Dark chocolate molasses cookies

I've been wanting to make these cookies or a slightly lightened version of these bars for a while now. I totally planned to make them over the holiday break -- it went zooming by. Alas.  I finally got these made.  I made the first recipe because I forgot about the second.  Now the two recipes are documented in this post together and with pictures!  I hope to make them again soon.

Thanks Natalie for helping!

 

On another note, Nick and I went back to our bodypump class after 3 weeks off.  YOWCH is all I can say.  I love doing cardio and dance, but I don't enjoy weights.  I hope to get to that class 2x a week.  I need to do more weights.  Natalie is old enough (on Tuesday) to go with me to the gym and do the class.  Maybe she'll help me achieve my 2x a week goal.  I can see it happening over summer, but not sure it will happen before then.  
 

Proteinaholic

One of the plant-based doctors I follow in FB is coming out with a new book in October. 

See more here: http://proteinaholic.com

Read an excerpt here: http://hwcdn.libsyn.com/p/1/a/1/1a1f0e0b1a8cce83/Proteinaholic_Excerpt.pdf?c_id=9766045&expiration=1443031678&hwt=018a5ac1c6a73f839e8c04e3317b0393

Back in 2012, I did an analysis of a typical day of food and found that in my VEGAN diet, I get all the protein I need in 1/2 of my calories.  NO protein deficiency here!

I'm not an elite athlete, but I am active, but I am not worried.  We have lots of examples of vegan athletes... !

I think, also, as one gets older, plant-based makes more sense (and I'll follow up on this in the future).  If you can't eat 100% plant-based, try increasing your percentage.  It does help!

loving cashew cream, but kicking it up a notch

I have growing girls who like yummy treats so I make a lot of things with nuts:

Cashew Cream Cheese

Chocolate Chia Brownies

Blueberry Bites

Dixie Pie Bites

Chocolate Frosting

and the list could go on.

Since I cook with nuts so frequently, I need to kick it up a notch at the gym. (Some of my jeans are getting snug. It's still warm and summery, so it doesn't matter, but come fall, I don't want to have to buy new pants.) Nuts are full of fat and calorie laden, but oh so good. So now it's extra trips to the gym!

I'd like to do more cardio, 'cause I'm a cardio kind of girl, but this fall, is all about muscle building. Having more muscle makes it easier to burn off calories when you are just sitting--muscles require them. Cardio burns off calories and can burn off muscle, too. (I'm not explaining it very well, but I don't feel like getting technical.)

My goal is to add in 2 strength building classes each week. I was only doing one strength building workout a week; a Pilates on the reformer workout. I think I've found a good schedule of 3 days strength training, 2 days of tap, and 1 day of heavy duty cardio day (plus walking as much as possible). (I'd like to get one more day of heavy duty cardio in there, but I don't have time until my class is over in December.)

I do love the reformer. My back, so sore for many years because of an injury and 3 pregnancies, is now not sore most of the time. From 2002-2008, it hurt more days than it didn't. I remember that if I stepped funny of a step or curb, I would be in pain. Some experts said to take it easy and rest it and some said, do more core work. Back then, I wasn't sure what a core was, but I finally figured it out and I'm glad I chose to move and not rest. It took a while to get strong, but now my core is strong and my back doesn't hurt. I don't like doing the strength building classes but not hurting is worth an hour of strength building 3 times a week!

Okay... new recipes soon. I hope. Yesterday, it was hot and summery, we even went swimming, but I decided to make soup!  I made this one Veggie Soup with Kale. Except I had no Kale. So I used cauliflower, carrots, and broccoli (and potatoes). I might add tomatoes next time or use Kale. Soups are fun 'cause you can improvise and it always works. Even the time when you add cashew cream to minestrone (I don't think I ever told you about that), but still, it worked--if you didn't think of it as a minestrone. I froze one dinner's worth of that soup (for the five of us) and have two more dinner's worth in the fridge. Next week, hopefully I'll do another soup. I made it a goal last year to make a soup every Sunday. That lasted a few weeks and then I was sick of making soup. I did get a lot frozen, and it was helpful to have them over the course of a busy year. Over the next couple of months, I'll try to make 3 or 4 kinds and get some of each kind frozen. It's all about EASY around here!

Treadmill Desk Version 2

Oh my. It's almost February.

I was going to start the year with a reflective post about the last 8 years and our diet. Hrm, it might have been boring. I haven't gotten it done--it's started. I think might break it up and post it in more digestible bites (pun intended since this is a food blog primarily).

 It's always so hard for me to get back to blogging after a time off, so this is that first awkward post that just gets things going again. So, what are we talking about, today? My treadmill desk!

Below is a picture of my corner in our new office (in our new house). On the front half of the office is a desk that is Nick's. My area, shown below, shows my treadmill desk. Yes, I walk on my treadmill desk and do work when ever I can! I get to work at home at least once a week, and often twice.

I have no problem walking when I'm reading and answering emails, answering student questions from my class, writing simpler documents, or taking phone calls (though I often just pace around the house when I'm on the phone so that it's quieter). I can successfully multi-task on all those tasks.

[Sidebar: There are studies that say we can't multi-task; I agree it is challenging and while I might be slower, so that I'm still accurate on my tasks, I don't think I am noticeably slower. Walking is a very automatic task and I don't think it's taking very many cognitive resources (for me). Plus, walking on the treadmill keeps me engaged in my tasks longer so if I am slower, it's okay. I'm committed to being there and getting things done. Walking and working WORK for me. To me, it is worth any slight speed trade-off to MOVE and work at the same time. I like accomplishing two things at once.]

 
This picture was taken right after we moved in and we hadn't gotten pictures on the wall. Now this picture hangs over my treadmill desk. Click, it's worth it!  I've had my treadmill desk at home for 1 and 1/2 years and I love it. I'm so glad I decided to do it.

If you have any questions, just ask!  (See Treadmill Desk V.1 here)

It's almost the end of the year...

And I'm too busy for blogging it seems. Still cooking a lot, and finding lots of good recipes, and WANTING to blog, but no time. Work is getting ready to "shut down" so everyone is trying to wrap things up. Hopefully I'll have a little time next week to get some posts in before the year ends.  (All I want for Christmas is some time to blog!) 

In the mean time, here are two articles that I want to hold on to...

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/12/10/250007042/chowing-down-on-meat-and-dairy-alters-gut-bacteria-a-lot-and-quickly

http://www.npr.org/2013/12/13/250730968/this-docs-miracle-drug-exercise

I do believe that diet and exercise are extremely important, and always have. When I was a kid (probably about 6 or 7), I couldn't believe adults didn't like to run around. I couldn't believe they didn't see that if they ran around, they'd be better off. For me, when my back was in very bad shape in 2005 (after 3 babies in 4 years), I decided I needed to exercise more and get back into shape. People, even doctors, told me to slow down and be careful, but I'm so glad I chose the path of exercise. I also began to change the way I ate in 2006, cutting down dairy and adding more grains and veggies until I went vegan in 2009. It all "can't hurt and might help" and now we are learning why things, like exercise and a good diet, work. (The articles above point to 2 small, but important, clues.)

Oh, and a video

http://nutritionfacts.org/video/eggs-and-diabetes/


To all things green! 

Low-key weekend

We took it easy this weekend. We needed it! When we don't have a lot going on, I love to have cooking weekends and this weekend my biggest helper and I made:

Apple Crisp

Right now, we have a lot of fuji apples. I need to research more about organic apple farming. Even though we have a lot of apples, we're losing a lot to the bugs. Boo!

Blueberry Energy Bites

I waffle back and forth and change up the kinds of nuts I use. I always use walnuts, but sometimes I add cashews. Sometimes I add oats and sometimes I don't. This time we made these just with walnuts and no oats and they were AMAZING. See the link for a picture and the recipe. We have streamlined the making process and instead of little balls, we just put it on wax paper and get it rolled flat (put wax paper on top, too) and then cut off little pieces.

Potato Soup 

I just made it last week, but my husband requested it. I doubled the recipe this time, so I could have some to freeze. Last week, we didn't have any left over to freeze. It was a big hit! This time we added corn to it, and I have more ideas to doctor this up and make it even more exciting. It's a great soup base! I'll share the new versions as it evolves. (I knew it would change!) And remember, it's soup on Sunday! 

Cornbread--home made, vegan style, but I left a little oil so I need to work on this one--no recipe today.

Low sugar PB cookies

The girls really like these! So do I! They are "not bad for you" and I let them be a breakfast cookie! The girls love eating cookies for breakfast.

Pancakes!

I make these nearly every week--yea we're kind of boring around here, but I have 3 hungry girls who like these and the recipe makes so much that we have EASY breakfasts for M,T, & W. Just heat up the leftovers. (Timesavers are needed around here!)

We also had tortilla and almost homemade pinto beans and quinoa. For lunch, the next day, we spiced the pinto beans up with a little Mexican Chipolte vegan sausage. Yum!

The rest of the weekend, we cleaned and tried to get organized... Remember, we just moved at the end of July.

We also walked.

I got a fitbit.  Did I tell you about that? I'll save it for another post. Exercise is one of the accepted topics around here.

Exercise!

It's not always food around here.

This article discusses research about why we always need to keep moving.  They found that there were brain benefits, if you were a running rat, in that you'll be able to do mazes much faster.  But if you're a running rat, and your New Year's resolution slips, and you stop running, you'll lose that ability and be "just a normal rat" in just a few weeks  I'm guessing the same holds for humans--if we don't move it, we lose it.

This year, not very different from last year, has had 9 days in it so far.  I've had two trips to the zoo (lots of walking), one 3 mile hike, two hip hop classes, two days of just walking and working on the treadmill, one pilates workout, one tap class, and today, two hip hop classes (yes, two in one day!  One with Natalie and then mine).

Move!  It does a body good! 

Treadmill desk: Move more, sit less!

From the Mayo Clinic... Move more, sit less!

Here's a picture of my treadmill desk (cat sold separately).  We set this up back in June.

Steps to make a treadmill desk:

1. Buy a treadmill.  We got a nice quality, small-sized one.  It's a Horizon t101 and it was a little more expensive than I planned. We checked out some treadmills that were in the $200-300 range, and I thought they'd be fine, but the demo models in the store had slightly wobbly belts.  Nick didn't want me to have to wobble while I walked. The salesman figured that a new one in a home would be less likely to have the wobble problem since the store models get a lot of abuse.  Regardless, we went with the Horizon. It's sturdy enough that if I want to run on it, I could.  I haven't had the urge yet, but who knows!?

2.  We didn't opt for the delivery set-up service.  Ask Nick if he thinks it would have been worth it to pay for delivery and set-up.  Treadmills are HEAVY.  Getting it up the stairs involved all of our strength and knowledge of physics.

3.  After we set up the treadmill, we tried to figure out what kind of surface for the desk.  We went to home depot and got these shelves (for around $50):


 

Note, I am only using one of the shelves. The shelving we got is supposed to be temporary, and we plan to make a shelf out of wood, at height I currently have the shelf.  I am using the reams of paper to raise my monitor to the right height for my eyes.  I really like this stand and I need to get one to replace the reams of paper.

I haven't quite gotten the ergonomics of the keyboard worked out; I had a lower shelf for an external keyboard for a while.  The shelf wasn't stable and my keyboard (wireless) kept needing new batteries.  I'll figure it out at some point.  Right now, I mostly read and do light typing on the treadmill.  When we get into our new office, I'll figure it all out. (It'll be a while before the move.)

(Not shown is the gaffer tape holding the shelf to the treadmill to make it steady.  I think on the wood version, we'll need a cross brace, but we're not there yet.) 

For now, the treadmill desk is really working for me.  I find I work for about an hour, then sit down (I try to limit myself to sitting for no more than 1/2 hour) and then walk some more.  In a typical day when I work from home for 6-8 hours I'll walk for 3-5 hours on the treadmill. My pace is anywhere from .5 - 1.5 miles an hour, so I'll walk between 1.5 and 3 miles in a day.  It's not a lot of walking, but it's much better than just sitting all day!  I feel so much better than when I sit.

I do sometimes have to "sit and concentrate," but I try not to do this too often or for too long of a period of time.  It also works for me to just STAND at the treadmill and not walk when I need to concentrate.

The treadmill desk was a fairly substantial monetary investment, but if it keeps me healthy and less stressed, it's worth it.  (It's helping my back feel better!) When I'm really busy, I can end up working for 12 hours a day.  I haven't had a day like that in a while, but when it happens again (and it will), I'm ready and will walk and work the day away!

When I finally get settled into our new office, I'll update; don't hold your breath though, I expect I will make the post NEXT Summer (2013).  I am so glad I got the treadmill before my office was ready.  I'd be a "sitting duck" for another year if I'd waited.  

Vegan Warriors...

I love this! You can be a vegan, build muscle, and be very fit. These guys require a lot of calories and nutrition. If veganism is good enough for them, then it's good enough for me! Watch and be amazed at the vegans on YouTube! A link to their web site is here.

Weights

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2012/06/26/science/100000001622839/weight-gains.html

Great video!

Who needs to lift weights??  Everyone as they age!  About 3 years ago, I was doing a lot of Zumba.  I hurt my knee.  The reason why? Doing so much Zumba was causing me to lose muscle in my legs.

I now do 2-3 strength building exercise classes a week.  My goal for the coming year is 3-4 strength building classes a week.  I don't love the strength building the way I love cardio, but to keep me strong enough to do all the cardio I want to do, I hit the weights. 

3rd Bikram Class: A report

No recipes ahead, just an entry about my experiences in Bikram.  I have now gone to 3 Bikram classes.  I am thrilled I survived them all!  I find it so challenging to want to go to 105 degrees.  I have a trial membership to do as many classes as I want in 30 days.  Unfortunately, as many classes as I want will only be 1-2 a week or 4-8 total. 

Last week, despite my best intentions, I only made it to 1 Bikram class. Part of the difficulty in finding a time to go is that I want to go with my friend.  I don't yet feel comfortable going on my own.  When starting up something new, it is SO nice to have a friend who encourages you! 

This week, my friend and I know we can go on Friday, but our schedules are insane.  It's the end of the school year.  There are lots of things going on at school and outside of school, for me and my girls it's the week of our dance show!  We have rehearsals, costume checks, and pictures every night except for Thursday.  (All my girls and me are dancing in the show!)

Oh, back to Bikram--that's what this post is about.  After the first class, I was not really sore, but I hadn't pushed it.  My upper back felt like it had been worked and stretched, but in a good way.  After the second class, I pushed it more but afterwards I felt really good.  I felt like I'd really worked my legs and back and all felt re-aligned and like it could be getting strong.  (I was a little sore, but in a very good way.) Yesterday, I pushed it more and now my left hip is hurting.  I don't know if it's hurting because of Bikram or because we went to a movie* last night (MiB 3).  I love movies, but I hate sitting for 2 hours + in those chairs!!

Also, my right foot, the arch, is also hurting a little.  It could have been from 1) stretching in Bikram, 2) practicing my tap dance in socks (see above, dance show next week), 3) wearing shoes with really high arch supports as we walked around a tile show room for 2 hours in the afternoon, or 4) all of the above.

Oh yea, I'm still supposed to be talking about Bikram, not my aches and pains.  I really like the two sequences of poses in Bikram that work the thighs.  If you want to see a 90-minute class condensed into 2 minutes, take a look at this video. My favorites are at ~30 - 40 seconds and then again at ~1 minute 20 seconds.

I'm heading back to Bikram this week.  I love how much Bikram challenges me on my balance.  I personally find it interesting how much more balance I have when I stand on my right leg than my left.  I hope this means that if I work the left side, it will get better. I'll keep you posted with another boring update like this. Have a great Sunday!








*Yay!  A date night!  That is rare around here!

Whoa... It's been 2 weeks since I last blogged...

I've been working out a lot recently and I haven't been blogging. (This kind of feel like a confession, eh?) I'm not sure where my blogging-mojo went, but it's completely gone at the moment. Here's a little of what's happened: I did a big project for the school my girls go to, some of our family visited so we were busy with company, and as I mentioned in the opening, I've been working out more than usual. I'll be talking mostly about working out, today.

What inspired me to post today was that I feel the need to share that I tried Bikram Yoga on Tuesday! A few years back, when I first heard about Bikram, I thought NO WAY, NEVER. The Bikram format is a 90-minute yoga class in a 105 degree room. I don't really like yoga* and I don't like heat. So what made me change my mind and try it? A new friend who does it made Bikram sound appealing. (Friends can be very important and powerful influences in our lives!)

A little history, I love to work out. I'm a Zumba girl, a hip-hop girl, and a tap dancer. I do Pilates to keep myself strong and flexible; I like Pilates but I don't love it. I also do a weight (toning and strength) class about once a week. I wouldn't do weights or Pilates if they weren't necessary, but they are necessary so I can be strong enough to do the things I love and not get hurt. I got hurt a few years back and I made a decision to make sure I was strong enough to prevent any further injury! Since I do weights and Pilates every week, they are now part of my routine. I do feel good and I am stronger. When I miss a workout, I don't feel as good. That gives me incentive to keep doing them even though I don't love weights and Pilates.

Okay, back to the Bikram Experience on Tuesday. My goal for my first class was to survive. I'm in pretty good shape (I typically do 5-8 workouts a week), but I was still worried. The heat had me most concerned. I don't even like to Zumba in a hot room, and I love Zumba. Given how I feel about yoga, I was worried that with the heat, I'd need to leave the room. I had to really mentally prepare myself for the heat. I was drenched with sweat within the first 5 minutes of class--perhaps even sooner, but I stuck it out.

So what does one do to prepare to go into a 105 degrees for 1.5 hours? I asked my friend who took me to the class; she recommended drinking coconut water and lots of water before the class. I drank a lot of water the two days before and some coconut water. (I was pleasantly surprised to learn that coconut water is tasty--I don't like coconut! It tastes nothing like coconut.) I like salt, so I also gave myself permission to eat some salty things the day before figuring I was going to go sweat all the salt out in that class! I ate my normal breakfast before class. The class was at noon so I also had a light snack around 10 am. I wore the closest thing I have to yoga attire (a yoga skirt and a work out top).

I am so glad I went with my friend. She introduced us to the the teacher and she knew the ropes. I would have been too intimidated to go on my own. During class, I learned that when you sweat so much you are very slippery. There were some moves that I couldn't do because I kept slipping out of my own grip. I also learned that for me, the challenge wasn't the flexibility part--I'm very flexible--but the challenge was the balance and strength part. I also learned that they tell you to LOCK your knee in Bikram. This goes against all the training I've had for my entire life and was very hard for me. I felt a little light headed on a couple of the poses, but not too bad. I did (or tried to do) everything. At the end of class, I felt very cleansed (from all the sweating), but I felt good. I was especially pleased I had lived to tell about it!

I will go back. Bikram doesn't work in super well to my schedule. I already have a lot of classes I love, but I'll make it work once or twice a week at least for this month. (The studio has a great trial membership.) They have a family "warm, not hot," class and I'll try that it with my girls next Saturday. I imagine we'll love warm, not hot, yoga next winter!





*I want to like yoga. I just haven't enjoyed it that much.

I have this friend...

She's a great athlete, she's in awesome shape, but she eats a terrible diet. She's completely a testament to the power of genetics (she looks good and damn, can she perform); not all of us are so lucky. And, even if we're tremendously gifted and have genetics on our side, like the story of the person in the article (linked below) and my friend, we can benefit from a healthier diet. I wish my friend would be open-minded to improving her diet.

Actually, I really wish, since she's a fitness professional and a role model to many, that she wouldn't encourage others to eat an unhealthy diet.  She likes to talk about the taco place she frequents and how much bacon she eats.  Her attitude is "I eat it and I am in good shape so you can eat it and work out and you'll be fine, too."  Unfortunately, that's not the case.  The people who take her class aren't teaching 15+ classes a week and they don't have her genes. In addition, she may be in great shape on the outside--I hope she's in great shape on the inside--but we can't know without some blood work.

In the meantime, go read about the ultra-marathoner, Scott Jurek. I love reading about plant-based athletes. Just this weekend, I was sitting across from a nurse and a long-distance runner and she was wolfing down chicken and beef. She was discussing how she needs protein to do what she does. Next time I run into her (or someone like her) I'm pulling Scott Jurek out and discussing him. Let me know what you think of him.

If you exercise a lot, do you feel it's easy or hard to be plant-based?  I love being plant-based, but sometimes I end up eating too many nuts (in my opinion) to make it through the day.  It's something I'm working on and I'll tell you more about in future posts.