Author Archives: laurenkahan

Banana Quinoa Muffins (4th of July edition :)) // Gluten Free and DELICIOUS

This is my 3rd time making these since I first made them about 3 weeks ago haha. Our neighborhood has this huge parade, and I thought these would be perfect for before hand (ok, and after too!) I doubled the recipe from my first attempt, and added some blueberries, craisins, and shaved coconut to the top to make them more festive 🙂Hope everyone has a happy and safe 4th!

Ingredients (Made 21 muffins)

2 Cup cooked Quinoa
4 fully ripe bananas
1 1/2 Tablespoon Coconut Oil
4 Eggs
3 Medjul Dates (pitted)
1/2 teaspoon pure Vanilla
3 grinds of Sea Salt (aka not very much :))
1/2 cup blueberries, craisins, and coconut to sprinkle on top (optional)

Directions

You can do all of it in the Cuisinart or mixing bowl. One dish-easy clean up-WIN!!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Throw everything into a Cuisinart/Mixer and blend until creamy.
Put into muffin tins, greased loaf, or greased ramicans (that’s what I used the first time)
After 5 minutes of baking, take out and sprinkle with blueberries, craisins, and coconut. I waited too long and the top was already too cooked. They barely stuck, but I wanted them to sink into the muffin a little bit.
Bake for a total 18-20 minutes or until top is firm and lightly golden. I’m a firm believer in slightly undercooking when baking. It will continue to bake after you take it out, so if you wait until it’s completely firm it’s too done. You can always do the toothpick test. Insert a toothpick and if it comes out clean, it’s done. If it has batter still on it, not yet done.
Sprinkle with unsweetened coconut flakes.
These are really moist. I’m not sure why. They don’t do well if you seal them up in a container, so just leave them out and they will not dry out.

ENJOY!

Nutritional Facts (I entered all the ingredients into Calorie Count)

Serves 21 // Calories per muffin- 120 // Total Fat- 4.1g // Saturated Fat- 2.5g // Cholestererol- 55mg // Sodium- 99mg // Potassium- 198mg // Total Carbohydrates-20.2g // Dietary Fiber-2.1 // Sugars- 9.6g // Protein- 3.4g

Happy 4th of July!

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Cannot wait for the 4th of July parade later today. I think this will be the first year that Maya really gets excited about it. She was still a little oblivious about it last year.

Pretty sure she still won’t be excited about the fireworks though…

On me…

Top- Joie (sold out, but similar here and less expensive here)

Jeans- Genetic Denim “the Shane” (similar here and less expensive here)

Shoes- Rafe (old, similar here)

On Maya…

Dress- Janie and Jack (hand me down, but this is cute!)

Shoes- Kids Connection (thrifted)

Keeping it Real…

The only “keeping it real” I have is that I am so busy with work that I don’t have much time for personal pictures. These were taken in about 15 minutes, and I was lucky to do that! Again, big thank you to my parents for watching the Peanut so much while I’m away!! Oh, and AMEN for children’s Zyrtek. FINALLY found something that worked on Maya’s hives that she’s been having for the past 6 days. Still hoping we don’t have to keep taking it for the long term…

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Red, white, and Blue // A few days early :)

Dropwaist Dress + Booties

White Tee + Ripped Jeans

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There’s something about the simple combination of a white tee with ripped jeans. It’s a classic combination that I don’t see ever going out of style.

I love adding a little twist to the classic, and I am a total sucker for a cowl neck. I love the draping…I’ve worn these jeans a number of times on the blog. I love the easy comfort of jeans that are a few sizes too big. These are the classic boot cut, but rolled and a few sizes too big, they totally feel like a boyfriend style. 3 out of the five of these earrings are Gorjana. LOVE the simplicity of her jewelry! You can barely see, but the circle disc has a “m” on it 🙂 If you sign up to get emails from them, you’ll get sale notifications. At the end of seasons, items can go up to 80% off!! Hahaha. Maya loooooves a good kiss 😉 Goffrey and Dita came with us to my parents house for dinner 🙂 On me…

Top- 3 Dots (ebay, similar here)

Jeans- 7FAM (thrifted, similar here)

Shoes- Mystique (old, but love these here )

On Maya…

Jacket- Gap (thrifted, but similar here)

Top- Mini Boden (thrifted, but similar here)

Jeans-Joe’s Jeans (ebay, but similar here)

Shoes- Minnetonka (thrifted, but similar here)

Keeping it Real…

Once again, if you follow us on Instagram, you know that yesterday was not a banner day. However, of course, she took a 3 hour nap, which mean…there was something not right. I am so lucky that Maya is so happy most days. It’s such a lesson in parenting when your kids are being difficult. Are they playing off your mood (often times for me, YES!) Are they not feeling well? Again, a lot of times…yes! It is SO hard when you are in the thick of it, with them throwing tantrums, etc… You think “What can I be doing differently?!!” You feel like a failure as a parent… All that to say. You are not alone. You and your toddler…NOT ALONE. Thank goodness they are so flipping cute, no? 🙂

(all pictures of me and me and Maya taken by my Mom :))

Fun day at the park…

Summer Whites…

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Ever since I first blogged this shirt dress, I’ve been wanting to wear it over white jeans. Finally did it over the weekend, and I love how easy and comfy it was. But really, anything with white jeans is a win in my book 🙂Love these fun shoes. They’re from Forever21 for $12!“Ice skating Mom?!” Sure, why not 😉This stick’s name is “Goffrey” (named by Maya ;)). She found him on our morning walk earlier this week, and he has come on every walk since. Normally, she picks up sticks here and there, but then drops them or throws them in some body of water. They’ve never stuck with us for more than 30 minutes and certainly didn’t get named! Goffrey has stood the test of time! Kind of impressed. She even stops (muuuuuultiple times) to feed him grass, dirt, and leaves 🙂 And THEN! Goffrey needed a mate. SO…this is “Dita” Yes, she named them both, and we still have Dita on our front porch too! They both have gone on a morning walk since and a trip to a park where Goffrey got snapped in half :{. Dita now replaced Goffrey as the favorite… On me…

Shirt Dress- Joe’s Jeans “The SHIRT Sexy Shirtdress” (sold out, similar here)

Jeans- Genetic Denim “the Shane” (similar here and less expensive here)

Sandals- Forever21

On Maya…

Jacket- Gap (thrifted, but similar here)

Dress- Greendog (thrifted, but similar here)

Shoes- Lucky Top (Zulily)

(all pictures of me and me with Maya taken by the Huz :))

No Bake Almond Quinoa Balls // Gluten Free

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Here’s my 3rd recipe using quinoa in “baking”. FYI, I made the Banana Quinoa Muffins again but doubled them this time! 🙂 Not to leave the No Bake Lemon Coconut Quinoa Balls out, but they weren’t as big of a hit in my immediate household (sorry Mom!) My 17 year old said “These taste like healthy cake pops.” I’ll take it!! 🙂

Once again, the best part of this next recipe is that after you have made a batch of quinoa, the rest is no bake/aka easy!!

Ingredients (Made 15 Balls)

1 Cup cooked Quinoa
1/2 Cup Almonds (for rolling)
1/2 Cup Natural Almond Butter (could also use peanut butter)
2 Bananas
4 Medjul Dates

Directions

You can do all of it in the Cuisinart. One dish-easy clean up-WIN!!

Pulse almonds until they are the size of half a grain of rice (or look like quinoa! :), sprinkle on a plate for rolling later)
Blend Almond Butter, Bananas, and dates.
Add in quinoa and pulse a few more times, just to mix it all together.
Take a heaping Tablespoon and form balls in your hand (mine were about 1.5 inches wide).
Roll in crushed almonds and place in the freezer. You can eat them frozen, but they are best after warming up a few minutes.

ENJOY!

Nutritional Facts (I entered all the ingredients into Calorie Count)

Serves 15 // Calories per ball-114 // Total Fat- 6.5g // Saturated Fat- .6g // Total Carbohydrates-12.4g // Dietary Fiber-1.9 // Sugars- 6.2g // Protein-3.1g

Kimonos and cut offs…

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Really, is there anything hotter this summer? I love throwing on a chunky cardigan in the summer, and kimonos are just the summer version of that! I scored this fun fringe one at Nordstrom Rack during their “Clear the Rack” sale. I love that it can totally be dressed up, yet (obviously!) dressed down for a night at the beach. At first I was totally bummed that I cut off half of Maya (the downside to the self timer and tripod), but I kind of like it…I’m calling it a creative crop 🙂 I know I’m biased, but could she be any cuter?? I think NO!!!On me…

Kimono- ASTR (Nordstrom Rack, similar here)

Top- H&M

Jeans- Current Elliott (ebay, sold out, but similar here, here)

Flip Flops- Havaianas

On Maya…

Top- Mini Boden (thrifted)

Jeans- Levi’s (thrifted, and cut off by me)

Shoes- Converse (thrifted)

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Hi low, hi low, it’s off to work I go…

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I had another corporate shoot today, so this is not my typical “mom uniform” 🙂 And… for all those natural curly women (or men!) out there, you’ll totally understand this…curly hair don’t care! I really never know what’s going to happen with my hair when I wear it curly and it decided to go big or go home today! Oh, there’s daddy!!…and he has my trike!!!On me…