Kale Me Now

First off, don't pass out because I have blogged two days in a row. Second, lets chat about kale. Kale is a superfood which I am sure you have heard. It is packed with Vitamins A, C and K and your body will smile when you eat it. I know this, my body smiles.. and I am not very bendy so that is saying a lot.

Anywho, ADD girl is back. The thing that normally stops people from consuming kale is that it's green. That shouldn't stop you that should encourage you!! The darker the green the better! Plus, it tastes good. I promise you. You can juice kale, sauté it, grill it, cream it and bake it. I'm sure there are more uses but "Ain't nobody got time for that."

I bake my kale.. as well as other things. HOLY KALE JUST KIDDING. I like to refer to myself as a "grass-free" hippie. Anyways, baked kale is absolutely lovely and is also known as kale chips! I am a chips and guac lover so using kale chips to dip instead not only boots the nutrients but also the flavor! I spiced up kale to make it a delectable snack as well as dipper. Enjoy my lovers.

Hawt n' Zesty Kale Chips
Oven @ 325
2 cups baby kale or destemmed curly kale (this works best)
1 T coconut oil, melted
Squeeze of Sriracha
Juice of 1/2 a lime

1. In a big bowl mix together all ingredients then spread out in an even layer on a cookie sheet.
2. Bake 15-20 minutes or until crispy!

Nice to Meet You

Well, hay gurl hay.. Or boy, I mean man, you're definitely a man. Anyway, my name is Whollygirl and it's so nice to meet you! I have been MIA for almost a whole year doing this thing called college. It's a new thing, not sure if you've heard of it but it's pretty fun. I've met a lot of great souls and I had to go to this thing called class. I don't know how they expect you to go to class when you're around awesome people all the time, so that may have been an issue.
Other than that I've been pretty steadily gaining weight. The freshman-fifteen is real people and I am not a fan. It may or may not be because of a little too much partying, I'm not gonna say. What I am gonna say though is that I now understand how tough it is to make healthy choices. Eating in a dining hall bloated me with salt and sugar. I was basically curing from the inside, like pork. I'm basically bacon. BACON I TELL YOU!
A year without my own personal stove made me want to cry then I savored T-bell a few times and it made me smile. I now understand why people make unhealthy choices.. because they taste good. I was also introduced to the Oreo cookie. Holy creamy white fluff it was amazing. Especially with peanut butter on top, now that is a sexual feeling in your mouth if I do say so myself.
Okay, I'll stop making you drool now. Or throw-up considering my eating habits flopped like a beagles ears. The thing is, I knew how to eat healthy and I just ignored it, straight up listened to the devil on my shoulder not the fit angel.
This year taught me so much especially that eating healthy can be tough! Now that I'm home I am focusing on cleansing my body. I have gone Paleo, you know caveman style. This might make you ponder but if I tie my hair in front of my face I definitely have a nice beard flow going. (Maybe I should change Whollygirl to Cavegirl?) Sorry I am so ADD.
So anyway! I will be taking you through my Paleo adventure and I will continue to share my adventure through my second year of this thing called college. So hang out with me, Cavegirl for the summer and learn and live Paleo.. with a few cheat meals of course.
Love ya!

Granola. Perfected.

Granola. When I hear that word I think of coloradoens, hippies, dreadlocks, and myself. Birkinstock wear-ers and extremests who only shower in the river. BUT "granola" expands beyond the description of grungy vegans, it's a fabulous shhnack as well. Boxed granola is either overly processed and tastes like a bottle of vanilla pop or straight up delish but costs an arm, a leg, and another arm. But, no fear, whollygirl is here! I constructed (after 543799 failed attempts, literally) a fail free, granola recipe. It's tasty, versatile, and healthy! What more could you ask for? Nothing. Well hurrr ya go folks, granola :)
Granola for Dummies
oven @ 250
4 c rolled oats
1-2 c chopped nuts ( i like pecans)
1/2 c wheat germ
1/2 coconut (optional)
1/4 c honey
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 c oil (i use coconut oil)
pinch ye salt
1 c dried fruit (i loveee blueberries!)
1. Melt coconut oil and whisk together wet ingredients and salt in a  small bowl. In a larger bowl toss together dry ingredients, NO BLUEBERRIES.
2. Pour the wet into the dry and stir.
3. Spread on two smaller baking sheets lined with parchment and bake for a little over an hour. stirring every 15 min.
4. When golden, remove from oven and toss in dried fruit. Let cool and store ;)

<3 ya! --whollygirl

AAAbsolutley Summertastic

Light fare is definitely most popular in these steamy summer months. Fresh veggies fill the farmers market and it always seems like people are sipping on lemonades and green teas. So why not have the best of both worlds!?!!? Well, you can. Avocado, artichokes, and asparagus soak up the sun in a vinaigrette MADE with MADE Half&Half (half green tea and half lemonade). The earthy-ness of the green tea brings out the freshness in the veggies and lemonade adds a pungent kick! Learn to love every veggie with this triple A salad :)

Triple A Salad
Bunch of Asparagus, steamed and cut into 2 inch pieces
3 artichoke hearts, chopped
1/2 avocado, cubed
2 T roasted pecans, chopped

Vinaigrette:
1/4 C MADE Half&Half
2 T olive oil
1 T salad vinegar
1 t crushed red pepper
1 t salt
1 1/2 t black pepper
1 t crushed garlic

1. Whisk all the vinaigrette ingredients together in a measuring cup.
2. Place the asparagus, artichokes, avocado, and pecans in a medium bowl.
3. Pour a little vinaigrette in the bowl and toss to coat as wanted.
ENJOYYYYYYY <3

Oh, sweetness.

The art of blogging (or my lack of blogging) is a way for people to express themselves and a way for readers to get "into" others lives without being nosy. I truly do love writing and telling stories through food. Today I'm getting a little sweet on you by sharing a recipe I wrote with the help of a fantastic company I happen to intern for. MADE Drinks is an organic, vegan, gluten-free, and bottled BPA-free, drinks company. They (like real people) make green teas and lemonades that are 100% to die for. I swear I'm not just saying that because I'm a little partial, but because it's the truth. So enough of my proud-parent bragging, on to the recipe. With summer in full heat and you always searching for a new recipe to take to a cookout, I thought of a simple favorite MADE (haha, get it?) better. With a lightened up crust and lets face it, a delectable middle these lemon bars will knock your socks off. Now, moderation is key because it's damn tough to make a healthy lemon bar. Sometimes you do have to splurge... sometimes.

LemonMADE Bars
Crust:
1/2 c ww flour
1/2 c orgainc ap flour
1/4 c coconut oil, melted
1/3 c cane sugar

Filling:
4 eggs
1/2 c cane sugar
3 T flour
1 T lemon zest
2/3 c MADE Lemonade (use any variety you like)
1/3 c lemon juice

Oven @ 350
1. Combine crust ingredients by hand or in a food processor. Press into a non-stick or greased 8x8 pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes.
2. In the jolly 'ole mean time, whisk togeth the eggs, sug, and flour. Then mix in the remaining ingredients.
3. Pour over the hot crust and bake for 20 more minutes. DO NOT OVER-BAKE!!! The bars will continue to set while cooling. Dust with powdered sug if you wish :)

Love always (even though I go "awol" often),
Whollygirl :):)

Day 14

Hello. I feel like I should re introduce myself as the worst blogger, ever. It's not like I have been swamped to my neck, I just haven't been in the mood. Lord, I sound hormonal and I am so not pregnant. Anyway, this whole Back to the Start Challenge is tough. It's not like I was eating Micky D's everyday and I'm on a detox but I did do everything in moderation. I ate healthy daily and if I went to ice cream with friends I got a small cup. A few days ago (I should have blogged about it then but I was too upset) I went to a baseball game with my friends. I did not plan accordingly and was starving. Everyone was snacking on famous ball park dogs and I was snacking on peanuts, don't get me wrong they were good peanuts but smelling dogs, pretzels, and frozen lemonade sucked. Afterwards we hit a local custard joint and I sat there while everyone indulged in their $1 sundae. I feel like the toughest thing is not grabbing a granola bar or organic frozen waffle. Convience is a big issue, I am having to plan plan plan.

Long story short, even though it has already been a long story, I am so proud of myself. Even though resisting temptation was a bummer I stayed in control. And that felt amazing. I will be a better blogger, promise. Peace.

day four and five

Yesterday was day 4 of my Back to the Start challenge. And seriously, it was a challenge. I was visiting family at the lake and my family loves their food. Don't get me wrong, they are fantastic, but not everything was "whollygirl" approved. Shoot! That sounds so way snooty, so lets just say there weren't the healthiest of choices. I did my best, scarfing my face with salad and corn on the cob for dinner. Everything was a-okay until about 10:30. Everyone was socializing around 3 bags of Oreo's. Now, I just had my first Oreo on May 3rd. It was lovely, I only ate one because I knew if I continued I would eat the whole bag. So last night my family was trying to convince me that Oreo's were organic and that I should loosen up a bit because I was at the lake. Well I did not give into this Oreo madness, or the snickers showdown around midnight either. I thought that would be the toughest part until this morning. I ate my raw breakfast of pecans and a banana that I brought with me. Then lunch came about. Burgers and hot dogs. Let's just say I ate some more nuts, a tomato, then decided it was time to come home.

I see these past few days as probably the toughest I will encounter. Not because I don't trust myself around processed foods, but because that was the only thing available. It was so, so tough to say no to food that I normally don't eat anyway but in that situation I wouldn't have had a problem with eating an Oreo or a burger. But I whipped up some quinoa hash as soon as I got home and was a happy camper!

So much about me rambling on about my life, is anyone doing the Back to the Start Challenge? :) Thanks for listening! Also, (I promise I will stop after this) I am adding a rule.

Rule 5: Drink at least 2 full Nalgenes of water a day.
That is all. <3 whollygirl