One Bowl Breakfast Cookies + Cinnamon Date Smoothie with Super Seeds {and One Way to Change Your Life}
"I actually I toned it way down this year,"I told John when he asked me what my new year's resolutions were. He laughed, “Oh good! I was prepared to sit here and listen for the next 3 hours,” he teased. I punched him (playfully).It’s true my goal-setting can get a little overly ambitious. In fact I was reminded of this the other day when my mom texted me a picture of a clay necklace I made her when I was 10 or 11 years old. (Mom’s embracing the new goal inspired by the book “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up”, and lots of fun memorabilia are being discovered in the process.)That clay necklace reminded me of the special box I have hidden away on a bookshelf in my own home full little clay animal figurines. Years ago, when we were all little, my younger brothers and I spent hours and hours making those detailed clay animals. We were trying to make ALL of the animals in Noah’s ark. But as kids so often do, we lost interest before we finished and failed to replicate the entire animal kingdom.Who decides they’re gonna make thousands of little animals out of clay when they’re 11? I do.And I’ve kind of carried this overly ambitious way of thinking my whole life. College was a struggle because I hated the fact that I had to pick and study just ONE thing. Can’t I study like 7 things and get 7 degrees?!! No. No you can’t. I switched my major 5 times because of it. I had too many interests, I lacked focus and wanted to achieve too much.
IT’S TAKEN… OH I DUNNO, YEARS, FOR ME TO ADMIT LESS IS MORE.
And this "less is more principle" is so strongly applicable to goal setting.I was frustrated with myself a few months ago and cried to John saying, “I just CAN’T accomplish what I want to do! What’s wrong with me?! I feel pulled in so many directions and can’t concentrate, I’m like a little jumping bean and I don’t even have kids yet!”John calmly opened up one of his books he’s been reading and showed me a chart that basically read: People who focus on just one thing, have a 99% chance of accomplishing it. People who focus on two things at once have a 50% chance of accomplishing it. People who focus on 4 things have less than a 15% of achieving it. 8 things, less than a 1% chance...I stopped crying and blinked. (I swear I’m usually not this dramatic ;)I said, "I’m at the 8 and I need to get to the 1." John nodded and that moment changed my life and changed my way of thinking for this new year. When we eliminate, we see clearly.So, this year I only have one goal for each facet of my life; (business, hobby, health, personal and spiritual). ONE.And you know what? I’m already totally and completely on a roll and we're only a week into the new year. Because they’re small. They're little goals that really probably shouldn’t be considered goals at all but there are no rules on this stuff you guys, just do what you want. Do what’s doable. Do what’s fulfilling and do what is going to add to your happiness. Do something that will stretch you but not exhaust you. And for goodness sake even if it's ONE thing, ONE goal, like reading a book once a week instead of vegging in front of the tv, or taking the time to make yourself a lunch every day, that's enough. All you gotta do is pick one.Wishing you the happiest start to this fresh new year friends. I can't wait to keep on sharing it with you. xo
GLUTEN FREE ONE BOWL BREAKFAST COOKIES
So since we're talking about one, I thought I'd break out my one bowl breakfast cookies! (haha) Friends who have downloaded my lil' breakfast ebook will definitely recognize this recipe. (psst, you can still grab it - it's the tab called "free lil' ebook";) I thought it would be fun to share on here, and I'm gonna be super honest, I really want to pin this recipe to my breakfast pinterest board but I can't so long as it's tucked away in an ebook.So, for those of you who aren't too thrilled about seeing a recipe you already have, I've included another recipe for you. It's my current go-to smoothie packed full of good fats and I'm obsessed. I don't have it every day, but dang it, I sincerely could, it's that good. It's not too sweet, full of kale and spinach and even though its a freezing cold smoothie, its warm cinnamon and date flavor make it a perfect winter smoothie. I know we just got done talking about the power of one here but dang it here's two recipes. xo
¾ cup / 106g gluten free flour or whole wheat flour
or spelt flour (sometimes, when it's a really dry day I reduce this to ½ cup flour)
2 cups / 197g gluten free oats
¼ teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons ground flax seed
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons / 68g unsweetened applesauce
¼ cup / 50g dark muscovado sugar
¼ cup / 73g maple syrup
½ cup / 150g peanut butter or almond butter
2 tablespoons coconut oil 1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup / 60g dried cherries
Preheat oven to 350° F / 180° C and line a baking pan with parchment paper.
Measure all of your dry ingredients and put them in a bowl and mix. Then make a little hole or dip in the middle of the dry ingredients and add all of your measured wet ingredients. Mix until combined, careful not to over mix.
Form balls and when placed on your cookie sheet, press down, flattening the tops of the cookies just slightly. (These cookies don’t move much once they are formed into balls, so I press them to flatten them out a bit.)
Bake for 10 mins - or a little longer if you want them a bit crispier on the outside. I like them a little underdone.
If you don’t have dried cherries, cranberries or raisins would work but not quite have the same tang.
GLUTEN FREE CINNAMON DATE SMOOTHIE WITH SUPER SEEDS
I know I know, it seems like a lot of seeds, but it's not gross. I actually miss smoothies that don't have a lot of seeds in them now because the texture is so pleasant. Did I just weird you out by saying that? This smoothie is amazing, I promise, seeds and all. ;)
1 cup / 223ml almond milk
2 tablespoons hemp seeds
2 tablespoons flax seeds
1 tablespoon chia seeds
2 whole dates (pits removed)
1 tablespoon almond butter ( heaping)
2 cups or handfuls / 80g kale or spinach or a mixture of both, packed
½ cup to 1 cup / 112ml to 223ml of spring water (all depends on how thick you'd like your smoothie, I usually add a full cup)
3 ice cubes
1 cup / 148g frozen blueberries
½ frozen banana
1 serving clean plant based vanilla protein powder (optional)
Blend all ingredients together, until smooth. I like to put my almond milk in first, followed by the seeds, protein powder, dates and spinach. The rest of it I just throw in there and then blend.
tip! This can easily be made one day ahead of time and stored in the fridge, covered for a quick breakfast the next day. I usually poor it into a huge glass and throw a couple of ice cubes in to make it extra cold and then drink and go. ;)
WHY IS THIS GOOD FOR ME?
almond butter - almonds are a good source of vitamin E. Attention all women trying to conceive - vitamin E is important in supporting healthy egg DNA development.
flax seeds - promote a healthy immune system and bowel movements and contain a lot of fiber. Flax seeds also contain essential fatty acids and omega-3’s. These essential fatty acids fuel our brains, help regulate the hormones in the body, promote healthy regular ovulation, optimal uterus health and support a wildly healthy immune system.
oats - whole, gluten free grains contain tons of fiber, vitamins and help support our immune system.
kale - strengthens our immune systems protects the eyes, is an exceptional source of vitamin A, C, calcium and iron.
hemp seeds - Left raw and in their truest form (meaning not destroyed by heat) are rich omega 3s and essential fatty acids. We(you know, the collective we) have a hard time eating enough foods that rich in omega 3s, but hemp, flax and chia seeds are some of the best omega 3-rich foods, so drink up! ;)
dates - a good source of niacin, iron and potassium. Niacin is one of the b vitamins (vitamin b3) and the b3 vitamin promotes healthy skin and aids in helping us digest our food properly by helping us better absorb all of the nutrients from our fats, carbohydrates and proteins.
