Pumpkin Butter

It's been oh... 2 years since my last post! But I have been eating so many wonderful things lately that I wanted to try doing the whole blog thing again. 

I've joined Tone It Up and if you haven't heard of it, look into this amazing system here. It's basically super clean eating (which I've been doing for quite some time) but it's portioned, timed and spaced perfectly throughout my day. I think last time I blogged I was excited to be at 149lbs and I can't believe that my weight goal THIS WEEK is 124lbs (and Monday is only 2 days away!) Wow. I have come a long ways! 

The owners of the community Karena and Katrina are having a Fall Recipe swap so I decided to blog about my latest amazing Fall recipe! 

Pumpkin Butter

This stuff is delish! So far I have added it to chai tea (Pumpkin Chai!), plain Greeky yogurt and tomorrow I am planning a Pumpkin Butter Latte with some almond milk. A teaspoon of this stuff will make any dish scream Fall and cozy! 

First you'll need to make some Pumpkin Pie Spice, which pretty much deserves a blog post itself because of it's versatility. Mix it up and add it to anything. It's amazing in coffee with a little extra ginger for a Gingerbread Latte, smoothies, oatmeal, you name it. 

To make an addicting Pumpkin Butter you are going to need: 

14oz. can of pumpkin 

1 Tbsp Coconut Oil 

4 Tbsp maple syrup 

1 tsp maple extract

1 Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice 

1 Tbsp Cinnamon

Mix all of your ingredients together in a pot. Heat over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Stir constantly because it can burn easily. Refrigerate for about 2 weeks. 

The Perfect Loaf of Banana Bread

Weight: 153.6 (down .6 lbs or 6.4 lbs from the beginning!)


I don't know about you but I love banana bread, I mean I LOVE banana bread. For the last couple of years I have been desperately searching for a healthy recipe that does not sacrifice taste. Ladies and gentlemen, I think I have found the perfect loaf of banana bread!

This blueberry banana bread will blow you away. It is so moist, delicious, filling and get this... not one drop of butter or oil in it! It's whole wheat, it's flax-y, it's low-calorie, it's low-fat, it's high fiber, it's healthy, it's amazing!


Since I have discovered this recipe about a month ago, I have been poping 2 piece in the toaster every morning for breakfast and having it with 1/2 a cup of yogurt and I can honestly say it keeps me full until lunch... a good 4 hours!

Bust out those old, bruised bananas and eat your heart out people!

Honey-Soy Salmon

Weight: 154.2 (down .2 lbs!) Little victories right...


I have been super busy lately with family, mostly helping my mom out with her ever growing business - Diapers Naturally. We were just at a great tradeshow in Edmonton on the weekend. And while it is difficult for any normal person to resist Chicago Deep Dish pizza while in Edmonton, I walked and walked and walked around that enormous show! So I am guess that is the reason for no weight gain, even though I endulged in the most amazing pizza EVER! I ate really well the rest of the trip though, even went to the grocery store while in Edmonton to grab some healthy necessities - bananas, yogurt, peppers, water. 

Despite my exhaustion and lack of interest, I hit up the gym on Tuesday with Lindsey and did our 45 minute walk/jog and then an hour of water aerobics.  I am just posting this then promptly working out with EA Active and then going on a walk to the library with Bevan!

Scallops with Capers and Spinach

Weight: 155.6 lbs (going back down - thank goodness! Damn cookies)

Oh lordy, this one it gooooood! A little tip about capers: More is not more with these little bundles of flavour! It's not like garlic, believe me, LESS IS MORE when it comes to these guys! 1 tbsp should do just fine. When making the perfect bite on your fork, combine a little spinach, a scallop and only 1 caper. Their flavour is powerful!


Remember to leave me comments! I love to hear if you have tried a recipe, will try it, want to see something different or if you are enjoy the read.


Guten Appetit meine freunden! 

Sauteed Scallops with Lemon and Thyme

I rarely bust out the butter for cooking but sometimes it is just necessary. Scallops, my friends, are one of those occasions. While this recipe - and all the scallop recipes of mine - do have butter in them, it is a minimal amount. Everything is moderation right?


This recipe only makes 2 servings (because seafood is not the best re-heated the next day and it's just Bevan and I tonight). But, the recipe is easily doubled or tripled if you are feeding a larger crowd.


Oh, and remember to leave me comments! I love to hear if you have tried a recipe, will try it, want to see something different on the blog. Let me know what you're thinking!!


Bon Appetit!

Perfect Lunch

I worked out at a gym yesterday (I haven't been to one in awhile, I love stay home in my humble abode to work on my fitness) but I enjoyed it! My girlfriend and I worked HARD and we are both happy to be feeling it today! I also went to a movie on the weekend and refrained from allowing anything harsh to enter my body! Yay for will power!

Today's recipe: Roasted Onion and Garlic Bisque with Whole Wheat Garlic Knots (can we all say 'yum' together?!)

Don't only enjoy this meal to ward off vampires - garlic is full of calcium, potassium and vitamin C. Parsley is an herb that is chalked full of vitamin A, C and K, as well as folic acid. Onions support cardiovascular health, especially because

Low-Fat Almond Biscotti

Weight: 156.2

No more falling off the bandwagon during the weekend (time to test the will power starting today... FRIDAY!) I was down to 155 and 1 weekend of not calorie counting ended up like this... it's now 1 week later and my weight hasn't gone back to pre-weekend blunder weight. Not going to lie, I am feeling pretty discouraged.

I was very active this week and watched my calories. I was busy with wii fit, boxing, swimming, water aerobics, chasing kids around the indoor playground and I even made and effort to walk instead of drive many times this week... what the heck?!

Anyways... I tried out a recipe for low-fat almond biscotti in my Clean Eating cookbook and it is heavenly! So I had to share. Biscotti goes wonderfully with

More Fresh Bread

I am definitely not a no-carb kind of person. I believe in a complete and balanced diet - carbs INCLUDED! As long as you count it in your daily calories, there is nothing wrong with a little carbs in your life.

If you like crispy Artisan bread, you are going to L-O-V-E this recipe! I tried it because I had an excess of avocados in the house but what came out the oven what a very pleasant surprise! Yum!

What is so perfect about this recipe is that you prepare the dough and store it for up to 5 days! Just rip some off and bake it!

Here we go...

As I was driving to work today, listening to CBC radio (I know... I'm old...) I heard a couple U of A student talking about blogging while losing weight. What better way to make you more accountable then telling the whole interweb about every victorious pound gone (or every annoying pound up...)

If you think you can only eat chicken breast and broccoli while losing weight... THINK AGAIN! I love, LOVE to cook (and eat...) I strive to make clean (meaning not from a box) & healthy meals daily. Why not tell you all about the yummy things I cook up while loosing the pounds that I gained over Christmas.

Oh, that part I said about gaining weight over Christmas... not entirely true. I did gain weight over Christmas but I kinda stopped working out and generally caring about my weight in August. You see, when you train for the Death Race (24km mountain run!) harder than you have trained for anything and some bitch from Edmonton was placed on your team and took pictures of the race instead of RUNNING the race and you don't make the time cut off so you do not even get to run the flipping race... in your defeated stupor you might be inclined to quit working out completely... yea, that was in August.