Carrots!

So carrots were on sale this week at my favourite grocery store (No Frills...cheap and efficient:), so I picked up about 9 pounds of them:) Carrots have for a long time been a personal fav veggie for me, and I'm always looking for new ways to use them.

Today I came up with this yummy carrot muffin recipe. These muffins are extremely moist and don't rise much, so they're really more of a soft square/muffin...If that makes sense...I'm going to say just try them and you'll see what I mean. They are very tasty, freeze well, and, most importantly, are healthy! With natural sugars and whole grains, plus the fibre and nutrients from the carrot, these muffins were a hit in our house:)

Without further ado, here's the recipe:)

Healthy Carrot Muffins

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup bran
2 cups grated carrots (2-4 carrots)
1 cup dates
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
1/2 cup apple sauce
1/2 cup raisons

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Soak dates in warm water, and set aside for approx. 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, bran, baking soda and cinnamon.
3. Grind dates up in the food processor until they form a large ball.
4. In a separate bowl, mix dates, carrots, apple sauce and eggs. Fold into dry mixture. Throw in and mix the raisons.
4. Separate into a muffin tin, and bake for approximately 20-30 minutes.

More awesome carrot recipes to come! Be blessed today!

Breakfast On The Go!

First off, thank you all so much for your sweet comments about my last blog. Your feedback really is important to me, and it helps me to keep going knowing that there are people out there being blessed and inspired by my journey:) It also helps me to keep up the work when you all act as much cheerleaders:)

Now to the good stuff....FOOD:) I really want to include more recipes in my blog, so I'm bringing you one of my favourites....a smoothie recipe. I'm a sucker for creamy foods, especially milkshakes, so if I can fool myself into thinking I'm drinking one, that's a bonus:) This smoothie is great for breakfast, as it includes both fibre and protein, which I feel are the building blocks for the perfect breakfast.

For me, eating a good breakfast has been paramount in my weight loss journey. If I can fill up first thing in the day, I don't end up eating too much later. Since the new year, I've been back at work part time, and I'm finding mornings to be a bit of a scramble , getting myself and the kids ready and out the door. There have been a few days when breakfast has been a granola bar in the car on my way. This recipe is great because it's quick and you can have the ingredients ready ahead of time, so in the morning, you just have to dump it all into the blender and go:)



Oatmeal Protein Breakfast Shake

2 cups ground oatmeal (grind it up in the food processor...this can be done ahead of time)
2 cups low fat milk
1 scoop protein powder
fruit (I like banana, but you can really add any kind you want)
sprinkle of cinnamon to garnish
drizzle of honey to garnish

Throw the first 4 ingredients into the blender, and mix away. After you pour it into a glass, sprinkle with cinnamon and drizzle with honey.

Hope you like it! More recipes to come!

The Struggle

Gee willikers, it's been a while since my last post. Sorry everyone (at least I'm hoping more than 2 people read this blog:)...I've included blogging more regularly on my resolution list, so hopefully I'll be a little more consistent this year:)

If I can be real and raw with you all, part of the reason I haven't blogged for so long is that these past few months have been an honest to goodness struggle for me (in the health and fitness department, that is). Once the cold weather hit, running outside just hasn't happened, and I began to lose my focus. Christmas brought with it A LOT of unhealthy eating, and it's sometimes difficult for me to remember that Christmas is over, and eating like that needs to stop:)

Please tell me I'm not the only one who struggles! It's times like this that I'm so thankful for a God of second chances (and third, and fourth, and infinity and beyond...). I'm reminded of 1 Corinthians 10:13 which says,

"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure."

As much as I wish all my struggles and temptations would just disappear, I have to be honest with myself enough to say I may always struggle with this. The good news is, God IS FAITHFUL to be there throughout the long road ahead, and He promises to make our journey's load light. Will you join me in this journey? Will you believe with me that God will help us endure the struggles?

Be blessed, and remember God finishes the work he starts!!!