When I asked Bryan what his favorite motivational quote was, he gave me this, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails,” by Mark Twain. Check out Bryan’s story for more inspiration!
It’s no secret, I’m a lover of the sunny months. I have learned to find joy in the snowy winter weather though. Snowboarding and snowshoeing are ranked in my top favorite activities. Now if we could just get a little more snow this year, I’d …
I’m on the bargain hunting band wagon right now. I got four bunches of kale for a dollar at my new favorite store. First thing I made was a salad, then decided I should make a soup. Soup is a great way to hide veggies that nobody likes. #momwin
One of the things I love about kale is that it seems to last forever. Not just because nobody else wants to eat it, but it’s a very hearty green. It’s an every season crop, and word is it tastes better after the first frost. I might have to test that theory out in my garden this year. Every year I get better at gardening, well, with one crop at a time. My tomatoes did awesome this year, finally! Corn, well that’s a work in progress. It’s awesome to know where my food comes from, but it’s good for the wallet too. Since I’m always working on my green thumb, I had to search for a kale growing guide for beginners. Would you like to grow your own too? Check out the guide here.
This soup reminds me of Olive Garden. Have you ever had the Zuppa Toscana soup there, with the kale in it? Well, I’ve never had it, but I remember seeing it when I’ve eaten there. I bet I could add in some fennel seeds to give this even more Italian flair, that sausage flavor? I love that soup has endless possibilities.
I hope you enjoy this recipe, let me know how you like it. <3
| Prep Time | 15-20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 30 minutes |
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hearty bowls
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You always hear, write what you know. Share about you. Well, every year when the season changes, I start to feel depression kicking in. Living in the PNW, I hear about this pretty often, the sunny months are not nearly long enough. I’m writing this …
You know what I love about finding my place in the fitness community? There are SO MANY inspiring people to follow. Everyone has their own story to tell, everyone’s journey is different, but at the same time similar. We all have to start where we …
I should probably start sharing healthier recipes with you guys, like salad bowls, or other things of that nature. I can’t help myself though, I love finding vegan options for the foods I love. Initially when I transitioned to vegan, I was a little scared because I wasn’t sure I could help most of the people I coach on a regular basis. Most of the people I’m in contact with are no where near vegan. I’m not really scared of that anymore, I figure if I can make something that’s just as tasty as it’s not vegan counterpart, then maybe it will encourage some one to eat just a little bit less cheese. There are so many studies that show health benefits to removing animal products from your diet, how could I not want to encourage that?
I wait tables at Applebees part time. They have such yummy, not vegan friendly, happy hour appetizers. I used to always get their spinach and artichoke dip but it’s definitely not vegan. A few weeks ago I decided to try to make my own. I found a recipe online that seemed way too complicated and decided to make it simpler. Since then I’ve made spinach dip two more times. I’m definitely hooked.
I decided to modify my nacho cheese sauce as the cheese sauce that goes in with the spinach. I added spinach, chopped onions, garlic, and artichokes to the recipe and whoomp, there it is! I’m glad that the sauce has less calories than real cheese. Maybe next time instead of using chips or bread to dip in the sauce I’ll use some celery for a healthier option. Maybe, no promises though because this girl loves her tortilla chips.
I hope you’ll try out this recipe and let me know how it compares to your happy hour dip!
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Cream Sauce
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You could throw your spinach dip in a baking dish and top it with Daiya Mozzarella cheese. Bake it at 350 degrees until the cheese is melty.
Also, trying using the dip as a sandwich spread. #bombdotcom
Last year’s fires put a damper on my plans for hiking the John Muir Trail and also hiking up Half Dome. I had never actually heard of Half Dome until I signed up to hike the JMT. After hearing about how epically scary it is, …
Wanna know what one of my favorite snacks was growing up? Other than a Snickers bar, the big one??? Nacho Cheese Doritos, dipped in nacho cheese and sour cream. Phew, it feels good to get that off my chest. Lol. I think it’s funny that …
I’ve only been backpacking since last year. BUT, I feel like after spending 21 days with my backpack, I have a little bit of trail cred… I definitely learned about things I don’t want to live without during the summer heat. Speaking of summer, we had quite a teaser of 90+ degree weather in June, and now, it feels like fall already! I’m feeling ripped off. I’ve had a few cooler weather trips, they definitely have different must haves. When I get more time out in cold weather, I’ll be sure to share those must haves too!
ps. I’m not getting paid to talk about any of these products, they’re just what I’ve used and really enjoy. I put links to each item in their title.
While hiking miles and miles, in the hot sun, it was so nice to have something to help cool down. Just dipping my towel in a bit of water and snapping it to help it feel cool again was amazing. I also love that it looks like I’m wearing a fashionable scarf on the trail. Lol! They have some super cute designs now. One other bonus, sports bra straps and backpack shoulder straps aren’t so fun together. When you leave the towel untied, it covers the fact that you aren’t wearing a bra!
So far, I’ve used two types of water filters—one was a hand pump and the other was a gravity fed filter. I’m ALL about the gravity fed filter. When you’re thirsty, or tired, pumping water is no bueno. The Platypus Gravity Works made it easy to grab water when getting to camp, and then let it filter while setting up. I’ll probably never use a pump filter again, unless my Platypus breaks. I am, however, on a mission to find a filtering water bottle that I love so that I can fill up at streams along the trail with minimal effort.
I love my backpack but the water bottle pockets aren’t super convenient. Also, the little belt pockets aren’t very big. I was super pleased to find Justin’s backpack attachments. It was super easy to get my phone in and out of the little snack/phone attachment. It was nice because I didn’t have to worry about it falling out on sketchy terrain either. I loved them so much that I bought one for each of my backpacks. I didn’t use the water bottle attachment on the JMT because I carried my camera with me, but it’s definitely been great for other hikes.
All three of my summertime “must haves” came from other people’s recommendations when I was just getting started. I’m all about learning from someone else’s experience and would love to hear your must haves! Make sure to leave a comment and subscribe so you don’t miss out on future posts.
Breakfast is legit my favorite meal. I suppose that could be because it’s my biggest meal these days. Oatmeal used to be my go to, but now, there’s so many options. Maybe that’s because my pallet has expanded, I could probably list more foods that …