Strawbery Cupcakes with Coconut Whipped Cream Frosting (+ a blog annoucement!)

Hi there! I know I have been posting very seldom, but as I have shared with you before I have been struggling to find topics for each post. While I love all the things I have shared with you sometimes the words just don't flow easily. But finally I feel like I have found the direction of my blog.

I have always been a self-proclaimed foodie and recently I have had a strong desire to eat better and improve my overall health. With my blog I want to share with you my journey in adopting a healthier lifestyle with a focus on food.

Even though others might think it's weird, I love knowing what people have eaten throughout the day. Not only am I just curious but it is a great way to get ideas for new meals. So I will be sharing with you what I have been eating (although this might take a while, we know how I am with taking pictures... ) as well as recipes and any other attempts at healthy living.

But don't worry, being a foodie means that I love all food so you can still expect to see plenty of sweets and treats. In fact here is a recipe I used a week ago when I was craving something sweet.

I doubled this Strawberry Shortcake recipe from Chocolate-Covered Katie, so J and I didn't have to share. And I topped it with Whipped Coconut Cream (recipe below), a delicious diary free topping.

Remember it's just about moderation!

I definitely need to work on my food photography.

Whipped Coconut Cream

1 15oz can of full fat coconut milk
1 tsp. maple syrup
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

• Chill can of coconut milk in fridge in overnight.
• Flip can of coconut milk and open from the bottom.
• Pour liquid into separate container (You will not use this but can save it for other uses).
• Scoop remaining cream into a large bowl or bowl of stand mixer.
• Whip until fluffy.
• Add maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Serve like regular whipped cream and enjoy! 

An Attempt at Healthy Living

On April 8th a friend and I decided to challenge ourselves to run 40 miles in 30 days as well as live a healthier lifestyle in general. Today marks the half way point of this 30 days.

I feel like I have been doing pretty well on the running front. So far, I have ran 18.5 miles! I have never been a runner. In fact for the majority of my life I wasn't even able to run a mile... I kid you not! So I am extremely proud of myself for being able to run 3 or 4 miles routinely. I am using the word routinely loosely, because let's be honest I don't usually workout that often. I will workout for 2 or 3 times a week then take 3 weeks off. This is partly the reason I wanted to challenge myself to run 40 miles in 30 days. I want to have a more regular workout routine. Even throughout these first 2 weeks it has been hard to find time to run. Life gets in the way, but I am hoping this is a step in the right direction.

As far as eating healthy goes, I definitely have some room for improvement. Those of you who know me well know that I have some health issues that myself and doctors are having a hard time diagnosing. Because of these issues, I have adopted a gluten free diet. This has definitely helped but the problem is still there. Having an undiagnosed health 'condition' That doesn't seem like the right word :/ I have scoured the internet for healthy eating tips and recipes. So I know what I should be eating but with hectic scehdules and tempting sweets around it is hard to follow a healthy diet.

For the first 15 days of this challenge I haven't really been trying to improve my eating habits. So I am going to focus on that for the next 15 days. So, today I started the day off with a delicious green smoothie. Usually I just throw whatever is on hand into my smoothies, but I stumbled upon this recipe and decided to give it a try.

Kale, Peach & Coconut Smoothie

1 cup frozen unsweetened peach slices
1 cup packed kale, torn into pieces and stems discarded
1/2 banana
3/4 cup coconut water
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoon raw honey
(you could also add a glug of almond milk for added creaminess)

• Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend on high till smooth.
• Pour and enjoy!

via Instagram

I have another one of these bad boys ready for tomorrow morning. One of my goals to help me stay on track is getting better at meal planning. So wish me luck on my new health kick... hopefully it will stick!