Current Knitting Projects and Oatmeal Protein Ball Recipe

Hello Friends,

I hope you are all doing well. I have been working on knitting a couple of projects lately, the blue infinity scarf and the front piece of the sweater. They are both coming along well,  but I need to buy another skein of the blue yarn this week to finish up the scarf. I have been making some progress with the sweater piece, it is getting longer day by day I can't wait to start the neckline.  For my next project, I am thinking of knitting some socks with fingering yarn, so this week I will stop by Michael's to pick up both the yarn for the scarf and some new yarn for the socks.

Infinity scarf halfway done

The front piece of the sweater in progress

I tried out a new recipe today that would make a great healthy snack called "Oatmeal protein energy balls" from the Cityline website. I really like them they taste amazing. I am supposed to only eat two as a snack as part of the weight loss challenge, but I feel satisfied after eating only two.

Oatmeal protein energy balls in the container 

Protein balls recipe:  from Cityline 

• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 2 scoops vanilla protein powder (I bought Nestle Boost)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp flax seeds
• 1/2 cup smooth, natural peanut butter
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp natural vanilla extract
• 2-4 tbsp water (I added 4 tablespoons to help the ingredients stick together

Directions: 

• Mix oats, protein powder, cinnamon and flax to large bowl.
• combine peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla extract (Will be sticky and crumbly) 
• add in liquids, use your hands to combine until it comes together in a sticky ball that holds together. If mixture is too dry, add in more liquid but not so much that it won’t hold shape.
• Roll into balls using hands.
• Place in a container to set in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
• Store in fridge until ready to eat.

Enjoy!

I tried them and I loved them!

Thank you so much for visiting my blog! I hope you like the recipe today and maybe will give it a try. I will catch up with you on Wednesday for Ginny's Yarn Along. If you like what you saw today there will be more coming, you can follow my blog on Bloglovin' or on Google followers. 

Have a great day!

Stitchy Saturday:Parrallelograms Stitch Pattern

Hello Friends, 

Happy Saturday! these weeks feel like they are flying by. It feels like I just started Stitchy Saturday and now it's been three weeks since I started it. I have been enjoying learning how to knit more stitches and patterns and I am improving my skills as a knitter. This week I was searching Pinterest for stitches and I saw many nice stitches. The one that caught my eye most was this parallelograms stitch pattern, It looks so pleasing to the eye with the shapes in both knit and purl stitches. It was also fun to knit up! so here are the details: 

What stitch:

This week I tried the Parallelograms Stitch 

How my swatch of this pattern turned out

Pattern:
Knitted in a multiple of 12 sts and 16-row repeat.
Row 1: * K1, p5, k5, p1; repeat from * to the end.
Row 2: * K2, p4, k4, p2; repeat from * to the end.
Row 3: * K3, p3; repeat from * to the end.
Row 4: * K4, p2, k2, p4; repeat from * to the end.
Row 5: * K5, p1, k1, p5; repeat from * to the end.
Rows 6 - 7 - 8: * K6, p6; repeat from * to the end.
Row 9: * P1, k5, p5, k1; repeat from * to the end.
Row 10: * P2, k4, p4, k2; repeat from * to the end.
Row 11: * P3, k3; repeat from * to the end.
Row 12: * P4, k2, p2, k4; repeat from * to the end.
Row 13: * P5, k1, p1, k5; repeat from * to the end.
Rows 14 - 15 - 16: * P6, k6; repeat from * to the end.

Found the pattern on knittingstitchpatterns.com

What I thought: 

I loved this pattern! it turned out beautifully and I got familiar with the pattern quickly because of the repetition in the pattern. I like how the pattern turned out and I was already dreaming and thinking about what I could make with this stitch and I think this pattern would be perfect for a big blanket, or a long scarf. These projects would show off this stitch in all of its glory. 

Knitter level: 

Beginner. It was a simple pattern just using knit and purl stitches and the pattern was easy to follow. I think beginner knitters can handle it if you take your time and pay attention to which row you are on. I highlighted the row I was on to make sure I did not lose track of where I was. 

Thank you so much for visiting my blog, it is always nice to read your comments and get your feedback. Have you knitting this stitch pattern before? if so, what did you knit with the pattern? 
Thank you and have a great day!

Yarn Along Wednesday: Knitlandia, Sweater Knitting, and Healthy Recipe Sharing

Hello Friends

I hope you are all doing well. I have been busy knitting up the front part of the sweater lately since I finished the back piece. I am looking forward to getting to the neckline which will be the part of the front piece which is really different from the back piece. I have also been knitting up swatches in different stitches for my Stitchy Saturday posts.
I have been reading Knitlandia by Clara Parkes. I just started reading it, and I can already tell that I will really enjoy it. I can't wait to read about all of her travels and knitting along the way.  Have any of you read it before? I am reading it on my Toronto Library account, they are affiliated with Overdrive ebooks and audiobooks so you can actually borrow books online which I find so convenient.

Knitlandia and front piece of sweater

I started the Cityline Weight Loss Challenge in January. It is a very popular weight loss challenge in the Greater Toronto Area. It is lead by Dr. Joey Shulman, who is a nutritionist and an author. I love the program so far I have been eating way healthier than before and really focusing on what I am eating. I have been drinking more green tea and herbal teas at night which is so calming. I like to drink the teas while I am knitting my sweater and watching tv. I really love some of the dishes I started making while on the plan. What I love about this plan is that it is not focused on calories but on the quality of the foods you eat that promote a balance in your blood sugar levels so you don't reach for things that will cause you to gain weight. I have also just finished reading Joey Shylman's book called "The Metabolism Boosting Diet" which offers so much more information about why we are eating certain foods and avoiding others.  I highly recommend this diet if you want to lose weight in a healthy way and also want to have more energy and feel better which is also what I have achieved from starting this diet.I will be sharing my weight loss journey with you when I am finished with before and after photos. Below are some of the recipes I have tried from Cityline.ca. I will include recipes below and links to where I found the recipes. The photos are all taken by me.

Chicken Pesto and roasted brussel sprouts (dinner) 

Pesto chicken with roasted Brussels sprouts

Ingredients:

• 4 oz. piece of chicken
• 1 tablespoon pesto
• ½ cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 cup Brussels sprouts, halved
• ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Method:

Pre heat oven to 350F. Top chicken with pesto and tomatoes and coat Brussels sprouts with olive oil and sea salt.  Put everything in oven for 15-20 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink inside and brussels sprouts have softened.

GF = gluten free

recipe from Cityline

Greek Quinoa Salad (lunch)

 Greek Quinoa Salad

Serves 1

• ½ cup cooked quinoa
• ¼ cup green peppers
• ¼ cup cucumbers
• 7 black olives
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• ½ lemon, squeezed
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 hard boiled egg, sliced in half
• 1 tablespoon feta cheese

Method:

Add cooked quinoa into large bowl and add in peppers, cucumbers, and olives. In small bowl, mix together olive oil, lemon juice and oregano and add into large bowl. Mix everything together and top with egg and sprinkle with cheese.

Recipe from Cityline

Open-faced turkey and avocado sandwich (lunch)

Open-faced turkey and avocado sandwich 

Ingredients: 

• 1 slice of sprouted grain toast
• 4 oz. of nitrate-free turkey slices
• Lettuce, tomato slices
• Thinly sliced avocado
• 1 tbsp light mayonnaise
• 1/2 tbsp mustard

Recipe from Cityline

Thank you so much for visiting my blog and let me know in the comments below if you would like me to share more healthy recipes I find.