At last, I’ve been feeling more adventurous in the kitchen. I’m getting more curious about making my own staples that I like to keep around the house, with more simple and healthy ingredients. Staples like protein bars, veggie burgers – who knows what’s next? Here are 3 healthy loves from my week:
Homemade protein bars
Protein bars are a weird vice of mine. I just crave them for some reason. But I’ve been trying to steer clear of the ones with ingredients like sucralose and aspartame; I’m not a fan of putting artificial sweeteners in my body. Then a friend of mine posted her oven-free birthday cake protein bar recipe on Instagram and I loved how (a) it was gorgeous and (b) the ingredients were really simple and quite healthy: chickpeas, protein powder, a ton of peanut butter, maple syrup, almond flour, vanilla extract. I skipped the sprinkles because I don’t have any, used chocolate protein powder and added a bit of monk fruit sweetener for added sweetness. I’ve been keeping them in the freezer so they look and taste frosty – almost like a peanut butter ice cream bar. I’ll definitely make them again, and I might add more protein powder and chickpeas with less nut butter for a lighter version.
Homemade veggie burgers
Somehow it’s taken me 30 years to understand that there’s really no better binding agent for veggie burgers than two eggs. I’ve always had trouble keeping vegan burgers together, and honestly the best fix for me has been to avoid the vegan part (usually flaxseed and water). I revisited my Oh She Glows Cookbook and made the “our favorite veggie burger” recipe. Mostly lots of herbs and beans and seasoning. Using two eggs instead of the flaxseed for binding really helped get the burgers crispy on the skillet, which is the ideal texture. I made them in the middle of the day, too, and just stuck them in the fridge for when it was time to heat them up.
30-Pound kettlebell
As a treat to myself on Friday afternoon, I went to Target while my husband was doing a photography shoot at our house. To get out of his way, but mostly to spend a couple of hours browsing home decor and summer shorts, as well as stock up on a few necessities like contact solution and underwear. I haven’t been to Target since the pandemic started, so I was thrilled. The best part: I haven’t been able to find a 30-pound kettlebell since I started getting into weights during this stay-home period, since inventory online and in-stores (and on Facebook Marketplace) is so out of wack. But there, in the fitness aisle, was a shiny blue kettlebell weighing 30 pounds. Just one. I was overjoyed and I snatched it. It was $70, but all of my research tells me you can expect to pay about $2 per pound with weights, and I’ve been seeing much higher prices than that online. I started using the weight this weekend and it’s been such a good addition to my strength-building practice.
Reminder: You can’t put a price tag on what makes you feel good.
