Minty Green :)

Hello there friendly friends!! And good morning!/afternoon!/evening!!

I hope you're ready for this post.

I hope you're ready to get your socks blown off.

And I hope it's not too cold wherever you are because then you wouldn't be too pleased with having your socks blown off..

Anywho, that's not the point.

The point is I have just created a breakfast that enables you to enjoy the extremely delicious, creamy, smooth, mouth-watering flavours of mint green ice cream with a crunchy, fudgey, chewy peanut butter granola to top it all off with. For breakfast. No I am not kidding.

Presenting to you the utlimate breakfast in deliciousness: The Creamy, dreamy mint ice cream and granola bowl:

I was never a real big fan of mint as a kid growing up. My mum's favourite ice cream flavour was mint choc chip so I always had a little try of hers when we went out for ice cream but almost always fell back on my own favourite- extremely artificial and fake, awesomely rainbow-swirled bubblegum ice cream! (which did in fact mature into cookies and cream later on).

However anything with mint in it just confused me I think. Like, why did I feel like I'd brushed my teeth after eating icecream? Alas, once again, the growing-up-ness of growing up effected my stance on mint ice cream (as it has with mannnny other things like pasta bakes, avocado, mushrooms, olives etc.) and from my most recent trip to the grocery store and an impulse buy of fresh mint, I knew this was something I had to re-create!

And so I did.
This recipe couldn't be simpler guys and is simply:

Ingredients:
2 medium chopped frozen bananas
1/2 chopped frozen avocado
3-4 fresh mint leaves
1 handful of spinach

Method:
1. Pop everything in a food processor/ high speed blender (handy Vitamix to the rescue!!) and whaz until smooth and creamy dreamy!!
2. Transfer to a bowl and pop in the freezer to harden up slightly whilst making the granola!

The granola was simply:

Ingredients:
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 tablespoon oat bran
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 handful low-sugar wholegrain cheerios (or other cereal of choice)
1 large tablespoon peanut butter (or any nut butter)
1/3 cup almond milk

Method:
1.Turn on oven to 180 degrees celsius, line a tray with baking paper
2. Mix together dry ingredients in a bowl
3. Place nut butter and milk in a small bowl and microwave until warmed through
4. Add to dry mix, stir until combined (add more almond milk if too dry)
5. Place on tray and bake for 15-20 mins until golden brown and crunchy on the outside- leave to cool slightly

Et Voila!!

A beautifully sweet, minty ice cream with warm, freshly made granola... can you have a better start to a day??

100% natural, vegan, high plant protein, veggies to boot (that I assure you, you will not taste!) and the delicious taste of mint ice cream to leave you daydreaming about for the rest of the day week :P.

Happy, happy days!

Your turn:
Favourite ice cream flavour as a child?
Favourite ice cream flavour now?
Favourite way to use mint in cooking? What should I try next!!?? I was thinking choc mint oats?? Let me know! :D

I hope you all have a ripper of a day, do something you love and as always; EAT SOMETHING DELICIOUS (and maybe minty and smooth??)! Bye for now friends! :D

The Coconut Granola Bowl Recreation!

I had a craving.

'Hi Steph.'- but no you don't understand, this wasn't just a simple craving for chocolates or lollies, or in my case potatoes.

No, this was a craving for a specific dish I've enjoyed on a couple of occasions in the past few months that I woke up one day and just knew I had to re-create.

What is this magical dish you ask? Why it is the House Paleo Muesli from Voyage Kitchen (an awesomely urban/ hipster joint with funky meal options and awesome vegan/ paleo/ gluten free etc. options too!)

So I woke up with the purpose of producing a deliciously fruity, nutty, coconutt-y granola (set in the freezer) on top of some dollops of plain greek yoghurt, banana slices scattered throughout with a side saucer of almond milk to drizzle on top (just like they give you at the restaurant!)

And so I did.

Steph's Raw Coconut Granola Bowl!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup rolled oats
Small handful chopped, mixed, dried fruit
Small handful chopped, mixed, raw nuts
1 heaped tablespoon coconut butter (tutorial here/ can be  bought at certain supermarkets)
1/4 cup almond milk/ other milk of choice
Optional- cinnamon (recommend!)
1 sliced banana
1 cup greek yoghurt/ yoghurt of choice- non-dairy etc.
Extra almond milk to serve

Method:
1. Line a plate with baking paper.
2. Place coconut butter and 1/4 cup almond milk in a small bowl and microwave for 30 seconds (making sure it doesn't boil over- alternately heat on stove until warmed and combined)
3. Combine oats, nuts, dried fruits and cinnamon in a bowl and add warm/ hot coconut micture to bowl. Stir to combine
4. Scatter onto plate and pop in freezer for at least 15 minutes to chill and set.

5. Retrieve yoghurt and banana

6. Dollop in yoghurt to bottom of bowl, follow with some delicious granola, banana slices, granola, banana slices etc. Until you get a pretty bowl of absolute deliciousness!

7. Pour over some almond milk and enjoy!

This was without a doubt one of the tastiest brekky's I've had in a long while and truly hit. the. spot in terms of my craving for Voyage's House Paleo Muesli!

Natural sweet, delightfully coconut-y and filling to boot! This is truly a breakfast of champions that does not taste like it is healthy!!

But being filled with all the fibre, nutrients and minerals of wholegrain oats, dired fruits, nuts, coconut, natural yoghurt and banana- where can you go wrong?

I enjoyed this breakfast thoroughly and would highly recommend trying it out if you're after a home-made restaurant style brekky that truly satisfies (without needing to contain eggs, bacon and sausages!)

Sometimes the lighter option turns out to be the most filling, nutritious and delicious meal of them all (especially with a few tweaks from Steph's muesli recipe!)

Grab your bowl, grab a spoon and dig in! (Or else I'll just have to do it for you!!)

Yum.


Your turn:
What's one dish you could really go for right now from a restaurant?
Do you ever try to re-create your favourite restaurant/ cafe meals at home?
Sweet or savoury breakfasts? I think I have and always will be a sweet brekky person. I have tried savoury brekky's in the past but they just don't do it for me. I guess I'm a desserts first kind of person! ;)

I hope you all have a lovely day/ week, smile lots and... eat something dlicious!! Bye for now friendly friends!! :D

An Oat Bar Recipe... Without Oats!!

Hi friends, happy whatever day of the week it is because I'm too frazzled to even remember!

But thankfully, I have enough brain power to type up a recipe (probably not to create one, what with hot elements and cooking etc.- so lucky for me I cooked this up on the weekend!!) and so get ready because...

This 'granola bar' recipe is oat free, sugar free, wheat free, dairy free, ancient grain filled, extremely delicious, filling, protein filled and quite simple to prep together for a make-ahead brekkie/ snack!

The majority of my make-ahead, convenient recipes are as a result of me requiring a make-ahead breakfast to grab running out the door for a few hours later.. and this recipe is no different!

I had a pre-brekky of plain greek yoghurt mixed with frozen banana slices (so yum!) an then grabbed my frozen granola bar wrapped in foil to enjoy approximately 3-4 hours later for second breakfast!

 Pic

Now, I'm not usually a fan of eating plain quinoa or plain buckwheat on their own, like my usual obsession with plain brown rice. Instead I seem to cook them into delicious, sweet breakfast (enter rich chocolate buckwheat 'porridge'.)

So when I needed a bake and then freeze-ahead recipe (ok, it didn't have to be bake, but the chocolate fudge brownie was getting a little old- though still so, so tasty!!) but wasn't really feeling the oats (I think I'd had oats about every day for the past week!) so instead I rummaged through my pantry shelf and pulled out some quinoa and buckwheat groats. Let's cook!

Quinoa and Buckwheat, nutty, cinnamon-y, coconut-y 'granola' bars!
Ingredients:
2 heaped tablespoons quinoa
2 heaped tablespoons buckwheat groats (add more if you're a hungry beast like me!)
1 cup almond milk
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
sprinkle of chia seeds
small handful chopped mixed raw nuts
2 dates, chopped
1- 2 teaspoons coconut oil

Method:
1. Preaheat oven to 180 degrees celsius, line a mini loaf tin with baking paper (or alternately line a ramekin)

2. Rinse quinoa and place in saucepan with buckwheat, cinnamon and  almond milk in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until absorbed (add some extra water if liquid absorbs and quinoa and buckwheat are still crunchy!)

3. Stir in chia seeds, nuts and dates
4. Pour into mini loaf tin or ramekin, flatten with a spoon/ hands and place in oven for 20-30 mins until golden brown

5. Leave to cool and then cover in foil/ gladwrap and pop in the freezer overnight or until whenever required.

And this is me enjoying my oat-free granola bar during my break at work:

 NOM :)

It may not look like the most vibrantly coloured meal- but boy did it taste good and leave me energised and full for hours!!

All in all, this is such a great, healthy, filling, nutrient dense recipe that I reckon all of you should make when you're in a time-jam and need some awesome food to positively fly through your day!

Your turn:
Are you a fan of granola bars?
Do you make your own homemade versions? What do you put in yours?
Favourite way to use quinoa/ buckwheat?? I'm keen for some more ideas!!

Alrighty! I hope you all have a fabulous rest of your day/ week, nourish your body, love your body! Smile lots, love more and as always; Eat something delicious!! Bye for now friends! :D

The smoothie bowls are back in town!

Hi folks, how are we all today? I'm pretty fabulous because it's almost Summer here in Aus. The good fruit is coming back in season. The bright sun is warming up the place and I've been craving smoothies like it's no body's business. Especially smoothie bowls!

 Post

I started this blog back when it was Summer, so if you're a long term reader, you've probably seen a few of these bowls... however they seemed to disappear for a bit in winter in favour of my warm comforting oats!

Don't believe me? Here's a look at the past few weeks:

Cannot get enough!
This is my kind of cereal and milk!

All the granola in the pics are home made and you can find lots of different recipes for them on the blog here, here, here, here and here!
There are also heaps of different smoothie recipes on my recipe page:) So get cracking on those smoothie bowls. It sure does beat soggy flakes of processed stuff in bland milk!

I am not a creature of eating the same thing day-in-day-out, so I either change up the smoothie.. or change up the granola. Usually just the flavour of the granola, but the other day I changed it's very form!

My smoothie base consisted of 1 chopped banana (didn't have any frozen ones left) a handful of mixed frozen berries, a big handful of spinach, 3 big scoops of greek yoghurt and a splash of almond milk all whazzed up in a blender until smooth. Poured into a bowl and placed in the freezer until ready to eat.
I wasn't ready yet because I was making my granola.. balls:

:)
All I did was make a typical granola (1/2 cup muesli in a bowl with 1/3 cup almond milk and 1 tablespoon of peanut butter heated together in microwave and then rubbed into muesli) and formed into balls, before baking in oven at 180 degrees celsius for 15 mins until golden. Left to cool slightly because you don't want a warm smoothie!

 It's like the breakfast version of meatballs in sauce :D

Ok, probably not the best comparison, but you have to admit they look quite similar ;)

Before I go I wanted to leave you with a smoothie no bowl included that was absolutely fabulous and that you should make right away (It would work wonderfully in a smoothie bowl too :)

 This was 1 chopped frozen banana + 1 handful of frozen red grapes + 3 scoops of greek yoghurt (omit if vegan- or sub in vegan yoghurt) a splash of almond milk (it all depends on how thick you want your smoothie)

 It's extremely creamy and makes you question whether or not you added ice cream to the mix! Seriously, if I hadn't made this myself I would be interrogating the maker to prove there was no cream/ ice cream- frozen bananas are amazing!

Y-U-M

Your turn!
What's your favourite smoothie?
Do you like green smoothie? I know some people get freaked out by them- not me!
Smoothie bowls- best things ever or what?

Bye for now friends! :D

Fav Links of the Week!

Happy Sunday friends!!!

And happy much needed rest day for me! Phew was last week an intense/ tiring/ full-to-the-brim week of 5:30am wake ups, sweaty workouts, full school days and then homework/ study thrown in there too! (as well as all the other commitments that come with my roles in the school!)

So, yes, when I woke up naturally this morning to the sound of nothing more than the windy howl of a winter's day in Aus, it was so nice to just lie for a few extra minutes, smile gratefully at the extra rest and recovery my body deserves and then slowly make my way about my morning to tick off some random errands here and there- waking up, making breakfast, showering, blogging, Instagramming, off to a uni open day and then finishing off my study for the weekend... pretty  cruise-y! :)

If you're anything like me, the very mention of eating breakfast is the first thing to spark my attention in that long-winded paragraph, on account of I want to know what the breakfast was, see the beautiful, nourishing food and witness the very image of what was consumed.

Well, here you go:

Exactly what I wanted when I woke up this morning; hit the spot and definitely filled my body with loads of the good stuff to rest and repair properly for the week to come (definitely don't think I ate enough yesterday after a tough hills session and was ravenous all day!!).

A deliciously creamy green smoothie with warm, crunchy home-made almond butter and peanut butter granola :) Eaten separately because sometimes I like to enjoy each of the textures and tastes separately- you know, the soggy cereal thing??

The smoothie was simply 1 frozen banana, 1 handful frozen persimmons, 1 handful kale, 1 handful spinach, 3 scoops greek yoghurt, splash of water et, voila!

The granola was extra special as the almond butter half was made with freshly made almond butter I whipped up the night before in the Vitamix- so, so good! You can find almost identical recipes for my granola here, here and here!

Yum!

Now, onto some of the links I've been loving in the small pockets of time when I actually get to chill-out and blog read during the whirlwind of the weekdays!

Food:

23 Meal Prep Photos That Are Almost Too Perfect

10 snacks with 10 (or more!) grams of protein

HEALTHY HIGH PROTEIN ROCKY ROAD BLENDER ICE CREAM

fudgy double chocolate mug cake

Fitness:

What Makes Running Memorable?

Health:

Gaining Weight Is Hard.

are you addicted to food?

Good reads:

Is The Five-Second Rule Legit Or Nah?

I DIDN’T WORKOUT FOR HALF A YEAR + THOUGHTS ON FLEXIBILITY

My Body (And Her Body) is Not Your Measuring Stick

Alrighty, I hope you found some interesting/ inspiring/ delicious reads in there and now I have to rush off to the uni open day! Quite excited- life is starting soooooon!

Your turn:
What day is your designated rest day/ does it change from week to week or how you're feeling?
Breakfast today?
Favourite way to eat granola? Generally I'm a big fan of smoothie bowls, but every now and then I just love to separate the two and enjoy them both equally :D

As always; EAT SOMETHING DELICIOUS, and get ready for some more posts coming at ya through the week! bye for now friendly friends!! :D