Food: Healthy Dark Choco-Peanut Granola Squares Recipe

Hi everyone!

If you followed my other blog, you would know by now that I'm in Manila (A Chuvaness.com gift to welcome me in Manila!). This is a crazy, hectic, fast-paced city--descriptions of which are the exact opposite of what I would describe my hometown, Davao City. 

Greencross and I have pooled our resources to start getting rooted in this city. We are renting this small and neat condo in Soho Residential Condominiums. He has just landed a job and I dearly hope that I follow suit, too. I have a job that I've set my sights on; I really, really like the job so I'm hoping for the best. I don't have friends here in Manila, yet (except folks from Davao who are also here, thank goodness for them!) but I'm hoping that in the next few months, that'll change, too. I'll take to blogging in the meantime.

This is one of the Late Bloomer blog projects I will start on: "Healthy Hacks", a series of posts dedicated to share with you some quick and healthy recipes that I personally make. This post has been sitting in my drafts for about a month now, as the ingredients were something I bought from Davao in an EcoFair (wah, I need to start sniffing out market fairs here in Mandaluyong)

One of the few things I've observed from my friends living in a condo is that they are resorting to all kinds of canned food or ready-to-eat prepackaged meals. I sincerely doubt that what they are eating is healthy; I hope that it's all not junk, but I'm sure that eating spam and canned sausages for their daily breakfast may possibly skew the health balance in their body. I know that there's a lot of factors involving their choice of food, but if time constraints are a problem, there are so many easy recipes with low prep/cooking time!

On today's Healthy Hacks, we have a healthy variation of granola bars! It's a pretty spiffy, natural snack when you want something that just sits in the refrigerator, waiting to be gobbled on. I love these prepackaged granola bars, which are better as snacks than the usual chips and candies. But the recipe I have is SO MUCH BETTER. (Love your own! Hahah!)

Natural Dark Choco-Peanut Granola Squares (Total Time: 10 mins ; No. of Ingredients: 6 items )

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup rolled oats / granola mix (I used both Revive Granola Mix and Australian Rolled Oats)
• 1 cup natural honey (I used Bio Dynamis wild honey)
• 2 tbsp dark cocoa powder (I used Hershey's Dark Unsweetened cocoa powder) or;
• 1 piece 100% cacao/tableya (I used one from Aloha Organic Garden and its AMAZING)
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter 
• [Optional garnish: cornflakes, cinnamon, sweetened cocoa powder, peanuts or dried fruits]

Above is the basic setup of your ingredients list. Here's the procedure:

1. On a pot, heat everything except the granola/rolled oats and garnish over medium heat. Do not boil, just ensure that the cocoa/tableya and the peanut butter mixes well with the honey.

2. Take out the pot from the heat and pour into a square mold, or any heat-resistant bowl you have (I used Pyrex glassware) and mix in your granola mix.

3. Mix the granola and honey mixture to ensure everything is coated well. Garnish with cornflakes, like I did. Or choose your own, really. Nuts are really great, and dried fruits as well. My sister likes her granola squares to have lots of cinnamon because peanut butter + chocolate + cinnamon is just her thing :)

Cover the container and refrigerate. This lasts for about a week and a half in the freezer. I usually bring a piece if I go out and not want to have to buy junk. This makes me very full, because of the rolled oats and granola mix. It's also perfect as a protein fix because of the grains, and because of the peanut butter, too! It is chewy but with a little crunch. It's also absolutely great paired with tea!

Just because we don't have a lot of time on our hands or that life is a little hectic shouldn't give us the license to take for granted the only thing keeping us alive and kicking: a healthy functioning body! I'll make sure that despite the many temptations to splurge on food in Manila, I will choose the one that's cheap and healthy! Making my own food is the best place to start.

Thank you for reading!~
Keep healthy!

Product: Avalon Organics Essential Lift Contouring Eye Creme

Hi Everyone!

I have bought something actually for the eyes. FINALLY! This is what I really need right now. I've been eyeing (ok, fine, enough puns! XD) this Avalon Organics Essential Lift Contouring Eye Creme since last year because...

Look at those Puffy Eye Puffs of Forever:

And for a more drastic zoom, please welcome the tired-eyes-of-the-decade:

My sleeping habits have been shot. Again.

I've been looking for the best eye cream that does not sting, does not cause irritation, does not contain too much harmful chemicals and finally I settled that going organic was best! The last eye cream I tried was the Quick FX Eyelift Eye Cream (ugh yuck!!!) and the Skinfood Salmon Brightening Eye Serum (no-follow through) and they all did nothing for me in the end.

It is a great privilege for me to buy this thing because it is pretty darn expensive for just a small bottle, costing PHP845.00 canyoubelieveit! The gift of beauty comes with a price, indeed! But I saved up for this splurge, so I hope it does its job of helping my tired eyes. I've always loved my double eyelid, but recently I wished I was a monolid!

I'll be monitoring the results of the Avalon organics eye cream so stay tuned for that post! And I will also be getting a lot of sleep.


Take it from me, you need your beauty sleep.
Thanks so much for reading!~~

Products: The Body Shop Cranberry Joy Shower Gel, eye creams!)

Hi!

February is here!

Why so fast! Though it's only the first few weeks of the year, I am getting more and more stuff, which is great but surprising. I have several skin care items that were given to me as a trade-off with a friend that I bonded over skin care items. I received The Body Shop Cranberry Joy Shower Gel and the Vanilla Bliss Hand Lotion from her; she got this over the holidays  but turned them over to me because she learned that I loved Cranberry and have always wanted to try that scent.

I traded these for my bottle of Queen Helene Mint Julep Mask because she said she has always been itching to purchase it but never got the time to. Although I have to buy another mint julep, I think it's still worth giving up because my friend threw in a vanilla lotion for me-- because she didn't like the vanilla scent as well!

Crazy girl, eh? But all the better for me!

I have just very recently tried the TBS Cranberry Joy Shower Gel. I love, love, love the scent that's straight from the bottle. It is an amazing cranberry smell that is more fruity than sweet. It's not overwhelming and it is a welcome burst of scent! I bought a fluffy loofah for this so I can scrub the shower gel all over my body and found that when you use the gel, the scent goes from fruity cranberry to a solid, barky cranberry that is so awesome because it doesn't smell so cloying. 

This is pretty popular in our household because the person who showers after me always exclaims that the bathroom smells so wonderful! Right now, my niece also uses this because she loves the scent and it moisturizes well enough without having that slippery feel.

Another thing I got is the TBS Vanilla Bliss Hand Lotion. I usually use this at night after taking a bath. AI actually mistook this for a body lotion so at the first try I spread it all over my my hand and body and wondered why it was so creamy? I finally realized it was a hand lotion but whatever! I love it so so so much! The scent is a vanilla au lait kind of thing.  I still use it on my arms and shoulders because I just HAVE to smell the vanilla scent before I go to sleep; it's like aromatherapy for me now! I don't think I can have a well-rested sleep without smelling it on me hahaha!

What I'm worried about is running out of this lotion. Both the Cranberry Joy and Vanilla Bliss are Christmas exclusives / holiday specials :( If I run out of this lotion before this year's Christmas my sleep is doomed! XD With this lotion, I sleep better at night and I wake up with soft skin!

Thanks so much for reading!~~