Almond Joy Bars

So I was a little skeptical after tasting the "almond candy" portion of the bar. But the whole thing together? YUM. I think these taste great as a frozen treat, so I keep mine in the freezer. You can also keep them in the fridge or at room temperature. Your choice!

What you'll need:
1 1/2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup coconut oil, solid + 1 tsp
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 cup chocolate chips
Almonds, chopped or slivers

What you do:
1. Combine the coconut, 1/4 cup coconut oil and maple syrup in a food processor. Blend until smooth, about 2 minutes.
2. Line a 9"x5" baking dish with wax paper. I didn't do this and it was a serious pain in the butt to get them out!
3. Pour the coconut mixture in the pan and pat down with a rubber spatula.
4. Freeze for 20 minutes.
5. A few minutes before you take the bars out, heat the chocolate chips and 1 tsp of coconut oil in the microwave. To make sure you don't burn the chocolate, heat for 20 seconds, then stir. Repeat until completely melted.
6. Remove the bars from the freeze and cut into 1"-2" sized pieces. Dip one side of the bar into the chocolate and place (chocolate-side up) onto a plate. Repeat until all of the bars are coated and place back into the freezer for 5 minutes, or until the chocolate is hardened.
7. Place the remaining chocolate into a plastic baggie, cutting one of the corners to create a piping bag (or use a piping bag if you're fancy like that ;). Remove the bars and drizzle the chocolate on top. Sprinkle almonds on the melted chocolate and drizzle a little more chocolate.

Beet Hummus

Totally digging this new hummus recipe. And thinking I may need to grow my own beets next summer!

What you'll need:
1 small beet
2 cloves garlic
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons tahini
1/3 cup olive oil
Pepper and salt, to taste

What you'll do:
1. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Line a glass baking dish with tin foil.

2. Wash beet and trim the leaves and stem. Place in the baking dish and cover with foil. I baked several beets at the same time and it took approximately 65 minutes. You'll know when the beets are cooked because a fork will easily slide through the center.

3. Remove the beets from oven and let cool 10 minutes.

4. Peel the skin from the beet and chop into chunks. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.

July Goals

The first six months of 2017 have absolutely flown by. So much so, that I find it a little troubling. How can I let so much time slip by and have nothing to show for it, yet still feel so mentally drained? Before our vacation I felt so overwhelmed. I was working 12 hour days, to go home and change gears to my freelance work. I was so over being needed and pulled in so many directions, yet still felt like I was just running in circles.

Of course 19 days off will completely change that mentality. To the extent that I actually cried on the last night of our trip in the Canary Islands. Mainly because I was sad to leave my bestie and feared it might be another year before being with her in person. But also because this was the first time in a long time I was 100 percent in every moment and didn't have a care in the world. I wasn't making decisions (other than to drink wine or beer), I wasn't organizing, not a single person needed me to do anything (okay, maybe some chopping of vegetables here and there), I was carefree and happy and loving. All of the things I think I may have lost track of the last several months.

So, where does this leave me for July Goals. Well, in a few days I will put my last issue of Vow Bride to bed and my summer responsibilities will be completed. I'm going to sleep. A lot. Take naps and cuddle. I want to finish a couple books I started, get back in the kitchen and back to this blog. I'm also going to take a chill pill when it comes to work.

July, I'm loving you already.

Beet Latte

You really have to love beets to drink a whole glass of this. But I do. And I did. 

And it's definitely A LOT of work for a non-caffeinated beverage.

What you need:

1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tbsp honey
1 medium beet, peeled
1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

What you do:
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Wrap beet in foil and roast for 30-40 minutes, or until easily pricked with a fork.
2. Blend together all ingredients.
3. Transfer to a pot on the stove and bring to a boil. Using a mesh strainer, pour the mixture into a cup.

4. Sprinkle with foamed milk and/or cinnamon and enjoy!

June Goals

Me trying snorkeling (with my mom), in the ocean, in a two-piece. Normally a total no for me.

Even though the first part of June is done and gone - and I've already dealt with some pretty tremendous events so far - I'm looking forward to accomplishing my goals this second half.

My best friend is getting married and the trip we've been talking about, planning for and literally obsessing about for the past 14 months has arrived. The goal for this trip? Besides not making fool of myself while giving a speech (at what time?!) to 120+ people? Completely let go.

Let go of the stress and anxiety. Let the planner, the worry wart, and the spaz take the back seat (or the trunk) for this ride. Enjoy every scene, every conversation, the drinks, dinners, desserts and embrace this wonderful gift of a vacation that has been hand to me - and my family. Also, try lots and lots of new things - meat included! It's not that I don't adhere to this mantra on all vacations, but I think it's important to remind yourself of this often before and during a trip.

One last goal, Instagram the shit out of this vacation. It may be the best and biggest one for a while...

How do custom orders work?

It's hard for most people to understand flowers in terms of felt. I like to think that the possibilities are endless with felt flowers. You can mimic the shape of real flowers, or create your own. Design a wonderfully wild and whimsical bouquet or create a classic, perfectly symmetrical bunch of flowers.

I recently had a bride contact me about doing flowers for her wedding via Instagram. We briefly talked about her wedding date, colors and location, then decided to get coffee. At this meeting I showed her several hues of blues, grey and silver felt, a few size options of bouquets and we looked at her wedding Pinterest board.

After our initial meeting, I created an inspiration board that looked like this:

From here, the bride was able to narrow down what she liked (and didn't) as far as colors and flower types. She liked the idea of combining Option C and Option D - pretty and elegant! So onto the next steps: finding the foliage and crafting a few sample flowers. Stay tuned for more updates coming soon!

Overnight Oats

I made the big, bad mistake of buying unflavored protein powder. I have been purchasing the vanilla flavor for months and I really enjoy it. So why the switch? A sale.

Damn sales.

Anyway, I've been trying to get through it. I decided I'd try to use it in some recipes, including overnight oats. But gauged on the overwhelming response that the recipe is amazing - the powder sucks.

Regardless, I powered through two batches and look forward to trying the recipe again - with flavored protein!

What you need:
2/3 cup rolled oats
2 tbsp peanut butter (I used PB2)
4 tsp chia seeds
2 tsp maple syrup
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 scoop protein powder
1 banana, sliced

What you do:
1. Combine everything in a bowl.
2. Split mixture into two mason jars or tupperware containers.
3. Let sit in the fridge overnight.