Excersose Goal #5

        I went on a 5 mile walk with my sisters on Thursday It was fun we had 10$ each and went in and out of stores. Yesterday I went on a 7 mile walk with hills for a ward activity. It was hard but totally rewarding. We woke up at 5:30 to escape the heat. So much fun!

All about Cinnamon

    Cinnamon is my all time favorite spice! I guess you could call me a cinnamon connoisseur. (lol) I love Cinnamon rolls, and sticky buns, ( Did you know there is a national sticky bun day on February 21) Churros are always yummy, Snickerdoodles, and even Cinnamon pie like mentioned on Psych. And never forget about warm apple cider yum! My mom tells me how my Grandpa would joke and say the word Cinnamon like it is spelled CINNANNANAMIN! I love Cinnamon so much that I even added it to some hamburger which went into my chilli so good. It has a rustic aroma that can not only be pared with sweet foods but also savory. About the History of cinnamon it is kind of unknown  but the Alton Brown gives a summary of this in his show here is the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pj1s3lzJwo I love his recipe for cinnamon buns.   http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/overnight-cinnamon-rolls-recipe/index.html The only thing I did differently was to skip the step of cooking the cinnamon buns with the steam instead I just baked them at 350 degrees for 30 min. (Oh I also used a different glaze) They turned out pretty much the same. 

Some simple facts about Cinnamon are 1. Cinnamon comes from the inner bark of a tree, 2. Cinnamon is one of the oldest spices known (It was mentioned in the Bible) 2. Used in ancient Egypt for flavoring and as a medicine and kinda gross but was also used as an embalming agent, 3. It was so highly treasured back in Medieval Times that only royals could purchase the spice, 4. There are four types of cinnamon (most common are Ceylon and Cassia cinnamon) 5.(used in Chinese medicine) Cinnamon has many health benefits and can help with colds, nausea, stop unwanted blood clotting or thins blood, diarrhea, also and anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, helps control blood sugar levels, scent boosts brain activity, helps diabetes, anti- bacterial, anti-parasitic, fights heart disease, and helps the gut (for more info) http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=68 6. Cinnamon contains manganese, iron, zinc, dietary fiber, and calcium.  So in other words It is one of the most healthiest spices out there!

Excersise Goal Day #4

    Ever had those weeks were you loose track of time, well the funny thing is I hardly remembered what day it was. (lol) Here is the thing I am practicing for a activity were I have to walk 7 miles on Saturday. So today I went on a 4 mile walk with my two sisters. It was loads of fun except now 7 miles looks a lot more challenging.  It took about 3 hours.

Excersise Goal Day #3

   Yesterday, I went on a uphill walk with Zoey. We were exhausted by the time we were done.

Excersise Goal Day #2

       Today I went on a walk with Zoey May Osborne my new shih tzu puppy! She is 3 years old, loves her tummy rubbed, Greene doggie bones, and squeaky toys. She is so full of energy that when we came home we were both so exhausted that we just laid down in the grass and took a nap.

Exercise Goal Day #1

      And so the exercise countdown of 71 days begins. Not that this really matters but for curiosities sake I am starting out at 139lb's. Since I haven't exercised in a while I am going to start small. So today I got two of my sisters to go on a walk with me to a park then we are going to go play Frisbee and Ninja Destruction in the backyard I probably will bring snacks. I have been eyeballing the grapes in the fridge. I like the Idea of enjoying my exercise with friends and family.

I Love To Cook

       I have always loved to cook! I have many people in my life that have been cooking inspirations to me. My mom is the first. Her friends used to call her the kitchen chemist because when she eats something she wants to try and recreate that specific taste. One memory I have is when my mom was cooking sugar cookies, I about 8 something years old sitting on the kitchen counter just watching and drawing in her big blue cookbook, also I was probably eating the cookie dough.  I remember also being excited when I turned 12  because I could wash the dishes, that excitement didn't last long.(lol) Mainly because when I cook I make big messes. My mom is also the one who taught me the right way to hold and chop with a knife I think I  was about 9 to 10. I also love my mom's cooking, homemade bread with butter nothing can beat that. She always is trying to make her food more healthy but still taste the same. We never had ingredients like Crisco and disgusting hydrogenated oils, or MSG which I am allergic to, corn syrup only during holiday candy making, and junk foods are a rarity in my home. But fruits and vegetables are readily available. I am grateful to my mom that she raised her family in a healthy atmosphere. She also believes in the saying, "Give a man a fish feed him for a day, teach a man to catch fish feed him for a lifetime." She raise us five girls to be independent by teaching us how to cook. Another one of my Cooking idols is Julia Child's. First, because she was the one to bring french cooking to America, and second because she believed in fresh ingredients. But most importantly her attitude, she was always so happy when she cooked so lighthearted you can tell she had fun cooking even if she dropped an omelet or burned something. I once wrote into a competition about Julia Childs, I got second place, here is the link if you want to read it. http://kylieklein.blogspot.com/2011/05/7th-grade-2nd-place-julia-childs.html Sometimes I will make treats and bring them to school for my friends. Gingerbread men for Christmas, and chocolate cake balls for valentines day. I also made a goal to not eat school lunch once this last school year. I am proud to say I didn't eat that cafeteria poison once! All these treats and home lunches are how I got my nick name at school, my friends sometimes call me Betty Crocker. Even though my cooking style is nothing like hers; I have to admit who doesn't enjoy a simple vanila box cake? But I always make my own frosting. Food is ment to be enjoyed so why eat something that doesn't taste good. Something that I find funny is that I catch myself cooking when I am board. My Food Nutrition class was so lame, Mainly because the only thing I learned was that cake mixed with Andes mints do not belong together in the microwave. (don't ask) I think that it is very important for people to learn how to cook but with real ingredients. I guess you could call me a Real Foodist! I believe that in whatever you eat make it real but with portion control and regular exercise. I am pretty good at eating right but not with exercise. That is why I am making a new goal I am going to exercise at least 45 min a day for the rest of the summer. I'll try to post the forms of exercise I do. ( I am open to ideas) But if my schedule wont allow me I will have to do an hour the next day.  I have always wanted to make a difference. Many people have told me that I should go to culinary school and get my own restaurant. While this sounds great and certainly not out of the question what I think I want to do more is to become a food nutrition teacher in a high school. I want to remind and teach people how to cook again.