5 Ingredient Vegan Cookie Dough Bars

Posted on August 17, 2020 by Bhanu Misra Marya

OMG! This FIVE clean ingredient INDULGENCE is so good and addictive. I’ve made this recipe several times, rounding measurements up and by half – each time it turned out equally good. I’d even think it would taste amazing with a sprinkle of flaked sea salt!

The texture is so incredibly like raw cookie dough but without the butter, eggs or white sugar. The coconut oil helps everything stick together perfectly. But the real star is the almond flour (I used the Kirkland brand blanched almond flour from Costco).

You could definitely make this for a potluck by swapping the 1/3 cups for 1 full cups, all other ingredients would be to taste.

Want more cookie recipes? Check out this vegan, gluten & guilt free cookie, granola that tastes like cookies, 3 ingredient breakfast cookie or this chickpea chocolate chip cookie (ha! don’t knock till you try it!)

Exploring Glen Stewart Ravine

Posted on August 11, 2020 by Bhanu Misra Marya

The last few months of the shelter in place with the people in your own household was challenging and rewarding experience. On one hand, we were with each other all the time without the help of our village and on the other hand we got to spend all this time together that I always felt we were missing out.

When some of the restrictions lifted it was nice to enjoy the warm weather which worked really well as some of the first areas to open for public use were golf courses, open space parks and trails.

We have some great friends and family who made plans / did the research to figure out where to go and what to see (Nokiidaa Trail, Moccasin Trail and Wahoosh Falls) and then finally got out of my energy rut and found Glen Stewart Ravine and knew we had to check it out.

Glen Stewart Ravine is a lush, deep forest albeit short trail walk in the middle of the city is pure magic. There are number of streams, downed logs for seating and lots of shade.

There are a few different entrances (Beech St, Glen Manor Dr and Kingston Rd), we came in from Kingston and there were a few 100 stairs to make it down. We managed to see the cute stream (pictured below) and then found a cute shaded area to eat lunch (pictured above).

The middle of the trail is the entrance from Beech and it literally looked like we were in Hawaii!

The trail is not stroller friendly so keep babies in a carrier and leave the bikes/scooters at home. The air is fresh and the way the sun pours in through the trees is amazing – you’ll just wish the trail was much longer :)

Reviving our vegetable garden

Posted on August 5, 2020 by Bhanu Misra Marya

I’ve been day dreaming about writing this post of weeks! But with the current state of affairs, it’s been impossible for me to find the time to complete it. I’ve started this draft, added to it, left it for days and then back to it over the last several weeks!

This actually sounds very similar to the relationship I’ve had with our garden this year.

Celery, Regrow, Start Your Own Garden, Backyard Garden

It’s been even harder to give our garden the same amount of attention it has received in previous years.

Celery, Regrow, Start Your Own Garden, Backyard Garden

(That being because most of my energy is divided between the family in my home and myself. #PandemicLife)

I had big plans for last year. I wanted to have a new layout and really try NEW things. But that unfortunately just didn’t happen.

Thankfully, the girls and mister have really pulled through and kept up with the harvesting, watering, pest watch and overall love that a backyard garden requires.

Ontario, Start Your Own Garden, Backyard Garden

Before the weed clean up!

After cleaning out the weeds, turning the soil and adding fresh earth.

You may already know that we had planted garlic last fall and then at the beginning of April we made an order for several plants from a local nursery, we picked them up mid May and planted them May 20th!

So initially we planted garlic in the fall. Then in the spring, we planted: tomatoes (2), eggplant, cucumber, zucchini and sweet bell pepper in the garden bed. Later in the summer we added long green beans and radish seeds! In pots we have a celery, mint and green onion. We received our plants from a nursery and planted them in our garden bed on May 20th.

The harvest was slow! We didn’t receive our first tomato until sometime in July (I think because we planted so early and because there was a few very cold days that happened between May and June. But here we are and our garden is in full swing.

Read more about my gardening adventures! Starting tomatoes in pots, lessons learned and other herbs.

Our first ever garlic scapes

Posted on July 9, 2020 by Bhanu Misra Marya

I am a HUGE fan of garlic. The aroma and the smell and even how they look get me very excited. I am definitely that person who sees a recipe asking for 2-3 cloves but add 8-10 instead LOL!

So last summer, after closing up the garden I realized that I wanted to expand into new herbs and veggies. And on a whim, we received some backyard garden garlic from a co-worker and right before the 1st winter storm we planned 6 cloves!

So these cloves have been in the garden since NOVEMBER. And we won’t actually know if the clove have turned into actual bulbs, but we’ve already reaped some harvest from the labour: scapes!

Now if you haven’t heard of scapes before it’s because they are very rare and hard to find at your regular garlic stores. They are usually the first produce found at farmers market and aren’t in season for very long.

We only got 5 scapes at the first harvest, but they were ahamazing! We grilled them with a little bit of EVOO and salt. They tasted really fresh, consistency of asparagus and onion with a hint of garlic.

I will definitely plant more garlic next year just for the scapes!

Yet, another GUILT FREE Cookie Recipe (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Posted on May 25, 2020 by Bhanu Misra Marya

I wish I could say that I didn’t let my cookie cravings get the better of me during the last 10 weeks – but I’ve been making cookies and eating them on… r e p e a t!

Thankfully I have a few (here and here) that are on heavy rotation but I’ve also tried to make a regular butter/sugar cookie (which the girl gang prefer).

I did come across another variation of a healthy cookie. It’s vegan, gluten & refined sugar free. Which by default makes it GUILT Free.

Without further ado, here is the recipe/instructions. Save the image or pin for later :)

Practicing Self Care during Physical Distancing

Posted on May 22, 2020 by Bhanu Misra Marya

It’s been over 10 weeks since we started physically distancing.

Information is changing constantly and of course I am hopeful and I am also realistic. But I think I am extra sensitive these days.

Initially, it felt great having “extra time” but then life at home got busier with full time everything all the time!

Having to facilitate remote schooling, preparing wholesome learning activities, tutoring, all day child minding along with being a housekeeper, cook, partner. Mix in part time school and WFH – it literally left no time for anything else.

And then something clicked and I realized that this wasn’t going to be a sprint – but a marathon. I also realized I needed to re-adjust the action plan for the long haul.

The feeling of being extra sensitive comes and goes in waves – I’m trying to figure out what and when I’m triggered and remove those triggers from my immediate attention (I am sharing this in case others are feeling the same but also to share that this activity is part of the readjustment for the long haul).

So now I am taking it one day at a time, learning to relentlessly triage, give myself grace, slow down all while enjoying this special-unusual-new normal as much as I can.

I also remind myself of this:

happiness isn’t a destination
being positive is knowing things will get better even if they aren’t great right now

Apart from these thoughts, there is always a loud voice telling me to be creative. When I am not writing/taking pictures regularly I just feel off. So with whatever time I can manage, I’ll try to make space for creativity.

With all that said, I hope you are doing well and in case you need a recharge as we enter week 11 of physical distancing I’ve included some self care ideas to keep you going for the long haul.

Create a (new) routine. Realizing I didn’t have my commute, my morning step count/city walk, my time to scroll IG, read a book or catch up/make lists/plan. Although I don’t have a routine that makes me grounded, I had to be okay changing things up. Steps around the house or a quick walk with the girls around the street, read in bed while the house is closet/before getting up to start the day. Part of the routine also includes remote learning for the kids as well as teaching them about when we have work tasks/meetings. It’s a tricky balance but we are getting there.
Get dressed in something cute every morning. Ok I am definitely not wearing dress pants, skirts or blazers. But a fresh pair of leggings and a cute sweater can make all the difference.
Exercise and find ways to be active. Workouts have changed. Running outdoors doesn’t feel the same. I have to really fight for my 10k steps. But I do it anyways. I take the stairs more than I have to. I chase the kids. I try not to stand still and walk during meetings.
Talk to someone. I think since 2020 started, I realized that I became an introvert in adulthood. Or maybe I just crave my own space, quiet and stillness. But then I found that I needed to talk to people who filled my cup. I needed to surround myself with positivity and clarity. Thankfully I have a few people I can talk to.
Drink tons of water. Water/Sparkling/Herbal tea + multiple trips to the bathroom :)
Conscious Eating. We’ve started meal planning again or atleast writing a list of meals for the week so we can prep in advance or not have to think of options when it’s time to eat. Make grocery lists. And decide on when we want to indulge (because that happens!)