Back in the Fall I decided I was going to revamp my blog, and I honestly thought I could do it in a month. Ha, boy was that wrong! But I learned a whole lot in the process, and had a chance to really do it right. I added lots of content including a better recipe index, shop section, and answering all sorts of questions like my eating philosophy.
So in today’s post, I really wanted to go over all of the changes to the site and also expand on my eating philosophy a bit. After 7+ years of blogging, it’s something I’ve touched on here and there but haven’t really addressed it fully.
My Eating Philosophy
In the beginning
When I started my blog, I wasn’t necessarily focused on any type of cooking or eating. My plan for blogging revolved around cooking new recipes and ingredients I had always wanted to work with. So it became a place for me to experiment and try new stuff beginning with the pomegranate.
But like all things, over the years my blog has certainly evolved and changed. While I still play around with new dishes and ingredients, I also love focusing on flavors and putting my own take on recipes.
Since 2016
Since about 2016, I’ve made my health and eating a bigger priority. Actively trying to eat well, so that I can take care of myself. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t indulge a bit, and I also don’t follow a diet.
I know that’s a question that a lot of people have as we all try to create our own journey and eating philosophy. I find that the most important decision we make with food is to eat what feels right to you. For me this looks like eating about 80% healthy and 20% indulgences.
That sounds easy enough, but it certainly can have its challenges. My intention is never going to be 100% healthy eating, because I don’t want food to dictate my mood or decisions. But I enjoy healthy cooking, so that is a big part of how I can cut back on indulgences.
Dairy Free Year
In 2017 I challenged myself to only cook dairy food on my blog for the year. It started off as a chance to see if it was something I could even do, because I love cheese and butter and cheese (ha!). What I found was that making food taste great without dairy was pretty easy, and you could get creative and no one would know the difference.
Moving Forward
For the most part, my cooking at home still is dairy free, but moving forward I didn’t want that restriction on my recipes. I now know how to cook that way, and there are lots and lots of dairy free recipes you can find here. But I do plan on adding dairy free alternatives on any recipes that I do throw some cheese or butter in, for example. I also plan to switch to grass fed butter once all of my Earth Balance brand vegan butter runs out.
What you can find on my blog really is a great reflection now of my eating philosophy. I’m all about using tons of veggies and fruit and healthy ingredients and maximizing their flavors, so we can all crave good-for-you food.
I try to eat pretty cleanly throughout the day, and will often indulge in beer and pizza whenever I’m spending time with my boyfriend. But that can be balanced out, since I try to eat well outside of those times. And don’t worry, because I definitely experiment on healthy recipes with him and usually he doesn’t even realize how great the food is for him. So it’s not ALL indulging when we hang out. 😉
A typical day with my eating philosophy:
Morning:
Drink 30 ounces of water first thing.
Lemon and ginger water for a little morning detox.
Breakfast:
Hot tea or coffee
Then one of the following:
- Scrambled eggs with tomatoes & spinach on a piece of sprouted grains toast with 1 serving of avocado
- Yogurt with granola, fresh or frozen berries, coconut chips & honey
- Smoothie bowl
- Green smoothie
- Berry quinoa oats recipe for chilly mornings..
Snacks (one of the following):
Tone it up bar
Apple with cinnamon
Kombucha
Kimchi
Piece of dark chocolate
Green Tea
Lunch (one of the following):
Kale salad with veggies, lean protein, and a light vinaigrette like this one
Bowl of ramen when it’s cold out
Quinoa bowl with roasted veggies, lean proteins, and some avocado
Sweet Potato Turmeric Bowl
Dinner (one of the following):
Roasted Veggies, Lean Protein with brown rice or quinoa
Pesto or avocado pasta with shrimp or chicken
Bowl of ramen when it’s cold out
I still enjoy pasta, because it’s kind of my weakness. But some of my favorite gluten free alternatives are:
I find that if you cook these pastas correctly, you really can’t tell the difference from traditional noodles.
NEW BLOG DESIGN! YAY!
And if you’ve been to my blog in the past, then you probably notice the site looks a lot different. That’s due to me getting many of the pieces in place to update the look of my blog.
The truth is that I was feeling a bit uninspired by my site and I knew it really needed revamped. I had some big plans for what I wanted the blog to look like, so I dug in and made it happen.
It had been years since I had updated my blog this thoroughly, so it was beyond time for this change. And I was pretty excited about how it all turned out, so I can’t wait for you to explore!
The structure:
So let’s take a tour of the site, shall we?! I created a short video to walk you through my blog and how to find what you’re looking for, so check that out here:
The home page is going to show you all of the recent posts I’ve done, with the newest posts being at the top. This will hopefully be a quick way for you to catch up on anything you’ve missed. There are also 3 different spots for you to sign up for my newsletter, which I hope you’ll do. I share exclusive stuff with my list and always make sure that you’re up to date on the blog happenings.
You’ll find that I post recipes and also write blog posts about things I want to share with you. Each recipe I share has its own blog post where I talk about the background, all the highlights, and tips for that dish. Then that blog post links to a separate recipe post, where you’ll find the recipe along with step by step photos.
My goal in the recipe posts is for you to feel totally confident with whatever dish you’re making. So you’ll see exactly how my food looks as we cook, so we can cook together in essence.
You’ll find a menu that has the following structure:
- Blog – Click on this section, and you’ll see all of the latest blog posts.
- Food – All food blog posts are organized by different categories
- Obsessing On – This section features many series that I’ve done over the years, plus I share lots of fun tips and things I love here.
- Recipe Index – This section is so cool, because you’ll get to filter through all of the recipe posts to find exactly what you’re looking for.
- About
- About CCWT – Learn all about me and the blog along with some of my favorite posts since 2011.
- FAQs – Pretty self-explanatory here as I answer several questions I often get, and let me know if there’s anything else you’re curious about.
- Contact – If you want to reach out with a question, then this is the section for you!
- Work with Me – For any brands that would like to work with me, then here’s the spot to learn about opportunities and how to connect.
- Shop – I’ve known I wanted a shop section for several years. Here you’ll find all of my favorite products organized in one place!
Let me know what your eating philosophy is like by commenting below! I hope you enjoy the new site design, and if there’s anything you’d like to see (more of) here, let me know! I love hearing from you!
Stay inspired & work hard to feel good!
~Kelli
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