How to Enjoy the Holiday Season When You Feel Lonely

How to Enjoy the Holiday Season When You Feel Lonely

by | Dec 11, 2017 | Health, Home, Wellness

For a long time, I didn’t celebrate holidays at all.  My family didn’t decorate the house or dress up or play holiday tunes while I was growing up.  I would look to friends in awe off their family’s traditions and celebrations and long for something special.  It wasn’t until I was in high school that my family started to get together with extended family for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.  As a kid, I had established expectations from movies of what the holidays should look like.  Now, I find myself in a rushed state of activity that I worry the holidays will just blow past me before I get a chance to sit down.  The thing is, there are a handful of qualities that make the holidays special. 

For anyone who has longed for more or can’t manage to find enjoyment in the holidays, for whatever reason, I hope this list helps!

Also, let me begin by saying YOU are special.  You don’t need the verification of gifts or other hoopla to confirm that.  Still, I know that if you’re reading this you’re interested in how we can increase our satisfaction with the holiday season. 

holiday season enjoy

Here are some ideas:

  • If you’re like me and live in a hot desert town, then you long for a snowy cold Christmas. I don’t have tricks to make snow happen (though cranking the air conditioning might help) but try bringing the festivity indoors! Decorate your house, bedroom, office space—heck, even your bathroom!  It’ll add some cheer to the places you spend the most time.
  • Try lighting some candles or incense that add freshness to the air and encourage positive feelings.  Think: peppermint, pine, cedarwood, eucalyptus, or other fresh scents!
  • MUSIC.  Blast those tunes.  Throwback to TSwift’s ’06 Christmas album right here…
  • What are your favorite pastimes?  (Perhaps you’ve abandoned that mystery novel you bought at Target—it’s time to start reading it again!)  Nothing feels more fulfilling than spending your time doing what you love!
  • Think about what traditions or activities you loved to do as a kid and recreate those for yourself or for your family.  Example: I remember my mom making hot cocoa for me and we would paint bird houses or other knick-knacks to place in our garden.
  • These drinks don’t require a trip to Starbucks and they’ll brighten up your winter: hot chocolate London fog or apple cider.
  • I feel like baking is a given but, if not, here it is.  When in doubt, bake!  Check out some yummy cookie recipes here, here, and here .
  • Are you watching Hallmark Channel’s Christmas lineup?  There are movies airing every single day that are filled with festivity and romance and holiday cheer!  If there is one thing I enjoy most about the holidays, it’s watching Hallmark Christmas movies. 
  • Do something nice for someone else.  Help your neighbors clean their driveways of snow or offer your time at a nonprofit.  The Salvation Army could always use extra hands around the holidays.  Or, perhaps, a homeless shelter or other local organization in your area could benefit from your assistance.
  • Write one or a few Christmas cards to mail out.  Your friends, family, or even the troops overseas will appreciate it! Perhaps the last one requires a bit of planning but all-year-round letters are great, too!
  • It’s okay to recognize that you may be lonely (cue: Lonely People) but you are NOT alone.  Call up your parent, sibling, old high school friend, or anyone that you’ve lost touch with.  It can be hard to reach out but it is also a joy to hear from someone you used to be close with.  Nowadays with the internet, you can also message them on Facebook and plan for a day to meet up.  Or schedule a Skype date with long distant friends!
  • Many times, the people you surround yourself with can influence how you feel.  Try connecting with different people in your office or community groups and you’ll find that few people think alike.  There are a lot of happy, outgoing people out there and their energy can help boost you up.
  • At the end of the day, remember that the holidays will pass.  Try to find enjoyment in the little things.  It might seem like so much is happening right now that you’re not a part of but trust that everything is as it should be. 

holiday season enjoy

I’m wishing all of you a happy and wholesome holiday season.  Do what brings you joy! 

If you’d like, share what you do during the holidays in the comments down below! I’d love to hear how others spend the season. 🙂

Cocoa Coconut Rustic Banana Granola

Cocoa Coconut Rustic Banana Granola

by | Aug 21, 2017 | Health, Home, Recipes

This yummy Cocoa Coconut Rustic Banana Granola is brought to you thanks to Scharffen Berger’s Baking Chocolate.

Ever since I tried Nutrition Stripped’s Banana Maple Granola I have dreamed of recreating a chocolate or cocoa-infused version. Of course, you all know how I like my chocolate!  (i.e. Creamy Peanut Butter Chocolate Crisp Bars and Chocolate Cinnamon Breakfast Shake)  Typically, store-bought granola uses a lot of oil or a lot of liquid sweetener. In this case, banana serves to coat the granola and add some flavor while keeping the granola low in added oils and sugar!

For this granola, I used the Scharffen Berger’s 100% Unsweetened Dark Chocolate Cocoa Powder.  The quality cocoa powder is 100% cacao and therefore adds a great depth of flavor. As well, I added Scharffen Berger’s 100% Unsweetened Cacao Nibs to up the smoky depth and create a crunchy texture in the granola.

cocoa coconut rustic banana granola

I’m curious, how do you all enjoy granola?  At breakfast time, I love adding granola to the top of my smoothies or parfaits for a delicious crunch. Also, if you haven’t tried using homemade granola as a cereal then you must! Store it in a container in the freezer for when the granola craving hits! Then, simply pour it into a bowl with milk and enjoy! It makes for quite a filling meal!

Disclaimer: I call this granola cocoa granola and not chocolate granola for a reason.

Personally, I like the light cocoa flavor without the sugar. Instead of sugar I use caramelized bananas to provided sweetness. If desired, you can still make the granola a bit sweeter like chocolate with the addition of some coconut sugar. See the recipe for amounts. Lastly, I know the recipe calls for many ingredients but granola is flexible. For a variation, you could swap in more oats, nuts, seeds, or quinoa for any ingredient you may not have enough of. Plus, the recipe can be cut in half and still bake up in the same amount of time. 👊

I’VE GOT YOU COVERED 😉

cocoa coconut rustic banana granola

Cocoa Coconut Rustic Granola
Recipe Type: Breakfast, Snack
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: ~3 1/2 cups granola
This granola is a texture-lover’s dream! It has oats and coconut and nuts. Caramelized bananas help make this granola a low-sugar and low-fat treat.
Ingredients
  • 2 medium-large ripe bananas*
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa or cacao powder
  • 1-2 tbsp coconut sugar, optional**
  • ¼ tsp fine sea salt
  • 2 tbsp unsweetened cacao nibs
  • 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut chips
  • 1 cup nuts/seeds of choice (cashews. almonds, or pepitas would be great!)
Instructions
  1. First, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread out banana halves onto a lined baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes. I know, it’s an extra step, but this helps caramelize the bananas to bring out sweetness. From here, you may proceed with the recipe.
  2. Remove the bananas from the oven after they appear to be soft and caramelized. Then, turn the temperature down to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. (Tip: keep the oven door open to let out some of the heat)
  3. In a bowl, mash up the bananas until no clumps remain (I had about 3/4 cup worth of mashed banana). Next, add in the oil, vanilla, cinnamon, cocoa powder, salt, and sugar, if using.
  4. Now, dump in all of the oats, nuts, coconut, and cacao nibs. Mix well.
  5. Spread mixture out on a lined baking sheet or a lightly greased baking sheet.
  6. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until no soft pieces of granola remain. If desired, stir the granola halfway through baking to break apart clumps.
Notes
*You really need ripe bananas for this recipe. I used very spotted, not black, bananas. Bananas are at their peak sweetness when they are very spotted. Black bananas, on the other hand, have an earthy taste to them. They could work but the end result of the granola may not be as sweet.[br]**My taste buds are pretty content with lightly-sweetened food. Go ahead and taste the granola before putting it in the oven and see if it works for you—add in the coconut sugar if you want some sweetness.

Additional notes: The photos show a half batch of the granola because I went through several baking trials and ran low on some ingredients x)

My recipe is adapted from Nutrition Stripped’s Banana Maple Granola.

A final thank you goes out to Scharffen Berger for allowing me to create a recipe using their fabulous baking chocolate products!

 

1 Bowl GF + V Pumpkin Cookies

1 Bowl GF + V Pumpkin Cookies

by | Jun 23, 2017 | Health, Home, Recipes

When I was younger, my mom used to bake up cookies every few weeks to feed the sweet tooth that my sister and I had.  As a kid, nothing was better than a glass of milk and a belly full of cookies.  YES.  I had no self-restraint and never stopped at just one.  Homemade cookies are best when fresh so I would eat 4-5 that first day…and the second day…and maybe just two or three after that…if there were still any cookies left.

pumpkin cookies

Sadly, traditional cookies have several cups of sugar, white flour, butter, plus additional sugary add-ins.  Yupp, I don’t know how young Melanie did it!  If I tried to recreate my old 4-5 cookies indulgence these days I would definitely end up with a stomach ache.  Nowadays, I don’t crave cookies in the same way.  Though, sometimes your girl gets a craving for healthified versions of old favorites.  Thus, I whipped up some cookies that I consider to be more nutritionally balanced.

pumpkin cookies

Ingredients breakdown:

We’ve got banana and pumpkin to soften up the cookies and a mere ½ cup of sugar to sweeten them up.  I am extremely cautious about my sugar intake and, ever since reading Woman Code, I try to avoid adding excess sugar unless absolutely necessary (sidenote: possible post on this in the upcoming future).  The fact is: cookies just don’t taste like cookies without some kind of sweetener.  These are just lightly sweetened with a mixture of brown and coconut sugar.  Of course, you could add an extra ¼ cup of sugar for sweeter cookies.  Feel free taste-test the batter 😉  Though, I think you’ll find there is something nice about the subtle level of sweetness in these.

Also, let’s not forget about fats.  I know there are some cookie recipes out there that might bake up with simply banana but I like incorporating healthy fats into my food.  Why, you ask?  Well, fat helps slow the absorption of sugar and keeps me satiated.  Not to mention, it helps make the cookies crisp up on the outside and stay fluffy on the inside.

In addition, you can include up to a cup worth of dried fruit, nuts, ALOHA brand chopped chocolate, or whatever you like.  I went with a small amount of chocolate and walnuts to add a bit more healthy fats and protein.  Speaking of protein, definitely try adding a scoop of your favorite protein powder, if you’d like.  Sometimes my family can taste the protein powder in baked goods so I went with an unflavored plant-based protein powder from The Natural Citizen.  That is totally optional, though.  I’ll provide alternatives to the protein powder in the recipe!

pumpkin cookies

 

pumpkin cookies

Without further ado, here is the recipe for the pumpkin cookies:

 

GF + V Pumpkin Cookies
Recipe Type: Snacks, Dessert
Cuisine: Cookies
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 24
I call these cookies while my sister likes to call them muffins. Whatever you call them, they are good. My sister is hard to please but I got a thumbs up from her with these cookies (or muffins). They are lightly sweet but still delicious!
Ingredients
  • ¼ cup mashed banana (about ½ a banana)
  • ¾ cup pumpkin puree
  • ¼ cup coconut sugar
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon allspice
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ cup melted warm coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup of almonds, ground into meal/flour
  • 1½ cups oat flour (blend from 1½ cups whole rolled oats)
  • ½ cup whole rolled oats
  • 2 servings of unflavored plant-based protein powder (½ cup worth)*
  • 1/3 cup chopped dark chocolate
  • ½ cup chopped walnuts, save some for topping
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or baking mat.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the banana and pumpkin puree. Then, stir in the sugars, baking soda, spices, coconut oil, and vanilla extract.
  3. Use a food processor or blender to process the almonds to make a fine flour. Repeat for the oat flour.
  4. To the wet ingredients, add the processed almond and oat flour, along with the whole rolled oats and protein powder.
  5. Next, fold in the chocolate chips and half of the walnuts. Use a large cookie scoop to drop dollops of the cookie dough onto the baking sheet. Place a few walnut crumbs on top of each cookie.
  6. Bake for 13 to 14 minutes or until the tops have browned (don’t under-bake). Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a minute before moving to a wire rack to cool for 10 to 15 minutes more. Bake the remaining cookie dough until all is finished.
  7. I know cookies are irresistible out of the oven but if you wait for them to cool, they will be much better. They won’t be as fall-apart delicate and their flavor will be more visible.
  8. When cookies are completely cool, they can be stored in an airtight container or frozen.
Notes
*I use The Natural Citizen’s unflavored Organic Protein in this recipe. A flavored protein may mess with the taste so I recommend this one. Alternatively, you can easily substitute the ½ cup of protein powder for more oat flour or almond flour.[br]Evidently, if any of the ingredients are cold, that will make the coconut oil clump up. Small specks are okay but large clumps need to be dissolved. You can lightly warm the batter in a microwave safe bowl and proceed with the recipe.[br]Instead of grinding almonds yourself (which I recommend for the freshest taste), you can also use ½ cup almond or peanut flour.

Cookie recipe adapted from Love and Lemon’s Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip recipe.

As always, please let me know what you think if you give this recipe a try!  Leave a comment below or tag me on Instagram.