Muddy Footsteps

Blog Moved!

2010-01-10T21:31:00.001-08:00

I moved my blog. Please check it out and follow/subscribe. Thanks!

http://muddyfootsteps.wordpress.com/

Late Night Starbucks

2010-01-08T23:43:00.000-08:00

So today was definitely a lazy day, well I did open at work this morning, so I did do something productive. On the menu for the day was:

Breakfast:

oatmeal w/ soy milk, banana, toasted nuts, dried fruit, and cinnamon
16 oz H20

Snacks:

8 almonds
roasted brussel sprouts
apple
frozen banana

Lunch:

green smoothie

Dinner:

LARA Bar

(This is where it gets bad and I ruin my eating for the day)

Starbucks:

Fresh fruit cup
Tall soy steamer
San Pellgrino w/ 3 pumps of Raspberry. Yum!

Baja Fresh:

Tons of chips, salsa, and guac.

I was bored at Starbucks so I decided to whip out the camera and snap a bunch of pictures. Here is what I got:

Latte that Emily made me

Apple Fritter

(try it warmed up) Not VEGAN.

Red Velvet Cupcake

Supposedly really good.

Reduced-Fat Banana Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie

Try warmed

Raspberry Italian Soda

San Pellegrino w/ 3 pumps Raspberry

Trader Joes Chocolate Bar

~~Mike~~ Shrek

Emily grubbing down

Vanilla latte time

Always ends up in a box somehow

Dee and Tristan

Sam and Emily

PS: I didn't eat all of that food. I just took pictures of it.

Visit to Grams

2010-01-07T14:30:00.000-08:00

My sister and I stopped at my grandma's house on our way home. We got her a DVD/VCR player for christmas so my sister helped set that up for her. Her house is filled with knick-knacks and tons of patty-wacks. I snapped a couple pictures before we left. It was good to see gma.

Typical grandma fridge.

The drive home was fast, pretty and relaxing. It was a beautiful day out and we knew the sunset we be just as beautiful. We hit the ocean a little bit before sunset time. My sister took some pictures. That's the time I wish I had a telephoto lense! Anyways, made it home just in time to shower and make it to my adventure program meeting. Kayak, Rock climbing, canyoneering trips booked! Can't Wait!!!

Sprouting Out

2010-01-07T13:42:00.000-08:00

I'm experimenting with new veggies. I'm trying to get as much green in my day as I possibly can. I put tons of spinach in my green smoothies. I've tried making kale chips. I eat a salad almost everyday.

I've always been curious of brussel sprouts. I never really had them when I was a kid and people cringe when they hear brussel sprouts. One of my co-workers at the river made them sauteed with butter once. They were really really good! That was the only time I had them so I wanted to re-create them again but a little bit healthier. When I roast my veggies I like them really well done so adjust the time in the oven to your liking.

Slice sprouts in half
Blanch in boiling water for 1-2 minutes
Roast in 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until desired tenderness.

I kept mine in the oven for 20 minutes +

TWENTY10

2010-01-07T12:47:00.000-08:00

Time for changes, resolutions, gym memberships has come. I don't know if it's just me but I feel like this year went by so fast, especially the holiday season. You know christmas is over when the holiday cups at starbucks are gone. I went in to work the other day and we're back to old fashion white cups.

I hope everyone had a fun and safe christmas and new years. For new years my dad, sister and I went to the desert with some old friends. We haven't seen them in yearrrrs so it was really good to see them again.

My dad took the RV and left early and my sister and I lagged behind. We took the jeep and left a couple hours later. On the way there it was misting a bit and the clouds were coming in. We got to the campground and it was really cloudy and cold out. We all made sure to bundle up that night.

Jim was saying that when you hang out with people you haven't seen in a long time normally it's really akward with short answers and weird questions. He said that it's not like that with us. It's back to normal and we just live in the moment. The week ranged from off roading, sitting next to the fire, yahtzee, dancing, drinking, jacuzz'ing', hiking, bike riding, golf, relaxing, and all sorts of other fun things.

Drunken fiasco of a night!

precious little angel taking a nap

And on to another fiasco of a night!

New Years 2010!

Jim and Laura won the jumbo raffle! A huge jager cooler filled to the gills with all sorts of jager attire. Jim was sporting the jager thongs later in the night.

Haha. The boys were calling it a night early so they wouldn't be too sleepy for golf the next morning.

Happy New Year!

Product Review

2010-01-05T10:52:00.000-08:00

Amy's Bowls

Brown rice, black eyed peas and veggies

Ingredients:

Organic Brown Rice, Filtered Water, Organic Black-Eyed Peas, Organic Broccoli, Organic Mushrooms, Organic Tomatoes, Organic Carrots, Organic Onions, Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Organic Tamari (Wheat Free)Organic Cilantro, Organic Ginger, Sea Salt, Organic Garlic, Spices [100% Pure Herbs & Spices (No Hidden Ingredients)

Nutrition Facts:

Serving Size: 1 Bowl

Calories: 290

Calories from fat: 100

Total Fat: 11g

Saturated Fat: 1.5g

Sodium: 580mg

Total Carbs: 38g

Dietary Fiber: 8g

Sugars: 5g

Protein: 11g

I tend to not eat many frozen meals because I like making fresh meals and I don't trust all of the ingredients in the meals. The sodium levels are usually very high and the food doesn't look anything like the cover it shows. This bowl was very good and surprisingly looked exactly like its cover. It had a good amount of veggies and the flavors worked well together. This is gluten free also. The only bad thing that I can find about this dish is that it's pricey. But most people realize that we pay more money for healthier food. All in all, this meal was really good. It was a healthy meal that only took a few minutes to cook.

Sweet Potato Chips

2010-01-05T10:16:00.000-08:00

These are simple to make, good and healthy to eat. Sweet Potato Chips. They are just as good, if not better, as the classic potato chips.

First step: Peel the sweet potatoes

2nd: Slice the potatoes. Make them fairly thin. Think of packaged potato chips, they are very thin . The dehydrating process shrints them. Adjust the size to your liking.

Lay on dehydrator sheet, apply olive oil, sprinkle with salt.

Be gentle on the salt. My first batch was too salty so go lighter than you think.

Dehydrate on 135 overnight. Or, to make raw sweet potato chips, dehydrate at 115 overnight and plus hours until crispy.

Finish product. Light, crispy, salty. Yum

Decapitation

2010-01-05T09:44:00.000-08:00

Yes, decapitation is right. Maybe not a human or a live animal but it still happened.

This is Katie's wooly. She has gone through all sorts of animals, bugs and even mammals. This last one was a turkey. I guess her thanksgiving ran a little late.

Look at the sadness on her face.

Paintings in the sky

2009-12-30T12:14:00.000-08:00

Sunset on the deck.

Breakfast of Champs

2009-12-30T11:55:00.000-08:00

Just another day at home. Woke up, made some orange juice and then created this beauty.

Health-nut bowl

grapes
frozen blueberries
apples
craisins
walnuts
flax
cinnamon
soy milk

Orange Juice

Brandi hanging out in the kitchen

Sleeping in

2009-12-28T15:12:00.000-08:00

I think that's the best part of the holidays and vacation; sleeping in. Well I went to bed fairly early last night so I woke up at a decent hour. I went upstairs to make orange juice. When I came back down to watch a little food network this is what I found.

Look closer...

Goodmorning ~~princess~~ Buddy

Buddy cuddled up in the blankets.

Check out his view!

Lucky Dog :)

Breakfast this morning was another bowl of goodness just like yesterdays. Same one but when I was pulling out the ingredients I found a kiwi. So I chopped that sucker up and threw it in with the rest of the fruit.

Breakfast was outside on the deck today. I thought I would shoot some more pictures of the ~~dogs~~ scenery :)

I can't help but laugh in this one.

Christmas

2009-12-28T14:22:00.000-08:00

Original title post, huh? I thought so :) I'm warning you all that I have tons of pictures and this post is going to be filled with them. I got my new lense for christmas! So I've been taking pictures like a mad woman.

Anyways, this christmas I was at my dads house with my sister and grandparents. My dad was on a roll baking and cooking all sorts of vegans goodies and meals. He made carob chip cookies, madelines, rougalah, fruit leathers, mashed potatoes, stuffing, ~~turkey,~~ roasted asparagus, sauteed carrots (earth balance) and much more! My sister and I woke up christmas morning and headed downstairs to the ~~christmas tree~~ living room. We all opened up gifts and then got ready for the day ahead of us!

These were our ACAI shots that we took every morning.

I got my lense so I wasn't much help in the kitchen ;) My dad was doing most of the dirty work while I was taking pictures. I was up for 20 hours the day before so I was getting really tired. My sister passed out in the other room also. We have been slaving at the bux for the last couple days. Time to RELAX!

For breakfast I was craving two different flavors. I decided to go with a little bit of both. I made a chocolate smoothie and then a fruit smoothie. They were small so I wasn't too full when I finished them. The chocolate smoothie was my favorite!

Chocolate Smoothie

crushed ice
soy milk
coconut milk
carob chips
raw cacao powder
banana
flax

Blend it all together and top with a little cinnamon! I didn't add the size of the ingredients you should add because I just threw it all together based on the flavor I wanted. Add more carob or more banana if you want those flavors stronger. Adjust to your liking!

Fruit Smoothie

banana
apple
flax
ice
water
mango (pureed)

Lunch was a bowl of shredded wheat cereal with walnuts, cinnamon, and soy milk.

Snacks of the day:

We had a great christmas dinner and followed it up with an amazing dessert. My pictures don't capture how delicious this tasted! It was a mango sorbet, banana-strawberry sorbet, chocolate cup filled with vanilla creme topped with strawberries all laying on a blackberry fruit leather.

It was a good day filled lots of fun, food and laughter. My grandparents brought over there precious little babies. They recently had to put down one of their dogs so they decided to add more to their family. I couldn't help but take pictures of them.

Precious little pups!

PS: My dad made everything vegan! Well except the turkey

The next day I went over to my moms house to spend christmas with her and my step dad, Greg. We shared gifts and then went downstairs to watch tv for the remaining of the night. In between all of this I HAD to take a million pictures of my precious babies. I've had two of them since I was a wee little kid. They are getting old but they still are young at heart.

The next morning I made fresh orange juice for my mom and I. We were going on a tough walk after breakfast so we wanted something that would give us energy. She had peanut butter toast topped with flax. I had a mountain full of goodness. Let's call this

A Mouthful of Waffle

2 whole grain waffles
1 banana
1 TBS flax
1 TSP TJ Peanut Butter
1 TBS chopped walnuts

Yumm!!! :)

We let breakfast settle for a little bit and then went out for our toning walk. My mom takes me on a route that has a hill that she named' heart-attack hill'. Pretty funny but this sucker sure can take the air out of you. Good, tough walk followed up by a hot, steamy shower.

After getting ready we were craving some lunch. We had a big bowl of fruity heaven. They were exactly the same but hers had yogurt in it where mine had a couple splashes of soy milk.

Breakfast Fruity Goodness
(serving size- 2 huge bowls)

1 apple
1 banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup grapes
handful of chopped walnuts
2 TBS flax
1 TBS cinnamon

Brandi just heard a really funny joke!

After lunch we geared up and jumped in the car. My mom's boss lives in the hills with over 100 orange trees. That's where I stock up for all of my orange juice that I make. Last time I visited home I ended up taking 10 bags home! This time about 8 or so. It was a really pretty day out especially in the setting we were in. There was a little cat that was following us around. It was a cute cat and seemed natural in front of the camera!

My mom :)

Mom being goofy!

After orange picking we went back home to relax some more... More practicing with the camera and I think the dogs were starting to get sick of me. Haha. A couple hours later and we were getting a little bit hungry. I sliced up a yellow pepper and brought out the hummus. We were muching on that and some grapes. The sunset was coming soon so we went outside to take some shots. I still haven't perfected this camera yet and can't get the pictures how I want them but you can still see the general idea. The pictures don't show it but the sunset was beautiful over the ocean.

Look at those faces!

Dinner time! I had an Amy's bowl with brown rice, black eyed peas and veggies. That's the first Amy's meal I had and it was really good. Thumbs Up! After dinner we hung out upstairs for a while, messing on the computer and all that jazz, then headed downstairs to cuddle in bed and watch tv. The day, night and christmas festivities were heading to an end.

Goodnight.

Home for the Holidays

2009-12-25T22:49:00.000-08:00

One thing I love about being home for the holidays is ~~making as much treats, snacks and meals for free~~ seeing my family. But really it's great to spend time with my family and friends. My dad always gets the best food and has the fridge stocked up! We go to the farmers market every saturday to get more fresh food and enjoy the atmosphere.

On the menu for lunch today was a ciabatta sandwhich, vegan cookie, & strawberries. Since going vegan my dad has been creating meals & treats like a mad man. It's awesome, especially when I come home & I can try all the things he makes AND enjoy an entire vegan christmas dinner!

Scramble Time

2009-12-25T22:00:00.000-08:00

Alright I have to ~~admit~~ something. I've been missing eggs. It's been 3 months since I gave them up and so I've been wanting to make something that will substitute them. I posted a blog earlier about my friend, Kaely, making an incredible tofu scramble. I decided to give it a try and make my own with a little twist. I made it the same way she did but changed up the ingredients just a bit.

My ingredients included:

tofu
cumin
black beans
tomatoes
corn
rosemary
garlic
onions

I was shocked that I could create something so easy and SO delicious. It was amazing. I did give myself a ~~huge~~ normal sized portion. Okay! I was starving. I threw in a toasted bagel also. Made the dinner that much better :D I haven't experiented much with tofu and the times that I have, I haven't liked it all that much. My mind has changed! This tofu scramble is also very inexpensive so I'm sure this will be cooking up in my kitchen very frequently.

Morning with Java

2009-12-22T15:37:00.000-08:00

Yet again I begin work at 5 this morning. I really only open at the store, which is a good and a bad thing. BAD: obviously, you must be up at the crack of dawn GOOD: you are off early and have the whole day left! Plus, when I walk out to my car to leave for work, I get to see the stars! I see the big dipper every morning!

Today I was off early. I was supposed to be off earlier than expected but there was a huge rush of tired folks so I stayed to help ~~clear them all out~~ satisfy their needs and give them their morning java with a smile :)

I was not tired for work this morning and had a lot of energy but as soon as I came home, turned on the heater and laid down on the couch I knew a nap was headed my way. An hour later my sister wakes me up so I can take her to the train station. Oh man, I was so sleepy and did not want to get up at all! But I did, because I love her. So now I'm back on the couch. Haha. Well, I'm alowed to! I worked already this morning, nobody is left in town and I have nothing else I need to be doing today.

Hmm, food for thought. Well, like usual, today I had my yummy mug of oatmeal. I'm still surprised everyday about how good it tastes. I think making it with the soy milk enhances the flavors so much! The kodak picture is of me and three of my amazing co-workers! Me, Kittrina, Adrianna, and Jackie! Such sweet, fun girls to work with.

To balance out my green starbucks apron, I made myself a delicious green smoothie. I added a little more H20 this time so I could end up with a larger finish product :) The ~~mason jar~~ drinking mug was a little frosted over but it added to the drink. Gave it a frosty, cold effect!

Post-green smoothie and train station I came home and made some popcorn! I love popcorn. It's simple, cheap and so easy to make. I use to make it all the time and my friends were so shocked that you can make popcorn without a microwave and with store bought bags. Yes, let's jump back a few years when we had no microwaves. My sister and I make popcorn all the time in our dutch oven. And yes, those are cozy christmas pj's I am wearing. It's a ritual every year for christmas that my sister and i get pj's! My mom moved from getting me bunny pajamas (haha) to top and bottom pj's to just bottom ones. We wear those more often.

On the ipod today is:

ARTIST: Kings of Leon

Drink Your Food

2009-12-21T19:27:00.000-08:00

I believe it was David Wolfe that said to "Drink your food". Sounds weird but all of those healthy, green, vitamin packed veggies can be packed and blended into a yummy smoothie! Just need to add a couple more ingredients to make it a SUPERfood smoothie (SFS). Today, when I got off work, I came home and made another one of my routine SFS. I bought a large quantity of the ingredients so I'm going to be making these same smoothies until I run dry.

It's sad to say but I haven't gone on a run in probablly over a month. Yuckk! I have done yoga but haven't gone out to run. Today around 4 I got this burst of energy and decided to go out! I threw on my tennies and started running right away. I was going at a pretty fast rate for not going in a while. It was one of the most beautiful days out. Luckily I live next to the ocean and get to run along side the beautiful, crashing waves. Heaven is an understatement of how breathtaking it was out today. I wish I would have had my camera!! Who knew it was going to be that pretty out in the middle of December! There were tons of surfers out which definitely added to the scenery :)

It was really tough near the end of the run. I went a couple miles and kept increasing the pace. The end stretch was about 200 meters and I sprinted the whole thing. The last couple steps I ~~almost collapsed~~ slowed down. Great run, but I have a feeling I'm going to be pretty sore in the morning.

4am wake up call!

2009-12-21T19:03:00.000-08:00

Well technically not 4am, but 4:30am this morning I had to get up for work. Work starts at 5 so I have to get up quick, get ready and bust out the door within 15 minutos! Mondays are typically slow at my store. It's tuesdays that bring the real rush! Luckily today was not one of those days -->

As usual I had my morning mug of tummy filling oatmeal. It's filled with all sorts of heavenly goodness!

This is what it's loaded with:

oatmeal w/ soy milk
toasted nuts
cinnamon
dried fruit
banana

I got the idea of making the oatmeal with soy milk instead of water (yummm!) from my buddy Abraham. He is our Starbucks #1 customer! He comes in every single morning, 7 days a week! As soon as we open, he is standing at the register with cup in hand ready for his decaf soy misto!

Alright so speaking of Starbucks, I have some tips for all you customers coming in for your daily java!

If you get a coffee and ask for a lot of room (more than 2 inches), ask for a cup of coffee smaller in a bigger cup. Example: Can I get a grande coffee in a venti cup. You save some $$$ and you don't have to dump out coffee in the trash because they put too much in.
If you get Chai Latte's, order then with NO WATER. A lot of people don't realize that they come with water but the reason for us doing this is because the chai syrup is concentrated and the water helps thin it out. Truthfully, all of the baristas and most customers like it much better without water. It gives the latte a richer taste and smoother texture!
If you are in the mood for a sweet, fruity, and cold drink try this one out! Iced passion tea, raspberry syrup (I would recommend 2-4 pumps, depending on how sweet you want it), and NAKED orange mango fruit juice instead of water. This drink is refreshing and tastes like a starburst!

I will add Starbucks tips and suggestions every once in a while but there are a couple for you guys to have now!

Drink Up!

Partial Impact Woman

2009-12-20T22:04:00.000-08:00

Alright alright so I took this off from 'No Impact Man', which is an incredible man + wife and child who challenge themselves to create absolutely no harmful impact on the world. 365 days of an extreme experiment. Partial Impact woman is my take on becoming less impactful on the world. Trying to reduce my carbon footprint. Check out the trailer to 'No Impact Man'

"No car. No subway. No elevators. No TV, no taxis, no air conditioning, no newspapers or magazines, no shopping for new clothes, no refrigerator, no disposable diapers, no food that wasn't produced within 250 miles of their home, no coffee, no toilet paper -- and a worm-filled compost box in the kitchen."

Imagine that. Well it's an incredibly tough challenge to do but it would be well worth it. You don't need to go to extremes but every little thing will help.

For example:

Get 'chico bags' or any other kind of reusable bag when you go to the grocery store or farmers market. Here are 6 reasons to not use plastic bags.
Turn off the lights when you don't need them
Unplug appliances when not in use (Cell phone Charger!)
Walk or ride your bike to work or school instead of driving.
Recycle!!!
Wrap xmas gifts with newspaper

Start reducing your carbon footprint!

In the Noggin

2009-12-20T20:51:00.000-08:00

I've been visiting Borders a little too much. I say that because everytime I go, I end up buying things (but i do use coupons, 30-40% off to be exact). It's very relaxing to grab a magazine or book and lounge on the couches and read for a while.

Eatsmart, Eatraw is a great book with a ton of recipes. It's a good intro book into the raw world and kate wood makes it easy to read and the recipes she creates sound great. Superfoods by David Wolfe is a MUST HAVE. Any and every vegan/raw foodist could use this book. It explains the top superfoods in detail, tells about the nutrients that they all have and then gives recipes on each superfood. I love the way the book is organized. It lists one superfood, explains it, and then follows up with recipes.

There are also a couple climbing videos in the picture above. I actually won two of them at the Reel Rock Film Tour. By ~~volunteering to help with the tour~~ buying a ticket you get a chance to win some prizes. Northface jackets, videos, and more clothes were up for grabs. I was so excited when my number was called out! Even better, when I came home to watch the video, inside was a free year subscription to Climbing magazine! Could not get any better! But it did!!!! Just the other day I got the mail and a free climbing video was sent to me. That's the video to the left of David Wolfe's book. I haven't watched it yet but I will be soon.

King Lines is a must see! Chris Sharma is ~~absolutely gorgeous~~ an amazingly talented climber. Check out the trailer to King Lines.

On the ipod today is:

ARTIST: Fiona Apple

ALBUM: Tidal

Let's fill up the tummy

2009-12-20T20:20:00.000-08:00

This morning I had some delicious, freshly squeezed ~~by yours truly~~ orange juice. When I went home a couple weeks ago I went out with my mom to pick a ton of oranges. They have lasted my sister and I about a month. We just hit the end of the bag this morning. Good thing I'm headed home in a couple days. Time to re-stock!

After work and going to the beach to take pictures of the sunset, I came home to ~~scrub ten pounds of tar off my feet~~ make dinner. On the menu was a very simple salad and a green SUPERfood smoothie.

The smoothie was the same one as this green SUPERfood smoothie .

I was still a bit hungry after the smoothie so I used some of the things I bought from Trader Joes and the Farmers Market. I would have made the salad a bit fancier by adding some almonds and flax seed but I already had them earlier in the day and didn't want to overload. So the salad was just black beans, tomatoes, carrots and a simple dressing. It was easy, tasted good and filled me up. Lots of green food tonight for dinner.

Ta Ta for now!

Sunrise, Sunset

2009-12-20T20:02:00.000-08:00

This post totally reminded me of Fiddler on the Roof. You need to see this movie if you never have! Here is a clip from it:

Anyways, the point of that whole thing was that the sunset today was absolutely beautiful! I got off work ~~not soon enough~~ at 4 and had to do a few errands. Trader Joes to name a few. I picked up some bananas, spinach, black beans, tofu, and apples for part of my dinner. It was started to get later in the day and I wanted to make it back to the beach in time for the sunset.

I took a ton of photos and a couple videos too. Make sure you watch the whole video because at the end it's pretty funny.

Hope you all had a great day!

Trying out new things

2009-12-20T10:56:00.000-08:00

So yesterday was saturday, which means, FARMERS MARKET day! Well technically, there is a farmers market here everyday of the week but saturdays are the biggest. I had work in the morning. 5AM yuckk! I am a morning person but yesterday I DID NOT want to get up. But anyways, my boss let me off early, around 9:15. I went home, showered up and took ~~forever~~ no time to find something to wear. FM here I come! I stopped at the bank to grab a freshhh twenty and then set off with my chico bag and FEED (whole foods) bag in hand. I spent $11 and got: 4 tomatoes, 7 avocadoes, 2 heads of kale, 2 heads of lettuce, 2 cherimoyas, and some flowers. Once I get my camera (bought the camera for xmas and getting the lenses from santa :D ) I'm going to start bringing it. The environment and the people there are awesome; that's why I go back all the time.

I've been reading all over tons of blogs about kale chips. People say how amazing they taste, and especially how good they are for you. I wasn't too specticle about them because I've been seeing these on every blog! Kath Eats Real Food mentions them, and even the renegade health show has a video on how to make them.

A lot of people are making these ~~potato~~ kale chips topped with a cheesy dressing, but I didn't have any of the ingredients to make that at my apartment so I opted for another solution. I used olive oil, salt, and rosemary.

Since this entire thing was an experiment, I decided to do some chips raw and some cooked. I put in about a quarter of the bunch in the oven at 350 and then the rest in the dehydrator.

I left the ones in the oven in too long and they somewhat burnt. I still tried them and you can tell that they have potential, but I think I'm going to stick with the dehydrator. More reasons than one to go that route.

I snuck a bite before they were done just to see how they were coming along. They tasted awesome. I never would have thought that kale would taste so good.

Kale is loaded with vitamin K, A, and C. Plus, they are a good source of Calcium!

I dug into one of the cherimoya's. It wasn't completely ripe but I wanted to try it out and I was hungry also. To tell you the truth, it tastes ok. It wasn't great but it wasn't bad. Maybe if I would have let it ripen up some more the flavors would have been stronger.

I was having so much fun with the dehydrator I wanted to make something else. I cut up two tomatoes I had in the fridge earlier and put them in the dehydrator. Home made ~~sun~~ dried tomatoes! They look and taste just like the store bought ones.

So that was my experimenting for the night. I'm excited about the kale chips. They are cheap, easy and taste good. Now it's time to get ready for work, make some $$$ to buy tons of christmas presents! Happy Holidays everyone!

Green SUPERfood Smoothies

2009-12-19T22:47:00.000-08:00

These drinks are incredible. Not only do they taste good but they are packed with more nutrients than you can imagine. To list a few, these green Superfood Smoothies contain:

Vitamin B6
Vitamin C
Potassium
Dietary Fiber
Manganese
Calcium
Carotene
Iron

Plus plenty more! Let alone, goji berries contain 18 amino acids and 21 trace minerals. This drink will get you ready to rock the day!

INGREDIENTS:

1 Banana
16 oz. water
1 Large handful of Spinach
1 TSP flaxseed
1 Scoop (10g) of Trader Joe's 'Super Green Drink Powder Berry Flavor)
1 Scoop (8g) of Whole Foods Colon Cleanse (High Fiber)
1 TSP Whole Foods Bee Pollen
1 TBS Goji Berries
Squeeze of Lemon Juice (optional)

Directions:

Blend all together, this usually makes me two large glasses.

It's absolutely amazing for your body and a great way to start the day. I just created the recipe and added things here and there. It tastes really good and has endless amounts of nutrition. ENJOY!

Getting Fierce in the Kitchen

2009-12-19T21:29:00.000-08:00

Last week my friend, Kaely, stayed at the apartment for about a week. Her boyfriend is a vegan so she has been practicing lots of vegan cooking. One morning she wipped up a delicious breakfast for the two of us. Yummy, Yummy, Yummy is all I can say!

On the menu was an italian version of a tofu scramble with a side of toast topped with an avocado/hummus spread! Killer breakfast!!!! After this meal, she is welcome over anytime she wants.

So the videos of Kaely making the food aren't working but here is one of the finish product.

PS: Kaely has an incredible voice, check out her myspace page and listen to her music. kaelysings

Make-Over!

2009-12-19T20:21:00.000-08:00

So not only did I give my blog a complete make-over but I got a new make-over as well! My sister took me to a salon to get my hair colored and cut for my christmas present. It's darker now and has layers. I feel it's pretty dark but people have commented on it, they like it, and they say it makes my eyes pop! So I will take that.

But now for the exciting part! I re-vamped my entire blog. It was boring and plain before and it needed a make-over. My sister helped me out with the title, Muddy Footsteps.

There were a couple reasons why this title fit so well:

I love the outdoors
Rock climbing, rafting, hiking are some of my favorite things and those can leave you pretty dirty and sometimes muddy
Footsteps--> I'm traveling the world one step at a time
This blog is a journal of my day to day life and it lets you guys follow in my footsteps!

So there you have it! The reasons why this title fits so well. Organic/Raw/Vegan living and cooking isn't always a clean process. When you're working in the garden it can get messy but that's always the fun in it!

Pomegranate Seeds

2009-11-10T11:59:00.000-08:00

Pomegranates are one of nature's healthiest foods available. Although they are very good for the body, they are also very messy and difficult to deal with. I wanted to show you how to remove the seeds in an easy, clean and efficient way. First off, pomegranates can stain so when you deal with them be aware of this and maybe put on a shirt that you don't mind getting stained. Fortunately I was wearing a blue, purple, and maroon tie dye shirt so it somewhat blended in.

So these are the supplies/ingredients you will need:

Pomegranate

Knife

Bowl

Cutting Board

Serving Spoon or something with a heavy handle

First, you need to cut the pomegranate in half.

Second, put the pomegranate, inside side down, in your palm and place your hand over or inside a large bowl.

Then, take the spoon end or the handle end (whatever is heaviest) and wack the pomegranate. The pressure of the spoon and force of the hitting will knock the seeds out. It's very simple and gets the seeds out quickly and without a big mess.

Your pomegranate will look murdered but you got all of your seeds out cleanly and very efficiently!

The seeds are packed with antioxidants, throw them in your breakfast, lunch or dinner!

I used them in my breakfast earlier this morning:

Breakfast with antioxidant burst

and in my lunch:

Simple Salad

Lettuce,

Black beans,

Pepperchinis,

Flax seeds,

Pomegranates,

Home made Italian dressing

Double Dose of Yoga

2009-11-10T11:33:00.000-08:00

So the other day my sister and I went to lululemon to do some morning yoga. It was tough and definitely got me sweating. I left feeling liberated, stretched and ready for the day. There was another class that night that was a candle-lit Flow yoga. The purpose of this class was in honor of the instructors cousin who suffers from the genetic and fatal disease Cystic Fibrosis. It was a relaxing, moving and inspirational hour and a half class. At the end the instructor left 'chico bags' and bracelets to take with us or give out to people to spread the information on CF.

"Cystic fibrosis is an inherited disease that causes thick, sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive tract. It is one of the most common type of chronic lung disease in children and young adults, and may result in early death."

Breakfast with an antioxidant burst

2009-11-10T08:35:00.000-08:00

This morning I would up with an empty belly and a desire to kick start today with a good meal. I went to the kitchen and drank a large glass of water. I do it every morning before I do anything else. Next was breakfast. I worked yesterday at starbucks so before I leave I got my partner beverage as a venti cup of soy milk. Why not use my partner bev as milk instead of buying it at the store, good idea, huh? :) Anyways, I had oatmeal yesterday and wanted a change. Well not the biggest change none the least.

Granonla with an antioxidant punch

Ingredients:

Soy milk

Cinnamon

Honey ( I know, not vegan)

Granola,

Flax seeds

Dry roasted almonds

Pomegranate seeds

Banana

Directions:

Duh, put in a bowl and eat up! :D

I would recommend eating it in a watermelon bowl :D

So I just wanted to share this delicious meal with you guys. Try it out sometime. An easy and yummy breakfast with lots of healthy benefits in it.

Tofu Challenge

2009-11-06T16:31:00.000-08:00

So I'm not too convinced on tofu yet. I'm trying different ways of making it to make it tastier. The first time I sauteed it with some seasonings. I liked the texture but the taste not so much. This time I decided to marinade it for about an hour first to let the flavor absorb in the tofu.

I used an Asian Sesame marinade. After about 2 hours of marinading, I broiled the tofu in the oven. I like most of my food extra crispy/crunchy so I left it in there for a little bit of time. It was about 12 minutes on each side. Maybe a little longer. In 350 degree temp. Once they were done, I added them to a quick salad. I'm going to the farmers market tomorrow morning so I'm mostly out of veggies. The ones I had left I threw in the salad. Red pepper, brocolli, lettuce (duh), dry roasted almonds, and the tofu topped with a basil vinagrette.

Coconut-y :D

2009-11-06T15:43:00.000-08:00

So I went out to do a little grocery shopping for some lovely treats I was going to create. I was feeling a bit thirsty and was going to get a smoothie but they were too expensive and the line was a little long so I decided to head to starbucks. Since I work there I know how to specialize drinks and make them extra yummy :) If you're in the mood for something light but creamy (COLD DRINK) try this:

Iced venti black tea

Two splenda instead of classic syrup

An inch of soy

Pretty simple but amazing. I also get it with light ice because a good amount of ice is put into the drink and I would rather have more milk and black tea.

Anyways, back to the special treat. I've always loved coconut macaroons so I had to find a recipe where I could make them vegan style. I was thinking putting apple sauce in them because you do that with a lot of recipes instead of butter but I wasn't sure that was going to cut it.

This is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond milk (soymilk or rice milk; your preference)
• 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
• 3 TBS honey
• 2 TBS flour
• 1 TBS vanilla
• ¼ TSP salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil almond milk on medium high and add honey and salt. *TIP: If you spray a little cooking oil in your measuring spoon before you add the honey, it is a lot easier to pour out all of the honey*

*Originally when I whisked the flour into the boiling milk it clumped up, if you sift the flour before hand it will be less likely to clump. Or after combining the dry and wet ingredients together you could strain out the clumps.* After adding the honey and salt, whisk in the flour. Boil for 2, then lower the temperature to medium heat and allow the mixture to thicken (approx. 5 minutes). Add the vanilla and coconut. (It seems as if there will be too much coconut for the mixture but keep stirring and it will work).

Drop 1 inch scoops onto a cookie sheet and bake for approximately 15 minutes or until golden brown.

*Options: Drizzle honey or chocolate on top

Estimated Time: 30 minutes

Makes approx. 20 cookies

Hello, Hello

2009-11-06T08:54:00.000-08:00

This shall be my first post and just the beginning of many. I'm excited to get going in this blog world and put my thoughts, pictures, and recipes out to everyone.

Luckily I had work off this morning so I decided to kick start my day by going on a nice hike. The weather is pretty nice outside, a little cool but once you get moving it feels great. I found some beautiful flowers around the hike and had to take pictures of some of them. I was surprised to see all of these raspberries. They looked delicious and inspired me to make something with raspberries today. I will take a picture and update the page later on what I decide to make.

Well I need to take care of some errands but I will be back soon. Happy Blogging

Contact

2009-01-09T11:05:00.000-08:00

For questions, comments and suggestions email me at nicolejanaye@yahoo.com

Contact

2009-01-09T10:41:00.000-08:00

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions feel free to email at nicolejanaye@yahoo.com