The Future of Now (Goodbye 10, Hello 11)

Hiya :)!

As this is being posted, I am probably sleeping away my stress. Yes, it will probably end up being  

 hours, but I think it's quite deserved. School. Is. Out. Can I get a wahoo? Although I know I will feel extremely relieved soon (not yet because it hasn't hit me), I can't help but thinking of the future. Why is it that we always wish away days, counting down to something new just as one ends? For that reason, I am so thankful for yoga, cooking, and the blogging that unites them both. This year, I learned how to have things to look forward to every day and enjoy each to its fullest. Sure, I still have the nasty little habit of wanting to go-go-go, but at least it's getting better. Are you always looking to the future? 

Speaking of the future, I can't believe I only have 2 years left at my school before college! I'm what's known as a "lifer," someone who has been going to my school their whole life -- since 3 years old.  I plan to go out of state for college so leaving the area and the school I spent a good portion of my life at is a hard concept to understand. Did you do a lot of moving? How did you handle realizations like these? 

Anyway, I just got done saying I was going to focus on living in the moment.

So on that note, I'll tell you about my plans for this summer, rather than what lies a bit farther ahead. There will definitely be lots of yoga to be had; I'm starting my RYT training and going to a yoga intensive camp. I'm SO excited! I also have lots of recipes I've been playing around with so hopefully when my new blog is up and running, I'll be able to share them easier. Not to mention I hope to work with J on improving my photography. For now, though, I'll show you the early stages of a pancake recipe.

Apparently Claire and I were on the same page today because I used Jess' waffle recipe for a base today, too. [Can I just mention that both of these girlies are completely inspiring? If you haven't check out their blogs, definitely make it a point to do so.] Well, it was supposed to be waffles but that didn't work out as well as I had hoped. But hey, sometimes the best things come from mistakes. My waffle iron is the proof of this. Let's just say it's still soaking. Lovely. 

But back to the pancakes: 

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl: 

• 1/4 cup rolled oats 
• 2 tbs wheat bran 
• 1 tbs wheat germ 
• 1 tbs Bob's Red Mill's Gluten-Free Baking Flour
• 1/2 tbs cinnamon 
• 1/2 tbs baking powder

2. Boil water in a teapot or use warm water from another source. Add 3 tbs of hot water to 1 tbs of ground flax seed. Let it become gelatinous. 

3. Once the flax mixture is an eggy consistency, add the other liquid ingredients and mix: 

• 1/4 cup almond milk 
• 1.5 tbs unsweetened applesauce 
• sweetner to taste (I used 4 drops of vanilla stevia--really thick!)

4. Combine the wet mixture to the dry. Stir in 1/4 cup blueberries.

5. Use an mini ice cream scooper or tablespoon to drop the batter onto a nonstick pan. Cover the pan with a top (I used the top to a pasta pot) to help them cook better. Flip the pancakes when you see them start to solidify and cook on the other side. (I recommend a very low heat, but all stovetops and times will differ.) 

6. Enjoy! These were actually a lot more filling than I originally expected. Although I didn't feel extremely full while/right after eating them, they fueled me perfectly for yoga without weighing me down. I actually wasn't hungry when I got home! 

Speaking of my hunger, I was definitely excited for dinner. Ever the foodie, the first thing I did after my last exam today was go to the store to get fresh rosemary to use for dinner. Never mind the fact that I had barely slept in days; I wanted rosemary :D. 

Since I had to begin dinner before I left for yoga and was extremely excited or it, I actually begged for hunger to come after being completely satisfied by the pancakes. Talk about a weird request! While I waited, I soaked this: 

I also took this mixture out of the fridge and cut it into slices: 

Still waiting on hunger, I took a shower. Finally, it came and I was haaaaangry! I quickly popped out of the shower and finished my Broccoli and Arame Stir-Fry from Clean Food. The stir-fry included broccoli, arame (seaweed), shiitake mushrooms, and carrots (see swaps below). 

Soon after, my Chickpea Fries, also from Clean Food, were ready to come out of the oven. 

Ever the swapper, I changed around a few things. In the stir-fry, I omitted the onions simply because I didn't feel like chopping such a small amount (I cut the recipe in 4 to make one serving). I also steamed the little extra carrot from making the fries and added it. This recipe was so simple but yet extremely delicious! I love Terry Walter's philosophy of eating food straight from the source and enjoying it how nature inteneded it to taste. Yum!

For the chickpea fries, I added extra grated carrot and topped them with a few slices of tomato. Although I liked the tomato on top when it was warm, I didn't as much as they cooled. I'm really not a tomato fan so I don't know why I try. However, warm tomatoes are sometimes nice. I guess it's just nice to change things up. Anyway, this was another simple recipe. I simply added 1/3 cup chickpea flour to ~1 cup water, almost all of a small whole carrot grated, and 1 tsp fresh rosemary. Then I heated it on medium, whisking like crazy for about 15 minutes. After popping it in the freezer/fridge for 2ish hours while at yoga, I took it out of the dish and sliced. After about 40 minutes in a 375* oven, I had crispy fries with a creamy inside. Imagine hummus in fry form. Really, how could you go wrong? Oh and if you haven't tried chickpea flour, check out these stats; It's just ground up dried chickpeas! 

I think I have a new cookbook obsession!

To celebrate the end of school, I made myself a few slices of extra kabocha. Kabocha is both a weekend treat and a celebration food for me. Love. Love. Love. <3

Naturally I drizzled on an almond butter sauce. Oh raw almond butter, how I love thee! 

• ~1 tbs almond butter 
• ~2-3 tbs almond milk

Mix ingredients together with a fork. If your almond butter is dry like mine (I'm getting near the end, oh no!), never fear. Simply microwave the mixture for 30seconds and stir. The heat helps to catalyze the reaction and makes the fat in the almond butter combine with the watery nature of non-dairy milk. If desired, microwave the mixture for a thicker consistency. Regardless, this will thicken up quickly... if you can wait that long before devouring it, that is ;).  

While writing this, I've also enjoyed a steamed yellow squash. Apparently I crave veggies like no other. Want proof?

A mexican-inspired salad with organic romaine lettuce, cucumbers, yellow&red peppers, organic carrots, fresh black beans, and a local sweet potato.

A similar concoction with a new red bell pepper that was as HUGE (it was the size of my plate!): 

More black bean action was included in a vegan cheddar and black bean quesadilla similar to this one: 

And the ever-present "favorite salad" with the last of Lightlife's Chick'n Stir-Fry Strips: 

On that note, it's definitely waaaay past time for me to go to bed. Since I'm off now, I will be able to post the recipe for banana split brownies very soon. However, I want to end this post on a sweet note anyway. Sweet potato blondies, anyone? 

Have a lovely day! 

xox, 

Mandiee