Eat Well, Feel Well: #blissfulblueberry

Blissful Blueberry Banana Muffins
Vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free

My apologies for the lack of posts friends, I've finally caved and started Netflixing... so bad. 

Anyway...

Blueberries, bananas and walnuts oh yes please!  I was browsing Oh She Glows website one day and I stumbled upon these delicious looking muffins.  I was ecstatic when I saw that I had all of the ingredients (I was low on groceries).

Recipe By Oh She Glows

Yields: Approx 12 regular and 12 mini (I only have one regular sized muffin tin) OR 18 reg or 36 minis

3/4 cup Mashed Bananas (approx 2)
3/4 cup + 2 tbsp Unsweetened Almond milk
1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup Maple Syrup (the good stuff!  Not the Aunt Jemima madness)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Coconut Oil, melted
2 cups Spelt Flour
6 tbsp Coconut Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1.5 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Fine Grain Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 cup Walnut Pieces, chopped
1 cup frozen or fresh Blueberries

Preheat oven to 350F and lightly grease the muffin tin (if you don't have parchment cups).  If you do, just use parchment cups

On a small cutting board, mash your banana with a fork.  I find this a lot easier than fumbling around the bowl.  Place the banana into a medium bowl with the almond milk, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and vanilla.  No need for stirring at the moment.  Set it aside.  

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda.

Stir the coconut oil into the wet mixture.  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until JUST combined!  You do not want to over mix this.

Gently fold in the walnuts and then the blueberries, again do not overmix.  The right picture is what my batter looked like before I added the walnuts and blueberries.

Spoon about 1/4 of the batter into each parchment cup; it'll be about 3/4 full.

Found him like that while I was baking haha #boss .

Bake for 23-27 minutes (I did approx 25) until you prick a toothpick in the center and it comes out clean.  I only had one large muffin tin, so I did end up making some minis too and I stuck some chocolate chips inside them.  Cool in the muffin tin for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

These were quite delightful and make great snacks!  I did use fresh blueberries but if you do only have frozen blueberries, make sure they're kept in the freezer right up until you add them into the batter to prevent bleeding.  They were moist, cakey and burst from the blueberries.  As you can see. I took some before taking a picture hehe.  They were hard to resist.

Enjoy!

Eat Well: #abcsofyyc #phoxuan

ABC's of YYC (Week 24: X)

Pho Xuan
920 36 St NE

Luckily one of our favourite Pho restaurants start with an X because we were quite stumped with this letter.  Pho Xuan is located in a strip mall across from the old T&T.  This strip mall is definitely one of the gems ;).  Why?  Because it also houses Insadong and Aja Sushi which are pretty fantastic.

Salad Roll- shrimp

The salad roll was fresh, tasty and had good texture from the various components.  The sauce had a really nice viscosity, where it lightly coats the roll without being chunky.

Pho Dac Biet- the special with beef, tendon, tripe, and beef balls

Mmmmm the beef was soft, tender and oh so flavourful.  Lots of toppings were provided which was awesome.  The soup was very fragrant and refreshing, while the noodles were soft and chewy.  Everything was perfect.

Pho Xuan is a little guilty pleasure of ours as they serve cheap and delicious Pho.  During the week we are stuck with downtown Pho, which tasted great, but ended up costing more than 10 dollars a bowl.  If you ever find yourself having a hard time deciding what to eat, drop by the strip mall and have your pick at some delicious Korean, Sushi or Pho.

Enjoy!

 

Eat Well: #abcsofyyc #wowchicken

ABC's of YYC (Week 23: W)

Wow Chicken
324 10th St NW

After passing the take out window time after time, we finally made our way to Wow Chicken for W week!  The KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) scene has taken over Calgary in the past few years with new stores opening in every quadrant of the city.  We don't usually indulge in deep fried goodness, so we were both ecstatic. 

Shallot Chicken- original crispy chicken marinated in sliced green onions and WOW chickens special spicy mustard sauce  

The chicken was super crunchy, tender, and seasoned perfectly.  The batter was light and enjoyable (Kim doesn't usually eat batter).  The green onion was very refreshing.  The honey mustard provided a light sweetness to the dish.  

Wings (Hot Garlic)- deep fried breaded chicken wings enriched in osteoporosis preventing collagen

Slight sweetness from the soy sauce paired with a hint of garlic resulted in a wonderful flavour profile for the crunchy, meaty wings.  

Bulgogi Fries

We got distracted by all the delicious chicken we forgot to take an individual picture of the fries.  The crispy fries had a very unique taste that was simply amazing.  A wonderful flavour profile that we can't quite describe, definitely worth a try.

House Salad- freshly mixed veggie salad

The salad was super fresh and provided a much needed balance to our deep fried meal.  We opted for no dressing to feel a bit healthier =D. 

Every piece of chicken was tender and delicious.  The batter was crispy yet light, making it easy to eat.  The variety of sauces provided unique flavours that complemented the chicken instead of overpowering it.  Overall, the meal was enjoyable and we were both impressed.  

Enjoy!

 

Eat Well: #abcsofyyc #watercressexpress

ABC's of YYC (Week 23: W)

Watercress Express 
1322 17 Ave SW

Watercress Express opened early this year and we fell in love with it right away.  We finally made it to W week so now we can provide a review for this lovely joint.   

Tamarind Beef- tamarind nuoc cham-watercress-vermicelli-cucumber-herbs-fried shallots

 

The roll was fresh and the beef was packed full of flavour.  The beef is so delicious and tender.  Delightful crunch provided by pieces of fried garlic.  There's an amazing assortment of flavours that blend perfectly together.   

Pineapple Nuoc Cham Pork- nuoc cham-vermicelli-spring mix-pineapple-herbs

The pork had a lot of flavour, while the lemongrass and the burst of pineapple really wakes up the taste buds.  Like the beef, this was very fresh as well.   

Chicken Wings- caramelized chili lime nuoc cham-fried shallots- sesame seeds

The burst of sweetness mellows out as you work through the tender meat.  The tangy sauce seemed a bit strong at first but actually worked really well.  These wings were plump, juicy and tasted great. 

Chicken and Shrimp Fried Rice- Tabiko- corn- scallion

Mmm, the rice was flavouful and tasted better with each bite.  The chicken was tender and the shrimp was packed with flavour.  The large assortment of toppings went together very well and complemented each other.  One of the yummiest fried rice dishes we have had. 

The food was wonderful and the kitchen is quick.  Our favourites are still the fresh wraps but we were very impressed by the fried rice.  Every dish we've had is packed with flavour, yet light and easy to enjoy.  There are a ton of other items we're looking forward to try.  They have a note mentioning that Watercress Express will be shifting towards a full service dine-in restaurant mid August so we'll definitely be back for that. 

Enjoy! 

 

Eat Well: #abcsofyyc #verobistromoderne

ABC's of YYC (Week 22:V)

Vero Bistro Moderne
209 10th St SW

The day for Vero has finally come!  I (Kim) have been waiting for this day for 22 weeks...  It's been quite a while since either of us have been here but Vero has consistently been in my top 3 picks of YYC.  It was a quiet start to the night since it was the first day of Stampede.  We actually welcomed the quiet atmostphere since we were able to enjoy the classic melodies of Ella Fitzgerald and I believe it was Franky Sinatra but you know that era of music.

Escargot- herb and butter sauce

Soft and pleasant flavours from the steamy escargot were enhanced by the delicious herb and butter sauce.  The escargot was cooked quite well and tasted great.  The bread was a lovely accompaniment as we quickly devoured the escargot.

Risotto- with BC Chanterelle Mushrooms

Each bite was heaven in your mouth.  The mushrooms were so fresh and flavourful and the risotto was at a nice al dente.  Personally, we both enjoy soft creamy risotto but the quality of the dish was amazing.  The chanterelle added a wonderful texture to the dish which was balanced perfectly by the risotto.  The lovely richness of the dish also added substance and helped John fill up his stomach even though there was no meat.  The peas offered a lovely pop to the dish.

Angel Hair Ratatouille

So simple and delicious.  The vegetables were definitely the star of the dish and had a lovely delicate flavour.  The pasta was cooked very well and reminded me (Kim) of Mai Fun (Rice Noodles).

Mango Cheesecake- glass dessert of the night

A classic dessert that I always get every time I enjoy a meal at Vero!  This lovely thing had a great balance of flavours from the lovely mango and cheesecake.  Very light and easy to eat.  The side of mochi and coconut added both a crunchy and chewy element to the dish.  A light and delicious way to end the night.

They provided us with a wonderful glass of Moscato to finish off our meal.  The light sweetness really helped cleanse our palates as we headed back to the Stampede to enjoy some wonderful carnival eats.

The service was lovely, as was the food.  The lovely classic tunes playing in the background really enhanced the atmosphere at Vero.  They provided a variety of fresh and flavourful ingredients.  The mushroom risotto was definitely the highlight of the night!  

Enjoy!