158-162 Days Gone By

Wow it's hard to believe that five days has passed since I have posted here.  I have been taking photos each day but then just sometimes if I'm honest can't be bothered to post here.  It is so easy to get all caught up in being on the computer or instagram which is my case and it really is important to take yourself away from it more often.  I so often here how much people achieve whilst giving themselves a bit of a tech break, and I would love to get back into more creating and less screen time.  Anyway my photos for the past five days are all about birthday card making, new plant and pot purchases, visits to the city and my usual Monday baking.  I made these yummy Cherry Ripe Bliss Balls which I didn't end up making last week but I did today.  How has your week been?

120/365 Monday Making

I have to say that I have been lost for ideas as to what to photograph these last few weeks. I have been pretty good up until now but I am feeling like my photos are becoming repetitive.  Maybe I need to go for a drive or look at things from a different perspective or use a different lens for a week.  I'm not sure but I will have to think about it, change things up and get my mojo back.  This photo is from my Monday baking.  I love a sweet cupcake covered in sprinkles.

113/365 Baking Day

Today was baking day.  After a morning of shopping, unpacking and cleaning out the fridge and pantry for the new food I often tend to choose simple recipes to make.  On the menu today was Anzac Slice and Gluten Free Quinoa Chocolate Biscuits.  Both recipes I reduced the sugar by a quarter of a cup which didn't alter the recipe in any way and they still based plenty sweet enough. Have you been baking any yummy treats for lunch boxes this week?

86/365 Carrot Cake Bliss Balls

On Monday I didn't quite have the time or energy to make the one last lunch box treat on the menu plan.  So this afternoon I managed to fit in making these delicious treats.  They are super healthy and very easy to make especially when all you have to really do is a little bit of grating, blending and rolling and really that's it.  It's been a long time since I have shared a recipe here so here it is for you if you should want to give it a try.
*11/2 cups walnut halves
*10 dates
*1 large carrot grated
*1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger (use 1/2 tsp if you don't want it as strong)
*1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
*1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
*pinch sea salt flakes
*50g LSA or ground almonds
* finely grated zest of 1 lemon (optional)
*1 cup of shredded/desiccated coconut

Place all of the ingredients except the coconut into the food processor and blend.  Roll balls of mixture into coconut.  Put into the fridge and enjoy.

64/365 Afternoon Tea Anyone

This week I decided after a few weeks of not having treats that we quite as sugary that I would make us something a little special.  When I was planning the menu I put a couple of favourites on the list I knew my family would enjoy, chocolate slice and monte carlos. They certainly are a bit sugary but they are homemade which does make them a lot better than store bought and they are very tasty indeed.

51/365 Raw Carrot Cake Balls

Monday is my baking day but today I thought I would make a couple of other treats to see us through till the end of the weekend.  The first was a Cannellini Dip to have with crackers and vegetables and the other was Raw Carrot Cake Balls from the recipe book Joyous Health.  The rest of the week I can relax now when it comes to lunch box treats, it feels great to have been motivated this week.

43/365 Monday's Baking

It was a pretty standard Monday today for me, shopping and baking.  I really like having my Monday routine to set me up for the week ahead with fresh food in the fridge and baked treats in the pantry.  It doesn't always last for the entire week so I have been baking on Sunday also.  This new routine of baking something simple and quick on Sunday as well as my usual Monday baking, seems to work well.  Today I baked a couple of new to me treats this basic cinnamon apple muffin recipe and these banana, oat and seed cookies. Do you have a baking routine?

21/365 Back to school muffins

It's back to school for my daughter tomorrow so I got to baking today and made these choc chip banana muffins.  They were very easy to make and the bonus was it made a dozen and a half.

269/365 'Homemade Sushi'

We are having a pretty quiet week here this week.  There has been the usual shopping trip, a couple of early mornings of athletics training for Miss 15, baking and a trip to the dog groomer for Molly.  As the girls grow trips to the museum and hours of crafting aren't quite the thing to do which is hard for this Mum who has been so used to organising crafting sessions over the holidays for many years.  With nothing much planned today I thought a nice lunch treat might be in order so we made our own sushi.  It was simple and very yummy indeed and cheap too which I liked, bought sushi can be quite expensive for three people one of which is a growing teenager.  I didn't have any sushi rice at home but gave arborio rice a try and it worked perfectly as a replacement.  This is the recipe we used today for our sushi.  For those with teenagers and older children, any great holiday activity ideas?

Little Apple Cakes

Monday is my shopping day and Tuesday is my cooking day it's been that way for a while, some days they are swapped around but I seem to work better keeping to this routine. This Monday I did the cooking instead, my big girl had the day at home with a heavy cold.  The rule here is if you're sick you need to lie down and rest, no playing and get yourself better.  So while she rested, watching a bit of tv, a bit of reading and listening to a talking book, I did some baking in the kitchen.  On the menu for this week's lunch box treats were Carrot Oatmeal Cookies, recipe found here, and Little Apple Cakes. This recipe can be found in one of my favourite go to books, Feeding Fussy Kids.

Little Apple Cakes
1 cup wholemeal self raising flour
1 cup while self raising flour
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
⅔ cup raw sugar
2 tablespoons wheat germ
1 cup coarsely grated apple
1 egg, lightly beaten
¾ cup milk (cow or soy)
½ cup vegetable oil (I used coconut oil)

Preheat the oven to 180℃.  Line 12 patty pans with paper cases.
Sift the flours and cinnamon into a mixing bowl, and add the husks.
Stir in the sugar and wheat germ; combine then make a well in the centre.
Add the apple, egg, milk and oil.  Stir to combine; do no over beat.

Spoon mixture into the prepared pans.  Bake for 20 minutes or until cakes are springy to a gentle touch.  Lift out onto wire racks to cool.

What healthy treats have you been making lately?

♥