I had a serious craving for cookies last night, so I took to the internet to search for a recipe. I bought a brand new bag of almond flour the other day, so I Googled “almond flour cookies,” which turned up my friend Evan’s Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies and, boy, did they look delicious! I didn’t have any chocolate chips on hand (and I was too lazy to run to the grocery store), so I swapped them out for dried cherries and walnuts.

I wasn’t sure what to expect baking cookies with almond flour, but Evan’s recipe assured me they’d turn out well—and they did! Holy deliciousness!

The flavor of these cookies is slightly sweet and sort of buttery with a soft, doughy texture and a little chew and crunch from the dried cherries and walnuts. I’m a big fan of these babies. I’ll definitely make them again!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/3 cup dried cherries
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375*F.
2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well until batter is blended evenly.
3. Roll batter into 1-inch balls and place on a greased baking sheet.
4. Bake cookies for approximately 12-15 minutes.
5. Remove cookies from baking sheet and allow to cool on wire rack.
6. Eat and enjoy!

Makes 12 cookies

Speaking of almond flour, I’m hosting a giveaway for a bag of it on Trading Up Downtown this morning!

Good morning, friends!

CrossFit was so fun last night! We did “The Dirty Dozen” and the workout flew by!

The Dirty Dozen is a common CrossFit “benchmark” workout that many gyms use to monitor progress as you get stronger, fitter, and faster. The Dirty Dozen is a timed workout, so down the road when we do it again, I’ll be able to see if I improved.

WOD: “The Dirty Dozen”

For time:
25 Walking lunges
20 Pull-ups
50 Box jumps, 20″ box
20 Double-unders
25 Ring dips
20 Knees to elbows
30 Kettlebell swings, 2 pood
30 Abmat Sit-ups
20 Front squats
25 Back extensions
30 Wallballs, 20 pound ball
3 Rope climb ascents

There were a few moves that I wasn’t strong enough to do, so our coaches provided various substitutions and modifications. For instance, Knees to Elbows just wasn’t happening for me. I barely did one the correct way, so there was no way I was cranking out 20 of them in a row. Instead, I did knee lifts, which I still thought were pretty challenging. I also did band-assisted ring dips and three sets of 7 chin-ups instead of 3 rope climbs. (I got about 4-feet off the ground when I attempted the rope climb. Derp.)

Once we finished The Dirty Dozen, we recorded our time. It took me 19:20 to finish the workout.

The “L1” next to my name means that the workout was done with some Level 1 modifications (as I mentioned above). The “Rx” next to other people’s names means the workout was done as written/prescribed with no modifications.

Good stuff. I’m a big fan of CrossFit.

Dinner

After CrossFit, Mal and I headed home to make dinner. For some reason, we thought it wouldn’t take that long to cook a whole chicken. Um, yea. We didn’t eat dinner until 9:30 last night.

On the menu: Roast Chicken with Roasted Onions, Peppers, and Tomatoes. It turned out really well, but, man, it took forever to cook— quite a bit longer than the directions said it would.

While I waited for dinner to cook, Murphy and I did a pug photo-shoot in the kitchen. Check out his “Blue Steel.” Fierce, right?

Murphy sat there for awhile and let me snap photos of him, but, eventually, he started to look annoyed.

Mom, this is stupid. Why don’t you check to see if the chicken is done?

I ended up adding the roast chicken and veggies to a big salad, which I topped with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Delish.

After dinner, I ate a zillion cookies!

Just kidding. I ate one. The blog is called Carrots ‘N’ Cake after all!

Breakfast

You know how I’ve been on a quest to find the best way to cook steel cut oats? I tried the microwave method and the soaking overnight method, which both worked fine, but weren’t ideal. After seeing my steel cut oats post, my friend Beth emailed me to share her method for cooking them:

The ratio is always 1/4 cup oats to 1 cup water, and I make them the night before to make it easier. However many servings you are making, add the right amount of oats and water to a pan, bring it to a boil for about 2 minutes, then cover it, remove it from the heat, and leave it out overnight. In the morning, stir it up, and all you need to do is heat it and eat it!

Genius! This method requires a little bit of foresight, but Beth said she’ll often make 2-4 servings on Sunday and then just reheat the leftovers throughout the week. This method works great—the best so far!

When I reheated my oatmeal this morning, I stirred in some cranberries, cinnamon, and chia seeds, and then added a big scoop of peanut butter.

I also drank a glass of iced coffee with soy milk.

While eating breakfast this morning, Mal and I talked about finishing our Christmas shopping this weekend. Surprisingly, we got a head start on it this year. Usually, we wait until the last-minute to do it.

As we were chatting, our conversation moved onto the best gifts we’ve ever received. I said my engagement ring (obviously), the scrapbook Mal gave me for my 30th birthday, and the GPS app he bought me for my iPhone. (I have the worse sense of direction, so I use it ALL of the time.) Mal initially said the best gift he ever received was his XBOX, which he said half-joking, but then he decided on the trip to Paris that his parents gave us when we finished our masters’ programs. THAT was an awesome gift!!

My Dr. Oz Debut

Remember the time I was on The Dr. Oz Show? Well, the episode is airing next Monday, December 19th! I hope you decide to tune in. You KNOW I’ll be DVR-ing it!

mypressi TWIST Espresso Machine Giveaway

Thanks to everyone who entered to win the mypressi TWIST Espresso Machine! How cool is that thing?! Here’s your winner:

Louise

I looove coffee! Just today, after a trip to Starbucks, I was telling my husband how I wished I could make my own Espresso and fancy coffee drinks at home with my own Espresso-maker. This cool Espresso-maker would totally make my wishes come true this year!

Congrats, Louise! Please email me at tina@carrotsncake.com with your full name and mailing address to claim your prize!

If you didn’t win the mypressi TWIST, but still want to purchase it for yourself or as a gift for someone else, it’s 30% off today through OpenSky!

Question of the Day

What’s the best gift you’ve ever received?

P.S. Check out this super cute pug pic that Kelly sent me!

I’ve eaten about ten cookies today, so there’s not a lot of “real” food in this post. I’ll explain why in a minute, but just know that I may never eat cookies again. (Ok, we all know that’s a huge lie, but, right now, I can’t even stomach the thought of eating another cookie. Ughhh.)

Lunch

Today’ lunch was a turkey and cheddar cheese sandwich with sliced tomato, avocado, and honey mustard on toasted whole wheat bread. I really love sandwiches; I should eat them more often.

Workout

I didn’t feel very well this morning, so I skipped my workout and took Murphy to the park after lunch instead.

Before I left the house, I grabbed my Garmin, so I could see how far Murphy and I traveled on our walk. We ended up covering a little over 2 miles in less than an hour. Not too shabby! That counts as a workout, right?

Toward the end of our walk, it started to rain, so Murphy and I ran about 0.5 mile back to the car. We finished our workout strong!

Murphy is the best workout buddy!

Back at home, I got my bake on.

I can’t tell you exactly why I spent my afternoon baking cookies, but it’s part of a recipe challenge and a really cool opportunity. I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know much about cooking, but I’m an expert when it comes to baking cookies!

Hopefully, I’ll have some exciting news to share with you guys soon!

Dinner

I tasted cookies all afternoon long, so I kept dinner on the light and salty side. I needed some sodium to even out all of that sugar!

I’m off to relax and catch up with my DVR. My husband pointed out that I’m hogging it with ten unwatched episodes of Ellen. I better get on it!

If you’re a long time reader of Carrots ‘N’ Cake, you’ve probably noticed that I tend to blog about many of the same topics over and over again— mostly because I love them so much. So, here’s a fun, little post that covers many of my favorites!

Murphy

I bet you’re not surprised by this one! Murphy is the love of my life. Ummm, I mean, MAL is the love of my life! Murphy is a close second!

This morning, my little fur ball received a wonderful package of goodies from Polka Dog Bakery, a “treat boutique for dogs” in the South End of Boston.

Murphy was psyched!!!

Inside the box was all sorts of wonderful doggie treats.

And Murphy couldn’t wait to sample a couple of them!

Thank you Polka Dog Bakery! You made Murphy very happy today!

Body Pump

After breakfast, I headed to Body Pump. I haven’t been in two weeks, so I knew this class would kick my butt— and it did—but I was ready for it. I worked hard, sweat buckets, and left totally exhausted. I really got a good workout today. I love that!

I used to avoid the Wednesday morning Body Pump class at my gym because the instructor would always start late— not like 5 minutes late, but 15 minutes late! It used to drive me nuts, waiting around for the instructor to get her act together, but now I realize her class is worth the wait (and minor frustration).

The instructor is amazing. She pushes me to work hard and switches up the music, so we never do the same workout twice. I usually get bored of the new release after 3 or 4 classes, so it’s nice that she keeps it fresh!

Celebrities

I saw Bethenny Frankel’s new book at Kmart the other day. Has anyone read it? I’m thinking about buying it.

I’m not sure if I should admit this or not, but Bethenny is my celebrity idol. I sort of want to be her. Is that bad?

Cookies

Dave and Marie are coming over for Family Dinner Night this evening, so I baked a batch of cookies for dessert.

My recipe is based off the one for Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies, but I used Chocolate Soy Nut Butter instead of peanut butter and added SunSpire Milk Chocolate SunDrops. Holy yum! I have a feeling these babies will be a hit with our guests tonight!

Saving Money

Last week, I blogged about a few of the ways that I get creative with my spending. Here’s another one: REI Dividends!

When you become an REI member, you receive a member refund every March. The refund is typically 10% back on your REI purchases. Mal and I didn’t sign up until the end of 2010, but we still received $26 back. Not too shabby! I can only imagine how much we’d earn in a whole year!

My 2010 dividends bought me a six-pack of vanilla Gu and a packet of travel nut butter for my race on Sunday— and I still have $20 left to spend! Sweet! It’s like free money!

I’m still sitting in sweaty clothes from this morning. Eww. Maybe I should shower?

After working on my computer all morning long, I spent the afternoon doing chores around the house. This Sunday was not a day of rest for me. But, truth be told, some of my “chores” included fun tasks like baking and cooking!

But, now I feel prepared for the week ahead.

The house is clean, the refrigerator is stocked…

And four loads of laundry are washed, dried, folded, and almost put away. I always seem to lose my motivation at that final stage. Usually, there are piles of laundry on my dresser until Tuesday or Wednesday, but my goal is to have everything put away by the end of the night. 

Lunch

I was so involved with my chores that I totally forgot about lunch until my stomach started to grumble. It was on EMPTY, which meant: FOOD NOW! So, I threw together a quick arugula salad with grape tomatoes, shredded carrots, and Asian Ginger Plum Dressing.

I also reheated some leftover fondue, which I sopped up with chunks of French bread. 

I <3 cheese.

And then I did some baking!

Salted Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love it when sweet and salty come together, especially in baked goods. So, the combination of chocolate, maple syrup, and brown sugar with sea salt and walnuts made my mouth very happy! Mal liked these cookies a lot too. He’s already requested another batch to take with him to work! This recipe is a keeper!

Makes 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1.5 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 stick of butter, softened
• 1.5 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• Sea salt

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 325*F. Coat a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
• Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
• Use a tablespoon to portion out dough onto baking sheet. Sprinkle with sea salt.
• Bake for 12-15 minutes until edges of cookies start to brown.
• Allow to cool before serving.

Dinner

For dinner tonight, I brought back an oldie, but goodie!

Growing up, my mom used to cook Chicken Stir Fry for dinner at least once a week. My mom worked at a farmstand, so we always had veggies in our kitchen, so it was a quick and easy meal for her to throw together. My sister and I both loved it, so stir fry was a win-win for our family. So, you’d think I’d make it all of the time now, but, somehow, I always seem to forget about it– until tonight!

In the mix: carrots, broccoli, snap peas, mushrooms, chicken, soy sauce, and brown rice.

Dear Chicken Stir Fry,

I will never forget about you again.

Love,

Tina

I’m having Salted Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies for dessert and watching a movie with M & m. I can’t believe the weekend is already over!