Monday, May 28, 2012

playing catch up...


once again, i've neglected the blog for weeks. today will be a 'catch up' post... i'll cram it with a recipe, a dude and a dog, and we'll see what else :)

k, first the recipe!
i got this recipe from one of my fave recipe blogs! the girl who writes this blog is a holistic nutritionist. not only does she give you cool recipes, she'll explain why some of the ingredients are beneficial to our health. i love it. i love her. i love the recipes.
this recipe is delish! it doesn't taste like hippy-hemp-tree hugger-granola bars. the bars aren't crunchy like you'd expect, they're soft and chewy. it totally tastes like banana nut bread. they're amazing.
pic from 'my new roots' blog

Hemp Protein Granola Bars
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped (or any other nut)
1 cup dates, chopped (or any other dried fruit)
1 cup coconut flakes
1/2 cup hemp protein powder
1/4 cup sesame seeds (i didn't have sesame, so i used flax seeds- just cause i had them ;)
2 Tbsp. poppy seeds
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt 
3 ripe bananas
1/4 cup sunflower oil (or coconut, olive, walnut…)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tbsp. maple syrup
2 Tbsp. chia seeds
6 Tbsp. water

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a small bowl, mix the chia seeds and water together. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients.
4. In a food processor or blender, mix bananas, oil, vanilla, and maple syrup (you can also just mash everything together with a fork). Add chia gel and pulse to mix. Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and stir until well combined. 
5. Spread the batter evenly into a baking pan (mine was 9" x 13"), and smooth out the top with the back of a spatula. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Let cool completely, store in airtight container and keep in the refrigerator for longer shelf life. You can also freeze these – take one out half an hour before you want a perfect snack!


k, now onto the next thing:
it's been ages since i've done a dudes and dogs post. AGES! i need to jump back on that.
for now, enjoy these few of pics of hugh jackman with his adorable frenchie pup...

he should live somewhere warmer so he doesn't have to wear all these layers. just sayin'... hugh, we know you've got an amazing bod under there, and it's cruel to the universe to cover it up! ;)


and what blog post of mine is complete without mentioning my fave guy on the planet?!
here's jared leto hanging in new york with his friend darren aronofsky (i wish that was my name. darren aronofsky. it rolls right off the tongue. it almost sounds like 1 long, cool word. anyway, darren is a writer, director, producer for films like 'requiem for a dream', 'the wrestler' and most recently 'black swan')
ugh! seriously. this pic does things to me. when jared dresses "normal" (which everyone knows is VERY rare) it drives me crazy, not in a bad way. he's just a normal looking dude in a baseball hat, and his beauty kills me.




Wednesday, May 2, 2012

date night...


hubs and i decided we were due for a date night. we spend A LOT of time together, but it's not uncommon for one of us to be watching a tv show that the other isn't interested in, or one of us will be on the computer, or texting, or reading, or anything other than actually being with each other. so, we started talking about a date night but we didn't want to get dressed up and go somewhere. we decided on a 'slumber party date night'!! obviously we live together, so every night is a slumber party... but i wanted it to have a REAL slumber party feel, like when you were a kid. we wanted pizza, popcorn, candy, pj's and a movie. i was sooooo excited to get in my pj's and eat loads of red vines and watch a movie... until i found out red vines aren't gluten free. ugh, i was crushed. we skipped the 'candy' idea, and made a backup dessert plan. 
here's our slumber party date night (oh yeah, i didn't turn the flash on for the pictures... cause how annoying would that be during our movie?!)

we got food from red brick pizza, and it was sooo good. they have delicious personal sized gluten free pizzas!! hubs decided last minute that he didn't want pizza, so he got himself a fhazani (i had never heard of them, but it looked like a pizza/sandwich/salad all in one. he looooved it) and of course we had to have root beer! :)

this was our slumber party set up on the floor! 6 couch cushions, a california-king sized feather bed, a down comforter, 5 pillows from our bed, and a blanket for each of us to cover up with :) it was super comfy!!!!!!

popcorn, duh!

our plan-b dessert. strawberries, bananas and a bowl of melted chocolate! HEAVEN!!!! (hubs had a plate of other dip-able stuff too, like peanut butter pretzels and shortbread cookies)

yummmm!

we watched 'my week with marilyn'

<3


it was wonderful! no phones, no texting, no emailing... just us :) i can't wait til next date night!!! we've already talked about it. if you thought we were dorks for doing a 'slumber party' date night... wait til you see our next date night! have any suggestions for other cheap/easy date nights for the future?!?
(fyi, we didn't sleep on the floor! haha we're far too old for that. neither of our bodies would've appreciated it. after the movie was over, i put the couch back together, and lugged all the bedding back upstairs. it sucked putting everything back together, but it was well worth it!!!)



Tuesday, May 1, 2012

where was my invite?...



i should've gone to the lakers game on sunday

david beckham and jared leto