Vegan PB Glo Bites

Angela really hit it out of the park with this recipe.  I saw it on her blog a few weeks ago, and this recipe has been floating around the blogosphere for a bit.  It’s such a crummy day outside, and all I wanted to do was bake, so I knew it was the perfect time to try Vegan PB and Jam Glo Bites!  I had to make a few changes, based on what I had, so this is what I did:

CRUST

• 1/4 cup Smart Balance Light (yeah Brandeis!)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup flax
• 1 tsp. cinnamon

FILLING

• ½ tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• ¼ cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
• ¼ cup raw sugar
• ½ cup PB
• ½ cup rice milk
• Organic Superfruit from Trader Joe’s
• Carob chips

(COPIED FROM ANGELA): Mix crust together with a hand blender in a medium sized bowl. Place approx 1 tsp of crust dough into pre-greased mini muffin tin (or use 1 T of crust in a regular muffin tin). Press down to create a mini crust making sure the crust comes up on the sides a bit. Add filling, filling the tin about half only, and top with jam and chocolate or carob chips (I did one little tray with jam, one with carob chips). Bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Makes 24 mini cups.

These were so delicious, the perfect amount of peanut butter!  The perfect little mid day snack, I’ll probably polish them all off tonight!  If you haven’t tried these yet, what are you waiting for?

BTW…Angela is running a 1/2 marathon tomorrow.  Wish her luck!

O, Canada

Solomon and I went to Canada for a few hours.  That’s right, a few hours.  I happen to think this is the most bizarre thing ever.  Who goes to another country for a few hours?  Which leads me to a funny Solomon story…

When he was younger, Solomon was with his family in Israel.  They were going to go to Jordan for a little bit, just for a day.  Solomon said to his dad “Is the only thing we’re doing today going to Jordan?”  I love how that’s just not enough for a little kid!

Right, well back to Canada.  I’ve only been once before, and I loved it.  We went to Montreal with friends to celebrate their engagement for a long weekend.  I loved the feel of the whole city, the juxtaposition between new and old, the food.  I would love to go back there anytime!  This time we were just going to see Niagara Falls, since neither of us had ever been.  Wow, just wow.  The falls are gorgeous.  The sound is like nothing you have ever heard.

I went to Niagara Falls with my hair looking like it should, straight, smooth, sleek.  I left with my hair a hot mess (it’s actually curly).  It is so misty there!  The wind carries water from the falls, and it feels like you are being rained on.  I think it rained too.  Here are some pics:

And see, my hair was a disaster in the end:

We ended up leaving Canada since we decided there was nowhere there that we really wanted to eat, since it was so touristy.  We ended up back at a Bonefish Grill in Buffalo.  YUM!  I never take food pics, but seriously, if you are ever near one, I highly recommend you go.  We haven’t really been eating seafood since we moved.  Coming from New England, we are so skeptical of the fish here, but this was awesome!

And just for fun, a Rufio picture.  When he knew we were going to the puppy hotel, he decided to hide from me under the bed.  I think this is a dog’s version of “If I can’t see you, you can’t see me!”

What natural wonders have you seen that are truly amazing? In addition to Niagara Falls, I think Masada in Israel is one of the most amazing places ever.  I’ve also seen the Great Barrier Reef, which took my breath away.  Here’s a picture of sunrise on top of Masada.  Hiking up a mountain at 4 in the morning to watch the sunrise doesn’t sound like fun, but it is so worth it!

What amazing places would you like to see?