Goodbye 2014, Hello 2015!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

2015!!

WHOOP WHOOP!!

This year has been pretty big for the blog, in many ways.

Probably number one being I started the blog last January... so my baby's almost one!

However, there were so many other great things that happened in the space of a year and before I get too carried away trying to make myself write 2015 at the end of my dates instead of 2014, I wanted to just take a look back at the year that was.

Steph style!

You know you're going to love my blog when my first blog post is called HELLO :)
Seriously, am I friendly or what?
I'd just received my expensive and professional camera for Christmas, so was still experimenting with that and my food photography was- how we say- ordinary?

This pumpkin based stuffed crust pizza was actually my very first recipe on this blog and it's still one of my favourites that I use almost every time I make pizza!

Then, I topped it- with these awesome pizza parcels merely a week later:

Still, one of my most creative recipes on this blog- these colourful pizza parcels!

That's how the blog started off. Mainly recipes and sometimes just pics of what I'd been eating.

My creativity only seemed to continue to grow as I did some... weird things with food:

March saw my first WIAW link-up!

Featuring another pizza parcel!
Lot's of good food followed in the months to come:

As well as the start of some of my most topical and sometimes hard posts to write:
Skinny= Happy?

Food- kinda necessary

Vegans eat lettuce

Vegan and Protein

The changing of taste buds?

 I wrote about my new love of running and looking back, I can see how far I've come since I first started running my seemingly excruciating 10 minutes around the block, to my now 30-40 minute blissful morning runs:)

I documented my time dealing with my first running injury (weak hips and too much strain on my ITB leading to runner's knee... *sigh*) but pulled through that (what seemed very long) period stronger than ever!

I'm sure the things you are most familiar with on this blog are my two favourite brekkies. Smoothies and nut butter and banana toasties.

So yeh, there was a lot of foo. There was a lot of weirdness. A few posts where I just rambled or had to get something off my chest (come on teenage girls, giving up food is not the answer!!) weird food combos and lots and lots of delicious experiments documenting my experience with a vegetarian lifestyle at my ripe old age of 15 (nearly 16!!)

So today I started my 2015 with one of my favourite breakfasts from the year:

 A tropical green smoothie with vanilla oats topped, with cashew butter!

For 2015? Normally people make resolutions but I get so worried I won't fulfill them and feel bad at the end of the year. So how about some goals? (yes- probably the same thing) In 2015 I want to surprise myself. Push myself further than I though possible. Enjoy every second of my extremely blessed life and try and spread happiness to everyone I meet!

2014 was great. Let's make 2015 even better!!!

Bye for now folks- thanks for all your support, reading, commenting and letting me be a part of this amazing blogging community- I LOVE IT! :D

WIAW #38- all the good stuff!

Hi Everyone! Happy New Year's Eve! Happy WIAW! Happy... happiness!

I'm in a happy mood today and I'm gonna say it could be the result of my food. Food can really instigate my mood!

So, seeing as it's Wednesday and the wonderful Jen from Peas and Crayons holds a fabulous link-up every week, here is a look at all the fabulous things I ate on this last day of 2014!!!
 
Breakfast:
Following a fun Purely Twins workout, I whipped myself up a batch of banana bread pancakes!

 The batter is the same recipe as these pumpkin pancakes, just sub in the same amount of mashed banana for the pumpkin puree.
Spoon onto a hot pan with oil (I used coconut oil) and let them cook for a few mins (they are more fragile than regular pancakes) so they are properly together when flipping:

 Flip onto a plate after nicely browned and then top with whatever you like... I chose choc hazelnut butter!!

 There are just two ingredients in this nut butter spread- hazelnuts and cacao:

 On the side I made some peach fro-yo, which was 1/2 frozen yellow-flesh peach, whazzed up with the remaining banana and 3 big scoops of greek yoghurt, then placed in the freezer whilst making pancakes, to harden.
A super delicious breakfast:

 The pancakes tasted a-mazing, cinnamon-y, banana-y chocolate-y and the spread was sooo good!It sort of reminded me of eating a forero rocher with a cinnamon doughnut. Oh yes.

 The peach fro-yo was extremely yummy too and cut through the richness of the chocolate banana pancakes:

 This reminded me of my childhood when I used to make pancakes and top them (very heavily) with nutella, except I think these might taste even better (and much healthier too;)

 Definitely a step up from my even earlier childhood of topping my pancake with tomato sauce. What was wrong with me?

 Live and learn right?

 Right!

lunch:
After a few hours at a recently extended shopping center (and some Christmas money spent) I was more than ready for lunch:

Lunch was a delicious grilled sandwich with a mug of soup!

 In the sammy was lots of hommus, spinach, tomato and avocado:

Y-U-M
The soup was a vegan, low sodium french lentil soup- very delicious as well.

 Snack:
In need of a snack after an hour long bike ride and another trip to the shops (I wanted to get a calendar and a diary for tomorrow... aka next year!!

 A chopped pink lady apple with some of the crispest, sweetest, juiciest green grapes:

 And a glass of soy milk:

 Dinner:
I felt like I needed some more veggies today so...

Voila! A bucket load of roasted veggies!!

 Pumpkin, parsnip, potato, white sweet potato, eggplant, brussels sprouts, tomato, carrot, swede and beetroot drizzled with olive oil and roasted at 180 degrees celsius for 45 mins:

On a bed of spinach (just for some more veg) with some garlic tofu.

And that's what I ate Wednesday!
What did you eat on this fine day?

Hungry for more? Check out Peas and Crayons for everyone else's eats! :)

Bye! :D