Treats with Thought

Posted on June 21, 2011 by Katharina

Greetings Earthlings. I’ll be announcing the “Must Have Been Something I Ate” giveaway at the end. Now today’s post is one that I’ll get into without further ado!

Awhile ago I was given the opportunity to sample and review Smart Treat’s, well, treats! My mom and her mom’s side of the family have a history of digestive issues and such so alternative foods have peaked my interest since I can remember. I can only empathize with my mom when she can’t have pasta at an Italian restaurant because she knows what will happen to her digestive system afterwards. But I believe that whatever sensitivities you may have, you can still enjoy delicious tasting food! That’s where Smart Treat comes in. I usually keep an eye out for gluten-free foods to share with my mom, and when I stumbled upon Smart Treat’s site while on a search for ‘banana granola recipes’ I was intrigued. Their treats are wheat-free, dairy-free, and gluten-free with some vegan and nut-free options.

: Chip of Everything cookies

These cookies have chocolate chips, raisins, and nuts! They also had a nice texture–not too dry, or super chewy. My mom enjoyed these as well! There have been times in my life where I temporarily had to give up something (sadly, recently it is my new allergy to eggplant). However, I’d rather think about what you can have instead of what you can’t. So I imagine for someone like my mother, who has sensitivities to gluten, she wouldn’t have to think about missing out on classic cookies. In this case, classic cookies all rolled into one.

: Behold, the Peanut Brittle Chocolate Samich

This was basically a nutty brittle used as the “bread” and semi-sweet chocolate as the filling. What a genius idea!

: I took the rest of it to class and I couldn’t help but think everyone was jealous of the deliciousness I was eating.

This was a recipe that I think Bonnie probably conjured up in her kitchen because I didn’t see this item on their site. The only thing I’d say is that there could be a wee bit more chocolate, but this was still great! I can only dream of having another one of these delicious samiches until… hint, hint, nudge, nudge.

: Apricot Raspberry Krispie Bar

These were reminiscent of the Rice Krispies bars my friends would tote around, but with a fruity twist. The raspberry part tasted so interesting to me and seemed to be laced into every rice crisp. I took a look at the ingredient list to see what it was and raspberry fruit spread was on the list! My brain started imagining all of the things I could incorporate fruits spreads into. The apricot bits added a taste of tartness, and kept this from being an overly-sweet treat. Overly-sweet things make me cringe. I like the sweetness to be just so.

: Nutty Brittle Bar

FYI, the brittle “bread” in that sandwich earlier? That’s what this is! Sooo good! The texture was awesome, and it reminded me of those clusters that I love in granola. Yes, these could easily crumble, but still into big pieces so you can have a satisfying bite. You could taste the spices and subtle sweetness, along with crunchy sunflower seeds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and almonds.

: Apricot Date Granola

This granola was filled with chunks, and some really big ones that you could break apart and still have a solid nugget in your hand. Awesome! I let the granola and banana slices soak in almond milk for awhile to soften them.

: This breakfast was so good!

: Next up, the Onion and Caraway Seed bread

The savory one of the bunch, and delicious at that! I toasted it up and knew just what I wanted to try this with…

: Excellent for buttering up and dipping into a delicious tomato bisque.

I think this is a bread that you would want toasted, and I enjoyed it with simple spreads like butter and cream cheese. But really, the caraway and onion in the bread could stand alone.

: Lastly, I tried the Cranberry Walnut dinner rolls

: Mmm crusty on the outside, and soft and pillowy dough on the inside

: Cream cheese sounded like a good idea for these!

And it was. You get a lot of bites with dried cranberries and walnut bits, which I liked. I know that some people aren’t into nuts in cookies or bread. These led me to discovering that I just don’t like nuts in things that are already dense like brownies.

Verdict? If you have sensitives to any of wheat, dairy, gluten, or follow a vegan diet… or are just plain curious, then I’d give Smart Treat a try. Note: not everything is vegan or nut free but there are a lot of friendly options.

By the way you should check out their ‘About‘ page. Actually, when I read their page when I first came upon this company I was comforted. Intention and thought are very important things to me, so seeing that these are part of their philosophy was a wonderful reminder. A reminder that there are companies that do genuinely care about people, and that we have options beyond the companies that are so far removed from the concept of humanity that they lack integrity. These are principles beyond food. These are principles for life.

And now… I’m so excited to announce the winner of the “Must Have Been Something I Ate” book giveaway!

Florence from Squigglefloey! Congratulations, Florence! Just e-mail me your address, and your book awaits you! Now, if you aren’t Florence you can still check this book out. Ask to see if your local bookstore carries it, and if they don’t you can always request them to! There’s also the option of finding it online as well. By the way, I loved reading all of your answers to the food or things that make you feel good. It seems like many of you feel good when you eat something fresh! I think fresh is on many of our minds with the hot months coming. I’ve talked about my observations of people’s tendencies when it’s winter, spring, summer, or fall on my blog before. Isn’t it interesting to see how our personalities and comforts can change with the seasons?

So It May or May Not Seem

Posted on March 4, 2011 by Katharina

It was so interesting to read all of your takes on energy, and letting yourselves free! I’d love to hear about things maybe some of you have noticed when you opened that bottle. Kelsey brought up something else I’d like to share with you all, “March is a wonderful month to really incorporate the practice of using our own energy to positively impact our lives and the lives of those we come in contact with…since after all, March is a month of birth and change and growth!” Spring is just around the corner so we can come out, come out wherever you are!

: Tacos again!

I made Happy Herbivore’s Chickpea tacos topped with Trader Joe’s tomato-less salsa, romaine, cilantro, and scallions. I never thought of having chickpeas and tacos together. Crunch, crunch, munch!

: Pita stuffed to the brim.

I finally got around to making the falafel burgers that LB has featured several times. To go with the falafels I made tzatziki. This tasted like a falafel pita sandwich that you’d get at one of those lunch-carts that always have cheap and tasty food. Sometimes better than anything you’d get at a sit-down restaurant.

: A new find from the Indian market.

These easy to chew biscuits are perfect for big babies.

: Big babies like me!

: Goo goo gaga

These practically dissolved in mouth, and reminded me of those yummy Digestive biscuits.

: This other baby is saying “gimme gimme”.

: The blue moon must’ve been out because I made the rounds at Whole Food’s hot bar.

I got a tiny bit of the things that interested me. Paying by weight adds up easily! My two favorite things were the a sweet potato dish (can’t remember what it was called) and the beet and goat cheese salad. I roasted some Gardein chipotle lime crispy fingers. They generously sent me some vouchers to try out their new products. These were similar to their seven grain crispy tenders, but had a spicy and tangy flavor. In case you’re interested here’s a $1.00 off coupon you can print off.

: Also tried them in a deconstructed taco salad.

: This is what you’d be getting.

Protein from a garden!

: I also tried their mandarin orange crispy chick’n.

I served it over Chinese egg noodles and a side of cabbage crunch salad. I looked up the recipe for the salad after seeing it at the Whole Foods hot bar, and reading that I had all of the ingredients at home I decided to make it myself.

: The sauce had a yummy flavor, and you could probably fool someone into thinking this was chicken.

Or maybe that’s because I haven’t had chicken in almost a decade. I usually don’t buy faux-meat products, but I like Gardein’s concept behind what they make. However, I did feel uneasy eating the mandarin orange chick’n because it had the texture and tasted a lot like, well, chicken. That could be a good thing depending on who’s eating it. I guess that’s the point of faux-meat products though, right? I remember once I tried a faux-chicken product, and I had to read the ingredients list over and over again because it was so similar to chicken.

: Something else I thought had fooled me.

I got an orange, but when I saw pink…

: I thought “Oh no! It’s a grapefruit.”

Grapefruits have never been up my alley. Then I found out that this was indeed an orange. A pink navel orange! Silly me.

: My frown turned upside down, and I was off to the photoshoot!

: One of our beautiful models, and the designer’s in our group dress.

: Speaking of fashion, the other day I wore a shirt made out of two dish towels sewn together.

: I also went to the shoe repair man to pick up my boots!

I fell in love with this place the first time I stepped in. Transporting me back to another time, I couldn’t help but snap a photo. This shoe repair store has been around for 100 years, so I’m not surprised! The man always greets me with the happiest smile and sweetest charm, which is hard to come by these days.

Awhile ago I was contacted by Kookie Karma to try some of their raw and holistic products. When I looked at what they had to offer I became very excited and couldn’t wait to try them!

: I loved the packaging!

Like the idea behind the company: sweet and simple, the way life should be.

: I love how you can tell these cookies are handmade.

Inspires me to go and make some of my own! They strive to guarantee freshness and the best in their cookies so they actually make everything fresh each week. I don’t know why but something about using simple ingredients from this good earth always leaves me feeling happy. The feeling of being resourceful and partaking in the natural way of life makes me feel connected to my ancestors and everything around me. I get that especially with gardening. Do you guys get that feeling too?

Raw Cherry Cashew : The cashew flavor was prominent taste in this cookie, and the dried cherries added a nice burst of flavor and varied the texture as well. There was a certain satisfaction that I got from eating this cookie as well because of its denseness and chewiness. Not to mention, even with baked cookies ones with a chewy texture are always my favorite.

Raw Lemon Fig : I wasn’t a big fan of this flavor. It didn’t taste much like anything, but it still had that rich texture these cookies have. It mostly tasted like cashews, which isn’t odd since that is the first ingredient. But with the words lemon and fig I was expecting something tart and more reminiscent of these two foods.

Holistic Chocolate Chip : The holistic cookies are not raw, instead they are made using their very own “Holistic Dry Mix” (Almond Meal, Xylitol, Coconut*, Brown Rice*, Psyllium, Rice Protein, Sea Salt). The chocolate chips are non dairy, no soy, and no sugar. This tasted like a chocolate chip cookie, but with a hint of coconut. You all know how much I love coconut, so this just made it even better! I need a whole box of these cookies!

Holistic Choco Lot : I’d like a whole box of these as well! This was the first cookie I tried, and oh my gosh! Boy was it rich, decadent, and full of chocolate love. Imagine the richest brownie you could possibly have… that was this cookie.

: Wonderfully chewy and dense

I love how Kookie Karma has taken cookie recipes and redefined what they could be made out of. I imagine lots of experiments going on in their kitchen, and coming up with something new and delicious! All of these cookies are vegan, gluten-free, and high in protein. So if any of those things interest you, or the fact that you may love cookies is enough, then I suggest you check them out. They even have sampler packs you can purchase here. I’d also like to point out that they are truly gluten-free, since no gluten gets processed in their kitchen. Looking at all of the other flavors of their kookies, and other products like granolas and krackers I’d certainly pick them up if I saw them at the store. Not to mention I’m a sucker for packaging and these would catch my eye in an instant. I would definitely get the Holistic Chocolate Chip and Choco Lot kookies to have again. They tasted so good I can’t imagine only eating them once in my life.

Here’s a question for you. What fear would you most like to conquer?

Simplicity in Nature

Posted on February 6, 2011 by Katharina

I noticed that a lot of new people have been leaving comments, so I just wanted to say hello and thank you for stopping by! You know one of the things that I really enjoy about blogging? Is that we each get to read about all of the things we appreciate, and how beautiful it is to see how others views the world.

Don’t forget to vote for the RVA Internet Awards. I was actually nominated for the Best Blog category, so exciting! Check out some of the comment threads while you’re over there.

: What could this be?

Earlier this week I made Root Vegetable Shepherd’s Pie. When I first stumbled upon this recipe I marveled at all of the wonderful rustic ingredients, and how comforting this sounded. This is a vegetarian version, and the “crust” is made out of a sweet and russet potato mash. However, instead of using flour for the vegetable mix I used cornmeal. I thought it would give the recipe a more “down-home” taste.

: I love recipes with delicious hidden surprises!

Stuffed pastas, pies, dumplings, you name it.

: So flavorful that it had me scooping up every last bit.

: Breakfast… on-the-go

Awhile back I bookmarked some recipes from Martha Stewart’s quick and easy breakfast ideas. The banana-oat smoothie is basically like a bowl of oats, but in smoothie form. I also added almond butter and chia seeds to the mix.

: Sliced almonds for the final touch.

: My breakfast sometimes likes to smile back at me.

This was also another recipe I bookmarked from the quick and easy breakfast ideas: whole-grain ~~toast~~ bagel with yogurt and pistachios.

: My lovely roommate read my mind and gave me a jar of honey from the area where she’s from!

: While I was having this dainty breakfast, lavender honey crossed my mind.

Lavender honey on toast with pistachios would’ve been a breakfast fit for the Greek gods.

: Aren’t pistachios beautiful?

They have the same vibrant green of a perfect avocado, then some painter must’ve dabbed pinks on their skins.

: Delicate candies

: Pistachios were still on my mind.

: And so was lavender.

Awhile back I was browsing through recipes, wondering how I could use my package of coconut cream. I found a recipe for Vanilla Coconut Cream Cand y on Tropical Traditions‘ abundant recipe site. You can make it vegan by using agave or maple syrup instead of honey. Actually, when I make this again I want to use pecans and maple syrup. Perhaps, I’ll add a splash of bourbon as well. This recipe was quite simple. The only ingredients I used were coconut cream, pistachios, honey, vanilla extract, and lavender. I added the lavender as an aromatic and delightful touch. Now I have lavender and honey in one beautiful candy. Perhaps these could’ve been enjoyed by Aphrodite herself.

: Not as sophisticated as a Greek goddess, but something that can make anyone smile nonetheless–marshmallows!

I remember when I was younger I’d sleep over at a friend’s house and we had a wide selection of cereals to have at breakfast.

: These are Marshmallow Oaties!

I was recently sent Three Sisters Cereal, which some of you may have heard of, to try and review. Did you know that their cereal is made using renewable wind energy? That’s pretty awesome if you ask me! Their motto is: natural, sensible, and sustainable cereals. They don’t include unnecessary additives in their cereals to get colors or taste. There are some ingredients in some packaged foods that are questionable, and I know they don’t need to be on the ingredient list so I like how Three Sisters Cereal doesn’t do that. A company with a conscience… I like that. Anyway, their flavors remind me of cereals that any kid, or big kid for that matter, would love! Flavors like Honey Oaties, Cinnamon Sweets, and Graham Crackerz. I got to try the Marshmallow Oaties, Sweet Wheats, and Honey Oaties. These were all so tasty and I felt like a little kid again.

Honey Oaties: These reminded me so much of Honey Nut Cheerios, but had a more wholesome aftertaste . Honey covered O’s are a classic. Crunch, crunch, munch. In fact, I brought a jar of Honey Oaties with me to munch on as I went about town. Whose baby am I? My mom will answer that for us.

Marshmallow Oaties: I went after Lucky’s charms! “Hearts, Stars, and Horseshoes, Clovers, and Blue Moons, Pots of Gold, and Rainbows, and me Red Balloons.” Well, this wasn’t a bowl of Lucky Charms, but it brought me back to when I’d eat bowls filled with colorful marshmallows. It’s got these neat shapes, and those little marshmallows we all love.

Sweet Wheat: Letting them soak in a bowl of milk is what I like to do with shredded wheat cereals. The frosting for the Sweet Wheats wasn’t as thick and sugary as other similar cereals I’ve tried. I enjoyed this since too much sugar, especially in the morning, can give me a headache. If you like denser and grainier tasting cereals then this is a good bet.

“Donation of $1.00 for every cereal package sold in April will support emergency relief work by Minneapolis-based American Refugee Committee; Whole Foods Market to support with in-store effort.” to support relief efforts in Haiti.

: Would you like a chance to be a big kid too?

You can win a month-supply of Three Sister’s Cereal in the form of four freebie coupons! Please note that you can only find their cereals at Whole Foods Markets. Here’s what you can do to enter:

1. Visit the Three Sisters Cereal website and let me know the name of a product you’d like to try.

2. Link back to this giveaway on your next post, and please make sure to comment letting me know you did so.

The giveaway ends Friday February 11, 2011 at midnight EST.

The Bakery Down the Street

Posted on January 23, 2011 by Katharina

Hello beautiful people! I hope everyone has been enjoying their weekend, spending it however you please. My first week of my last semester went well! I don’t have time to be home for my meals so I’ve been making things that are easy and tasty for on-the-go. It makes not being able to eat in the comfort of my own place not seem like such a poopie idea. Atleast it tastes like I’m eating at home!

: Red lentils: one of my favorite legumes.

When my mom first made her special red lentil soup a few years ago, I was in love with this new discovery! There was awhile where the only thing I’d make was my mom’s red lentil soup, and to this day the recipe remains a secret. Sorry folks, but I’m really good at keeping secrets. Actually, that just means you can trust me! So I’m not really sorry hehe. Anyway, I enjoyed these red lentil burgers with Vegenaise, with tamarind date chutney, and whatever other condiments I thought would taste yummy.

: Beautiful wraps made out of collard greens are a great way to get your veggies in, and keep it mess free!

: My class was let out early so I was able to enjoy this at home.

I bookmarked this recipe for flax-encrusted sweet potato balls awhile ago from Caitlin’s blog. Mine came out rather mushy, but I ended up baking them twice, and that seemed to do the trick. I tried them with mustard and sour cream, as the recipe suggested. These were very easy to make, and I made a batch to last me a week (probably)! If you’re looking for a recipe that isn’t intimidating and tastes good then may I suggest this one?

Frozen pizzas come in handy during the semester as well.

I’m usually wary of frozen pizzas, since a lot of the times they just taste bad. However, I saw this frozen pizza at the Indian store for $1.99. So if it ended up tasting icky $1.99 was all I had to lose, well it was a risk I was willing to take.

This is Deep Indian Gourmet's spinach and paneer naan pizza, in case you were curious.

The crust and sauce were tasty, but it could've definitely used more paneer cheese.

It’s a unique taste on pizza though, and worth trying for the heck of it.

Before the semester started I went to a bachelorette party for the first time, and it was unforgettable!

The Maid of Honor aka the bartender!

Deceivingly calm...

After dirty presents were opened we went down to the bar, took our blow job shots, and started the night!

This occassion called for a special straw!

Here, you try.

Brightly colored drinks were popular that night, and this one tasted like a Thin Mint!

We made our mark at a few places, and eventually found ourselves back at the hotel's bar.

We graced them with dancing on bar tops--note the bartender joined us and let us plug our music in!

We stayed till the bar closed, and then some of us jumped into the pool with our "bathing suits" aka undies.

They are pretty much the same thing, after all. Ah yes, just thinking about that night makes me laugh. I always have so much fun when I’m with this group of ladies. We’ve been wreaking havoc ever since high school. Masters of pranks, being outrageous, and just having a good time–that’s us in a nutshell.

On a different note, I was given the pleasure of reviewing some products that have intrigued me for quite some time. I’ve always noticed Bakery on Main’s granola because it just looks so delicious, and it’s got a different texture than most. Then I found out that they have more than just granola! Most importantly, their motto is: food that’s good for you should taste good too. Amen to that–I’m looking at you shots of wheat grass (blech)! Honestly, I don’t care how “healthy” something may be, but if something tastes bad then forget it. Taste is the number one thing I consider–always. Anyway, shall I show you all the goodies?

: They make gluten-free granola!

First off, I love the texture of these granolas! Instead of using oats, they toast sweetened corn flakes and rice crisps. The crunch factor doesn’t stop there because there are so many delicious seeds to bite into!

Nutty Cranberry Maple Granola: Pecans, almonds, sweetened cranberries, raisins with maple sound like a great combination, right? Well it is! Sweet, but not overly so. That’s how I like it! What’s the point of having flavors anyway, if it’s just overpowered by the sugars?

Extreme Fruit & Nut Granola: Bakery on Main means what it says! I’m going to list off what’s in this granola because I just think it’s amazing that they have such a variety in one granola. Sunflower seeds, flax seeds, raisins, sesame seeds, coconut, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, cranberries, pecans, apricots, and brazil nuts. Granola makers take note, and chew on that.

Apple Raisin Walnut Granola: This was the most comforting flavor out of the bunch, and I loved it just as much. There was something so satisfying about biting into the walnut halves. Once again, the texture and flavor were so great!

If you have gluten sensitivities and thought you had to say bye bye to granola, well you should try these out! Even if you don’t have to worry about gluten, you should still give these a go. You won’t miss the traditional granolas made with oats because these are on another level. Sweetness, crunch, and flavor are all here. They’re available in snack pack sizes, or bigger sizes if you’d like.

: And they also make a high fiber granola if you feel like you may be lacking in that department.

Now these are made with oats but they are gluten-free. The founder, Michael Smulders, heard the complaints of many of his customers suffering from Celiac disease that the gluten-free options out there were less than stellar alternatives. This is great for people who are on a gluten-free diet because medical research shows that people on gluten-free diets tend to have less than the recommended amount of fiber. These granolas pack in 36% of the recommended daily value!

However, I didn’t like these granolas as much as the other kind. I think it was mostly the texture though, but I also think that these tasted very grainy. Perhaps some improvements could be made with that, and also making it crunchier some how. I really love the flavor choices though, and I don’t see berry granolas frequently.

: Such a refreshing breakfast.

: More please!

I usually eat granola with yogurt, but I wanted to have it with almond milk and it tasted so yummy that way too! While looking at Bakery on Main’s site I spotted a discussion board where people share their favorite ways to eat granola. Check it out here! Maybe you’ll find a new way you enjoy granola.

Now let’s move on to the bars, shall we?

: I love when bars have big chunks of nuts.

It just reminds me that not all bars look the same, and for some reason that sticks out to me.

Out of their gluten free granola snack bars I tried the Cranberry Maple Nut, Extreme Trail Mix, and Peanut Butter Chocolate. Once again, I’m loving the corn flakes, and the crispy grains. These were crunchy but chewy at the same time. I didn’t really enjoy the Peanut Butter Chocolate snack bar though. It sounded like it would be really tasty, but there was something off about it. I’m picky about peanut butter, so maybe the flavor of theirs just didn’t do it for me. The other two flavors though were treats to eat!

: They also make soft and chewy bars!

This was the Peanut Butter & Jelly flavor. I liked the taste, but I think it could use more jelly! I even spied some chia seeds! Next up I tried the Apple Cinnamon flavor. Wow! That was my reaction when I had the first bite. This bar was so good that I thought I was eating some sort of… pie? I’m not sure, but it seemed way more than a snack bar! The cinnamon was spot on, and the apple was too. Who doesn’t love that combination? Lastly, I tried the Chocolate Almond bar. There was something off with this bar too, but I had a hard time putting my finger on it. Maybe there weren’t enough almonds? I thought there was something with the chocolate chips too though. It was hard to pinpoint it.

: It just looks so wholesome doesn’t it?

: Clusters of chocolate chips? I like!

Anyway, if you see any Bakery on Main products in the store, I suggest you give them a try. As for their gluten-free granola, I can’t imagine anyone not liking it! Here’s some more information on their products as well. All of their ingredients are GMO free, natural, have unsulfured dried fruits, and are dairy and casein free. Moreover, if you sign up for their “Eat Better Live Better Club” you will automatically receive a coupon for $1.50. To think it all started in the small bakery of a natural foods market on Main Street in Glastonbury, Connecticut.

I hope you all enjoyed the review! I know that I enjoyed being the sampler, and sharing about this company and their products with all of you.

Oh Dear Sweet Tooth, Don't Steer Me Wrong

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Katharina

I’ve been meaning to post a review, but I didn’t want to write it up in a post that had too much going on. But first I have some exciting news to share! This past Sunday I went to a casting call for Richmond’s Fashion Week with a dear friend of mine. Well guess what? We both made it!

Glad we did it!

I’ve got to work on my walk though so I’m going to put my heels, my legs, and books (for balance) to use. Anyway, back to the review… here goes!

: Awhile ago, a wonderful little company kindly sent some samples over for me to try!

: Feed my body royally. Why yes, yes I will!

Hail Merry is a company that makes raw organic snacks. Raw food chef, Susan O’Brien came up with these recipes because she wants “… to bring awareness to the powerful benefits of healthy oils, which we must obtain from our diets.” She finds that the less heat the food goes through, the more nutrients are preserved. Interesting thought, don’t you think? Although I do know that in some foods certain enzymes are actually only available if the food is cooked, i.e. the lycopene in tomatoes.

: First up was the Grawnola.

I love when there are clusters in granola.

: And this one definitely had them!

Now the taste? First off, I take texture into great consideration, and the Grawnola had one that was very much to my liking. If you like to have crunch and chew, then this may be for you. The cinnamon flavor was spot on, and the natural flavors were able to shine through with just enough sweetness from the maple syrup and fruits. The packaging makes it great for an on-the-go snack as well, and since it’s so clustered you won’t make a mess. Not to mention, this is gluten-free so all of you out there with this sensitivity can still enjoy some delicious granola!

: A blonde and a chocolate… MACAROON!

I just love saying that word. Anyway, I knew I’d be in for a treat because I just had an inkling that these would be fantastic. Any raw vegan macaroons I’ve tried in the past have been nothing short of insanely delicious. These did not disappoint! In fact, they kicked it up another level. I was surprised at how fresh and moist these were. I couldn’t decide which one I liked better. The chocolate macaroons were rich and had a great balance of coconut and dark chocolate. The blonde macaroons simply melted in my mouth. These could cure any sweet tooth that’s for sure… until you find yourself wanting more!

You can check out more about Hail Merry over here, and make sure to check out their snacks!

: Speaking of sweet tooths…

: I baked some coffee cake muffins… that completely overflowed.

Too bad I didn’t have a muffin tin so I could have jumbo muffins like Kelsey’s. The coffee cake muffin recipe actually says that it makes 12 jumbo muffins, alas I didn’t have a jumbo muffin tin.

: They still managed to look lovely though.

: And rather delicious if I do say so myself.

They were moist and fluffy on the inside and crumbly on the outside. Sadly, things with granulated sugars have been giving me headaches and making me nauseous so I’ve been trying to keep these kinds of sweets to a minimum. I still recommend trying this recipe though! It’s such a perfect thing to start off your day.

: You don’t say?

: I rang in the new year with one of my best friends!

: And some other special people!

: People who like to take silly pictures.

: New year, new oatmeal in town!

These oats are thicker, and actually cheaper than the usual Quaker’s old-fashioned oats I buy. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve been let down by any Bob’s Red Mill products, and they’re very fairly priced as well.

: I was eager to recreate a recipe for a tasty granola I had seen at the store.

I made a nice big batch of Banana-Coconut granola–two of my favorite things in one bite!

: Glorious cluster!

: This is probably the best batch of granola I’ve made, definitely not burnt to a crisp!

: My spilt milk bowl making another appearance, and one of my favorite ways to eat granola…

Here with Greek yogurt + chia seeds, a sliced banana, and Artisana’s Cacao Bliss.

: I finally decided to use something I’ve had in the pantry for quite some time.

Over the summer I bought some of Justin’s Nut Butter squeeze packets since they’d be perfect for on-the-go. Well, I finally used them and I wasn’t on-the-go. Nope, I was very much sitting on a chair, enjoying my bagel spread with Justin’s cinnamon peanut butter, banana slices, and some banana-coconut granola to boot! And I just found out that they don’t sell this kind anymore! Darnit, because I really liked it. Oh well, I guess it wasn’t popular with most folks though.

: Well these won’t be discontinued, that’s for sure!

Awhile ago I had bookmarked Averie’s Raw Vegan Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes recipe. So I finally made a batch, and rolled them in shredded coconut as she suggested. These were a tasty change to the usual raw vegan treats that have dates (although I’m not complaining)! But like Averie said “I need variety in my dessert life, I tell ya!”

: My first time making waffles and I was excited!

My winter intersession course was finally over, and I finally had time to make a special breakfast. So what kind of waffles did I decide to make?

: Well, I attempted to make vegan spiced pumpkin waffles.

I’m not sure what happened, but atleast it was salvageable!

: Enough to turn my frown upside down.

: No, definitely not a failed attempt.

I topped these waffles with vanilla Greek yogurt, Canadian maple syrup (aka the dark infinite abyss), almonds, and a pear, apple, and cranberry compote. Lastly, I dusted it with nutmeg confectioner’s sugar.

: Ah yes, taking time for breakfast.

: While I’m at it, I’ll share my burnt banana pancakes too!

I used Katie’s banana pancakes for one recipe. Although they came out rather burned, I still enjoyed them!

: Next time I think I’ll stack them for their photo-op.

: Keep the special breakfasts coming!

: Here’s the compote again: made with apple juice, lemon peel and juice, whole and ground spices (cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and nutmeg) , honeycrisp apples, Asian pears, and dried cranberries.

: What are these little jewels?

When I started reading blogs again I knew that I’d be bookmarking recipes galore. Well, one of those recipes happened to be Jess’s Orange Date Cookies. Unfortunately, I don’t the date syrup she used for this recipe so I had to sub in honey. It’s amazing how all of the flavors stood out and complemented each other just the same. The texture was also very much to my liking! Chewy with enough bite, and not crumbly. Nothing was overly so, just the right balance. Not to mention, these little treats did not give me a headache!

: I especially love how you can see the dried fruits!

: I recently got a nice little planner to help me complete my to-do lists, and better organize my schedule.

: Here are some clues as to what I made in the next post!

Having a physical planner in my hand is a lot more effective than the one on my laptop. There’s something about my to-do list written in ink staring back at me that just motivates me to just get things done. So one by one I cross off the list. Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful week ahead! Classes start today for me, and I am heading into an intense semester. It’ll be my final semester: 18 credits of hands-on studio! Wish me luck.

p.s. today is the last day to enter my giveaway!

Flavors with a Twist

Posted on November 6, 2009 by Katharina

Overflowing oatmeal

I loosely followed Katie Goodman’s recipe for Cherry and Tangerine Oatmeal. This bowl was all sorts of delicious. I even gnawed on the cinnamon stick a bit.

All done!

I left part of the tangerine peel for added flavor.

I’m feeling better and thank you all for your well wishes! Your wishes made their way over to me and I started to get in the cooking mood again. There are some recipes I’ve been dying to try out from my newest cookbook purchase, The Accidental Vegetarian.

Sweet Potato & Pineapple Sandwich

The recipe can actually be found online over here. I used a Japanese sweet potato, added some black beans, and a ready made Sweet Peppers & Coconut cooking sauce.

Last night I felt like baking! I found an interesting recipe online that used applesauce, but I realized afterwards that I didn’t have any on hand. So what’d I do? I made a quick homemade version. I veganized the recipe by using egg-replacer. When I bought the hemp protein powder my dad suggested I use it in baking. I took his advice and subbed out some of the flour for the powder. I was a little weary of doing this because Mitri had noted that it makes things taste very “green”. Actually, looking back on it, this recipe was tweaked around a lot. I finally got around to using the NuNaturals Stevia Baking Blend that was generously sent to me, and I must say that it works very well! Before it was sent to bake in the oven I crumbled on some brown sugar.

Vegan Zucchini Loaf

Enjoyed for breakfast this morning.

I spread coconut oil on one slice, and Artisana Cacao Bliss on the other.

And now it’s time for the anticipated Boomi Bar review!

Almond Protein Plus

This bar was dry but not brittle with just the right amount of sweetness. It had an interesting texture – hand rolled. I love that there are only 3-ingredients, the first one being almonds, and it has a whopping 12 g of protein; it really affects the taste of the bar (in a good way).

Cashew protein plus: Strangely greasy to touch, not sure why, but it made it less dry and a bit chewier. I love the combination of cashew and honey. If cashews are your thing, you will love this. *11 g of protein

Apricot Cashew: The dried apricot shines through in this bar.

Cranberry Apple: This bar reminded me of the great flavors that come out in fall cooking. Once again, sweet but not overpowering.

Fruit and Nuts: Not me favorite, but for a fruit and nut bar I must say it was quite tasty. So if you like that combination – go for it!

Walnut Pecan: Holy yum! This has fall goodness and comfort all over it! Reminded me of a pie.

Cashew Almond: Love the combination of these nuts with dates! Not too sticky, just the right amount of crunch. Doesn’t fall apart everywhere either.

Healthy Hazel: Hazelnuts are a nut I don’t get to eat very often, but I love it each time. The dried cranberries really stood out to me and in combination with the hazelnuts… this was yummy!

Walnut Date: Wow! I love the taste of walnuts. It definitely stands out in this bar… and mixed with dates – delicious. I love the sweetness the dates offer. Perfect for a fall day.

Perfect Pumpkin

The first bite was incredible!!! Pumpkin seeds galore, the combination of dried fruits made it chewy. They used dates, raisins, apricot, and cranberries. I definitely recommend this bar simply for the taste. But there are many nutritious benefits to this bar as well. I think they should make more bars like this that are also high in protein (9 g).

Macadamia Paradise: The bar itself looked interesting, but the array of flavors when I bit into it were awesome. So far these bars are delicious, and since they’re hand-rolled you can see all the ingredients and they don’t look like some machine just pooped them out.

Pineapple Ginger: Initial thought? Holy crap! I think it’s official, these bars give Larabars a run for their money. Yes, I said it! Greed will get the best of me with this bar because I am not sharing it! It’s not too sweet and the combination of pineapple and ginger is genius. I love biting into almonds and these are so soft and chewy. Thank goodness because that means when I have dentures, I can still eat these!

Moreover, to celebrate their new website, Divine Foods is, for a limited time only, offering a $5.00 savings off any online order when you use discount code WEBSITE before you checkout.

Before I wish you all a happy Friday and the beginning of a wonderful weekend, please take a moment to check out Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness. Katie is hosting a Page View Charity Drive hoping to help those in need. If you could visit the page and spread the word, that would be incredible!

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” – Dr. Seuss

Snack Health Bars that Won’t Leave You Hungry

Posted on October 11, 2009 by Katharina

I hope you all have been enjoying your weekend so far! I know that I have, but I’ll be giving you a re-cap on another post. Let’s just say… love is in the air!!! I also did a little special somethin’ somethin’ at the very end of this post!

: The people over at gnu foods sent me a generous sampler package.

Each Gnu foods bar boasts providing almost 50% of a person’s daily value of fiber. How do they do this without making something taste like straight up bark? As the wrapping says, “flavor & fiber together at last.”

High Fiber

Only 130 – 140 Calories (varies by flavor)

Fruit Juice Sweetened

Made with Organic Whole Wheat Flour

Made with Aluminum-Free Baking Powder

Loaded with both Soluble and Insoluble Fiber

Vegan

Kosher – OU-D

: You could smell the flavors of the bars when you opened the wrapper.

This particular one, Espresso Chip, smelled delicious to me. I love the smell of coffee brewing in the morning! Since I’m not really a coffee drinker, that smell is a luxury to me. I felt that the bars were very straightforward. They tasted like the flavors of each bar. There are no gimmicks; what you see, is what you get. However, there is the exception of the Peanut Butter Bar. That one was lacking in flavor. I was very disappointed because I love the taste of peanut butter, and that I felt that was completely missing. The Lemon Ginger Bar definitely tasted like lemon and ginger, however I thought it was too overpowering. My favorite bar was the Cinnamon Raisin Bar. I felt like I was eating a chewy cinnamon raisin cookie, only this one contained a lot of fiber! That’s another plus side to these. They’re moist but not sticky.

: Check it out!

The available flavors are: banana walnut, cinnamon raison, orange cranberry, chocolate brownie, peanut butter, espresso chip, and lemon ginger.

The people over at Pure Bar also sent a sample box of their bars. I was very excited to try these out since I had seen them floating about the blogosphere.

: Wild Blueberry

This bar wasn’t bad, I just didn’t feel too crazy about it. But I did appreciate the bits of nuts I would bite into. All of the bars have the traces of the various fruits and nuts.

: Ohh look at that smirk.

This was the Chocolate Brownie flavor. The combination of cocoa and dates was very much appreciated by these tastebuds!

: Apple Cinnamon

Holy moly I thought this one tasted like apple pie! Very yummy. I also loved the Cherry Cashew and Cranberry Orange flavors. I would definitely buy those flavors again, but the Apple Cinnamon is at the top of my list. The one flavor I didn’t like was the Choco Trail Mix. I thought it tasted neither like chocolate nor trail mix. I just didn’t get it. Moreover, I’m impressed that these are all raw! And for all of you that must follow a gluten-free diet, these contain no gluten – making them safe! Overall, I’m impressed with how much substance these bars have. Personally, if I reach for a bar I go for a dense one – and these definitely fit the bill.

You can also print out a coupon on their website and they’re also available at Trader Joe’s!

[gigya width="440" height="420" src="http://v4.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=2im1i8j&s=4" quality="high" flashvars="gig_lt=1255221908093&gig_pt=1255222095213&gig_g=1&gig_n=wordpress" wmode="tranparent" ]
Original Video – More videos at TinyPic

I think it’d be fun to a do a FAQ post where I would answer your questions via video. So if you have any, just leave them in a comment! Enjoy the rest of your weekend party people.

Off to a Good Start

Posted on September 13, 2009 by Katharina

I’ll start this post off the same way I start my day – with breakfast!

: I baked some lemon poppyseed mini-muffins.

I tried some samples of the Artisana nut butters. I’m going to make a bold statement right now, but I’m just gonna go right ahead and put it out there. I haven’t tried all of the samples, but I feel that I can officially say that these nut butters are the bomb! If you’re a nut butter person, you will love these no questions asked. The nuts are all ground to perfection and have such a great consistency. I can actually taste each nuts’ unique flavor! I’m using the word “nuts” too much! So let’s move on, shall we?

: A delicious bowl of Zoe’s Honey Almond granola with extra almonds, coconut shreds, and mango over yogurt.

Next up is a recipe I got from a website called Culinary Competitor: Vegetarian Black Bean Chili with Bulgur.

: The chili with a dollop of sour cream and cilantro, and a side of buttered peas and…

I also got to try something new! A Vitalicious Golden Corn VitaTop. I’ve always wanted to try this flavor because I love cornbread and these VitaTops just look so dainty! This was really good, and went perfectly with my meal. Oh gosh, almost forgot to review the recipe for you guys. TRY IT! I loved the addition of bulgur, which made it heartier. Eat it with some cornbread, or if you’ve got one of these yummy Tops on hand. I’m getting bossy! But for real guys…

Since we’re on the topic of VitaTops, I’ve been able to try a couple more flavors out.

: Double Chocolate Dream – those are white chocolate chips.

Doing it up photo collage style like Angharad! I admit that I was hestitant to try these because I read the words “double chocolate dream.” And for the most part, I’m not a big fan of double chocolate anything. However, I do love white chocolate and I think the addition of those chips really made it awesome. Not to mention this was warm, pillowy, moist, and gooey!

: About to enjoy bite number two… after I put the camera down!

: I decided to try another uber-chocolate flavor…

Deep Chocolate! I didn’t like this one as much as the one with white chocolate chips. But I did enjoy the melted chocolate! For some reason I look yellow in that picture (flash?). I’ve also tried the brownie, and I was happy that they were bigger than the VitaTops. The only complaint so far that I have about the VitaTops is that they’re just a few bites of goodness. I guess that’s the trade off? For myself, I enjoy these as part of a yummy snack, or an extra to my meal. If I were having these as part of a breakfast I would definitely have to have two. I’m not a calorie counter, but I do know that my breakfast carbs have to be over 100 calories… unless I want to be hungry again in an hour. I actually have a question regarding morning hunger, that I’ll get to on another post. Anywho, I’d imagine that these are wonderful for dieters because you don’t have to “splurge” to have a flavorful treat (they don’t skimp on flavor). You can have your cake, and eat it too! (Any cake really, whatever your little tastebuds desire!)

Let’s see… what else have I been eating lately? Oh! The other day I marinated some tempeh to make a “BLT”. If any of you guys have any awesome tempeh recipes, please, send them on over!

: This meal just looks funky!

: Close-up

I just followed this recipe for the tempeh marinade.

: This one I decided to glaze with maple syrup.

First Friday was awhile ago over here in my corner of the world. First Friday is when the galleries around here show off the new works they have up, and tons of people walk around and take it all in. Sometimes you see some real characters – the area’s eccentrics. Love it! Anyway, as you all know Matilda is practically attached to my hip so of course she went to this event with me! No one at any of the galleries has ever objected. I think it’s because she’s so freaking cute. But here are some pictures after the art and a show.

: My friend calls her “little bean”… “get back in your can.”

: I spy a 40!

Another furry friend!

Matilda would be so jealous if she saw this picture up. I think Sophia looks funny with her bat wings and squinty eyes. This was the night my entire zipcode experienced a blackout, so I went to my friend’s house. When the power came back we watched this murder mystery called Brick. This movie was so classical in the way it was shot… don’t really see mystery films made this way anymore.

Back to some more eats! The other day I was at the bookstore browsing through magazines that I didn’t want to pay for. I had my handy dandy Moleskin and copied down an interesting recipe I saw in a Vegetarian Times issue: ginger-miso yam wraps. This was my first time trying collard greens, and I tried them RAW!

: Look how pretty!

This was so nice to look at and prepare. Collard greens remind me of the Cabbage Patch Kids. I made a slight change to the recipe, and poured in some coconut milk.

: Filled with so much goodness.

: with a side of carrots sautéed in coconut oil and later toasted some coconut shreds and cinnamon.

: Some more mock tuna goodness.

I decided to add some variety to my eats by getting a bag of tortilla chips. Yay! I wish I had a cheese grater so I could make nachos. Well, I kind of made some the other day by cutting squares to put on each chip haha. But I prefer a messy, melted, gooey explosiong when it comes to nachos.

Then I added some goat cheese after I started eating...

I happened to be reading Janetha’s blog while I was eating this, and saw that she made a tuna melt sandwich with goat cheese. Awesome idea, girl!

An apple, cheddar, "bacon", and roasted onion sandwich.

An apple, cheddar, "bacon", and onion sandwich.

I also spread some pumpkin butter on this great bread. This spelt bread tastes really good – perfect for sandwiches. On the side I sautéed some yellow squash in coconut oil and toasted some coconut shreds. To melt the cheese I put my sandwich in the toaster oven since I don’t have a griller. The crispness from the apple and onions, the crunch from the bread, and the smoky “bacon” with cheddar were awesome all together!

A chocolate banana pop.

Oops! It looks like I didn’t really clean the mold that well… there’s some OJ at the tip. For these pops I just added some chocolate sprinkles to the warm, melted banana + coconut milk/shreds mush. Naturally, the sprinkles melted and spread their love throughout. I love the creaminess of these pops, and the texture the coconut shreds add to them as well.

A cup of hot cocoa made with coconut milk and some cinnamon.

Do you love the foam? I use the chocolate tablets that you have to put in the blender with boiling milk. Nothing beats my grandma’s hot chocolate though. She does it the old-fashioned way by boiling the milk on the stove. Then she pours it into her old tin pitcher and gets to crackin’ with her over-sized pestle to crush the chocolate. Then she whirls it around to make it foamy. My grandma has such strong arms: hot cocoa to strength train = lots of great hugs for the granddaughter.

So now the moment you’ve all been waiting for! It’s time to announce the winner of the U.S. Mills giveaway. First off, I loved reading everyone’s ideas – most of you enjoy it with yogurt and fruits. If you haven’t tried it yet, I suggest you make peanut butter balls by just coating a blob of peanut butter in cereal. Example, if you guys have a cereal that tastes corny you can also add in some coconut shreds to the peanut butter blobs. Anyway, I’m like an annoying commercial right now when all you want is to get back to the show! Okay, okay, and the winner is…

Aileen!

Congrats girl! I’m going to send you an e-mail to notify you. Thank you all for participating. I hope you all enjoyed it, and maybe some of you with a gluten intolerance now know there are cereals for everybody! Moreover, I was able to stumble on to some blogs I haven’t read before – maybe I should have more giveaways?

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and don’t forget to give yourself some TLC.

Katharina's Food Adventures

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