Wild Rice and Mushrooms

I am a huge fan of wild rice and so are the girls.  I love the texture and heartiness, if that is even a word.  Wild rice is high in protein, B vitamins and fiber.  It is actually not even a rice but rather a grass, or the seed of a grass.  I find this recipe to be rather versatile.  We like to mix in a variety or vegetables, but keep in the mushrooms.  The girls like it with a little bit of shredded on cheese on top but it isn't necessary to make this a delicious entree or side dish.

Ingredients

• 4 cups water (or combination of broth and water)
• 1 cup wild rice
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup diced green beans, okra, spinach, kale or broccoli (optional)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 diced onion
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms
• 1 cup diced green beans, okra or broccoli (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley or cilantro
• shredded Swiss cheese (optional)

Directions

1. In a medium pot add rice, broth/water and salt.  Bring to a boil and simmer at a low boil for 15 minutes.
2. Add green vegetable (beans/okra, spinach, kale or broccoli) to the rice pot and continue to simmer another 15 minutes or until rice is cooked.
3. In a small frying pan heat oil.  Add onions and fry until clear about 3-5 minutes.  Add garlic and mushrooms.  Fry for another 5 minutes.
4. Add mushrooms cooked mushrooms etc. to the rice pot.  
5. Stir together to combine.  Continue to cook until vegetables are tender and rice is cooked.
6. Stir in cilantro and serve with cheese on top if preferred.

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Blueberry, Cranberry, Red Fife Muffins (Dairy, Egg, Refined Sugar Free)

My oldest daughter wanted to create her own recipe.  She decided she wanted to make muffins.  One of her favourite muffins is blueberry and she wanted to add in cranberries as well.  Since she has a low tolerance to eggs, these muffins are also egg free.  I am so proud of her for creating this recipe, primarily on her own and for even typing it up for me ;)

We used an organic red fife flour.  Red fife flour Canada's heritage wheat flour, which was introduced to in the 1840's.  Although this is a gluten grain it has not been altered by synthetic compounds, chemicals or GMO's.   Red Fife is much lower in gliadin (a protein present in wheat gluten) which makes this flour much easier to digest for those with gluten sensitivities.  I have been told this the only wheat some people can eat.  We enjoy its flavour and find it be a great flour for breads and hearty muffins.  We hope you give it a try!

Ingredients (makes 8-10 muffins)

• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon of sea salt
• 1 ½ cups of red fife flour
• ½ a cup of maple syrup
• 2 chia eggs (1 tablespoon ground chia + 3 tablespoons water =1 chia egg)
• ⅓ of a cup of grape seed oil
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• ½ cup blueberries
• ½ cup cranberries

My Little Baker

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and prepare muffin tray.
2. In a large bowl add all the dry ingredients including the blueberries and the cranberries.
3. A medium size bowl add all the wet ingredients and stir to combine.
4. Combine the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to fully combine.
5. Scoop into muffin tray and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

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PUSH THROUGH THE PAIN

I am not talking about pain that does not feel right when performing an exercise but what I am referring to is the emotional and mental pain that will enter each of our lives through differing circumstances.  Whether we are suffering crisis from a family member being ill, a death, divorce, or financial strain due to a job loss, these types of stressful situations can cause us to not take care of ourselves as we place health and fitness on the back burner.  We get so wrapped up in the pain of the event with our minds consumed, our emotional banks drained, and the energy to even put one foot in front of the other feeling like an impossible task. The burden feels heavy and the world can seem bigger than we are.  It will be in these moments where taking care of ourselves through exercise and eating right is even more important, and often times pushing through the pain even when we do not want to will be what keeps us healthy emotionally and physically.

It will not be easy and I share this personally as I am currently struggling with my father being gravely ill and rapid decline in health.  During sleepless days and nights of course I focus more on my nutrition and get in my exercise when I can, but do seek out exercise as being therapeutic and stress relieving. Studies have shown that exercise is directly linked to decreased depression and stress, which is why it is so important not to neglect this very important part of our life.  Our bodies are made to move and doing that helps prevent a spiral down into dark mental places.  All of us will experience pain in our life and that is unfortunately a part of this journey, and it will always be how we respond to the circumstances that will keep us healthy.  Journaling is another great way to feel comfort through painful situations, and if necessary a great counselor, and I am all for talking to God and prayer. The Blog is an outlet of expression for me and sharing my feelings with you also provides healing and hopefully a comfort for others going through a painful life episode. 

Life will not play fair that is a fact and we need to prepare ourselves by being healthy and happy to begin with.  Being fit helps us to cope better during emotional stress. Today is always the day to take the steps necessary to become your best YOU in all aspects.  Life is short, a gift, and taking it for granted is not only a shame, but will lead to a life of illness and unhappiness.  When the painful things in this life come knocking on your door, will you be ready physically, emotionally and spiritually?  Will you have the strength to push through the pain?

I dedicate this Blog to my wonderful father who is a fighter, and my beautiful mother who stands strongly by his side and for 55 years.  Thank you for blessing me with life, faith and love.

My Beautiful Parents

Me and My Fabulous Father

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Chocolate Date Icing or Frosting (Dairy and Refined Sugar Free)

This weekend was my niece's second birthday, I was in charge of the birthday cake.  I went with my Grain Free Chocolate Cupcakes recipe and then piped this Chocolate Date Frosting from The Spunky Coconut.  This frosting turned out so well.  It piped very easily and tasted great, thanks Kelly Brozyna for this delicious icing.

Ingredients (makes enough for single layer cake or 12 cupcakes)

• 3/4 cup cashews
• 1 1/2 cup dates
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 teaspoon gluten free vanilla
• 1 1/2 tablespoon arrowroot starch
• 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup raw cocao or cocoa
• pinch sea salt
• 1/4 cup ground palm sugar (optional-if you prefer it sweeter)

Directions

1. Soak cashews in 1 1/2 cup water for 2-4 hours to soften.  Drain and then rinse with clean water.  Set aside.
2. Soak dates in hot water for 1-2 hours to soften.  Drain water and set aside.
3. Add all ingredients to a blender and puree until smooth.
4. Set in refrigerator to harden for 1-2 hours.
5. Pipe or spread over cake.  

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REASONS DO NOT ACHIEVE RESULTS

The truth about health and fitness is that we either want it or we don’t.  Let’s face it, we can all come up with reasons not to exercise today or pack our coolers with healthy food to have on hand.  All the reasons in the world are excuses that will eventually catch up to us in the form of illness or injury.  That also is the truth.  What we need to understand is that our lifestyle is our medicine, and that includes what we eat and how we move and rest our bodies.   We can’t continue to walk around in a state of un-health and believe that this is an acceptable existence.  Looking and feeling our best is what we all want, dream about, and talk about, but the action to make it happen never seems to occur.  Look at what is flooding our magazines, commercials, and television shows when it comes to getting healthy.  We need to be living the reality shows of achieving our best body not sitting in front of the tube with our chips watching other people taking action to get healthy. 

Reasons will not change how we look or feel and in fact will only make us feel and look worse if continued as a lifestyle.  Our first step to change this reality of reasons, is to own that we are doing that.  If you are coming up with reasons to stop by the fast food or restaurant, skip out on the workout, and party hardy until the break of dawn, it is time to stand in your own truth and ask why.  Looking at the truth can sometimes piss us off, cause us to throw our hands up with a profound “f” word salute, and that is normal.  It will be in that frustrated moment of anger or other emotion that will open the mind to what in the hell am I doing with my life and body.  It will be that slap in the face that will cause us to get serious about a healthy lifestyle becoming our medicine. 

The only person responsible for replacing reasons with action is you and me.  It is time to rearrange the priorities in our lives because no person is too busy to take care of their health.  Everyone can have their fittest body at any age and I will take on any backlash for making this statement.  A healthy fit body is obtainable and realistic for all of us and should be the goal while we are living this life.  Dependence on prescribed drugs to pseudo fix health issues is way out of hand, and although certain medications are needed for a small percentage of medical issues, I am addressing the general populous that continue to accommodate their “reasons” and unhealthy way of life.  Living a healthy lifestyle is not a half in and half out scenario either because occasional effort equals occasional results.  We want so much to change but are not willing to give the effort and this is the bottom line.  Results can and will happen, but the choice is up to you.

I dedicate this Blog to my husband, friend, love and support in my life.  

Happy Valentine’s Day Babe and I Love You Forever and a Day

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button below to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.

Stay Healthy!

Darla 

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Salt Dough Valentine Magnets

We are not huge Valentine celebrators over here.  I think Dan and I celebrated it once, on our first year of marriage and have since left it alone.  We are constantly striving to love more each day and not just on February 14th.  Nevertheless, the girls are celebrating Valentine's Day with their school so we will participate.

 

As I am sure you figured out, I am not big on sweets etc. but we love a good craft.  Even though I would not consider myself creative, I am very thankful for Pinterest and this idea of creating some magnets about love.  These were really quite simple, the longest part was just the drying in the oven so do plan ahead.

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup salt
• 1/2 cup water
• food colouring (optional)
• small cookie cutters (I found mine at Michaels)
• magnets
• glue gun
• paint, stamps etc,

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 225 degrees F.
2. Combine all ingredients and roll out into 1/4 inch thickness.
3. Cut out shapes and place on a baking tray.
4. Bake for 2-3 hours or until completely dry.  I flipped mine after the first hour.

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Asian Salmon

Like anyone, I get bored of eating the same meals all the time and look for ways to add flavor to meals, while still keeping them healthy.  Right now, I'm hooked on this Asian Salmon dish that I've made several times now.  If you try it, please let me know what you think.  The recipe below is for one meal, so make more marinade if you're feeding your whole family.  

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40-Day Fat Loss Challenge (Day 14 Update)

It's time to check in and update my progress for the 40-Day Fat Loss Challenge I entered at my gym. For my body fat percentage, I'll use my trainer's caliper measure since I won't have access to the machine until the 40 days is up.  The machine measured about the same as my trainer anyway.  My goal is to lose at least 1% body fat each week so that at the end of the 40 days (nearly 6 weeks), I'll have gone from 24% down to 17%.  I'm on track for that now, but would love to get closer to 15%.  

PROGRESS

Day 1:  24% body fat (112.4 pounds)

Day 7:  22.4% body fat (110 pounds) 

Day 14: 21% body fat (109.4 pounds) 

(These numbers reflect what I weigh when I weigh-in at the gym mid-morning.  My weight below I take first thing in the morning when I wake up, so it's slightly lower.) 

Below is a picture of where I'm at as of Day 13.  I didn't take a good "Day 1" picture, so the "start" is from December, but it's a good representation of me on Day 1.  

You're not going to notice a dramatic difference week by week, but over many weeks, and then a couple or few months, you definitely will.  If there's one thing I've learned it's to be patient, take it one day at a time and TRUST THE PROCESS.  If you look carefully, you'll see my arms and tummy are leaning out a little 

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PROGRESSION IS WHAT GETS YOU THERE

No one starts at the top and sometimes you can get to the top of your fitness game, and injuries or other issues occur that send you right back to the beginning step.  I speak from experience when it comes to being knocked down from an injury and although the setback was difficult, I never gave up.  When it comes to our exercise programs, we can put so much pressure on ourselves to do too much too soon, and with that come discouragement and frustration.  When we approach our fitness and nutrition programs with a progressive attitude, it is a more realistic way of adopting a healthy lifestyle.  Progressive simply means starting where you are, accepting where you are, doing what you can, mastering what you are able to do, and then moving forward to the next level of whatever type of exercise program you have enlisted yourself.  It also means forgetting any comparisons to others because they are not you, and your program is your program.  The comparison game can cause us to get off track with our progressive program and being on alert to squelch our inner competitive nature will be important, especially when we are “newbies” to fitness. 

Progression is what will get us to the next level of fitness without injury and with a healthy body and mind.  For example, you want to master a pull-up and for the very first time you try to lift yourself on the bar, you are stuck.  The pull-up is one of the hardest body weight exercises to perform and to believe your first time out you will be able to accomplish one is unrealistic.  Those who can do one or more pull-ups have been doing this exercise for years and have built the strength in their back muscle to the point of being able to perform the exercise.  A great way to start the journey of being able to perform a pull-up is to modify the movement using a leg spot, bench spot, a Gravitron, TRX straps, or having a spotter help lift a portion of your bodyweight as you pull up.  As you are consistent in your modification of the pull-up exercise over time, you will be able to “progress” to performing the exercise without assistance.  Another great example is long distance running.  I for one would not be able to bust out a marathon like I have been doing it for years without proper training and starting from the beginning.  It truly is all about persistence, patience and progress. 

Progression can also be applied to implementing healthy foods into our nutrition.  Begin slowly by eliminating one thing like soda, and replacing it with more water intake or herbal tea.  Over time and as unhealthy foods are eliminated and replaced with healthy food choices, you will be able to progress to a 80% to 20% clean eating program without feeling deprived.  Life is already hard enough without making a healthy lifestyle feel like a burden with unrealistic expectations.  Applying the “progression principle” to our workouts and daily food intake creates a positive outlook mentally and physically.  We all like to feel accomplished with our programs and to celebrate every moment we take steps that lead us closer to our goals.  The good news is that progression is what will get you there.

Stay Healthy ~ Darla 

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button below to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares. 

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