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Mother’s Day meals

Mother's Day Meal Plans |  Misselainious blogHello friends!  So mother’s day is right around the corner and I thought it might be fun to make a list of meals you could surprise your mother with and make for her!  Often it’s the meal planning part that is the hardest thing for me to come up with so I thought I’d take the guess work out of it and help you out with these options.  I’ve also pinned these yummy recipes to my Pinterest food board if you want to make these exact options! 🙂  (My Pinterest user name is MissElaini)

Breakfast/Brunch

Avocado strawberry + goat cheese toast. (This can be a gluten free.)
Asparagus crustless quiche
Bacon or sausage if you didn’t already but it in the quiche
Watermelon with mint

To drink: tea, coffee, orange juice, or a smoothie.

Lunch

Pear arugula salad
Grilled (or baked) honey mustard chicken
Roasted red potatoes with garlic
Sourdough rolls or crusty bread

To drink: Sweet tea, sparkling water, or lemon water

Dinner

Grilled steak and veggie kabobs
Buttered rice or Cilantro-Lime rice (use beef broth…)
Vanilla ice cream with peach chutney (for dessert)

To drink: Martinelli’s

You can buy a lot of these things at the store instead of making it all from scratch but if you do want to get in the kitchen and make some of these fresh you can just check out the pin on my Food board on Pinterest! 🙂  (Misselaini is my username.)

Posted on May 2, 2016 by |

Easy smoothies

Easy smoothie recipes | Misselainious blogHello friends!  Years ago my family started our own juice bar where we made smoothies and fresh juice. (That’s another story for another day though.)  They were amazing and I loved trying all the varieties we had.  Since that time I’ve never stopped making up easy smoothies and so I thought it would be fun to share some of my go to combos and links to other yummy looking easy smoothie recipes.  Enjoy!  Also I’ve created a list just for you of easy add-in ideas to make your smoothie even better/healthier!  You’ll want to pin this one for those hot days when you need a refreshing drink or even if you just need a quick pick me up snack/lunch.

1 cup plain or honey yogurt
1 cup mixed frozen berries
1/2 a banana
1 tablespoon honey

1 cup plain or honey yogurt
1 1/2 cups frozen mango chunks
1/2 cup orange juice (more if it’s a little thick)

10 ounces of honey yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoon lime concentrate
1/2 cup frozen strawberries
16 ounces ice (preferably crushed ice…)

Here are some more yummy sounding ones I want to try!

Easy Peach Fruit Smoothie

Pineapple Paradise Spinach Smoothie

Raspberry Coconut Smoothie

All this talk of these easy yummy drinks are making me hungry…I’m off to make one of these folks!  I love learning new smoothie combos so if you have a favorite please share it with us in the comments below. And don’t forget to get your free list of add-ins here! 🙂

Posted on April 27, 2016 by |

Benefits of tea

Benefits of tea | Misselainious blogAnyone that knows me probably knows that I love drinking tea.  That may be an understatement.  Sometimes I have so many cups of tea a day I loose count.  I realize that tea isn’t everyone’s thing but what a lot of people often don’t realize is that tea is beneficial for many different things.  So today I thought I’d share with you a few teas and some (although certainly not an exhaustive list) of the reasons they are good for you.

Peppermint tea: Okay so peppermint tea is my favorite tea without a doubt because I love the fresh taste but then I discovered peppermint tea is also really helpful for an upset tummy (or if you just ate too much food). Use hot and steaming water that hasn’t quite boiled and steep for 5-10 minutes.

Fresh squeezed lemon with honey tea: I love the sweet and sour taste of this and it’s really good if you have a cold or need to sooth a sore throat.  Also fresh squeezed lemon in warm water in the morning is a good way to jump start your digestive system.

Echinacea tea: supports the immune system! Pour freshly boiled water over tea bag or tea leaves.  Cover and let steep for 10-15 minutes

Rooibos tea: this tea is high in antioxidant properties. (I love drinking this with coconut milk and honey so add that if you wish after it’s been steeped!)  Bring water to a boil and steep for 5-7 minutes.

Chamomile tea: this tea is great for helping you sleep better.  Bring water to the point of boiling and then let it rest while you prepare your cup and tea.  Steep for 5-7 minutes.

Lavender tea: Stressed out?  This tea is very soothing and will help relax stressed nerves.  You’ll want to steep this tea for a little longer (10 minutes) since it is so mild.

Ginger tea: this one is good for nausea so if you’re on a boat ride or you’re pregnant…  Use fresh ginger slices if possible.  Boil water and steep for 5-10 minutes.  (A little honey would be nice with this since ginger is quite a strong flavor.)

Rosehip tea:  is a great source of Vitamin C.  It also has diuretic properties.  This tea is also good for your skin but is best avoided by those who have diabetes.

I highly recommend using organic teas since you are pouring hot water over the ingredients to release the properties in them.  You don’t want harmful chemicals being released into your water!  Whenever possible I would also suggest using loose leaf teas since you don’t have to wonder what the tea bags themselves are made of.  Quick tip: The best way to store loose leaf tea is in an air tight container.  If you like the convenience of a tea bag Numi or Choice Organic teas are great (this isn’t a sponsored post I just like their tea and know they are better about their tea bags.)

Please note that since teas can have a medicinal effect not all of them are safe for pregnant or nursing women or if you have certain health issues.

Many of these teas are helpful for a lot more than things I listed and it’s quite fascinating to discover all the ways teas are beneficial for your health.  Now go enjoy a cup of tea because it’s tea time!

What are your favorite teas?  Do you have any tea time tips for us?  Have you noticed any benefits from drinking tea?  Please share in the comments below!

Posted on March 7, 2016 by |

3 Ingredient ???

3 ingredient chocolate mousse | Misselainious blog -2 3 ingredient chocolate mousse | Misselainious blogHaha friends this is a total blogger confession moment.  Here’s the deal.  During Christmas time I made this amazing hot chocolate.  I accidentally left some out all night and the next day it was this decadent mousse.  So I thought, “Yay a happy accident I can use as a recipe on my blog.”

I measured everything out and mixed it all together and stuck it in these cute little tea cups my Yia yia gave me and left them in the fridge to become mousse.  The next day I eagerly checked them and lo and behold it was like thick hot chocolate.  Hmmmm not what I was expecting. Trying to be optimistic I figured it was just the wrong type of coconut milk so I tried again.  And I failed again.  Then I realized I should try using coconut cream because surely that should work.  I ran to the store and bought a really over priced can of coconut cream and tried a third time because “they” say third time is a charm.  Nope, nada, ain’t happenin’.  Talk about a comedy of errors!  First it was hot chocolate and then it was a really runny pudding of sorts and the third time a slightly less soupy pudding.

So if you want to try some hot chocolate and NOT mousse here’s how to accomplish that:

1 can coconut cream/milk
1/4 cup coco powder
2 tablespoons honey

Put half the coconut cream in a bowl and the other half in a sauce pan on low heat.  Next mix in the coco powder with the cold coconut cream until well blended.  Then gradually add to the warming coconut cream in the pan.  Once that is whisked in stir in the honey until dissolved.  Put into some cute cups and enjoy!

Also don’t worry….all that chocolate pudding/hot chocolate/whatever these three ingredients make hasn’t gone to waste.  Just to my waist. 😉  We’re happily eating way too much chocolate over here!  Everyone that has tried it likes it even if we’re not quite sure what to call it!  Maybe I should leave it out next time?  Have you ever had any cookie comedies?  I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!

Posted on February 12, 2016 by |

3 easy sunflower butter snacks

Sunflowerbuttersnacks-5 Sunflowerbuttersnacks-2 Sunflowerbuttersnacks-3 Sunflowerbuttersnacks-4Sometimes it’s hard to find quick and easy snacks that are healthy AND taste good.  Enter sunflower butter!  My go to snack has always been fruit but recently my doctor told me I needed to really up my protein intake. So after thinking it through I came up with these 3 quick and tasty sunflower butter snacks.  None of them have more than 4 ingredients!

Celery Logs

You’ll need: freshly washed celery, sunflower butter, dried cranberries (I use fruit juice sweetened ones), and cinnamon.

Instructions:  Take your celery stick and cut into 3 inch pieces.  Next spread a generous amount of sunflower butter in the dip of the celery and top with dried cranberries.  Sprinkle on some cinnamon and you have a refreshing little snack!

Banana Treats

You’ll need: a banana, sunflower butter, semi-sweet chocolate chips or Baker’s chocolate (that’s what I used), and some honey.

Instructions:  Peel the banana and slice it into ¼ inch rounds.  Spread a dollop of sunflower butter on a banana round and top with another banana slice.  Place on a baking sheet and stick in the freezer till they are slightly firm.

In the meantime place a ½ cup of the semi-sweet chocolate chips (or several squares of Baker’s chocolate and some honey to taste.  I did about 1 tablespoon) in a double broiler to melt.  If you don’t have a double broiler (I didn’t) just place a saucepan on the stove with about an inch of water in the bottom and bring to a simmer. Then place a metal mixing bowl on top so that it just touches the water.  The chocolate goes in the mixing bowl until melted.

Once your chocolate is melted pull out the banana rounds and dip one side of them in the chocolate.  Then place them back on the baking sheet and put in the freezer till the chocolate hardens.  Make sure you don’t use an overly rip banana as the taste intensifies in the freezer.  You can cover them and store them in the freezer for a few days but once you eat one I doubt they’ll even make it back to the freezer!

Crispy Squares

You’ll need: rice crispy cereal or rice puffs, sunflower butter, and honey.

Instructions:  Line a small bread pan or bowl with plastic wrap and set aside.  Next place one cup of rice crispy cereal in a mixing bowl.  Heat ¼ cup sunflower butter and 1/8-1/4 cup honey in a saucepan stirring until combined and warm.  I used ¼ cup and it was really sweet so next time I’m going to use less.  Then pour the honey and sunflower mixture over the rice crispy cereal until evenly coated.  Finally place everything in the pan and cover and place in the fridge until it sets up.  You shouldn’t need to leave it in longer than 15-30 minutes.  Slice and eat!

It’s a bonus that these treats are gluten free, dairy free, and nut free.  I hope you enjoy these quick and easy treats!

Posted on January 11, 2016 by |

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