Cholesterol Happy Brownies (Sp)

Matt got told a few months ago that his cholesterol levels were not good. Not good at all. 

Not only was this bad news for him, it was bad news for me. Firstly, you don't want high cholesterol. Secondly - I need to bake. 

I looked up what I could do to help him get his cholesterol in check. He started exercising at least five times a week. He reviewed what he was eating. We feel like we've got this stuff figured!

But baking? How could I still bake when Matt was fighting bad cholesterol?

Enter Flora Pro-Activ. The good news? I've switched it in instead of butter, so I can still bake, and Matt can still enjoy my baking! Hoorah!   

This is a super simple no-fail brownie recipe that I love. And because you've been so good dear reader, I am willing to share!

Lexi's No-Fail Double-Choc Double-Happiness Brownies

180g Flora Pro-Activ, melted

3/4 cup cocoa

1 1/2 cups castor sugar (or brown, whatever takes your fancy)

a teaspoon of good quality vanilla extract

4 eggs, lightly beaten

100g sifted plain flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup of chocolate, chopped

small pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 160C. Line a brownie tray with baking paper. 

Mix Flora Pro-Activ and cocoa in a large bowl. Once combined add sugar, vanilla and eggs. Stir through remaining ingredients. Pour into prepared tin and bake for 25-30 minutes until quite firm, but moist (I like mine a bit gooey, so I take them out a little early - when the top is quite firm). Allow to cool in tin and cut into squares. Dust with a little icing sugar. Serve with a strong coffee. All will be well.

What is cholesterol? Even if you think 'Oh I am too young to have high cholesterol!' - you should get it checked. Click over to learn the difference between 'good' and 'bad' cholesterol.  

* This is a sponsored post. Very occasionally I will do sponsored posts - when they resonate with me, because maybe they'll resonate with you too. This is my honest opinion which is why I can blog openly about it.  I wanted to share. 

I Disappeared:: Loving

Crumbs. It's been a long time since I posted. 

Sorry old chaps. 

I've been busy. I'm sure you have too. Here's four snaps that sum up my two weeks away from ye olde blogge.

Let's go clockwise from top left. 

1. I went to Perth. For less than 24 hours. That really, really hurt. I think I'm still recovering. But I did go to this awesome gallery space - and these paintings caught my eye. 

Venn Gallery, Perth 

2. Bread and Circus is one of my favourite places to eat. I've been there five times now and each time I eat something different. This is The Super Bowl. My goodness it was good. And after two full on weeks, I needed to recharge the goodness levels in my body. This helped. A lot. 

3. I got to sneak preview the new Spring Collection from Habbot. These yellow punched leather beauties have pretty much stolen my heart. I am in yellow lust. 

Dee lace ups from Habbot

4. I have now made this chocolate cake I spied over on Checks and Spots three times. In two weeks. That might not be a healthy obsession, but it is super simple. And delicious. 

Dead easy chocolate cake by Anneka Manning 

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What's been cooking in your kitchen? What have you been up to? 

Thursday Afternoon Smoothie

Thursday afternoon and I completely hit the wall. 

Everyone thinks working four days is some plum gig. The reality is you wind up working longer hours to balance out that missing day.

And then there's the people who call and say: "Hey, I know it's your day off, but..."

I'd love to call them on a Sunday morning and say the same thing. 

Anyway, back to Thursday afternoon. I'm pooped. I need to power up. Matt's working in the evening, and I need some pep in my step pronto. 

I made myself a smoothie using the KitchenAid blender (best thing ever). I know it sounds lame, but I just didn't have the energy to do much prep, so this is how it played out:

1 cup frozen mixed berries
a big, generous handful of fresh mint. Because I love mint.
2 teaspoons of Vital Greens*
1 tablespoon chia seeds
2 cups water

Blitz in the KitchenAid blender, et voila. Instant power up gamers!

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Onto Vital Greens. I read about it first over at Checks & Spots. For anyone living a busy life, who might be worried about missing out on vital nutrients, Vital Greens is packed full of goodness to help you get that balance you yearn for. Well I yearn for it anyway. 


* I am a massive fan of KitchenAid, and have been lent some of their products to try. They are ace. Totally ace. And the blender matches my pink KitchenAid mixer. It must be love.

No Dessert For Me

So I skipped Bikram last night. Which yes, I know, was incredibly naughty. Scandalous!

Something's got to give, and dinner didn't really satisfy, but instead of going for a chocolate fix after dinner, I made Matt and I a quick and healthy smoothie. 

It's filling, it gives us two serves of fruit, plus the added bonus of chia, the Omega-3 and protein from almond milk and it was sweet - satiating that thing in my brain saying: gimme, gimme!

This is what you need:

1 generous cup of frozen raspberries (or you could use fresh if you have them)
1 small ripe banana
1 cup of almond milk
2 tablespoons of chia

I tossed everything into the Kitchenaid blender - 30 seconds later - yeah baby, fresh, cold, tasty. 

And totally worth skipping Bikram for, right?!



* I am a massive fan of KitchenAid, and have been lent some of their products to try. They are ace. Totally ace. And the blender matches my pink KitchenAid mixer. It must be love.

Helloooooooo Autumn!

Over the weekend Sydney showed weather extremities to the max. Saturday - bone chillingly cold, with horizontal sheets of rain slaying us. Sunday, nary a cloud in the sky, warm, and perfect for an explore around the harbour and an impromptu gelato.

Ok. Maybe not so impromptu. Truth be, most of the adventure hinged around the gelato - but there's a reason why.

It was my first time to Gelato Messina. Stop the press. Saddle up birds, because if you're going to break a diet, this is where you want to do it. 

Let's take a look at the orders:
Me: Salted Caramel + Bounty
Tiny: Chocolate (that had peanuts through it - yu-um)
The Doctor: Choc mint + choc chip
Matt: Salted Caramel + Italian Nougat

Holy toledo Batman. 

Well. Speaking of Batman, we did come across this car. How's that for every kid's fantasy? Well most kids. Well some kids. Well it was my dream ok?? How rad is that? 

So for the cost of four gelatos and a drive to the harbour, we explored backstreets, behaved like tourists in our own town, decided which boat we wanted and guessed how many bedrooms were onboard (there's probably some lingo I am missing out on here) and fantasised about moving into one of those empty oversized harbourside apartments (squatting anyone??). It was the perfect way to spend Sunday afternoon. 

Oh Sydney you cheeky, cheeky minx, you've got me wrapped back around your finger. 

Bliss Balls:: The Recipes I Used

During my cleanse I looked for recipes to comfort the sweet tooth within. What I found during my search was bliss balls. A little hit of sweet to satiate. 

These are super duper healthy and packed full of goodness. Plus they're ridiculously easy to make, I just make a batch, pop them in the fridge - and BOOM! Good to go. I'm still sugar free 10 days later. Go me! 

I found both these recipes over on The Rejuvenation Lounge. 

Cacao and Cashew Bliss Balls (pictured above)

Matt and Tiny REALLY loved these ones. I like them, but not as crazy excited about them as they were.

• 1/2 to 1 cup of cashews blended until smooth ( or you can cheat and buy cashew butter)
• 2 tablespoons of agave nectar or swap for honey or rice syrup (I used honey)
• 1 tspn vanilla extract
• 4 – 8 dates (add to suit your taste)
• 2 tablespoons organic cacao

I threw the cashews into the food processor first - blitzed them, rather than a butter, it was more like granules of cashew, then I added everything else and blitzed until a nice consistency. I then used a teaspoon and rolled into balls (like hi-bouncer size), and I put them on a lined baking tray and popped them in the fridge. 

Optional: roll in coconut (I did. I love coconut.)

Tahini Bliss Balls 

These ones are my FAVOURITE!  These ones don't require a blender - you just need a knife and a chopping board, a bowl and a spoon. 

• 1 cup of rolled oats
• 1/2 cup of tahini
• 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
• 2 – 4 tablespoons of honey (depends on your taste)

Mix all the ingredients up, and as with the recipe above, I used a teaspoon and rolled the mixture into balls , and I put them on a lined baking tray and popped them in the fridge. 

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Have you made bliss balls before? Do you have a favourite recipe? Share? 

You can read more about the gentle cleanse here.

Kids In The Kitchen With Tetsuya

Last week the Doctor and I went on a date. To Tetsuya's.

I know. Right?!

Electrolux invited us to enjoy a Kids in the Kitchen Masterclass with Tets. Who was I to decline?

We enjoyed such a wonderful night learning from the master - two easy recipes - scrambled eggs with ricotta, creamed corn and truffles, and twice cooked chicken with bread sauce. So easy and accessible you can get the kidlets involved cooking dinner. Plus - those eggs, oh em gee peeps. Make them for Father's Day. I am telling you, they are a winner.

As well as enjoying the gentle company of Tetsuya, we learnt about the Electrolux Induction Cooktop. If you are in the market for a new kitchen - check it out. You will thank me. Yes. Yes you will.

There's no use crying over spilt milk, because if you're boiling milk on your Electrolux cooktop it won't bake it on to the stove. The heat is only retained where the saucepan has a magnetic field. Pretty cool if you ask me. Plus it distributes heat evenly which means perfectly cooked pancakes and scrambled eggs. This is clearly a big deal for me because we are a family that loves pancakes and scrambled eggs.

The Doctor got a behind-the-scenes tour of the restaurant with Rich (see bottom two pics by the Doctor). Rich is beyond genius and his passion, enthusiasm and knowledge just blows you out of the water. Not to mention his supersonic hearing abilities.  Big thanks to Electrolux for hosting such a wonderful evening. This was a date night to remember with my little man.

PS - Do not tell Tets that the Doctor's highlight was riding in the hire car. It filled him with such glee. Boys and cars baby, boys and cars.


Please note: This is not a sponsored post. Electrolux invited me for dinner. I loved it. I went. I wanted to share.

Sneaky McSneakerson: (Kale) Smoothie

On Saturday the smalls were given some chocolate by a well-meaning friend. We're by no means perfect and pure, but I have been trying to remove refined sugars, colours and so on from our pantry - not in a nutty way - just in a 'we don't need this crap in our diet' way -  and replace it with more and more wholefood. 


All afternoon the kids had been in a slow decline, naturally becoming tireder towards the end of the day. (Halleluljah!)


And then they ate the chocolate.


Literally within minutes Tiny was bouncing off the walls. She was back on. I felt so defeated. Deflated. Meanwhile, she was a helium balloon. Up, up and away.


Fast-forward to this afternoon when I thought, I am going to gazump those little kittehs, whip up a knock-out Vitamix smoothie that they love to love.


I chucked in the following for a delicious smoothie that the Doctor rated as the highlight of his day (high-five!). Just wait 'til you see what I snuck in there:


1 x banana
1 x cup mixed berries (frozen)
2 apples
1 tablespoon of honey
1 small handful of kale. YES KALE! 


Blitz. Serve to two small children - and they will never know the kale is in there. Scout's honour. 


I was so stoked to find kale at my fruit and veg today. The lady at the shop I think was a little bewildered by my excitement - I've been trawling all the local shops looking for it.  It's in season now folks, and is super duper good for you. Get into it! 

Eating. Making. Creating.

How great is this animation? I think it's so beauitful and inspiring.

And I really love guacamole and want some. Right now!

Everyday I'm Shuffling

So as promptly as I posted about eating more salads and stuff, I fell off the apple-cart, grabbed an ultra late lunch at 4pm which was take-away because I was in the middle of nowhere, completely and utterly famished and about to commit a heinous starvation-induced crime, and this was the only option. I didn't succumb to a big fat-drenched burger, but pasta with a caramel slice chaser. Oops. Someone scrape me up off the footpath and put me back on my high-horse.

My Mum is still here helping us out, and she's been an amazing help. A God-send. To come home to two happy little peeps, a house smelling of something great in the oven, and ironing done - I feel like I've gone to Utopia. Thank you Mum.

What's your Utopian experience right this very second? Not tomorrow. Not yesterday. Right now.

OOOOH - Winner of the Nintendo DS and LEGO Ninjago is.... Mrs Smith aka Si-lent Butviolent, Master of Stealth and Scent. So many good entries though gals, thank you for playing, and hopefully I'll have something else rad to give away soon! Promise.

image from Ben Quilty's beautiful and inspiring website. I love those rich slathers of oil paint so much I could eat it.

I'm In Training

It's true. I am. Imagine me in a life of tracksuit pants, sweatbands and dancing like a maniac. Maniac. She's training like she's never trained before.

Except I'm not training, training. I'm training myself to pack my lunch every single day I go to work. For a number of reasons.

1. I work in the boondocks. I have to drive to get lunch. And even when I do buy lunch, it's quelle ordinaire.

2. Saving money. Who wants to spend $15 a day on an ordinary lunch? Not me. I'd rather keep those pennies in my purse and spend it on something good. Like paying the electricity bill.

3. Upping the ante. I want more veg in my belly. I've gone through this stage of being stupidly busy, putting myself last, and now it's time to stop! Collaborate and eat veg!

This is lunch today. I ate it then realised I forgot my tuna. Oops. But the salad was goooood. What are you loving for lunch lately? (say that 10 times fast).

Yowser!

I work in the middle of nowhere, and if I don't take my lunch I have to rely on the mercy of co-workers to take me somewhere, or the vending machine. This is ugly peeps. Real ugly. I don't even like junk food really. I never seek out chips. I do like chocolate. But the vending machine?? YOWSER! My belly it runneth over. Ok it doesn't really, but it has potential. After reading these stats, I'm re-evaluating the snack-a-roos!

Speaking of being a little generous in form, did you know Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution is heading to Australia?

Really Super Things

I was speaking with Angela at Kid Style File a while ago. Her family were struck down by the lurgies. She suggested drinking Charlie's Lemonade, heating it slightly and adding some honey. I will tell you right now I am probably the only person in the world that hates lemon and honey. Meh!

But Charlie's Lemonade with honey is really super fantastic. Thank you Angela for that great tip!

And today the postman knocked at my door. I was standing in the kitchen at the time in a spencer top and pyjama pants. I hid my top half behind the door and was greeted with our very polite postman bowing at me! He presented me with a parcel from one of my all time favourite cronies - Sal from GEORGIE LOVE!

I was lucky enough to win this book - Simple Softies for Beginners via Sal's giveaway - and I am suitably CHUFFED! This book is right up my alley folks - it's aimed at beginner's and kids from the age of 5. That really says something about my crafting capability, right?

I've sat down today with each of the smalls to discover which of the softies they like. The Doctor is into Hop Skip Jump's dino. Tiny is into Hop Skip Jump's Cat-Face Cushion.

Let le sewing begin. And prepare to laugh at the outcomes.

Thigh Slap!

This is my post to alleviate my guilt factor turned up to ten.

If I've not replied to your comment, I promise I have good intentions, but with parenting, wifeing, working, houseworking, and thigh slapping, I hardly have any time to floss my teeth let alone reply to all emails. But if you have your email as the reply thing, then I can easily flick you an email and you won't feel unloved. I do read and enjoy every single comment (unless you're calling me an ugly old troll and then I just hit delete because I HAVE THE POWER!). My inbox it runneth over. I am doing my best to clear the backlog but sometimes my best is not good enough! (which movie, which movie??)

Secondly, ricotta gnocchi recipe. I was meant to email it, I never did. I am sorry! Here it is. Print it, roll around on it, do anything you want to it. It's out there and I've done it. Sorry it wasn't sooner!

Ricotta Gnocchi

500g good quality ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
100g plain (all-purpose) flour
1 quantity tomato pesto (will type up in a minute too!)
butter & grated parmesan cheese to serve

If you are serving these with tomato pesto, make sure it is ready before you cook the gnocchi.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Mix together the ricotta, parmesan, flour and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. With lightly floured hands, roll out the dough into thin sausages (about 1.5cm thick). Try to avoid adding extra flour or your gnocchi will be tough. Cut with a sharp knife into little dumplings about 2cm long.

Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water and cook for about 45 seconds until they float to the surface. As they bob up, lift them out with a slotted spoon and put them into warm serving bowls. If you need to, stir a couple of tablespoons of the cooking water through the pesto to give a good coating consistency, and spoon a dollop over each serve. Add a little butter and grated parmesan and serve at once.

Serves 4.

Tomato Pesto

100ml olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled
400g tinned diced tomatoes
25g basil leaves, torn
3 tablespoons pine nuts
30g parmesane cheese, grated

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a saucepan with one of the garlic cloves. When it sizzles, add the tomato and season with salt. Simmer over medium heat for about 15 minutes until the tomato thickens and becomes smooth, curhsing it up with a wooden spoon from time to time.

Finely chop the other garlic clove and put it in a small processor or blender with the basil leaves and pine nuts. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the remaining olive oil and the parmesan and pulse just long enough to combine. Stire into the tomato sauce and heat for about 20-30 seconds. Fish out the whole garlic clove before serving.
Note: if you are making the tomato pesto in advance, keep the pesto separate and add to the heated tomato sauce just before serving.

Serves 4.
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Both recipes are from Tessa Kiros' 'Apples for Jam'.

That is all on my guilt list. For now.

It's a Lot of Bread

I have another collection. It's bread tags. Everyone's collecting them for me. Look at them. Ordinary objects, but together, reunited, they are having a very plastic family reunion. There are big ones, small ones, blue ones, pink ones, white ones, brown ones. They are breeding too. Look at how many are in the jar..