Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Now as healthy as I try to be I will admit I do love a baking session, cupcakes, cookies, muffins, the list is endless however whenever there is a chance to make something that tastes indulgent but is slightly better for you then I am all for it.

This apple cinnamon muffin recipe was found in one of my mums ancient cook books and since it omits butter from the recipe it actually isn't too bad for you with a small to medium sized muffin being around 130 calories then you don't have to feel guilty after tucking into one of these awesome fall treats.

Ingredients: Milk, Flour, Cinnamon, Applesauce, 1 egg, sugar and dark chocolate chips (optional)

This recipe makes around 9 muffins, if you would like to make more then by all means have a go at fiddling with the recipe however in my house I am the only one that likes cinnamon so I find that 9 does me well as snacks for a little while without them having to go to waste. Also I would normally use whole wheat or whole meal flour and then add a tablespoon of baking powder to make these even healthier but I made them in a time crunch before work and didn't have time to pop to the shop to buy some. So if you would like to make these thanksgiving style treats then keep reading.

Ingredients needed: (makes around 9 Muffins)

140g Flour (self raising or whole meal)

1 Tablespoon of Baking powder (if using whole meal flour)

100g of sugar

2 heaped tablespoons of applesauce

2 tablespoons of cinnamon

60 ml of Milk

1 Small Egg
Some chocolate chips or any other filling if you fancy.

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 

2. In one bowl combine the flour, cinnamon and baking powder if needed until thoroughly mixed.

3. In a separate bowl mix the milk, sugar, egg and applesauce together until evenly combined.

4. Combine the wet ingredients with all the dry ingredients and mix until it makes a smooth cake batter like mixture

5. Divide the mixture evenly into muffin or cupcake cases and pop into the oven for around 20 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

6. Leave to cool (I don't normally get this far :P ) 

7. Enjoy!! 

I hope you enjoy them, I normally like to eat them without any icing or anything as I think they have enough taste to them already but if you wanna pop something on top feel free. 

If you enjoyed these there are more recipes to come :) 

Xoxo

Weight Loss Tips

As a girl I realise how sensitive a topic weight can be, however if you've ever felt like you want to shift a few extra lb's you need to know the right way to go about it. 

I have worked hard to finally be a healthy weight for my height and be comfortable enough with myself to not care what other think about me, I know I have friends and family around me that love me and that's all that matters. In total so far I have probably lost since my heaviest about 2 1/2 stone or about 30 lbs (ish) guessing here since I never actually weighed myself at my heaviest. I have a little way to go until I am completely confident with my body but its an ongoing process. However when I decided I wanted to lose weight it took alot of research for me to know the best way to approach it.

Firstly I would say the healthiest way to go about this is a healthy mixture of healthy eating (not a diet) and exercise, loosing it this way and slightly slower with help ensure that the dreaded weight doesn't creep back on and in the process you will learn healthier habits along the way.

Secondly I would say find some motivation for yourself, personally I think its better to imagine yourself at your goal weight rather than look at others looking their best. You should never compare yourself to anybody else, you are only competing against yourself and you have the ability to achieve anything you set your mind to. It may be looking at old photos of yourself slimmer or imagining yourself fitting in those jeans you've had in your drawer for the past year but never been able to fit in to but whatever makes you want to get up every morning with a healthy attitude towards the day by all means hold onto that, especially when it gets hard.

Homemade tuna fish cake and vegetables

The first thing I would recommend is sorting your diet out, without the correct nutrients and nutrition you can exercise all day and night but poor food choices with severely restrict any weight loss. Since I do all the cooking in order to do this I sit down once a week, usually a Sunday night and plan all mine and my boyfriends (he's no Jamie Oliver) meals for the week and make one big online order.(thanks Asda) This ensures you have all the ingredients you need and since it is all done online you can make sure no naughty snacks get put in the trolley by you or your partner, and therefore without them in the house it is one less thing to worry about and you can make sure that you have healthy snacks to reach for instead. You may also find doing it this way saves money, nothing should get wasted as your are only buying what you need, if paying for delivery is an issue many supermarkets also have click and collect services, we use them in Asda and its a handing drive through like service and costs absolutely nothing. :) 

Thinking of dinner and lunch ideas 

Taking Bentley and Harley for a walk

In regards to exercise if you  haven't done any in a long time I would recommend building it up from smaller activities such as walking the dogs, or a simple walk in the morning or evening, fit it around your lifestyle but moving more in any form is key. I would also recommend making sure that you have a decent set of trainers to do this in, they may seem more expensive initially however in long run they will do you a world of good and help prevent injury as well. I popped over to sports direct when I decided to start my weight loss journey, they cost me around £55 roughly if I remember correctly, also they came in this AMAZING neon pink/coral colour which I also fell in love with.

My other tip I live by would be make sure you are drinking plenty of water, I aim for about 2 litres a day, more if exercising, not only will it do your body a world of good but it also helps keep your skin clear. (who doesn't want clear skin) 

And make sure you are happy, do what works for you, eat food you enjoy because in the long run you are more likely to stick to it consistently if you are actually enjoying what you are eating and remember to treat yourself every now and again, if I have been good all week and really want a slice or two of pizza at the weekend then I am not going to deny myself it, just remember everything in moderation and keep an eye on your portion sizes as this tends to be where alot of people go wrong.

*Disclaimer* - I would just like to say I am not a nutritionist, I am not a personal trainer, these are just tips I have found work for me and have helped me lose weight and keep it off.

Enjoy!!

(Happy planning)

xoxo

M.I.A

So i have come to realise that I have been missing in action over the past few months, my last post being in April (shocking I know) I apologise and feel the need to explain where I have been, due to many personal problems I decided to take a step back and reevaluate why I had been feeling so down in the dumps. After weeks of deliberation I decided that maybe university so far away from my home was not for me and instead have enrolled through the OU or Open University for those of you who don't know what the OU is. Its basically university studied at home, you have to have alot more motivation to get on with the work but I am much happier, settled back in at home with my old job back, I have an income again (comes in handy for wanting to treat myself) and couldn't be in a better place. 

I realise it may take me slightly longer but at only 20 years of age I have plenty of time to figure out what i actually want to do with my life and I would much rather take a little longer than go down a path I was unhappy with, at least this route I can make sure I am completely 100% certain with my decisions and also I have the satisfaction of knowing my previous two years spent at university were not wasted as you can just transfer all your credits you have previously studied.

I plan on being alot more committed than my measly previous two post attempt at blogging as I now have alot more time on my hands and therefore have a series of blog posts coming up for you including diet, weight loss and workout tips, healthy and sometimes not so healthy recipes as well as the bloggers favourite beauty posts and reviews.

Sorry for the ramble, I just thought i should explain why I have two previous posts and then a huge absence.

Keep an eye out tomorrow for a healthy apple cinnamon muffin recipe that it to die for and waistline friendly as well as a healthy lifestyle post being put up later today.

Enjoy!!

xoxo

Perfect Pressies!!

So buying for your boyfriend can always be difficult, especially if you haven't been together for very long so this weekend when it was my boyfriend of just over 4 months 20th birthday I had trouble thinking of what to buy him. 

Now I know this doesn't apply for all men but Jack in particular is obsessed with cars and when he mentioned in passing that he had always wanted to treat himself to a track day but had never got round to it the lightbulb went off in my head and I suddenly realised I now had the perfect present idea. 

Having never bought an experience day before I wanted to make sure I had done my research as well as getting the best deal. (poor student and all) after browsing the most popular driving experiences and the best sites, I discovered Virgin Experience Days and Asda Experience Days not only had the best reviews but the best prices and deals.

After having finally decided that I wanted to buy him the Super Car Thrill with high speed passenger ride and settled on buying it from asda, a package at almost half the original price the asda experience was a tenner cheaper but for an extra £6.50 the present would be presented in a tin gift box (always nice to keep) with a personalised message on the voucher itself (cute added extra) the asda package also had a deal on the side that gave you free postage (always a bonus) 

MONEYSAVING TOP TIP: if you find an experience day that's cheaper on virgin experiences I would recommend creating an account and putting it in the basket and then leave it there and wait, as I had done this and the two days following I received emails offering me 25% off the package I had in my basket (Y)

When the present came the next day I was extremely impressed, not only with the speedy delivery but the quality of the present (sounds silly since its only a voucher) but when he opened it I know I had done good and he was over the moon, spending the rest of the day smiling and constantly telling me its the best birthday he's ever had I felt proud knowing I'd helped contribute to this!!

Amazing weekend full of smiles, cake and far too much food and alcohol :P

Have any of you ever bought an experience day?? Let me know about you're experiences and how the actual day went and I'll let you know how it goes too :) 

Enjoy!!

Xoxo

About Me

Hello Everyone!! :)

After numerous years of religious watching and reading my favourite beauty bloggers and youtubers I have finally bitten the bullet and turned a boring monday (in which I should probably be revising for those dreaded uni exams) into something slightly more productive day and set up my blog.

Lets pretend its the first day of school and i'll give you a quick introduction and tell you about myself!! :)

My name is Charlotte Elizabeth, 20 years old and I am currently studying (well attending...sometimes) Psychology at University.

I am from a small town in the United Kingdom and live at home with my parents and boyfriend.

When I graduate (at some point in the near future) I plan to go on and complete at PGCE in order to become a primary school teacher.

Ill wrap this up now in the hopes I haven't bored you to death already, gold star if you're still reading :P

I am a beauty lover at heart and always have been, on the days where I am not late for lectures I genuinely enjoy experimenting and putting makeup on, plus being a student I know all the budget deals to help save you some money every now and again :)

Enjoy!!

xoxo