My 2015 Goals

January 5, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 2 Comments

Happy New Year! I hope that all of you have had a great holiday season and you are ready to get going on 2015! I was able to spend some quality time with family this week and enjoyed having my husband around while he was on break from work. Now it’s time to get back to our regularly scheduled program and I have so many things to share with you!

I’ve never really been one to make resolutions, but I do like having goals that I am working to achieve. I wanted to share some of my goals here on the blog because it’s helpful to have a place where you can be kept accountable as well as stating your goals out loud. So here are my 2015 goals.

Keep working on balance.

I started this a few months ago, but it is something that I am still working on. I want to be more balanced in my life. For so long when it came to my health I was super strict. I had to be or else I would have gone right back to my old habits. Now that I have gotten to a place in my life that I am happy with my health, I don’t have to be as rigid in my habits. If I don’t run every day, I won’t lose any ground. If I decide to eat more than I normally do, I won’t immediately gain weight. If I take a few days of rest, I won’t slip back into my old habits. Life happens and I want to be able to enjoy it and roll with the punches and not feel like I am losing everything that I have worked for. I’m doing better but I want to improve throughout the year.

Make a fitness goal.

Looking back I have never really made a fitness goal other than work out. So this year I want to make a fitness goal and then work towards achieving it. There are two things that I want to do this year. The first is to run a race with a family member. For me running has been a very solitary sport, and in some aspects I really like that. I like the peace that I find out on the trail early in the morning. I can sort out my thoughts and just enjoy the quiet. But I would love to be able to share my passion for running with people who are close to me. My second fitness goal is to run a half marathon. Ultimately I want to run a marathon, but I think a half would be a good place to start. I’m aiming for the Chicago Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon in July, so check back to see how I’m doing on that!

Expand the blog

This summer I did a relaunch of my blog and made it a little more user friendly. I want to keep growing though and be able to reach more people and help them towards their health goals. I’m going to add more recipes and simple tips that I use for being healthier. I’m also going to start adding short videos that show how to make some delicious and healthy meals. My ultimate goal for this blog is to help show people that it doesn’t have to be hard/complicated/expensive to be healthy. By adding more tips and videos that can showcase this, I think that I will be better able to serve my readers.

Grow my knowledge

I haven’t been in a formal classroom setting for about four years now and while I’m not jumping up and down to return, I am finding myself wanting to learn more about things I love. A few months ago I became certified in sports nutrition and I really enjoyed that. I want to expand on that and better educate myself so that I can better help others. I am looking into becoming certified in nutritional therapy as well as getting a plant-based nutrition certification. The more I know the more I can share and help you!

Share the wealth

One of my final and biggest goals for 2015 is to start working one on one with people. Of all the aspects of being healthier, cooking and food are definitely my passion. I want to start working with people to help teach them how to cook healthier for their everyday lives. I’ve been teaching myself and honing my own kitchen skills over the years and I think that it’s time for me to share that with you! I will be working on this for the next few weeks and once I have a solid plan ironed out I will make sure that you are the first to know!

So that’s what my 2015 is going to entail. I have a lot of big goals and dreams that I want to accomplish and I am excited to start working on making those happen. I hope that by making these all public it will help me stay accountable and get things done!

How about you? Do you have any goals for your year that you want to share?

A Very Dawson Christmas

December 29, 2014 / ktbuchs87

Hello! I hope that you all had a fabulous Christmas and were able to enjoy time with friends and family. I know that the Monday after a holiday can be a little bit of a bummer, so I thought that I would share pictures with you of my Christmas celebration to cheer you up. There are even pictures of cats, so they are automatically better!

Adam and I have started a little tradition by celebrating our own Christmas after actual Christmas. We spend the day in our pj’s watching Christmas movies, opening presents, and making delicious food. This was our third year doing this and it was one of the best!

Our Christmas tree and the stockings hung by the (faux) chimney with care. Plus the first of many pictures of Olaf. It was his first Christmas and I think he loves it just as much as I do. Our other cat Dot wanted nothing to do with the festivities and slept in the bedroom all day long.

Speaking of cats, of course they have their own stocking and we fill it with new toys for them. Olaf actually managed to get all of the stuff out of the stocking all on his own. He liked the laser pointer and this yellow stuffed dog the best.

He’s pretty adorable. Us humans open our presents over the course of the day. Every time we start a new Christmas movie we open another present. I would say that this year was a good year for both of us. Adam got a new beard trimmer, a t-shirt, books, and candy. I got a new teapot, oven mitts, and books/cookbook. Apparently we both think alike because our big gifts to each other were new bags. I got Adam a new leather messenger bag for work so he could look all fancy and professional and he got me an awesome new black purse that is much better than the bright orange paisley tote bag that I have been using for the past few months.

This is his happy face. Back off ladies he’s mine

Super excited about this book. And you can see my fancy new teapot down in the corner

The other fun part of our Christmas is making a bunch of food that we don’t normally make. This year we made pretzels, which were really easy and fun to make. I also made some fried plantains and egg nog, devoured before I could take pictures. For an appetizer I made spinach/artichoke dip without any dairy (so good, I’ll share the recipe soon!), and we had some pumpkin chips to dip. Then for Adam’s dinner I made slow cooker italian beef and he made homemade buns. I had some delicious butternut squash seasoned with some new seasonings I got from Adam’s side of the family. It was an awesome feast! There were also a variety of cookies and treats for dessert!

Pretzel maker extraordinaire!

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays and I really love that Adam and I have been able to start some of our own traditions. On actual Christmas this year we were able to spend the day with both sides of our family. We started the day with my parents and my sister and her fiance and then headed over to Adam’s grandparents for Christmas dinner and were able to see his (many) aunts, uncles, cousins, as well as his mom and his stepdad.

Overall it was a fabulous holiday. We were able to spend time with so many family members and shared and made plenty of new memories. My heart is full and I can’t wait to see what the new year brings! Have a great rest of the week and Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Spicy Cranberry Sauce

December 12, 2014 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

I think cranberry sauce might be one of the most debated dishes at holiday meals. Do you make it from scratch or get in the can? Leave it tart or add copious amounts of sugar? Eat it on it’s own or use it as a turkey topping? Each family has their own preference and it’s usually steeped in tradition. We’ve always done it this way so we’re going to keep doing it this way.

Delicious canned cranberries. Look at those rings!

Well my cranberry palate has changed over the years. When I was younger, I was all about the canned cranberries. Nothing was better than opening the can and shaking it back and forth until the glob of cranberries, shaped exactly like the can rings and all, slid out onto the plate. I loved slicing rings off of that glob and gobbling them up. I’m sure the crazy amounts of high fructose syrup had nothing to do with that… Then as I got older I really started to like the cranberry relish that my mom made every year. It was a mix of cranberries, apples, oranges, and spices. I liked the tartness of the cranberries with the sweet of the apple and I liked the simplicity of the dish.

Then my mother in law brought a new cranberry sauce to Thanksgiving this year and it was amazing. It was a Guy Fieri recipe and it was a sweet and spicy sauce that was just awesome. I had to control myself so I didn’t eat the whole container! Luckily, I was able to snag some leftovers and got to enjoy the cranberries for a little longer. But once they were gone, I knew that I needed to make some more. So I looked up the recipe and realized that I had none of the ingredients other than the cranberries. Since I didn’t want to make a trip to the store just to get the ingredients for one dish, I decided to see if I could make my own version.

With a minimal amount of ingredients, I was able to recreate the sweet and spicy sauce that I had fallen in love with. This is a really easy dish to make and you can use this sauce for numerous other dishes. I’ve mixed it into oatmeal, used it as a topping for fish, tried it on some cookies, and even just eaten it with a spoon. It’s that versatile. Ok, enough talking about cranberry sauce time to go make some!

Spicy Cranberry Sauce

*adapted from Guy Fieri’s Red Devil Cranberries

1 cup whole cranberries
1 cup water
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder (less if you don’t want it as spicy)
1/4 tsp salt

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup water and 2 tbsp honey to a boil and then immediately lower to a simmer. Add in the cranberries and stir occasionally. Keep stirring until the cranberries start to burst.

2. Add in all the seasonings and stir to combine. Keep the heat on low and cook until the sauce has reduced and started to thicken.

3. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your taste. Turn off the heat and let the sauce cool. As it cools it will thicken even more. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

That’s it! It’s a fairly simple process and the sauce keeps for awhile in the fridge. Because cranberries are so abundant and cheap right now, you can make big batches and then freeze so you can have a delicious sauce for weeks to come. I hope that you enjoy your weekend and I’ll see you on Monday!

3 Ingredient Pumpkin Dip

December 5, 2014 / ktbuchs87

Necessity is the mother of invention right? Well that’s how this simple recipe came to be. I decided that I wanted a snack of celery and hummus and I was absolutely positive that I had some homemade hummus sitting in my fridge. Sadly, I was mistaken and there was no delicious hummus for me to eat my celery. So was left with two choices. I could eat my celery plain, but what kind of crazy person eats plain celery? Or I could find some substitute for my non-existent hummus. I didn’t have all the ingredients on hand to make a new batch of hummus but I did have a few things that I was able to throw together in less than 5 minutes and make a tasty dip. I bet that you probably have most of these things on hand now, so if you have some plain celery you have a hankering for go make this super easy dip!

3 Ingredient Pumpkin Dip

1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 tbsp tahini
1-2 tsp mustard (I used hot mustard, but you can use whatever you have on hand)

1. Ready? Mix this all together in a bowl and eat. That’s it!

You can adjust the amounts to your taste and the amount of dip that you need to make. This was a single snack size serving for me. This would be a really great dip for a crudite plate for a holiday gathering. I also used it as a topping for my lentil loaf last night and it added a really great flavor. So whip this up and enjoy!

How To Use Up Your Leftovers

December 3, 2014 / ktbuchs87

It’s almost a week after Thanksgiving and I’m sure some of you still have mounds of leftovers that you’re trying to get through. Thanksgiving leftovers are one of the best parts of the holiday but there are only so many turkey sandwiches you can eat before you never want to see a slice of turkey again. I thought that I would share some different ways that you can use up the various leftovers that you might have lurking around your kitchen.

Turkey/Ham/Whatever other meat you may have made

Obviously you can make a plain old sandwich, but why not jazz it up my making a turkey salad sandwich? Shred up the turkey and mix together with some mashed up avocado, a little lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Or use hummus or spicy mustard instead of avocado, whatever you have a hankering for.
Add shredded meat to any variety of dishes like soup, tacos, frittatas, quesadillas, or casseroles.
Make chili with leftover meat and any other vegetables you may have lying around.

Potatoes

Use leftover mashed potatoes as a topping for shepherds pie or meatloaf. You can even try it as a topping for my lentil loaf
Sweet potatoes can be used in many baked goods from bread to muffins. Just mash them up into a smooth puree and add into the batter.
Roasted potatoes (regular or sweet) make a great breakfast hash or can be added to scrambled eggs, stews, and casseroles.
Scalloped potatoes can be used as a crust for frittatas or quiche.

Stuffing/Dressing

Let some of your stuffing sit out on the counter overnight to dry out a little and you can use it as bread crumbs
Make stuffing dumplings by mixing stuffing together with 2 eggs, turkey, and some shredded cheese if desired. Form into balls and add into soup and cook covered for 15 to 20 minutes. You can also bake them in the oven at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes
You can also make a breakfast casserole with stuffing. In a casserole dish, place a layer of stuffing along the bottom. Add in green or red peppers, cooked sausage, or sauteed onions and garlic. In a separate bowl whisk 6 to 8 eggs and a little almond milk and then pour over the stuffing. Top with shredded cheese if you would like and bake at 375 for 25 to 30 minutes. Let sit on the counter for 5 minutes before you cut into pieces and eat.

Cranberry Sauce/Relish

Stir cranberry sauce into oatmeal and top with nuts like almonds, walnuts, or pecans for a seasonal breakfast
Use relish or sauce as a sandwich topping for a nice tart flavor
Make a winter salad by combining cooked quinoa/millet/farro/brown rice, diced sweet potatoes or butternut squash, cranberry relish or sauce, and seasonings like parsley or cilantro. Drizzle a little of olive oil and stir the salad all together.

Vegetables

Leftover vegetables often get put in the fridge and then forgotten. Add them into any dish like stir fry’s, soups, stews, or add into salads.
They are also good on sandwiches or if you’re having a taco night use as fillers for burritos.

These are just a few things that you can do with that pile of food you still have to get through. Get creative and see where you can add in leftovers to all of your meals. You can also freeze some of your leftovers to be used at a later time. This works well with meat and bread like dishes. As for all those desserts that are staring you down? I’m sure your neighbor or the office would enjoy having a treat!