Alleluia Is Our Song

Faith, Beauty, Lifestyle, Music, #momlife

Bianca’s Banana Berry Waffles (Egg Free!)

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I’m not gonna go on and on explaining how much this recipe has converted even the pickiest eaters in our household, or how it’s egg-free (with 2 options to make it so!) and yet still perfectly crispy at the edges. I won’t wax poetic on the healthy attributes of this waffle with a half ratio of whole wheat which makes it a perfectly acceptable and balanced breakfast (in my humble opinion). I won’t even begin to mention the heavenly and non-negotiable finishing touches of extra [salted] butter and powdered sugar on top that further take this recipe into comfort-food-level perfection. No, I won’t go into those details today because I know you, dear readers, are purely interested in the recipe – that I’ve perfected after testing and tweaking until it met and fulfilled my family’s every requirement in a breakfast waffle. Just know that this recipe holds in it all hopes and dreams for a great start to your day and I share it with you happily; which is the next best thing to my being able to visit you in your own home, your own kitchen, and being able to make these for you piping hot – with maybe a creamy hot cup of coffee to go with it. <3

Bianca’s Banana Berry Waffles

Dry Ingredients:

  • 2 Cups Flour ( 1 cup white all-purpose + 1 cup spelt/ white whole wheat/ regular whole wheat/ or more all-purpose)
  • 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
  • 2 Tablespoons white sugar + 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons egg replacer *or* corn starch
  • 1 Tablespoon flaxseed meal (can omit if you don’t have any)

Wet Ingredients:

  • 1-2 ripe bananas (I like using 2)
  • 6 Tablespoons melted salted butter
  • 1 & 1/2 Cup milk of choice (I just use 1% lactaid)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 Cup of mixed berries (Any will do!)

*Optional mix-ins:*

  • 1/2 Cup of plain yogurt – you can add this in addition to or even sub for one of the bananas!
  • 1/2 to 1 Cup almond flour (adds extra protein and you can’t even taste it!)

Method:

  1. Add dry ingredients to a mixing bowl and whisk well. Set aside.
  2. Blend all wet ingredients EXCEPT berries.
  3. Add wet blended ingredients into the dry and whisk, being careful not to overmix.
  4. Fold in the mixed berries. I usually use frozen but any type of berries frozen or fresh will work!
  5. Spoon batter 1/4 cup or so at a time onto the middle of your waffle iron (I use and love our Cuisinart Round iron). Experiment with the setting you love most – for me its about a 2 to 2 & 1/2 so its a little crispy and browned but not too brown, you know? 😉
  6. Butter waffles immediately and dust with powdered sugar for the ultimate treat.
  7. Enjoy!!

Let me know if you try these! Or tag me on IG @alleluiaisoursongblog so I can see and share! <3

Have a beautiful weekend, friends.

Love,

Nearer to me…

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As I gear up to have our newest little one, I’m taking the above quote with me in my heart. <3

Also, I thought it’d be fun to share a few things going on around here as we wait (any day now!) for baby to make his appearance, so here’s a bloggy photo collage of some highlights from the last few months…

My sister + family threw me a Baby Sprinkle and my mother-in-law organized a beautiful virtual Baby Shower and I was so beyond touched. <3

When it’s your 6th time around, you get lots of comments about how basically you’ve got it all figured out, even though you really don’t. 🙂 So it was truly special to feel that this baby is wanted and loved not just by us, but by others as well, and to be celebrated a little for bringing another little soul into the world. <3

My sister did a beautiful job organizing, setting up decorations at my parents’ house, and making cupcakes with her 3 month-old in tow! We skyped my other sis and had a delicious meal too. Perfect day. <3
Homemade cookies and delicious tea my Mother-in-law sent to be enjoyed during the virtual Baby Shower. Isn’t that the sweetest idea?? So yummy too!! <3

Also inspired by these celebrations and using the adorable confetti hearts my sis used, I created a little “Gender Reveal” mani using dip powders in honor of my little guy. <3

My work station 🙂

I’ve also been packing and adding to my hospital bag! If you’re interested in what I packed last time for my daughter (who’s now 2!!), here’s that in-depth post. This time around I’ve added a few things even though our hospital is thankfully only about 7 minutes away. These snacks are some of the things I was most excited about packing, c/o our friendly neighborhood Trader Joe’s! Truth be told I had to buy some extras because they were too good to wait on. 😀

Also been staying hydrated as much as possible because as my luck would have it, I’m always super duper pregnant in the absolute summer, ha! I’ve recently discovered this strawberry -flavored “Liquid IV” electrolyte powder for my ice water that my sis recommended and I feel like it’s really helping. Also been enjoying Starbucks iced “subtly sweet” medium-roast coffee (I buy mine at Target) and of course lots of homemade iced Matcha drinks.

Iced oatmilk strawberry matcha latte
Starbucks is bae 😉

The last few months we’ve also celebrated tons of b-days, Matt’s and my 10 year Anniversary, and I’ve gone on maternity leave starting at 32 weeks – which was just in time for me and this tired mama body.

Last day at work, #32 weeks. Behind that smile is a very exhausted, out of breath, and less mobile mama. That’s what happens when you’ve done it 5 times already, haha <3

That’s just a little summary of the high points we’ve had these last few months. Of course there have been plenty of rough moments and challenges. We even got covid in June for the first time and as you can imagine it was a wild ride for all of us to be down at the same time. But thanks be to God we seem to have fully recovered well! The hard times are inevitable, but I love being able to share the good times too and recognize/appreciate them. Family life is such a mix of struggles, love, high’s and low’s! I’ll take all of it though. <3

So I’m sitting here with plenty of aches & pains while I experience my typical 37 week prodromal symptoms. I’m currently surrounded by my husband and kids who are scurrying around to get the house further organized so I can feel comfy enough to bring my baby home. <3

Occasionally I get a burst of frantic energy and feel the need to do some nesting, but that’s slowing down, so I’m fully expecting this little guy to come soon (although it’s up to him, right??). Thanks for reading along, friends! I’ll leave this last picture here – it’s my official “last mani” I think, before baby comes. Just a nice neutral transition from Summer to Fall to keep me feeling together while I wait! Dipping my nails has been a fun and distracting artistic hobby that I’ve definitely enjoyed during this time!

See you on the other side, friends! Comment and let me know how you’re doing!! I love hearing from you. <3

Love,

Strawberry Season: A Paleo-Friendly Mug Cake and an Easy Recipe for Strawberry Shortcake

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Hello Friends!

Today is all about the Baker’s Dilemma. Do you ever spend time researching recipes that look so delectable and satisfy your every craving, only to realize that time and energy (and maybe even ingredients) aren’t on your side? I’ve been craving strawberry shortcake for a while now but wasn’t able to get ahold of all the ingredients to make a formal version until my 2-year old daughter’s birthday weekend. She had been requesting “Strawberry Pie” so I knew I’d make it soon (stay tuned to the end of this blog post where I share how I made that!), but my pregnancy cravings rushed me to make something I could get ahold of sooner.

Enter this Paleo-friendly healthy vanilla mug cake that can be topped with fresh strawberries and totally makes a good quick snack AND satisfies a sweet tooth at the same time. It’s made with almond flour and is completely gluten free. If you want it to be Paleo, just sub the butter with some ghee and you’re all set! Here’s the recipe:

Easy 6-Ingredient Paleo-Friendly GF Vanilla Mug Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 Cup Almond Flour (I get mine from Costco!)
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup (scant if you like less sweet)
  • 1 teaspoon melted butter (or ghee for Paleo)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • *Optional whipped cream/powdered sugar/diced fresh strawberries for topping

Method:

  1. In a small bowl mix wet ingredients first, then add dry ingredients.
  2. Whisk until no lumps show, then spray a ramekin or mug with cooking oil (I like using avocado oil) and transfer batter to ramekin.
  3. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Cake will rise and is done when top is firm to the touch.
  4. Let sit to cool and finish firming up inside (cake will be very hot) – about 5 minutes.
  5. Top with desired toppings and serve/eat right away.
  6. Enjoy!

EASIEST Strawberry Shortcake:

And now, I’m going to share the recipe for this Strawberry Shortcake that I just made for my little one’s 2-year old Birthday. It’s so easy and quick, and I used Sally’s Baking Addiction’s Shortbread Crust from her amazing Lemon Bars as the base. This is a very informal recipe and I didn’t measure ingredients for the fluffy fresh whipped cream and the strawberry mixture I made, but it’s very forgiving and you can tweak amounts based on taste and desired sweetness. The best part is there’s no weird ingredients or stabilizers other than corn starch, so chances are you have everything you need to make it already in your pantry!

Made 2 of course because #bigfamilyproblems 😀

Strawberry Shortcake

(Filling makes 1 so double up on ingredients if you need 2 like us!):

Ingredients for Filling:

  • 2 lbs Fresh Strawberries, washed and sliced
  • sugar to taste
  • corn starch
  • 1 quart whipping cream
  • vanilla extract

Ingredients for Shortbread Crust, from Sally’s Baking Addiction’s lemon bar recipe:

  • 1 Cup Melted Butter (I use salted)
  • 1/2 Cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt (I use pink Himalayan sea salt)
  • 2 Cups + 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour (also works wonderfully with all-purpose gluten free flour!)

Method:

  1. To make the Strawberry Filling, mix sugar to taste (starting with about 1/4 cup sugar) and 1 Tablespoon at a time of corn starch with your sliced strawberries in a large bowl (I used at least 2 Tablespoons corn starch and at least 1/4 Cup sugar, but feel free to play around with this consistency as you stir the strawberries and the mixture comes together.)
  2. Set Strawberry mixture in the fridge to chill.
  3. Make shortbread crust according to Sally’s directions. Depending on how thin you make it (I baked it in a cookie sheet), you might have extra so feel free to halve it or just use half once it’s out. Just remember you’ll want some extra for crumbling on top.
  4. Once shortbread is done, cool completely before using.
  5. While shortbread is cooling, make your whipped cream in a stand mixer by pouring in your heavy whipping cream (I made a lot because fresh whipped cream is popular here – you can use the whole quart or even more!) and mixing on high, slowly adding some sugar and a few drops of vanilla extract to taste. You don’t need it to be too sweet!
  6. Assemble your Strawberry Shortcake: I used a round pan and fit pieces of crust into it (I could have definitely baked the crust in the pans too but #mombrain took over and I didn’t think of it :D) but you could make it as a square OR even little individual ones by cutting the cooled crust with cookie cutters (we’ve done that too!). I layered it as follows: crust, thin layer of whipped cream, strawberry mix, more whipped cream, and garnished with crumbled crust, some extra sliced strawberries, and a dollop of whipped cream on the very top.

Enjoy! And let me know if you try either of these! <3

Love,

Gluten-Free Butter Pancake Muffins

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Good morning Friends!

Wow I hadn’t realized how long It’s been since I stop by for a blog-chat! How’ve you been?? I’m officially on Maternity Leave (baby #6!) and I must be feeling the relief because here I am finally posting again. 😀

And I come with a little gift for being away so long – this buttery irresistible breakfast muffin recipe!

I came across a recipe the other day for Vegan Butter and Salt Muffins by Upbeat and Kaleing It. I was intrigued by the name and flavor profile, so me being me, I worked on it and changed/ adapted it to our family’s non-vegan needs. One of those changes was to substitute brown sugar instead of the maple syrup because as much as I loove maple syrup, it gets pricey when you make big batches of muffins for a big family – plus I upped the sweetness a bit which in my opinion really enhanced and brought out the flavor. I also highly suggest adding extra butter to these already very buttery muffins and serving warm because they’re amazing that way!

These were very popular so my recipe makes 2 batches – you can even save some batter for pancakes the next day if you like! They make very fluffy pancakes since the batter is thicker than regular pancake batters, but you can add a little extra milk or even a bit of canola oil to thin it out slightly (but not too much!). As muffins it should be noted that the inside texture of these is delicate, soft and almost gooey like the inside of a pancake, which is part of the appeal of having these for breakfast (but really any time of day! Yum!). You’d never tell they’re gluten free! And they definitely satisfy that morning carb-y craving …do you get that too or is it just me? 😉

Gluten-Free Butter Pancake Muffins, inspired by Upbeat and Kaleing It’s Butter and Salt Muffins

Dry Ingredients:

  • 2 Cups almond flour (I love the Kirkland Costco brand)
  • 3 Cups All-Purpose gluten free flour (My favorites are Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 and Walmart’s gluten free blend)
  • 1 Tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon pink sea salt

Wet Ingredients:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 Cup brown sugar
  • 1 Cup plain yogurt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 Cup melted butter
  • 2 Cups milk (any kind, but I used oat milk)

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare two muffins tins with muffin liners AND spray them with a good baking spray. I love using the avocado baking spray I find at Costco or Trader Joe’s. But be generous and spray the sides too, even if using muffin liners because they get stuck easily, trust me!
  2. Whisk dry and wet ingredients separately, and then incorporate the wet into the dry. If you have time, let batter sit a few minutes as it renders a fluffier result that way.
  3. Use an ice cream scoop or 1/4 measuring cup to drop equal amounts of batter into the muffins tins. Depending on how much you fill the tins, you might have some extra batter (I was able to fill 3 muffins tins).
  4. Bake for 25-30 minutes according to how hot your oven gets, or until the tops are firm and starting to brown.
  5. Let muffins cool in muffin tins so the insides can firm up a bit.
  6. Once cooled, slice and serve with extra butter inside if you’re so inclined. Enjoy! <3

Love,

“Amid the Messy”

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Here for the messy situations in life! 🙋🏻‍♀️🙃

I shared the other day on IG that “liturgical living” at home has never been my strong suit even though we’re a homeschooling family. With 5 little ones born pretty close together and Church jobs (I’m a bilingual Music Director and my husband’s the Parish Secretary), we’ve spent many busy seasons working for the Church and getting home so exhausted there hasn’t been much left, other than survival.

Add the exhaustion we have all collectively borne these last 2 years, and honestly my current wins in life are: clean laundry (never folded🤣), washed dishes (even if they stay in the dish washer!), children who are clean and fed, and the fact that my 7 & 8 year olds are reading magnificently. Outside of that, sometimes we bake for a feast day, and sometimes we forget and don’t even celebrate traditions such as leaving out shoes for St. Nicholas.

I’ve learned that it’s okay to ease up though – that we aren’t meant to carry the burden of perfection. That it’s okay to feel messy. And when I still get disappointed in myself for what I feel is a low tolerance for chaos in spite of toddlers and small children all around me, I’m often surprised and reminded that we can still “bring forth good fruit.”

Last night was one such occasion – checked out and weary when our kids were still not in bed after 9 pm, my husband and I asked our oldest to lead night prayers. Alejo (my 8 yr old) began with “O Come O Come Emmanuel” and ended it with the prayer for the dead and the accompanying responses. My husband and I were honestly amazed! 😅 And it was a good reminder to us. A lived Faith, even though “messy,” is what we’re after. Not pushing ourselves toward unattainable goals. ❤️

If you are going thru a similar “survival mode” type of season, take comfort in these words by our Papa Francisco. Advent is about joyful hope and expectancy – and we can absolutely take part in that and allow God’s work to continue in us, even if we feel out of control and flailing at times. God is not outdone because of our humanity – He made us and loves us in all our “messy-ness.”💜

Love,

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{This post was shared first on the new IG page I started: www.instragram.com/catholicmomsofig}

Granola Butter

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Happy November, friends! And Happy Thanksgiving Week!

I’ve been more active on Instagram lately, but I haven’t forgotten my blog! Some people say that blogs are dead, but I think they’re wrong. Sometimes you have thoughts that can’t be shared in an IG caption, and blogs are great places (that you own, unlike content on IG!) to put original content. So there you have it, I’m not going anywhere, even if I don’t update as often as I’d like. Believe me, it isn’t because I don’t have ideas or thoughts to share! Oh that there were more hours in the day. 😉 Now on to our present topic:

Granola Butter

Granola Butter! This recipe basically consists of how I turned my Stovetop Granola into the most amazing Peanut Butter alternative ever. Think more along the lines of cookie butter but more texture and more health. 😀 It’s heavenly drizzled on yogurt and berries!

Ingredients:

Method:

  1. Start by making your batch of Stovetop Granola and allowing it to set/cool.
  2. Get your food processor ready and pour in your granola.
  3. Blend on high, and allow the granola to break down for a bit.
  4. Drizzle in your olive oil slowly, according to how runny you want it.
  5. Check for your desired consistency and taste. Feel free to stop here depending on taste and also how seasoned your original granola was already.
  6. Drizzle in some maple syrup to taste (I found it really upped the flavor!)
  7. Sprinkle in some extra cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, or pumpkin pie spice if you like, and even a pinch of salt if needed (I usually add enough to the original granola because I’m a huge fan of sweet-salty!)
  8. *Totally optional step* I’ve been adding a small handful of freeze-dried strawberries (I get mine at Trader Joe’s) because even though the finished product won’t really taste of strawberry, I find that it brightens the flavor a bit, which I like.
  9. Store in the fridge if you don’t eat it all in one day (you can always bring it back to room temp so it’s spreadable).

I hope you enjoy! Let me know if you make it and tag me on IG (@alleluiaisoursongblog) so I can share it! <3

Hope you have a wonderful home-y and cozy Thanksgiving, friends!

Love,

A Prayer for the Suffering

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Lord our God, our rock, our fortress, our deliverer, you brought life from death through the mystery of the cross. Deliver your people in time of suffering and need, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
(from Magnificat Tuesday Aug. 19 Morning Prayer)

Dear friends, the world is a very heavy place right now. Our suffering brothers and sisters in Afghanistan, the people of Haiti, as well as family and friends getting sick and dying from covid…the list goes on. Feeling particularly heavy-hearted this morning opened my eyes to the beautiful prayers I read in my Magnificat morning prayer today. It was so perfect because as we know, the bible is timeless and always tells the story of a people suffering and searching for God. This page especially touched me:

Jesus looked at them and said, “For human beings this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.” Mt 19:26

The lament of Psalm 142 (pictured above), has the added footnote of: “Psalms such as this one are not reserved for those who are persecuted by visible enemies. They are given to us to pray whenever life’s troubles threaten to overwhelm us. If we are not suffering tribulations ourselves, we can pray in the name of all those who are burdened with problems that seem insuperable.”

I had to read that several times. While our brothers in Christ are suffering in ways we can’t even begin to comprehend, we can lament with and for them. We are all children of God, united in humanity through Him. We can pray the intense and timeless lament of Psalm 142 for them. We can read the words that surely describe what those fearing for their lives right now, are feeling. We can cry out to our God – our “Papa” – and mean every single word, for our family in Christ is suffering these things. If one is suffering, we are all suffering. This isn’t the same as centering on ourselves – it is literally us putting our shoulders to another’s cross and in a spiritual way, helping them carry it from wherever in the world we are. And this union and unity is the gift of our Faith.

Praying for our world, for those in tortured lament right now, fearing for themselves and for their children. And I’m praying for you, dear friends. Let’s never cease in praying for each other. Amen.

Love,

The Best Birthday Cake Recipe and Survival-Mode Breakfast Cookies

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Hello Friends! I wanted to share a few quick recipes with you that have saved my life recently! The first is in honor of my baby girl’s first birthday party. <3 I can’t believe it’s been a year already! In case you haven’t already read it and enjoy birth stories (nothing TMI because that’s not my style, don’t worry ;)) you can read Baby Girl’s covid-time birth story here.

My husband is wonderful at planning birthday party themes because tbh I’m so last minute and just can’t think past the day I’m currently trying to survive, ha! I very much appreciate his planning and this birthday was no exception. He decided we were going with a unicorn princess theme, which turned out super easy to shop for! All shopping was done on Amazon (obvs) and he got a whole unicorn princess set that came with this cute cake topper!

There’s something really special about baking birthday cakes and I’m really picky with store-bought cakes anyway, so I whipped up a chocolate layer cake and vanilla cupcakes. The Chocolate Cake (follow the link for the complete recipe!) is my absolute go-to when it comes to chocolate cakes because it’s the moistest ever, thanks to the secret ingredient (boiling water added slowly at the end!!). And here’s the delicious vanilla cupcake recipe from the same author that I used. So so good.

For the frosting I just whipped up a simple cream cheese frosting with the following ingredients creamed together:

  • 2 cups cream cheese
  • 2 sticks salted butter (yes, salted!)
  • generous drizzle vanilla extract
  • 1 and a half 32 oz bags of powdered sugar

YUM!!!

3 Ingredient Survival Mode Breakfast Cookies

3-Ingredient Breakfast Cookies

SPEAKING OF survival mode, have you made the 3 Ingredient Breakfast Cookies found all over the internet? I think they were super popular at one point and we kind of rediscovered them a few weeks ago when I couldn’t think of what to make for breakfast. We just mixed together:

  • Mashed ripe bananas (maybe 2-3?)
  • Rolled Oats (maybe 3-4 cups?) enough to make it all come together like a loose dough
  • Chocolate Chips (a few handfuls, depending on taste)
  • *optional* drizzle of vanilla & sea salt for topping

-After mixing the bananas, rolled oats, drizzle of vanilla and chocolate chips, we dropped them by the scoopful onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet (they fall apart easily so just try and form them together). What really takes them to the next-level though, is adding a pinch of sea salt on top!! Do not skip this step – since the cookies don’t have an added sweetener (not counting the choc chips), the salt gives it that complexity and makes you notice the natural sweetness far better. Trust me on this!

-Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes until the edges are brown and let cool.

These are perfect for hangry kids (and mom!). Enjoy!

How are you doing, friends? Are there any go-to recipes you’ve been enjoying lately? Are you also looking forward to the Fall and baking alllll the things like I am? Thanks for reading along and I can’t wait to chat more!

*Edit* 1/14/2023

Hi guys! I just wanted to report that we’ve been adding peanut butter (creamy natural – “Justin’s” is the brand we’ve been using) to these cookies and, dare I say, they are even BETTER?! I never measure ingredients but I add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup peanut butter depending on the amount of cookies I’m going for. The ratio is more banana than pb, and I’ll adjust the oats until the cookie “dough” is not too wet but not too dry if that makes sense. The baking time is still 12-15 minutes for these (just until slightly browned at the edges). You’d never guess they have no flour! The texture is soft and amazing and the peanut butter binds it all together perfectly. As always, don’t forget to top with coarse kosher sea salt! Pictured below is the pb version. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!! <3

Love,

“It’s Been a Long Day Without You my Friend…

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…and I’ll tell you all about it when I see you again.” -Charlie Puth 😉

Hello Dear Readers!

How are you doing? I feel kind of silly apologizing for my absence because I know you guys understand, so I won’t go there. Just know I haven’t forgotten about this little space on the internet where I share with you all the things in good-old-fashioned letter-format. <3

So, what’s going on with me you ask?? Let’s do this in an old-fashioned 7 Quick Takes post, even though it’s not Friday. If Kelly Mantoan is still doing these, I’ll link up with her on the next one. 😉

1. First Quick Take! I created this visual of a comforting Bible verse at the prompting of my husband Matt the other day. Such a simple well-known verse that carries so much power and the reminder that we need every single day. If we can just let it sink in, I feel like our blood pressure will automatically start to regulate! (obvs I’m not a doctor so this is not medical advice!) I hope it does you some good to read it, as it does for me. <3

2. I have some rather sad news to report that will not affect this blog at all, really. I am no longer able to tolerate full-fledged caffeine. *cue tears* It’s too bad and I’ve been in denial for a very long time, but as I shared on my instagram page, I’ve found some work-arounds to this. Not the least of which, is finding good-quality decaf and knowing what to order at Starbucks:

*venti iced latte, decaf, light ice, 6 pumps white mocha, with vanilla sweet cream cold foam on top* SO. GOOD.

3. My husband now works at the same church as I do and it’s been amazing so far. It’s such a blessing to be serving at the same parish and have the same goals in mind + working together towards them. It’s been a dream of ours for a long time!

4. June, July, August, and September are birthday months at our house, and I’ve been traveling down memory lane so much lately. I just can’t believe how quickly time just flies by. I met my husband 10 years ago and now we have 5 beautiful children. I’ve also been thinking so much about how it was so hard when we had the first 3 in diapers at the same time and no extra helping hands. But now the oldest 2 are big enough to read aloud to their siblings, and they’re so much fun to talk to + help when we make trips to the grocery store! It will never be the same kind of hard and yet…I really miss those early baby days! I don’t think I’ll ever not be a mess of a mom with all the crazy ups and downs and emotions and love that motherhood brings. <3

5. I’ve been enjoying these clean-eating keto-ish foods (pictured below) lately! The Impossible meat is probably the most astonishing discovery I’ve made in quite a while! If you know me, you know I absolutely HATE cooking with raw meat. I don’t mind eating some chicken, and I love Matt’s beef ribs once in awhile when he makes them, but other than that I’m not really big on meat, much less having to handle it to make a meal. So Impossible Meat burgers and “ground beef” has been a huge thing for me. I use it for so many meals! Picadillo, korean-style tacos, hamburgers, you name it! So amazing, and everyone here loves it! I buy mine from Costco.

6. Also have to mention the other foods in the above pic – PicNik coffee creamer is my fav. I still drink decaf and this froths up beautifully, plus it tastes amazing. I actually prefer it to half and half! Love the Keto bread I buy from Costco too – no carb crashes, which is huge for me. The macadamia milk, also from Costco, is great for smoothies, and I’ve been using the vegan butter for Matt who had a season of sensitivity to dairy. YUM!

7. My last quick take! So, I’ve slowly been adding to my YouTube channel (Alleluia Is Our Song) and it’s been kind of a nice stress-reliever for me. When I feel things are a little out of control whether with health-related stuff, keeping up with mommy-ing, or life in general – it turns out that curating a nice little makeup/nail tutorial and chatting about something beauty-related really lifts my mood! It’s kind of my “me-time” too and I just love sharing this little hobby in video format. Feel free to hop on over and subscribe! Then you can chat with me in the comments about all the pretty things, hehe. <3 These are just a few that I’ve done lately:

That’s it for now, friends! Thanks for reading and for being here. <3 Let’s talk again soon! And feel free to comment below, even if it’s just to say hi. I love hearing from you!

Love,

Easy Stovetop Granola

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Hello Dear Readers!

Hope you’re all having a very pleasant Monday. 🙂

I’ve recently started up my YouTube Channel again and have already added a couple of makeup tutorials and a cooking video. It’s been lots of fun! Let me know if you have any ideas for things you want touched on there. I’m planning on sharing some more beauty videos (and hopefully a video of me doing my at-home dip nails at some point, since some of you have asked!) and maybe some music too since that’s always at the heart of everything for me. <3

And without further ado, I introduce you to my Stovetop Granola YouTube video – featuring an original recipe, totally made by the kids and I! 🙂 In the video we also talk a little about our #homeschoollife, so grab a snack and enjoy! Oh and also, please do yourself a favor and make this easy granola recipe asap because it’s too too good. 😉

As promised, here are the measurements:

In a bowl, mix:

  • 5 Cups dry rolled oats
  • 1 Cup brown sugar
  • Cinnamon to taste
  • 1 Cup Canola or Olive Oil
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla
  • a few generous pinches of sea salt (we used Himalayan pink sea salt)

Method:

  1. Make sure your mixture is evenly coated with your oil.
  2. Divide into 2 batches if necessary and pour mixture into a generously buttered hot pan on medium/high heat.
  3. Keep the oat mixture moving to ensure even browning.
  4. As soon as you see browning and mixture becomes fragrant, remove from heat and let cool.
  5. Enjoy in a yogurt bowl or with milk!

Love,

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