Shelby's Menu

Best Chocolate Cake Ever.

2020-07-06T09:52:00.002-07:00

The heading says it all. This human has a five-star rating from 2,800 folks for a reason. Was searching for a chocolate cake to make Mike for Father's Day. This won and it was heavenly. The cake I made is pictured.

Recipe:

The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe {Ever}

Robin, the creator of the recipe, and I happen to share the same last name. I think there is something there. As always, I suggest you go to the website, but if you don't want to - no problemo. It's below. I followed to exact recipe!

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder homemade or store-bought
1 cup milk buttermilk, almond, or coconut milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil canola oil, or melted coconut oil
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350º F. Prepare two 9-inch cake pans by spraying with baking spray or buttering and lightly flouring.

For the chocolate cake:

Add flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk through to combine or, using your paddle attachment, stir through flour mixture until combined well.
Add milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla to flour mixture and mix together on medium speed until well combined. Reduce speed and carefully add boiling water to the cake batter until well combined.
Distribute cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center of the chocolate cake comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, remove from the pan and cool completely.
Frost cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting.

Notes

The cake batter will be very thin after adding the boiling water. This is correct and results in the most delicious and moist chocolate cake I’ve ever tasted! xo

Freezer Friendly

Let the baked cake layers cool completely. Wrap them well with plastic wrap and then with foil. Put each layer into a freezer bag and freeze up to 2 months. To serve, thaw in the refrigerator overnight with wrapping intact. The next day, the layers are ready to fill and frost.

mint ice-cream

2020-07-06T09:33:00.002-07:00

My first job after pastry school was a chocolate restaurant. We can chat about experiences on a different day. But either way, I worked at a chocolate restaurant, where the most popular ice cream was the mint chocolate ice cream. When I tell you that it was incredible. The restaurant made everything from scratch, and at one point, Food Network came in to do an episode on the mint ice cream.

Well, the other day, I ultimately bought too much mint in the international market. What can I say? The mint was literally lofting throughout the entire market, and this market is enormous. The herbs are in abundance- the market super crowded, but yet mint was shining. And so I got it. I got a lot of it - I added it to tea - I added it to ice cubes. We crushed it as a garnish, and yet, we still had a ton left. That's when Neiko and I decided to make it into ice cream. Now, if I still had the restaurant's recipe, I would've used that. But I didn't - although I can vividly remember the grinding the mint with the sugar and then adding the hot milk, which I will be using next time :)

But we used this recipe and it was delicious. The mint in this recipe is more subtle, which is why I will be grinding my mint and sugar. Next time, I will grind to release the oil. Releasing the oil is what gives the ice cream the green color and the mint aroma. This recipe is for folks that want the mint to hit the tastebuds on their tongue. The recipe that I want to create is one where you start tasting it through your nose bud. But yes, still a great recipe.

I went with this recipe because I like starting ice cream from custard and I didn't want any food coloring. I also didn't use chocolate, I hate how chocolate gets all waxy when it's frozen. Plus Neiko isn't a fan of chocolate - sooooo...we omitted it.

Here is the recipe: https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/mint_chocolate_chip_ice_cream/

I suggest you go to the page, but if you are feeling like you need it all in one place. It's below:

INGREDIENTS

3 cups of fresh spearmint leaves (not stems), rinsed, drained, packed
1 cup almond milk
2 cups heavy cream (divided, 1 cup and 1 cup)
2/3 cup sugar
A pinch of salt
6 egg yolks

METHODSHOW PHOTOS

1 Steep the mint leaves in cream and milk: Put the mint leaves in a heavy saucepan with the 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of the cream. Heat until just steaming (do not let boil), remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 30 minutes. Reheat the mixture until steaming, remove from heat and let stand for 15 more minutes.

2 Chill remaining cream in an ice bath: While the mint is infusing in step 1, prepare the remaining cream over an ice bath. Pour the remaining 1 cup of cream into a medium size metal bowl, set in ice water (with lots of ice) over a larger bowl. Set a mesh strainer on top of the bowls. Set aside.

3 Strain out the mint leaves, add sugar: Strain the milk cream mixture into a separate bowl, pressing against the mint leaves with a rubber spatula in a sieve to get the most liquid out of them. Return the milk cream mixture to the saucepan. Add sugar and salt to the mixture. Heat until just steaming again, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat.

4 Temper the egg yolks with hot milk cream: Whisk the egg yolks in a medium sized bowl. Slowly pour the heated milk cream mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly so that the egg yolks are tempered by the warm mixture, but not cooked by it. Scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

5 Heat until mixture begins to thicken: Return the saucepan to the stove, stirring the mixture constantly over medium heat with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spoon so that you can run your finger across the coating and have the coating not run. This can take about 10 minutes.

The custard base does not coat the back of the spoon, it is not ready.

The custard base coats the back of the spoon. You can run your finger across the coating and have it not run. It is ready and should be removed from heat immediately, and poured through the sieve over the ice bath to stop the cooking.

6 Strain custard mixture into cream in ice bath: Pour the custard through the strainer (from step 2) and stir into the cold cream to stop the cooking.

7 Chill completely: Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator (at least a couple of hours) or stir the mixture in the bowl placed over the ice bath until thoroughly chilled (20 minutes or so).

8 Process in ice cream maker: Process the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

9 Add chopped chocolate: Once the ice cream has been made in the ice cream maker it should be pretty soft. Gently fold in the finely chopped chocolate.

10 Chill in freezer: Put in an airtight container and place in the freezer for at least an hour, preferably several hours. If it has been frozen for more than a day, you may need to let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften it before serving.

Note that there is no alcohol in this recipe. A few teaspoons of some spirits such as rum or bourbon will help keep the ice cream soft over several days. Even the alcohol in vanilla extract will help. If you have no added alcohol in a homemade ice cream recipe, we recommend that you eat it up quickly, in a day or two; beyond that point the ice cream will quickly get very very hard.

Brioche

2020-06-15T11:02:00.001-07:00

My brioche journey is above :)

So, two weeks ago, I purchased homemade brioche from QZeens. A delicious black-owned spot in Atlanta. The boys LOVED the bread. And Neiko and I have been making bread each week and so he was like... "mom, can we do brioche this week?" Now, instead of cracking over my bread textbook, culinary school binder, or a cookbook - I went straight to the internet. I wanted to read reviews and a recipe that satisfied the food-science nerd in me.

I am so rusty in brioche bread - it has been years since I created brioche. And so I found The Flavor Bender. A perfect five-star recipe with beautiful descriptions of each step. And so, I started it Sunday afternoon while the boys rested and finished during independent play together. The recipe is incredible. I finished my bread with an egg wash of (egg white and almond milk). You will have egg white left in the recipe and all I had was almond milk. And so I also used almond milk within the recipe. It turned out perfectly. If I'd do anything differently, I'd more liberally sprinkle the sugar on the top of my bread (before baking).

Here is the link to the original recipe: https://www.theflavorbender.com/brioche-bread-recipe/

Personally, I think it's worth looking at the original recipe, she uses very helpful photos.

The recipe that I used is below:

Ingredients:

Air Fryer Broccoli

2020-06-15T10:27:00.000-07:00

Mike smoked lemon pepper wings yesterday. We paired it with air-fried broccoli and potatoes.

image from https://gimmedelicious.com/air-fryer-broccoli/

While the wings were smoking, Mike took the boys to the playground. Meanwhile, I prepped the sides and put the finishing touches on the mint-lemonade that Neiko had earlier made. Well, Neiko crushed the mint and the sugar together - releasing the mint's aroma and oil. And so I just needed to make the tea. Anyways, I rode my bike to meet with my boys and drop off their water bottles. Well, I ended up staying far longer than I intended to - watching the boys play in the dirt, do monkey bar tricks, and build structures. So, when we got back home, and the boys were famished. I had only 20 minutes while the boys were bathing to roast the veggies. And so I went to the internet for a quick roasted broccoli recipe where I could use my air fryer. I found this recipe by Gimme Delicious. And honestly, it was excellent. Like it literally tasted just like roasted broccoli, and it took 10 minutes. I will definitely be making it once more.

10 Minute Crispy Air Fryer Broccoli

Ingredients

3-4 cups broccoli florets
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Add broccoli, olive oil, garlic powder, salt & pepper to a large bowl and toss to combine.
Transfer to air fryer and set to 375F for 8 minutes. Shake halfway through.
Once the timer goes off, remove and serve immediately.

https://gimmedelicious.com/air-fryer-broccoli/

love

2015-09-10T08:26:00.000-07:00

If I made - cookies that were just

2015-09-05T11:41:00.002-07:00

natural peanut butter (no sugar added)
honey
oats

would that be sweets? like doesn't that just sound like breakfast?
http://cookiesandcups.com/3-ingredient-no-bake-peanut-butter-oat-squares/

(picture from pinterest)

Day #1 My lifestyle change

2015-09-05T10:16:00.005-07:00

I am changing my life. I am so tired of being imbalanced. The way of making sure that I balance myself is to cook everything from scratch or eat only food made from scratch. Food is such an amazing part of my life. Going into the office - pushes me fashion wise and work wise. I so badly want a balanced simple life. I had one for so long - one truly rooted in the principals of simplicity and peace - my life felt very close to Christ. That said, I am so excited about pushing myself towards this during this season. Proverbs 31 woman - being balanced. I am so excited about this next chapter of life :)

Yesterday, I killed it.

Brown rice, lentils, and fresh tilapia - yummy and delicious :)

Today (9/5/2015) I am super happy - I made my own creamer:

Light Coconut milk (from the can), coconut/almond milk (to thin), half a cinnamon stick (to infuse) and a pinch of honey (can we have that?) - boil, simmer, and then let sit with lid...

It's not silky and super thick, but 110% natural, dairy free, and stomach coating (black coffee digs a hole in my belly).

Today's lunch was two veggie tacos (they were terrible) - they were from Moe's I think. They were terrible - but I only got veggie ingredients - those that were closest to their simplest form. They were so not tasty - but I had them while having a lunch date with Mike - so it was perfect.

Dinner was wheat pasta with spinach, tomatoes, olive oil and a little blue cheese :) (and a glass of white wine)

Day #2: So proud of myself

2015-09-05T10:16:00.004-07:00

i definitely skipped family friday fun (pizza night) and ate my wheat pasta :)

today is gluten-free pancakes :) freshly made by your's truly and my little kitchen helper

Lunch with lentils, brown rice, fish, with a side of hummus and olives (mostly left overs)

Tonight a wheat penne and asparagus pasta (simply because my boys didn't eat my pasta yesterday - so we still have noodles. My recipe structure/ inspiration is this:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/penne-with-asparagus-and-cherry-tomatoes-spring-recipe.html

Snack a glass of sweet red wine and popcorn (from the movie tonight)

Tomorrow: Sunday Loveday

http://www.mamasaywhat.com/spinach-muffins-recipe/

would love to make these spinach muffins for breakfast:
http://www.mamasaywhat.com/spinach-muffins-recipe/

Lunch - y'all I still have those dern lentils, rice, and fish... but something beautiful can happen while baby boy rests...

Dinner - Let Mike lose on the grill (thinking about salmon burgers) -- but sides will be simple (baked potato, salad, etc.)

What about you ladies?

PS My thought on wine is that it is the healthiest drink after tea (coffee - debatable). Seriously, it's totally natural, countries where consumption (is moderate 1 -2 5oz cups) is a daily and normal part of their diets have longer life expectancy than the US - SOOOOOO....

Cooking with wine

2013-11-27T06:12:00.001-08:00

In pastry arts school, I learned the power and simplicity of cooking with wine. During my stint as a chef's demo assistant is when I fell in love with the taste and the pure elegance it brought to a plate. Mussels, shrimp, or leeks simmering in the sauce or simply hearty toasted well made bread dipped in the liquid goodness was like heaven.

My favorite combination is onions and garlic lightly boiling in wine (while the wine is being reduced and thickening)...it's like pure magic.

For love at first taste, start with fresh pasta water (water that pasta was cooked in) with it's starchy goodness, olive oil, a touch of salt. Add to a sauce pan, let it gently boil and then add fresh diced onions and garlic. Let it boil - add more water if need be (if deliciousness seems dry). Then pour in wine and just let it boil...

Rip fresh baked bread and dip in piping hot liquid - bite the mushy end and then allow yourself to go to heaven.

Cupcake Thursday

2013-11-22T06:15:00.002-08:00

Picture of the day 11.21.2013

Smooth jazz, hot drink, cupcakes, and a good book equals the comfiest cafe in the world...

I'm so thankful for cool quiet evenings that warm the heart and belly :)

I'm a little crockpot - short and stout...

2013-11-20T07:13:00.001-08:00

I used to think that my mom was crazy for having what seemed like a bijillion crockpots – who needed that many crockpots.

I mean, I loved our winter meals – mostly cooked by crockpot…but thought that to have a few of crockpots seemed like overkill...UNTIL…this week.

Now last week, I was able to come home and cook every night. Fast and delicious meals like salmon croquettes (yummy – a childhood favorite), mashed potatoes, and asparagus and a frozen meal (or two) from Trader Joes…

But this week was slightly more hectic and I didn’t want to rely on frozen meals. Although easier on the wallet than delivery – they are not always better sodium, health, fat, calories, or processed-meat wise. Therefore, I wanted to get out of the habit of frozen meals – no need to start fooling myself into believing that I was “cooking” if it was frozen food I was heating up…

I am of the slow-cooking, organic (local…humanly treated) meat, chopped up fresh vegetables way of thought… I wanna know that it is as close to its original state as possible… more on my food philosophy later.

That said, this week I needed a plan…a plan that included making healthy meals from scratch…and that plan began with my two crockpots.

On Monday, I made a chicken chickpea chili accompanied with rice and a beef, beans, and veggie beef chili accompanied with crackers and (yogurt/lactose-free) cheese.

We were able to eat the classic chili on Monday night and for lunch on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The chicken and chickpea chili on Tuesday and Wednesday night and lunch on Thursday.

It was incredible – both of them were completely random mixes of food.

My crockpot advice – get a seasoning or a sauce – as many veggies (onions, carrots, jalapenos, garlic, celery, etc.) as possible and throw them in the crockpot. Season heavily. Have chicken, veggy, or beef broth nearby.

Now, for this week...

For more than 1,400 crockpot recipes, visit this link.

Food Philosophy

2013-11-19T07:49:00.001-08:00

I have swam through every food philosophy out there (organic, vegetarian, vegan, lactose-free, gluten-free, slow food movement, raw food, etc.)

My work station - taking off the ends of string beans is such a stress reliever at times... auuuhhhh

With each of these food phases - I literally got to a place that I felt like I couldn’t take it anymore and started feeling too overwhelmed with cooking – so I just didn’t.

You guys know my motto – when life gets too much – I sleep.

That said, the philosophy the rings the truest to me – is the idea of eating everything as close to its original version as possible. So, I try to eat as preservative-free, local/organic/humanely raised meat, and vegetables/fruits…that said, bigger than all of that is “getting food on the table,” philosophy.

Therefore here lately, I've been doing what I can but remembering the key is to get the food on the table stress-free - so that I can enjoy a delicious and nutritious meal with the ones that I love.

Even if eating a frozen meal - it's about sitting at the table, enjoying a good conversation, and delicious food. It's an escape from the crazyness of the world, it's comfort, and it's a blessing...and I want to remember that. So instead of being frustrated that I didn't cook it from scratch and then ordering something with a buttload of MSG (which bloats me) - I am about remembering the specialness and the sanctity of a delicous homecooked meal. That said, most of my meals are from scratch, because I am beginning to love the procedures of cooking again...

The feeling of chopping fresh veggies and roasting my meal in a clean kitchen - gives me a sense of peace, gratefulness, and simplicity...

Mike goes back to work tomorrow

2013-10-14T18:47:00.001-07:00

I sat in his arms and listened to his reflections - he asked me how I was feeling

My response: like when Michael Jackson died

What?!?

Yeah, like it's the end of an era. An era that you only get blessed to live one time. Like you know that it's gonna eventually happen - it's the nature of life...but boy I'm so sad to see it go.

All I can say is, "thank you, Jesus, for the past three months...they've been some of the best days of my life!"

From the final months of pregnancy (sitting by the pool) to the moment I kissed my son for the first time (and tasted the chocolate chocolate cake in the hospital) to waking up to my mom and talking all morning to Neik's first shots all the way to this moment - watching my hubby pack up for work tomorrow.

I thank God that I fully savored every delicious moment of this season and pray that I have the wisdom to enjoy the next phase.

Pancake deliciousness

2013-10-13T15:37:00.001-07:00

II love me some pancakes! Now, I'm not as awesome as Barb - she makes fresh from scratch pancakes every Saturday! Her flavors range from classic to Cinnabon pancakes. But when I have pancakes I, too, love them from scratch. Which is why when I found pumpkin pancake mix - with not an ounce of artificial ingredients - at Whole Foods I almost tripped over myself. It's absolutely delicious and so easy to make. For a mom on the move I can't ask for more.

Delicious Flavor combo!

2013-09-10T18:15:00.001-07:00

I'm loving fish right now! So, no surprise I drove my butt right to whole foods market and loaded up on fresh fish. This pasta is magnificent.

Quick recipe - please write me with any questions

Ingredients:

Pasta (your choice - I used fettuccine)

Salmon (smothered in olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper)

Spinach

Sundried tomatoes

Olives (for mine)

Olive oil

Steps:

1. Make pasta according to box

2. Bake salmon at 450 for 15 min. Until flaky and cooked completely

3. In pasta bowl - cook down spinach

4. Add sd tomatoes

5. Add noodles and flaked salmon

6. Add olive oil and season to taste

Serve with Riesling and feta cheese

Quick and Easy Pasta

2013-07-02T14:57:00.000-07:00

Literally amazing!

Ingredients:

google images

1 pound spicy Italian sausage ( I like organic chicken sausage)
3/4 pound pasta
Cherry tomatoes, to your liking
Banana Peppers, to your liking
Parmesan cheese, to your liking
Chicken Broth (optional) *
EVOO (optional) *

* You will need to make sure that you use butter, EVOO, oil, or broth on skillet - so nothing sticks.

Directions:

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and reserve.
In a large skillet, heat oil and sausage; cook through until no longer pink. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, add tomatoes and peppers to skillet. Add a little broth/EVOO - just enough to make sure that food is not sticking to pan.
If you add too much broth - cook over medium heat for 5 minutes to slightly reduce.
Add pasta to skillet and mix together. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Inspired by this recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sausage-pasta/

Loved this idea!!!

2013-05-06T10:17:00.003-07:00

My cousin, Ashley, is rushing home to make some delicious banana pudding. The idea inspired me to go on the web and find a quick recipe (I have an individual quick recipe on the blog :). All that to say, while think of quick treats - I thought about a cute idea I saw on Rachel Ray.

It was a woman talking about her no-bake treats. Well, I found her online (youtube.com) and wanted to share the cuteness and cool creativity with you!

Hope you enjoy as much as I did :)
SSS

Proud of Myself - incredible veggie broth

2013-03-24T14:24:00.003-07:00

"When you find yourself tasting your water, you are doing the most important thing you ever can as a cook: the only way to make anything you’re cooking taste good, whether it’s water or something more substantial, is to make sure all its parts taste good along the way. There are moments in cooking when common sense dictates not to taste—biting into a dirty beet or raw potato—but taste anything else from a few minutes after you start cooking it until it’s done. You don’t need to know what it’s supposed to taste like: what anything is supposed to taste like, at any point in its cooking, is good. This is as true for water as for other ingredients."

- Tamar Adler

So after an amazing market trip with Tasha :(, I came home to prepare my veggies, fruits, and grains. By prepare I mean: clean, chop, bag (for snacks), lightly sugar (fruit for yogurt parfait), kale chips (thanks Tasha - clean, chop, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and put in oven for 15 min at 350), roasted broccoli and cauliflower, cooked quinoa, and made my iced tea (pregnancy puts a little scrap on drinking options)....

This time, inspired by Tamar Adler's book, An Everlasting Meal, I made my first batch off vegetable stock with all the odd ends that usually get thrown away. One day, I'd like to use my scraps for compost, but now I know a great way to use them. I salted the water, added my veggies, and a bay leaf or two and tasted as I went... Amazing! Either I'm gonna make a little basic soup with it later in the week or use it to cook my rice in...not sure yet...but it's super yummy.

Veggie Broth:
A rendition of this vegetable stock recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/basic-vegetable-stock/

Directions

Chop scrubbed vegetables (vegetable scraps) into 1-inch chunks. Remember, the greater the surface area, the more quickly vegetables will yield their flavor.
Heat oil in a soup pot. Add (vegetable scraps - I didn't worry about amount) onion, celery, carrots, scallions, garlic, parsley, thyme, and bay leaves. Cook over high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add salt and water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Strain. Discard vegetables. (Taste often - until you become a pro and can use your nose and taste periodically at the end)
Other ingredients to consider: mushrooms, eggplant, asparagus (butt ends), corn cobs, fennel (stalks and trimmings), bell peppers, pea pods, chard (stems and leaves), celery root parings, marjoram (stems and leaves), basil, potato parings . . . Get the idea?

Something like my dream

2013-03-12T18:53:00.001-07:00

Thanks for sending, Tracie! This video is very close to my dream... wanted to share tonight :)

Healthy Food Rule.

2013-02-22T06:46:00.001-08:00

The most helpful tip - I could ever give - based on convos, reading galore, documentary-obsession, and NPR...

Make sure that all the food on your plate, if any, isn't beige. Your plate should look like the rainbow (I'm not talking ketchup, mustard, relish, and pink hotdog)...I'm saying most of the time - every color of the rainbow should be represented on your plate...

I would also go as far to say that the mouth feel or texture of the food should be diverse as well - a little creamy and crunchy.

Believe me - I am not the most healthy eater - although I am slowly but surely getting back on track.

But thought this was good word :) Enjoy your day!

Oh yeah and make sure that more than half your plate is as close to as raw (veggies/fruits) as possible. Some say half your plate should be green (yellow, red, blue, etc.)

Also, never forget the importance of whole grains!!! ANNNNNDDD.... even though Harvard left it off their eating plate - low-fat dairy (for me - soy, almond, and some yogurts (like greek) and cheeses). The good thing about the dairy is many times (yogurt and cheese) can double as protein and calcium....which is awesome for pregnancy!!!

Ready Made

2013-02-19T06:50:00.003-08:00

One of the many things my mother does well is pre-prepare all of her healthy delights.

I LOVE ALL THE COLORS.

She does a magnificent job - making sure that her fridge, freezer, and pantries are filled with ready-to-go fuel for the body.

What I mean by that is that cucumber is cut, celery is cleaned and cut, there is always a hand-washed colorful salad (both fruit and vegetable) in big bowls, and eggs are peeled and stored away.

Dinner veggies are cut and the meat may be in the slower cooker or steamer (not steamer, but i forget the name right now...) If it's the summer - meat is marinating for the grill

My grandmother is the same way and so is my girl, Teneza.

All this to say, there is never an excuse to not have a completely healthy meal... breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

For breakfast, it's nothing to have a big bowl of pre-made mango, blackberry, strawberry fruit along with a side of greek yogurt topped with granola, fiber 1, (my favorite adding almonds and honey).

Coffee was made the night before - so it's already piping hot...

Then throw your veggies, homemade turkey wrap, and snacks in your lunch pail.

Dinner (protein, possible carb, and veggies) saute in the skillet, toss the salad (romaine lettuce, yellow peppers, cucumber, celery, red pepper, carrots) with a delicious dressing, pour the drinks over a cup of ice.

Viola.

One thing that I am getting into is frozen veggies - I've been reading up and they are just as nutritious in their frozen natural (no sauce, cheese, or added salt/flavor) state as fresh veggies...

I am definitely trying to get the healthy fast tricks down in the next four months...

I hated food for three months.

2013-02-05T10:43:00.003-08:00

For the last three months – I could not think of food (in a good way). First time in my life – other than a terrible PMS moment or stomach virus or when I overeat – that I literally didn’t want food for a long period of time. Not only did I not want it – the idea of it – made me want to vomit. I am better now – been on the up and up for the past two weeks. I must say, me without the love of food, esp. drink and pastry – was terrible. I am soooo happy that phase is over! I feel so blessed that can (finally) smile when I look or think about a beautifully golden brown sugar cookie with a sweet pink polka-dot sugar icing. It feels good to be semi-back – I can’t lie all Italian food sounds yucky to me right now. But other than Italian – I am pretty stable in my appetite. For instance today, I have a tuna pasta and salad that I cannot wait to smash into.

The blessing of my state was that Mike is amazing and took great care of me and David. The curse of skill is that I feel like I’ve lost it in the kitchen – I definitely feel rusty. It’s bad when my nephew goes, “don’t worry Aunt Shelby, when Uncle Mike gets back he can make it.” Yikes. Anyways, I am slowly but surely getting it together – starting with Valentine’s day and desserts for a birthday party J Slowly….slowly…slowly…but surely.

My first project though are these breakfast cookies:

My mommy!

2012-10-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

Is amazing! She sent me this email - sooooo helpful!

Here are the facts: She's been in the fitness world for over 20 yrs, she is certified in (sooo many) fitness programs, she is still in amazing shape, very rarely sick, no major health issues, and always full of energy.

My dad seems to think she's pretty amazing, too :)

Shelby,

Thought this may help with buying groceries and eating healthy.

Renny,

I sent you a copy. Not everything applies to you, but you may find some of this useful too!

Breakfast & snack Items:

boiled egg- Protein

greek yogurt

fruit/apple/banana

fiber one bars

homemade-breakfast trail mix (almonds/raises/cranberries/frosted mini wheats)

Thomas light multi grain english muffin toasted with peanut butter or slice of cheese

WW smoked string cheese

Laughing Cow -Light Garlic & Herb flavor w/crackers or bagel thins

veggies (little bags of carrots to go)

Instant breakfast in your coffee (drink hot or add almond milk with ice cubes)

Whey Protein, instant breakfast with Almond milk

For Lunch when at school, Pack:

any of the above: cheese, apple, crackers, peanut butter, trail mix, yogurt

make turkey sandwich on English muffin or bagel thins.

pretzels and reduce fat Cheezit mixture in baggie (I love my string cheese or laughing cow with my pretzels)

Special K Protein Meal Bars

keep on hand for your house at all times:

Fresh lettuce for salads and sandwiches

frozen berries mixture: smoothies with instant breakfast, almond milk & whey protein

frozen veggies to use in a pinch if no fresh veggies on hand for dinner

Trader joes: frozen fried rice with shrimp or chicken, egg roles, steam chicken dumplings (all is low calorie)

Buy Hunts Speg. sauce: it's cheap and lowest in calories and best tasting!

Bake Potato's loaded with veggies and cheese

Make soups: they save well and can take for lunch! So healthy for you!

Use your slow cooker, fix at night and plug in before leaving in the morning! (Chicken breast with Seasonings/pour crm mushroom soup over it... and cook rice & veggies when you get home)

Apples/bananas/protein bars/ breakfast bars/bags of carrots/cheese sticks/boiled eggs/protein yogurt: These are all grab it and go "healthy" foods

La Croix Sparkling Water....better than pop and adds zest to water with no additives

My favorite blog...

2012-10-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

I can't say which is my favorite blog to write - my main blog is the easiest.

Coming to this blog reminds me of going to a
Brooklyn cafe on a Saturday...

My book blog is the one, where I feel the most accomplishment.

But this blog brings me the closest to my soul. I know that sounds funny - but when I am looking through this blog or publish something - it's like I enter a world peace, joy, and just...my home...I dunno....GESS, I WISH I WAS POETIC...I wish my words flowed like Patricia McCormick...but they don't.

All I can say is that I love this blog. I love being on it - I can't say that it's my favorite....but I absolutely love it....a whooooolllleee lot.

Really wish I updated in more though...

Oh wells, hopefully, I will get better.

Just my thoughts.

I love this prelude to a recipe...

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My food writing instructor introduced it to the class and I love it...

The simplicity of this prelude literally makes me want to throw a potato in the oven and enjoy. No fiddling - no messing with it. It reminds you of the earth's delicacies and the enjoyability of God's bounty... descriptions like this make me smile and ponder the winsomeness of freckles...

Nigel Slater, Baked Potatoes with Rillettes and Rosemary in The Guardian:

I give any baked potato a good hour. It gets a hot blast at 200C and rarely is the skin less than crisp. The only ones that don't seem to work are those that are fiddled with. By which I mean those occasions when I've been tempted by suggestions to bake them in foil, pierce all over with a fork or cook on a fancy trivet. The ones that leave the oven with a fine, crackling crust and a cloudlike, fluffy interior are generally those that have had the least done to them. A scrub, a piercing or two with the tines of a fork and a good salting all over is all the attention they get.

Shelby's Menu

Best Chocolate Cake Ever.

The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe {Ever}

Ingredients

Instructions

For the chocolate cake:

Notes

mint ice-cream

INGREDIENTS

METHODSHOW PHOTOS

Brioche

Instructions:

DAY ONE

Making the dough

DAY TWO

Shaping and baking the bread

Shaping the loaves

Nantaise brioche loaf

Proofing the bread before baking

Air Fryer Broccoli

10 Minute Crispy Air Fryer Broccoli

Instructions

love

If I made - cookies that were just

Day #1 My lifestyle change

Day #2: So proud of myself

Cooking with wine

Cupcake Thursday

I'm a little crockpot - short and stout...

Food Philosophy

Mike goes back to work tomorrow

Pancake deliciousness

Delicious Flavor combo!

Quick and Easy Pasta

Ingredients:

Directions:

Loved this idea!!!

Proud of Myself - incredible veggie broth

Directions

Something like my dream

Healthy Food Rule.

Ready Made

I hated food for three months.

My mommy!

My favorite blog...

I love this prelude to a recipe...