Tag: cooking

Book Review Power Hungry

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The book Power Hungry by Camilla V. Saulsbury is a collection of recipes to make your own energy bars, granola bars and protein bars.  This book is something I came across at Barnes and Noble back in the Spring of 2015.  I have been using it on and off to make my own protein and granola bars instead of buying them.

Power Hungry book review from Kimberlees Korner

So far I have tried about ten or more of the recipes.  As you can see from the book photo above I have a bunch of them marked with post it flags – that is how I go through a recipe book – I flag all the ones that look or sound good so I know which ones I need to get ingredients for.  The book is filled with lots of different recipes and all the recipes have variations to try using the same basic recipe but with a few ingredient changes – I really like that.  The recipe  chapters of the book are:

  • Super Natural Knock-Offs
  • Activity Bars
  • Endurance Bars
  • Protein Bars
  • Raw and Almost Raw Bars

Some of the recipes are super simple and you just blend the ingredients together in your food processor and then put into a pan and refrigerate to set them, cut them and you are done.  Some of the other require cooking, either some ingredients on the stove top or some actual baking time.  For all the recipes in the book there are directions as to how to store them and for how long.  There is a room temperature version, refrigerator version and  freezer version.

The beginning of the book also lists pantry ingredients to have on hand.  There are ingredients such as whole grains, natural sweeteners, chocolate and cocoa, canned ingredients, nuts, seeds and nut butters, oils, eggs, dairy and non dairy milks, all natural protein powders and extract flavorings.  If you already eat a pretty healthy diet chances are you have a lot of the ingredients already.  I found that there were several recipes I could make right away without having to go buy anything.

So far the recipes I have tried are:

  • Fitness Fiber Bars – which are suppose to be similar to Fiber One Bars – I made the chewy chocolate chip version and liked them
  • Canyon Crunch Bars – which are suppose to be similar to Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars – I tried the Cinnamon Pecan version and they were okay – these are kind of hard and crunchy, just like the bars you buy but mine were more crumbly – they didn’t really stay together as bars but they were still good to eat in chunks
  • Lucy Bars – which are like Larabars – personally I have never bought one of them but I love this recipe and the many variations.  I have made the PB & J Bars, Cashew Cookie Dough Bars and the Blueberry Cobbler Bars and that is only about a quarter of the different versions listed under this recipe
  • Raisin Bran Bolt Bars – I made the double chocolate version of these and they are kind of like a brownie.  My son and his friends came home for lunch from school the other day and they were even eating them – I didn’t tell them they were made with good for you all natural ingredients and high in fiber.
  • Seeds of Power Bars – this one so far is the only one I didn’t really like all that much – it was kind of plain to me
  • PB & J Protein Bars – these were easy to make and tasted good – they have protein powder in them so good before or after a workout
  • 5 minute Protein Truffles – lots of variations with this recipe and I have tried a couple of them and liked them both
Power Hungry book review by Kimberlees Korner
Double Chocolate Bran Bolt Bars and Cashew Cookie Dough Bars made by Kimberlees Korner

Above are a couple of the versions of the bars I have recently made.  Mine probably don’t look as pretty as ones you buy in a package but they taste good and that is one of my main goals – to have a healthy homemade tasty power bar.

Making your own granola and protein bars is really pretty simple and if you have some great recipes, like the ones in this book, you will always have healthy snacks around.  The main reason for making the bars versus buying them for me is that I like to know what is in my food and I want to have control over what I put in them.  Also, the cost of making them yourself is a lot less than buying them.

Have you ever made your own protein or energy bars?  If so, what recipe did you use?  Let me know by leaving a reply.

Have a great day!

-Kimberlee

EOM Fitness for May 2015

May 2015 has come to an end and June will be here in a couple of days.  I don’t know if it is because of all the end of school year stuff going on with my kids or what but this month flew by, in my opinion.  My workout schedule for the past month was down to four days per week instead of five or six.  I decided to dial it back a little and do like a Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday schedule this past month.  workout cat with band

 

yoga journal magazine with great yoga practices and other info

This past month I also decided to change things up by using my Core workout book along with a new Yoga Journal Magazine I bought back in April.  I did do a couple of my Cathe workouts from an older dvd set X-train.  I love my Cathe workouts and usually include at least a couple each month.

Core workout book

I think I bought the Core workout book many years ago either at Half Price Books or Sams.  I really like this book and how there are routines at the end to do like the one shown above, the Power Workout routine.  The book uses an exercise ball, medicine ball, some weights and an exercise band for some of the exercises.  I like that there is minimal equipment.  It was nice to do these routines and put on some good music to workout to while doing them.  As you can see by the top photo the cat likes the book and workouts in there as well.  He was usually sitting by the band or on the book when I had it opened up.

Core Strength Training book

The other book I used this month along with the Core book was the one above, Core Strength Training.  I checked this one out from my local library.  I like how this book is set up and explains the exercises and there are detailed color photos, too.  I was trying to do at least four of the exercises on the days I was using my Core book.  There are lots of great exercises to increase your mobility and strengthen your abs and back for everyday activities as well as sports like golf.  I pointed this out to my husband since he golfs a lot and he frequently gets out my weights or bands to do a few exercises the day before he goes golfing.

This past month I have also been using a couple of other new books I recently bought at Barnes and Noble.  The first book I bought a couple of months ago, it is called Raw Energy by Stephanie Tourles.  I just stumbled across this book while actually trying to find another book and loved all the recipes in there.  Everything is made with healthy and wholesome ingredients and most of them are pretty simple to make.  The concept is that everything is made with raw natural ingredients and nothing is cooked at a high temperature so the food retains the natural occurring enzymes.  There are a few recipes that use a food dehydrator but nothing is cooked over 175 degrees.  This interested me since my husband bought a dehydrator about eight months ago to dehydrate the hot peppers we grow every year.  I wanted to be able to use the dehydrator for more than that and apples which is about all we had tried.

Raw Energy book by Stephanie Tourles

This book contains recipes for cereals, dips, fruit and vegetable juices, nut milks, smoothies and a variety of snacks.  I have already made several recipes from this book and they were all good.  At the front of the book she explains the raw concept in detail and lists the equipment and ingredients you will need to make things in the book.  The author, Stephanie Tourles, has also written a few aromatherapy and body care books and I own two of those as well.  I knew when I saw this book it would be good and I have not been disappointed with it.

Power Hungry book

The other book I just bought a few weeks ago is called Power Hungry by Camilla V. Saulsbury.  Again this was a book I just stumbled upon at Barnes and Noble while searching for another book that I never found.  This book is all about making your own Cereal, Energy and Protein Bars with lots of variations within each recipe to create a different type of bar.  So far I have tried a few and liked them.  There are some recipes that require cooking some of the ingredients on the stove top or even baking some of them in the oven for a few minutes but there are also some raw recipes that do not require baking or cooking.  I also like how she classifies some of them as knock off recipes for things like Fiber One bars, Kind Bars and Larabars.  I know I have found, and even tried, some of these types of recipes from pinterest but they have not been as good as the ones in this book.  This book is worth the money if you are interested in making your own good quality bars with natural ingredients.  Also, there are tips in the book on storing the bars and how long they keep or can be frozen for, etc.

Well, so far it has been very rainy here so I have not been able to get out and ride my bike or swim like I normally do in May.  Maybe June will bring some sunshine so I can start biking to the store again and start swimming some for some exercise.  As far as my planned activities go I will probably stay with a 4 day a week schedule and plan to do weight training and yoga for this coming month.  What are your workout plans for June?

Have a good weekend!

-Kimberlee

 

Working Out Week 34 of 2014

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This week I had a really great workout schedule with doing weights again and riding my bike and jumping rope on the non weight days.  I also tried out some new recipes for dinner that were good and made my own almond butter.  It was a very busy week with fitness, cooking, errands, knitting, sewing, daily house upkeep and laundry, and getting my kids things together for back to school this coming Monday.

My workouts this week were:

  • Monday – Jari Love Extremely Ripped Body Rock, Weights & Abs – 35 min.
  • Tuesday – Ride Bike + Jump Rope + Yoga – 35 min.
  • Wednesday – Body Bar + Exercise Ball books + ride my bike to the dentist – 38 min.
  • Thursday – Ride Bike + Jump Rope + Yoga – 33 min.
  • Friday – Jari Love Extremely Ripped 1000 Weights only – 40 min.
  • Saturday – Ride Bike + Jump Rope + Stretch – 30 min

Jari Love Body Rock Workout

My Monday workout was a good mix of heavy, high rep weights and some ab work.  This particular dvd is not one of my favorite ones from Jari Love but I decided to use it as I hadn’t done it in quite a while.  Overall it is a good weight workout.

Ball, Bar, Disc Workout

The middle of the week I did my own mix of the Body Bar and Exercise Ball book workouts and also used my slide discs with some of the bar moves – creating my own exercises with the two together.  I also had a dental appointment that morning and rode my bike the 1 mile my dental office.

Jari Love Ripped 1000 Workout

The Friday workout was back to weights with Jari Love Extremely Ripped 1000.  I really like this workout and how all of the moves are compound moves meaning you work your arms as well as your legs at the same time.  This is a very effective workout.  She also reminds you during the workout how doing compound moves really increases your metabolism and makes your body burn fat even while at rest.

I have continued to ride my bike every other day and do my jumping rope after the bike ride.  I do notice I am able to jump rope a little longer this week than last week – building up my stamina, I guess.  Except for on Thursday – I could only do a couple of minutes of jumping rope as I woke up with a mild sinus headache and let me tell you that you do not want to be jumping rope with a sinus, or any kind, of headache.  It seemed to make it worse!

As I rode my bike this morning I realized that Monday the kids start school.  I knew this of course but it was hitting me at that moment as I rode that I may not be able to keep up with as many bike rides when school starts.  The main factor being that I need to be at home to make sure everyone has gotten up and gets some breakfast, as well as making lunches for the 3 boys.  Also, the biking route I like to take is right near the elementary school in our neighborhood and traffic will be heavy there with carpool drop off.  I might try and ride one day during the week and then just on Saturday’s and see how it goes.

Cookbooks from the library

A week or two ago I checked out a couple of good cookbooks from the library.  I used them in the past week to try out some new recipes and was pleased with the results.  The one above on the left is various different baking mixes, sauce mixes, rice and pasta mixes and other things as well.   The other book on the right is a really nice cookbook with lots of recipes for using fresh ingredients and cooking in minimal time – good for those who are busy or work a long day or just when it is hot out and you don’t want to slave in the kitchen for an hour or two.

I made up several mixes from the baking mix section of the Healthy Mix book.  I had good results with some and just okay with others.  The ones that were okay I had to tweak some to make them better.  Like the brownie mix said to make them with milk – well I have never heard of doing this but tried it anyhow and they were kind of different.  Not terrible but just not like real brownies, either.  I tried it again with oil and a little water like you would normally do and they were much better – the kids loved them and ate them up very fast – I did get to enjoy one which is all I needed anyhow.  Also, the quick bread mix in this book was a little odd as the mix seemed very dry when I blended it.  It only called for an egg or two and no milk or anything to moisten the ingredients.  I took it upon myself to add some milk and it turned out much better and looked like a quick bread mix should look.  My oldest son said maybe the book just assumed you knew to add the milk – I don’t know about that but in my opinion it is missing something.  I tried another mix in there though and that one is fine.  It is hit or miss with this one.  I guess you need to have some cooking experience to figure it out.

Pan Seared Salmon with fresh garlic and rosemary

The Cooking Light Fresh Food Superfast is a great book.  The book has lots of color photos of many of the recipes and everything is pretty quick and easy to make, too.  Just as it implies.  I like the fact that it uses fresh ingredients too and not anything canned or boxed in the recipes, for the most part.  I tried this salmon one night  – photo above – it was pan seared with a small amount of olive oil with fresh sliced garlic and fresh rosemary from my garden.  My kids really like this recipe – that is always a plus.  Another one I tried from the book was the italian sausage calzones.  Those were a hit with the family, too.  I was even able to make my own crust for the calzones using the Healthy Mix book and the healthy baking mix in there.  That made it take a little extra time instead of using a premade pizza dough but it was worth it.

Making Almond Butter with a food processor
Making Homemade Almond Butter

Another thing I made this week was something I have wanted to try for a while – my own almond butter.  I saw a recipe last week on pinterest and decided to try it out.  I followed some of it but had to tweak this one as well to get it how I liked it, or thought it should be.  Of course I did this on a whim with not a ton of time so I improvised and heated the almonds in the microwave for about 2 minutes instead of 15 minutes in the oven and then I processed them for about 2 minutes, scraped the sides down, processed them for about 2 more minutes, decided it looked like almond meal so I added about 1 tsp. of coconut oil and processed again for 1 to 2 minutes.  This was the best almond butter I ever had – really.  I will never be buying it again.  I made this in about 10 minutes or less.  It stores nicely in the refrigerator, too.  If you want the original recipe click on the highlighted link to take you to the blog with the recipe – Flour On My Face.    

Weekly Fitness Tip – Variety

Try different workouts to avoid boredom.  Doing the same activity (like walking or running) can get boring and stale.  Alternate your activity with some other types of workouts like weights or yoga – this also keeps you interested in continuing to workout, in my opinion, and the change does your body good.

Give new exercises or workouts a chance, don’t try something once and decide it is too hard and you just can’t do it.  Sometimes you have to do things a few times to get a feel for them.  Example:  Five or six years ago I started doing some step aerobic workout dvd’s.  I was terrible with them at first and thought I would never be able to keep up with the people on the dvd.  After watching it a time or two and then trying it slowly I got the hang of it – I also tripped or fell off the step a few times but I was determined to keep on – it got easier each time.  I still occasionally step wrong and stumble but not like the early days.  This makes you feel a sense of accomplishment.  

I hope everyone had a great week and you are getting in some exercise.

Kimberlee

 

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New Recipes Recently Tried

I have been trying some of the recipes I have pinned from pinterest lately.   To check out my recipe board on pinterest click on this link.  I wanted to share 2 that I made yesterday that turned out really good.

The first was the date and nut energy bars.  I took a photo of them but they don’t photograph too well.  They taste much better than they look.  Very sweet and satisfying!  I will definitely make them again.  I didn’t have any whole dates so I used some chopped ones I had on hand.  I think they will turn out better with the whole dates as recommended in the recipe.  They are a tad bit crumbly and I think it is because of the chopped dates.  I made mine with dates, dried cherries and walnuts.  They only take 3 ingredients.

Date Energy Bars - with dried cheeries and walnuts
Date Energy Bars – with dried cherries and walnuts

The other recipe was Cheesy Tex-Mex Chicken in the crock pot.  I made it yesterday as well and we had it for dinner.  Everyone loved it!  I made it using my own homemade salsa and without the corn.  I didn’t have any and figured it would be fine without it.  We ate it with some yellow rice and wrapped the chicken mixture in flour tortillas.  I will say that my sons were questioning the meal when they looked at it but once they tried it they loved it!  I told them it is better to try it first than to judge how it will taste by how it looks.  Some things taste really good but don’t always look so appealing.   If you click on the link above it will take you to the recipe and there is a  photo there.

I will be trying other recipes from my pinterest boards during the summer so check back often or follow my blog via RSS feed by clicking on the icon in the sidebar or through bloglovin which is also in the sidebar.  You can also follow me on Pinterest.