Fine Art Friday | Abandoned Bridge Maxdale, TX

While I was living in Texas I took a few chances to explore the surrounding areas of our town. One day while exploring I found this incredible old bridge. This bridge is located in Maxdale, TX on the Lampasas River. It was fall at the time so there were lots of leaves and it was the closest I had felt to having an actual "Fall" since I had moved there. I went back one day with my camera and what you see below is what the way I saw the world there.

I explored a lot with learning new things about my camera and my lens. For the first time I actually took the lens off my camera and took pictures without it attached (just held it up to the camera). This is now a regular part of how I take pictures, but these were some of the first attempts at that.  They are not all free-lensed, but I will note which ones are.

During the time I lived in Texas, this bridge became a very calming place for me. A place that I would go sit if I just needed to think or to figure things out. It became my little sanctuary and definitely made me feel like I was home again.

Freelensed

The colors in above image are not done with editing. This image was taken free-lenses and the coloring happened naturally.  

Free Lensed 

 

Free-lensed 

Free lensed 

2-Ingredient Pancakes

One of my favorite things to have for breakfast are pancakes. There is just something about a pancake that feels absolutely right in the morning. However, since I am a mom of an infant I need simple, quick and easy. Plus I am always looking for meals to be as clean and natural as possible.

These are definitely the easiest pancakes to make and oh so tasty!!  The only two ingredients you need are a banana and an egg.

Begin by mashing up the banana in a bowl until thoroughly mashed. 

Add only the egg white to the banana. If you add the yolk it will be too runny and will be more like a crepe instead of fluffy!

Now is the fun part! You can add anything to these pancakes that you want! I was in the mood for Fall this morning so i added 1tsp Vanilla, 1/4 tsp Cinnamon and 1/2 tsp Nutmeg. Yummmmmmm! 

Put your pancakes on a griddle. Don't make them too big or they will be hard to flip over. I made mine about 3-4 inches wide. 

Flip the pancakes when you begin to notice the edges changing consistency and lightly brown on the botton.  If you flip them too early they may fall apart.  

I topped my pancakes with honey from my local farmer's market! Perfetto! 

These pancakes were even approved by my 11 month old! She was devouring them right along with me.  These will make one serving of pancakes. So if you want to make them for more people you just need to double/triple/whatever the recipe. 

Let me know how you enjoy your pancakes! I am always looking for new ways to make them yummy!

Just Another Day

Just a typical day at with Marie! 

Peanut Butter, Date Granola Bar

I am always looking for new clean recipes for things that I enjoy looking for at the store.  This morning I was beginning to make these yummy raw "brownies" that I love to make and instead I decided to change it up and create a granola bar instead.  I wanted to add foods that I love together and make a healthy and clean substitute for a daily staple.  I've never made homemade granola bars before, so this was definitely a much needed venture!

Ingredients:
3/4 C Dates
1/2 C Cashews
1/4 C All natural or Organic Peanut Butter (Look for the least amount of ingredients possible)
1/4 C Honey or Agave  (I used locally collected honey)
1 Tbs Raw Organic Cacao Nibs (Optional)
1 1/2 C Organic Oats





Step 1: Put the Dates and Cashews in a food processor. I used my baby bullet for this. Process them until they form a sticky "dough". They can still have a few chunks if you want.



































Step 2: Put the Date/Cashew mixture, oats, and Cacao Nibs together in a bowl.

Step 3: Heat the Peanut Butter and Honey on the stove just until thoroughly combined.

Step 4: Add Peanut Butter/Honey to the bowl. Mix everything together until combined.

Step 5: Line an 8x8 pan with Parchment Paper and put the mixture into the pan. Press down firmly and spread evenly over the pan. This may take some convincing if it's a little sticky.

Step 6: Place in the fridge until set and no longer sticky (about 20 minutes). Once set, cut up and enjoy! I stored mine a tupperware in the fridge.  I layered them with parchment paper so that they are easy to separate later.





























Enjoy!

These are seriously better than the ones I get from the store. I definitely prefer these to what I typically buy. There is just something about knowing what they are made of and just the taste of completely fresh!