Author: Lindsay Ingalls

#WFMCherryFest // Fresh Cherry Limeade Recipe + Giveaway

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Disclaimer: Whole Foods Market provided me with my own $50 gift card to purchase ingredients for the recipe below. As always all opinions are my own.

Cherry season is here! I have seriously never been so excited for a fruit to be in season. I LOVE cherries and am lucky to live in the Pacific Northwest where a large portion of the cherries and North America are grown. When we lived in Vermont we hardly ever bought cherries, not because we didn’t enjoy them but because they were hard to come by and super expensive.

WFCherryFest-Fresh Cherry Limeade Top View Currently our fridge is filled with cherries (although I bet most will be gone in the next day or two) because we took advantage of Whole Foods Cherry Fest and the $1.99/lb (!!!!) deal that happened this past Friday. We have been eating them by the handful but since we have so many I have been trying out some new recipes with them including the recipe I am sharing below for Fresh Cherry Limeade.
WFCherryFest-Fresh Cherry Limeade Recipe

FRESH CHERRY LIMEADE

Recipe Provided by Whole Foods Market 

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 pound cherries (about 6 cups), pitted, divided
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup lime juice, plus 2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest
  • Sparkling water
  • 1 lime, cut into wedges

WFCherryFest-Fresh Cherry Limeade Syrup    WFCherryFest-FreshCherryLimeadeSeltzerPour

Method: 
  • Put 1 pound of the cherries, sugar and 1 1/2 cups water into a medium pot; cover and simmer over medium heat (reducing heat, as needed, to maintain a simmer) until cherries are very tender and have made a fragrant syrup, about 20 minutes. Set aside to let cool and then purée in a blender with lime juice and zest.
  • To make each glass of limeade, pour about 1/2 cup of the cherry-lime syrup and 3/4 cup still or sparkling water over ice in a tall glass. Stir well and then top with a small handful of the remaining cherries, garnish with a lime wedge and serve.
Nutritional Info: 
Per Serving: Serving size: 1 drink, 150 calories (0 from fat), 0g total fat, 0g saturated fat,0mg cholesterol, 0mg sodium, 39g carbohydrate (2g dietary fiber, 35g sugar), 1g protein
I shared this with Edith after photographing and we both really enjoyed it (don’t worry I drank 80% of it). I am keeping the leftover syrup in the fridge to make up more Fresh Cherry Limeades this week because they were just well YUM!. With the remaining cherries I’m thinking of diving into a big bowl right now and also topping my bowl of oats with them tomorrow. I’m going to be sad when cherry season ends but until then I am going to eat all the cherries!

WFCherryFest-Fresh Cherry Limeade

Giveaway // $50 Whole Foods Gift Card

Whole Foods has generously offered to provide one reader with a $50 gift card! If you win you might like to try the recipe above or one of these cherry recipes.

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Currently. 7.10.14

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train-edithandlindsay

Doing: Nesting. Yeah surprise, surprise! I’m 37 weeks pregnant and full on nesting mode. I over did it a bit yesterday with the cleaning and I can’t wait until I can bend over multiple times and not need a break every 20 minutes. Basically I am getting everything ready for baby #2’s arrival which at this point could be anytime now.

Thinking about: How many things I need to do before this baby arrives and also thinking about life after birth. We are moving in August (I know perfect timing, eh?) to just a new bigger home that is closer to Neil so not a huge move but alas it’s still a move with a toddler and a newborn.  I am also really thinking about postpartum fitness and diet since I’m going to be honest I have been indulging a little too much the past few weeks.

Watching: Lots of YouTube videos – even as I write that it seems pretty strange to me but that’s what I have been doing. Also catching up on a few years worth of Covert Affairs which I am happy to say gets better and better.   

Looking forward to: The weekend! This has been a long week and we have so much to do still before this baby arrives so I am looking forward to having Neil home to help get things done and to catch up on a bunch of work that I am behind on.

Reading: I haven’t really been reading anything besides lots of children’s books to Edith. I started The Book Thief but I just couldn’t fully get into it.

Loving: berries. fans (it’s ridiculously hot here). family time with Edith and Neil.  

As always this post is inspired by Sometimes Sweet.

Fit Pregnancy: The Birthing Month

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I have finally reached my birthing month. Today I am 36w4d pregnant and that means this baby could come (almost) anytime now. Since I was 10 days early with Edith I am keeping that in mind by also preparing myself to go to 42 weeks as well if that so happens (which I hope isn’t the case).

July4-BerryPicking-LindsayEdith

I have to say this pregnancy has been less intentionally active than I was when I was pregnant with Edith and more active as a result of having an active toddler. Before I go further lets compare the two pregnancies:

  • Pregnancy With Edith: (Working a desk job) daily 1-2+ mile walks, yoga class once per week, strength training 2-3x per week and yoga at home once per week
  • Pregnancy With Baby #2: (Stay-At-Home-Mom) chasing a crazy toddler, 1-2 mile walks 2x per week and yoga or prenatal workout video 2x per week.

As you can see my pregnancy with Edith had me sitting more hours during the day at my job but I was making time for consistent and intentional workouts. With baby #2 I have been trying to stay active with semi-intentional workouts but most of my time has been chasing Edith, cleaning or being up around moving around the house (less just sitting). However, once 35 weeks arrived I suddenly realized that this baby could come in as few as two weeks and I suddenly felt this crazy urge to get myself more intentionally active.

Since around 35w4d I have been going out for daily walks with Edith and/or Neil, working on squats around 10 per day held for 30-60 seconds each, lunges, and lots of cat-cow on top of chasing a toddler, packing our house and nesting. While this may not seem like much it is actually a significant change in my activity levels and I’m feeling great. Feeling ready to have this baby and want to make the point that it’s not too late to be intentionally active.

I don’t over do it, try not to push myself to much and am making sure to rest, drink tons of water and listen to my body. Now on to having this baby!

Sunshine Burger Recipe + Giveaway | California Burger

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Disclaimer: I received Sunshine Burger product to review without monetary compensation. All opinions are my own. I was given the opportunity to review through the Sweat Pink Ambassador community. 

There was a time when we ate veggie burgers all the time at our house but over the past few years we have been diversifying our meals more so now when we do have burgers we like to go all out. It also happens that summer time is our favorite time to indulge in veggie burgers because it’s grilling season and there is also a summer bbq party to host or attend.

While the standard burger toppings (lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard and onion) are fine a burger is always better if there is upgrade to toppings. Some of my favorite combinations include bbq sauce, sauteed mushrooms, crispy onion rings and vegan cheese slices. I also love a good “cheese” burger with lots of banana peppers and pickles and of course your standard toppings. When I’m feeling a little crazy going a more Tex-Mex route is always fun with toppings such guacamole, salsa and refried beans. However, while all of those are great combinations my current favorite is what I like to call the California Burger.
Sunshine Burgers: Cali Burger

Ingredients:

  • Tomato, sliced
  • Red Onion, super thinly sliced
  • Micro Greens or Sprouts
  • Avocado, sliced
  • Vegan Cheddar
  • Whole Wheat Bun
  • Garden Herb Sunshine Burger – cook based on instructions on the box
  • Herbed Vegan Mayo (1 tablespoon each freshly chopped basil, chives, parsley and lemon juice with 1/3 cup vegan mayo)

Sunshine Burger: Cali Burger top and bottom

Simple and easy to put together! I like to slather a healthy serving of mayo on each side of my bun and then I place the micro greens on one side and the tomato, onion and avocado on the other. I make sure to melt the “cheese” onto the burger and then that goes in the middle. Then it all gets smooshed together and I gobble it up. P.S. this is messy so get the napkins ready or just lick your fingers like I do. Sunshine Burger: Cali Burger Finished

Now I have been a Sunshine Burger fan for years now so I was thrilled to work with them.  My favorite way to eat them (besides the recipe above) is either on top of a salad or in a wrap. They are seriously delicious and they are free of gluten, wheat, soy, corn, oats, dairy, eggs, tree nuts and peanuts AND Non-GMO project verified. <—All the more reason I love these burgers. My favorite flavors are the Garden Herb and the Hemp & Sage Breakfast but now that I see there is a Loco Chipotle one I am going to have to try that one out because I love chipotle flavored foods.

Want to try Sunshine Burger out for yourself? Sign up for the e-newsletter and receive a coupon. Take advantage of the Find-A-Store feature, where you can locate local grocery stores that have Sunshine Burger products so you can use your coupon! 

Giveaway

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Virtual Blog Tour | The Details On Why I Write

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I am slacking on this hugely! Nicole invited me to participate in this tour and while I agreed I dropped the ball and forgot to post last week. So here I am posting a week late but better late than never?

35weeks

Total eclipse of the sausage feet. 35w4d prego and still growing.

1. What am I working on?

I am working on growing a baby but that’s not what this post is about. Lately I have been working on getting my affairs in order in preparation for the birth of baby #2. I have a few fun sponsored posts coming up, some products that I’m looking to forward to sharing with you and also a few surprises in between. I have also been working on doing the same thing over on Naturally Family. I feel like I have so much to share and yet life has been really taking over or should I say a toddler + exhaustion has been dominating my life. I feel a big surge of nesting coming on and with that lots of planning and prepping for everything.

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?

I am not really sure how to answer this question. I think that being an active mom and a health coach gives me a different perspective on life. My blog has certainly changed and evolved over the years from being a specifically vegan recipe blog, to being a vegan food and lifestyle blog, to being a plant-based fitness and healthy living lifestyle blog. While I did blog and still do a bit about pregnancy and family I have chosen to keep that a little more separate and started a second blog before Edith was born called Naturally Family. Now I don’t know if that really answers the question but that’s my story.

3. Why do I write what I do?

I write what I do because I love to. I love writing about health, fitness and food. I love creating recipes and sharing them with others. I also write what I do to keep myself inspired, motivated and on track with my own personal health and fitness goals. I write to (hopefully) inspire. I write to share my life and my favorite things. I write because I need to have an outlet that is specific to my passions and time to myself. I write to connect with others.

4. How does my writing process work?

I have an editorial calendar that I try and keep up with for sponsored posts and time sensitive posts. Otherwise I just write based on what is currently going on in my life. I try to plan as much as I can to keep myself on track but honestly the best posts I write are ones that are not so planned. As for writing I tend to hand write an outline/first draft of my posts and then I type them, work on photographs, edit the posts and photos, schedule social media and then finally schedule posts.

I know it may seem a little strange that I handwrite my blog posts first but honestly it’s the best way for me to organize my thoughts. I have always done this whether for a paper for school or a blog post for me. While you will find me just typing things up (like this current posts) usually my best posts are the ones that I write out by hand first.

So that is a little bit about why I write and my writing style and now is when I am to pass this on to a few other bloggers. Well again I dropped the ball on recruiting and since I am not positive as to who has participated in this tour I am going to switch things up and ask that if you are reading this that you take a moment to answer these four questions on your blog and then come back here and leave a link to your post in the comments. I look forward to reading your answers and learning more about you! 

 

 

 

Blue Diamond Almonds| Red, White & Blue Smoothie Bowl

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Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Blue Diamond Tastemakers. As always all opinions are my own. 

It’s almost the Fourth of July! Are you ready for cookouts, fire works and parades? Well why not start the celebration with a yummy 4th inspired smoothie bowl filled with lots of delicious things to get your celebration weekend started off on the right foot.
Blue Diamond Toasted Coconut Almonds

Red, White and Blue Smoothie Bowl

Serves 3-5 (depending on how hungry you are)

Ingredients:

  • 5 frozen bananas (you could always use fresh ones as well or a combo)
  • 2 cups frozen mixed berries
  • 1-14.5oz can of lite coconut milk (or other milk of your choice)
  • Blueberries
  • Raspberries
  • Blue Diamond Toasted Coconut Almonds
  • Honey or Agave Nectar
  • Coconut Flakes
  • Granola of your choice

Instructions:

  • Place bananas, frozen berries and coconut milk in a high speed blender and blend and until smooth. If you are using all frozen fruit then you may need to stop and scrape down the blender a few times to help it out.
  • Pour/scoop into bowls and top with a sprinkle of granola, lots of berries, a sprinkle of coconut flakes, a drizzle of honey or agave nectar and as many Blue Diamond Toasted Coconut Almonds as you desire.

Blue Diamond Fourth of July

The big question: what does the toddler think?? SHE LOVED IT. I swear she ate more then we did and kept asking for more and more almonds! Blue Diamond Smoothie Bowl Smiles

How are you celebrating the Fourth? I think we are going to lay pretty low and just relax as a family!

Unintentional Mini Blog Break

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Happy Thursday Friends!

I realized this morning that it has been 9 days since my last blog post and honestly I think that is the longest I have gone without blogging in years! It was really an unintentional mini break and was a result of life just taking over.

Last week we had some friends in from out of town so we spent a few nights meeting up with them after Neil got out of work. This resulted in late nights for Edith and the following days were long for me. I know you all know about the importance of sleep and well with a toddler it’s even more important!

Screen Shot 2014-06-26 at 8.25.36 AM

This past weekend we were busy, busy, busy with Saturday morning family time and then a birthday party and then a dinner party (yes all on Saturday) and we pretty much ran ourselves down on Saturday. Sunday while a little more laid back we spent most of it trying to catch up on chores from the week, grocery shopping and swim lessons.

After a crazy busy weekend Monday came and so did my summer cold. I blame it on the weather as we went from 80’s to 50’s back to 80’s and whenever that happens I tend to get a cold especially when I’m already tired out. I sometimes forget that I am 35 week pregnant and that I need to slow down a little; which is really hard when you have a toddler and it’s summer.

Screen Shot 2014-06-26 at 8.25.46 AM

Finally it’s Thursday, my cold is starting to clear up and I know a semi relaxing weekend is on it’s way. We or rather I don’t have a ton of plans this weekend besides meeting up with friends for happy hour/dinner. Neil has plans go hiking and to take E to her swim lessons but otherwise we both plan on laying low, maybe hitting up a park and a farmers market. What are your weekend plans?