trying to get used to the cold

The past few days have been SO cold.  It’s been in the teens. eek.  I was planning on going to Ft. Collins to visit my family and I got about halfway there but turned around.  The weather was less than great.  It was early in the morning so the roads weren’t too clear yet and it was really windy and still snowing. I didn’t want to have to drive home in the dark nasty weather and it was already taking me 2x the time it should to get there, so I turned around. Super lame!

So, I came home and warmed up.  But before I left to try to make it to their house I had some creamy oats of course.

In a new bowl!!! Thanks to my awesome sis in law Natalie ;) 

• 1/3c. oats
• 2/3c. water [out of all my diff. milks!]
• 1/2 bananer
• Yogi strawberry crunch
• glob pnut butter
• 1/4c. leftover Peach Cobbler Rush bowl
• cinnamon

nom nom nom

Lunch time!!  Totally random.  The potatoes were awesome.  I got these little baby potatoes from WF the other day when I made that curry dish.  I also cooked spinach in the pan w/the potatoes at the very end…then made a sunny side up egg as a protein topper!  The egg + potato were yummy, but I think I confirmed that I don’t really like plain, cooked spinach.  Something with the texture and the flavor is not my fav.  I like it in a salad mixed with other greens, and I like it mixed in with pasta/quinoa/etc. but not really on its own.  I much prefer KALE!!  The clementine was juicy + refreshing!

I picked up one of these Raw bars yesterday.  I have seen them for awhile now and finally decided to try it out.  It was reallllly good!!  The bar was similar to a Larabar but I liked it a lot better! 

I liked the texture better and the flavor rocked!

Chris + I met Laura at Movement gym in Boulder.  This gym is awesome!!!  It is primarily a climbing gym…the biggest I have ever seen, but they have cardio and machines as well.  They also have a spin class room and a separate yoga room.  We would definitely join if we lived in boulder.  I love that we can get in a good climb and then hit up the cardio machines.  We climbed for awhile and then I hit the treadmill on 8-10% incline at 4mph for 20min.  Ohhh man could you feel it in your buns!! haha I got on the elliptical and realized it was getting late and stopped at 6min.  20+6 = 26min of cardio…Kath would be so proud ;) [she loooves the #26]

Here are some climbing photos!!

This was about 1/4 of the boulder wall…this place is hUge!

Me!

Big leg stretch!!

Laura did the same thing on the same holds ;)

Blurry Chris…right before my camera died!

We stopped at the huuuge Whole Foods in Boulder on the way home.  I’m not sure if it’s a good or bad thing that I live by such a small Whole Foods.  Probably a good thing because I would spend more time + money if I lived by the bigger one…but there are so many more fun foods!!!

I wanted something easy to cook because we were getting back kind of late [7:45pm] and I asked Chris if he wanted meat or not and he said “no!” and that was fiiine by me!

We picked up kale + brussel sprouts + sauce + $.99 french boule loaf [such a good deal and it’s reallllly tasty]

I sautéed the sprouts in garlic and added the kale a few minutes after I put the pasta in the boiling water.  After the pasta was done I strained it, added it to the veggie pan and topped with sauce.  So so so easy!  It was tasty and really filling!!  I was trying to clean out our random pasta so this had 4 kinds in it…which I actually really liked!!! Linguine noodles + shells + spiral + broken up lasagna noodles – The variety was fun!

The sauce was 365 brand organic 4 cheese.  Delicious + Cheap!

So, I think I told you Laura + Travis were kind enough to do a wintery photo shoot for Chris + I, bright and early Saturday morning.  We had a blast and the photos turned out great!!  We kind of had botched engagement photos [not by them] so this MORE than made up for it!!!!

Check them out!!  It’s pretty quick and I luuuuurve the song Laura put them to!  It’s by Fionn Regan.

Aaaand now I’m hungry…hehe

Night!!

~Ashley

what.a.RUSH.

[Friday]

Good morning delicious bowl of warm gooey oats :)

oats + almond milk + shaved coconut + cacao bliss + yogi strawberry crunch + raspberries + pnut butter glob

Going to the gym in the freeeezing cold!  Insanely goofy shoe-gloves ;)

Workout:

• 15min treadmill 6mph
• 20min legs only crazy elliptical
• 15min bike
• intense ab workout on the decline bench

I needed to get a good workout in before my meeting with Rush!

Dakota reminds me of Eeyore!

After working out, I had to grab something to hold me over!  1/2 of a mini bun from GHBC + pnut butter + a little bananer – twas perfect!

So, the VP of Rush – Naturally Enlightened, contacted me a few weeks ago on the blog.  She told me a little about the Boulder, CO based company and I couldn’t wait to come check them out! Their feature items are their smoothie bowls.  A brief description would be: organic milk + REAL fruit [acai berries, strawberries, cherries, blueberries, raspberries, bananas, mangos, guava, etc.] ---> blended until creamy smooth + topped with organic granola + honey!!!  They also have a huuuge list of regular smoothies [in a cup] and many other delicious items!

I spent about 1.5hrs with Nicole and had a blast.  She was super friendly and extremely excited about the product and the company.  I love how they strive to use quality ingredients + REAL ingredients.  They are miles ahead of the other smoothie type companies out there.  I was completely impressed…can you tell!!??

I was invited to come to the store and check out what they have to offer.  I was never asked to write a review or post photos or anything…just so you know I wasn’t being swayed in any way :)

Bowl #1 – Acai Beach Bowl [their biggest seller]

First off, the bowls are HUGE.  This is a large bowl stuffed with real fruit goodness and not just a sprinkle, but a LOT of granola!  This was a really fruity bowl and I loved the acai berries and all the healthy benefits gained from them.  The flavor combo was perfection.  It is a blend of 100% pure guava juice + acai berries + mangos + bananas, topped with organic hemp granola + honey.  I love hemp granola and was so excited that they use it!

I ate at least 1/2 of this bowl and then more were on their way!!  This was definitely one of my favorites of the 6!

Bowl #2 – Peach Cobbler – Ohhh my was this creamy and delicious.  I loooved the cinnamon sprinkled on top.  The flavors melded perfectly together.  It reminded me a bit of the creamy consistency of overnight oats, but of course here the oats were crunchy and on top ;)  I took a few bites and bowl #3 was on it’s way over!

Peach Cobbler stirred up a bit.

They had a seasonal bowl that caught my eye as soon as I walked in.  Can you guess what it could be?

Bowl #3 – a Pumpkin Pie bowl of course!!  You all know how much I love pumpkin!!! I was sort of excited ;)

This bowl was even creamier than the Peach Cobbler.  The pumpkin tasted REAL and the spices were spot on.  This would be an awesome topper on a hot bowl of oats!

It’s awesome how much granola they give you.  It has to be a good 1/4 of a cup or more! mmmm CRUNCH!

Aaaand Bowl #4 landed – Helllllooooo Graham Berry Bowl

This maaay have been my favorite bowl.  The only thing stopping me from saying that is that it is a little less healthy since it is topped with graham cracker instead of the granola.  But…oh.my.gosh.  I can’t get over the flavor of this one.

Blueberries + Blackberries are the main fruits, making this BRIGHT purple!  The texture of the graham cracker mixed in rocked.  I of course did not eat all of these bowls but Nicole was so awesome and packed up the leftovers for me to take home.  The hubs and I have definitely eaten almost all of the leftovers already.  Even though the granola + graham crackers didn’t hold their crunch, they were just as tasty.

Purple juicy goodness

This bowl was the most photogenic ;)

These are their “in store” bowls that are about to get a packaging makeover.  They have 4 flavors sold in about 20 Whole Foods in a few different states out West.  I got to take home 1 of each flavor.  They are a 12oz version of what make at the retail store.  They actually make + package these in house.  I am still working through the 6 leftover bowls that were made for me in the store and then I will move onto these prepackaged bowls that are in the freezer. 

Good news, Rush Bowls can be made vegan!

Bowl #5 – Acai au Lait – This is one they sell in a prepackaged container but I got to try a freshly made one.  Again, I really love the acai berry flavor.  It also has strawberries + cherries mixed in.  At this point, there was no way I could pick a favorite.

Acai au Lait - The consistencies of all of the bowls were perfection!

Before I left, I had the pleasure of meeting the starter + owner of the company, Andrew.  He was so enthusiastic about what they were trying to do and wanted me to try even more bowls! 

Bowl #6 is unnamed at this point.  They are actually holding an in-store contest for customers to name this bowl.  This is 1 of 2 bowls they are trying to market to schools in the area to have as a food option for kids.  I would love to see this happen! We all know the quality of food in the cafeteria is sub-par. 

Super fruity + refreshing! 

So there you have it…now if only everyone could get their hands on these awesome bowls!!  I forget the exact states that Whole Foods carries them, but if you are curious I’m sure I can get a list of the stores.  Otherwise, you’ll just have to make a trip to Boulder to give them a try!  Thank you Nicole + Andrew, for inviting me in, and letting me stuff my stomach with your delicious smoothie bowl concoctions!!

…

Much less exciting, but EXtremely delicious was my Friday night dinner.  I actually made this Thursday, but didn’t eat it til Friday because of my late gym date with Laura on Thursday. 

Cooking Light 20min meal to the rescue!! Chipotle Sloppy Joes 

• I used organic 90% lean ground beef
• red onion – didn’t have yellow
• a whole green pepper
• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce [at Whole Foods] – I couldn’t find chipotle chiles

I made slider samiches with the mini buns from GHBC.  They were perfect!  I ate 1 bun, but toppings on each half.  I topped them with a little fresh grated pepper jack cheese.  A keeper for sure, and sooo easy!

[Saturday!!]

I chowed down a quick breakfast of my leftover Pumpkin Pie bowl…creeeeamy.  I ate scooped away with a Light My Fire Spork!  Great stocking stuffer for your camping friends/loved ones.  They come in all different colors and are insanely lightweight!

Chris + I were up early to have a fun photo session with Laura + Travis.  We went up to Flagstaff Mountain and had a blast playing in the snow trying to act natural :)  We got to play photographer too because L+T never get any photos of themselves.  So we triiied to hopefully get some good shots of them.  We’ll see soon when they’re done editing!

Then we got back and tried to warm up!!  Our feet and pants were pretty soaked from the snow…We headed to Nederland, CO with Pat + Nat for some good eats and just to hang out.  It is a super cute mountain town about 20min past Boulder.  There were lots of little stores and a few bars + restaurants. 

The sky was awesome as the sun was setting!

We browsed the shops.

There was a little co-op that was my favorite store in the town!!  They had had a huuuge section with bulk items, including any kind of flour you could ever think of.  They also had tons bulk spices + herbs…I hadn’t heard of a lot of them!

These were some dried rosebuds…maybe for scenting candles, tea, soaps, etc?

Calendula

Cinnamon sticks!!

Such a fun store!

Aaaaand now I’m exhausted…time for bed!  I’m heading up to Ft. Collins bright + early to hang with my family!  I posted about them once before.  It’s my dad’s younger brother, wife, and daughter.  Should be fun!! I think Elizabeth and I are going to do some sledding at their house way up in the mountains :)

Niiight!

~Ashley                                  

fuh-reeeezing

It was COLD today.  Growing up in Cleveland, OH I am used to chilly/windy/snowy winters.  However, after living in Charlotte, NC for 3 years, it is hard to get used to cold winters again!  I saw my car temp. at –1* tonight…eek!

2 Random Things!

1] You can now vote for your favorite POM blogger recipe from the contest they are holding.  I submitted the POM pOp Granola Bars, which come up on the first page.  Go and vote for your favorite recipe!!  Most of them sound reallllly yummy!!!

2] Tomorrow around lunchtime I am going to visit the Rush Naturally Enlightened store in Boulder.  I was contacted by the VP of this pretty new company, to come check out the store and sample away.  I am realllly excited because I love what their company is about and how focused they are on the quality of their product.  Full report on the next post!!

Remember how Kenna ate my cute brown hat yesterday? [grrrr!] Well we put it on Dakota and the photo was pretty funny…  Dakota is a super loving, cuddly dog, but is also really weird.  If you put anything on her…ie: hat/shirt/gym shorts/blanket/etc. she freezes.  I know what you’re asking…why do we put goofy things on her??  If you have a dog you know the answer…it’s basically out of boredom?  Poor Dakota always looks so sad though [even when we’re not putting things on her].  She doesn’t even try to remove the things we put on her.

“I don’t know why Kenna ate the hat and now I don’t know why it’s on my head”

Exhibit B, from September.  We put a robe on all 3 dogs to test which one would escape the quickest.  Dakota failed!  But look at how cute she is!! hehe

 

*no animals were hurt or mistreated while conducting this experiment ;) 

Back to foooood: There is nothing better than a warm bowl of oats + a cup of coffee to warm you up in the morning!!  If you forget what this looks like visit yesterday’s post ;)

Ooops, I forgot I actually had hot cocoa this AM, not coffee!! Aaaand it exploded in the microwave a bit, hehe

Check out the steam…mmmm – I make my hot cocoa with milk + organic dagoba cocoa powder

Explosion!!! And yet, still delicious!

 

Chris and I planned to go snowboarding today, so I was getting lunch ready right after breakfast. 

The clementine was consumed on the drive up and we each had 2 bites of the mini samich [almond butter + strawberry jelly] after boarding.  I bought mini buns from GHBC and they were delicious!  Love the mini size.  Snowboarding was short lived because it was bone chilling coooolllldddd outside.  I actually got a brain freeze coming down the mountain!  That has never happened before.  We went on 2 runs and said “enough!” 

We ended up having a really fun day driving around the ski towns, stopping in Breckenridge village for a wine tasting and then going to eat at the Dam Brewery…and their food was DAM good!

[point n shooot time]

Wine tasting – 3 wines for $5 – It warmed me right up and left me buzzin’

They make their own wine, and the 3 I had were just “meh.”  The last that I tried was a Chocolate Port, which she said was a dessert wine.  It was suuuper sweet and over 17% alcohol.  I could not have had more than 1 glass because of the sweetness.  The little sample was enough.  They also had chocolates filled with the chocolate port and a layer of crunchy sugar around the liquid on the inside.  It was soo good and awesome texture/flavor contrast!

I had the Rojo Grande – 6/10

Blackberry Pinot Noir – 1/10 – literally tasted like cough syrup

Chocolate Port – 5/10 – too sweet

Sleeeepy eyes!

Super fun :)

Dam Brewery time!!!  I had a bowl of buffalo chili and a side Mediterranean salad.   Chris had the chili in a bread bowl and I thought it was funny that it came with a steak knife to cut the bread!

The chili was so so good.  The buffalo was left in nice large chunks and not ground to smithereens.  It was spicy!!! My side salad was amazing + super fresh.  The dressing was a champagne vin. that rocked and the lettuce was all organic. 

I can definitely tell when a place uses quality lettuce.  It doesn’t have a weird dryness that you can tell has been sprayed with preservatives.  I could eat this salad everyday.  The feta on it was awesome and the cucumber was in long straw-like pieces.  Not sure what kind of tool was used to cut them, but I approve! 

The crackers were oh, so, good…full of crunch and texture!

I made some delicious mexican-style sloppy joe’s tonight that were delicious.  I just had a little taste though because I met Laura at a sweet gym in Boulder [Movement] for a late-night sweat session.  We bouldered for about 1 hr and hit up an elliptical-type machine that I really liked.  Before I left I chugged a green monster.  It was much better than yesterday’s fail!

• 3c. spinach
• 1 container strawberries n’ cream Wallaby yogurt
• 1 apple
• 1/3c. almond milk
• ice

I kept it simple because I was in a hurry but needed some energy!  It was actually really apple-ey and pretty tasty.  Check out how GREEN this one was! 

When I came home I ate the veggies that I packed for lunch and toasted an english muffin with 1 egg and a sprinkle of asiago cheese.  Delish! Perfect post-workout light dinner!

I had another mug of hot cocoa tonight!  This one I used unsweetened almond milk + cocoa…mmmm good!  It warmed me right up!

Before I forget…last night’s dinner!  When I saw this recipe on 101 cookbooks I knew it sounded like a winner!!!

Delicious + suuuuuuper easy Curry recipe!  What I changed:

• left out the tempeh
• doubled the sauce recipe and used 2.5lbs potatoes
• stirred in 1, 5oz container of spinach to the sauce until wilted, before adding the potatoes in
• once I added the potatoes I poked a fork in most of them and sstirred so they would absorb some of the sauce
• cut up and added some Paneer cheese [usually in Indian vegetarian dishes]

This sauce was so.so.so.good!!!  I can’t get over how easy this was to make.  It would also be good with chickpeas instead of potatoes, and next time I would add in 2 containers of spinach.  It always disappears when cooked down! 

The cheese doesn’t have much of a flavor but just a nice milky taste/consistency.

I already want more!  Oh yeah, I also bought some 365 brand whole wheat naan at Whole Foods.  I dabbed it with a little butter and added the go to: garlic/parsley/salt seasoning and broiled away.  Holy moley it was crunchy and awesome for dipping in the sauce :)

Aaaand I’m hungry again, but it’s 12:45am so I think I’ll just brush my teeth and go to bed…

Gooooodnight bloggers!

~Ashley