Easter Pinspirations

I've gathered some interesting and beautiful Easter egg ideas in my Pinterest basket just for you. Check out these unique egg dying kit alternatives for the upcoming Holiday.

SheKnows.com

I love these gold leafed eggs with their contrast between glamorously fancy and ruggedly imperfect. They shine like just unearthed gems. Perfect for hiding in the garden. 

mom. me

   

These chalkboard eggs are so fun and great for inspiring creativity. I love the idea of geometric shapes that can be wiped off and replaced with any number of beautiful designs.

studiodiy.com

With the sudden popularity of Ciate caviar nail manicures, it only makes sense that the trend would make its way into other creative outlets. You can find the tiny microbeads to decorate your eggs in all sorts of colors at your local Craft Store or online from MarthaStewart.com

kailochic.blogspot.com

CountryLiving.com

These eggs are incredible little works of art and I hope to be able to recreate the intricate details of some of the patterns on my own. The art is done using pure silk fabrics with beautiful designs. I LOVE these. 

Red Pepper Tomato Spread

This incredibly delicious and savory spread is so easy and versatile. It came about when I was in need of a really good tomatoey sauce for paninis. These few ingredients I already had in my kitchen turned out to be exactly what I was looking for.

Jarred roasted red peppers in water are so convenient! I always have some at the ready to snip into salads, pastas, soups and now this spread. 

Blend everything together in a mini prep food processor with a little bit of ground pepper, salt to taste and a dash of olive oil.

It should look like this after about 2 minutes. You could add more cheese, more basil or more salt and pepper at this point if you need to.

Pop it into a jar and it will keep for about 3-4 days in the fridge. Spread it on a baguette topped with ricotta, throw a spoonful into your pasta sauce, or bake it into a pepperoni calzone. The options are endless.

Red Pepper Tomato Spread

1 whole roasted red pepper
Half a small jar of tomato paste
1/4 C parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
8-10 large leaves of basil, torn up
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Add all of the ingredients up until olive oil into a food processor. Blend until smooth, add salt and pepper, blend again and stream the olive oil in with the processor on. This recipe can easily be doubled.

Enjoy!

5 Days of Breakfast - Day 5

It's our last day of breakfast together! At least until I post another morning meal :) How about those blueberry pancakes I mentioned on Monday? Oh yeah.

This may look a bit strange. You don't often see cottage cheese and scrambled eggs on the same plate, but stick with me, because this is seriously delicious.

Scramble one or two eggs/egg whites. Scoop about 1/2 Cup lowfat Cottage cheese onto the plate and sprinkle with a bit of ground cinnamon. Then add a helping of fruit, any kind you like. I love the apple slices, because they are delicious with a scoop of the cottage cheese. And go ahead and try the cottage cheese WITH the eggs, which creates a super yummy, creamy concoction that is unique and so satisfying.

So there you have it, I hope these ideas will inspire you to take a second look at your breakfast plate and try some new things.

Enjoy!

5 Days of Breakfast - Day 4

This fluffy little cloud of an english muffin is one of my very favorite things to eat in the morning, and here's why it's worth suggesting on Day 4 of my 5 Days of Breakfast: it's homemade. I know you totally already know about english muffins and you can totally go buy a pack of Thomas' and call it a day. But this truly is one of the best bread recipes I've ever used. It requires very little mixing, a fairly quick rise time, and best of all...NO BAKING. That's right, these are cooked on a griddle (or griddle pan) in about 12 minutes flat. The result is not your typical 'nooks and crannies' muffin, but rather a slightly sweet, super soft breakfast bread that is perfect for any topping of your choosing. From pb&j, to ham and eggs, to cream cheese and red onions, they are a fantastic and delicious way to start your day!

This is a recipe I shared last year, so go check it out, mix up a batch and have a great morning :)

5 Days of Breakfast - Day 3

Here's the thing about Oatmeal; you either love it or you learn to tolerate it because it's good for you. It seems to be available almost everywhere these days from Starbucks to Jamba Juice, which tells me more of us just might be on the 'love it' side of the street. My oatmeal method is great for when you are really in a rush.

First of all, ditch the microwave. Unless you like standing there, face against the plastic, trying to prevent an oatmeal eruption. It is so much quicker and easier to make oatmeal with boiled water. So turn your tea kettle on, pour a package of plain, instant oatmeal in a bowl and go check your email.

Once the water is boiling, you can add as much or as little as you want depending on the consistency you prefer. Add at least a 1/4 Cup, drizzling in more as you need. Let the oatmeal stand for a minute or two, then stir and start adding in all the goodness.

Second tip, remember I said pour in a package of plain oatmeal? Ditch those flavored varieties that have unnecessary sugar and often weirdly rubbery dried fruit and just add your own stuff.
I like to sprinkle mine with about 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon and then dashes of ground cloves, ground allspice and ground nutmeg. Next, I toss in a teaspoon or two of brown sugar or honey, a spoonful of flax seeds or chia seeds and some fruit. Here I used banana, but I've also tried it with different types of berries.
If the oatmeal is too hot or not quite creamy enough, just drizzle it all with a bit of any milk of your choice. I prefer Almond milk.

I love this meal for those winter mornings when you just can't quite get out of bed. It's warm and comforting and ready to eat in minutes.

5 Days of Breakfast - Day 2

Yesterday, I started 5 Days of Breakfast recipes to help shake up your normal morning routine. Here is one of my all time favorite, fun alternatives to the classic combo of toast and eggs. 

I toast one slice of whole grain bread (any brand or flavor you like works), then spread half of a ripe avocado over it. Next, cut up a medium boiled egg and gently smash it into the avocado. 

Finally, sprinkle a bit of pepper and Lawry's seasoned salt on the whole thing. Pair with a piece of fruit and you're ready for the day.

Done! Quick, easy and sooooo delicious! 

Enjoy!

5 Days of Breakfast. Day 1

Breakfast. The crackling sound of crispy bacon, the sweet warmth of maple syrup drizzling over fluffly blueberry pancakes and the oozey goodness of just slightly runny eggs. Hungry yet? Unfortunately for the majority of us, our schedules, not to mention our waistlines, just don't have room to eat like that everyday.

I regularly struggle to come up with different breakfast ideas that are not only tasty, but healthy AND most importantly, will keep me moving until lunch. So I thought I'd share some of my favorite breakfast creations that meet that criteria (these are individual portions, but could be made for multiple people). Each day of this week, I'll offer up a new morning meal that is delicious, healthy and pretty fast to make too.


Day 1:

This is one of my go-to morning meals. The bottom layer that you can't see is Plain, nonfat, Greek yogurt (I prefer Fage), which is not only great for you, but is also a blank flavor canvas to add absolutely anything you like to.
I top the yogurt with any fresh fruit I have on hand. This time its a Honeycrisp apple, but I've done blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and even grapefruit sections. Next, I sprinkle some ground cinnamon over the top and then finish it off with half a packet of plain, instant oatmeal. Adding the oatmeal gives this meal some extra fiber, which helps to keep you fuller, longer. You could use rolled oats if you like, but they are not as tender and small as the instant version. You could also toss some nuts or flax seeds in for extra textural crunch.
Finally, I drizzle the whole bowl with a bit of raw, local honey (you could also swap the honey for agave nectar) to add just a hint of sweetness.

Quick, easy, delicious. What do you like to eat greek yogurt with?