Day: March 1, 2019

Question:

When you have realised that you are a part of consciousness, how do you get compassionate in whatever YOU are doing? Doesn’t it feel superficial?

Tis’ the season for Cranberry Bliss Bars! So first of all let me preface this blog post by mentioning that I could house an entire box of Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars to myself. In one sitting. They are one of my all-time favorites. So I decided to make a gluten-free, grain-free, copycat version because why the hell not?! It’s Christmas!

Okay so another thing I should maybe mention is that I’m obsessed with Christmas. Like OBSESSED obsessed. I put my tree up the day after Thanksgiving and I’ve had eggnog in my fridge since late September. What?! I can’t help it. Christmas is the best. Mainly because everything is covered in lights, Uggs are acceptable footwear, scarves are the best accessory, and the baking is on point. Oh man is the baking on point. Not only is baking so fun and delicious, but then you can also use the heat from the oven to heat your house, so it’s kind of like you’re saving money. Is it? No, it’s not, but just go with it.

So I also have been meaning to write a follow up to my July blog post about how I quit drinking for 8 months. Oh, you haven’t read that post yet? Well let’s go ahead and pause here so you can get caught up. It’s fine, I’ll wait…

And we’re back. So lots of you wonderful blog readers have reached out wondering, “What the heck Vanessa, are you a full-blown alcoholic again after your Honeymoon, or what? The people are dying to know.” So let’s go ahead and get right on into it, here’s my recap: I drank on our Honeymoon, I had champagne, piña coladas, dirty martinis, the works. I really enjoyed myself and I was surprisingly not hungover at all. I think the most drinks I had in one day would be about 4 though, so it’s not like I was a college girl after finals or anything.

I definitely felt and still feel myself sliding back in though. As I type this it’s only be 6 days since I’ve had a drink. After vacation ended I stayed sober until I visited a friend in San Francisco for my birthday (about a month total) and then I didn’t drink at all the month of October, I did a “Sober October” to try and get my sh!t together. Then November came in hot! I’ve basically drank every weekend in November, usually 3-4 drinks, sometimes in one day, sometimes over the whole weekend. We visited family in Tucson earlier in the month, then I had a friend in town, and then it was Thanksgiving…blah blah blah excuses, excuses. So I basically feel like someone who is walking up a steep hill and then every few feet or so, I slide back down part of the way. I believe “a slippery slope” is the easier and technical way to say that right? Ugh. See. Alcohol makes you dumb. Even after 6 days without it.

The original plan was to only drink on Holidays, special occasions, or when it’s really worth it. That plan has proven much harder to stick to than I originally thought it would. I think I just want to be one of those “in moderation” people so bad that I’m like, “Oh yeah, totally, I can make that work.” I’m still going to earnestly give that route a try because it makes the most sense to me. So the goal now is to make it until Christmas Eve without a drink and then start fresh in the New Year and go as long as I can again.

Each time I drink now I make a conscious effort to really ask myself, “What is it about this that I think I like so much?” because to be completely honest, the last few times I’ve gotten buzzed, it’s given me a sort of nervous paranoid anxiety that made me feel like, “I don’t like this, I feel uncomfortably fuzzy, I can’t articulate what I’m trying to say to this person, and I feel like everyone knows I’m drunk.” but then I still continue to do it anyway.  Why? Is it to just check out of reality for a second? Or make things more challenging just for the fun of it? What is it? I’m still trying to figure this out.

On our 6 hour road trip to Tucson, Brad and I played the New York Times 36 Questions to Love which you are actually supposed to play with someone you’ve never met, but I thought it would be a good way to kill time. We’re married, so obviously we already knew a lot of the answers to the questions about each other, but it was still fun and there were actually quite a few that we didn’t know about each other. Like Question 1. Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest? He said me! Isn’t he the best?! That’s why I married him, but then I made him pick someone else besides me and he said Jesus. Which I thought was strange since he doesn’t believe in God, but anyway that’s another blog post for another time.

Fast forward to Question 12. If you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be? His answer was amazing, he said, “I’d wake up without any vices.” Well, wow, that got me thinking (mainly because my answer was something dumb like be invisible or be able to sing) what causes us to have vices or need vices? Is that why I think I’m entitled to a drink whenever I want one? Is it because we live in a world where we feel entitled to our vices? Like we’ve earned them?

So I guess the Cliff’s Notes version of this blog post is I’ve realized I don’t particularly enjoy drinking that much anymore, but I’m still doing it anyway, and I have no idea why. Maybe I need therapy?! Or maybe I just need to read This Naked Mind again. Then the other part of me is like, who cares, YOLO, just drink and be merry. It’s the quintessential angel and devil on each shoulder.

So knowing what I know now, would I have still chosen to drink on my honeymoon or would I have continued my non-drinking stretch? The answer is yes, I would have still drank regardless. I enjoyed having piña coladas in St. Barth’s and having expensive champagne on my wedding night in St. Maarten, and drinking a cocktail as I watched the sun set over Anguilla. Yes. I’d do it again and again. It was part of the experience for me, and while it’s true that I know I would have had just as much fun without it, I still liked the feeling of just letting my hair down and completely indulging with no guilt. Just like you’re supposed to do on vacation.

As someone who rarely lets their hair down, meaning that figuratively rather than literally, because I’ve actually been wearing my hair down a lot lately, as I feel a workout bun is just not an appropriate way to present myself to society, no matter how convenient it may be and I spend way too much money cutting and coloring my hair to just throw it up so no one can see. I’m rambling aren’t I, where were we again? 

Ah! Letting my figurative hair down felt really nice and carefree. And since I’m an abstainer, it’s hard for me to get out of the drinking cycle, if I’m still drinking on weekends. Are you as confused as I am? It’s hard getting all of your random thoughts and feelings into one concise point or blog post, so forgive me if this post seems scattered. I blame the alcohol obviously.

I’m excited to see what 2018 has in store! I’m excited to get off the drink again and get back to that place where I was living my best life and things weren’t so foggy. As much as our society worships alcohol, I think there is really something to be said about living an alcohol-free life. It’s charming almost, simple and charismatic.

So anywho! That’s that. The married life rules too in case you were wondering. I love it! Everyone I tell that to says, “Oh well enjoy it while you can, that will change real soon!” Um, excuse me, that’s not nice. Be nice. Speaking of being nice, you absolutely have to make these copycat Cranberry Bliss Bars because they are just too delicious not to, they are very nice. So nice in fact that I think Santa took them off the ‘Naughty’ list just for you.

Cranberry Bliss Bars

2017-11-30 12:53:55

Yields 24

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Prep Time

25 min

Cook Time

25 min

Total Time

1 hr 50 min

Prep Time

25 min

Cook Time

25 min

Total Time

1 hr 50 min

Ingredients

Cookie Layer

1. 12 tablespoons (170 g) salted butter, browned
2. 2 cups (184 g) sifted fine grain blanched almond flour
3. 1/4 cup (40 g) coconut flour
4. 1½ teaspoons baking soda
5. 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
6. ¼ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
7. ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
8. 1 cup (135 g) sifted maple sugar
9. 2 large eggs, room temperature
10. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
11. 1 cup (6 oz./180 g) white chocolate, chips or chopped
12. ½ cup (70g) dried cranberries

For the Frosting

1. 16 ounces (452g) cream cheese, softened (see Notes for dairy-free option)
2. 8 tablespoons (112g) unsalted butter, softened
3. 1 cup (115g) (70g) powdered sugar, or sifted maple sugar
4. ¼ cup (60ml) light-colored raw honey
5. 1 teaspoon orange extract
6. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
7. ½ cup (50g) finely chopped dried cranberries, for garnish
8. ½ cup (90g) white chocolate, chips or chopped, for garnish

Directions

For the Cookie Layer

1. Brown the butter by placing it in a medium-sized heavy-bottomed saucepan (2.5qt./2.3L) and cook over medium-low heat. Stir intermittently using a rubber spatula. As the butter melts it will start to bubble and foam. As the butter continues to brown, the color will turn from lemon yellow to amber and go from a loud bubble to quiet simmer. When the butter is ready, brown specks will have formed at the bottom of the pan and some will start rise in the foam. The butter will also have a very pleasant nutty aroma. Remove from the heat and let cool for about 15 minutes. While butter is cooling prepare other ingredients.
2. In a large mixing bowl combine the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, ground ginger, and salt. Stir together using a fork until well combined; set aside. In a separate medium mixing bowl add the maple sugar.
3. Once the butter has cooled, use a rubber spatula to transfer it into the maple sugar bowl, use the spatula to scrape in the browned bits as well. Beat together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Once the butter and sugar are mixed together, add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each, and then add the vanilla. Increase mixer speed to high and continue to beat until smooth bubbles appear on the surface, about 1 minute.
4. Transfer the wet egg mixture to the dry mixture. Use the spatula to scrape out any remaining liquid in the bowl. Beat on low until thoroughly combined. Then mix in the white chocolate and cranberries by hand. Scrape the dough down into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing directly on the surface. Place in the freezer to chill for one hour.
5. About 15 minutes before the hour is up, adjust oven rack to the middle position. Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 9×13 quarter sheet pan with parchment paper; set aside.
6. Once the dough is chilled, use fingertips to grab some dough and spread the dough evenly across the pan. Place a piece of parchment paper over the dough and roll out until the dough reaches the edges of the pan. It will rise during baking. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until browned on the top and edges and a toothpick comes out clean. Make sure the middle is cooked through completely. Cool completely before frosting.

For the Frosting

1. Add the cream cheese and butter to a large mixing bowl or to the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat together using a hand mixer or stand mixer set on medium speed until fluffy and combined. Gradually add the sugar, beating well after each addition. Then add the honey, vanilla, and orange extract and continue to mix until smooth and creamy.
2. Use an angled frosting spatula to spread the frosting across the cookie layer. To garnish, sprinkle the dried cranberries across the frosting.
3. Melt the white chocolate in the top pan of a double boiler over simmering water. Stir until smooth. Another method is to place the white chocolate in a large glass or metal mixing bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir intermittently, using a rubber spatula, until the white chocolate is completely melted. Once melted, let slightly cool, then transfer to a piping bag or re-sealable plastic bag with the corner cut off. Drizzle across the top of the frosting.
4. Use a sharp large chef’s knife to cut into 12 squares, wiping the blade after each cut. Then cut each square in half diagonally. Serve immediately. Store any leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Notes

1. To make these dairy-free, sub ghee for the butter (I recommend Tin Star Browned Butter Ghee or 4th Heart Ghee) and sub dairy-free cream cheese for the cream cheese in the frosting. Kite Hill makes a great dairy-free cream cheese and you can find their products in health food stores across the country. Omit white chocolate chips or use a dairy-free version.

Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind http://cleaneatingwithadirtymind.com/

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Sex robots are here to stay and the technology is developing fast. From the ancient Greeks to the latest science fiction, robots in human form have captured our imagination, but is it possible to form intimate relationships with these inanimate objects? Do we want to? And what about the many ethical concerns sex robots raise?

Question:

First of all I want to thank you from my heart very much for changing my life. You put the light on my way to get to know God better than ever! Your words are just the message that God ever wanted me to know!

I have a question for long time:
In the law of karma what happens when you have been a “bad boy” for a long time, or you haven´t been who you must be (as a good father, as a fried, as a human being) but with the time you realize you have made things wrong and you regret it and decide you have and want to change your thoughts and your form of living and you become a new spiritual human being

Does it affect somehow your karma, I mean the responsibility you have to take your acts before you change your thoughts? What role does forgiveness play in all this?

I hope you can understand my question. Your inspiration helped me to start writing in English, but I have to practice more
with love from Colombia

2019 Pisces New Moon – March 6, 2019 8:03 AM PST / 11:03 AM EST / 4:03 PM GMT 15 Pisces 47 Astrology Forecast for the 2019 Pisces New Moon     To listen to Astrologer Kathy Biehl discuss the Pisces New Moon 2019, click the player below.   The 2019 Pisces New Moon is a woozy-making, escapist exercise. It serves up a double dose of otherworldliness right while our experience changes of the ground beneath our feet. The day itself could be confusing to the max, and that vibe continues through much of the month. We might not mind, though. Actually, we might not notice. This New Moon introduces no new influences. Instead, it escalates what we’ve been experiencing, and then some. Pisces is the sign of boundless water, imagination, formlessness, and inter-connectedness. It’s dreamland and funhouse mirrors, religious heights and other kinds of high. We’re more than well acquainted with it these days. We’ve been exploring this territory for the past nine years as Chiron passed through it. He may have left it on Valentine’s (more about that in a moment), but we’re not getting out for a few weeks. What’s more, we’re experiencing the sign’s propensity for boundlessness and blurring of boundaries more than usual. Reason one is that the sign’s ruler is at the helm: Dreamweaver Neptune, lord of the seas and ruler of illusion, higher love and everything that transcends earthly experience. His close proximity to the New Moon envelopes it in mists, fog, visions, and glamour, which blur perceptions and disable logic. Reason two is that Neptune’s getting assistance in unmooring us. He’s in a mutually expanding clash with boundless Jupiter in Sagittarius, which has an overdrive effect as if bigger and bigger clouds are billowing and spreading from a fog machine. The pair…

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Look, listen, here’s the thing…I made you Truffled Deviled Eggs because the Super Bowl is here. We’ve discussed this many times, that we care about neither the game nor the funny commercials that have gotten progressively worse and worse over the years, but we do in fact care very deeply about the food served at said Super Bowl parties. That’s where these Truffled Deviled Eggs come in to play. So this recipe is actually inspired by one of my favorite Austin eateries, The Salty Sow. Every time I go there I have to order these eggs, and I have to order the Duck Fat fries with a 110-minute egg. My mouth is watering just typing that sentence. Also, that was just a joke about not caring about the game. I know lots of women who are huge football fans and I can’t betray my gender like that. I can still make jokes though, right?

So now that we’ve decided that we are in fact watching the game along with the stuffing of our faces, which team are we routing for? JT is doing the Half-Time Show right? There was talks of the nip slip debacle again I believe…(insert so many memes and emojis here). Look I may not like football, but I do like gossip.

I need a new TV show to watch. I’ve binged and am current with How to Get Away with Murder, (dang that Viola Davis is a talented actor) and now I’m re-watching the whole Friends series because Brad’s never seen them before. Did he even live in the 90’s? (Chandler voice). Everyone’s like watch Black Mirror, but don’t start on Season One, start on Season Three, and watch this episode, but skip this one. I’m exhausted just thinking about all the remote control wielding that will require. And before you even ask, of course I’ve already watched all the obvious ones like Mind Hunter, Stranger Things, Walking Dead, Ozark, GOT, This is Us, etc. etc. etc. What? I like TV.

I did start watching GLOW because I’m a huge Jenji Kohan fan (hello Weeds and OITNB), but it’s just meh. My cousins and I were obsessed with the real GLOW series back in the 80’s. The three of us kinda grew up like sisters, we were all born about a month apart. My grandmother Nana and my great grandmother Rosa were obsessed with wrestling, like obsessed. They watched it all the time while Nana chain smoked More cigarettes, with the windows closed, but my grandma Rosa was hard of hearing so they would just watch it all day with the volume off. Hmm. Typing this as an adult makes me realize how weird that is, but this was my childhood and shaped me for better or for worse.

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Anyway one day we saw girls wrestling on the TV and it was the coolest. We got so excited and learned all the story lines. Then we would fight over who got to be whom. You know, for when we went out back to play in the yard and try to recreate the scenes we just saw. Being a kid is weird. Anyway my cousin Sarah wanted to be Americana because she was like the main pretty blond one who told all the others what to do, my cousin Jen wanted to be Ashley, which was weird, because I just remember Ashley like running a phone line or something and wearing a lot of leopard print.

I wanted to be Tina Ferrari because she wore purple and purple was my favorite color. This was my childhood. Don’t even make me tell you about the time that my Aunt Y. bought us these super cheesy fancy poofy ball gown dresses from this store down the street that was going out of business and my cousin Sarah got the light blue one and said, “I want to be Cinderella!”, then my cousin Jen got the yellow one and said, “I want to be Snow White!” and then I got the baby pink one with black polka dots and said, “I want to be Madonna!” it explains so much.

Anyway now you probably know way more about my childhood than anyone really should, but maybe that means you’ll recommend a good show for me in the comments or make this recipe and tell me how much you enjoyed it and how next time you’re in Austin you’ll stop by the Salty Sow to try the real ones!

Truffled Deviled Eggs

2018-01-23 14:06:47

Serves 12

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

15 min

Total Time

30 min

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

15 min

Total Time

30 min

Ingredients

1. 12 large eggs, boiled
2. 4 slices of bacon, finely chopped for garnish
3. ¼ (2.5 ounces/60ml) cup mayonnaise
4. 1 tablespoon white truffle oil
5. 1 tablespoon bacon drippings
6. ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
7. salt to taste
8. pepper to taste
9. 2 tablespoons chopped chives, for garnish

Directions

1. Place the eggs in a large (8 qt.) stockpot. Fill with water until the eggs are submerged. Boil over medium-high heat until hard, about 15-20 minutes, or use an egg timer. Fill the sink about halfway with very cold water. Once the eggs are boiled, transfer them to the water in the sink to stop the cooking process. Let them soak while you prepare the other ingredients.
2. While the eggs are boiling, cook the bacon over medium heat in a pan until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and transfer it to a paper towel lined plate. Retain the bacon drippings from the pan, there should be about a tablespoon or so. Once the bacon has cooled, use a chef’s knife or kitchen shears to chop into fine bits.
3. Once the eggs are cool, peel each one, washing off any remaining shell bits. Use a paper towel to dry eggs and then set aside.
4. Use a sharp chef’s knife to cut each egg evenly down the center, lengthwise. Use your finger, or a spoon, to remove each yolk from the white, transfer each to a small mixing bowl. Put the egg white halves on to a serving platter and set aside.
5. Add the mayonnaise, truffle oil, bacon drippings, and Dijon mustard to the bowl with the separated egg yolks. Add a few pinches of salt and pepper, mix together, taste, and add more salt and pepper if needed. Then finish mixing together until completely smooth and combined.
6. Transfer the egg yolk mixture to a piping bag fitted with an Ateco 867 tip or desired tip. Pipe the mixture into each egg white half.
7. Garnish with bacon bits and chives. Place in the refrigerator until cold. Serve chilled.
8. Cover and store any leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Notes

1. For a stronger truffle flavor, add 1 additional teaspoon of truffle oil at a time, to taste, when adding the salt and pepper.

Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind http://cleaneatingwithadirtymind.com/

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So here’s a little fun fact for you, Rice Krispies Treats were invented in 1939. How crazy is that?! By Malitta Jensen and Mildred Day from the Kellogg Company. Of course women were behind this. Also, side note, this blog post should probably be called something like Chocolate Dipped Heart Shaped Crisp Rice Treats so I don’t get sued for trademark violation, but I’m feeling a little dangerous today. Let’s live on the edge and see what happens, shall we? Also 3 letters for you: SEO. If I list a recipe name that is off the beaten path, no one will ever be able to find it. Ya dig? Here’s another little fun fact for you, this Valentine’s Day will be my 5-Year Blogaversary! I know, can you believe it! 5 whole years that I’ve been coming atcha’ with clean treats. It’s been one crazy ride, but I’ve loved it! Does that mean I should start thinking about cookbook number 2? Maybe…

I keep going back and forth. Like one second I’m like, “Everyone! I’m writing another book!” and then the next second I’m like, “Oh God, please no, let’s push this off for another year in hopes that I’ve decided to stop baking entirely and writing another book would be completely ridiculous and totally out of the question.” Don’t get me wrong, I love baking, food styling, food photography, and writing. It’s just the editing, deadlines, stress, and general life-taking-over that I don’t love so much. So it’s hard to decide and even harder to commit. It is fun working on a project and having a destination in mind, but at the same time it takes so much out of you. I guess I’m still deciding, but leaning more towards, Yes. Maybe. Just kidding.

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So let’s talk Rice Krispies Treats for a sec, I mean crisped rice treats or whatever. Generally they are not gluten-free, Kelloggs uses malt flavoring as an ingredient in Rice Krispies cereal. At one point they sold a gluten-free version of the cereal, but it didn’t sell well enough for them to justify the cost of making it and trying to market it so they discontinued it. Lame. Lucky for us though all the health food stores now carry gluten-free versions made by various brands. I found several brands with clean ingredients too. So many in fact that I was like, oh crap, which ones do I buy (insert immediate panic in the cereal aisle). I ended up having to make this recipe twice since the first version failed (more on that in a bit) so I got to try two different brands and now have what I feel is the best one.

The other not so fantastic thing about traditional Rice Krispies Treats is the marshmallow aspect. The ingredients in the recommended Jet-Puffed Marshmallows scared the bejesus out of me. Are you ever shopping and you look at the ingredients on something and then you actually drop it in the aisle because your mind is having a hard time comprehending what it just saw? Identical me in the marshmallow aisle. Here are the ingredients in Jet-Puffed marshmallows: CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, MODIFIED CORNSTARCH, DEXTROSE, WATER, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF GELATIN, TETRASODIUM PYROPHOSPHATE (WHIPPING AID), NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, BLUE 1. Oh no. (Phoebe from Friends voice). After I picked up the dropped marshmallows off the shiny linoleum floor, I pondered, how could I make these cleaner? What if I used homemade marshmallow cream? Hmm..(insert thinking face emoji)

And that’s exactly what I tried. I made the marshmallow creme from my cookbook, the one that is the gelatin based version and patiently waited while they cooled to see what the results would be. It was a no go people, a total failure. Apparently there was too much moisture or something because they came out super soft and tasted like stale Rice Krispies Treats. You know what I’m talking about. The ones that have been on your kitchen counter for a week, where you think, I wonder if these are still good and then you take a big fat bite and they’ve gone all soft and taste like weird stale rice lint or something. Bummer. First batch was not a success.

Then I got to thinking…if they make and sell cleaner crisped rice cereal in health food stores, maybe they sell better marshmallows too? So I went to Whole Foods first and checked it out. What do you know, they do sell better versions! So here’s the thing, don’t get mad. They aren’t probably as clean as you or I would want them to be, but they are a better option in my opinion. I used the Elyon Mini Marshmallows, the ingredients in these are: Sugar, Corn or Tapioca Syrup, Water, Kosher Fish Gelatin, Corn or Tapioca Starch, Natural Vanilla Flavors. You could also use Dandies Mini Marshmallows if you need something grain-free, the ingredients in these are: Tapioca Syrup, Cane Sugar, Tapioca Starch and/or Potato Starch, Water, Carrageenan, Soy Protein, Natural Vanilla Flavor. So are they the best ingredients on planet earth? No, but they are better. And sometimes you just need a legit tasting, non-stale, gluten-free, Rice Krispies Treat dammit! So I grabbed 2 bags of these mini mallows hoping they would do the trick and taste like the real deal. Spoiler alert: THEY DID!

If you know anything about me and my baking, I have to take it up a notch. I can’t just do any ole REGULAR Rice Krispies Treats, no way man. So I took these up a serious notch. These are made using browned butter, salt, and vanilla. Yep, that’s right. And I got the amounts so perfect that you get a little bit of every flavor in each bite! The browned butter was a game changer. I’ll never make Rice Krispies Treats with regular old butter again, nope, not going to do it. This is the way of all ways to make your Rice Krispies Treats out of this world incredible.

Then I had to make them heart-shaped, dip them in chocolate, and dazzle them with sprinkles, because, Valentine’s Day! Could you skip this part? Totes. You could just cut them into squares and call it a day, I wouldn’t blame you at all! They taste just as good. My mouth is watering and I want to make another batch immeeds. They were so quick and easy to make too, it seriously took maybe 10 minutes. So this is a great dessert if you need something on the go.

Okay so now that we’re all done with that, what’s new with you? I’m going to do a 100 Day Challenge with some friends and I’m getting pretty excited about it. It starts March 1st, so it’s coming in HOT! I have a competitive nature (it’s why I had to quit CrossFit, hmm should I write a blog post about that sometime?) and I love competing. So what are the rules of “the challenge” you ask? Well it’s funny because it’s totally different for everyone! Some people want to lose weight, some want to be more active, some want to quit drinking, some want to quit smoking. It’s basically a health challenge. We have 5 people and each person has to ante up $100 to join. The winner, or the person to keep to their health goal commitments, takes the $500 pot. If there are multiple winners (which we hope there are!) then they split the prize money evenly. The only thing that ALL of us are doing together is we’ve committed to at least 30 minutes of activity per day. This can be ANYTHING active, yoga, HIIT, running, cycling, walking, hiking, snowboarding, kayaking, what have you, as long as you are doing something active for you body, even if that activity is very low impact. It’s just meant to create and form a healthy habit to move.

So we are creating a private Facebook group where we will post our activity daily, using a fitness tracker or app, and screen shot that to the group. Then track that daily on a spreadsheet. You know things are serious when there’s a spreadsheet involved. For those looking to lose weight they can send their food diaries over if they choose, to help keep them accountable. For those looking to quit drinking or smoking (I know, can you believe people still smoke?!) they are on the honor system, since there really would be no way to quantify that through a screen shot. Maybe there is an app they can do that keeps track? Anyway that’s basically the gist of it. I’m in the group that wants to lose weight and quit drinking. The holidays got me good this year and I just want to feel good in my body again. Wearing my jeans without a muffin top would be ideal. So for the next 100 days I’ve decided to try a Keto approach along with 16:8 intermittent fasting, no alcohol, and 30 minutes of activity per day. I’ve been pre-gaming if you will, for the month of February, to see if this is really something I can commit to for 100 days. I mean that’s pretty much 3 months with no sweets and I don’t want to set myself up for failure. The first week so far has gone great. Minus the no drinking part. I guess I’m waiting until March 1st to give that up. See my blog post about drinking and I think you’ll see why it’s such a struggle right now.

The Keto Diet has been good so far. I eat relatively low-carb on a daily basis anyway, usually under 100g a day, just because I know that works well for me. While I’ve been on Keto I’ve been trying to stay under 30g a day, usually averaging around 25-27. I haven’t done any crazy HIIT exercising yet like I normally do because I want my body to adapt first, in hopes that it won’t feel like torture when I do get some HIIT in eventually. So for now I’ve just been going on steady state cardio runs, and doing weight lifting.

I also decided to take “before” pictures (in the hopes I have measurable “after” pictures) along with full body measurements. Ugh. How depressing. I just keep thinking about all the GF cinnamon rolls and moscow mules I had over the holidays. I YOLO’d hard people. What was I to do?! Not enjoy the holidays?! Not in my world. So anyway I’ll keep you posted and let you know how the challenge goes and when I win. Ha!

So there you have it folks! Cleaner Chocolate Dipped Heart Rice Krispies Treats. Covered in sprinkles and magic.  Please don’t hate me for not being able to find a super clean way to make these for you. I would have to toy with some homemade marshmallow recipes for awhile to find one, if I could find one at all, and by then Valentine’s Day would be long gone. I did what I could and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. I’m telling you browned butter could rule the world. Also be sure you set aside the 1 cup of mini marshmallows to mix in at the end. It creates these fluffy marshmallow cloud poofs of heaven in the middle of each treat, it’s soooo good!

Here are the cleaner ingredients that I used for this recipe:

• Kerrygold Unsalted Butter
• Elyon Mini Marshmallows or Dandies Mini Marshmallows (grain-free) Whole Foods  carries both of these brands.
• One Degree Organic Foods Sprouted Brown Rice Crisps Cereal
• Guittard 63% Dark Chocolate.
• I used generic sprinkles from the grocery store (tisk tisk)
• I used a metal heart shaped cookie cutter.

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions in the comments!

Chocolate Dipped Heart Rice Krispies Treats

2018-02-07 14:19:42

Yields 8

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Cook Time

10 min

Total Time

15 min

Cook Time

10 min

Total Time

15 min

Ingredients

1. 8 tablespoons (114g) unsalted butter
2. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3. 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
4. 2 packages (14 oz./ 396 g) mini marshmallows, 1 cup set aside
5. 6 cups (8 oz./227 g) gluten-free rice crisp cereal
6. 1 bag (11.5 oz./326g) dark chocolate chips
7. 1 tablespoon of coconut oil
8. colored sprinkles for garnish

Directions

1. Add the butter to a medium-sized heavy-bottomed saucepan (3.5qt./3.3L) and cook over medium-low heat. Stir intermittently using a rubber spatula. As the butter melts it will start to bubble and foam. As the butter continues to brown, the color will turn from lemon yellow to amber and go from a loud bubble to quiet simmer. When the butter is ready, brown specks will have formed at the bottom of the pan and some will start rise in the foam. The butter will also have a very pleasant nutty aroma. While butter is browning line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper, foil seems to stick. Set aside an additional piece of parchment paper to place the finished treats on. Transfer the rice crisp cereal to an extra large mixing bowl and set aside.
2. Once the butter has browned, add the vanilla, and salt to the pan. Then add all of the marshmallows except for the 1 cup that’s been reserved. Use a rubber spatula to stir the ingredients together until combined. Remove from heat. Using the rubber spatula transfer the marshmallow mixture to the cereal bowl, then add the remaining 1 cup of marshmallows. Stir everything together until combined.
3. Transfer the cereal mixture to the pan lined with parchment paper. Use the spatula to spread and press the cereal mixture into place evenly across the pan. It may also help to use wet hands to push the mixture into the pan. Let cool for 30 minutes or until hardened.
4. Once the cereal treats are cooled, lift the parchment from the pan and cut the treats into heart shapes using a 3″ metal heart shaped cookie cutter. Alternate between cutting right-side up on one row and upside down on the next row to maximize space. To get a very clean cut, trace a knife around the cookie cutter a few times. Peel back the parchment paper underneath and remove the treat from the pan. Press the treat through one side of the cookie cutter to remove and set it on the other piece of parchment paper.
5. Once all the treats have been cut, prepare the dipping chocolate. Melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a large heat-proof glass or metal mixing bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir intermittently, using a rubber spatula, until the chocolate and coconut oil are completely melted and combined.
6. Dip half of each treat into the melted chocolate, place back on the parchment paper and garnish with sprinkles. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Notes

1. These taste just as great without the chocolate and cut in to traditional squares!

Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind http://cleaneatingwithadirtymind.com/

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The tragic sense of life is ironically not tragic at all, at least in the Big Picture. We are merely joining the great parade of humanity that has walked ahead of us and will follow after us.  The tragic sense of life is not unbelief, pessimism, fatalism, or cynicism.  It is just ultimate and humiliating realism, for which some reason demands a lot of forgiveness of almost everything.  Faith is simply to trust the real….  This is perhaps our major stumbling stone, the price we must pay to keep the human heart from closing down and to keep the soul open for something more.

Richard Rohr, Falling Upward: a Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life