Catching Up…and a recipe!

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

So let’s do a life catch up. Mainly just stuff that’s happened in the past few days.

-Saturday morning we headed over to the beer/wine supply place to buy a new kit to brew some raspberry ale. To our surprise, the guy gave us quite a few generously poured samples of various wines he had made at his house. They were all fantastic. But he was pouring them fast, so we had to drink faster. Awesome, I got buzzed for free. PS: so excited to try our first home-brewed fruit beer! They’re my fave.

– We then headed over to check out the grand opening of Community Natural Foods in our neighborhood. There, we lucked out with some free sausage samples, so it helped with the wine consumption.

My opinion of the store? Definitely better than the other local natural foods store, but still not even CLOSE to a Whole Foods or TJ’s.

-Saturday night was a long-planned date night. First stop: Saltlik for dinner. I had been to the location in Banff a few times, but we found that the downtown location had a different menu/ambiance/etc. Not as spectacular (only because the downtown spot doesn’t have scalloped potatoes! ha) but the steak was still fantastic.

We finished dinner a bit early, so we walked over to another pub and had a few drinks. Then..

– Cirque De Soleil! The tent in Calgary was for the show Amaluna. Tyler had never been to a Cirque show before, but I have seen some in both California and Vegas. I didn’t care for this show as much, but it was still entertaining!

– We concluded the night with a stupid scary movie that I thankfully didn’t get any nightmares from.

-Sunday, we added a new member to the family- Reggie!

Reggie is a 4.5 year old Beagle (maybe half pocket beagle). He wasn’t ever in a foster home or shelter, but his doggy mama had to find a new home for him since her son was allergic. We totally lucked out because it is super good- potty trained, obedient, friendly, no health problems. His mama even gave us all his beds and toys and leashes and food and treats.

So far, so good. He only barks when people are out front or the doorbell rings (same as Layla). And they have been getting along really well. Lots of quiet play, lots of lounging on the patio, and lots of cuddles and treats. Of course, both dogs now have their designated spots on the bed which just so happen to be immediately on either side of me. I was mummified in the sheets last night!

Only catch is his love of sitting on top of the couch. Still need to figure out the best solution of covering the leather so he doesn’t wear or tear anything.

I told Layla to blink once if he can stay in the house with us. This was her response:

I think that’s a yes.

Ok, now onto a really yummy recipe.

SO..I knew I wanted to bake something this morning, but the challenge was to figure out what exactly I could make that didn’t include chocolate or brown sugar as an ingredient (I was fresh out of both and didn’t couldn’t jet to the store since I was in between 2 phone interviews). I fuddy-duddied around the kitchen for a few minutes before deciding on this delicious concoction:

Peanut Butter Banana Oat Bars (adapted from this recipe)

They’re great because they contain all good ingredients, they’re quick and easy to make, and they keep pretty well (in freezer). Not only that, but the ingredients are substantial, so each bar will satisfy any hunger craving. This really yields about 8 bars, but since it was my initial go with the recipe, I played with the edges before I took any pictures.

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 bananas
1 c oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup coconut
3/4 cup chopped nuts (I made a mixture of walnuts, macadamia nuts and cashews and pulsed in the food processor a few times)
1 t vanilla
1/2 t cinnamon
dash of salt

Here’s what you do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper

2. In a bowl, mash bananas. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until fully incorporated.

3. Place mixture in baking dish. Evenly spread and press down.

4. Bake for 25 minutes. Allow dish to fully cool before cutting.

5. For additional convenience as a quick snack, cut squares and individually wrap in plastic wrap.

This recipe is definitely a keeper. I almost always have all the ingredients on hand, plus it’s a satisfying and handy snack!

Question: Have a go-to handy snack? Is it something you make or buy??

Best Banana Bread

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Well, hello there. I hope this Hump Day is treating you all well. I am currently typing this in my pajamas (typical), on the couch, watching trashy day-time TV with the dog cuddled up next to me. Don’t shoot me out of jealousy just yet, I am also on the hunt for a job and predict that I will be ~~miserable~~, in pants, and behind a desk in the near future.

Just thought I’d pop in real quick to share some random bits with you. Shall we get started?

I made the TASTIEST banana bread yesterday (I forgot to allocate for the altitude and therefore it did not cook enough for me, but I crumbled it up and stored it in an air-tight container for future dessert and snacking use). I still thought I HAD to share the recipe, because it really can’t be passed up (I know, I know, how many recipes for banana bread do you see on the internet? The answer: LOTS)

Here’s What you Need:

2 c almond flour
1 T cinnamon
1 t baking soda
2 eggs
1/2 c coconut milk
1 t vanilla
1/4 c agave
2 ripe bananas (mashed)

Here’s What you Do:

In a bowl, combine the almond flour, cinnamon, and soda. Set aside.
In another bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the coconut milk, vanilla, agave and bananas. Stir until incorporated.
Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture.
Pour in a prepared loaf pan and bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes.

You can totally mess up and not let it fully cool like I did then have banana bread bits to toss in your yogurt for later!

——

The strength portion of my workout yesterday was a Deck of Cards workout. I wrote up my entire week’s workout plan earlier this week, but I didn’t specifically designate which exercises I would do for this specific workout. Knowing that I wanted to target, ummm, my WHOLE body, I came up with these moves:
- ♥= Jump Squats
- ♦= Pushups
- ♣= Side plank hip dips (each side)
- ♠= Weighted donkey kicks (each side)

Video Demonstrations can be found here: Jump Squats, Side plank Hip dips, Weighted donkey kicks

This is one of my favorite new songs right now. I kept hearing it in the car and tried Shazaam-ing it, but Shazaam doesn’t recognize it. I did the grunt work and found it the old fashioned way (google), and here ya go:
(Ok, apparently, the video doesn’t want to appear, so here’s a link: http://youtu.be/gAwj-EuZc2w)

WARNING: I am not PROMOTING the following. I am simply allowing you to use my link to get 20% off if you are interested. OK?!

Ellie, the new monthly subscription program for athletic wear, has just released their March 2013 items and they are part of the LBD Collection. C’mon ladies, (sorry, gents- it’s women’s althetic wear only) we all love wearing black…it’s SLIMMING. And HOT. Anyhoo..check out THIS LINK (you will only get the 20% off if you go to their site through the link OR by clicking on the banner on the right-hand side of my blog page.

K, that’s all. For now..

Wednesday W’s

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

What I ate:
My parents and I returned to Rock Hill Bakehouse for a late lunch. I guess since its my last full day in New York I can tolerate both lunch and dinner with them today (oh and I can’t wait to tell you about dinner, even though we haven’t even had it yet!!) Anyways, this Bakehouse always has such delicious daily specials

I opted for the salad special- with a cup of the vegan split pea soup. Bother we’re so delicious and I am now incredibly full and burping raw onions.

Wedding:
Chose the hotels for our wedding. One of them wanted us to block 30 rooms! I was all ‘helllllls no.’ I talked to the curator of the property where we are having the ceremony/reception and she recommended 2 particular hotels that offer a free shuttle and great discounted rates since they often get wedding guests from their particular property. Doesn’t hurt that both are within about a mile of the location as well!

I was wandering the house as I was speaking to various hotels on the phone and I came across this little gem:

That would be me when I was about 3 years old. The daughter of friends of my parents was getting married in Beverly Hills and I just so happened to be an adorable blonde-haired little girl that they knew! Lucky me. ~~My resources~~ mom tells me the guy she married (who I was totally afraid of because he was so muscle-y) owns a ton of Gold’s Gyms throughout Southern California now. Had I not recently moved to Canada, I would so be on the phone with him inquiring about personal training jobs. Could you imagine? Training rich, tan people in California? Ugh. I can’t think of it because its making me ~~mad~~ jealous.

Workout:
Oh yes, this is a great workout. I don’t know why, knock on wood, but lately I have been in love with my workouts. This is partly because of Best Body Bootcamp, part because of the new home equipment I have acquired over the past few months, and part because of my mentality towards each workout.

For the strength portion of today’s workout, I slightly modified some moves from BBB. The idea for the circuit was to run the clock for 15 minutes and get as many rounds of 3 exercises in as you can. I don’t want to give away the moves (it wouldn’t be fair to all the hard work Tina does with the program. If you’re interested though, click the link above to find out when you can sign up for the next round!) but the 3 exercises in each round focused on lower body and chest/shoulders. After completing the first round, I danced around to loosen up for a few minutes, the got right into round 2 for another 15 minutes of 3 different exercises.

The schedule also planned for some cardio intervals. I haven’t really been loving the gym here for my cardio workouts, and I have exhausted the option of using my parent’s treadmill everyday, so I changed this to my own AWESOME cardio bit:

You see that? I did Tabatas! (Tabatas are 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest repeated 8 times for a total of 4 minutes.) In the above picture, I alternated between two moves for each tabata. I also hopped on the treadmill for a quick 1/4 mile run before getting into the next tabata. All these, combined with the strength circuits really kicked my tush. And I loved it.

Edited to note: I actually subbed the 1/4 mi sprints with 10 stair runs between each tabata set. More sweat, more work! That’s what happens when you post about your workout before you actually do it! Never again, Jen. Never again.

And now, I leave you with Weird:

Stuffed rhino head

My 4th grade self.

Question: What exercises do you currently have on heavy rotation in your workouts?

Weekend Catch Up. And free lululemon!

Posted on December 11, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Ok, I think I can get back to normal now. School is over and grades are in. 2 A’s to finish grad school! My cumulative GPA is 3.751. Not. Too. Shabby. I am really glad it’s over. The other night, I dreamt that I hadn’t finished all my work. But I also dreamt bears were chasing me, so I couldn’t take it too seriously. I finally checked yesterday morning and had to refrain from hooting and hollering because Tyler was still sleeping.

Made me feel even better about getting this puppy from Tyler as a graduation gift:

I have already made a batch of chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies and biscotti. The chocolate chip recipe that was my go-to recipe has been officially taken over by a new recipe that came with my mixer. Tyler and I agreed that this batch was the best because it wasn’t as sweet. I thought they were chewier, too. Makes them last longer (or not). I am still on the hunt for a savory dish to make with this. But why rush, when the obvious thing to make during the holiday season is tons and tons of cookies?! I loaded up on sugar, flour, brown sugar, powdered sugar, eggs, BUTTER, and food coloring in preparation for the madness that will be my kitchen in the next few weeks. PS: If you have any cookies recipes you’re dying to share..PLEASE DO!

Saturday was a busy day. It was a FUN day! And, after two weeks sans makeup and normal clothes, I got myself dressed.

I rocked some red corduroys, brown leather boots, a plaid long sleeved tee, and my wool scarf from Zulily. If you haven’t heard of Zulily, I highly recommend you check out that link I provided. There are some insane deals on there! (The girls got their bridesmaids earrings from there!)

We had a Groupon for Fatburger that was due to expire this week, so we decided to make the trek to the NE for some fat-kid food.

The voucher was for the standard burger, fries, and soft drink. A meal that is totally out of my norm. I managed to finish most of the burger which was OK, and a couple of fries. Had to force feed those, since I am NOT a fry person. The best thing I can say about that meal was that it wasn’t greasy. So I didn’t feel like a tub-o-lard that I planned on feeling like.

While eating the meal, I spotted a Bulk Barn across the way. I had never been to one yet, and I really wanted to sneak a peak on what goodies they had to offer. Yup, it was heaven. I was surprised by the variety of things they had- coffee to spices to baking ingredients to candy to nuts to….everything.

I managed to restrain myself, and we walked out with only a couple of goodies:

Irish cream coffee beans, hot tamales, corn nuts (for Tyler). and silver sugar pearls. I was entirely too excited to see the pearls because I remember my mom always having them in the cupboard, ready for baking. I guess the store we went to stopped carrying them or they were discontinued because we couldn’t find them for the longest time. Tonight, we will be definitely using them to decorate christmas cookies- made with my new mixer 😉

We also stopped by this shop that was within the same neighborhood- and we got a home brewing kit! Tyler and I LOVE drinking beer, and Tyler has been interesting in making it at home. We ended up getting the kit and a box of wort for mexican cerveza.The guy at the store said it was more like Dos Equis than Corona. As soon as we got home, we got right to it!

I can’t wait to see how it turns out. We have already been looking into other ‘flavors’. I’m rooting for Apricot!

After the beer was all set (it is currently still sitting in the basement fermenting. Or doing whatever it does), we got to our gingerbread building. I opted for the traditional house, while Tyler mixed it up and got the tree. I think they turned out pretty good. Mine included red and green fondant that I had to roll out and shape myself. I now have a new respect for wedding cake bakers. But I’m still going with cupcakes.

We rounded out the evening with Caesars and Home Alone.

And Layla drooled all over us. Typical.

Sunday was nothing unusual. Except for the fact that I wasn’t bogged down with homework! Tyler watched football while I did laundry and napped and snuggled with the pup. I was feeling pretty blah and didn’t want to go to the gym, so I did a pretty quick- but effective strength circuit:

50 left reverse gliding lunges
50 right reverse gliding lunges
50 overhead presses
50 shoulder presses
100 stability ball situps
50 right single leg deadlifts
50 left single leg deadlifts

Yesterday’s workout was Workout A from Best Body Bootcamp– 6 rounds of tabatas, with each alternating between two moves (this is my favorite series for arms, because I have seen immediate results after both last night’s session and last Monday’s session. Score!) I also got to the gym and did a 30 minute treadmill interval workout.

I think that makes me sufficiently caught up. What’s going on with you?

PS: Don’t forget, if you’re looking for a fitness-related gift for you or someone you know, check out the monthly fitness apparel subscription box from pv.body. If you click here, you can get 20% of regular price! AND IF YOU SIGN UP BY 12/13 (THIS THURSDAY) YOU WILL GET A FREE $25 LULULEMON GIFT CARD!!!!!!! (You can thank me later. Or now. Or send me cookies/lululemon gift card)

FPP reveal and an AWESOME offer!

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Hey guys, happy Friday!

As you may know, I participate in the foodie pen pal program run by Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean.

Every month, Linsday pairs all participants with a partner in their respective country. You are assigned to send your partner foodie gifts not to exceed $15. Then, on the last day of the month, she hosts a reveal day on her blog for everyone to share! (If you are interested in signing up, it is a bit different for December- she is having people donate to charity for Hurricane Sandy. I am assuming it will resume back to ‘normal’ in January. The sign up info is on her blog linked above).

I actually didn’t get my pen pal package until yesterday afternoon, so I haven’t had the opportunity to try any of the items (Lindsay has us send our packages by the 15th every month to allow time for delivery and the recipient to try the stuff). Here’s what I got:

First off, I am super appreciative of this package. I signed up to connect with other Canadians and to try new foods. The SkinnyGirl Granola bars sound yummy and delish, but I don’t normally eat granola bars, so it might be awhile before I get to those. I also don’t use sweeteners. The ginger chocolate I might save for a brownie recipe or something; ginger is way too sophisticated of a taste for me! All this things I will probably use when I am playing around in the kitchen for recipes. We shall see. Thanks, Kim! 🙂

Yesterday’s workout:

I wanted to make sure I could get in some cardio last night before my meds kicked in, so I ran to the gym real quick and busted out a cool 22 minutes on the treadmill and 10 minutes on the row machine. I have been so off my Best Body Bootcamp workouts this week, but I have still pushed myself pretty hard, and have been sore the last few days (I haven’t been sore from any of the workouts from this Round of Bootcamp). My treadmill workout consisted of a couple repeats of intervals: decreasing the time with each interval while increasing speed.

The row machine I haven’t used in AGES. I thought it felt pretty good last night, but soon learned this morning when I tried to scratch my back, that I am super sore. woo hoo!

So here’s some pretty exciting news…..

I was recently contacted by the people at pv.body- they started a monthly subscription program where subscribers take a quick fitness quiz and receive a package every month with one workout top and one workout bottom specifically chosen to fit their fitness activities. The best part is that they use top brands- EVEN LULULEMON– and upcoming brands as well. For just $39 a month, you get over $130 worth of fitness attire! Anyways, they contacted me to see if I was interested in participating in the program. I of course said yes, AND I want to share this awesome stuff with you guys!

If you click on THIS LINK, you will be directed to the pv.body website to sign up. Not only that, but through that link, you will get 20% off the regular price of $39. Act quick, because today is the LAST DAY that monthly subscriptions are offered at this price! If you sign up today, you will be locked into the $39 price. But, starting December 1, subscriptions will raise ten dollars to $49/mo. (You can still save 20% after today- so long as you click on the above link that I have provided).

I have already signed up- but since it is a new program, they do not yet ship to Canada. I am having my box sent to my parent’s house in NY so that I can still be involved in the program. Trust me, I’ll be doing a review post AS SOON as I get it! If you do live in Canada and want to be a part of the program, I highly recommend you sent the wonderful people at pv.body an email 😉

In case you don’t feel like scrolling up, Here’s the link again!

*Note: I got an email today from the company stating that the 20% discount is not currently being applied at check out due to technical issues. They have let me know that anyone who signs up through my link with be refunded the 20% AS SOON as the technical issue is fixed!*

What do you think of monthly subscriptions? To to subscribe to any? Favorite workout from the week?

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
		1	2	3	4	5
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	30

Share me please!

Share me please!

Share me please!

Share me please!

Share me please!