Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and More Scones

I have mind boggling, insanely slow and annoying internet in this new place. Hence the lack of post last Sunday and yesterday. Bah-humbug I can’t wait to get out of this place. But before that…

Las Vegas!

And San Francisco. I can’t wait to get new food ideas there. And shop. And gamble of course.

While getting some beautiful photos. Should make for a great birthday and end to a wonderful summer.

No guarantees I’ll be able to post while I’m there for two weeks but I should have lots of good stuff afterwards.

And to make up for the past little bit, I am excited to share a delicious ‘breakfast’ scone that I like to enjoy at any time. Just recently I served it with the petit fours for the Spa Night I organized at work.

(Speaking of which, my Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries made a come back at our Wrap Up BBQ by popular demand!)

What You’ll Need:

• 3/4 cup cold buttermilk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• a large egg
• 2 tsp cocoa
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup soy flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill, you can substitute this for whole wheat or another extra healthy flour)
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp cold, cold butter (just not frozen)
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1 large egg white
• sprinkle of sugar

What To Do: 

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Cut the cold butter into small pieces to make your future much easier. Combine the buttermilk, sugar, vanilla and egg in a medium bowl with a whisk.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa and mix well. Cut in the butter pieces with a pastry blender if you have one. If your like me, use two knives. You want this mixture to resemble coarse meal:

Once that’s done, fold in the chocolate chips. Carefully add the milk mixture and stir just until it’s moist.

Flour a hard surface. Scoop the dough out and knead lightly with floured hands so it’s less runny. On a floured baking sheet, form the dough into a circle (roughly 9 inches but I’m very bad with those things). With a good knife cut the dough into wedges, 9-12 of them, all the way through so it leaves a dent. This makes it a lot easier to cut later.

Brush the egg white on the top and sprinkle some sugar over it lightly but even. Bake until golden, around 18-20 minutes. Cut and enjoy!

Certainly not the healthiest recipe I’ve ever done, but I figured such an absence deserves some deliciousness. It’s roughly 5-6 points a serving, depending on the size of your scone.

Revolutionary Fashion

The Young Women in Business Vancouver Chapter hosted a night of fashion and environmental responsibility at their Pop-Up Fashion Show plus Q&A with the wonderful ladies of {r}evolution apparel and Malene Grotrian.

The moment I heard this was happening in Vancouver at an affordable price, I signed up and checked out {r}evolution apparel. I fell in love hard and fast. Two inspirational women pursuing what they believe in, and doing well already! Some tips they shared was to be honest and upfront about what you’re doing and tell your customers what’s going on with your business. This seems especially true during their start up. They have faced some struggles and bumps in the road, but they tell those who follow and invest in them what’s going on, building a strong relationship and not losing any customers along the way. Being transparent and sharing your feelings and experiences fosters connections with people. We all love to feel close, connected and intimate with those around us, even if it is the business we purchase from.

Something they said that really connected with me was:

Don’t wait for the perfect time. There is no perfect time. Just do it.

They’re really working for their dreams and their passions. They make the time for it. I think we can all do the same.

Then we were able to hear from Malene Grotrian and experience an intimate and amazing fashion show. Her pieces are versatile and multipurpose. Plus she has a warm heart and loves to give back, often providing clothes and models for a fashion show fundraiser or offering to host a private fashion show as an auction item. She looks at easy ways to flatter a woman’s natural beauty and provide many uses with one item. Check her out in Gastown on Fridays and Saturdays for her open studio times.

{please pardon my bad iPhone photos}

{the versalette by {r}evolution apparel, can be worn over 20 ways}

{malene grotrian’s first piece of the night}

{version number 1}

{version number 2}

After the show we were able to interrogate these inspirational, amazing women. They showed us how important support from family and friends are, to not be afraid to ask questions and research, and to hustle for your dream and enjoy the moment when it comes. If there is a passion you have, you have to work for it. Be stubborn. Trust that it will work out and go with the flow. Be open to what comes your way. One of the {r}evolution apparel women had a great quote to keep in mind:

Everything’s going to be okay, but it might not be okay today.

In this messed up world we live in, keep in mind to think twice about where your clothes come from. Think about what your purchase means and begin to change your thought process when it comes to consumption.

{yvetta and i at the {r}evolution apparel photo booth with the versalette as a bag}

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

I’ve often thought I would like to ditch my current career plans to open a flower shop with some sort of social good twist. Obviously I would use social and environmentally responsible  flowers, but I would somehow turn my little, imaginary flower shop into a socent (jargon alert: socent is a hashtag (#) used on twitter to signify social entrepreneurship and innovation). These days I have begun to add and grow my flower shop to include a vegan, healthy bakery/cafe/treat shop of sorts. Now I’m questioning if I’ve become a hippie but I think this is a shop with some potential in a place like Vancouver (please nobody steal my idea, it would make me sad). The reason for the addition probably has to do with my recent foray into vegan experiments in the kitchen.

Like this current work in progress. I’ve noticed cookie dough dips have become popular online and I wanted to try my hand at making a recipe. I got the general idea of what is required through my research and I wanted to make a recipe that could be done with what I currently have in my kitchen, which isn’t a lot. Oh, and it has to be WeightWatchers friendly of course.

I’ve only attempted one batch so far and I know there’s a lot of improvement to be made. And if you have ideas on how to make it better, I wouldn’t turn down any suggestion (except coconut, I despise coconut).

Ingredients: 

• 1 package of silken tofu
• 4 Tbsp light peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp or less sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 1/2-1/4 cup vegan dark chocolate chips

{you’ll need about 10 oz of tofu to make a large enough batch to blend}

Instructions:

In a food processor (or blender) combine all but the chocolate chips. Process/blend until all mixed and smooth, scrape down the sides as much as you can to make it right. Pour into a bowl and add chocolate chips. Mix well. For a chunkier texture, add half a cup of oats to the food processor/blender also.

I foolishly didn’t use silken tofu but just soft regular tofu. It caused a lack of thickness with my dip and I will not make the same mistake twice. Because of this, I used more peanut butter than I would have liked and it’s given my dip a strong flavour. Good for us who love peanut butter but don’t be

afraid to use less than four tablespoons. I’ve also stuck my dip in the freezer to thicken a bit more. Don’t use more than two tablespoons of sugar but if you want it a little healthier snack, this is an area that can be cut back. Be careful on the salt because I started with way too much and it was gross.

Originally, I wanted to make a batch half this size, but as I began to blend I realized there wasn’t enough ingredients to actually mix. I would also love to have a food processor.

Another area for possible improvement is the peanut butter. I would like to try making this with an almond butter. Or chickpeas instead of a tofu.

The dip will go with a variety of foods, from fruits to crackers to a spoon. Good as a snack or a dessert.

{to help prevent eating the whole thing in one sitting, I dished out each serving in a mini mason jar}

This recipe provided six 55g servings which are 4 points each with WeightWatchers.

The Pursuit of Happiness: a workshop on passion presented by @YWiBSFU

Just yesterday I attended The Pursuit of Happiness workshop presented by YWiB’s SFU chapter! In small groups, participants were able to learn from three amazing speakers in an intimate setting.

Loretta Cella opened the morning with an inspirational speech. She spoke a lot on happiness and what happiness is. The words that really set the tone for the rest of the workshop was that:

Happiness isn’t something that is gained or lost in a few hours.

The moment those words left her lips, almost every person in the room wrote them down or tweeted them. That must be positive reenforcement for any speaker. From there she spoke of how happiness is based on passion, and that passion is something that sparks inside of a person which they then take into the world. This made me reflect a lot on how I bring my passions into the world and how it may affect those around me. A great tip she gave was that people who flourish in life find three to five positives in every challenge they face.

I then started with Monika Hibbs, blogger and creator of The Doctor’s Closet. I really connected with her story as it reminded me of how I got to SFU and became a Communications student. Monika started out by going to medical school. Had planned to be a doctor all her life, followed all the right steps, and was really unhappy in her path. With the support of loved ones, she began to blog and is now not only a successful fashion blogger but sells some of her own products. From her story I was reminded of how important it is to do what you feel passionate about. The thing that sparks inside of you. You can find her stuff on Etsy. I really suggest it as her stuff is really cute.

Then my small group moved to Loretta Cella who started The Passion Foundation. Because of her unique experiences I was able to learn a lot about working in non-profits and managing a busy lifestyle. It’s really important to be aware of your most important values. Write them down. As for making time for them, if you want something that badly, you’ll make time for it. Unfortunately in my case this generally means a lot of last minute homework. As for my future work in non-profit, it’s important to collaborate and look for partnerships. Open up discussions with others to do what you want to do. And the really key tidbit Loretta gave us was that it is important to take care of yourself, then you’ll be able to get things done.

Finally I was fortunate enough to speak with Gina Chong of Butter Studios. How many possible future photographers get to meet a current photographer who started from scratch like I am? When she talks about her studio and her path, Gina’s entire face and eyes light up. And her way of personal care and reflection is something I can’t wait to try. Once a year, Gina takes a trip to a new country entirely alone. She suggests starting out in Canada to feel comfortable travelling alone, move on to somewhere in the USA, and eventually explore other areas of the world. And I plan on starting once I graduate.

This workshop really reminded me on how much I think YWiB is awesome. They put on a fantastic, intimate workshop and I can’t wait to attend more.

Advice from the Wise

Today I had an excellent talk with a dietitian. Our conversation ranged from good vegetarian options for protein to tips and tricks to ensure a healthy diet. We were even able to talk about my marathon training.

No matter who you are or what your diet is like, I really recommend having at least one meeting with a registered dietitian. It’s a great way to keep your health in mind and find new ways to enjoy eating right. Did you know having healthy meal options prepared as much as possible, sitting on the counter ready has been proven to assist people in making better meal choices? My conversation today also inspired an incredibly healthy grocery trip and I spent almost two hours preparing fruit salads, trail mixes and lunches all pre-portioned.

Depending on where you live, you may be able to call a dietitian free of charge. For the province of B.C. the number is 8-1-1. If your province doesn’t offer a dial-a-dietitian service, your health care may cover the costs of an in-person visit. Put in a little effort and check it out! You’ll be glad you did.