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]
dessert recipes
Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate Cake for 1
Every time I get anything new for my kitchen, I get seriously excited. Some people may not understand my enthusiasm in the least bit, but kitchen gear to a foodie is like candy to a kid... Okay, I get excited in candy stores too, but you get what I'm trying to say. So you can only imagine how great it was when I walked into Bed Bath & Beyond after my bridal shower a bunch of years back with thousands of dollars in gift cards. My bridal shower was on the east coast, and since I live on the west coast, most people gave me a gift card instead of shipping tons of presents. I wish I had a photo of the awesome madness of that shopping excursion...though I did just find this lovely photo of my face when I walked into my grandma's house for what I thought was a lunch date, only to ... [Read More]
Dark Chocolate Drizzled Salted Caramel Rice Crispy Treats [Gluten Free & Vegan]
Today is the birthday of the wonderful, amazing man that I'm fortunate enough to spend my life with. Birthdays are celebrations, and celebrations call for dessert, so today I'm sharing with you guys a new sweet tooth creation I've come up with. Meet my latest food obsession: chocolate drizzled salted caramel rice crispy treats. Lately, as I stand in my kitchen deciding what to make for a meal, I find myself somehow breaking off a piece of one of these rice crispy treats as a pre-meal snack. While having a conversation with my hubby the other night, I all of a sudden found myself with one of these babies in my hand. It was like I blacked out and awoke with a sticky, delicious treat in my possession. Okay, perhaps I'm being dramatic... but I just love these! The recipe ... [Read More]
Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Cookies [Gluten Free & Vegan]
Hi friends! I am super excited because I'm heading to Lake Tahoe tomorrow for a getaway with my hubby! I've never gone skiing before, so wish me luck. We're also planning on trying snowshoeing, and I found a bunch of restaurants that are my style -- including a couple of vegan and gluten free specific eateries that I'm looking forward to trying out. I'll certainly be recapping my trip next week, but today, let's talk about another fun topic: cookies, specifically dark chocolate peanut butter banana oatmeal cookies. How's that for a mouthful? There are a few kitchen creations that are my go-to recipes when I'm in the mood for something specific. When I get into what I think of as a cookie monster mode, this is definitely one of my no brainers to make. When I felt the need to make them ... [Read More]
Honey Baked Pear with an Oat, Date and Almond Topping
Guess whose a happy girl? After a week of wearing the dreaded cone, Harley's rash has healed and I was able to take the cone off of her. In true Harley style, having the cone on was anything but easy. Besides her being generally miserable and refusing to eat for the first couple of days, there were 2 particularly annoying parts of the cone: 1.) The first night she had it on, Harley walked around whining and pacing my bedroom the entire night. You'd think she would tire herself out, which she would for 20-30 minutes at at time, but then she'd be back at it. It.sucked. 2.) While driving with her in my backseat, I had the window cracked for her. Harley took it upon herself to put it all the way down (yes, she just pushes the button), and just as I was telling her to get her head back in the ... [Read More]
Honey Almond Ricotta Fruit Parfait
Hi friends! What a lovely Thursday night it is -- despite the New York Giants losing tonight's football game and going 0-6 of the season. Whomp. After a hard workout at the gym, I came home to whip up dinner and watch the game in hopes of a first win. With a pumpkin pie candle burning, the game on my TV, and my favorite grilled cheese for dinner - cheddar & gruyere with avocado, fried zucchini & horseradish mustard - I couldn't help but think what a relaxing autumn evening it has been. Ya know, despite my having a slight heart attack and yelling at my TV in between bites of deliciousness. The focus of today's post is a breakfast or lunch combo that was born out my need to break out the new mason jar I bought in Amsterdam and start my day off in a fancy schmancy way. I started off ... [Read More]