Nutella Syrup

Forget love ... I'd rather fall in chocolate!

 

We are just a hop, skip and a jump away from my FAVORITE holiday! I love the simplicity of Valentines day. It can be as elaborate or as simple as you decide. There are no expectations of some mystical creature that will magically appear and grant your child's wishes. No hiding gifts or eggs or dollar bills. No need to be sneaky or secretive or aloof.

 

I get to just be me.

 

I get to tell my loves what they mean to me and why I am so grateful that they are a part of my life, in my own way, at my own pace, and with the effort that I am able to pull together at this time of year. 

 

It is all mine!

 

We have very few real "traditions" when it comes to Valentines day. The only constant that runs through the years as a thread that holds them all together is that I cook special meals.

 

Breakfasts are usually heart shaped and decadent while dinners revolve around things that my hubby loves, namely steak and seafood with a big glorious homemade cheesecake for dessert.

 

After several years of trying to go out for Valentines day, arranging baby sitters, finding a restaurant that actually accepts reservations and then waiting around for a sub par dining experience, we decided that eating at home for the actual holiday is the way to go and then we go on our Valentines date a week or two later. Eating at home also allows us to celebrate with our kiddo's. It's a win-win for everyone.

 

So with Valentines on my mind I decided to experiment this morning with a new breakfast syrup concept and we all loved the results. Imagine pairing this with the coconut crusted French toast that I posted just over a week ago for a little Mounds candy bar flavor burst or maybe creating peanut butter pancakes and then drizzling them with this syrup and you've got your morning Reese's. Let your taste buds be your guide and create a fun, delicious and special breakfast for your loves this Valentines morning.

 

Nutella Syrup

 

1/2 C Nutella

2 Tbsp butter
1/2 C milk 

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium sauce pan. (The syrup will more than double in size when you add the baking soda, so a medium sauce pan is necessary.)

Bring just to a boil over medium heat.

Remove from heat and whisk in remaining ingredients until syrup is light and fluffy.   

 



Pan Seared Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Feta

We kids feared many things in those days

- werewolves, dentists, North Koreans, Sunday School

- but they all paled in comparison

with Brussels sprouts

                                                                          -Dave Barry

 

Forget everything you know, or think you know about Brussels sprouts. One bite of these delectable little beauties will have you singing a new tune.  

 

I have always loved Brussels sprouts, except for a short time when my older brother Mike told me that since Cabbage Patch Kids came from cabbages and Brussels sprouts are essential mini cabbages then Cabbage Patch Kids Preemies must come from Brussels sprouts. It only took one tear filled dinner to quickly dispel that myth. 

 

Brussels sprouts to me are, just as Mike said, mini cabbages. Being mini, they contain all of the flavor of a cabbage in a much smaller package which makes the flavor much more intense. The bitter flavor is one of the reasons Brussels sprouts get such a bad rap, that and if they aren't cooked properly they can turn into a slimy ball of wilted sadness that no one wants to eat.

 

That is the beauty of this dish. You aren't boiling the Brussels sprouts so they don't soak up excess liquid. The salty taste of the bacon and the sweetness of the cranberries help draw out the bitter flavor in the Brussels sprouts leaving you with a very mild "baby cabbage" giving you the opportunity to enjoy all of the health benefits of these tiny powerhouses.

 

I added asparagus to this dish during our Thanksgiving feast, throwing in a full bunch cut into 1 inch sections when the Brussels sprouts were almost half cooked and I loved the results. Asparagus and Brussels sprouts go really well together. If you wanted a vegetarian version of this dish you could omit the bacon and substitute a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and serve it over a bed of brown rice or barley. This is something that I will be experimenting with in the near future and will post here as soon as soon as I have perfected the recipe. But for now, I hope you will give Brussels sprouts another chance with this quick and easy recipe that even you pickiest eater will enjoy. (p.s. my kiddo's aren't fans of feta, so I always serve theirs first and sprinkle mine with feta once it is on my plate)

 

 

 

Pan Seared Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Feta

 

1 pound of Brussels sprouts washed, trimmed and halved

1/2 pound of bacon, crispy cooked (reserve 2 tsp of drippings)

1 C dried cranberries

1 C toasted nuts of your choice (I have used hazelnuts and macadamia nuts)

1/2 C feta cheese crumbles

 



In large skillet, that has a lid, cook bacon until it is crispy.

Remove bacon and clean out drippings, reserving 2 tsp of drippings to saute the Brussels sprouts.

In the same skillet, warm 2 tsp of bacon drippings over medium heat.

Add Brussels sprouts and stir fry for about 5 minutes, covering with lid after each stir.

Add cranberries and continue to stir fry for another 5 minutes, covering with lid to allow the Brussels sprouts time to steam and soak up the flavor of the cranberries.

Add cooked bacon and nuts and stir fry for 2-3 minutes more until Brussels sprouts have cooked through to desired doneness but stir frequently so as to keep the bacon from burning.

Remove from heat and sprinkle with desired amount of feta just before serving.

Coconut Crusted French Toast

The waves of the sea

help me get back to me.

                                          -Unknown

 

This is usually a particularly hard time of the year for me. Christmas is over as well as the celebration for the New Year. My "resolutions" are beginning to fade and I am starting to feel like a failure. It is bitter cold and the thought of spring feels like a fantasy at the moment.

 

But, this year is different.

 

With all of the little changes that I have been making and my good friend, the "happy light", I might ACTUALLY make it through this winter in one piece! I have a couple of little trips planned and our big family vacation for the year is mostly paid for, I'm just waiting to actually make the purchase.

 

When winters are hard though, I have found that if I trick my mind into believing that I am somewhere tropical I can usually take off the top layer of sadness, even if it is only for a couple of moments. This usually involves listening to my Israel Kamakawiwo’ole station on Pandora and making something yummy to eat that reminds me of the islands. 

 

Nothing says Aloha to me in a more beautiful way than Coconut Crusted French Toast with Coconut Syrup. The warm toasted coconut is nestled nicely in a bed of thick sliced French bread that has been dredged through a mixture of eggs and coconut milk which enhances the flavor and gives a lighter feel to the whole meal.  

 

So turn up the music, warm up your griddle and blast the furnace. We are going to make it through this winter, one delicious bite at a time!

 

 

Coconut Crusted French Toast

 

1 loaf French bread cut into 1 inch slices

6 eggs lightly beaten

1/2 of a 13.5 can of coconut milk

1 tsp coconut extract

2 1/2-3 C coconut flakes

 

Warm griddle to medium heat and prepare with cooking spray or melted butter.

 

Mix eggs, coconut milk and coconut extract until well combined.

 

Dredge sliced French bread through egg mixture and then through coconut flakes.

 

Place on griddle and cook, flipping several times to ensure that it cooks evenly, until egg coating is cooked through and coconut begins to toast. 

 

Coconut Syrup

 

1 stick butter
1 C sugar
1/2 C milk 

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp coconut extract

Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium sauce pan. (The syrup will more than double in size when you add the baking soda, so a medium sauce pan is necessary.)

Bring just to a boil over medium heat.

Remove from heat and whisk in remaining ingredients until syrup is light and fluffy.   



Status Report

Nothing ever goes away

until it teaches us what we need to know.

                                                              -Pema Chadron

 

 

The first few weeks of the New Year have gone by in a flash. I have been really busy with work and trying to squeeze in some last minute fun with the fam before my kiddos headed back to school. But now that they are back in school I am ready to spend more time with you and this crazy journey.

 

First up, I just want to tell you all how much I have been enjoying my "A Year Without Scales" challenge. I know that I am getting smaller, not because the number on the scale is changing (I haven't been on the scale since the end of December), but because my clothes are looser! Pants that used to give me a lovely "muffin top" now rest nicely on my hips. My shirts are baggier and I have so much more energy. 

 

It has been hard not to climb on the scale after noticing those small changes, but I have resisted so far. I don't think I have lost enough that anyone will really notice yet, but I'm still truckin' and so hopefully soon. 

 

I have been reading a wonderful book by Deepak Chopra called "What are you hungry for?". The whole premise of the book is to ask yourself what you are truly hungry for. If you are filling a hole in your heart with food there is no way that you will ever be satisfied. If you are eating because you are bored, again you will not find the satisfaction that you need in the food you are eating. So now, before I eat I scan my body to make sure that I am really eating for fuel instead of eating just to eat and I'm also stopping before I become too full.

 

I have also been making small changes that will lead me to my ultimate goal. But with these changes I am also giving myself some wiggle room. A friend posted a FABULOUS article that has really stuck with me. It was all about how resolutions set us up for failure from the very beginning. The author talks about his own goals and he states that had they been resolutions he would have pushed himself past the breaking point and ultimately would have failed. With resolutions we either "do" or we "don't" and as soon as we "don't" we throw our hands up in the air and give up. By having an ultimate goal in mind and working towards that goal every day it isn't so black and white. 

 

I've broken my changes down to small weekly tweeks in my routine. During the first week of the New Year I gave up caffeinated soda (cold turkey). Last week I was more mindful of my eating. This week I am getting back into a good yoga routine. With all of the craziness that has been going on at work, it has been hard to squeeze it in, but now that I'm not drinking caffeinated soda I am waking up on my own around 5 or 6 every morning which gives me more than enough time to squeeze in some yoga. 

 

With these tweeks I know that at any time I may not be perfect with them, but just because I am not perfect today doesn't mean I won't be perfect tomorrow, and with the big picture in mind, one non-perfect day doesn't need to derail my progress. 

 

Lastly, I have a clear picture in my mind of who I will be at the end of 2014. I heard an interesting piece on NPR not too long ago that spoke to how our brains receive messages. One of the hardest things to remember is that our brain speaks a foreign language. The person who was interviewed described being stranded in a foreign land and needing to find a restroom. If you don't speak the language you could ask someone over and over where the bathroom was and you may never find what you are looking for, but sketch a quick picture of a toilet and you would quickly be pointed in the right direction. So instead of saying words to your brain about how you want to change your life get a clear picture of how you look, act and feel in that new life and you brain can be your biggest ally.   





A year without scales...

You have been criticizing yourself for years, and it hasn't worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.
Read more at http://www.quoteswave.com/picture-quotes/342530#eoma1OFIgAmmyiWV.99

You have been criticizing yourself for years,

and it hasn't worked.

Try approving of yourself and see what happens. 

                                                                                                 -Louise L. Hay

 

 

It happened just over a month ago. My youngest daughter was sick and I was fairly certain that she had Strep. So I bundled her up and drove out to an after hours clinic. When her name was called, we stepped back behind the doors and were quickly whisked away for vital signs and weight. As she stood there looking at the "torture device" she asked me in the softest little voice, "Mom, should I take my shoes off".

 

Luckily, this is a practice that I gave up years ago. So I quickly retorted, "No honey, it doesn't change anything". But the sting was still there.

 

My hope is that she was just asking if there was a proper way to step on the scale. But my fear has gotten the better of me and I have been examining and reexamining that scene to sniff out anything that I may have missed. My fear, and the fear of so many Mom's out there, is that my perfect little lovie believes that her value is somehow tied to the number that appears on the scale and by removing her shoes she will get a better number.

 

I grew up in the age of eating disorders. My parents and my friends parents were trying to balance the media "ideal" with the plethora of fast food options that were now available all the while helping us create a healthy body image, something that prior to this time apparently just happened. We were surrounded by models that claimed the way to happiness was a size 2 and ads that claimed that happiness came from a red box with a smile on the front of it. Most of us emerged slightly shell shocked on the other side of adolescence.

 

I fell into the majority that, at least for a time, tried to purge. (Just writing that word, I'm surprised at how neat and tidy it seems compared to the harsh reality.) Luckily for me, I was blessed with an iron clad stomach and was never successful, so I never became part of the group. Something I desperately wanted, but of course looking back I am grateful for that blessing in disguise. 

 

A lot of attention has been placed on the media lately as people begin to realize that so much of what we have thought to be real (because pictures don't lie) is in fact fake. Those little rolls that appear with natural movement are photo shopped or airbrushed out. Wrinkles are removed, natural skin tones are softened to the point of a cartoonesque quality.

 

I am so glad that I am raising my girls now instead of back when my parents were. I have tried to use words that build them up and make them feel powerful instead of words that make them examine themselves in a harsh light. And now I have proof of what is real and what isn't. When we flip through a magazine we point out where things look fake or phony and I hope it is helping, but I think there is more that I need to do.

 

My girls, and my boys, need to see me loving all of me. To be honest, the only time I have felt completely comfortable in my own skin (except, of course, for those years when I didn't realize that I shouldn't, we will say from birth to 5) was when I was pregnant. I loved the sweet roundness that moved under my skin. My hips and thighs dissolved under a blanket of expectations and no longer held my focus. It was bliss.

 

It has been a long time coming, but I am finally there again. I love all of me! My yoga practice has probably done the most to help me appreciate everything about me. I love the way my toes splay and shift as I stand in tree pose. I love the strength of my thighs as I slide into side angle pose. I even love the way my skin touches as I arch back into warrior one, because that is reality, because I'm not airbrushed.

 

I think it is time though, to take one more GIANT step forward and step off the scale for a bit. Even though I love me, I have been giving too much power to the little black box that merely announces the relationship between the gravitational pull of the earth and my mass. It has the power to take a good day and shade it with self doubt and belittlement.

 

So, as the only New Years resolution you will hear from me for the year (there are others, but I'm choosing to keep them to myself), I resolve to put the scale away for a full year and see if approving of myself day in and day out does more for me than the constant echo of a number has for all of these years.   

Because I am not that number on the scale. I am so much more and so much less.