Boxes, boxes, and more boxes....

I've just started packing and I'm already tired of looking at boxes. I'm so excited to be moving into our new house at the end of the month. Some of my blogs maybe less than exciting this month, but after we get settled in our new house, I want to focus on gardening, baking, cooking, canning, and most importantly home brewing beer again. If there is anything you guys want me to blog about, I would love to get some feedback.

Our new house has a huge, ugly concrete patio. I'll probably get some large planters and maybe do some raised beds. If anyone has some experience with either planters or raised beds, let me know. I have some great books for reference, but some real-life experience would be great.

Also, we'll start home brewing with all-grain, instead of extract. Anyone who knows about brewing beer, will know what I'm talking about, but for those who don't: extract is like a beer syrup, which is used in simple home brewing and all-grain is the way professional brewers do. I hope we can also start kegging and stop bottling. Bottling is just a lot of work and cleaning.

Hope everyone is having a great day on this sunny Seattle Tuesday.

Almond-Chocolate Chip Cookies

I decided to make these cookies after receiving two boxes of Justin's Almond Butter. My sister works at the head quaters of an outdoor company and sometimes she gets some awesome samples. These are amazing cookies! This is a recipe from The Fearless Baker Cookbook. I haven't had a recipe fail me yet.

Ingredients:

1/2 sliced almonds
8 tbsp butter, 1 stick, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 cup almond butter
1 1/2 unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt

3 ounces dark chocolate, chopped into chunks (I used Trader Joes Dark Chocolate 72%)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the almonds on a small baking sheet. After the oven has reached 350, place the almonds in the oven for 7-10 minutes, till the almonds are lightly browned. Let the almonds cool on the baking sheet.

After the almonds are cooled, lightly chop them.

Place the softened butter and sugar in a mixing bowl. 

Beat the sugar and butter till fully incorporated. 

Almond butter!

I had to squeeze all the little packets to fill one cup. Took forever. 

18 packets total.

Add the eggs to the butter and sugar. Beat throughly and then add the almond butter. After the almond butter is fully incorporated, add the flour, baking soda and salt. 

After everything is fully mixed, remove the bowl from the mixer.

Chop the chocolate.

Add the toasted almonds and chocolate and stir to mix.

Take tablespoons of the cookie batter onto the cookie sheets. Slightly press down with your hands. Then place in the oven for 10-12 minutes. Cookies will be a little soft in the middle, so don't over bake. They will hardened as they cool. Cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes and then place on a cooling rack. After they are cooled, place in an airtight container. 

Meat-less Mondays! "Sausage" Red Lentil Hot Dish

I'm going meat-less today, with one of my favorite hot dishes. Hot dishes are an all-in-one pot meal, a popular dish from my mid-west childhood. There were usually always beef in them, but mine does not. You can totally switch up the veggie sausage for chicken or pork sausage if you like.

Ingredients:

1 14oz package of Tofurky sausages (you can use any kind of sausage you like)
2 tbsp avocado oil (you can substitute for EVOO or vegetable oil)
1 cup red lentils
2 cups vegetable broth
1 16oz package frozen cauliflower
1 16oz package of frozen kale (I like Trader Joes Brand)
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 tsp red pepper flaskes
salt
pepper

Ingredients

Heat the oil in a large pan, on medium heat

Slice the sausage

Cook the sausage in the heated pan, till all sausage is browned, then remove the sausage from the pan.

Add the vegetable stock to the hot pan.

Then add the red lentils.

Then add the frozen cauliflower and kale and stir. Raise the heat to high, till the hot dish is boiling. Then cover and lower the heat to medium low and let simmer for 20 minutes. 

Then add the the diced tomatoes and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Lastly add the sausage, salt, pepper and pepper flakes. Cook till the sausage is heated thru and then remove from heat. Enjoy!

Cranberry Coconut Granola

With it being a hazy, lazy Sunday morning, I thought making granola would be a great way to bring some yummy smells into the apartment. Plus it'll be great fuel for when we start packing later today. Granola is also a great way to use up some of the odds and ends you have in your pantry. Be creative with different dried fruits, spices, and nuts.

Ingredients:

1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups rolled oats (not instant)
1/2 cup dried unsweetened cranberries
1/3 cup dried coconut
1/2 cup pecans
1/4 roasted flax seed

Ingredients (I forgot to place the honey in the picture)

Place the vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, water, honey, maple syrup, salt and vegetable oil in a large bowl. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  

Mix everything together.

Add the rolled oats, cranberries, pecans, coconut and flax seed to large bowl.

Mix everything together till the oats are well coated.

Spread on a parchment lined baking sheet. Place in oven for about 30 minutes.

Take out of oven and let cool completely. Place in an air-tight bag or container. Enjoy!

Super fit weekend!

So yesterday, Molly (my twin) and I tried out some new workouts. Its funny how I hardly ever worked out in my early twenties, but I have been more into fitness and trying new things for the last few years.

Currently I'm a member at Composite Crossfit  and yesterday they had a bring-a-friend-day to a special 8 am workout. We started with group stretching and then some basic warm ups like push ups, lunges, sit ups, etc. Then we did a group workout routine, for 8 minutes, of as many rounds as possible to 6 burpees, 12 box jumps and then 12 kettlebell swings. So a burpee is a hellish thing of jumping up then getting down to the ground, laying on your stomach, then jumping back to your feet and then jumping again. Burpees = hell. Box jumping sounds easy, but its such a psychological thing, if anything. I'm not into jumping, unless its to avoid a spider or other bug. When then ended the workout with doing squats for 2 minutes. So its safe to say that my rear is in some pain today.

So you would think that after doing crossfit for an hour already, we would be done right? Wrong! We took advantage of a livingsocial.com deal for pole dancing classes. Thats right, you saw that, Molly and I are looking for a new line of work. (just kidding) Actually pole dancing is a great workout and studios are opening up all over the country.

Divine Movement Dance, in Kirkland, was comfortable with a relaxed atmosphere. The instructor Susan started the hour and 45 minute class with a group warm up. The room was dimmed and we all sat and stretched to some fun music. Then we got into learning how to do sexy walks, stands and then finally do a "fireman" pole swing. The small class of 11 woman was always smiling and laughing, while we were learning how to be more sexy.

I highly recommend this type of work out. It was never boring, fun and interesting.

So today, Molly and I are super sore, but hey it was all in the name of fitness, right? At least thats what I'll keep telling myself.

Super Simple Deviled Eggs

Go Seahawks! In getting ready for the game today, I've made my super simple deviled eggs. They are easy to make and great for a party.

Ingredients:

1 dozen hard boiled eggs (I like to make 13 eggs, so I can snack on some before the party)
3/4 mayonnaise
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 pepper

Peel the shells off all the eggs.  

Cut the eggs in half

Place the egg whites on a separate plate or super fancy deviled egg platter 

Place all of the yolks in a medium bowl

Add the mayo, salt, pepper and curry powder to the egg yolks. I like to buy spices in the bulk section of my grocery store. Makes is a lot more inexpensive to try new recipes. 1 tsp of curry powder was 16 cents. 

Mash the egg yolk mixture with a fork till its thick and creamy. If its a little lumpy thats ok. 

Now fill the egg whites with the egg yolk mixture. 

Looking good!

Now sprinkle the paprika over the eggs. Serve immediately or cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator till ready to serve. Go Hawks!!

Lemon Ricotta Cookies

Happy Friday everyone! I decided to celebrate with making Lemon Ricotta Cookies. I discovered these cookies while I was working in El Segundo, Calif and I had a coworker bring in bags of lemons from his lemon tree at home. Now that I live in Washington, I do miss all of the citrus trees from Southern California.

Ingredients:

Cookies:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs at room temperature
1 15-ounce container of whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

Ingredients :)

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. I recommend using white all purpose flour. I have used whole wheat flour before and the wheat tends to overpower the lemon in the cookies. 

 Next combine the sugar and soften butter in a mixing bowl. Using a stand mixer or hand held mixer and beat the sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. 

Sugar and butter all fluffy!

Add the eggs one at a time and beat in between each egg addition.

Nice and creamy after the eggs are all beaten with the sugar and butter. 

Next add the lemon zest, lemon juice and ricotta. Using whole milk ricotta is important, using skim milk ricotta won't make the cookies as fluffy. Also 3 tbsp of lemon juice is about 1/2 of a lemon. 

After the ricotta, lemon juice and lemon zest is well combined, add the flour mixture.

Batter all done!

Place the cookie dough on non sticking cookie sheets or parchment lined cookie sheets. Bake for about 21 minutes. 

After cookies are slightly browned on the sides, remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the cookie sheet for 20 minutes. 

After the cookies have cooled place on wax paper.

Place the powder sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice in a small bowl. 

Mix everything till its nice and smooth. 

Spread the frosting on each of the cookies. 

Yum!! 

Let the frosting set for about 2 hours and then place the cookies in an airtight container.