PBG Recipe: Coconut Quinoa Bars

As I mentioned earlier I am trying to focus on more healthy recipes now that the Holidays are over and the New Year is upon us.  I also have a tonne of baking supplies left over from my holiday baking - nuts, dried fruit, more nuts, coconut, rolled oats, more nuts.  So, this recipe was partially an effort to create a healthy granola type bar and partially an effort to use up some of my baking supplies. 

These turned out OK.  They were a little crumbly so I think maybe a full cup of the sweetened condensed milk might be make them hold together better.  They taste pretty good however.  Not too sweet and the coconut flavour is not over powering at all. 

Ingredients
1.5 cups cooked quinoa
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup chopped dried apricots
1 cup chopped dates
1 cup chopped hazelnuts
2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk

Directions
These couldn't be any easier to make.  Just dump it all in a bowl and mix.

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Mix all ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir until fully combined.
• Press into a lightly greased 8x8 pan.
• Bake for 25 - 30 minutes until just lightly golden around the edges.
• Cool and cut into 10 bars.
• Can be stored in an airtight container for a few weeks or in the freezer for a few months. 

Nutrition

Calories 360

Total Fat 14g

Total Carbohydrates 53g

Dietary Fiber 6.5g

Sugars 27g

Protein 9g

Resolutions? A year in review?

Everyone in the blogsphere seems to be addressing the issue of Resolutions for 2011.  I flip flop with New Year's Resolutions.  Some years I like to make a few important resolutions other years I just let the year flow as it may.  Last year I committed to losing some weight and managed to lose 15 lbs.

This year it seems I am at a crossroads.  So many changes have already taken place for me in the past 6 months.  I started this blog back in September.  I broke up with my long term boyfriend.  I have made some great new friends and developed existing friendships into what I hope will be lifelong connections.  I drastically changed my diet and am now a flexatarian only eating meat once or twice a week and only when at a restaurant or visiting friends and family.  And most recently, I have become somewhat domestic. I have always enjoyed cooking but I am now trying out baking and more adventurous vegetarian recipes. 

To be honest, there are parts of the past 6 months I would like to forget.  But, there are parts of the past 6 months that have been inspiring and eye opening. 

I guess what I am trying to say is that so much as already happened to me in the recent past that I guess I don't really know what I want to happen this year.

I will be making my fitness more of a priority in the coming weeks.  I will also be focusing on healthier recipes - now that the holidays are over I need to ween myself off the treats and back into a balanced diet.  I would also like to spend more time on this blog.  Creating more varied posts and do my best to keep my readers interested and hopefully grow my readership.  I am also planning to learn more about photography and how to best make use of my new camera.  I love photography and I really want to have pictures on this blog and on my walls that I can be proud to call my own art. 

I am also hoping to do some travelling this year.  I have no idea where, or how.  Alone?  With a friend?  I am  not sure.  But, I am making a point of saving some funds so I can take a real vacation. 

In retrospect, I guess I am not making any resolutions, just trying to make myself into the best version of myself that I can be.  The tricky part is that I am not sure what that version quit looks like yet.  But, stay tuned and join me while I try to figure it out.

PBG Recipe: Cinnamon Blueberry Oatmeal Bread

I decided to start of 2011 with something hearty and healthy to balance out all the treats we have been having over the holidays. 

My original plan was to make raisin bread, but apparently I didn't have any raisins. However, I did have blueberries on hand so I thought that would make a nice change to a classic flavour.   I will admit this was my very first time making real bread and I have to say I am so happy with how it turned out.  Next time I make this bread I think I will add some nuts to the mix for some added texture and protein. 

Ingredients
Makes 1 loaf
3 cups bread or all-purpose unbleached flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup rolled oats

1 1/4 cups warm water

1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 tbsp honey

3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp instant yeast

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 cup dried blueberries

Directions

• Soak the oats in the water for 20 minutes.
• Mix the flours, yeast, milk, honey, oil, salt, and cinnamon into the oats. Mix well, until all of the flour is hydrated. Knead by hand for 5 minutes or in a stand mixer for 3, then mix in the blueberries. Knead or mix until the blueberries are distributed throughout the dough.
• Cover the bowl of dough and allow it to rise for 1 hour.
• Remove the dough from the bowl and place the dough on a floured work surface, top side down.
• Flatten the dough slightly and fold the dough in thirds, like a letter.
• Rotate the dough 180 degrees, flatten again slightly and fold in thirds again.
• Flip the dough over, dust off as much of the raw flour as you can, and place it back into the bowl.
• Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise again for another hour.
• Once risen, shape the loaf and place into a greased bread pan.
• Spray or gently brush the loaf with water and sprinkle with some more oats.
• Cover the pan and set aside to rise until it crests above the edge of the pan, roughly 90 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 450. Place the pan in the center rack of the oven. After 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 375. Rotate the pan 180 degrees after 20 minutes, and bake for another 15 to 25 minutes, until the top of the bread is nicely browned, the bottom of the loaf makes a hollow sound when tapped.

• Eat with lots of butter. 

PBG Recipe: Meringues (aka. my first recipe with the new KitchenAid!)

First things first...this was the very first recipe to be made using my new KitchenAid Stand Up Mixer.  Yay!  I can not express how excited I am to finally have one of these babies sitting on my counter top.

It was a breeze to use and did a fantastic job with the egg whites. I would not have had the patience to do these by hand. I have visions of cakes and cupcakes for my brother's birthday in February. 

I am hoping you also notice the photos for this post.  They are the first food shots taken with the new Cannon Rebel T2i camera, which I am also in love with.

A warning, these meringues are SWEET. Almost a little too sweet. I think the next time I make these I will cut back a little on the sugar and maybe fold in some chocolate chips...yum. But, I decided for my first attempt to follow Laura Calder's recipe since it promised chewy centers which is exactly what I wanted.

Ingredients

4 egg whites (at room temperature)

pinch salt

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

2/3 cup vanilla sugar

2/3 cup icing sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Directions

• Whip the whites and salt into stiff peaks.
• Stir the cream of tartar into the vanilla sugar. Slowly add the sugar mixture to the whites a spoonful at a time, until the meringue is stiff and the sugar has dissolved. You can tell if the sugar is dissolved if you take some between your fingers. If the mixture feels grainy the sugar is not fully dissolved.
• Sift together the icing sugar and cornstarch.
• Sift over the meringue and gently fold until fully incorporated.
• Pipe or spoon the meringues onto a silpat or lined baking sheet.
• Bake at 225ºF until cream-coloured and crisp on top when tapped, 1 to 1-1/2 hours.
• Remove from the oven. Cool on the trays. Store in an air-tight container.

Christmas Keeps on Giving

While Christmas day has come and gone already it still feels like the Holidays in the PBG household.  For the first time in years I decided not to do any official boxing week shopping.  The crowds are too much and the "sales" often last well into January.  Besides, I am trying to declutter my life so I am making only purchases that I love rather than purchases that I think I like. 

However, there were a few MAJOR purchase made online on Christmas day and boxing day.  Two very exciting purchases.  The first exciting purchase was a new Canon Rebel T2i DSLR camera.  I have been working with my Fujitsu point and shoot for a few years and it has taken some great pictures.  But, now that I am blogging and taking my photography much more seriously I really wanted a camera that would last me a long time.  I ordered it online from the Future Shop and it should be arriving today or tomorrow.  Woo hoo!

The second very exciting purchase is a Kitchen Aid stand up mixer.  The was such a great deal I couldn't pass it up.  Typically this unit sells for around $450 but with the Boxing Day discounts it only cost $199!!  It is chrome and I have already cleared a spot on my counter for this lovely beast.  I AM SO EXCITED!  The Kitchen Aid stand up mixer has been kind of a holy grail in my family for years but no one could ever justify the cost.  But, I was finally ready to take the plunge.

I can guarantee these two big purchases will result in more pictures and more baking on PBG.  I am so excited to start using both items.  They should be arriving either today or tomorrow.  I keep looking for the mail truck like a little kid waiting for Santa. 

I did make a short tip to the mall yesterday and found myself at the Gap.  I am trying to "think outside the box" with my wardrobe these days.  Buy a few things I might not normally wear.  There was 40% off everything that was already on sale so I got both pieces for just under $50.  yay!  I am planning to wear the outfit with opaque black tights and the retro black pumps I bought to wear to my holiday party.  Cute....I hope. 

Are you a boxing week shopper?  Do you find yourself doing more online shopping these days to avoid the crowds?

A PBG Christmas in Pictures

A Christmas Disaster Diverted

I almost had a Christmas disaster this year.  As you know, I am single this Christmas for the first time in about four years.  My ex's family was never very flexible regarding visits over the holidays.  We almost always had to work around their schedule.  So, over the years, my family has rearranged our entire Christmas schedule so I could drive 3 hours up north to be with my ex's family every Christmas day.  Don't get me wrong, my ex's family are fantastic people and we always had a great time when we visited.  Always.  But, now that they are not a part of my life I realized that I was so accommodating that I had compromised myself out of Christmas with my own family.

I panicked.   Alone?  On Christmas?  I was already having a hard time putting on the cheer and enjoying the holidays as a sad single.  This realization that I might be alone on Christmas day was heartbreaking.  I spent the week leading up to Christmas shopping and baking and visiting with friends to take my mind off it. 

Then, a few days before Christmas my Brother came to my rescue.  For the first time in 8 years he did not have to be with his girlfriend's family on Christmas day.  So, I was invited over, along with my mom and step dad to have Christmas with him and is lovely ladies - the girlfriend Melanie (who we love!) and her daughter Maddie (who, as a tween, can be hard to love but we love her nonetheless).

My brother and I have a special relationship.  We did not always see eye-to-eye growing up.  He made some decisions I did not agree with and I am sure I did the same.  So, there was a time we didn't really talk much.  But, I always knew if I needed him he would always be there.  Despite some years in his youth were he was a lost soul, he finally found himself about 6 years ago.  He is now an awesome step-dad to Maddie and a fabulous house husband to Melanie.  With his help, she was able to finish school while raising a child with more than a few issues.  He was able to go back to school to get his degree as a Personal Support Worker.  He is a loving and caring man and thanks to him I had a happy Christmas day.

I love you Stephen, Melanie and Maddie.  You will never know how much your kindness meant to me this year.