Does anyone else just all of a sudden get in the mood for baking sometimes? The measuring and mixing, pouring and stirring, baking and cooling. The smells of something delicious coming together and the anticipation of taste testing. It's therapeutic to me. Last week as I was jotting down a bunch of things to nab at the food store and planning out what healthy snacks I'd make this week, I got bitten by the baking bug. And I didn't feel like just following a recipe, I was in the mood for experimenting and getting creative. Today's recipe is a result of that baking bug. These cookies center around a few of my favorite things: the combination of chocolate + peanut butter & cinnamon. Cinnamon is without a doubt my favorite spice. I'm constantly sprinkling some on my fruit, in my smoothies, ... [Read More]
cinnamon
Cinnamon Almond Butter Date Truffles
Hey friends! Hope that you had a fabulous weekend. A highlight of my last few days included meeting up with my friend Trish and her little pup for a hiking doggie date.... Temperatures were in the 80s on Saturday, but it didn't feel too hot because it was nice and breezy. Harley wasn't slowed down by the warm weather and was her usual maniac, super friendly self. Another fun thing I did over the weekend was volunteer with a group called CropSwap. The organization is dedicated to harvesting produce from farms, which would have otherwise gone to waste, and getting it to people who can't afford to buy fresh fruit and veggies. As a health coach whose passionate about the importance of nutrition and eating a healthy diet full of whole foods, I wanted to get involved because I ... [Read More]
Pear, Apple & Cinnamon Cleansing Green Juice
Hey friends! Happy 2015!! I have been quite a busy woman having lots of fun this week with my family visiting Cali. Here's a taste of what I've been up to: San Diego beach sunsets & yoga - ... [Read More]
Vanilla Peanut Butter Cinnamon Smoothie
Now that it's spring and half the world is starting to get out of freezing temperatures and polar vortex slumps, smoothie season is getting underway. I know what you're thinking: I live in California and can pretty much drink smoothies year-round. But the truth is, here in the south bay area, the temperature swings are pretty nutty. It'll get up to 75-80 degrees during the day, then drop down to 35-40 degrees at night. Literally, the temperature doubles most days! When I first moved here I couldn't believe it. While I drank smoothies somewhat often during winter, my smoothie habit wasn't nearly as frequent as it has been the last few weeks and will be probably until late fall. You see, the house I'm living in stays really cool - as in, it's 80 degrees out but I'll work from my office ... [Read More]
Cinnamon Raisin Granola [Vegan & Gluten Free]
Nearly all of the billion people on the planet who have eaten it say this, but granola is seriously addicting. Despite knowing this, I got in a granola munching mood recently and couldn't resist whipping up a new homemade version: cinnamon raisin flaxseed granola. Since it's well documented on here that I'm cinnamon obsessed and eat it on nearly everything, it shouldn't be a surprise that this granola is full of cinnamon-y goodness. I decided to use a sweetener I haven't used in awhile: brown rice syrup. A few tidbits about it: Brown rice syrup is made by culturing cooked rice with enzymes to break down the starches, then straining off the liquid and reducing it by cooking until the desired consistency is reached. It's vegan and gluten-free. It has a sticky consistency ... [Read More]
Apple Cinnamon Champagne Cocktails
Hi there! After an awesome weekend in the Pasadena area with my parents (more on that later this week) and working from my hotel there yesterday, then driving back up to the Bay Area (telecommuting is a sweet gig!), today I'm back in my home office working with my puppy sleeping on my feet. I'm taking a little break from my work to share with you a recipe I came up with on New Year's Eve: Since I kept it low-key on New Year's and was home with my hubby, I wanted to come up with a tasty celebratory cocktail with champagne as the star. I picked up some Prosecco at Trader Joe's -- which I know is technically Italian sparkling wine and not champagne, but it's good enough for me! -- and I also nabbed some of TJ's sparkling apple cider. The cocktail is made by first a.) making cinnamon simple ... [Read More]