Posts Tagged by Cupcakes
Rest Days the Sweet Tooth Runner way
| June 23, 2011 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Uncategorized |
HELLOOO lovelies!! Haha reading your confessions from yesterday made me crack up so much!! You guys are too funny! 
Ok, so today was a rest day for me. I used to HATE them/never do them, but now I love and EMBRACE them! They are proven to make you a better and stronger athlete with less chance of developing injury, and even the elites take them, so they must be good for ya! 
Sweet Tooth Runner’s definition of a rest day: A day when you just chill, let your body relax, and eat lots.
So putting this into practise…
Chilling
There was a lot of this today:
Lying down and just chilling. The sun came out for a few minutes when I was walking Buddy and I took full advantage. The sun makes me so HAPPY!
There was a few thousand episodes of Criminal Minds…
…which I have clearly watched too much of, because now I even have dreams about it! And they are SCARY!!
And much reading and drooling over the recipes in this book! I have a lot of parties this weekend, so I’ll be taking stuff from here…
I am The Cupcake Girl. Whenever I go to a party, I bring cupcakes. So there’ll be a lot of cupcake baking over the next few days, including a lot of frosting consumption, and I’m definitely not complaining 
Relaxing
I went to a relaxing evening BodyBalance class. Well, it was relaxing up until the point where I lost my balance doing this pose…
…and fell into the random guy next to me. It was awkward enough, but somehow managed to make it even MORE awkward by joking about us ‘skipping first base’. He didn’t look amused.
Eating lots
OATS IN A not-very-empty JAR!!
That is my FAVOURITE non-flavoured peanut butter!! Even better though when enjoyed like this…
I’ll have to get a big jar next time cos my oats never all fit in the jars! And I highly recommend leaving a REALLY thick layer at the bottom. Best thing EVER!!
Still enjoying being reunited with my stuffed dates!
Reader Glenda emailed me today to tell me that I should microwave my stuffed dates for 30 seconds. And I did. AMAZING!! I am never going back to the normal way!! THANKS Glenda!!
Lunch was a HUGE salad!
Avocado, broccoli, peppers and sweetcorn topped with Sabra hummus and with a multigrain wrap on the side
There was a SECOND round of OIAJ in the afternoon! I just can’t get enough! 
Oats in a not-very-empty cashew buttah jar!
And my current FAVOURITE sandwich!!
Crunchy peanut butter, apple, banana and jam sandwich. It. Rocks.
And MOST EXCITINGLY there was a Sweet Tooth package!! (Quality photography skills below…)
THAT is a special package containing Sweet Tooth giveaway thingies for you guys! Woop! I’ll post the review+giveaway soon so stay tuned!!
Do you take rest days? What do you do on them? I always make sure I have at least one a week, and more if I’m feeling it!
What is your fave sandwich? Mine changes on a weekly basis, but it’s definitely the crunchy PB, apple, banana and jam at the mo!
Got any plans for Friday or the weekend? MORE RUNNING WOOOOOOO!!! Ok, so just a few slow miles, but running is running and I can’t WAIT!!
LOVE y’all, enjoy the rest of your week!!
WIAW and WIWW!!
| June 14, 2011 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under What I...Wednesday |
Hey friends, and welcome to the usual What I Ate+Worked Tuesday Wednesday, hosted as always by the lovely Jenn at Peas and Crayons!!
So let’s get down to it…
What I Ate!
Shall we start with breakfast?
Chocolate Banana Oatbran Pudding! This is like my go-to breakfast. Keeps me full for hours and satisfies my sweet tooth at the same time- win win 
Lunch was totally random, but I just rolled with what I was feeling. Enjoyed in 3 parts…
A Fitnessista breakfast cookie (made with added 1/2 mashed banana and raisins), a bowl of sweetcorn and a chopped apple with cashew buttah! Totally hit the spot!! It was my first ever time trying a Fitnessista breakfast cookie!! I just made it before I left for the gym and stuck in ma fridge and then it was ready and waiting for me when I got back! 
SO delicious!!
Apparently today was an oaty day. I love me some oats. So I had oats in some form for breakfast and lunch, so why not an afternoon snack as well?
Yes that is a whole bowl of oatmeal as a snack. Have I ever mentioned I have a pretty large appetite? 
Just the usual 1/2 cup oats microwaved this time with raisins. Oatbran, (oaty) Breakfast Cookie and Oatmeal in one day. Can’t beat that! 
I also managed to fit in a banana with apricot-cashew butter….
And then dinner! Which I forgot to photograph (‘twas lentil stew) but really the best part is the dessert anyway and we all know it. Especially when it involves peanut butter frosting, chocolate chips AND sprinkles. Oh yes…
Same as I had a couple of days ago in this post, but with sprinkles which obviously took it to a whole new level I am on SUCH a Single Lady Cupcake kick at the moment, so I’m sorry if you see nothing but these in tomorrow’s post, because I honour my cravings and I might feel like having them for every meal who knows!
What I Worked!
(P.S. If you didn’t see my shin update see the beginning of yesterday’s post!!)
Basically, the bike and me have become best buds the last four weeks of no running. Four weeks, can you believe it?! I can’t!! But soon I’ll ditch the bike again for Betty…
Aaah Betty I miss you. We will be reunited in less than a week, and we will have a serious running PARTY (P.S. If I have just confused you there Betty is my favourite treadmill and yes I do talk to her…)
But really, I’m not going to ditch the bike. It is apparently the BEST form of cross-training (not including ‘elite’ machines like those Nordic ski thingys) you can do if you do good workouts! I used to be glued to the elliptical before my injury because it’s the most like running, but apparently it’s not great cross-training because it still works all the same muscles as running and doesn’t rest your calves. So anyway here’s another tough bike workout for you, from my future running coach. Get ready to SWEAT!!
Hill Sprints Bike Workout
- Warm-up for at least 5 minutes
- 1 minute hill sprint (HIGH resistance, going all out. Extra challenge: after 30 secs turn the resistance up even more)
- 30 seconds spinning (No resistance, fast legs)
- 1 minute easy cycling (medium resistance, RPM 80-90)
- Repeat as many times as desired, then cooldown for 10 minutes.
This one is TOUGH. And you have to sprint all out for that one minute, so no cheating and doing half effort! Your heart rate should get to about 95% during the hill sprints and then come right back down to low aerobic (about 65%) by the end of your 1.5 minute recovery, ready to to sprint up that hill again!
Gotta love those craaaazy endorphins!
And by the way…….
….a little something for YOU tomorrow…
Haha it said what it was on the package so I had to write over it and leave you guessing! Anyway, stay tuned tomorrow for an AWESOME giveaway!!
What is your go-to breakfast? Definitely banana oatbran pudding!
Best thing you ate today or yesterday? Definitely the Single Lady Cupcake with PB frosting+choc chips+ sprinkles
Random Q: Do you have an exercise class you’ve heard about that you want to try? Yes LOADS! I’m actually trying some new things this week, including pilates tomorrow and hot yoga later this week! Can’t WAIT!! I love trying new things!!
LOTS OF LOVE and sending happy wishes to you for a great day!! <3
Pancakes, Hills and the Sunday Slob.
| February 20, 2011 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Uncategorized |
I had an awesome Sunday. Sundays are just generally great, a) because there are pancakes involved, b) because it means a hill run, and c) because it means being a Sunday Slob.
a) Pancake Sunday!! Did you know I am officially the worst pancake flipper in the world? Case in point:
Course I scraped it outta the pan and ate it anyway! 
Katie’s Red Velvet pancakes (go check hers out- they’re delish and look so much better the way she made them!!), sans the red part because I had no food colouring…
Topped with coconut butter and choccie chips, with PB+J for dippage 
The Katie obsession continued that evening with yet another Banana Bread Muffin For One, topped with raw chocolate pudding as frosting and shredded coconut:
Sorry for the Katie obsession. I am not joking when I say you HAVE to try these and her recipes in general because they will send you into a FOODGASMIC COMA.
grea
The Sunday Pancake theme was carried over to dinner, with a Triple Chickpea plate.
Socca (like a chickpea pancake), topped with spinach, nooch and Angela’s delicious crispy chickpea bites, with a side of roasted red pepper hummus. Gotta love those chickpeas!! 
htra
b) Hill run!! I have a love-hate relationship with hills, because they totally kick my butt! I did manage to up the speed of the 30 min pre-set hill workout this week slightly, with the first half in 8.00min/mile and the second half in 7.47 min/mile…yahooo! 
7% inline is no joke, and equalled a very sweaty beast afterwards! Chilled out on the elliptical for about half an hour afterwards with Paula Radcliffe.
Her book is amazing. If you are interested in running, I really recommend it!
gre
c) Sunday Slob
Slob Example #1: A lie in.
When you have pancakes to make, and a church service to get to, a lie-in means sacrifices. And that meant no hair-brushing, no make-up, and not even changing out of my PJ top. Priorities people!!
Shhh...they'll never know...
I just didn’t take off my coat. Our secret, k? 
ytsj
Slob Example #2: Work procrastination. I settled down with the laptop and vegan instant soup-in-a-mug to tackle some work, and then doing no work at all, and instead bookmarking 1000 more recipes to make.
This happens every time. Bad Emma!!
Slob Example #3: Cereal munching straight from the packet. I couldn’t be bothered to make a proper snack after my workout, so the cereal and I got well acquainted on my bed, and got caught in the act by my momma.
Oooops!
Must. Get. Every. Last. Crumb…
Shameless.
ger
So now I’m off to finish possibly the only productive thing I did all day: washing these bad boys after yesterday’s run.
Obviously the most efficient way to do it is in the bathtub. You have to get in there too of course.
That’s how I spend my Sundays.
rts
So how did you spend your Sunday? Bonus points for anyone who wore their PJ’s to church too.
ger
Are you a pancake person, and if so, what is your fave flavour or recipe? Please tell me you love pancakes as much as I do, or I will cry.
grea
What are you looking forward to this week? I’m looking forward to tomorrow! I’m going with a friend to the Hummus Bros hummus bar for lunch, and then to Whole Foods! Hopefully I’ll get in a run too, and it’ll be the perfect day methinks!
grera
Hope you’ve had a great weekend friends!!
Exciting, exciting, exciting!
| January 24, 2011 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Uncategorized |
Hey friends! 
So hyped for the giveaway!! And it was great reading what you guys are all excited about!!
Today and yesterday have been exciting days for me too, for so many reasons!
1. Exciting amounts of chocolate.
Sunday's yummy breakfast
Chocolate oatmeal pancakes! Delish, but not quite perfect yet! I’ll keep working on it and post the recipe when I’m done, promise! 
Today's Choco-Banana Oatmeal
Every day's copious amounts of dark chocolate! Mmm...
2. Exciting amounts of baking. And more chocolate. Combining the two = excitement overload!
More chocolate vegan cupcakes for one of my BFF’s birthday celebration (Happy Birthday Louise if you’re reading this!!!) which was today! And luckily for me there was a lot of frosting left over at the end of the baking process… 
I had quite a few of those today…! SO good!! Man I love cupcakes…
3. Exciting workouts!
Yesterday, I decided to head out on a run while my cupcakes were baking! That gave me 15 minutes! It was an awesome short run, average 7.25 min/mile pace!
Wheee max speed of 5.39 min/mile!! If only I could run that fast all the time! 
I’m tellin’ ya, these bad boys give me wings!
Or it’s just that placebo effect thing…….nah, wings I tell you!!
Today was a 5k speed interval run. 1k @ 13.5/14 kmph —> 0.25k @ 10kmph (cooldown pace) repeated until 5k was done! I then dashed straight off to BodyPump! Love getting ma sweat on! 
4. Exciting finally working out how to use the treadmill TV! I felt very smart! 
Those intervals went by so much faster when watching Criminal Minds!
It was a bit of a violent episode though…I may have squealed out loud at a few parts! 
5. Exciting not having a squished banana for the first time ever!
Oh this is so geeky+embarrassing…
The contents of my gym bag...please ignore the manky towel!
“What’s that, a plastic banana?” No friends, that is a Banana Guard.
Yes, laugh away, but despite the lameness, I proudly enjoyed my perfectly unbruised banana, thank you very much Bald Man Who Laughed At Me!!
Okay, so make me feel better and a little less like a loser by telling me one embarrassing or lame thing about you, or something embarrassing you’ve done. I should really do a confessions post at some point…but I wouldn’t know where to begin!!
And what’s exciting that happened to you today? I know I kinda asked this yesterday, but I loved reading those so much, so tell me some more exciting things! It’s the little things too!
Hope you’re having a great start to the week! Love you all!
P.S. If you haven’t already, and you live in the UK, you can enter my giveaway! You only have until Wednesday, so get moving!!
Spin, Confessions, and Kitchen Antics
| January 4, 2011 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Exercise class reviews |
Hey friends! 
Today was my last day of freedom before getting back to the routine tomorrow. So I made it a good one! 
I’m also going to try to get in a early speedwork run tomorrow mornin’, but I’ve never been good at early starts…
Confession #1: I hit the ‘off’ button on my alarm clock instead of the snooze button. So I missed BodyPump 
. But I still made it in time for spin though, which was amazing!
Confession #2: When the instructor asked if anyone was new, I didn’t raise my hand. I just went along with it! 
(I know I should have done, and if you are taking a new class, you should let the instructor know if it is your first time!)
My thoughts
-
Such a great workout! This class gave me the toughest cardio workout I think out of all the classes I’ve been to!
-
Love the mix of high-impact and low-impact stuff. The class is mixed up with sprint sections, slow high-resistance sections, etc.
-
Great use of music (Black Eyed Peas ‘Pump It’ for sprints= pure genius) and instructor was great.
-
My legs were dead afterwards. This class is obviously great for the leg muscles! Spin instructors (*cough Janae cough*) must have leg muscles of steel!
I actually don’t have any negatives at all for this class! I will defo be going back when I can!
Runner's high? No, spinner's high!
Confession #3: I had to dash straight after class to make it to my dentists appointment, so didn’t have time to shower. Sorry Dr. Lincoln.
After spin and the dentist (and then a shower!), pretty much the whole rest of the day was spent in the kitchen!
I made an awesome lunch, based on Freya’s recipe for Spicy Pumpkin, Red Lentil and Chickpea Smush, but with a few small tweaks (re.g. ran out of chickpeas, so used canned mixed pulses, etc). Delish!
Then it was time to get ma bake on! First up was raspberry scones, from this god-send of a recipe book (Babycakes) that I have been raving about non-stop since I got it. And it did not disappoint.
I love raspberries.
I love making delicious baked goods.
I love that vegan goodies can be just as good (or better in this case!) than non-vegan.
I love all that stuff so much, that once I had finished those, it was on to the next thing. Chocolate cupcakes with chocolate buttercream. (From the same book). I’m going to a get-together thing tomorrow evening, and there’s going to be a buffet. (Alert the Buffet Monster!) So this is my offering!
My trick that I learned from the last time I baked cupcakes, was to make the buttercream first. That way, you can chill it so it’ll be ready to pipe once the cakes are done!
Wrapped tightly in film and refrigerated.
Ooooh buttercream…
Tell me you love buttercream as much as I do, and we will be BFF. Seriously. 
Of course, cake and buttercream didn’t provide quite enough sugar to feed my friends with. There had to be more.
Sugar stars. Win.
Confession #4: There was a lot of leftover buttercream. Any guesses where most of it ended up? 
Man I wanted to eat one of those cupcakes so bad! I just had to content myself with consuming the leftover buttercream. Not a bad trade-off really! Buttercream > Cake to me. But you all know who’s gonna be first to the buffet table tomorrow to nab one of those bad boys!
So are you more of a buttercream/frosting person or a cake person? If you didn’t get the oh-so-subtle message from this post, I’m a buttercream+frosting gal! And have you ever tried spin? Thoughts?
One week till Christmas!!
| December 17, 2010 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Uncategorized |
ONE WEEK TILL CHRISTMAS!!!! <—–In less than 2 hours anyway- I’m jumping the gun a little bit! 
I had a last minute panic order yesterday night on Amazon, as it was the last day for (free) delivery before Christmas! I literally got my order in about half an hour before it was too late! What can I say, I’m so organised! 
The order included:
‘Salt’ DVD for my dad, as he really wanted to see it at the cinema, but never got round to it…
…‘Eat Pray Love’ for my momma, because I know she’ll love it…
…and the Operation Beautiful book for my best friend, because everyone needs to read this book!
I’ve never seen Salt, but don’t particularly want to either, as I’m am not an Angelina Jolie fan in any way! Don’t get me started on her! But I’ve read Eat, Pray, Love and Operation Beautiful and loved them both. What about you? Have you read/seen these?
After the mad late-night panic, I needed a good, relaxing breakfast! Enter: apple and cinnamon stovetop oatmeal!
Deeelicious, and so perfect for this weather! Talking of the weather, it snowed again heavily today! So no run! Boo 
It’s also sposed to snow even heavier tomorrow, so I’m going to my gym in the morning! Going to a 9am BodyPump class, then hitting the treadmill hopefully! 
The snow had only just melted from before! This was our town just 10 days ago:
I’m also looking forward to tomorrow night, as I’m going out for a Christmas meal with friends. As we had to order our food beforehand, and there was nothing vegan on the menu, I called up the restaurant about it, and they said they would sort it out. So I wonder what I’ll get…! I also haven’t gotten all dressed up in so long (my life is spent mainly in hoodies, sweats and running clothes! ), so I can’t wait!!! 
So what are your plans for the weekend? And what presents have you got for your loved ones?
Now please excuse me while I go and munch on some of this…
and all of one (or two!) of these:
Have a great weekend!
Vegan Vanilla cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream
| December 16, 2010 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Uncategorized |
Doesn’t that sound amazing? Check it out:
Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream (adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World)
Cupcakes:
- 1 cup soy milk
- 1 tsp vinegar (apple cider is recommended by the book, but I didn’t have any so just used normal/malt)
- 1.25 cups plain/all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp cornflour/cornstarch
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup vegan margarine, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp almond/caramel/other extract, or more vanilla if you prefer
Frosting
- 1/4 cup shortening/vegetable fat
- 1/4 cup vegan margarine, softened
- 2 cups icing/confectioner’s sugar
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.*
- Whisk soy milk with vinegar and set aside for at least a few minutes to curdle.
- Sift flour, cornflour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix together.
- Cream together the margarine and sugar in a seperate bowl on medium speed for no more than two minutes, until light and fluffy. Then beat in the extracts, and then alternate beating in the curdled milk mixture and dry ingredients, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Fill the cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for approx 20-22 mins till lightly golden and done. Transfer to a cooling rack and leave to cool completely before frosting.
- Buttercream: In a small bowl, cream together the shortening and margarine, then add the sugar in roughly 1/2 cup additions. After each addition of sugar, add a splash of lemon juice and beat well with a electric handheld mixer. Add the vanilla and zest and beat for a few more minutes until smooth, creamy and fluffy. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the fridge until ready to use. Then pipe away and decorate to your heart’s content! Or just slather on. Whatever floats your boat!
- Enjoy!
*I used muffin liners, as I didn’t have any cupcake liners. I found muffin liners didn’t work as well- they didn’t make as many for a start! Next time, I would either use the recommended liners or bun/small cake cases.
Because I used muffin cases, mine only made 9 instead of 12:
Making the buttercream is just the best bit ever!
Mmm…frosting…
Seriously though, don’t even try to steal my spatula- licking it clean is my job!
The beautiful finished product:
Stevie Wonder’s ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ is playing right now…
And two cupcakes later, I was a very happy girl!
This weekend, I’m going to be baking some Christmas gingerbread cookies. So while I was baking today, I was having a very tough internal debate, that really made me question who I am: Am I a Cookie Girl or a Cake Girl? See I would say both normally, but if I had to pick? I might have to go with cookies…argh but too hard to decide, especially after two of these beauties!
So weigh in: are you a cupcake or cookie person?
Have a great Friday tomorrow! 
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World!
| December 13, 2010 | Posted by Sweet Tooth Runner under Uncategorized |
Cold Cold Cold! When you have a cold, and it is cold, it’s all about oatmeal!
My throat was really sore, and I wasn’t at all hungry this morning, but I knew I should eat, and would feel better after doing so. And this pumpkin oatmeal really did help! 
Another throat-soothing remedy I had later was my favourite instant soup…
…which was enjoyed in my favourite mug:
Recognise that dog anyone? 
I was given that mug for my 7th birthday- and I still love it! 
Oh, and today was Secret Santa day! Which meant…I got to open more presents! My Secret Santa got me two recipe books (she knows me so well!).
‘Everyday Vegetarian’ cookbook, which has tons of great recipes and pictures for every one (v. important in cookbooks for me!).
And….
‘Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World’!! 75 recipes for vegan cupcakes! Can’t argue with that! 
First to catch my eye was the gingerbread cupcakes (because it’s Xmas, and I love gingerbread!) and peanut butter cupcakes!!
One of my friends received this homemade gingerbread house as part of her present, because she had said she’d always wanted one. Isn’t it amazing?
Of course, in lieu of my cupcake book, I had to go out and buy some necessary ingredients from the book!
So stay tuned over the next couple of days for a vegan cupcake post!
What are your favourite cold-remedies? And have you ever tried making a vegan cupcake? I haven’t…yet!
Have a great week!
