Bananas

5 Ways to Do Oatmeal

7:00:00 AM



If you were to ask what my favorite breakfast was, or one that I eat almost every other day, the answer would be oatmeal. It's quick, and easy, and you can easily change it up whenever you'd like. If I need something to warm up my insides on a cool morning, oatmeal is my go-to. When I was little I used to ask for "oakmilk" and requested raisins to be put into it. Since then, I've learned to say oatmeal correctly, and switch up the ingredients to keep my breakfasts different and not so boring. 

Here are a few things to consider when you make your next bowl of oats and are stuck on how to switch it up:

1. Different fruits. 

This is easier now that the weather is warmer, usually in the cooler months I go for bananas and occasionally blueberries. Strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are coming into season and will be added into my bowls! 
Oatmeal


2. Crunchy Toppings. 

I love having a bit of crunch in my oats, usually a handful of raw almonds, cashews, or even some walnuts is great! 
Oatmilk


3. Power toppings

This comes in the form of chia seeds, hemp hearts, and cacao nibs. Personally I go for chia seeds as they're more available for me. 
Oatmeal

4. Nut butters

If you love nut butter like I do, then adding a little scoop of peanut butter, cashew butter or almond butter will conquer that craving right away in the morning. Sometimes, if I know I didn't get that much protein in the week, I will use powdered peanut butter. Just put it in before making the oats and stir it up to get the not-so-overwhelming and peanut-y taste!


5. Spices

I love adding cinnamon to top off my oatmeal. I read somewhere that cinnamon is really good for your metabolism, and it tastes great. 
Organic Oats


Oats are so great for you and I love a nice warm bowl. What are your favorite toppings? What is your favorite breakfast or your most common breakfast that you have?
Have a great week! x 
Kenzie

clean

Spring, Smoothies and Sunshine

9:00:00 AM





I don't think I'm the only one incredibly excited that it's finally March. While we haven't had that bad of a winter here in Wisconsin, I'm still really glad that it's almost spring. I haven't done a "things I love lately" post, but that's what this one is shaping up to be as I type it. 
Rib Mountain
1. I've recently just became the owner of a mini-blender and I've been loving making smoothies in my dorm room! (sorry neighbors). They're so easy to make, and if you need any smoothie inspiration some of my favorite ingredients are Spinach, almond milk, bananas, strawberries and chia seeds! 

Detox Smoothie

2. The sunshine. Honestly, the overcast days make my head feel a bit glum and my legs feel a bit restless. but when the sun comes out I can enjoy the time outside. 

3. Walking. I'm in a photography class this semester, which means I get to take photos outside a lot, and it really makes me slow down and capture the things around me that I wouldn't otherwise notice. 

4. Coloring Books. Those adult coloring books? You can usually catch me in my dorm room with the futon down and twinkle lights on, coloring on a Friday night. I'm wild, I know. 

5. Clementines. It can't be a blog post without talking about food can it? I love clementines, and I honestly cannot get enough of them! 

Sorry this post is so much shorter than usual, I haven't really had that much going on between hurrying around for school, climbing out from under my pile of homework, I haven't had anytime to workout even and it's making me feel a bit anxious to be honest. Spring Break is right around the corner and I've just got to get through the next two weeks before I can officially relax..at least for 10 days. 

What things are you loving this season? Are you planning any fun trips yet? Make sure to leave a comment, I love hearing from you! 
xx Kenzie

Crisp

Strawberry Pecan Crisp

12:30:00 PM


  What are some of the first foods that you think of when you think of Summer?
  For me, I think of fruits. Mostly Strawberries, Peaches, Watermelon, Blueberries...etc. Which is why I spent some time finding the frozen strawberries in the freezer and stirring up a nice warm, fruit-filled, crisp.

Summer Recipe



Here's what you'll need:
Filling
2 cups chopped strawberries (my berries were quite small, so you may need less)
1/8 cup flour
3/8 cup granulated sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla

Strawberries

Topping
3/8 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
3/8 cup chopped pecans
1/4 unsalted butter at room temp



Here's what you'll need to do:

Preheat the oven to 350*F(177*C) ; Lightly grease 8 inch pan and set aside
Filling Directions
Combine strawberries with flour, sugar, salt and vanilla in medium sized bowl. 
-Toss gently until combined and spoon or pour evently into pan

Topping Directions
Whisk brown sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon, salt and pecans together. 
-Get out brown sugar lumps, and add butter. Break up butter until mix is crumbly.
-Spread out on top of strawberries in pan

Bake 40-45 min until top is golden brown and juice is bubbly
Let Crisp cool before serving. 

P.s serving this crisp warm with a little side of vanilla ice cream is the best. 
I paired mine with Butter Pecan IceCream!
I hope you all enjoyed this recipe! Let me know what your favorite thing to eat or bake this Summer has been in the comments!
xx
Kenzie






breakfast

Anytime Crepes

3:11:00 PM


The best thing about trying something new is that you can come back and try it over and over again until it works out. That is especially true for cooking, which I found out while making these whole wheat-crepes. 
Crepes are the kind of food that are light, and made especially to wrap your favorite filling in a nice little jacket, and are fun to enjoy! Crepes are also quite easy to make, so I've included a recipe! 

Here's what you'll need: 

*1/2 cup skim milk
*2/3 cup water
*2 table spoons vanilla
*1 cup all purpose flour (I used whole wheat flour as it's more filling)
*1 tablespoon sugar
*1/4 teaspoon salt

A little side note; I had accidentally forgotten to add in 1/4 cup melted butter...I started melting it and the phone rang so I had turned off the microwave and couldn't quite figure out why my crepes weren't spreading as easily....this would be why, but they still tasted great! 
They're pretty simple to make as well; 
-In a Medium sized bowl, mix the milk, water, melted butter (if you decided to use it), and vanilla. 
-In a smaller bowl, mix flour, sugar and salt well. 
-Whisk the two mixes together until the batter is smooth
-Warm medium sized skillet on medium-high heat, coat pan with non stick spray and pour in about 2 tablespoons of batter, you can add more or do less depending on how big of a crepe you would like
-Swirl the pan to allow batter to spread, I also helped it along with running a spoon gently over it
-Cook until edges are crispy and golden. This is quite difficult to do with whole wheat flour, and I haven't baked with it long enough to know just how it works, but it seemed to be fine once there was a bubble or a small hole in the batter. Then flip to the other side. 
And repeat with remaining batter!!

After you allow them to cool, you can add in your favorite fruits! 
I soon discovered, we had no whipped creme and I haven't been feeling like a chocolate-eating person lately so I opted for some vanilla yogurt as a filling! It was great and a healthy alternative! I put strawberries inside, along with raspberries as well as on the top and sprinkled the crepe with some powdered sugar! 
This was definitely one of those recipes where I had went to bed thinking about having a crepe and by the time I woke up I had to make one!

 You can also use these for desserts, or a fun snack if you'd like! 
Making these was a lot of fun and I'm sure I'll make some again this summer! 
Thanks for reading as always!
xx
Kenzie
Have you made crepes before? What are you favorite add-ons? 

doughnuts

Exploring and Relaxing are the same thing

1:30:00 PM


When the works starts to pile up, when the nights start to get a little restless, that's when you know it's time for a "you" day. A day just to take time for yourself. Creating your own happiness. 
I've had a very strange last couple of weeks. I can't really describe it to be honest. It was just weird. Luckily it's over, this is a new week (even though I'm writing this ahead). I'm being quite optimistic. Anyway, I had a "me" day. To try to make everything seem okay again. Clear my head a bit. Leaving the room, packing my bag with my camera, water, and a few other essentials, I was off on a day of exploring. 

After wandering the local mall, browsing through Kohl's and Target and picking up a Mother's Day gift, I decided to take a hike. Literally. But before leaving, I also grabbed a Mango Smoothie from Orange Julius. 
I've been to this hiking spot before, but now that there is no snow on the ground I could properly sit down and enjoy it! You can read that blog post here. I also snapped these whilst there before hiking back down and continuing on with my day. 



I also spotted this guy on my way back down to the car!

Month


I did adult-y things that day. Like stopping off at the grocery store to pick up a few bits, making sure I stayed under twenty dollars too. Quite a feat. 

Eventually, I returned back to my dorm room to put away my grocery store purchases before leaving once again to go to a late lunch, or early dinner. I had a tomato mozzarella on a flatbread from Panera. It was delicious! Sadly, I forgot to take a photo of it for you. It looked great! I promise. 

I decided after that, even though I was sort of full, I wasn't quite ready to go back to the dorms quite yet, so I set out to find a frozen yogurt spot. I needed it. I did remember to take a photo of that. 

Once I dropped my car off in the parking lot, I felt like I had consumed enough sugar for 3 children. Therefore the day was not over quite yet. I didn't have a schedule to keep or anything that had to be done right away. I took a walk around campus. The snow has melted very quickly since the last time I have shown you around! That post is here. So I'll give you a little update.








I even sat on a nice little bench and watched the sunset and took in the sounds of the birds for a little bit before walking about a bit more. There was a woodchuck on the river bank nearby, making quite the odd sounds. 


I also had one of those "this photo is perfect" moments. Are you ready for it?? This one
I noticed there were birds in a tree above me, and snapped this and smiled when I reviewed it because I felt like it was perfect. 



Then it was time to go back to the room and relax, snapping this photo of the sunset and putting it on instagram here. 

It was such a great day. Ending with a movie and a nice chat. I honestly felt so good after it. Not having a worry, and putting it all aside just for the day. It was just what I needed. Though I did get a very sunburnt nose and a few odd sunburnt fingers, it was worth it. 


I hope you all had great weekends! What did you do? Have you ever taking a day that's just for you? If you have, what did you do? What would your perfect day be like?
Let me know in the comments! I love reading them!
xx
Kenzie

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