Happy Valentine's Day--2013

Today is Valentine's Day and I like it. I like this holiday because I love love. This week I spent a lot of time making treats for my coworkers, the dancer's at the school and Jake. I made truffles, chocolate covered pretzels and rice krispie treats. It was so much fun!

Making truffles!

But now I'm sitting here, on the actual day, and I have like the worst tummy ache. Ug.

Next month is an exciting month for me. Jake mentioned starting something called Whole30 and, after discussing it a lot and looking into more details, we've decided to see how we can make the Whole30/paleo idea part of our everyday life.

As I've discussed before, working out, being healthy and eating well are really important things in my life. But occasionally, I have a hard time sticking to my ideas and plans. I think my life now causes me to eat as a comfort, as a way to hang out with people and as a way to spend time. But I have literally had enough. I have a problem with eating and I want to control it.

So we bought a great book and I've been doing extensive reading on the subject. I am so excited to start the paleo diet! Honestly, I hate using the word "diet" because for a lot of people, including myself, it stimulates thoughts about restrictions and "can't have" and being bad but I'm trying something new. I'm trying to look at it like a good thing! I think trying this out will help me feel physically better and will give me that confidence that I need!

A few years ago, I lost a ton of weight for a work weight loss challenge. While I didn't reach 2nd place and my goal weight in a completely healthy way, I found it easy to do so because I was being challenged by someone. I think that drive was good for me.

I'm hoping to bring that challenge with me as I challenge myself to be happy and healthy...it also helps that I'm going to a rave in Vegas in June and really want to be comfortable in my body!

So next month starts a better, healthier, happier me! I really want to get started ASAP but literally the day we decided to go for it was the day we went grocery shopping and bought a bunch of stuff and I don't want to waste it. I'm really excited, you guys, like really excited.

I'm going to be keeping a blog/journal about what I eat, how it makes me feel, how I'm coping with the process and all my thoughts in between. I think it's going to be good.

My Health Kick

So, people, I don't know if you know this but...I love ice cream. Like if it was really good for you then I'd probably be the healthiest person on the planet...

But in my recent wave of healthy eating, I have been on the search for an ice cream replacement. And I think I found it!!

Yummy!

Start with some bananas. Now I don't really like bananas but I super love them like this! I used 2 but you can use up to, well, any amount really! The recipe I based my creation off of called for 5-6 bananas.

Take the bananas you want you use and cut them into pieces on a plate then place in the freezer to freeze. Meanwhile, mix together equal parts peanut butter, maple syrup and a dash of vanilla extract (I used almond extract however, still delicious). Then add oats. I put in twice as much as I did peanut butter and syrup (so 1/4 PB = 1/2 oats). Mix together to make a thick mixture. You can ad chocolate chips but I didn't have any.

Once your banana pieces are frozen, put them in a blender and process till creamy. Mix in the peanut butter/oat crumbles with a spoon. I've put my ice cream back in the freezer to get a tad harder but you can eat it then and there if you want!!

Oh, I added a touch of nutmeg too. SO EXCITED for it to be done (I'm still waiting...)

You should try it!

What kinds of variations do you think you could make on this recipe? I was thinking about trying this and using berries and bananas? Hmm...

On the Danforth.

This week in Toronto is a rainy one. Not that I mind too much, I get to enjoy jeans and light hoodies, finally. 

New scarf that my mom got me for my birthday.

I'm heading to the Taste of the Danforth. It's a Greek street festival here in TO. Going to try some yummy things and see some fun people.

Tomorrow we bought the cheap seats to see the Blue Jays play with Yankees. I think I'll wear the Yankee jersey I somehow acquired while I was in New Haven. Show a little bit of America pride!

Secretly, the rain inspires me to make some tea, turn on some jazz and dig my sketch book out from the boxes I have yet to unpack. Not that I am any sort of good at drawing, but I pretend.

Weekend In Photos (And a few from last week!)

Oh boy! Is it "Monday" already?! We had a three day weekend in Canada for some Civic holiday, which meant I had a four day weekend since I already have Friday's off! OVer that weekend was my 24th birthday (eek!) and I wanted to say THANK YOU to all of those who wished me a happy day! It turned out so, so great!

I had a job interview, which I am still waiting to hear results, then Jacob took me to MAC and bought me all this new make up, after getting my make up done for the day. I have never owned nice thing, let alone amazing, expensive make up! All I want to do is play with it. Then we went to lunch at an adorable little Italian place on Spadina Ave downtown. 

And after a little bit of shopping (which was unsuccessful), went to cocktails with some new friends at Beir Market, where we were thrilled to see an amazing selection of beer! As you know, we're on a beer quest so I think when we have more time, we'll have to come back and explore the selection here! Then he surprised me with an amazing dinner. And I'm talking amazing. So fancy. Probably the best food I've ever had and, as Jake put it after paying the bill, probably a once in a life time kind of place (hah! What a great guy!). The wine was so delicious, it was like butter in your mouth. I wanted to take pictures so badly but it was the kind of place where you do NOT do that. But I snuck a few, fuzzy as they are, you get the idea! Here are some Instagram's (which you can follow me @FreyaLily88) and some regular photos! 

Breakfast this morning. Getting back on the health wagon!

A lecture at Hotel Ocho. Beautiful.

Where I had my interview (Post Magazine, not Bayview Magazine)

Penne ala vodka, of course.

Scaramouche for dinner, appetizer: goat cheese three ways. Amazing.

Scaramouche: Partridge. Probably the best thing I've ever eaten. 

Birthday outfit: Salmon dress, black belt, diamonds Gram's gave
 me for Christmas, wedges and Armani blazer from Gram's.

Saturday stroll around Harbourfront. I hate the use of "ou".

Harbourfront. So big you forget it's a lake.

Walking up Yonge St past the Russian immigrants. 

Chopstick walrus.

Sunday lunch with friends at the Ultimate Cafe.
Montreal Smoked Meat sammie and a garden salad.

Morning coffee: B-52 (Kailua, Bailey's and Grand Mariner) 

$5 craft beers. Tractor beer.

How was your weekend???

Summer Eatin'

I don't know about you but when the heat hits,

all I want to eat is something cold.

No soups, no pastas, no melted sandwiches.

It's too hot, yo!

So my summer eatin' routine? 

Wonderful, chilled, delicious salads!!

The Wedge.

The wedge salad is always a great way to go.

I enjoy them because they can be dressed nicely on a plate,

mostly because there's no tossing or mixing all the salad

fixings together, you just cut a wedge of lettuce and sprinkle, drizzle

and dash everything on top!

Traditional wedge salads are made with Iceberg lettuce...

But lets be real, there's nothing in Iceberg lettuce so...Romaine is way better.

Click on the caption for recipe ideas courtesy of EatingWell.com.

Panzanella.

Have I ever told you how much I love Panzanella salads??

I made my first one last year for my sister's Bridal Shower.

They are so simple and fresh and lovely.

Fresh tomatoes, lovely baked croutons, fresh basil, yummo!

The recipe is easy, just look at the picture!

I like to make variations on the Panzanella, too!

Add chucks on fresh mozzarella and red, orange and yellow peppers

for a nice "Italian" feel.

Spice it up with by baking the croutons in Cajun or Jerk seasoning.

Add feta cheese for a Greek feeling!

These salads are very versatile.

Spinach with Fruits.

Lastly, I love summer salads because you can incorporate

fruit in!

One of my favorites is the above picture.

The base of spinach with added berries, maybe some toasted

nuts and throw on some goat cheese!

Mix with a light, maybe citrus dressing and BAM!

Delicious summer eatin'!

Adding fruit to a salad is a great way to mix it up.

It's healthy and different!

I love grilled shrimp tossed with citrus especially

because you can utilize the grill while diverting off the

hotdogs and hamburger track!

What are some of your summer salad faves??

What A Wonderful World

Easter was a whirlwind of food, fun and sunshine!

Jacob and I enjoyed a morning at home, sleeping in and 

starting our morning with some cocktails!

I love me some mimosas, lets get that out in the open.

My favorite is to add some Framboise to the mix.

You can get a few different kinds of Framboise but it's usually raspberry, cherry, peach, etc.

Try it. It's delicious.

Then Jacob decided he wanted to make sausage rolls. These are something my Gramma use to make for special occasions. I. Friggin. LOVE. Them.

He did such a great job too :) 

And yes...we ate them ALL.

After consuming my weight in pastry and champagne, I got to business and made some DELICIOUS homemade Mac and Cheese...which I didn't get pictures of because it didn't last long I forgot :) Oops! But I swear it was PHENOMENAL!

Then we packed up the mac and the BBQ pulled pork Jacob made in the slow cooker and headed out to Shelton to a BBQ with some friends.

I dropped off these goodies to my friends who got stuck working at the bar today. They seemed happy to see me when I walked in :)

And these were my DOWNFALL today...chocolate with cream cheese frosting??

I love holidays!

All in all, it was a wonderful day! I'm still battling this weird head cold thing I have...just a lot of sinus pressure and not a whole love else! 

Now I'm catching up on some blogs and episodes of The Voice (I am ADDICTED!) and eating the last of the Easter candy.

What did you do today?? 

What was your favorite treat??

OH! Jacob also started germinating seeds for a hydroponic hanging garden! We don't have literally ANY space in our apartment so he looked up a way to make a hanging garden! It's made out of water bottles and a pump...it's pretty cool! I'm going to do a post once it's up and running. But for now, look how cute these little seeds are! So excited!

French Toast Tuesday!

I have had such an issue getting out of BED these days!

Can anyone relate to that??

I think it's my lack of vacation that is getting to me.

I've been out of college now two years and I miss me some

SPRING BREAK!

As I was laying in bed this morning,

I was battling between getting up, getting dressed and going

to the gym, and making French Toast.

My inspiration?

Or rather my vice?

not your average ordinary is on my daily blog feed and I love it so!

This morning was about French Toast and I thought I'd follow suit!

Here's my version. Not as yummy looking as Brandi's but 

DAMN it hit the SPOT!

And it was quick! And not very filling so that felt gross after!!

What's making you smile today??

Baked Parmesan Tomatoes

So we all know I love food.

I can't hide it anymore.

One of my favorite things to do is find a new recipe

and try it out.

I'm trying my best to be healthy, since I grew up in a house where butter, cream and cheese were used in every meal.

So tonight, I found something simple, delicious and quick!

I originally got the recipe from Eating Well but made some personal changes to it!

Ingredients:

4 Tomatoes

Shredded Parmesan cheese

Salt, pepper and garlic to taste

Olive Oil 

Polenta (either homemade or store bought)

Tomato Sauce (I made some from 1 can of diced tomatoes)

1. If you're making your own tomato sauce like I did, I started by heating the can of tomatoes in a pan over medium heat. I used Del Monte Garlic and Onion diced tomatoes. Then I added salt, pepper, garlic and basil. I let it simmer on the stove while I prepared the tomatoes.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

3. Cut the tomatoes into half horizontally.

4. Place each half on a cookie sheet.

5. Top each half with salt, pepper, garlic, a drizzle of olive oil and Parmesan.

6. Cut the polenta into 1/2 inch slices.

7. Place the polenta on a cookie sheet (I put the tomatoes and polenta on the same sheet) and drizzle with olive oil.

8. Bake the tomatoes and the polenta for at least 15 minutes, or until the tomatoes and soft.

TIP: I noticed that the polenta heated faster then the tomatoes. I would recommend pulling the polenta out once it's soft and lightly frying it in a pan to give it a crispy texture. 

9. Plate the polenta and tomato halves, cover the polenta with tomato sauce and a little extra cheese.

10. ENJOY!

I really enjoyed this meal. It was light and delicious. I think if I could do it over, I would add a piece of garlic bread to mop up the delicious juices from the tomatoes.

Let me know what you think!

Any suggestions??

Bloggy Blog Blog

Waking up in the morning is always hard.

I've always envied those individuals that can wake up and GET up all in the same hour period of time.

My favorite activity (much to my boyfriends disgust) is waking up and laying around in bed on the weekends.

Whether it's cuddling, laughing or catching up on some morning time reading, I just feel so relaxed and comfy in my bed!

One thing that helps me wake up and stay awake is reading.

I will usually hop onto Facebook to see what the world was up to whilst I was dreaming.

But lately, I've been Bloglovin!

It's a fantastic way to keep on top of the blogs you read.

And I read a LOT of blogs.

Speaking of, lets take a look at some posts from the blogs I love to read!

1. Food Coma is one of my favorites. Can you guess why?? YES! It IS because I love food! She just has some awesome recipes and is fun to read! It's currently on my to do list to make THESE delicious looking Southwestern Rolls.

2. A Beautiful Mess was the first blog I started reading. I don't remember how I came across this wondrous world of projects, recipes, crafts and style pointers. But it's such a great place to get lost in! Elsie really sparked my creative fire again! It's from her blog where I got my wreath ideas! Check her out! (And her sister, who writes for A Beautiful Mess AND Food Coma!) This blog also just won Best DIY Blog 2012! Totally deserves it, too!

3. Eat Sleep Cuddle is another must read blog I follow. She has such great photography and I love her style! Her labels make searching for something really easy, you just find a word in the cloud that fits what you want to see and click on it! I loved that idea and imposed in on my blog here!

4. Fork and Vine is extra-special to my heart these days since it's based out of Portland! Her blog is so easy to follow and fun to look at. I love all the posts about food, obvio, and am striving to build a recipe box just like hers! I want it to be summer so I can try THIS delicious concoction. 

5. Tomboy Style is moving up on my list of Must-Read-Every-Day blogs. While I love fashion, I don't really have any trends that are just mine, nor do I have inspiration that I've been looking to for years. Tomboy Style is really nice to just look through the book of ages when it comes to style. I love all the different women she features!!


Those are just 5 on the long, long list I have created on Bloglovin! What blogs do you enjoy reading daily, weekly or monthly?!

Yo Yo Yogurt!

I think yogurt is an underrated breakfast food.

Yogurt is the official food of women.

Or so marketing tells us.

BUT.

I still love yogurt!

Why am I loving it today??

Because I had THIS for breakfast!

Kiwi, cantaloupe, granola, honey and plain, Greek yogurt. 

It was the best breakfast EVER.

Fruit and protein?!

Solid.

What yogurt treats do you all enjoy? 

Marching

Oh Happy March everyone! My, how time has flown!

I feel like New Years was yesterday, yet, I feel like tomorrow it'll be summer!

I'm very excited that my second favorite season is coming up, SPRING!

(Except for Daylight Savings next weekend, I do NOT like that.)

To start my post, I will reflect upon my last about wreaths.

My project this weekend was to make a spring wreath.

Here's how it turned out!

 I'm so happy with it!! It brought a lot of light into my living room, too. Yes, it was sad taking down the last wreath, but I think it's ok. It's time to move on, no??

On that note, lets see what I did this weekend!

 The weekend started with a few drinks at my work,Rudy's in New Haven. It's a pretty laid back gastropub that serves a lot of Belgian beers and inspired food. It's so different from the west coast, though. 

 

 Friday I got a latte from the coffee shop across the street from my house. It's appropriately called Koffee? I love that little cafe because at night they have wine, beer and cheese platters. I haven't gone yet but it's on my ToDo list for this coming week. I want to keep my business local, you know? Mom would be so proud!

Yummy beverages :)

Shrimp and rice.

 I love my weekends because they are usually filled with eating and drinking. Jake made AMAZING Shrimp Scampi on Thursday. It was OUT of the WORLD.

Saturday started with lunch at Liquid Lunch. It is this little sandwich and soup place. They have a HUGE menu of salads, sammie and soups. They are all so delicious!! I got French Onion soup and it was out of this WORLD. (Also in the picture is my new favorite seltzer water, raspberry lime. SO YUMMY!)

They mark your table with old soda bottles with color coordinated wooden spoons in them. I love that idea, I think it's really fresh and new! Or maybe it's old and I'm just new to the game :)

On our way home we saw the freaking Entenmann's OUTLET store! Yes. I said it. An OUTLET store. You could get like 3 boxes of treats for $6! We bought so many carbs. Delicious.

Lastly, I finished Saturday with a serving shift at work. This is a picture of the dining room. I love how it's decorated. The odd colored chairs and frosty windows with the cool lights, it's a great atmosphere.

I spent Sunday with my honey getting lunch, spending time at the fabric store, watching Planet Earth and making a spring wreath! It was such a lovely weekend. 

Any suggestions on a craft for next Sunday??

Playing Catch Up

It has been waaaaay too long since I updated last.
Life has been ridiculously busy, full of good times, working hard, and visiting new places with old friends.
I think the only appropriate thing to do is tell the story in pictures!

For Valentine's Day, Jake took me to Newport, Rhode Island. We toured the mansions out there. The history was spectacular! Plus, Newport is super cute in itself. This was my favorite.

I want to come home to this gate!

My best friend, Joanna, came for a visit from Oregon! I have never felt so happy since I've been on the East Coast! We explored New York City and then she came and saw my new home in New Haven, Connecticut. It was so nice having her here yet so difficult to let her go home.

Delicious lunch the first day at Planet Hollywood in Times Square!

Chocolate Souffle at Hells Kitchen Lounge. The best I've ever had! 

The new World Trade Centers.

NYC is just so beautiful.

Empire.

Who needs the country when you can have this?!

Jake made steak the night before I went to NYC. It was so amazing!

The Tick Tock Diner.

Meatloaf.

It has been such a great past few weeks. But I'm excited to get back into the swing of normal life.

I'm looking for some new crafts to explore...any ideas??

Till next time!