On Road Tripping and (just a little) Time to Breathe.

Anyone fancy a road trip?

Life is a journey, not a destination.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Holla friends and bloggers! It’s so great to be baaaack!

I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful few days over the weekend! As for us, we took a few extra days to enjoy the Canadian holiday that just passed and celebrated with the first road trip of the summer season.

We love to road trip!

Ah, open space, open roads, and open minds.

Road trips are not for everyone, and I know a few people who simply don’t enjoy time cooped up in a car for hours on end. With that, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite ‘more’ ways to make road travel (just a little) ‘less’ stressful, and maybe (just a little) more enjoyable.

Of course, if you are a lover of the open road like we are, I’d love to hear your tips!

Here are a few of our faves…

Eat breakfast. Eat it before you go, or pack it and take it with you.

Just as you wouldn’t set off for the highway without a full tank of gas, its important to start the trip with a good full tummy!

So whether it’s a bowl of oatmeal, a piece of toast, or a yummy green smoothie (my next post), enjoy it before you head off.

Or, simply throw your smoothie into a clean mason jar and you are good to go for whenever you do get hungry!

The only journey is the one within.

~ Rainer Maria Rilke

Pack plenty of food. The key to a good time is always good food, and the car is no exception!

Easy to eat and clean up healthy snacks are best – and are always appreciated as well!

Our faves are lots of raw veggies, PB&J sandwiches, bagels, jujubes, and easy fruits like apples and oranges.

Nothing feels as good as being prepared, and I love pulling the good stuff out of the bag and smiling while they chow down 🙂

Take lots of fresh water. Staying well hydrated anytime is key, and especially on the road (even if it does mean more annoying pee breaks).

Keeping hydrated ensures you arrive at your destination fresh and ready, instead of dry and wilted.

Water helps with alertness too (for the driver). So pack lots of the cold stuff just to be safe, and pee breaks are always a nice excuse to hit another view-point!

When the well is dry, we know the worth of water.

~ Benjamin Franklin

Cover your bases. Before leaving for the road, make sure you’ve got enough supplies to keep everyone happy….toilet paper, paper towel, tea towels for extra spills, plastic bags, hand sanitizer, gravol, and pillows & blankets for those who might sleep in the back…..or the front….always me on the way home!

Remember to love the driver. I made a rule years ago to honor the driver that got me somewhere. It’s super corny, but I know my driving hubby likes a little of that love, and I like to give it.

The open road can be harsh, and driving is stressful. I try to remember the driver, to thank them, and to take care of them. So whether it’s a little neck massage, an arm scratch, a well-timed Altoid, or even just a genuine ‘thank you’ – a little goes a long way, even if it is just a little gesture.

I wonder if she is practicing mindful breathing?

Take the opportunity to breathe (or not). Anyone tried mindful breathing on the road? It’s a great time to focus on breath and calm the self for the long road ahead. Just a few deep breaths to start the trip and you might relax (just a little) more.

Now wouldn’t that be swell?

Smile, breathe and go slowly.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Get ready to be inspired. My favorite part of the open road is the possibility ahead, especially at the start of a trip!

With all the promise of a few days away, comes an unknown that brings us joy and maybe (just a little) hope. Hope that we’ll see and do things that will bring us joy.

Hope in the memories we’ll make and the sights that we’ll see. Notebooks, cameras, books and music. Anything to inspire and delight!

The world is ours to see.

Strong and content I travel the open road.

~ Walt Whitman

With this view, I am sure you can imagine we didn’t leave much, and arriving there was pretty sweet indeed.

We had a great time with old friends, and it was surely worth the drive.

The meals weren’t half bad either, as you can see from these shots of the wonderfully bustling farmer’s market 🙂

• 

  An inspired vacation salad..

  Are you a fan of travel or road trips?

• What are your favorite travel snacks?

In my next post I’ll be sharing with you my latest green smoothie (pictured here today), and I am so thrilled to have heard from those of you who had success with some of the recent IPOM recipes!

Thank you for your wonderful comments, support, and feedback – I always love to hear from you 🙂

Wishing you all a super wonderful week!

Yours in Less,

Dessert Recipe: Spring Rhubarb Almond Squares

Time for a special spring treat!

Imagination is the highest form of research.

― Albert Einstein

You know it’s a good life when you’ve got great neighbors. Let’s hear it for great friends and neighbors, shall we?

When it comes to our hood, we’ve lucked out to the max, as was evidenced by the large bushel of blushingly gorgeous rhubarb that was harvested across the lane and delivered to my back deck this past week (thanks Brian!).

I'll call this the Diva salad today 🙂 It's so yummy!

But before we dive into this gorgeous recipe, I’ve got to say a very special thank you to another kind of friend.

The blogging kind!

Sarah at the Healthy Diva has a guest post up over at her Sydney, Australia based blog featuring IPOM and a simply yummy salad dressing recipe .

Feel free to pay her a visit to see what was up with this salad I enjoyed this past week. It’s a goodie!

Thanks so much to Sarah for the wonderfully kind invite – and welcome to any Diva readers who may be visiting IPOM for the 1st time!

“Be humble for you are made of earth. Be noble for you are made of stars”

― Serbian proverb

This rhubarb gifting came to me just as I had picked up a magazine dedicated to spring recipes – it’s easy to stumble upon delightful ways to use asparagus, rhubarb, nettles, and the many other wonderful spring foods that come at this time of year here in Canada.

I made a few alterations, based on what I had on hand, and went straight to work – reserving the remaining rhubarb to stew and use later (I grew up eating it with plain yoghurt for dessert).

The result was a beautiful, date square like dessert, with a bright gooey filling and gorgeous light texture.

All over town now, there are shoots of rhubarb plants exploding in backyard gardens everywhere.

I’ve never made space to plant it in my small backyard garden, and I figure as long as Brian’s across the lane I won’t need to 🙂

I used real butter in this version as the recipe called for, but I would be delighted to see it veganized with coconut butter too.

There is no other dairy in the recipe at all, so making this adjustment would be easy!

The Less:

Less far away fruit desserts means easy ways to eat local. Less tough to find ingredients means using what’s on hand, so you can get to work as soon as harvest is done. Less heavily sweet and cakey desserts means savoring without filling up, so you can still feel the pleasure long after you are done.

The More:

More rhubarb means more fresh, lively flavor. More local food means less carbon, and less cost to the planet and your pocketbook. More neighborly ways means stronger community, and more yummy desserts means inviting them over is easy.

Spring Rhubarb Almond Bars:

Adapted from Canadian Living Magazine

• 6 cups chopped fresh rhubarb (about 6 thick stalks)
• (3/4) cup brown sugar
• (1) tsp grated orange zest
• (1/3) cup fresh orange juice
• (1) tbsp all purpose flour
• (1.5) cups quick oats (not instant)
• (2/3) cup all purpose flour
• (1) cup brown sugar
• (3/4) tsp cinnamon
• pinch salt
• (2/3) cold butter, cubed
• (4) tbsp sliced or slivered almonds, chopped

Heat oven to 350 degrees and get a 9 inch square cake pan ready (no need to oil it).

In a large saucepan, combine the first 5 ingredients – rhubarb, sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and flour – and bring to a boil with the lid on. Reduce heat to medium, and cook, partially covered until the mixture is reduced to 1 3/4 cups or so – about 25-30 minutes. Make sure to stir regularly to keep the mixture from burning at the bottom.

Once cooked and reduced, turn the heat off and allow to cool for a few minutes, about 10 – 15 minutes or so.

While the rhubarb cooks, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a mixing bowl and stir to combine. With fingers or a pastry cutter, blend in the butter (I always use my hands for this – nature’s tools – but that’s just me!).

Press 2/3 of the mixture into the cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown, about 2 minutes. remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes before adding the rhubarb mixture.

Add the cooled rhubarb mixture to the pan and spread until it is even.

Next, add the chopped almonds to the remaining crumble mixture, and gently press together into small clumps. Sprinkle the mixture over the filling and distribute evenly.

Bake at 350 until the crumble is golden, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan before cutting into squares.

“The truth is, everyone is going to hurt you. You just got to find the ones worth suffering for.”

~ Bob Marley

Cut the cold butter into the bowl with a knife. Get ready to mix it all together.

A person’s a person, no matter how small.

~ Dr. Seuss, Horton Hears a Who

Crumble it all up until the mixture is well-integrated – making sure there are no large chunks of butter or sugar left straggling around in there.

I get in there like a kid in the dirt. I don’t like to wear gloves to garden either, do you?

Press the 2/3 of the mixture into the pan as tightly as you can. This will be the base for this wonderful yummy filling!

I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.

― Helen Keller

Let this mixture cool before adding it to the base – about 15 minutes or so.

Try not to eat too much of it as it does this (but do be sure to eat a little).

You never fail until you stop trying.

~ Albert Einstein

Any almonds will do for this, sliced, slivered, even chopped whole almonds if that is what’s on hand.

Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.

~ Mahatma Gandhi

The result, a beautiful pan of (neighborly) spring goodness. Worthy of stopping to enjoy with friends, neighbors and family.

Serve these with or without vanilla ice cream, and give some to your neighbors (or not).

These guys will keep in a container or tin at room temperature – I am sure they would make a rather smashing breakfast served alongside some cashew cream or thick greek yoghurt.

How’s that for versatility?

You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm.

~ Colette

I can’t wait for the next harvest from across the lane! Truthfully, Brian has got a pretty sweet garden and so I just might head over there with these bars awfully soon.

They just might be good enough to keep him delivering more of his earthly goodies 🙂

Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.

~ John Lennon

I hope each and every one of you had a fabulous weekend – next up, I’ll share with you a kick ass salad recipe inspired this week by a gift from another great friend of mine!

It features a favorite of mine that I haven’t posted about for a while…yep….it’s kale!

So stay tuned it’s that good.

• Are you gearing up to use rhubarb this spring or better yet, do you grow it?
• What is your favorite rhubarb or spring dessert recipe?

I hope you enjoy these as much as we did – and thanks again for reading and for your comments! I had a lot of fun with the last post and got more than a few awesome ideas for not only making but seasoning popcorn. Thank you!

Wishing you all a truly fabulous week – PS – I am traveling again (this time to the TDOT aka Toronto) so I might be spotty with my comments – I’ll be back the end of the week though!

Yours in Less (from out east),