Corner Bakery Anaheim Scrambler and Happy St. Patrick's Day

Anaheim Scrambler is my go to meal at our local corner bakery. I love the little peppers and tomato pieces. I think it is pretty with all of the colors and  it tastes delicious. This morning  I couldn't make it to Corner Bakery but I was excited when I saw some green pepper in my fridge. I fried up a pound of bacon and made it as crispy as I could get it (I love my bacon almost burnt! MMMM). Then I made my own version of the Anaheim Scrambler.

• 2 eggs
• 1/4 Green pepper,diced
• 1 on the vine Tomato, diced
• a little salt and pepper to taste
• *Normally Avocado slices if I have some for Garnish- I used apples instead

Mix all of the ingredients into a bowl. 

Pour into a preheated, oiled pan. I cooked mine in the leftover bacon grease- hence the brownish coloring to my eggs! (I totally recommend this, little bits of bacon in your scrambler!) 

Stir eggs constantly until they are cooked to your liking.

Since we don't eat real toast anymore- Enjoy this little Irish toast while eating or make this

Here's to your roof,

may it be well thatched

And here's to all

under it -

May they be

well matched.

        ~Irish Toast 

Positive Sundays and Chicken Sausages

Today I woke up to a really nice email from a friend of mine that I used to work with. She and her husband have been making some eating changes and she has sent me some great blogs and ideas via facebook. Yesterday, we were chatting about my trip to the Loudoun Grown Expo and she was sharing her pasteurized co-op with me. We were talking about the differences in eggs (hopefully some photos will follow!)
Anyway, she shared with me that she had been reading my blogs and appreciated the fact that it isn't dedicated to weight loss but rather overall health from the inside out. *Weight loss is just a bonus* Thanks for you positive words Katie!

I always wanted to be skinny like my sisters and I would try everything to be as thin as possible- nothing ever worked and I just started getting discouraged and fatter. One day I started seeing some signs of health issues and I decided that I needed to get healthy. Weight loss wasn't my goal when I started running and eating better. Getting healthy for my husband and our possible future family was my goal. Brandon's family has a history of cancer and heart health and mine has a history of depression, anxiety and stress related issues. I was starting to suffer from anxiety/panic attacks and even went on medication to try and control it. My family also has a history of addiction and I didn't want to rely on medication to make me feel okay. I don't trust drug companies and I don't want to give them my money. As of today I am off all medications and I have never felt better! Yes, this blog isn't about being thin, it is about getting your life under control and being as healthy as you can be for your loved ones and for yourself!

I think it is great that through facebook, blog land and the Internet, we can all learn from each other and continue to take steps to help better ourselves through our eating and exercise habits.
She shared this link with me and I think it gives a great insight on why we should be making healthier eating options.
From Katie:
"I came across this website the other day and I feel like it sums up a good eating philosophy well -- consider sharing on your blog! Check out the video 5 things not to eat at beyond diet"

On a different note- Let's get to some food talk...
For the past few weeks I have been searching for some different meats that are easy to make besides chicken, bacon and ground beef. I have really been craving sausage but I couldn't find healthy sausage anywhere! At lunch I was sharing this with a few friends and they told me to make my own- that is a lot of work and during the school year, I don't have time. I hope to spend summers making some and freezing them but that didn't fix my "I WANT IT RIGHT NOW" issue. So tonight I happened to walk around Costco observing and researching a few things and found myself desperately reading some of the pre-packaged meats. I found what I was looking for!! YAY
 Chicken Sausages that are totally healthy! No MSG, No Gluten, No sugar, No Nitrates!! They were Roasted red pepper with spinach and garlic. They are pre-cooked so they are less processed than raw and frozen meats. I bought them to give them a try and they were delicious.

Tonight's dinner was Sausage, Eggs, and Toast

• I took 5 sausages out (I underestimated their fillingness- way too many for two people.We only ate two of them.)
• Place them in a skillet and warm them on medium heat.
• Scramble eggs and toast some Irish Soda Bread with a little butter. This was a great light dinner and would make a nice quick and easy breakfast.

I am already thinking of a ton of recipe's to make with this sausage- one of them Jambalaya or grilled over a bonfire!!!
Hope you can find them at Costco or a local store. If not, order them from here.

Delicious dinner!

Buy Fresh, Buy Local

Today we spent our afternoon walking around the Loudoun Grown Expo in Purcellville, VA (about 30 min from our house). It was really fun to see all of the different opportunities for buying local produce, meat, cheese, HONEY and even skin care products. We met some local farmers and got a lot of information on local CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture). Brandon and I were really interested in the meat co-ops and I was interested in the fresh produce but we have to see if there is a *Starch* opt-out option. Some of the programs are really inexpensive and I was actually surprised at the variety and options that are out there. 
One of my favorite expos was Wegmeyer farms. I can't wait to go berry picking and they even gave me an adorable Strawberry pickin' bucket :) 
I got some local honey from hidden creek apiary for $5.95 and some Arugula from Endless Summer Harvest. I am really excited to try these products and to sit down and look at all of the different year round farmers markets available to the DC area. We even got to hear a great bluegrass band play called Gold Heart. What a fun afternoon!

Goodies from the Expo :)

After the Expo we headed over to Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve and walked around on the trails for a little while and hung out at the little pond. It was so nice to have a 60+ degree day in February. Today got me really excited for warmer weather. I can't wait to do things like this more often. 

Hearing a band sponsered by Shamrock Music store, walking around Banshee Reeks and looking forward to warmer March weather- I was feeling very festive and decided to try my hand at a little Irish Soda Bread tonight. I found a recipe from this bread recipe site. 

Irish Soda Bread      

Ingredients:

2 C. Coconut flour

2 C. Almond flour

1 tsp.Sea Salt

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1 egg, whisked

3 C. Unsweetened Almond Milk

1/4 C  Raisins

2 Tbs. Apple cider vinegar

1 Tbs Agave Nectar (or Honey)

1 Tbs Caraway Seeds

Process:

• Preheat oven to 375F
• Bake in a lightly olive oil Greased 8 or 9" round pan 

1.) Put raisins in boiling water (plump) then turn off heat. Let soak  for approximately 10 minutes.

2.) Combine flour, salt, caraway seeds, baking soda and baking powder in a large bowl. Mix well.

3.) Add egg, milk, honey and vinegar, mix well.

4.) Drain raisins and knead into dough.

5.) Knead the dough with hands on a lightly Almond floured board for 2-3 minutes.

5.) Make into a round loaf and place in the greased pan.

6.) Sprinkle Caraway seeds on the top of the loaf and press lightly into pan, cut a cross into the top of the loaf with a knife.

7.) Bake for an hour Browned and thoroughly baked.

8.) Let cool for 20-30 minutes and serve with butter (we used grass fed butter)

9.) Cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!