Carrot Cake Energy Balls

Ask me what my favorite cake is and I’ll immediately exclaim, “Carrot Cake!” This is my adult answer. My inner 10-year-old silently responds with “Funfetti Cake.” Not gonna lie, that pure white cake scattered with rainbow sprinkles makes me smile. But carrot cake? That’s just pure goodness. Or as Tom Haverford would say, “a big ole cookie.”

This is one excited face ready to devour a carrot cake:

I’ve made my own carrot cake once. It took a long time and I made a huge mess. Was it worth it? Yes. Would I do it again? Maybe for someone really freaking special. In the meantime, I’ll keep making a (much) healthier and quicker version.

Carrot Cake Energy Bites

adapted from Baking Serendipity

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup shredded carrots
• 1/4 raw almonds, quartered (or chopped)
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup milled flaxseed
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1/3 cup maple syrup

Preparation

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together oats, shredded carrots, almonds, raisins, flaxseed, and cinnamon.
2. Add almond butter and maple syrup and stir until evenly combined.
3. Place mixture in refrigerator for at least one hour.
4. Shape mixture into one-inch balls. Makes about 18-20.

This is the next best thing to carrot cake, I promise. Not only do you get a similar flavor from them, you get natural energy! Toss one back before a workout and you’re golden.

Toss two back and you might explode with happiness.

New Seasonal Food Finds

One of the main reasons I love having a food blog is because I get to share new food precuts with my readers. Whenever I find something fun, be it a food, restaurant, recipe, or trend, I share it through every social media platform possible: facebook, twitter, instagram, youtube…you get it. Here are some new gems I’ve discovered.

1. I first spotted these Toasted Coconut almonds at Target. Into the basket they went and (after paying) into my mouth they went.

Honestly, I was underwhelmed. They smell really good, but the flavor just isn’t quite there. Boo. I went online to look up other flavors and found these promotions.

Have you tried any of these three flavors? I suppose you could very easily create these at home.

2. It seems that there are about 70 different flavored creamers out there, and most that I’ve tried have been somewhat nauseating. The S’mores flavor, however, is right up my alley and perfect for the coming chilly months.I also need to try the Salted Caramel flavor. I will wait until they go on sale at Publix because I don’t love the idea of spending silly money on things that just fatten me…. ok that’s sort of a lie.

This list started out strong (healthfully speaking) but it’s about to go down the clean eating drain. Please accept my apologies for this and for almost lying to you in #3.

3. Jell-O. Gingerbread and Candy Cane. Should I buy these? I feel like it’s the equivalent of eating fair food. Could be the worst moment of my life or the best moment of my life. But nothing in between. 

4. Yoplait Pumpkin Pie and Apple Crisp flavored yogurt. I was a huge fan of Trader Joe’s pumpkin yogurt, but for some reason I’m nervous to try these.

5. I gagged a little when I saw this but had to include it anyway. Pumpkin Spice cream cheese.

6. Pumpkin is taking over! Who’s sick of it? I’m not. Yet. Give me a couple more weeks. These sound crazy sweet.

7. Now this I could get on board with, especially with a healthy serving of peanut butter. Weirdo combo?

8. First there were the Birthday Cake Oreos. Then there were the Candy Corn Oreos. Now there are Gingerbread and Peppermint Oreos.

Interesting fact: In 2010, Nabisco came out with Peppermint. I wonder if they’re the exact same thing.

9. Like I said on Friday, I am ecstatic for these to appear at, let’s face it, Target. All the good seasonal junk is exclusively at Target.

10. Last but not least, I’m praying to the chocolate gods that these come back. Pray with me!

What seasonal items are you loving?  Anything you’re sick of?

Do your teeth hurt after reading this post? I’m off to brush mine.

New Favorite Foods

I love updating you guys on new foods that I’ve scouted out or become a fan of.

I ended a sentence in a preposition. Sorry! It would have sounded awkward otherwise, and though I usually epitomize the word awkward, I try to keep my writing a little less, um, weird. Onto the food!

1. Blue Diamond Salt ‘N Vinegar almonds.

Not only will these satisfy your salty craving, you get a dose of protein and fiber. They’re very delicious without being a sodium overload.

2. Publix all natural salsas.

Rachel and I picked up a tub of the medium salsa on Saturday. It’s really good! The ingredient list is clean, it’s got a great flavor, and isn’t too chunky. Chunky salsa is nasty.

3. La Croix Peach-Pear sparkling water.

They now sell this canned at Target! It’s definitely  my new favorite La Croix flavor. On another note, I’m still not over how awful the Coconut flavor was. Blech.

Let me tell you a secret: Sometimes if I don’t like a bottle of wine, I add a bit of sparkling water to it. Then bam! I’ve got a tastier, more refreshing glass of happiness.

4. Fiber One 90 Calorie Chocolate Chip Cookies

They’re soft, pack 5 grams of fiber, and contain only 8 grams of sugar. It’s a treat! I highly suggest nuking one in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Mmm!

5. Tropicana Trop50 Raspberry with Green Tea.

Amanda and I used this to mix with our vodka on the boat the other day. It’s only 50 calories per 8 ounces – a great mixer for a lower calorie beverage. Oh, and say hello to Svedka, my favorite vodka. It’s fairly inexpensive and very smooth.

6. Zone Perfect Perfectly Simple nutrition bars.

I was recently sent some samples of these bars and am so grateful! Upon opening the wrapper of the first bar I tried, I thought they looked just like Larabars. They’re SO much better. They’re quite dense, but more nutty and flavorful, with a short list of ingredients.  My favorite was the Cranberry Almond.

7. Buddy Fruits.

Ok, ok. this is definitely glorified fruit puree, but I can be a sucker for cute branding/packaging. I’m every marketer’s dream come true. But hey, moms! Don’t you think your kiddos would much rather get their fruit and vegetable requirements through these? Adorbs.

For the record, the only reason I tried these was because you can get the applesauce packets in the kids meals at Chick-fil-A. True story.

8. Jazz Apples.

These aren’t a new find, but more of a re-discovery thanks to Boding. We found these at Target of all places. They’re the best apples! Gotta love one of God’s most precious gifts to us – fresh fruit!

What new food products have you recently discovered?

Tell me your favorite a)packaged good and b)fresh fruit or vegetable.

My Favorite Trader Joe’s Products

As you may remember, Trader Joe’s opened up in Mt. Pleasant last month. Amanda and I went to the grand opening, and I have been many times since. Many, many times. An inappropriate amount of times according to Wachovia. Here are some of my favorite products I’ve had so far.

Trader Joe’s Greek Yogurt + the Sugar, Chocolate, & Coffee grinder:

Spiral Wines Cabernet Sauvignon. For only $4.99, this wine is a steal. It’s much better than the 2 Buck Chuck. Go ahead, splurge a couple more dollars, ha.

I know soda isn’t the best thing for me, but sometimes I have my cravings. I don’t feel too bad drinking these:

Carrot Ginger Soup. It’s got great flavor, and for being low-fat, it’s pretty creamy.

Roasted Chicken Patties. These are incredibly convenient and are great on top of a salad or with a plate of veggies. I am really impressed with how much flavor they have.

Speaking of salads, this Champagne Pear Vinaigrette is awesome. It’s low in calories and fat, but it’s sweetness and chunks of gorgonzola make it an excellent salad dressing.

Lemon Pepper Pappardelle. I made a shrimp & broccoli recipe with this here.

Omega Trek Mix packets. For only 170 calories, these bags full of walnuts, almonds, sunflower seeds, and dried cranberries are a great on-the-go snack.

Freeze-dried mango and banana slices. Holy heck, I could down an entire bag of each of these.

And on the sweet note, these Dark Chocolate Mints are a delightful treat.

I have bought a lot of different products, and of them all, I’ve only been disappointed in two. First up, this Dark Chocolate Bar with Caramel & Black Sea Salt. These flavors are right up my alley, but unfortunately the 70% cacao was too bitter for me.

I was psyched to see these prepared beets, but they were much too vinegar-y.

How about you? Which TJ’s products have you loved? Any I should avoid?

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VLOG: Chick-fil-A Multigrain Oatmeal

My obsession with Chick-fil-A causes me to wake up at the crack of dawn so I can vlog about new products. Please enjoy the awkward video below.

From the Chick-fil-A site, here is the menu description:

Here is the nutritional information for the plain oatmeal:

And with toppings (dried fruit, nuts, brown sugar & cinnamon):

To see the ketchup video, click here.

Hmmm…what should I vlog about next? Your ideas are welcome!

XO!

Thank Yous, A Winner, and Rainbow Eating

First, I’d like to thank you all for the sweet compliments on my nerdy glasses. I love how much better I can see and really have only taken them off to shower, work out, and sleep. When I take them off, I’m like ewww. Also, thank you for your help on the t-shirt contest!  :)

Second, I’d like to announce the winner of the Fiber One Brownie giveaway. Instead of using a random number generator, I used the Mariah generator. Without telling her why, I asked her to pick a number between 1 and 92…and she chose #8:

Congrats, Britton! Please e-mail me your contact information and your prize pack will be on the way.

…

In preparation for looking svelte for my birthday party on Saturday, I have increased my fruit and vegetable intake. Ok, ok, really I just have so many veggies from my CSA. I was chatting with Mariah, who also subscribes to a CSA and we were joking amount how many fruits and vegetables we ate all day. We kind of feel like rabbits.

For breakfast, I had my usual Kashi original cereal with light vanilla soy milk and blueberries. FYI, the “abbrev” for blueberries is “bluebs.”

Mid-morning, I snacked on some almonds and dried cranberries.

For lunch, I had more of the Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Quinoa.

My afternoon snack was a zucchini muffin and some baby carrots.

After I picked up my 10th CSA box, I cut up fresh yellow squash, zucchini, carrots, corn, and tossed them with italian dressing, balsamic, and goat cheese.

I ate that along with black beans and my most recent discovery: Bilinski’s Apple Chardonnay chicken sausage.

The moral of this story is: There is a rainbow in my stomach. It might even be a double rainbow.

On a completely different note, while I was gorging myself with rabbit food, Mariah asked me a very serious question. Our gchat conversation, complete with faces:

Mariah: if there was a breakfast that is just 100% bad for you (but wasn't) and you could eat it all the time... what would it be?

 

 

me:oooh probably pancakes.or cinnamony french toast

 

 

Mariah: with an assload of butter and syrup

 

 

me:and powdered sugar and brown sugar. also honey and whipped cream.

 

 

Mariah: all of the above

 

 

me: i wouldn't mind if there were chocolate chips in there either

 

 

Mariah: nope me neither

 

 

I can’t stop laughing at our heads. But the point of that was my question for you all:

If you could eat any breakfast, regardless of how bad it was for you, what would you have?!