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Marvelously MY Way!

Posted on April 14, 2014 by kissmybroccoli

Happy Monday, friends!

I hope you all had an amazing weekend! Unlike last weekend, the weather here was fantastic (I’m talking break out the shorts kind of weather!) so I made sure to make the most of it…and actually, it didn’t occur to me until just now but I hardly even opened my computer at all this weekend! Nope, I was too busy doing things like…

Having a moment with my FIRST CUP OF COFFEE IN OVER A MONTH!

Yup, you read that right, folks! I’m at the height of my rebellion! I love my therapist…really, he’s a great guy and I think he has an amazing perspective on things…but coffee is NOT one of them! I swear just knowing that I “can” have it now has made all the difference…I didn’t even finish the cup I made yesterday!

Keeping meals simple yet satisfying!

Walking new-to-me trails with a friend!

Can we pause for a minute to admire the bike on a stick? I mean, I’ve heard of a jalapeno on a stick, but a BIKE?! I guess it’s art??

Hanging with the bestie!

Pigging out on party foods!

Just FYI: that Hershey’s chocolate spread? Daaaaaangerous! 😯 Also, I have rediscovered my love for cinnamon raisin bagels…especially when they have Panera Bread’s hazelnut cream cheese on top!

Going back to the trails and snapping a TON of pics!

I didn’t take my camera with me the first time, but I made sure to get a few shots of all the pretty flowers and bridges when I went back!

Hanging with the other bestie!

Oh and we totally drove to the trails in her convertible with the top down! Hoooorah!

Embracing nature’s critters!

Now before you guys freak out on me, the picture makes him look really big, but he couldn’t have been longer than a foot…only a baby…and it’s just a water snake! C’mon, ain’t he cute?!

Keeping meals simple yet satisfying!

Oh wait, did I already say that? Seriously you guys, this weekend was NOT the weekend to be holed up in the house worrying about meal prep…or anything for that matter! It was the weekend to get out and live…and live I DID!

Other (pictureless) things that made my weekend: Yoga, yoga, and more yoga 😉 , a blend-erific INTERNATIONAL phone date, a trip to our local pub/brewery, spending the night at my parent’s house, a bubble bath with a side of wine, couch time with Game of Thrones, and sleeping like a FREAKING baby!

All in all I’d say this weekend was absolutely, positively EVERYTHING I could have wished for!

What did YOU do this weekend?

Posted in MIMM | Tagged besties, coffee, family, Game of Thrones, park, PB&J, walking, weekend, wine | 50 Comments

Thinking Out Loud: Spring, Love, & Eggs

Posted on April 10, 2014 by kissmybroccoli

Hey hey, my peeps!

Wait, strike that…how about we go with something a bit more palatable than stale, sugar-coated ~~marsh~~CRAPmallows?

JELLYBEANS!

Yes, yes…that’s better! How are you my little nuggets of bean-shaped confection? But none of the nasty black ones…and that’s not me being racist! 😉 No, we’re going gourmet candy shop here. I’m thinking some Tutti-Frutti, Toasted Marshmallow, and my personal favorite, Buttered Popcorn! Ahh, what can I say, spring brings out the sweeter side of me!

So yeah, in the weird way that my mind works, all that came from the thought of asking you if you’ve been getting some nice spring weather! See, this is why I shouldn’t type intros on Thursdays!

We got a lot of rain this weekend, but for the last few days, the sun has been doing its best to peek its way out of the clouds. I snapped this pic on my way into the gym the other day because I was super excited to see the trees blossoming…then got even more excited when I realized how artsy fartsy my picture turned out! 😉

I am (or actually have been for over a week now) OBSESSED with this song! I can’t seem to get it out of my head…hey, at least I’ve moved on from saying fuck all day, right? But seriously, is this video not the best?!

Besides, I seem to be saving all my “fucks” for when I’m watching episodes of Game of Thrones! Like…yeah…right? As of yesterday, I made it through all of season one. And I’d like to point out the fact that I am no longer covering my eyes at every gory parts! 😉

So I have this thing for skeletons. Always have. But even more so once I went to x-ray school. One of my co-workers hung this up in our department last week and I’ve decided that I need it printed on a t-shirt STAT!

For the last 1.5 weeks, I’ve been having a love affair with coconut butter, avocado, and sheet pans full of roasted vegetables drizzled with balsamic glaze (thanks for the idea, Laura)…particularly this one with carrots, turnips, parsnips, broccoli, onions, and FENNEL! Who knew roasted fennel was so frickin’ delicious??

I’m grateful to have found my kitchen mojo and really, I’m super excited to share the rest of this weekend’s recipes with you guys, but you’ll have to be patient with me because well, I seem to be having a bit of trouble in the writing department lately. Yesterday’s post was only just over 300 words yet it still took me nearly 3 hours to type! 😯

After NINE whole days on the SP cleanse, this was yesterday’s dinner! Yep, I TOLD you it would end in eggs…and of course there was bread! Like I’ve said before, I could never be vegan. Allow me to add that I could never be paleo either!

#sorryimnotsorry

I have some thoughts I’d like to put together about my time on the cleanse, but I’d actually like to take a few days to note my feelings post restriction before sharing. Plus, with the aforementioned writer’s block, this could take a week to type! Ha!

Be sure to head on over to Spoons and give our lovely host, Amanda some love before checking out all the fantastically random link ups!

Do you like jelly beans? What’s your favorite flavor?

Tell me something that’s on your mind!

Posted in Randomness, Thinking Out Loud | Tagged bread, eggs, Game of Thrones, music, SP cleanse, spring, television | 27 Comments

Carrot Cake Quinoa

Posted on April 9, 2014 by kissmybroccoli

A delicious breakfast treat that’s gluten-free and vegan, filled with the sweet and spicy flavors of carrot cake and…TWO servings of vegetables!

Another classic example of:

“I wonder what would happen if I combined this and that?”

turned…

“Oh my god, I’m a FREAKING genius!”

Obviously, I’m always very humble in my recipe developing capabilities! 😉

So I’ve had the idea of carrot cake-ifying something for the blog ever since St. Patrick’s day (What can I say? I’m a total sucker for food-themed holidays), but with pancakes, protein pancakes, dessert hummus, “cookies”, oats AND parfaits already covered, I was beginning to think I was all out of ideas. Then I decided to start this cleanse with Laura and within a few days, ideas were popping off my head faster than I could get in the kitchen!

Going off the idea behind my carrot cake oats, I combined carrots and pumpkin (promise you can’t taste it!) along with some classic spices and just a touch of coconut milk, and in a matter of minutes I had a sweet cake-like treat that ~~practically~~ literally had me licking my ~~bowl~~ glass clean! 😀

Carrot Cake Quinoa

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

Keywords: breakfast gluten-free dairy-free nut-free vegan vegetarian carrots quinoa Easter spring

Ingredients (Serves 1)

1/2 cup cooked quinoa
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 Tablespoons canned coconut milk
1 Tablespoon chopped dates or raisins (optional)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Additional sweetener if desired

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.
2. Serve cold or microwave for 1-2 minutes until warm.
3. Top as desired.

I served my “cake” cold but feel free to pop it in the microwave for a minute or two if you’d prefer yours warm. Then top it with whatever your heart desires…though I HIGHLY recommend coconut butter since it basically tastes like icing!

Edited to add: Linking up with Laura’s Friday food party! I mean, how can I not when I know I’ve turned up at least ONE eyebrow with this recipe! 😉 Be sure to check out her Jicama “Porridge” (which looks/sounds FANTASTIC!) all the other #strangebutgood links!