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Blackberry Vanilla Oatcakes…etc.

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Happy Monday, folks. I have been running around like cray-cray today in an attempt to run errands, clean, cook, and be awesome. 

Good thing I started the day with a POT of coffee and these babies:

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Honestly, just go make these right now. Even if it’s for dinner. I made these with a sample packet of Sunwarrior Vanilla Protein Powder that I got in my Bulu Box awhile back.

 

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I’m not sure why I never used it sooner, because it had a fantastic flavor that really oomph-ed these cakes. (Oh, and I just looked online, and it’s REALLY expensive to have some of the stuff shipped to Canada. So, if you know of any secret place/way I can get it on the cheap, I’M ALL EARS)

Blackberry Vanilla Oatcakes

  • 1 cup oat flour (I put oats in the food processor for this)
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 2 egg whites
  • Sunwarrior protein powder (or a scoop of protein powder of your choice)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tbsp nonfat plain greek yogurt

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Mix everything together, pour on hot griddle (with cooking spray), top with sliced blackberries, flip, eat. These came out SUPER fluffy and they were nice and filling. I topped the stack with a mixture of greek yogurt, almond milk, cinnamon and agave. Oh, and chia seeds.

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I must be on a greek yogurt kick, because it was included in lunch as well. I knew I wanted a ton of veggies, but I wanted something to give a plate of plain, raw veggies a little bit of a kick.

Insert: Dill Dip

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Yet another ‘recipe’ that I just threw together, and didn’t really measure the ingredients. But, it included:

  • Greek yogurt
  • Dill
  • Parsley
  • Garlic Salt
  • Lemon Juice

It went really well with my lunch plate!

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For the record- lentil chips are the bomb dot com.

Onto random ramblings!

  1. I FINALLY got a call from Tiffany&Co saying my earrings were in. To quickly recap: I brought them in in December when a screw back fell off one of the posts. I was told they no longer make those and my earrings would have to sent out for repair (approx. 1 month waiting time). I then called them to tell them I would be out of the country and to call Tyler because I wouldn’t have a phone. Obviously they didn’t do that, so we were never notified my earrings were in. I went to the store at the end of January and found that they set my diamonds in completely different settings without my consent. Never mind the fact that the ‘replacement’ backings were defective as well! So, they were sent back out to have set in the original settings. I was told a week, and it took 3. I went in to the store this morning and found that the 2nd replacement/repair was STILL defective. I took them anyways because I was sick of dealing with their crap. RESULT: WE WILL NEVER DO BUSINESS WITH THEM AGAIN. 
  2. I am going to Seattle in 17 days!!!!!! I can’t wait to see my best friend. Nevermind the fact that I’ll be there for St. Patty’s day AND her birthday! 😉 😉
  3. I made fudge a couple weeks ago and over-boiled the evaporate milk concoction. The batch was super dry and yuck. So, I was overly cautious when making some rocky road fudge last night. Apparently I was TOO cautious. It didn’t set. BUT THE GOOD NEWS YOU GUYS is that if you throw it in the freezer, it’s edible! If that didn’t work, I was going to resort to nuking it in the microwave for an ice cream topper in the future.
  4. Here’s a list of AWKWARD SITUATIONS. The best part, I personally find them all hilarious. Like, I would WANT to be in those situations so that I could try to make other people uncomfortable. Ok, maybe not #3.
  5. Not that I’m trying to get serious or anything, but this article on 10 Reasons Why Women Don’t Say “I’m Pretty” I thought I’d include this because I am totally guilty of just about all of them. 
  6. Way to go, Alberta.
  7. Check out this playlist I put together for today’s run:

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I had to put this thing together all by myself. With no help. Why? Look:

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64 of you saw this update/request I posted on my Facebook page yesterday, but NONE of you provided suggestions. Do you not listen to music? I kid, I kid, I know you were all probably too busy with Oscar/Walking Dead/Amazing Race watching. In case you were NOT one of the 64 people who saw this, I urge you to go LIKE MY PAGE. Maybe *you* will be helpful to my future requests.

Question: what’s your favorite way to use protein powder? Got something random to share?

“I’m Going to Montana” doesn’t have the same ring to it as Will Smith’s song.

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I have had a serious sweet tooth lately.

Unfortunately, this has coincided with my lack of willingness to workout.

Honestly, I think my body just needed a few days of rest. That said, I am more than excited to bust out a long run at the gym later today.

But let’s get back to those sweets. I mean, they’re not BAD for you by any means. They’re just no broccoli or brussel sprouts.

First, the grain free chocolate mug cake.

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Super easy to make. You’ll need:

  • 3 T almond meal
  • 3 T cocoa powder
  • 2 T agave
  • 1 t vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • A dash of cinnamon

Mix everything up nice and good in a mug, microwave it for 2 minutes, and BOOM, you’ve got yourself a single serving cake. It was super filling and hit the spot.

Another ‘sweet’ I made were protein balls. I made a small batch really quick yesterday before we hopped in the car for a ‘quick’ trip to Montana. 

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I never really measure out the proportions of ingredients when I make these, but it included:

  • Oats
  • Protein powder
  • Sunflower seed butter
  • Almond milk
  • Agave

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Again, super tasty and really filling.

Montana was fun. I was there for approximately 2.5 minutes before turning around to visit the nice immigration officer on the Canadian side. He took out all my visitor visas from my passport, stapled in my confirmation of permanent residency, and said the card would be in the mail in 90 days. 

7 hours of driving for a quick conversation and a signature. A waste of time, but well worth it. The views were pretty awesome.

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..the views of nothing that is.

I celebrated with a little bubbly when I got home, and today I am already on the job hunt.

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Seriously, if you know of any full-time jobs in Calgary, please let me know. 

Seriously.

Tacos and Pancakes

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Ok, my recipe last night worked, so I can share it with you. IT IS SO GOOD.

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Cilantro-Lime Pulled Pork Tacos

Here’s what you need:

  • Pork tenderloin
  • Jar of salsa verde 
  • Lime juice
  • Onion
  • Cilantro
  • Roma Tomatoes
  • Tortillas
  • Other fun stuff

Here’s what you do:

  1. Put the tenderloin in the crock pot. Cover it with the salsa verde and about 3 good squirts of lime juice. Low for 6-8 hours or High for 3-4 hours.
  2. Chop up a yellow onion and a bunch of cilantro. Put it in the fridge.
  3. An hour prior to eating, shred the pork (keep it in the crock pot), and add about 1/3 of the onion/cilantro mix.
  4. Assemble your tacos. I used corn tortillas, the pulled pork, extra onions/cilantro, diced tomatoes, mango, black beans, and guac.

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I could probably eat this everyday and be happy.

I could also eat these chocolate oat pancakes everyday, too:

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Chocolate Oat Pancakes

Here’s what you need:

  • 1 c oats
  • 2 egg whites
  • 1/4 c unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 t baking powder
  • 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
  • 3 T plain greek yogurt

Here’s what you do:

  1. Beat all the ingredients together. The key is to BEAT them. Beat them REAL GOOD. (there’s egg whites in there, y’all)
  2. Spray a griddle and divide batter into 4 pancakes. The end.

I topped mine with sunflower seed frosting (a mixture of my homemade sunflower seed butter and almond milk, heated in the microwave and stirred well) and some chia seeds. With a side of blueberries.

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Yesterday’s workout was 40 minutes of spin. The gym was PACKED but I managed to snag a bike. A crappy bike. The seat collapsed halfway through the ride. At least I was in 2nd position when it happened, or that could have been AWKWARD (or a reat awk spot story for Athena’s blog)

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Today’s workout was Workout B from BBB and it was killer- a real upper body blaster! I was super pumped throughout the workout though because I wore my brand new Lululemon top! Oh, and 30 minutes of speed work on the treadmill. Not too shabby.

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Oh, and in regards to my EXCITING news from yesterday…I have decided this will be my life career:

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I’m pretty much Canadian now!

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I really only have one thing to say……..

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After a slow morning, a finished book, and a quick nap, I checked the mail only to find that I got my confirmation of permanent residency in Canada!!!!!! WHICH MEANS I have to drive to MT only to turn around and re-enter as a resident, then….I GET A JOB. As in….I CAN EARN MONEY. As in…I can buy more LULU!!!

But I jumped the gun in my excitement and ended up heading right to Lululemon anyways.

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I have had my eye on this shirt ever since it was uploaded to the lulu website.

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Jen is happy happy happy.

Nothing else I could type in this post would be as exciting, but I DO have a cool recipe to share with you tomorrow (I wanna eat it first to make sure it’s yumm-o enough to share).

Tyler and I have been having a good stroke of luck over the last week.

  • I won us 2 tickets to the Calgary Home & Garden Expo
  • Tyler took on some overtime work (basically just got paid to be on call)
  • We went to dinner on Saturday at The Rock and a stranger who sat at the opposite end of our table ended up paying our tab

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  • Our wedding is pretty much squared away
  • See first picture 😉

Random Things

Yesterday, I managed to get Workout A done in Phase 4 of BBB (HOLY CANNOLI it was crazy intense!). I also did 100 burpees throughout the commercials of The Biggest Loser; however, halfway through the show, I realized the Y might close earlier due to the holiday, so I called and found they were in fact closing at 8. I had Tyler pause the episode (only did 60 burpees by that point), I buzzed over to the Y, and busted out an awesome ‘Building Sprints’ cardio session on the treadmill. Then I came back, finished the show, and finished my burpees. Boom!

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Our walk on Family Day. We saw ducks

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I am currently on the hunt for the best AND BRIGHTEST running shoes. I totally have to order them online though, because no store ever carries women’s shoes in size 11.5. Believe Me (and if they do, they’re usually super UGGGGGG-LAYYY)

I love these two jams as of late:

Sunflower butter is SO easy to make. Put sunflower seeds in a food processor and pulse (occassionally scraping down sides) for quite a few minutes. Once the seeds release their oils, it becomes smooth pretty quick. All natural and PERFECT for tons of recipes. Or to eat by the spoonful. I don’t judge.

Hey, remember when I was pimping Pv.Body- that monthly athletic wear subscription? Well, guess what. They have slightly changed. And I think it’s for the better. They have just come out with their own clothing line, Ellie. As a member, each month they release new items and you can choose one top and one bottom that you would like for your subscription. If you don’t like anything, you can opt to skip the month- for no fee or penalty. I’m still waiting for my first round of Ellie clothing to come in the mail so I can write up a little review for ya, and THEN I’ll provide a link where you can get a discount (20% off) on the subscription- remember, that discount will only be through my link!

What’s something you’re excited about this week?

2 recipes + 2 workouts

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I have TWO recipes and TWO workouts to share with you. All FOUR are fantastic. (I can do maths!)

First up, the recipes. Both used my favorite protein powder, Click. Seriously, I can’t get enough of the stuff. I’ve already shared an awesome cookie recipe using Click. Now if only they sold their product in Canada, I would be so much happier.

Friday, I made an awesomely yummy smoothie.

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Ingredients:

  • 1 scoop of Click
  • 1/4 c. plain greek yogurt
  • 1 c unsweetened almond milk
  • handful of blueberries
  • handful of strawberries

It had a wonderful combination of fruit with a kick of espresso.

My second Click recipe to share with you is a concoction of chocolatey, blueberry goodness. In the form of pancakes. Oh my god, my stomach was so happy with these. 

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Ingredients:

  • 1 c flour
  • 2 1/4 t baking powder
  • 1/4 t salt
  • 1 t sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/4 c unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 t vanilla
  • 1 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 3/4 scoop Click
  • blueberries

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For the protein frosting:

  • Plain greek yogurt
  • Unsweetened almond milk
  • Click protein powder

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Pretty easy directions. Mix all the ingredients then portion it out into about 6 pancakes on the griddle. Place desired amount of blueberries on pancakes as first side is cooking. Stack when finished, top with protein frosting (you can play with the ratio of frosting ingredients for desired consistency), top with more blueberries and chia seeds.

SO GOOD, you guys!!

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Now onto the workouts. On Friday, I wasn’t entirely in the mood to do the designated BBB workout, so I decided to whip up my own batch of goodies. I divvied it up between lower and upper body.

Lower Body (10 reps of each move, done 2x through)

  • Stability Ball side lunge (L)
  • Stability Ball side lunge (R)
  • Gliding reverse lunge (L)
  • Gliding reverse lunge (R)
  • Single leg squat (L)
  • Single leg squat (R)
  • Single Leg deadlift (L)
  • Single Leg deadlift (R)
  • Glute squeezes
  • Weighted plie squats

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Upper Body (10 reps of each move, done 2x through)

  • Tricep Dips
  • Pushups
  • Front raise
  • Weighted Arm Circles
  • Standing overhead press/Oblique crunch (L)
  • Standing overhead press/Oblique crunch (R)
  • Kettlebell swings

I managed to get in 20 minutes of spinning just before the workout to get my heart rate up. All in all, the circuit is quick, but effective- I was sore the next morning!

Even though I was sore, I wanted to get my blood pumping on Saturday. I opted to do yet another Deck of Cards workout. (Previous Deck of Workouts can be found here and here)

  • ♠ V-sits
  • ♣ Burpees
  • ♥ Kettlebell swings
  • ♦ Pushups

I kid you not, I shuffled them almost into respective suits. I must have done about 60 pushups right off the bat, and OF COURSE, most of the burpees were at the bottom of the deck. Yikes. But totally worth it. I was sweaty and ready to have a yummy pizza for dinner. (More on that meal later!)

Anyone have a favorite protein powder? Favorite recipe to use with it??