A California Girl Goes to the Snow...

I'm sitting here on my bed wearing my snowboarding pants in an attempt to come to terms with them.

I have this theory that if I wear them enough around the house, I will become accustomed to the constant restriction of movement.

My boyfriend and I are going to mammoth for some snowboarding this weekend.

Our mutual friends moved up there last year and we are going to crash their living room for a joyous four days and three nights.  

I'm.Freaking.Out.

I was sooo excited until about 30 minutes ago when I started pulling out all the warm clothes that I'm going to have to wear. 

HOW DO YA'LL DO IT??

The long underwear is giving me the heebyjeebies, and when I put anything over them I can't help but waddle! 

The maximum clothing I'm used to wearing is maybe..maybe a jacket over a sweater. 

Maybe some heavier socks with your uggs.

A beanie? Its for style points, because we have no need to keep our ears warm around these parts.

Sorry. I'm being a baby.

I really am excited.

We are going to have a great time making memories.

I just have one concern about dressing like a marshmallow..

How in the world am I going to get over the constant claustrophobia?!

I guess I'll have to figure that out.

That said, I'm going to go try to P90X my anxiety away before I resume packing.

Homemade Granola

Yesterday my mom and I spent all day making homemade goodies to give away to family and friends.

We made mug cakes, and peanut brittle, and my favorite granola!

It's the first time that we've ever attempted it, and it became an instant classic. 

This is the second batch, we went through the first like nothing.

The great thing about this recipe is you can use whatever proportions that you like, and it is a huge crowd pleaser.

When you're gathering your ingredients, it's important to make sure that everything is raw, because when it comes time to roast it, it will taste overcooked.

We used 8 cups of rolled oats,

 1 cup of flaxseed,

 2 cups of sunflower seeds,

 the last of the sesame seeds we had on hand, 

 2 cups of cashews,

 and 4 cups of coconut. 

 And stir it all up!

 Meet Spirit, the live vacuum. She was loving all the crumbs from this recipe. 

 Then measure out 1 cup of maple syrup.

 Yes, a whole cup of maple syrup. 

 A half cup of honey, 

and a tablespoon of molasses. You will thank me later.

 Stir to make sure it's all distributed well.

 and try to layer evenly on a greased baking sheet. 

 Like so.

Good job mom. 

And bake in the oven at 350 for 50-60 minutes, stirring every ten minutes. 

It will turn golden on the top, and after a few rotations the entire mix will be a nice nutty color.

Go figure.

And there you have it!

We have gone through 3 batches of that stuff and I'm about ready to make another!!

I love it in a bowl with almond milk, my mom likes it with yogurt, and Alex likes it on top of vanilla ice cream. 

I hope you enjoy!!

Linking up today at The Farmhouse Porch

Breakfast Enchiladas

From personal experience, when Christmas morning rolls around, the last thing on everybody's mind is breakfast...until the clock strikes 11 and we are all starving. 

So someone makes a trip for breakfast burritos because Lord knows that we need to get started on Christmas dinner without breakfast dishes in the way.

At least thats how it happens at my house. 

Over the last couple years my mom began to think out of the box with make-ahead breakfasts, so we could eat while doing all the Christmas morning things we do. 

And so came about the instant hit: The Breakfast Enchilada

With all the sugar we were about to consume, the last thing my mom wanted was to serve us some baked french toast with enough sugar to send us into a diabetic coma (although I have a great recipe for  one). 

 I always feel like the very best recipes are the ones handed down. 

This one came from a dear family friend, and the handwritten page made me so happy I had to take a picture.

So if you're like me and can't read a single word on that page, here is what you'll need:

✓ Green Chilis

✓ Corn Tortillas

✓ Shredded Jack (or pepper jack)

✓ Chopped Onion

✓ Diced Tomato

✓ 5-8 Eggs

✓ Milk

✓ 1/2 teaspoon of the following:

salt

pepper

cumin

garlic powder

 You're going to cover a greased pan with a can (or two) of green chilis. 

I used an 8x8 pan, but Christmas morning we will use a 9x13. 

 Layer strips of corn tortilla.

 Layer half of the cheese.

 Layer the onions and tomatoes, and begin again.

 Tortillas + cheese, 

 + tomatoes + onions.

If you are doing this make-ahead style, this is where I would cover and refrigerate until morning.

 Then the next day, whisk the eggs and spices together and pour over your layers... 

 ...bake in the oven at 350 for 40 minutes, and you're all set!

And there you have it, an easy family pleaser with little to no sugar.

This is by no means a recipe set in stone. 

Depending on what you have in hand here are some other ideas:

→Add a layer of sauteed onions, some garlic, and spinach/kale

→For the carni's, add a layer of ham or ground sausage

→Incorporate some sweet corn, diced jalapenos and black beans for more of a Tex-Mex flavor

Any way you spin it, I hope you enjoy!

Terra

Cheesy Quinoa Patties

Can you believe that Christmas is less than a week away??

It seriously snuck up on me so fast, I hope you're not feeling as bombarded as I am!

So today for lunch I made quinoa burgers, and wanted to share my version. 

I originally got the idea for quinoa patties here, but I modified it quite a bit to suite my taste.

You will need:

  ✓  grated cheese of your choice (I used a cheddar & gruyere blend)

✓  cottage cheese

 ✓ 3 eggs

 ✓ grated carrot

 ✓flour, sugar, pepper, cumin, salt and garlic powder

 ✓ Cooked quinoa. I try to aim for 2 heaping cups, but this batch ended up being almost 3. I just start with 1 cup of uncooked quinoa and use all that it makes.

 Mix all of your ingredients together. It looks kinda funny, but trust me when I say it smells delicious.

 Then coat a frying pan with a few teaspoons of olive oil, or oil of your choice and cook on medium low heat for about 4 minutes each side.
The mixture can be sticky, so I just use a measuring cup or mixing spoon to create the patties.

 When they are done, you can eat them with a tzatziki sauce, with ketchup and chipotle, or my favorite, on a flat bun with some lettuce, tomato and Dijon mustard.

Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!

My Life as of Lately

It's killing me how little I have been posting lately, and I feel like I owe an explanation of some sort.

I want my posts not to be about quantity, but about quality. And quality posts take a lot of time. Especially food posts. And while I love spending my time on them, last week and this week are about the craziest weeks of the whole entire year for me. If you have talked with anyone in college right now, you know why. It's finals week. Here is what my week looks like in  nutshell:

Tuesday:

7:30 - Care and Prevention of Athletic Injuries Lab Practical.
12:30 - Inorganic Chemistry Final Exam
5:00 - Team meeting (great timing coach)

Wednesday:
9:00 -Intro to Psychology Cumulative Exam

Thursday:
10:00- Care and Prevention of Athletic Injuries Final Exam
6:00- Measurement and Evaluation of Kinesiology Final Exam
Before Midnight- Complete 10 blog posts for Communication of leadership.

Friday:
Sleep. All. Day.

I guess it doesn't seem too bad, right? Wrong. Sorry, but I'm stressing big time. Just for the fun of it let me give you a sample question from one of my study guides:

Scenario #2

 A member of your high school tennis team comes to you complaining of an extremely sore elbow, especially on the outside (lateral).  She just returned from a big tournament where she played many matches.  Upon examination you note that she has pain in the region of the lateral humeral epicondyles that becomes worse immediately after participation.  She also states that the pain sometimes radiates into the muscles of the forearm.  The lateral epicondyle appears to be swollen.  What would you conclude based on this information?  What would you recommend to this athlete?

How is it possible to love something so much, yet hate it at the same time? When I figure it out I'll get back to you.

In the mean time just sit tight, next week I'll be back up and running. For now your prayers are much appreciated!

To my girls going through finals too, here is some motivation:  

Xoxo

My High Maintenance Starbucks Order

Yes, yes, I admit it I am one of those people who's drink order is a mile long. I apologize.

I am just a sucker for hot flavored drinks, and I know how I like them!

For those who aren't aware, I am a huge tea drinker. I have to have it every day, it is my ultimate comfort food. Comfort drink. Whatever. 

But I think we can all agree that there is something about coffee that is just irresistible, and for me that is the christmas drink- gingerbread latte. 

But I have tried to cut out coffee almost entirely over the past year.

I'll try to keep my explanation short and sweet, but for about a year I had pretty severe acne, brought on by a missions trip to the Dominican Republic. It was pretty much the only negative experience of the whole trip.

[I'm third from the left in the top row.]

I blame it on all the acidic food, and having to drink everything but the water...especially the coffee. Mmmmm I still crave Dominican coffee two years later. 

But after lots of research and appointments I have whipped my skin back into shape through keeping a simple strategic diet. Which excludes coffee. 

Dilemma: I don't drink coffee anymore, but I loooovvvveeee me some gingerbread latte. 

Solution: My complicated, wonderful drink order.

A non-fat black tea latte with pumps of gingerbread. 

(how many depends on the size)

It would be even better if they had almond milk, but they don't. Yet. I'm hopeful.

I haven't tried it with other syrups but I don't know why it wouldn't work just the same with any other flavor you could think of. 

Try it and tell me if you like it, or if my imagination is just a little too vivid.

It's Christmas Time...

...in the cityyy.

I have had that song stuck in my head all day.. and now I pass it along to you : )

December in San Diego, there is nothing like it. But don't take my word for it:
 

Try not to be too jealous that I'm still wearing my rainbows to class.. it's kinda sad that I've never known a white Christmas. Or the fact that I get super excited when one tree out of 100 turns to fall colors.

But I'm a baby in cold weather so I'm soo thankful for where I live. 

Just a California girl through and through.

Happy December!

❤ Terra