FOOD-RELATED FRIDAY: FLUFFY PANCAKES

Don’t worry I’m not crazy.  Okay, at the very least, I’m not any crazier than I was yesterday.  I know it’s not Friday (it’s totally Saturday), but let’s pretend that it is Friday because I really want to share this recipe with you.

I had every intention of posting this yesterday, I promise.  But then I spontaneously joined an all-girls bike gang, cruised to a friend’s house on the river for sausages, sangria, and s’mores, and adventured home along a dark, winding road that one of my friends described as “the perfect intro to a horror movie” singing songs that would be hilarious and inappropriate for a wedding.  It was great fun, but I got home late.  So, let’s go back in time and pretend that it’s still Friday.

I sort of tend to get obsessed with things.  Not every thing I like, but some things.  When the obsession takes hold, it is very intense.  It’s not always a bad thing.  Once I was really obsessed with taking a multivitamin every night.  Anyway, here are a few things that I am currently obsessed with:  Downton Abbey, Mini Eggs, Pinterest, bright colours, greeting cards/stationary in general, other people’s weddings, and most importantly, pancakes on Sunday.

I think that we have had pancakes on Sunday morning for the past 6 weeks.  I just can’t seem to stop.  This is pretty out of the ordinary because I’m not generally a huge pancake fan.

To be honest, it’s sort of fun having a Sunday routine (or tradition if you want to call it that).  It’s comforting and special – something to look forward to during the week.  And why shouldn’t it be delicious pancakes?  You’re right!  It should definitely be delicious pancakes.  Okay, I’m glad that we settled it.  Pancakes, it is!

I love this recipe.  It’s one that I’ve made a few weekends in a row and is essentially a mix of all my favorite things and/or things that we always have in the kitchen.  The greek yogurt/milk substitute for 1 cup buttermilk if you’re more of a buttermilk kind of person.  Feel free to make these pancakes your own.  Add what you want (chocolate chips, banana, pecans, rainbow sprinkles, whatever).  Go nuts. 

Fluffy Sunday Pancakes

1 cup flour

½ tbsp white sugar

½ tbsp baking soda

pinch salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1 egg

½ cup milk

½ cup plain Greek yogurt

1 tbsp canola oil

2 tbsp chopped walnuts

½ cup fresh blueberries

In a bowl combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

In a separate bowl, beat egg, milk, yogurt, and oil together.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir to combine.  Do not overmix.

Add walnuts and fold in blueberries.

Cook in pan or on griddle and enjoy with lots of butter and maple syrup!

Happy Weekend and Happy Pancake Sunday in advance!

FOR MY FAVORITE FOOLS

So April 1 is right around the corner. You know what that means, right?  April Fool’s Day.

Do you plan elaborate pranks?  Or are you more likely to take cover and hope that nothing bad happens to you? 

I’m not a big prankster myself and don’t usually seem to get in on any of the fun – I’m more likely to be the gullible person on the receiving end of a joke – but I do enjoy a good practical joke now and then.

One year some of my teammates got a little carried away with their pranking throughout the duration of a training camp, but before things really started heating up, there were a few good, mostly harmless pranks.  My favorite was the filling of someone’s room with many, many, many, many balloons. 

It always seems funnier when it’s not your room though, right?

Here are a few little April Fool’s Day inspired things from around the World Wide Web:

What the heck is April Fool’s Day anyway?

Probably the best kind of fool around.

One of my favorite songs.

I hate it when this happens…

For once I’m not referring to the romantic comedy when I say FOOL’S GOLD

I pity the fool.

A cute and harmless Easter themed April Fool’s Day trick.

Happy Thursday, Fools!

MONDAY MUSINGS: BRACKETOLOGY. WHAT’S YOUR STRATEGY?

Happy Monday Y’All!

How was your weekend?  Mine was great.  I spent some time with girlfriends having our nails done, dank obscene amounts of coffee, attended a wonderful pancake breakfast, watched too many back-to-back episodes of Downton Abbey, swam in the ocean, and woke up on Sunday with what I am convinced was an MSG hangover after indulging in Chinese takeout on Saturday night.  All in all, it was just what I needed.

Did you fill out a March Madness bracket this year?  It’s one of the really fun things that happens during the spring among the athletes (and friends at home) in Florida, with Andrew Russell presiding over the tabulation of points and relaying of results.  Andrew keeps us up-to-date on who is leading the pool, but also on who is getting in trouble and embarrassing themselves on Saturday nights.  Basically, by participating in the bracket, you are guaranteed to receive emails from Andrew, aka ARuss, in which all participants are given nicknames that help keep you in the loop on the latest gossip.  Consider it the US Weekly of the Pines.  You have to assume that you will be made fun of, but hope that someone will be worse off than you.  It’s a dangerous game.

When it comes to the actual bracket, I am horrible, and generally finish in the bottom 5.  How does everyone do it?  I am just so curious about people’s strategy when choosing teams.  I have a friend who does hers based on team mascots; which on would win in a fight, or which on just seems cooler.  One friend goes with whatever Obama’s doing, and another just goes on her gut feeling and/or the sound of the name of the team, and Tom does top seeds all the way. A lot of boys (and some ladies) I know are actually quite knowledgeable about what has happened in the regular season, so they always seem to have a more informed bracket.  But there always seems to be some crazy upsets and the feeling that anything can happen.  So what’s the best way to choose your teams?

As always, this year I went for team colours.  I firmly believe that you need to look good to feel good, and teams that are feeling good play well.  I think that our massage therapist, Bernie shares this philosophy, since he always seems to have a hairbrush and mirror set up in our boat bay when we race.  I also have absolutely no knowledge about the teams aside from the rankings that are written next to their names on the bracket.

For some reason, I really just cannot handle the colour orange on a sport uniform (most times).  It’s never a nice orange; it’s always this horrible bright, Halloween-y orange that tends to look good on absolutely no one.  Therefore, I simply cannot support a team with orange in their uniform.  As you can imagine, my bracket is usually quite horrible because Syracuse is of course, orange.

This year I had Baylor (green and gold) going all the way, as well as Florida State (garnet and gold) in the final.  Needless to say, I am not really that interested in the results of the games these days.  There are a lot of “X’s” through my sheet.

To all of you who still have teams in the running, I applaud you.  Great bracketing!

Have a great week, Y'All!

SUNDAY QUOTE

A bit of a change from the usual Sunday, but a great quote nonetheless.  It's a lovely print that hangs in the hallway of our Montreal apartment.
Check the link for more work by Amos Kennedy.

WISHFUL WEDNESDAY: IF ONLY CAKE WAS HIGH IN LEAN PROTEIN …

It’s sort of strange isn’t it, how the things that are bad for us are sometimes just so good?  It’s also sort of strange that the things that are supposed to be good for us are just so hard to do (or eat) sometimes.

For example, I had cake for breakfast on Sunday (and maybe a little bit of chocolate).  I know this is wrong, but I just couldn’t help myself.  Don’t judge me – Sundays are kind of like opposite days in my books so it just felt right.  I did make up for it by having green things at lunch, though.  There always seems to be a tradeoff though.  You know what I mean, right?  The old,  “I’ll eat this healthy thing now, so that I can eat something worse later on.”  “I’ll do the extra 20 minutes on the stepper so that I don’t feel guilty about getting fries with my meal.”  “I’ll go out and run really hard and feel awful for an hour and maybe even throw up so that I can be more fit in the long run.”

When it comes to exercise, I am always astonished at how much pain we put our bodies through to be fitter, stronger, faster, or leaner.  It just plain ol’ hurts sometimes.  Are we crazy?  Probably.  But, it’s totally worth it in the end, or else we wouldn’t do it, right?  I often have to remind myself of this.  It is worth it, it is worth it, it is worth it.  I guess it’s sort of like an unofficial mantra.

Ill be honest though ... I totally wish the good things didn’t sometimes suck so much.

I’m lucky because I choose to do these things and put my body through this pain as a job.  Deep down, I love it and wouldn’t trade it for the world.  But because it’s my job, there is no room for excuses or rain checks when it comes to hard workouts.  I am surrounded by teammates, coaches and support staff that help me keep going even when it hurts like hell.  Although I am self-motivated, I know that these factors play a huge role in the way I train.  There are some days when I just know I wouldn’t be able to do it without these people there to push me while they push themselves.

Sometimes it just takes a little voice in your ear saying “you can do it”, “suck it up, Lounder, it’s not so bad”, “look, I’m doing it, so you can too”, or sometimes its, “you’ve done really well, way to go - you deserve a rest.”  I think that this is the appeal when it comes to fitness programming, classes and personal training.  Someone who is always there working with you, helping you stay motivated to achieve your goals.  It’s also fun to work hard alongside other like-minded people.  Seriously, would Zumba be as fun if you were alone in your living room?  I don’t think so, but maybe that’s just me.

My friend and teammate Kristi Gauthier’s fiance has started a business that totally speaks to this.  It’s called Michael Patone Fitness Training, and you guessed it, her man’s name is Michael Patone!  His resume is seriously impressive.  He is a former high performance athlete (football player, if you’re wondering), and is now working in the fitness industry and has too many different certifications for me to list off here.  He has also worked with some of the Montreal Canadiens on their strength and conditioning .. say wha?  Pretty awesome.

If you’re in the Ottawa area and are looking for a personal trainer, or a group to get fit with, consider Michael Patone Fitness Training.  Also, don’t be afraid if you’re not a high performance athlete.  It’s very clear that any and all are welcome …

“Michael enjoys working with individuals of all fitness levels, enabling them to achieve and maintain a healthy lifestyle and reach their fitness goals. He evaluates, designs and implements programs specifically for the needs of each individual.”

If you’re not in the Ottawa area, I would still totally recommend “liking” the group on Facebook.  Michael posts motivational videos and quotes, as well as great information ranging from articles about interval training to studies on the benefits of fish oil.  Super interesting and informative.

I wonder what he thinks about eating cake for breakfast ….

On second thought, I probably don’t really want to know.

Have a great hump day, sport fans!

PS - all images via Michael Patone Fitness Training

TRADING TUESDAY: A NEW OFFER IN THE FORM OF BAKED GOODS

Happiest of Tuesdays to you ..

Before we get down to trade business, let me begin by once again, apologizing for the absence. 

Since last Monday I have been busy (or that’s what I keep telling myself anyway).  Here’s what I’ve been up to:

• I researched and completed by bracket for this year’s March Madness.  As per usual, my bracket is absolutely dismal.  I really only do it so that I can be included in the gossipy emails by ARuss that circulate the group of participants.  More on that later though …
• I attended an interesting and informative talk by Olympic medalist, Steve Giles.
• I did three full loads of laundry because I put off doing it for too many weeks.
• I made a large foam shamrock costume to wear to the annual Yak for a Stak event here at the Pines.  I reused a “vintage” jumper (circa 2010), and accessorized with glitter glue.  I looked ridiculous, but that’s sort of the point.  The downside to this is that the spray paint I used to make my shamrock costume ended up mostly on my skin, resulting in rather large areas that appeared bruised.  Lots of scrubbing ensued.  Lesson learned.
• I planted some wildflowers.  I also think I over and under-watered them all in the same week.  Is that even possible?  Yes, yes it is.  What is the opposite of a green thumb?  I have that.
• I painted my nails.  Two coats.
• I tidied.
• I slowly but surely plugged away at a big project that is due soon for school.  I am still in the process of writing it up.  Procrastination Station, anyone?  Whoot Whoot – all aboard.  I think that at one point last week I actually said, “you know … I really just find myself wanting to be distracted.”  I also registered for a summer course.  Someone please talk me out of this … immediately.
• Season 2 of Downton Abbey has now been downloaded into our apartment and after watching episode 1, I predict that productivity will hit an all-time low.
• Training is heating up and we’re in the last week of an intense cycle.  Mostly this just means that the hours I would normally spend being productive are now spent either napping, or wishing I was napping, or complaining about not being able to nap.

All of this sounds way less time-consuming than it actually was.  Isn’t that always the way?

Okay .. so back to reality.  Tradesies.

Lately, people have been asking me if I am still in the trading business.  The answer of course is, YES, goshdarn!

I’m going to once again, recap the amazing items that are up for grabs, and offer a little something extra to sweeten the pot.  Please trade with me.  Someone, anyone?  It’s really fun, I promise.  We both get something out of it, and you will actually probably get rid of something that isn’t of use to you.  I know there is some new, weird, cool thing out there waiting to be traded.  Be creative, be thrifty, be trade-y. 

So here it is (you can also get a re-cap on the specifics of each item here): 

Oven mitts, measuring spoons, un-opened cake pan with lid, cupcake stand, Hello, Cupcake recipe book, mystery TIBS gift certificate, and in honor of all the baking items up for grabs, I will throw in a batch of homemade chocolate chip squares.  They’re amazing, promise.

If you absolutely hate the idea of chocolate chip squares, then you are crazy.  But I don’t judge.  I’ll bake you something else. 

Think about it …

SORRY FRIENDS ..

I know, I know.

So sorry for the hiatus.  I have honestly been so busy (with really semi-important things).  Lately it just seems as though there are not enough hours in the day.
What's a girl to do?

I promise to update tomorrow with a proper post!

Happy Monday :)

SUNDAY QUOTE

MONDAY MUSINGS: IT ISN’T EASY BEING GREEN

Good afternoon, Friends!  Welcome to a new week.

image via InStyle

Here at The Pines the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and the wind is blowing at a reasonably low speed.  I can tell it’s going to be a great day.  No – a great week!

This Saturday is Saint Patrick’s Day. So, in honor of goofy green hats, leprechauns, shamrocks, green beer, and everything else that the day entails, I have compiled a list of my favorite things in my favorite colour...

  

Stylish, comfortable, great cause, great colour.

Really fun kitchen animals.  Dolphins, and penguins, and gators, oh my!

Beautiful vintage coat in emerald.

I have this candle and I love it.  Amazing scent.  Clean, comforting, and fresh.

This is completely amazing and totally out of my league. 

Don’t forget to adjust your watches after springing forward this weekend.

My friend told me that her little sister is dead set on getting a pet these days.  In her attempt to convince her parents, she has been testing out the idea of different animals.  She even asked for one of these.  I think I’d stick with a goldfish.

A neat kitchen tip about one of my favorite green foods.

Feeling like the ol’ beach cruiser could use a little upgrade on security now.

Have a wonderful Monday.

SUNDAY QUOTE

FOOD-RELATED FRIDAY: EATING LOCAL - GRATED RED SALAD and KALE PIE with POTATO CRUST

Friends, it’s Friday!  YAY!

I hope that you’ve had a great week.  As per the usual Pines time warp, mine seems to have just flown by.  Still, I cannot wait for the weekend.  The thought of Sunday morning sleep-ins and fancy foamy coffees keep me going all week.

You know what Friday means, right?  Food talk.

Last week I went home for a few days to Dartmouth to visit my parents over our recovery week.  It was so nice to relax in my old bedroom, watch on-demand cable, sample Bean’s delicious wine selection, walk my favorite neighborhood, share a special meal with my parents at one of our favorite restaurants, wear my old fleece bathrobe every day, and most of all, to enjoy the delicious home-cooked meals that came from our kitchen. 

The Bean/Lounder kitchen does some serious business.  If you’ve ever experienced a BBQ, pizza party, curry night, or sushi dinner then you know what I’m talking about.

I arrived home to find a batch of chocolate chip squares in the fridge and a loaf of fresh bread in the cupboard.  It seriously does not get much better than that.

Here are two wonderful dishes that my mom made while I was home.  They are so healthy and nutritious that you’ll probably feel like you deserve to eat whatever you want for the rest of your life if you make them.  You won’t have to because they are incredibly tasty and filling.

Both make wonderful winter meals and are full of things that you may already have lying around your kitchen.

Grated Red Salad

-Barbara Lounder's Kitchen

1 small red beet

1 small golden beet

1 medium carrot

1/4 head red cabbage

4 inches of root of daikon

1 small onion

1 large clove of garlic

1/4 cup dried currants

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Oil

Lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Grate and mix beets, carrot, cabbage, daikon, and onion.  Finely chop garlic and add to mixture.  Mix in currants and sunflower seeds.  Drizzle with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.  Toss and enjoy.

Almost all of the ingredients came from my cousin Amy’s co-op.  She has been farming at the Avon River CSA and delivers every week for 18 weeks.  The weekly staples are: potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, kale or spinach, with a combination of 2-3:  beets, Brussels’s sprouts, cabbage, celeriac, daikon, radish, kale, leeks, onions, parsnips, sprouts, beans, sweet or savory preserves, and herbal teas.

Amy also includes descriptions and recipes to make sure that you get the most out of your veggies. 

The prices vary, but if you’re interested in eating local, you should definitely check it out – it is a seriously good deal. 

This next recipe is a little time consuming, but I will vouch for it.  Totally worth the effort.  It is amazing and you can eat it for days!

Kale Pie With Potato Crust

-Cooking from the Garden by Rosalind Creasy

Serves 5-6

Crust

2 cups grated raw potato

1/2 cup grated carrot or parsnip

1/4 cup grated onion

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon whole-wheat pastry flour

1 rounded teaspoon minced fresh thyme or dill

Freshly ground pepper to taste

10-inch pie pan

Non-stick spray

1 tablespoon oil

Preheat oven to 375.

Put potato in a colander or strainer and set aside for about 15 minutes.  Combine remaining ingredients except oil in a bowl.  Squeeze potato with your hands to remove excess moisture; then mix into other ingredients.  Pat firmly and evenly into a 10-inch pie pan that has been greased or sprayed with a non-stick spray.  Bake for 40 minutes; halfway through baking brush lightly with oil.  Set aside to cool slightly.  While crust is baking, make filling.

Filling

1 onion, chopped

1 tablespoon oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 rounded teaspoon minced fresh thyme or dill

4 cups packed kale leaves, stripped from stems or torn up

2 eggs

1 cup low fat milk

Dash of cayenne

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 1/2 cups grated part-skim mozzarella cheese

1 tablespoon whole-wheat pastry flour

Reduce oven to 350. In a nonstick skillet with a lid on medium-low heat, sauté onion in oil for about 5 minutes, covered, stirring occasionally.  Add garlic, cover, and cook for 3 minutes; then stir in dill or thyme.  Place kale in the skillet, add 2 tablespoons water, and cover closely.  Cook for about 5 minutes to wilt kale slightly.  Remove from heat, stir, and let sit with lid ajar.  Meanwhile, beat eggs with milk, cayenne, and nutmeg.  Toss cheese with flour and place half evenly over baked crust.  Spoon kale over cheese and pat down, top with remaining cheese, and pour egg mixture over all.  Bake at 350 for about 40

Happy eating.

Have a wonderful and healthy weekend, friends.

PS - You may have noticed that The Little Red Paperclip joined the twitterverse (twittersphere?  tweetworld?  tweetweb?  No?)  today.  I thought it might be a good way to keep y’all up-to-date on what’s going on with the blog, and also to post little tidbits that don’t really warrant full posts.  It might also be a neat way for you to let me know if there are cool ideas that you have for posts.  What do you think?

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

Hey Y'All.  Happy Thursday!

Also, I’d like to wish you all a Happy International Women’s Day.  The theme for International Women's Day in 2012 is:  Empower Rural Women - End Hunger and Poverty.

One of my friends, Ian Mortimer summed things up really well saying,

“Today on International Women's Day, I am thinking about the great strides that Women have made in Canadian society. Yet I am mindful of the inequality that remains, and of the great fight ahead for so many of the world’s women.”

Bravo Ian!  Wonderfully put.

Today is an important day to reflect on past accomplishments and achievements but to also look toward the future and work toward something better.  It’s an important day for awareness and sharing information.

Women, Chicas, Homegirls, Senoritas, Female Friends, Ladies,

Let’s be strong and successful, beautiful and smart, confident and powerful, kind and understanding, driven, hard working, and fair.  Let’s be kind and considerate. Let’s support and encourage one another. Let’s always strive to be the best we can be and never settle for anything less.  Let's love.  Most importantly, let’s respect each other and ourselves.  We are all in this together.

Have a wonderful Day!

Photos via International Women's Day

WISHFUL WEDNESDAY: YELLOW SUBMARINE RAIN GEAR

Howdy.  Happy Wednesday.

This afternoon I went to the movies.  When I went in to the theatre it was warm and sunny, but when I came out, it was raining cats and dogs.  Funny how that seems to happen eh?  I totally wished that I had one of these puppies to navigate the storm under. 

Pretty sweet huh?

Needless to say, I did not have any rain protection and got rather soggy.  I guess at the very least, my car got a good rinse.

Hope your Wednesday was dry and cozy.

(Photo via Uncommon Goods)

SWIMMING LESSONS

Hiya!

Did you know that sometimes Liesl has swimming lessons?

Swimming lessons go like this:

One person stands on a dock with Liesl. Another person stands on an opposite facing dock with a smile and many words of encouragement.  The first person puts Liesl in the water facing the opposite dock, and the other person sings her praises and coaxes her toward them, pulling her out of the water when she reaches the dock.

She mostly hates this and tries to run away.

Liesl is a good swimmer; she just lacks enthusiasm and drive.

It was really warm here in Melbourne over the weekend, so we decided to take Liesl to a new dog beach in the area.  She had so much fun meeting the other dogs (I think at one point there were about 6 different wiener dogs in a tangled mess of leashes), and sniffing the dunes.  When it came to swimming, however … well …

I imagined that it would look like this …

Okay, okay .. maybe like this ...

Alright, well, at the very least, like this ...

But really, it looked a little more like this. 

Drowned rat.

Oh well.  The saga of the swimming lessons continue.

Have a wonderful Tuesday, Friends!

Amazing dog photos via Little Friends, pet photography by Seth Casteel.  Totally check out the website for canine (or feline, if you’re into that) cuteness overload.

SUNDAY QUOTE

FOOD-RELATED FRIDAY: BROWNIES GALORE

T to the G to the I to the F!  Happy Friday, Friends.

Yay, weekend.

Last week I made brownies.  Lots of brownies.  Too many brownies.  No, that’s a lie – there’s no such thing.

I totally love brownies.  They’re a bit more substantial than a lil’ ol’ cookie, they’re sort of like cake, but more dense, and then they’re sort of like squares, but less solid.  They are the perfect in-between sweet.  They go perfectly along with coffee, tea, and milk.  They come with icing, chocolate chips, and nuts.  They’re just so versatile.  I have a crush on brownies.  That’s what it sounds like, at least.

But Tom likes brownies the most so for his birthday party (which was not on his actual birthday), I made a 3-tier brownie cake with the help of my great friend and cake-decorator, Genny.  Then on his actual birthday, I made a batch from scratch.

The cake was total cheating.  I won’t lie, they were box mixes to the max, and store-bought icing .. so sue me ... it was delicious ... 

"Una, what's that weird stuff in the middle?"
"Friend, that is a glorious thing called funfetti.  I highly recommend it."

The real birthday brownies were a different story, though.

This is one of my favorite brownie recipes.  It’s from Gwenyth Paltrow’s cookbook, My Father’s Daughter.  I know, I know … What can I say?  I love her.  Not only do I have a crush on brownies, I have an undying lady-crush on Gwen.  But before you judge me on the cookbook, try the brownies.  The recipe is fast and easy, and if you play your cards right and get the proper ingredients beforehand, they are totally vegan.  I rarely ever play my cards right because brownies are usually a last-minute project, so there are some definite substitutions you can make.

Check it out:

FUDGY CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

2 cups white spelt flour                                                 *all-purpose flour

1 cup high quality cocoa powder

1 ½ tablespoons baking powder

Pinch fine salt

½ cup vegetable oil

1 cup real Vermont maple syrup                                    *your favorite Canadian maple syrup

½ cup light agave nectar or brown rice syrup                 *honey

½ cup strong brewed coffee

½ cup soy milk                                                               *cow’s milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup high-quality chocolate chips, divided                    * just pour - generously.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 x 11 inch dish with vegetable oil.

Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt together in a large mixing bowl.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, syrups, coffee, soy milk, and vanilla.  Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and be careful not to over beat.  Pour half the batter into the baking dish.  Sprinkle with half the chocolate chips.  Pour the rest of the batter into the dish and sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Let it cool if you have patience, cut into squares, and serve.

They are so so so so good.  I love them.  I obviously just use handfuls as measurements for the chocolate chips, and almost never have agave nectar on hand.  No judgement. 

They’re really great served warm with vanilla ice cream.

Okay, I’m on a brownie detox .. starting …. now.

Have a wonderful weekend.  Maybe have a brownie for me.  Maybe have several. 

THRIFTY THURSDAY: STAYCATIONS – guest post

Hey Team!  Welcome to March.  Sheesh, can you even believe it?  Time is flying.

It’s that time of year again – Spring Break time.  Maybe yours is in March, maybe it’s in February, or maybe you’re like me and you sort of live in Florida these days so every day is a bit like Spring Break – weather wise, at least.  I’m lucky … I know it.

Today’s guest post is so exciting.  I had to wait a number of days to post it, and I have been giddy with anticipation.
Victoria Tuttle, fondly known as Tor and/or TorS, is today’s guest blogger.  If you don’t already know Tor, I’ll break it down for you … Tor is a former national team kayaker who currently lives in Ottawa while training in massage therapy.  She is an amazing cook, athlete, fundraiser, teammate, and friend.  She is thrifty and trendy.  She is funny and smart.  She is athletic and beautiful.  She’s probably blushing, but really, she’s just so great.

This year, for her Spring Break, Tor decided to take a Staycation in Ottawa.  It’s a wonderful idea if you want to save some dollars over the break. 

Here’s what she had to say about it …

Staycations: The New Cancun?
or: What I did on my Spring Break
A {Photo} Essay

February used to mean scrambling like mad to get to Florida. But those days are long gone and real life is approaching (two months til graduation!)…  So the sunny south wasn’t an option this year, much to my chagrin and maybe a few others (Tom for sure).

Tom’s reaction when he heard I wasn’t coming to Florida. Utter disbelief.

However, that doesn’t mean I did NOTHING! I had the amazing opportunity to housesit at my friend’s place while she did a yoga retreat in Costa Rica.

Ottawa has a lovely winter festival called ‘Winterlude’, which I’m a huge supporter of.  I rock this sweatshirt 6 days a week for the entirety of the festival (and on the seventh day it rests/gets laundered)

I admired the ice sculptures, cruised the canal, and danced at the outdoor dance party, to stay warm and learn new moves. I had an awkward moment last year at a Carleton Basketball game when the ENTIRE arena did a dance… Ian Mortimer, Alex Young and Amanda Kijewski probably remember it too. This is the dance at 2min. I’ll be ready next time.

(ps GO RAVENS!!)

I also took part in the wonderfulness that Gatineau offers; loads of cross country skiing and I even got to race in the largest ski race North America has! Right here! It was so much fun seeing THOUSANDS of people participate in this great event.  It’s my fifth time rocking the bib in the Gatineau Keskinada Loppet.  All you XC skiers need to attend next year!

The organizers put on a great event, even the Prime Minister of Estonia waxed up!

I totally stalkerazzi’d his fan club! Guilty!

 The paper cups of chocolate covered raisins at the finish may be my favorite part though.  I made a rookie mistake by grabbing a steaming cup of what I thought was hot peach drink.. Nope-- broth.  Lesson: Post-event, stick to the recognizable colors of gatorade.

Yes, I did some school work. Pathophysiology monopolized more time than I care to admit.

Learning is a bit easier with a fancy shmancy coffee. 

I listed, I lazed about; I did the muscle confusing AbRipper X a few times to feel the burn.

Back to the fun stuff.

I went to Toronto (hello big city!) and felt really insignificant amongst the skyscrapers.  I couldn’t wait to get home, and as luck would have it, the 401 was closed (after the last potential exit to get off) and 10km took 3.5hours. Thank god for yoga breathing


I cooked! I baked! I celebrated Pancake Tuesday (yep that’s the ultimate single lady’s pancake from Joy The Baker).

Day planner, BA, pancakes, blood oranges. The necessities of life.

I made a beet cake for a wild dinner Jenna and I had planned, but Mother Nature thwarted that with what seemed to be 100cm of snow. Not complaining as I have now a giant double layer cake in my fridge with incredibly bright pink frosting.

Life is hard. Sometimes.  Here it is non-hipstamatic’d for real in color effect.

BEETS! Nature’s red dye 40!!

I hit everyone’s favorite little bakery café, The Wild Oat, with Jenna for tea, hot bowls and gossip. There is a thirty minute limit, but rules don’t apply to us. Like I said, life is hard. Or, we’re invisible.

my tea fortune! I get it! Less school work/hawking sneakers!

I was bummed about no vacation this year, but I had such a fantastic staycation that I recommend everyone take one! Explore your city! Get to know the little things your area has to offer… So when I come to visit you can show me all the cool haunts and hangs!

So I told you she was great, right?  Doesn’t her cake look amazing?

I want to go home and have a staycation now in my own city!

TorS, Thanks a million for the post.  Don’t worry, I’ll be peer pressuring you later to a.) guest post again, and b.) start your own amazing blog.

Happy Thursday, Friends!