I should rename this blog "Finding My Ass Again!" because I have been lapsing for some time now when it comes to exercise and eating well and the evidence of my lackadaisical behavior is creeping up on me. So once again, the push is on to get myself motivated to get moving and eat a healthier diet...day three in and feeling better already.

I had a bunch of homemade pesto floating around in the freezer for ages that I wanted to use up so I threw this together in a hurry for supper tonight and I was amazed at how wonderful it taste...and it so quick and easy to make. The pesto I have remaining in the freezer won't be there for long because I will be making these again soon.

Pesto Beef Wraps

  

2 Flat breads ( I used Flax flat bread)
1/2 c. pesto
Cooked ground beef ( I used some left over Taco seasoned beef)
Grated cheddar cheese
Hot pepper flakes (or whatever seasoning you like)

Just spread some pesto over the wraps, sprinkle on ground beef, cheese and pepper flakes and roll. Heat in microwave one to two minutes.

Eat and enjoy!

New To The Garden

...My new garden inductees,

curry and snow peas...

What to do with them?

...Poached Salmon

in the slow cooker.

 It couldn't be any easier...and so good! 

   Just melt some butter in the slow cooker
...use the real stuff and don't be stingy...use a good 1/4 cup or more,
 along with a chopped green onion and herbs. I used of course... chopped curry.
Dip the salmon in the butter to coat both sides.

Top with snow peas, cover and cook on high for about one hour

 (time may vary depending on slow cooker)

Pair it with a fresh garden salad.

(I've been really enjoying Kraft's Olive Oil and Pesto dressing)

For extra favour, 

don't forget to spoon some of the melted butter/salmon juices on top.

OOPS!

How does that song go...

"Oops! I Did It Again!"

Never though I'd ever admit I had anything in common with Britney Spears 

but, like her, 

I keep repeating the same mistakes.

I made it to day 13 on the Skinny Plate Challenge
before falling off the wagon big time
...again.

Source: leilockheart.tumblr.com via Marisa on Pinterest

After a two week lapse of uncontrollable eating...chips,pies 

and loads of ice cream
...plus throw a couple of birthday cakes into the mix
... I realized all that yummy fun eating just couldn't go on.
...so
...back to the drawing board.

Greens anyone?
The garden provideth...lots of mixed lettuces, swiss chard,
 green onions and herbs.
...too bad we couldn't grow avocado around here...

...and something to satisfy
the sweet tooth,

Sugar Free Coconut Raisin Cookies,

...although I didn't bake them yet.

 I froze them on a cookie sheet, bagged and labeled them 

and threw them into the freezer to bake later when it's not

 hot as hell in the kitchen.

And made a big batch of Hummus.

I love Hummus, but I always end up with way more
than we can eat, so this time

I filled three small containers for the freezer.
 I've never tried freezing Hummus before so I'm not sure
 how it will effect the texture.

SUGAR FREE COCONUT RAISIN COOKIES
    1/2 c. butter 
    1 egg

2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking powder
Dash salt
1 c. flour
8 pkg. Equal (or other sweetener)
1 c. raisins
1 c. shredded coconut
1/2 c. chopped nuts

Cream butter, egg, and vanilla until mixed and fluffy. Beat in dry ingredients gradually, mixing well after each addition. Mix in raisins, coconut and 1/2 cup nuts. Form dough into small balls and place on a cookie sheet, flatten slightly with a fork and  bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees 7-10 minutes until light golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

or

Form dough into small balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper, flatten slightly with a fork. Place cookie sheet in freezer until dough is frozen. Remove cookies from freezer, bag and label with baking instructions above to enjoy later when you have a craving for freshly baked cookies.

HUMMUS

In food processor blend the following ingredients

1 carrot

2 cloves garlic

2 T. Tahini 

***(or use 2T of any nut meal...I used walnut

...I never but Tahini as it always goes bad before I use it up)

1 green onion

19 ounce can of chick peas drained and rinsed

add

2 T. lemon juice

1/4 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. paprika

1/2 c. green olives

1/2 c. brine from the jar of green olives

About 5 T. olive oil or enough to get the texture you like.

I saw for the first time

 a pair of Red-Winged Blackbirds 

while walking around Miner's Marsh on Friday. 

Were it not for the striking red colors on their wings,

 I would have missed them

...so glad I didn't.

Hope you enjoy this song 

by David Francey 

... Red-Winged Blackbird.

Skinny Plate Challenge

Day 13 of 

The Skinny Plate Challenge.

Avocado with salsa, Havarti cheese,

carrots, Sweet Potato crackers,

cucumbers 

and Smoked Mussels.

Skinny Plate Challenge

Day 12 of the 

Skinny Plate Challenge! 

Toss Salad with avocado,

 along with asparagus and pork 

braised in 

balsamic vinegar.

Sunday Morning Coming Down

Not everyone was bright eyed and bushy tailed 

on an early Sunday morning! 

I enjoyed all the Dame's Rocket

growing along the 

road way.
I had mistakenly identified these flowers as Wild Phlox until I was corrected
 by my daughter Grace
who has a keen interest in all things wild,
plant and animal.

...would love to dig some up to take home to

 get established in front of my house.

I do have Lupins...

but these look especially beautiful with the 

old barn in the background.

...a bank of Lupins, Poppies and Irises 

...with and good mix of weeds and grasses.

One of the things I like best about this time of the year are the endless fields coming to life.

The cloudy day really brings out the intense green of the fields and hills and the fog hanging over the North Mountain makes it look mystical.

Normally the fields around here are planted with just one crop, soy beans, corn or potatoes like the field above, so I was surprised to find this one planted with a good mix of vegetables...an assortment of lettuces, broccoli, Kale, beets, cabbages and potatoes.

It makes my little veggie patch

 look kind of puny 

...doesn't it?

Where's The Greens?

Where's the greens???

...not here,

the only thing lurking in the veggie bin

 is a lone garlic bulb. 

...which left me going for orange

 for my "Skinny Plate" supper tonight.

Seasoned baked chicken, 

sweet potatoes 

and carrots with chives.

Wish I could say the buttered  popcorn I snacked on this afternoon 

was a "Skinny Bowl" size

... but that's all under the belt now.

Shinny Plate Challenge - Wednesday

After a day like today,
wine would have gone down nicely
with my "Skinny Plate" supper
...but I settled for 
"water in a wine glass."

1/2 a pita bread topped with salsa, 

sauteed mushrooms and peppers,

 tomato and Havarti cheese with a side of 

1/2 cup brown/wild rice.

Going For The Greens

Well, here I am again, after a three month hiatus from blogging, and a long period of ups and downs as far as my diet and exercise routine goes...definitely more ups when it comes to portion size, pant size and the numbers on my scale. In yet another attempt to get back on track I've signed on for the one month Skinny Plate Challenge to get my food intake back under control and at the same time add more greens to my diet. If you would like to join the Skinny Plate Challenge you can check it out here.

My first "skinny plate" meal,

1/2 salmon steak, quinoa,and some greens

...a spinach salad,

...adding a couple of handfuls of spinach to

 green up my breakfast smoothie,

...and waiting patiently for

 my garden to grow!

...two weeks in

...it won't be long.

A Meshing of Orange and Blue

Sunday, I had blueberries on my mind.

 Up early on a very mild morning for the middle of March, 

I headed out for a 6K walk and was back home and at work in the kitchen

before the hubby crawled out of bed.

I found this recipe for Rice Pudding in the newspaper the day before 

and immediately knew I had to try it. 

I'm not a big fan of rice pudding but the hubby loves it 

and this one is so good even I can be converted. 

What I like about this recipe is that it is sweetened with maple syrup instead of sugar, 

though I would recommend that it be added at the end 

as it seemed to loose some of its flavor during the cooking process.

 Orange Rice Pudding
1/2 c. arborio rice
3 c. 2% milk
3 T. pure maple syrup
1/4 c. dried cranberries, cherries or blueberries (or a mix...I used cranberries)
Grated zest of one orange
Ground cinnamon
In a large sauce pan bring milk and rice to a simmer over medium heat, stirring often. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes. Stir in berries and orange zest, cover and simmer for another 5 to10 minutes until rice is soft and pudding is thickened. Stir in the maple syrup. The pudding will thicken considerably more as it cools. Serve hot, warm or cold, stirring in a little extra milk to thin it.

 These muffins are one of our favorites. 

They have a beautiful orange flavor, are easy to make and are loaded with fiber.

Plus, you don't have to peel the oranges or grate them to make orange zest
...just wash them, cut into quarters and throw them into the blender peel and all,
 along with milk, eggs, sugar, baking soda and oil and press start.
I play around with my flours, but you can use pretty much any kind you want.

 Orange Bran Flax Muffins
 (Whole oranges give these muffins a wonderful flavour)
1 ½ cups (375 ml) oat bran  (I used wheat bran) 
1 cup (250 ml) all-purpose flour   
1 cup (250 ml) ground flax seed   
1 cup (250 ml) natural bran   (I used a cup of All Bran cereal) 
1 tbsp (15 ml)  baking powder   
 ½ tsp (2 ml)  salt   
2   whole oranges  (peeled, quartered, seeded)
1 cup (250 ml)  brown sugar   
1 cup (250 ml) buttermilk (I used regular milk)
½ cup (125 ml ) canola oil    
2     eggs    
1 tsp (5 ml) baking soda   
1 ½ cups (375 ml)  raisins - optional

In a large bowl, combine oat bran, flour, flax seed, bran, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a blender or food processor, combine oranges, brown sugar, buttermilk, oil, eggs and baking soda. Blend well.
Pour orange mixture into dry ingredients. Mix until well blended. Stir in raisins.
Fill paper lined muffin tins almost to the top.
Bake in 190 C (375° F) oven for 18 to 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean.
Cool in tins 5 minutes before removing to cooling rack.

Here is a recipe for the "best jam ever"

...great on toast, biscuits, or English muffins.

It's delicious!

 

...and I had time to prune by blueberry bushes, all two of them. 

They usually provide us with enough fresh berries to enjoy

...for the freezer I pick from my daughters bushes.

 I did a hard pruning so the four new bushes I planted

 next to them

 would not be over shaded

...so there may not be many this summer.

Happy Walking,

Marisa

Man...It's Cold Out There

The thermometer read minus 15 

but that didn't factor in 

the wind chill factor

this morning.

After all the freezing rain followed by snow we got Saturday night, 

our road is pretty slick with ice which meant taking extra

precautions before heading out for my walk this morning.

Up until now we've had a easy winter,
so this morning was the first time I had to try out my new

ice and snow traction aids which were given to me by a friend for Christmas.

They worked great...no slips or falls with my
"DueNorth" traction aids on.

As my father used to say...

"It's cold enough to freeze the nuts off a monkey wrench!"

Actually,

he had a lot more colorful things to say about the cold, 

but none fit to publish here.

But you get the picture...it was pretty damn cold

...not too bad going

but coming back with the wind in my face was painful

and I managed only a 15 minute walk.

Happy walking,
Marisa

Part Of The Fun Is In The Falling!

If you can't laugh at yourself,

you might as well

give up.

First trip down...no problem,

second trip

...not so good.

We spent an hour and a half outdoors

enjoying the skiing 

...and the

falling.

Happy walking,
Marisa

Cleaning Up My Act

I've been doing pretty good for the past week

...leaving the junk food alone

and enjoying more

fruits 

and 

vegetables.

Fresh fruit drizzled 
with
a teaspoon of honey.

Happy walking,
Marisa

Carrot and Asparagus Soup

After spending an enjoyable afternoon at Centre Stage Theater the hubby suggested we stop at one of the fast food restaurants for a quick supper and his fix of burgers and fries. I like my fries as much as the next guy ...and the thought of having no dishes to wash made this idea very tempting, however I was able to resist and we went home for much healthier fare. I threw this soup together using ingredients I had in the fridge and we both found it delicious. I just used what I had on hand, so feel free to add what ever you want.

 Carrot and Asparagus Soup

with toasted Ancient Grains bread.

Carrot and Asparagus Soup
4 - 6 c. chicken stock
6 medium carrots (chop 5 and set the 6th aside)
cooked chicken, cubed (you can leave this out if you want)
1 small onion finely chopped
asparagus, chopped (I used 5 or 6 spears but add as much as you like)
Spices (use your favorite spices - I used a spice mix, cumin/chili/garlic...)
Pepper

Bring chicken stock and chopped carrots to a boil and then simmer until tender. Use an immersion blender to puree the carrots to make a carrot/chicken stock. Add chopped onions and chicken. Using a vegetable peeler and the last carrot, scrape  carrot curls into the stock. Add spices and simmer 10 minutes. Add the
asparagus and simmer another 10 minutes. 

Happy Walking,
Marisa

Things I Learned Today

Look Mommy...I can skate!

...well somewhat

...at least I was able to keep my skates 

on 20 minutes today,

and while I had several near falls

 ...no contact was made.

Skates still hurt like hell!

Skating is more enjoyable

when there are

no spectators.

Skating,

like sex, 

is more fun with two!

Happy walking,
Marisa

It's A Start!

The hubby was away, 

but that didn't stop me from heading back to the pond after work 

to try out my skates. We had cleared the snow off the ice twice,

but had yet to actually skate on it.

There was evidence that someone

had been enjoying the 

fruits of our labor.

Glad to see the boys have been playing hockey,

although the ice must have been a little soft

as it was quite cut up.

...one on.

...two on.

Up I go.

After over 15 years of not being on the ice,

it took me all but five minutes

to find out...

  

I can't skate

...I seem to have forgotten that!

Skates make my feet hurt like hell.

It's not that much fun skating alone.

I slipped my boots back on 

and gave the ice 

another scrape...

and 

headed home 

as

it was getting dark

...but I'm going back tomorrow.

Maybe

I'll keep

my skates on

ten

minutes.

Happy walking,
Marisa

Snow Walk

Snow

...something we haven't had much of this winter

...transforms the woods into a 

wonderland.

Even abandoned farm equipment is

beautiful with a

dusting 

of snow.

...cloaking

seed heads

...even the shoveling is magical

...when it's someone else 

doing the shoveling.

Happy walking,
Marisa