Chocolate Banana (N)Ice Cream

Since I've jumped on the eat clean food wagon a few months ago, I've learned two things:

1. I have a lot less will power than I thought. I kept Whole30 for a week and then broke it for a glass of wine. (No regrets. It was worth it.)
2. I want to change my approach to food + cooking, as a whole. Sugar and processed foods as a treat, not a cornerstone of my daily diet. 

Truly the greatest shift of the last few weeks hasn't been whether or not I can stick to a diet but rather the attention I pay to the kind of food I eat. I knew that most of what we were cooking and eating had additives and so much sugar, but since I've made it a practice to notice, the amount is frightening. Switching to primarily whole foods has not just been healthier, it's been more flavorful. I've been so pleasantly surprised by how fun cooking has been! (I originally wrote "easy and fun" but that's a lie. This is not easy, ordering pizza and Indian is easy.) Cutting out processed foods and substitutes has made me experiment and look up more new recipes than I have in months. Oh, and my jeans fit better.

frozen muscadine grapes in place of candy or chips as a snack.

whole ingredient dinner.

Unfortunately, it's not all roses and saturated fat free brownies over here. There's one thing that I've tried to go without the last few weeks that has been difficult to forego. Ice cream is my downfall. One problem, I don't handle dairy very well so ice cream has been relegated to the "once in a while with an acid reducer pill" category. There's also that whole fitting into jeans thing, remember?

Hence the discovery of Chocolate Banana (N)Ice Cream. 

For weeks I've been heading to the grocery looking for ice cream substitutes because to me Summer = Ice Cream. I've tried everything on the market and here's the problem - none of it is that good. I'm sorry vegans, but that stuff doesn't cut it.  Also, the imitation ice cream is expensive! $6.99 for less than a pint adds up quickly. There's also added sugar, weird ingredients I don't know, etc. To satisfy my craving and save money I've been making my own creamy, cold, slightly sweet treat to have after dinner on a warm summer eve. Maybe topped with a few berries and a drizzle of honey, maybe with a spoonful of crème fraîche. Just a little something. Give it a whirl? It's not ice cream, it's for sure not frozen yogurt, it's just... (n)ice.

 

Chocolate Coconut (N)Ice Cream

• 3 bananas, sliced.
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1/4 cup cold espresso or coffee

1. Freeze bananas for an hour.
2. Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
3. Eat immediately with toppings of your choice.
4. Freeze leftovers for up to two weeks. Frozen dessert will be hard to scoop so before eating let it sit on the counter for a little bit. Most ice creams have preservatives and additives that make them easy to scoop once frozen, natural versions do not.

Topped with Coconut flakes and roasted almonds.

Guiltless Pasta + Meatballs

The last few months have been so busy in our home that finding time to test and write up new recipes has taken a back seat to literally everything else. Full disclosure, I've basically stopped cooking. Between travel and work it's been much easier to order out than plan, prep, and prepare. What is not easier is seeing how much all the eating out depleted the ol' bank account. In our house, Indian food (our go to take out) doesn't last longer than a day. Also, Seamless orders at $40 a pop add up quickly. 

Seriously, we ate so much cake on vacation. I want to say it was all watermelon but that's a dirty lie.

There's all that and a very gluttonous six day trip to South Carolina where all diet bets were off. Getting back to a healthy diet was and remains priority #1. (Mostly because anything to avoid going new jeans shopping and bathing suit season is far from over.) In an effort to streamline both the budget and the waistline, I went for an oldie but goodie - meatballs + pasta. Instead of making the classic, both full of carbs and carbs, I substituted healthier ingredients. The result is flavorful and just as hearty. I made a big batch of the meatballs and stuck some in the freezer for future quick meals. Instead of pasta we made sweet potato "noodles" with our zoodler because yes, we're those people now.

 

 

Guiltless Pasta + Meatballs

Ingredients

Halve the recipe if you don't want to stick some in the freezer.

• 2 lbs ground chicken
  • As usual with my recipes, feel free to experiment and substitute turkey for chicken, pork for turkey, lamb for pork... you get the idea. Or just get crazy and mix 2 meats together because why not??
• 2 eggs room temperature
• bunch chopped parsley (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup very finely chopped walnuts (food processor!)
• 1 yellow onion, small dice
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup chopped basil
• 1 cup almond flour (use more if the mixture isn't holding together well)
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp. dried oregano
• s+ p to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Or if you're lazy, which I am, use a sheet pan that's seen the test of time and you don't care about getting all grimy. No judgment here.
2. Mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl. I use my hands because it's faster.
3. Pour a glug of olive oil into a heavy bottomed pan. Heat it up.
4. ***Form small balls with your hands, no bigger than a golf ball, brown on the skillet.
5. Place the meatballs on the baking sheet and bake through 10-15 minutes until nice and golden.

*** The alternative is to keep cooking these on the pan and add BBQ sauce or marinara. Choose your own adventure!

For sweet potato "noodles" just toss them in olive oil, s+p, and sautée on that same pan. You can also use zucchini, onion, regular potato, carrot. Seriously any vegetable. I won't get into it here because there's a whole world on the internet of people making noodles out of not pasta. I made a lot and didn't cook all the noodles. They keep really well in tupperware in the fridge so you can use for sides all week long!

We ate this with a side of tzatziki sauce because something about walnuts, parsley, and basil screams "dip me in Greek yogurt + cucumber" to me.

Summer Stories

Hello! Going to start out by telling you this is a catch up post. I have to acknowledge I haven't written anything since April, it would be bizarre not to. Three months is a long time and a lot has happened since I "Prepped My Space for Spring". Jumping back in with a recipe or a tip for how to arrange your locally sourced eucalyptus would be ridiculous. To be totally honest, it feels like I blinked and now this year is half through. The last six months have absolutely blown by due in no small part to all of the travel we've been lucky enough to do. Be it for work or for pleasure, 2017 has involved more time away from home than not. Over the next few weeks I'm going to really commit and dive back into developing this space (I mean it this time baby, I swear). No surprise, as it's something I address regularly, but balancing work and everything that falls outside of it is an ongoing thing.

In the meantime, I want to share a few photos from our travels. I've posted quite a lot on Instagram but want to put together a small travel diary. Since January, we've hopped around to North Carolina, Baltimore, Virginia, London, Montreal, California, Upstate NY, and South Carolina (pics + recipes in a future post). Holding onto our hats because it looks like this year is not slowing down. I'm flying home to Michigan in just two weeks!

I hope you enjoy! 

North Carolina

We've packed our bags for NC twice this year. First in March for a show - Ian's in a band called Handsome Foxes (shameless plug, check 'em out!) and again in April to attend the loveliest farm wedding. In between we caught up with old friends, visited Duke Gardens, and drank our weight in coffee. 

Snapshot of my favorite Handsome Foxes flyerup at a Raleigh coffee shop.

If you're ever in the Chapel Hill area, Honeysuckle Tea House, is a must. Located on a tea farm about 15 min. outside of town it's a gorgeous retreat complete with a yurt, rows and rows of growing berries and tea, and hammocks to lounge around for hours in.

Set up for a beautiful wedding ceremony.

London

In March, I was lucky enough to spend an entire week in London. I didn't have much time for sightseeing (it was a work trip + by far the most professionally rewarding) but forced myself up around 6AM most mornings to walk around and catch a few glimpses of the city.

Rule of thumb: the day a woman cuts bangs she starts to grow them back out again.

This photo will serve as a great reminder to never cut bangs ever, ever, ever.

I know, I am the first person to take this photo.

My lovely room complete with always open work computer.

California

The state that makes me realize that I'm not getting enough Vitamin D, tacos, or athleisure in my life.

Montreal

Last but not least, Ian surprised me with a trip to Montreal for my birthday! Four days were just enough time in this charming and quiet city. Our roomy and affordable apartment ($56/night, thanks again AirBnB) in Le Plateau-Mont-Royal district was walking distance from downtown. So, we kept things chill and spent the days wandering and stuffing ourselves full of croissants and fresh seafood.

airbnb decor was on point.

The best coffee shop i've ever been to, Cafe olimpico, not just because that's their slogan.  Legitimately old school (only whole milk on tap!), amazing espresso, and nutella filled donuts? yes, please. Also, they show soccer all day long. So, if you're interested in dropping off your husband and spending a few hours shopping solo - this is the place for you.