Tofu Scramble: 21 Day Fix Approved

You absolutely.. without a doubt.. HAVE to make this Tofu Scramble. I don't care if you're following the 21 Day Fix or not. I don't care if you're vegan/vegetarian or not. I don't care if you hate tofu. You're trying this recipe.

Step 1 Collect the ingredients.

+ Firm Tofu (non-GMO)

+ Red Bell Pepper

+ Garlic

+ Red Onion

+ Spinach

+ Nutritional Yeast

+ Turmeric

+ Garlic Salt

+ Vegetable Broth

+ Bragg's Liquid Aminos

Step 2 Start your engines*

Note *This step is optional

Step 3 Chop up one clove of garlic

Chopping up garlic just HAS to be the most fun. I love smashing it with the knife, and then peeling off it's skin. WHOA. That sounded way creepier than I intended it to... anywho.. you know you love it too. Don't lie.  Chop it into small pieces while your pan is heating on low/medium heat. 

Step 3 Time to get acquainted with Mr. Onion

Ain't he a beaut?!

Chop the onion up so that it will fill about 1/2 of your green container.

Then, spray your pan with coconut oil cooking spray.. 

Now it's time to marry the onions and the garlic together on low/medium heat. Don't be like me and throw them in on medium/high heat. The garlic will start to burn and you'll have to start over. Oops.. Wasn't me. Lets just say I have experience in setting off my smoke detector.. but it's okay. I promise you it will all work out just fine.

Step 4 Get your trusty, low-sodium veggie broth out and put a little-teeny-tiny-splash of broth in with the garlic and onion to help them along.

Keep stirring the garlic and onion around so it doesn't stick to the pan. Again.. you learn things in the kitchen. Things you can't seem to forget.

Step 5 Gather the nutritional yeast, garlic salt, and turmeric together

So.. now you're going to put 3 TBS nutritional yeast, 1 tsp turmeric, 2 pinches of garlic salt, and 3 TBS water into your magic bullet or blender... and blend that puppy up until it's mixed thoroughly.

Yep.. I really did just say that.. Yellow, the color of.. egg yolks, folks.

Moving along.

Step 6 Get your tofu ready..

Cut it into a nice little square so that it measures out to be 1 red container.

THEN -- this step is pretty important.. but of course I didn't take a picture of it, so I hope you're still reading along..

Sandwich the tofu between two paper towels and squish the tofu down as much as you can to get all the water out of it. When using firm tofu, it's nice because it has less water content, but you still need to squish the water out of it. Repeat this process if necessary. 

Now comes the fun part.

Step 7 Crumble the tofu into the pan so it looks like scrambled eggs.

Yes.. I AM aware of how un-appetizing this looks at this very moment in time, but have faith. I promise you I'll deliver..

Results that is.

Not the actual tofu scramble to your doorstep.

That might be kind of difficult.

Really awesome.

But really difficult.

Step 8 Add the spinach and your red bell pepper at the very end of the cooking process

Add these two ingredients at the end so they maintain most of their nutrients. The longer you cook vegetables, the more it depletes their nutrients. 

The spinach and the bell pepper combined should measure out to one-half of a green container.

Step 9 Put it in a bowl.. or plate.. whichever you prefer

Once the spinach is wilted a bit, it's time to plate your food up. Or in my case, bowl it up. 

Step 10 Top with some liquid aminos (Bragg's or Coconut Aminos are my go-tos!)

Bam! You're all done! Eat up and enjoy :) I know you will!

Ingredients/Measurements:

+ Firm Tofu (non-GMO) - cut one "brick" of tofu to measure out to 1 Red Container

+ Red Bell Pepper - 1/4 Green Container

+ Garlic - 1 Clove

+ Red Onion - 1/2 Green Container

+ Spinach - 1/4 Green Container

+ Nutritional Yeast - 3 TBS

+ Water - 3 TBS

+ Turmeric - 1 tsp

+ Garlic Salt - 2 Pinches

+ Vegetable Broth - 1 Splash

+ Bragg's Liquid Aminos (or coconut aminos) - 1 TBS (to your liking)

Let me know if you have any questions! 

Stay tuned for one more week of the 21 Day Fix. 

xoxo 

P.

OMG Pancakes..

If only you knew my real life obsession with pancakes.
Like... If I could marry pancakes I would.

Something about the fluffiness, and the maple syrup makes my heart smile. I could literally eat pancakes 5 times a day and never get tired of them.

You'd have to roll me home, but it's cool.

Turk just gets me..

I also have an unhealthy obsession with finding healthy pancake recipes that live up to my standards.. this is one of the BEST pancakes I've ever made and I'm super proud.

I also invented a sunflower seed pancake yesterday, but that will have to wait until I perfect it. That one has potential though, man.

So I found this recipe online HERE..

And then I proceeded to tweak it so it was even BETTER.. See my updated recipe below :)

I can hardly contain my excitement at this point.

 

Come to me my pretties...

OMG.. Please look at that glorious pancake stack. #madpancakeskillz

and yes.. this syrup is probably made with god knows what.. but the ingredients don't look THAT bad, and calorie free means I can bathe in maple syrup without having to have you roll me home. So it's a win win situation. You're welcome.

My Recipe

(Adapted from Fountain Avenue's)

Serves One.. Or maybe that's just me.

• 3 egg whites
• 1 egg 
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 1/4 cup sprouted oat flour
• 1.5 scoops protein powder (I used Quest's all-purpose protein pow)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• helluvalotta cinnamon... just dump it in

Smother that sucker in Walden's Pancake Syrup and tell me I'm pretty..

Optional: Top with greek yogurt, berries of your choice, and a sprinkle of stevia if you're feelin extra sassy.

Happy Hump Day!

xoxo

P.

21 Day Fix: meal prep your way to success

A little back story on why I chose to start the 21 Day Fix:

I have watched Autumn's infomercial for a little over a year now, and every-time I saw her pop up on my TV - for some reason, I just couldn't make myself change the channel. Mesmerized by her abs and liveliness. I wanted that.

Fitness and Nutrition is something that I am very passionate about, and for some odd reason, 21 Day Fix seemed like a fun way to track my food intake MORE accurately.

For the past few years, I've literally tried everything to shed these last few pounds of weight that haven't left my sides (literally) since my senior year of high school. Frustrated and worn down I wanted something new to try and I'm hoping it works.

My life has been full of counting calories, weighing food, counting macros, and everything else in between. I work out constantly and obsessively and still see little results -- which is why I started to realize that my nutrition must be the one that's off.

I was eating extremely healthy -- but technically, eating too many calories, even if it's 2000 calories of apples -- will still make it hard for your workouts to counteract those extra calories. 

Which is why 21 Day Fix will be a fun challenge to help me watch my food intake and get shredded while I'm at it :)

I just love this quote, "Nothing Changes if Nothing Changes." It's SO incredibly true.

I started the 21 Day Fix a week ago, and although I have only lost a mere 1/2 pound, I can truly say it has changed my entire mindset when it comes to HOW much I've been eating, and HOW much I was eating things out of balance (too much fat/carbs & not enough protein).

--- 

Here are the containers you get -- One Green (veggies), One Purple (Fruits), One Red (Protein), One Yellow (Carbohydrates), One Blue (Healthy Fats/Nuts), Two Orange (Dressings/Seeds)

photo via: eatingbirdfood.com

The best way to be successful while using this program is to meal prep. Let me break down what a week's worth of meal prep looks like for me.

I do this on Sundays, and although it takes a big chunk out of my day, it's better than stuffing my face when I don't feel like cooking.

On that note, let's get started! 

Breakfast

One Purple -- One Yellow -- One Red

For breakfast I have one yellow container of rolled oats, one purple container filled with a banana, and one red container filled with greek yogurt -- then I top it all with cinnamon and a little stevia. Perfect! Now I'm fueled up and ready to take on my day. 

Snacks

I really enjoy eating a little blue container of nuts/seed mix while I'm at work. I buy this trail mix in bulk to save money and the hassle of mixing your own nuts and raisins and seeds together is well worth it.

I also like to pack one purple container of berries to take with me - I pre-portion them out into little snack bags so they are easy to grab and go.

Sweet potatoes are my jam! Slice and dice them how ever your little heart desires.. and then..

Season them generously with cinnamon... and I mean generously.. my mouth is watering just thinking about the smell of warm sweet potatoes and cinnamon roasting in the oven.

How good do these look? I told you I'm not crazy.. well maybe just a little bit, but they're so good you'll thank me later. Promise.

Remember when you were a little kid, on your way home from school, and you'd think about eating a jar of peanut butter and some oreos? No? You're joking right... maybe that WAS just me but - regardless - 2 tsps of Peanut Butter and 1.5 Scoops of protein powder shaken up with unsweetened coconut milk (or water and ice) make a pretty close second.. or third.. okay maybe forth. But you still get some peanut butter. So I wouldn't be complaining.

Lunch

Lunch is an easy concoction of one green container kale/spinach mix, and one green container romaine lettuce.. yep, that's two greens. One container of dressing of your choosing (orange container) -- Mine happens to be this one. YUM -- Panera Bread Dressing: 30 Calories per serving. Not too bad ingredient-wise either.

Now it's time to prepare that chicken..

I buy the frozen Chicken Tenders from good 'ol Trader Joe's -- Then I set them on a baking sheet covered with foil, and season them generously. It's my favorite thing to do. SEASON ALL THE THINGS.

Spice up your life! and your chicken. I especially love Mrs. Dash seasoning because it has no salt. Woohoo! 

Next up -- You're going to cover said-chicken with low sodium vegetable broth. Not about that salt-life. Bloating is nobodies friend. Nope. 

Pour a little veggie broth over the chicken and pop it in the oven.

  

Bake chicken at 350° F and then, once it's finished cooling down a little, cut it into little chunks and portion it out into your handy-dandy snack bags. Then pop them in the fridge.. because salmonella is also not your friend.

Dinner

Are you ready for this one? It's the fanciest meal out of all of these. Don't believe me? Look.

BAM!

I portioned out some chicken for dinner (one red) and then I measure out one serving of veggies after I've steamed these puppies in the micro for about 6 mins. #wifeme. For the leftover veggies, I save the next few servings for the rest of the week. Fresher is always better when it comes to veggies, so I wait to cook this until I need to. 

Grand total = 3 Greens, 2 Purple, 4 Reds, 2 Yellow, 1 Blue, 1 Orange, & 2 tsps. 

Everyone's amounts may be a little bit different depending on what calorie bracket you are in, and what your goals are.

Hopefully that helps a little bit!

Leave your comments and questions below & follow along as I continue with this program.

xoxo

P.

Where have I been?

You might be asking yourself where I've been and what I've been up to lately. 

Well friends, hectic is a word I'd like to use to describe the past few months of my life. Work has been so incredibly stressful and I can't wait until the end of February when things will slow down a little for me. 

Do you ever get that feeling that you're just surviving and trying to get through the week so you can enjoy the weekend? That's been my life lately.. and because of that, I decided it was time to start a new hobby and find something new I was passionate about.

SO... I present to you MY NEW STORE! I launched my Etsy site finally: GO LOOK>>> sparklepaige.etsy.com

 I could not be more excited in my entire life. Owning my own business has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. When I was younger, I would sketch out store layouts of what my boutique would look like one day, and I would spend hours dreaming up names for my store and searching real estate sites for the best store locations. I kid you not.. I was 12 when I decided a boutique was my absolute dream.

I guess I should have known that going into college I would end up doing something fashion/clothes/business related ... Instead my path has been less than perfect, but that's okay. That's part of the journey.

I still have big dreams to open up a brick and mortar shop one day, but for right now my little etsy shop shall do just dandy.

Yesterday, I went to the thrift store and found soooo many cool treasures! I found lots of cool records, and I searched the bookshelves for hours for hard bound covers that had the best colors. 

I also scored some vintage bed sheets that I'd been eyeballing for two weeks - so I finally caved.

Thrift stores are my absolute weakness. I could find a use for every single item I pick up, I swear. 

Last week I found a cake ball maker. Did I need it? NO. Did I want it? Absolutely. So guess who has a new/old cake ball maker? You're looking at her!  4.99? Damn. What. A. Steal. 

Is that a giraffe, an elephant and some Kerr jars?? WTH. Don't ask.

Anywhooo... 

The rest of this weekend, I started organizing the rest of my things and started sorting through all my craft supplies that have slowly been accumulating. Old lady much? It's becoming a problem.

I'm a bit of a craft supplies hoarder.

You know that kid that was always stoked to get a brand new box of Crayola crayons and a fresh new watercolor palette and some funky erasers... you know that kid? That's me. Still to this day. If someone just wanted to make my day, they could buy me some brand new notebooks, some colored pencils.. any kind of Back to School necessity and I would be on Cloud nine. I've always been attached to art supplies and office supplies. I covet them. 

Needless to say.. I have a million new acrylic paints, pencils, watercolors etc. It's like a mid-life crisis where you revert back to your elementary school self with your Lisa Frank peachies. That's my life. Hmm.. I wonder if Ebay has any Lisa Frank??? BRB.

Anyways. I hope your weekend has been as old school as mine has been. I'm quite enjoying it actually.

Now I'm off to do some laundry and all the chores I dreaded as a kid that are now a necessity as an adult unfortunately. Bummer. 

xoxox

Sparkle Paige.

Pretty please go look at my store!! It's brand spankin new and I love my cute little headbands.

Also.. follow my shenanigans on instagram: instagram.com/sparklepaige

Leave a comment on one of my pics saying you read my bloggity blog blog. 

LOVE YOU GUYS.

Thank God for Google and a Screwdriver

Let me just paint a picture of perfection for you…

The washers and dryers in my apartment complex are the devil. I’m not even kidding.

You can put something in and hit cold water, and it comes out the size of American Girl Doll Clothing.. Kirsten style. She was always my favorite.

Anyways that’s just the start of it. If clothes can shrink on delicate in the washer.. even after surviving freshman year in the dorm's washers and dryers -- then there is something massively wrong with the world.

Don’t even get me started on the dryers that are so hot, your sheets come out smelling like singed hair and wet dog. No, I’m not joking. I only wish that I was.

So needless to say, I have to use my bathtub to do a lot of my delicate laundry, and this turns into quite the feat when you have as many clothes as I do.

Anyways.. As I’m soaking my sweaters, I realize that the water keeps looking a little low. I shrug it off and go about doing my other chores around my apartment. I go back into the bathroom and all the water has drained out of the tub without my knowledge. I fill it back up, and do another small load. Again it empties. Ughhh fine I’ll just put some Saran wrap over the drain, that’ll do the trick. It held for a little, but continued to drain. 

What the bleep is wrong with you - devil bathtub?

Being an engineer's daughter, I must find out what is causing this problem. I get out my screwdriver and unscrew the drain-trapper-thingy. Oh for the love of.. EWWW.. hair and conditioner that’s aged for centuries and turned into putrid slime covers the screw. Bleck. Bleck. Bleck.

I wash it all off and pour some Drano down the drain for good measure..

Then comes the googling. “Why is my tub draining even when it shouldn’t be??”

Ahh haw! It must be the linkages inside the wall.. so now I have to unscrew the other part of the bathtub. Okay I can do that... I now sound like a plumber. Thank you Google. 

So I get my screwdriver ready, and begin to lean under my clothes that are hang-drying, and dripping water.. when I say DRIPPING water, I mean giant globules of H2O. Not miniscule raindrops. Fricken monsoon.

Hmm.. Good thing I live in Oregon. I go and get my rain jacket and put it on. Kneeling down in the tub, with my rain jacket on, my hood up, and screwdriver in hand, I realize at this very moment that there is a reason I am single.

I’m just so damn handy, I don’t need no man. All kidding aside, I retreat to unscrewing the lever like it’s my job.

I pry the plate off, pull the linkages up, and the weight is still attached. Great. Nothing is wrong. Why the bleep did I take this apart in the first place? 

Maybe because a nice long bubble bath would be nice every once in awhile you know?

But let me tell you… the metal was brown and blue and the smell coming from the depths below was straight up putrid, my friend.

Nothing was wrong. Nothing. So now I have to screw the stupid thing back on and wash my hands of conditioner slime and old disgusting hair that's probably not even mine. I shiver to think.

There really is no moral to this story. Nothing learned - except that I have too much time on my hands and maybe a little ADD.

At least it’s perfect training for when I own my own home some day.. maybe.

Anyways.

Hope your weekend was better than mine.

I have another horrible date update in the works. Not as bad as the first date I shared, but just as awkward.

x o x o

P.

20 Things I love about Fall

{CLICK ME & HIT PLAY & THEN READ ON}

Can I just say that I have a slight obsession with fall? I kind of forget how much I love it until I'm knee deep in pumpkin spice and don't know what day it is anymore.

Fall candles, chunky scarves, and killer boots are just the beginning of my obsession.

Here's my list of fall favorites:

1. Crunchy Leaves

2. Hocus Pocus & Practical Magic on repeat all fall

3. Pumpkin/ Fall smelling candles

4. Chunky Scarves

5. Boots!

6. Perfect weather to run in

7. Coffee and warm drinks in general are the shiz

8. Pumpkin Patches

9. Pumpkin Seeds

10. Pumpkins.. and glitter. What a great combo

11. Orange and red and autumn colors in general

12. Not feeling lame staying in, drinking tea, and watching Halloweentown.. Sorry not sorry.

13. Listening to Thriller... and then deciding to watch 13 Going on 30 because that movie is so great!

14. Googling sexy Disney Costumes.. Again, #noshame #yolo

15. Deciding that sexy is a really stupid word.. Eeeeesh

16. Monster Mash... Don't lie. You just starting humming along to that song.. It's okay. Me too. 

17. Deciding soggy leaves on the sidewalk are nast.. Like real nast.

18. Mmm.. Soup! Soup is so dang good

19. Good Books & Fireplaces to read by

20. Perfect Blogging weather

Did I mention I also really love putting together killer fall outfits? Whoa.. that was a weird segue. Don't mind my ADD. Fall does that to me.

Anyways.. My friends and I went to the Pumpkin Patch on Saturday and it was quite humorous. I grew up in the country so it's always funny seeing loads of people trekking out into the middle of nowhere to experience the open spaces and the simple peacefulness that it brings. 

The humor comes in the fact that all of my friends unknowingly wore flannel.. without planning it, we all were decked out in plaid and looking very fall-esque. 

We get to the pumpkin patch and my friends and I are wandering around looking for our soul-mate pumpkins. Yup, I made that up. Isn't it true though? You wait for the perfect Punkin to call out your name -- "Paige, Pick meeee!" -- The ones that really call out to us.. Don't lie. You do it too. 

Meanwhile, one of my friends picks up her pumpkin and begins to say, "I just took a selfie with my Pumpkin you guys!" Hahaa we all bust up laughing. Thanks Snap-Chat and technology for taking pumpkin patches to the next level.

These crazy looking pumpkins have little muffin-tops. They made me giggle. 

Meanwhile, my friends are collecting mini-pumpkins like it's the last day of Nordstrom's Anniversary sale. Just one more. Just one more. Their boyfriends just roll their eyes, nod and smile obediently. 

After the patch.. Doesn't that sound so bad-ass? Meet me at the patch!      .. No? Okay.. Cool.

After that little adventure.. we had dinner and drinks at McMens (McMennamins for all those unfamiliar). The food was delish as always. I had their cajun tots (to die for.. literally) and a caesar salad. SO good. 

We all talked about our favorite Halloween movies and joked about how they show Harry Potter during Halloween and During Christmas time too.. all because of one snowy scene. Happy Christmas, Arry! 

anddddd SEGUE. 

Also.. My Mom came to visit on Sunday. So naturally we end up at Target. 

And sometimes things get real weird. It's okay. I know this beard compliments my outfit. You don't have to tell me.

Also, because I couldn't get enough of Pumpkin Patches obviously... I told you I'm straight up OBSESSED. I dragged my mom, willingly I might add, to Roloff Farms because it's close enough we just had to go. 

Anywho.. As we were leaving, Matt Roloff whizzes by us on his little golf cart/ gator thingy and he asks us if we are finding parking okay. He talked to us! My Mom like fan-girled for a second, smiled real big and said "YAH we're good! Thanks!!" 

It was actually pretty awesome.. My Dad and I are slightly in love with the show Little People Big World. I immediately shoot my Dad a text with this image and he texts me back "Get his autograph!!" oops.. sorry Dad. A little too late. 

Needless to say, their property is gorgeous, and I fell in love with the barn that Matt Roloff's older son got married in.

Okay.. I suppose that's enough fall obsession for one day.

Let me know in the comments below your Fall Favorites!

XOXO

P.