A Creative and Crafty Inspiration

Sunday, August 3, 2014

Whole 30 Again!

So this summer, I really indulged in a lot of treats... I enjoyed myself, but between the lack-of-exercise and the treats, my clothes are tight again and I feel not-so-good. I am missing my endless energy and the feeling that I can accomplish anything! My joints are aching again (pretty sure that is from my occasional glutening and the loads of sugar I've had) and this is not where I want to be. I'm sleepy early in the evening and struggling to get out of bed each morning. This is how I used to feel all the time, but it's not ok with me. Now that I know HOW good I can feel, I want to feel that way again!

So I am in for another Whole30! Whole 30 is simple - eat real food (meat, veggies, fruit, nuts and other healthy fats), prepare it yourself as much as possible and avoid a few non-negotiables (gluten, legumes, sweeteners of all kinds, alcohol and dairy). Move daily and stay off the scale. Eat 3 full meals and don't snack!

I have a few goals I am setting for myself and I am adding them here as an extra bit of accountability!

Eat breakfast every day. This means planning ahead and getting out of bed. I hope this helps me get back on track in two ways...out of bed on time AND starting the day with a healthy breakfast which will lead to less snacking/poor choices later in the day.
No drinking - even though this is one of the rules, I want to state this as my own personal goal. We have been visiting lots of wineries and enjoying a lot of local Virginia wine, but that comes with a lot of empty calories AND leads me to snacking on things I know I shouldn't eat. :) So here it is. No drinking.
Plan meals and shop with a purpose - throwing all the things in my cart is when I throw in the junk. :) Adding a meal plan will help me make better choices too. This also means cooking in bulk/larger portions and having leftovers on other days. Today I am making NomNom Paleo's Cracklin Chicken to have some ready-to-go protein for a few meals this week. Also, it will be delicious during football tonight for dinner instead of going out for wings!

So there it is - stay tuned for lots of food photos as I move through the next 30 days!

Friday, July 4, 2014

Icy Fruit Pops!

Earlier this week I was at HomeGoods and found these ice pop molds on clearance for $6. I couldn't pass them up since they were so cute and there is so much yummy fruit that is local and ripe now!

First I chopped up some fresh fruit. Today I choose peaches, strawberries and blackberries. I tried to cut them into small, diced chunks of about the same size.

Next I added them to the ice pop molds - filling them up as full to the top as I could.

Next, I added some juice. I found this yummy Pom Hula on sale today at Aldi, so I filled them up right to the top of the container with Pom Hula. I read a recipe earlier this week that says to use coconut water for an icy delicious treat. I've also read about using coconut or almond milk for a creamy pop. Yum! So many choices!

Snap on the tops and let them freeze solid for a few hours.

To unmold, run under warm water for just about 3 seconds.

ENJOY!

These are fabulous ice pop molds. The base is larger than the ice pop and the "cone" is hollow to catch all drips. Yum! Perfect on a hot afternoon.

Thursday, July 3, 2014

Woven Bacon Pizza

I made the most delicious summer dinner tonight! The other night I saw this recipe for a bacon crust pizza. I couldn't wait to try it! My basil plant has been producing lots of basil - giant leaves! Yum! So it was a perfect evening, after the storm, for bacon crust margherita pizza!

First, I wove the bacon into a sheet and followed directions for the Ketogenic Pizza and baked it. While it was in the oven I made my sauce.

I used a pint of Tomato Basil sauce that I canned last year, added 2 cans of clean tomato paste and a handful of fresh basil plus a Tbsp of balsamic vinegar. I simmered it until it was thick. Yum!

Then I prepped my toppings. I tore the basil into medium chunks. I sliced tomatoes thin and chunked up the mozzarella.

After the bacon crust was finished baking, I transferred it to the pizza stone and added the toppings: first a layer of sauce, then the basil, then the tomatoes and finally the cheese. I stuck it in the oven under the broiler for just a few minutes until the cheese was starting to brown.

DELICIOUS!

I served it with a tomato, basil, mozzarella and balsamic salad. With Pom Hula Sun Tea and a Meritage from Cobbler Mountain Winery. Delicious dinner!

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Flavors of Summer

One of my favorite flavors of summer is sun tea. My mom used to make sun tea just about every day in the summer. We had a big, glass jug sitting out on the porch, brewing in the heat. It has a nicer, fuller flavor than hot brewed tea made into iced tea. And it's SOOO easy.

Honestly, the hardest part is finding a glass (not plastic) jug. I like black tea - no particular brand favorite here, usually whatever I can find without tags. If they have strings and tags (and tiny staples) I worry about that in my tea in the sun..

Put 8-10 tea bags in a glass jug of water. Cover (use a lid if you can, foil if you don't have a lid) and set it outside. Sun is optional, mine is usually in the sun a bit of the day, but shady on the porch the rest of the time. It's the heat, gradual heat that matters. Let it sit outside for 3-5 hours then bring it inside. Pour over ice, add mint or fruit if desired and enjoy!

I found this jug at World Market on Monday ON SALE!! It's blue glass, mason jar look-alike and has a metal lid. The only part I would change is the spout - I wish it were metal, it's plastic that looks like metal. :) However, I paid $13.35 for this 2.2 gal jar so I'm not complaining about the plastic spout! This glass jug is a perfect fit in my fridge, so every couple of days I will brew a new batch and drink fresh sun tea!

Second taste of the summer - fresh berries! I wanted a grain-free berry shortcake. One of our favorite restaurants around here has a fresh mixed berry shortcake with ice cream that is my boyfriend's favorite. However, I can't have the flour and I don't like the sugar and dairy necessarily. So I tried a new recipe.

Cook, Eat, Paleo has a recipe that I started with. I made a half batch of the shortcakes. I attempted to make the cream, but it didn't set up. I think it's the brand - unfortunately I didn't get the kind I like to work with since I went to a different grocery.

I also made a mix of berries (blueberries, blackberries and strawberries) that I mashed up last night with my pampered chef mix n chop and let them sit overnight in the fridge. The flavors blended perfectly!

While my cream was more of a liquid than a whipped cream, this was still delicious and tasted perfect!

Plus, the berries look perfectly patriotic with ice cream.... just a great USA treat to have while watching World Cup Soccer! I think I'm going to keep a container of smooshed berries ready all summer long!

Monday, May 26, 2014

Converting a halter swimsuit...to a two strap suit!

So last year, at the end of the season, I found several tankini suit tops on sale...and they were fine, but they are all halter tops. These don't give me the support I need AND they hurt my neck. But with three suit tops...I can't justify spending money on another new suit.

So I decided to convert one of them to a two strap suit! Here's how it started.

I checked the suit straps....getting a good idea of how to far in fro the sides I needed to go and how tight the straps needed to be. I pinned them with safety pins so I could try this on without worrying about stabbing myself with straight pins or pulling them loose.

I tried two different widths to see if I liked one better than the other. In fact, I liked the one that was closer to the edge than the center. I measured with a ruler and pinned them both again, tried on once again to be sure.

I hand stitched these down - using a backstitch across the width of the strap. Then I used a whip stitch to secure the strap down against the top of the suit. I wasn't sure about whether the placement was perfect, so I wasn't ready to cut the last bits off the straps till I wear this a few times to be sure. I think you could machine stitch and be perfectly fine. Make sure you secure the ends and stitch this down tight - nobody wants an unfortunate swimsuit accident :)

I can't wait to convert the other two suits the same way now that I know this works!

Friday, May 23, 2014

Update: Patio Garden and my ON-GOING battle with the Squirrels!

So I hate squirrels. I've wavered on this a bit, but the longer this battle continues, the more sure I am that I absolutely hate them!

After my plants were repeatedly knocked off that very cool pallet garden....knocked down, dug through and even eaten, I had to move them.

Remember this?

It happened OVER AND OVER AND OVER! These squirrels are finding joy in annoying me!

So I took my plants off the shelves. I happened to find these fabulous old apple crates at my parents' house, hiding in their garage. This was a perfect alternative.

The plants are in the center of the crates, making it harder to knock them down (though I'm sure these rodents will find a way) And I only stacked them two crates high to cut down on the temptation for the little pests.

And even with all that frustration, my plants are growing!

My tomato bloomed its first tiny yellow blossom this week. My lettuce is growing out of control. And the KALE! See the two kale plants on the top of the crates? Those were once tiny little kale plants with hardly any green leaves!

I think I'm MOST excited about my rosemary right now because this weekend I plan to make Rosemary Blueberry Ice Cream from The Paleo Kitchen, a new cookbook from PaleOMG and Civilized Caveman! The cookbook comes out in a couple of weeks, but this sneak peek recipe from PaleOMG has me convinced that I must have this book!

I've harvested lettuce and cilantro and rosemary and basil and mint more times than I can count! I can't wait to get some peppers and tomatoes and kale on my table!

The squirrels won the battle of the peppers (ate both my jalapeno plants), thai basil, one strawberry plant (and they have nearly killed the other), 5 of the 6 daffodil bulbs, one hosta. But I am winning this war!

I bought two 2-gallon pepper plants, hoping that a heartier plant would withstand the torment of these creatures. However, after the first day, this is what I found:

That little bugger was digging in my brand new pepper plant! He broke off one stem (that had a bloom already!) and exposed roots on the other, in addition to making quite a mess.

So far I've tried cayenne pepper, chili powder, human hair. All of them work for a day or two, but after watering they stopped keeping critters away.

Up next is some dog hair (luckily one of my friends has a really hairy dog that sheds a TON of hair) and dried blood (mixed reviews on this one, you buy it at lowes...so no worries about me butchering something).

I also found an ultrasonic noise machine that is supposed to keep them away...but I'm nervous about using it since I live in an apartment. I don't want to drive my neighbors dogs and cats nuts!

Sunday, May 4, 2014

Wining Adventures!

Northern Virginia has sooo many wineries! Lots of beautiful wineries, many delicious wines and lots of crazy experiences!

(Chester Gap)

Just over a year ago, two of my girlfriends and I started our Northern Virginia Wine Tasting Adventures. We picked up a map and set a goal to visit all of the Northern Virginia Wine Region.

http://www.virginiawine.org/

(Stone Tower)

We started out with the 2013 Virginia Wine Map and started planning our weekends. Usually on Sundays, we would visit 2 or 3 wineries. We'd pack snacks, enjoy a tasting, sometimes spend some time in the sunshine or near the fire (during the winter months!) and take some notes. We developed our wine tasting abilities. We refined our likes and dislikes and quickly figured out what kind of wineries we like!

(Pearmund Cellars)

We found wineries were opening and closing all the time! The map kept changing, just when we thought we were finished we found new ones! Plus we kept going back to some of our favorites over and over!

(Leaves of Grass)

Today was our last big planned weekend to finish our goal of the Northern Virginia wineries. We have a few individual wineries that have hours that are difficult to get to, open on an intermittent basis or appointment only or opening this spring/summer.

Where have we visited? * by some of our favorites!

(Otium)

Still trying to get to these this spring and summer:

Quievremont Wine - not sure if it's really open. We've had a hard time finding information!
Creeks Edge Winery - open now, Taylorsville
Berry Hill Vineyards - closed Sundays, Flint Hill, Appointment only
Two Twisted Posts - open every other weekend as of Spring 2014
Winery 32 - opening June 2014
Blue Valley Vineyard - Opening Summer 2014
Catoctin Creek Winery - appointment only
Catoctin Creek Distillery - closed on Sundays

(Morais)

What have we learned over this past year of wining adventures?

We like small, family owned wineries

We dislike most places that welcome buses and limos and cater to big groups.

We dislike places that feel "corporate" or too commercial.

We like drier wines rather than sweeter wines, with the occasional port-style as an exception!

We like quieter places - although sometimes listening to live music is a great way to spend an afternoon.

We like places where the people are nice, know about the winery and the wine, and where they really take the time to chat with us, not just recite a speech or read the tasting notes to us.

Most importantly we love hanging out with each other and spending time learning more about Virginia Wines!

(Greenhill Winery)