Love, love, love life!

Hi! So I want this post to be much better than my last one. No negativity. No fired up Kelsey. Just me being happy.
School has been very busy, already stressful, and so much more. But you know what? I'm grateful for it! The opportunity to learn is so important to take advantage of. If your given that opportunity, please do it! Learning enriches your life and excites the mind. I wish I could be an expert on all of the biochemical processes, enzymes, hormones, and substrates in the body. I wish I could be able to tell you all exactly how your body will process that salad you just ate or that gigantic cookie from paradise bakery. I may be able to tell you bits and pieces of the digestive and energy producing processes involved in your day to day life but  I'm definitely no expert. I'm trying to be the best version of myself I can be and this opportunity to learn is just another step in that direction of becoming my best self.
You know what makes me happy every single day (even when the chaos ensues)? Being able to spend my nights and with Joey. We both are so busy with life and it can be exhausting but it is my absolute favorite thing to know that at night we get to be together, even if we both may be studying (well he was studying, but I just now looked over at him and he is now snoozing.) I'm so grateful to be married to the man of my dreams. Literally the man of my dreams. It's how I was so okay with getting married so soon after we started dating (7 months total from first dating to being married). One of my brother's told me  a long time ago (after failed relationships), "Date someone for the seasons before you decide they're the one". I thought that was great advice and I decided I was going to do that. With Joey, I truly did not feel the need to date him for all of the seasons before I made my decision. I knew right away that I wanted to be with him forever.
And now today, 1 year and 3 months after we got married, I am happier than ever to be with him. We both are so blessed! We have the gospel in our life that anchors us. We have wonderful families who do so much for us and we have great friends. We have each other and will for eternity. And we love the temple.

Focus on the things that make you happy.

Goodnight for now.

A Needed Moment to Vent... Pardon Me.

I'm at school right now waiting for Joe to get out of class. And currently as I am sitting in the hallway waiting to surprise him when we walks out, I'm feeling bitter about school. I am grateful to be able to get an education, further my knowledge in nutrition, and gain intelligence. Well this semester they decided to move the nutrition program to a far away and strange place called downtown Phoenix (creepy place at times). Well, in order to save our car from the wrath of 60 miles round trip each day I have decided to use public transportation. The light rail or the intercampus shuttle that ASU offers. Today was my first time using the intercampus shuttle. I thought it would be pleasant, almost relaxing in cold air conditioning, and an atmosphere I could get some homework done. I have quickly learned that I will not be experiencing any of those things! I got on it and it was slammed full, people even had to stand just to catch a ride to the downtown campus from Tempe, and it was about as stuffy as could be. I didn't even want to breath in the gross air. Not to mention, I am one of those people who if I can't see the road while in a moving vehicle in a very short time I simply want to throw up, car sick! Today was no exception. I got to campus, slightly bitter about the experience I had just had. I went to my classes, got really excited for one of them - Macronutrient Metabolism! Then waited for the shuttle to bring me back to Tempe. I thought it would be better, there was hardly any people waiting to get on so I was happy. The bus pulled up, we piled on and I got a seat towards the front so I could watch the road. While I was happy to have my own two seats, the lack of air and terrible heat that existed was enough to make me want to tap that bus driver on the shoulder and say "Excuse me, I'm getting off here" and find a different way. I endured the ride and arrived to Tempe feeling like crud, nauseated, headache and unbelievably sweaty. This is only day 3 of school. And shockingly, I think I'm going to prefer the light rail from now on. Can't believe I'm saying that but it's true.

Just before I left campus, I sat down for a sec in the lobby to check something and this is what I saw on the background of a girls laptop next to me.

With the words:

"Stay calm and focused and Just Keep Swimming."

I better remember those words this semester. 

But for now, I'm just excited for Joey to walk out of his class so we can spend the rest of the evening together! Thank goodness for that!

Noodle Peanut Salad = Yum!

What a dinner we had tonight! For some reason since school starts this Thursday I feel like everything I want to make better be made by tomorrow night, because school starting simply means that most hobbies and extra time spent cooking/baking are all put to rest. Our life is going to be extremely regimented just to fit in all that we have to do. So since tonight marks one of our "last"nights until the chaos begins, I wanted to make a dish that we both would love, especially Joe! I found the recipe here at the Never Home Maker.  Such a great site filled with awesome recipes, I just want to make them all!


It is a Noodle Peanut Salad. Joe love's peanut sauce so I knew this would be right up his alley. I got home from a midday run (it was 110 degrees out when I did it, not recommended!) and started whippin up this delightful dish. There is a bit of prep time as you have to wash all of the kale, zucchini, carrots, and chop them all up. As well as squeeze the juice out of the tofu, get it cut up and make the peanut sauce, but it's all worth it.


Noodle Peanut Salad

Photo from neverhomemaker.com

For the sauce:

·       1/2 cup light coconut milk

·       3 tablespoons natural peanut butter

·       2 tablespoons soy sauce

·       5 tablespoons POM pomegranate juice (or rice vinegar)

·       2 tablespoons maple syrup

·       1 tablespoons grated ginger

·       1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes

·       1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

·       2 cloves of garlic, minced

For the salad:

·      1/2 package udon noodles, cooked as per package directions

·      16 ounces extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch cubes

·      6 cups kale

·      2 carrots, cut in the batonnet style(sliced)

·      1 zucchini, cut into half moons

·      1 tablespoon dried cilantro (or 1/4 cup fresh)

Method :

·      Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.

·      Cook your udon noodles, drain, and spray with some cool water. Set aside.

·      Heat a tablespoon or so of oil over medium-high heat and fry the tofu until golden. Set aside.

·      In that same pan, add a bit more oil. Throw in the vegetables (kale, carrot, and zucchini). Cook for five to seven minutes -- until they are soft, but still a bit crisp.

·      Pour half of the sauce mixture onto the veggies. Cook a couple more minutes, until saturated with flavor.

·      Add the cilantro once the heat is off. Stir.

·      Then toss everything together. Or, if you'd like it to look nice, lay a bed of veggies and top with half the noodles and tofu cubes. Drizzle more of the sauce on top for extra flavor.

Most peanut sauces are ridiculously awful on the calorie/fat scale but this one actually isn't too bad. Be sure you use light coconut milk because there is a HUGE difference in the calories and fat between regular and light.  Also I didn't have the POM Juice that it called for so I followed the recommendation of using Rice Vinegar instead. The sauce calls for fresh grated ginger but even if you hate ginger as much as I do, you must man up and use it because it adds great flavor. 


Not a fan of tofu? Unless you've had it cooked this way before and you've concluded you don't like it, then just give it a try! Joe is usually a hater of tofu (I haven't cooked it the best ways in the past) so I cooked him a chicken breast to have with his. And what did he do? He liked the tofu so much he didn't even go for the chicken! I consider this a victory. Next time I make it, I'm going to try to bake half the tofu to compare between the two methods. 


One other tip: The recipe says to saute the kale, zucchini, and carrot all together at the same time. I would recommend sauteing the kale for 1 minute or so, then adding the carrot - saute for another minute, then add the zucchini for the last couple minutes of cooking time. I like my vegetables to remain tender and not cooked to death.


Joe's tip: Sub shrimp in for the tofu. I just haven't braved shrimp yet. What can I say... handling meat of all kinds just grosses me out.


Stay tuned for dessert: Chocolate mousse (it's more similar to pudding in my opinion), but it's not your average mousse. It's thick, chocolatey, and doesn't leave you feeling sick after. Such a treat!

Salad Dressing, Ditch the Junk and Go For the Good.

I've been meaning to post this salad dressing recipe for a week now. It's pretty much our families go to every week for sunday dinners since Joe and I don't buy salad dressing. It's just way too easy to make your own and so much better for you. Have you looked at the back of your salad dressing bottle? First check out the insane amount of fat grams, sugar, and sodium. Even if the dressing doesn't have a major sweetness to it, it's likely that a main ingredient is high fructose corn syrup. Eww. Do you know why? Because it is one of the cheapest things for industrialized food corporations to purchase and use in their products as a filler and sweetener. Check out the rest of the ingredients as well. I bet there are tons and tons of others you've never heard of or have trouble pronouncing as well, maybe even a little monosodium glutamate (MSG) which is absolutely found in the American favorite, Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (including the ranch packets you can use to make your own dressing or use as a seasoning for some foods).

Anyways, here is a Balsamic Vinaigrette recipe that is sure to please. It's strong and full of flavor.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 to 1 Tbs Honey (depending on how strong you like it)
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients together and allow the olive oil to emulsify with the vinegar using a blender. This will make it so the olive oil doesn't separate from the balsamic after you stir it together.

Olive oil is pure fat, it's true. But it consists of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) that actually have many health benefits to them. Both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats assist in lower risk factors for heart disease. For instance MUFAs actually help to lower cholesterol, particularly your LDL (low-density lipoprotein) and also assists normalizing blood clotting. Obviously though, olive oil is still high in calories, so if your trying to lower your caloric intake, just lessen the amount of olive oil a bit in a salad dressing recipe and add a little more vinegar or even water along with some herbs and seasonings to enhance the flavor.

Olive oil can be used as a vehicle for so many different kinds of dressings. Interested in a little more of a citrus flavor? Then add emulsify the extra virgin olive oil into some lemon juice, lime, or even orange juice. Whatever you desire. We made a lime vinaigrette not too long ago, and it had cumin in it along with the lime juice, olive oil and S&P. and it was excellent!

Don't want to break out the blender? Just put all your ingredients into a mason jar, screw on the lid and give it a good shake then it's already in it's stored container and easy to pour on salad.

Is having some sort of Ranch Dressing a must for your family? Try this recipe instead of using a Hidden Valley Ranch packet or store bought dressing. I would ditch the mayo in it though and sub in plain greek yogurt, not only would it lower the calories and grams of fat, it would add a protein punch! If you do feel the need to use some sort of "Ranch Packet" for a particular recipe, I've noticed that the brand McCormack has a Ranch packet that is just herbs and seasonings, completely lacking the MSG.

Bottom line: Creating your own salad dressing is so simple! Don't waste your time with store bought salad dressing when making your own tastes even better.

Chocolate Fudge Cookies Stuffed with a Peanut Butter Cookie

That is quite the mouthful for a name of a cookie huh? Well I made these a few weeks ago after I saw a friend on good ole facebook post the link to it. I immediately was drawn to the cookie. I mean hello, two layers of chocolate cookie sandwhiching a peanut butter cookie...yum! Joe and I were watching our two nieces while their mommy was in the midst of delivering another adorable baby girl. They were both so helpful, adding things to the bowl for me and helping me form the little peanut butter cookies into little round balls. The recipe is found here at the picky-palate along with many other yummy sounding things. 

They are definitely sweet treats. And even just one tastes purely indulgent but hey, sometimes it's just necessary! My two nieces inhaled each of their GIANT cookies and they loved them. They were a hit with everyone else too, except for my mom and I just a bit too sweet and too much for both of our liking.  But if your having a serious craving for something super chocolatey matched with the goodness of peanut butter, then these are the ticket. Enjoy!

Chocolate Fudge Peanut Butter Cookie Stuffed Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookie Centers

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

____

2 sticks softened butter

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, I used semi-sweet

1 cup cocoa powder

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat liner.

2. Place peanut butter and sugar into a medium bowl, mix to combine then add egg, mixing until well combined. Set aside.

3. In a stand or electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until well combined. Add eggs and vanilla, beating until well combined.

4. Place flour, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Add to wet ingredients along with cocoa powder, and chocolate chips, slowly mixing until just combined. With a small cookie scoop, scoop peanut butter cookie dough into your hand. With a medium cookie scoop, scoop chocolate dough on top and on bottom of peanut butter dough.  With hands, press chocolate dough around peanut butter dough, forming into a cookie shape.  Place onto prepared baking sheet, about 1 inch apart from each other. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, until cooked through. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Serve with milk for sure!!

Makes 3 dozen cookies

A Great Weekend with a Muffin on Top

Finally a little getaway! One of Joe's mission buddies was getting married in the Gila Valley Temple in Thatcher so Friday morning we headed that way. It is so beautiful there, mountain ranges on every side of you, lush green farmland and a perfect temple. Joe went to school there for a year before his mission so he knows the area well! Our morning started out with the Temple Sealing.

(I definitely did not take this picture, it's just way better than the one my little camera took! And of course, there was no snow in sight while we were there either.)

We've been to a few sealings since we have been married and there are always so many wonderful reminders for us to apply to our own marriage. I always leave feeling an even greater sense of true love and appreciation for my husband and for our eternal marriage. 

After the sealing we ventured throughout Thatcher and some of the farm lands. It added so much color to the whole landscape and I just loved all the green crops! I have no idea what they are growing but it was everywhere. 

We had been looking forward to going out to lunch all week at one of Joe's favorite places there, Casa Manana.  It was just as yummy as we hoped it would be! Afterwards, we trekked up Mount Graham through the winding and steep mountain road. At the bottom of the mountain it was nearly 100 degrees, but as we moved upward through the climb the temperature became heavenly ultimately ending up in the low 60's with a light sprinkle of rain. With our windows down and being surround by the forest we were two happy kids! It's a 30 mile drive all the way up so we stopped at about 20 miles (my stomach couldn't handle the twisty roads any longer!) to just breath in the fresh air. LOVED IT! Needless to say, we were sad to be back in the 100 degrees just 20 minutes later. 

That night we went back to the Temple to do a session before our friends reception. It was the best way to end our little day trip. The Mesa Temple was closed for cleaning the past couple weeks so it felt so great to be back. Temple's are truly amazing places! 

Luckily, we stayed the night because we were beat after our fun day. After a great day and night, we jumped in the car for the 2 hour drive back home. I definitely needed this little getaway and am grateful we could go before school gets underway. 

One more thing. I love Sundays. And I love to cook/bake on Sundays. It makes me happy. So after taking a long nap after church I whipped up these delicious muffins. 

The counter top kind of makes it hard for them to stand out, but in real life they really do look awesome. I loaded each muffin liner and they just puffed up a perfect amount!  If you want the recipe, it's HERE on my mom's blog. The only thing we've changed since she posted that recipe is we add 1 cup of fresh blueberries tossed in some flour to the batter. Tossing them in the flour before adding them to the batter keeps the blueberries from falling to the bottom of the muffin once you scoop them into the tins. I also added about a half cup of unsweetened shredded coconut to the dry ingredients. These are also loaded with zucchini, banana, walnuts, and golden raisins. Held together with a couple eggs, coconut oil, honey, apple sauce, and a block of tofu, they turn out moist, satisfying and delicious! The batch made nearly 2 dozen and they freeze perfectly. It makes for a great little breakfast or snack anytime!

The BEST Peanut Butter Cookie

School starts two weeks from today... the countdown is on. Normally, I completely dread the start of another semester but to be honest, this semester slightly different because it's our Last One!! Well for our undergrad's at least. Until August 18th, you may hear a lot from me because I have some chunks of free time. Since I gave you a dinner recipe yesterday I've decided you also need a super duper delicious cookie recipe... a clean cookie recipe. It's not filled with butter, white sugar, or white flour and tastes even better than those that are. The best part about it, there are no eggs in the recipe so the cookie dough is fair game! Eat it up! But try to save some dough to actually bake, because they are far too good baked as well!


The Perfect Clean Peanut Butter Cookie


Preheat oven 350*F
Combine:
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (if you have a wheat grinder, purchase soft white wheat (available at Shar's Bosch Kitchen) and grind it to retain the nutrients that it holds. 
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp sea salt

In a separate bowl, combine:
1 cup organic peanut butter (Costco has a great deal on organic peanut butter, I believe it's 2 for $8 and they're a good size).
1 cup pure maple syrup (again, I buy this at Costco)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 TBS vanilla

Stir until well combined.

1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (Might I suggest the Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips - Walmart has these the cheapest - or any other quality dark chocolate) Why dark chocolate? Less sugar so it's more satisfying and it tastes better :)

Pour flour mixture over peanut butter mix and stir until it is about half way combined, then add chocolate chips and stir a little more until there is a bit of dustiness left to it. Let it sit 5 minutes then stir one more time, just a quick easy stir. **Refrigerate the dough until it's chilled (usually an hour is sufficient). I always chill any cookie dough I make, I find it helps them to stay much more puffy and thick once baked instead of flattening out. Scoop the dough onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. It's important not to over bake these so be cautious if you know your oven cooks a little faster. Cool for 5 minutes on the pan then transfer them to a cooling rack. Enjoy!

Your going to love these! I was stunned when I first tried them, I couldn't believe a butter-less, egg-less, white sugar-less, and even white-flour less cookie could taste so perfect. Give them a try!

Sorry I don't have a picture of these, I made them a couple of weeks ago but that was pre-blog. Just talking about them though is tempting me to make them tonight. If so, I'll update this.

Recipe from 101cookbooks.com "Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe" found HERE! Explore this site, it is absolutely wonderful.

The Loaded Bowl

It's tomato season! Unfortunately if you have a garden in Arizona your tomato plants have nearly been turned into fried tomatoes. Head to the farmer's market (Gilbert has a great one on Saturdays from 7am to 11am under the water tower) and pick up a big handful of heirloom cherry tomatoes and cilantro. Get out the quinoa that is hiding in your pantry that you have been wondering what to do with. If you have not yet invested in quinoa, it's time. It is a protein rich, gluten-free grain that once cooked turns into the most lovely fluffy, nutty particle of goodness. Quinoa is a complete protein. It contains the nine essential amino acids, including a hefty dose of lysine, that the body requires for tissue growth and repair. It comes in red or white varieties and both are equally great! Anyways... here is a recipe that is packed with protein without meat. 

The Loaded Bowl

Combine:

3 cups of cooked quinoa**, cooled and fluffed

1 15 oz can of black beans (or 1 1/2 cups if you cook your own beans)

1 cup of loosely packed chopped cilantro

2 cups of halved cherry tomatoes

1 cup corn (frozen or fresh)

1 cup edamame 

Cucumber (this is optional so do however much you'd like, but we love the crisp this adds to the dish)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Add:

Zest of one lime

Juice of 3 or 4 limes (depending on your love for lime & the juiciness of the ones your using)

Toss.

If you have a big enough group that will eat this all at one meal, then go ahead and add:

2 Avocados, diced in big chunks.

If your making this for a small group and plan to have leftovers, just put avocado on each individual serving so the leftovers stay fresh for another meal. 

Dressing:

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. white vinegar

2-3 cloves garlic minced

Salt & Pepper

Blend the dressing ingredients together. 

DO NOT pour the dressing all over the entire quinoa dish, it will hide the lime that you worked so hard to put in because the quinoa will just soak up the dressing as it did the lime. Instead, allow each individual to dress their own serving. 

How to serve: It's great stuffed in a pita or if your looking to cut the calories a little bit then ditch the pita and pile it on a thick bed of spinach. The tenderness of the spinach compliments everything very well. 

I love this dish! It is very refreshing and perfect for the summer time when you don't want to feel like there is a brick sitting in your stomach.

**How to cook quinoa:

1 cup of dry quinoa yields almost 4 cups cooked. I always like to cook a little extra to have in the fridge for the week to add a nutritional punch to other things. 

1 cup quinoa = 1 3/4 cup water. (Most recipes say to use double the amount of water for however much quinoa used, but I like to do less water than that to prevent the quinoa from becoming soggy. 

Place 1 cup of dry quinoa in a very fine mesh strainer. Rinse thoroughly under cold water to remove the bitter coat that can sometimes cover it. Transfer it to a medium saucepan (remember, it's going to nearly quadruple in size) and pour 1 3/4 cups of water over it. Add 1 tsp of olive oil on top. Bring to a boil then immediately cover it and bring to a simmer for 15 minutes to absorb the water. Fluff with a fork when finished, toss with a little salt & pepper and enjoy! 

Recipe adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, "The Loaded Bowl."

Here We Go!

Why hello there! I'm blogging! This is big for me. I never really cared to do it, I just like to read other's blogs! But then my mom started her own and since I want to be like her when I grow up I figured I ought to jump on it. I haven't had any idea how I wanted to start this new endeavor, but after much thought I've decided it's best to give a little introduction to Joe and I as an "Us".

We Love the Temple, and because of it we get to be together Forever. I can't imagine living life without that knowledge!

We love to hike...

and love to eat self serve frozen yogurt creations! mmm. 

We love to play mario kart, stay in on the couch watching movies, cook and eat together, and on occasion even run together (when I can convince Joe to come!). We have the two greatest families and look forward to one day (in the distant future) having a family of our own.

We're just about to get started with out final semester of our undergraduate degrees! Hooorrraaayyy!!!! I'm studying nutrition and Joe is majoring in Finance and once school actually gets underway, you may not hear or see us too often... it's going to be one crazy semester! Joe is taking the LSAT in October (any tips for him would be much appreciated!) and is working his buns off at the the best car dealership in town, LeSueur Car Company! Need a car? Contact him! :)

I'm in the midst of marathon training in this blistering Arizona heat and humidity. I swear that when I was growing up here this humidity did not exist. It's darn awful! It will sure make running in the beautiful St. George Utah weather in October so much easier. I love to run, and along with that love comes healthful eating. I try very hard to supply our home with high nutritional quality goods. I'm constantly looking for new clean recipes to try out. If I could give you just one tip in this first blog, it would be to eliminate (or even just lessen if you need to start gradually) the processed foods from your daily menu! Find the good in WHOLE foods and they will give you the energy you will need to find the joy in your journey through life. If you need recipes to get you started, visit here. Many of the recipes I will post in the future will come from this site. Everything is so creative and wonderfully delicious!

My goal with this blog is that my passion for life may be evident to all who read it.  I LOVE Joey and I LOVE our life! I LOVE our family! I LOVE to run in nature! And I LOVE the gospel! We are simply blessed beyond belief.