issues. 

All the way from Germany... this tasty, overseas recipe comes from the cookbook: 

Dr. Oetker-German Baking Today: the original. 

The 'Fatless' Sponge

4 medium eggs

1 egg yolk

3/8 cup sugar

1 sachet vanilla sugar

7/8 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1. Whisk the eggs on high for about 1 minute. Gradually add the sugar and continue whisking on high for 2 minutes. 

2. Mix together the flour and baking powder and add to the egg mixture while on low speed. 

3. Spread the sponge evenly onto a baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes. 

4. Loosen the sponge along the edges and turn out onto parchment paper that has icing sugar sprinkled on it. Let it cool. 

Filling

Whipping cream in the whipped form. 

5. Spread the whipped cream onto the sponge and roll it up!

Sounds simple enough, right? Welp, here's where I went wrong. 

So, I put the eggs into Jetty (aka, Jet black betty, the name of my kitchen aid mixmaster)... and whipped em up!

I added the sugar and and flour mixture...

...and then spread it out over the pan. 

Now, this German cook book has some conversional issues (or perhaps the reader of the cookbook does). The recipe said to preheat the oven to 200. So that's what I did. After 10 minutes, the "sponge" was lacking "sponge" properties and looked very similar to it's original form. I soon made the connection that 200 is obviously 'degrees Celsius' and not 'fahrenheit'. Trying to redeem myself I figured I could just turn the temperature up with the sponge still inside and let it cook some more. Right?

Wrong... all you get it a rock hard flour and egg mixture... ( I also may have baked it for too long...)

So, I started again....

this time the oven was perfectly preheated and the sponge cooked beautifully. It was just too thick so it didn't roll properly. 

Fail. 

Even though this recipe was a waste of eggs, took twice as long as it should have, and looked like crap when I rolled it, it tasted not too bad, (that may have been due to the 35% cream and icing sugar, though).  I will try to make this one again, and spread my batter a little more thin. 

Things I learned about German cooking:

1. Instead of calling for 'cooking spray' in the recipe, they call it 'a little fat'. (sad reality)

2. Even though the sponge cake is 'fatless', it has extra cholesterol (4 eggs + 1 yolk).

3. A sachet of Vanilla Sugar is no where to be found in Canada. Therefore, I improvised by mixing 2 tbps of white sugar with almond extract. Why almond extract? I am out of vanilla and it was the next best thing. 

4. Use jam and cream. (extra sugar, extra goodness). 

Mmmmm, Tasty.  

Cornmeal-Crusted Scallops with Mint Chimichurri

Today's recipe is not my typical dinner. For instance, some nights a decent sized bowl of popped corn with sour cream and chive seasoning is sufficient. However... having just recently finished all of my undergrad class after 4 years of assignments, tests, and projects, I  thought I would splurge and make a nicer dinner with a friend.

From: The Best of Cooking Light- Everyday Favorites

Cornmeal-Crusted Scallops with Mint Chimichurri

Fun Fact: Chimichurri is a thick herb sauce commonly made with parsley and oregano, and served with grilled meat in South American cuisine. Mint gives this version a more delicate tast, making it perfect for seafood. Serve over a bed of rice to soak up the flavourful sauce.

Chimichurri: (super fun word to say)
1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup sliced green onions
2 tbsp water
1 1/2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp minced seeded serrano chile (I was too lazy to actually find this stuff, but chili flakes seemed to add the 'swiftiest' of kicks.)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 garlic clove

Scallops:
3 tbsp yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 lbs sea scallops
1 tbsp olive oil
Green onion strips

1. To prepare chimichurri throw all the ingredients into a food processor (ah-ha! food processors do actually have a purpose). If you don't have a food processor because you've realized they were a fad of the 90's and an absoute pain in the butt to clean, a blender would work fine. Set this aside.

2. Preparing the stinky scallops!  (Sidenote... living many miles away from the coast, I have this weird paranoia about buying 'fresh' seafood in Alberta. I mean, it really can't be that 'fresh'. But, I figured for this recipe I would just have to get over it. Little did I know how bloody expensive scallops are!! I probably won't be making this again.)

1. Coat the scallops in the cornmeal. 

2. Heat oil over med-high heat and plop in the scallops.

3. Fry scallops for about 3 minutes on each side until it browns. Flip 'em over and brown the other side. 

4. Serve the scallops with a rice blend and top with chimichurri and onion slices. 

Overall, this was a pretty easy recipe and great for the wealth scallop lover. 

Some things I learned:
1. Scallops are the 'fishy' kind of seafood.
2. Leftover chimichurri tastes great in a bean salad.
3. Making onion slices is more fun than one would think.
4. I don't like the texture of scallops.

Check out what we had for dessert! Lemon roll with blueberries...

Chicken Fajita Chili

It's been a while since a New Recipe Sunday, but I feel like yesterday's NRS was totally worth the wait! This recipe is from...

Better Homes and Gardens: Year-round Slow Cooker Recipes (there's going to be some good ones come out of this book)

Chicken Fajita Chili
prep: 25 minutes   Slow Cook: 4 to 5 hours (low) or 2 to 2 1/2 hours (high)
Serves 8

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1inch pieces
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp fajita seasoning
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 16-ounce package frozen stir-fry vegetables
1 19-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3 tbsp shredded cheese
3 tbsp light sour cream
3 tbsp guacamole

1. In a medium bowl combine chicken, chili powder, fajita seasoning, garlic, and cumin; toss to gently coat.
2. Coat a large skillet with cooking spray; heat skillet over medium-high heat. Cook half of the chicken mixture in hot skillet until brown, stirring occasionally. Transfer until brown, stirring occasionally. transfer chicken mixture to a slow cooker. Repeat with the remaining chicken mixture. Stir in tomatoes, frozen vegetables, and beans.
3. Cover and cook on low setting for 4-5 hours or on high setting for 2-2 1/2 hours. If desired, top each serving with cheese, sour cream, and guacamole.

Nutrition facts per serving
261 cals, 2g total fat (1g sat fat), 88mg chol, 294 mg sodium, 22g carb, 7g dietary fiber, 7g sugar, adn 41g protien.

AND NOW THE RECIPE IN PICTURES!!! (because everyone knows that recipes are much easier to look at when they are in picture form)

1. Cube up a couple chicken breasts

2. Throw the cubes in a bowl and add 1 tbsp of chili powder

3. Add1 tsp (or an entire package) of fajita seasoning. The small detail of "1 tsp" isn't that crucial. I definitely just assumed I would put the whole package in without actually reading the recipe. It turned out great. 

4. Add two cloves of minced garlic. 

5. Add1/2 tsp of cumin. (Sidenote: I try to follow these recipes that I do as closely as possible. So, I go to the superstore and buy a whole bottle of cumin for $6.99 only to use 1/2 a teaspoon of it. This makes no sense to me. If I were in the spices business I would totally provide a much smaller option so people don't have cupboards full of spice bottles that have barely been used! Punchline...turns out I had already bought cumin for a previous recipe a while ago. Now, I have a crap load of cumin. If anyone wants some, I could most definitely set you up with at least a 1/2 tsp). 

Add caption

6. Toss'er all up!

7. Fry it on a medium-high frying pan until the edges are brown. 

8. Add the kidney beans, the chicken, the stir-fry mix and the tomatoes in the crock pot. Cook it on high for 2-2 1/2 hrs or low for 4-5 hrs. 

9. Top it with sour cream, guacamole, and cheese!  Delicious

This was the perfect Sunday meal for a snowy day in Edmonton. Enjoy!