Ivivva: Totes Adorbs

Are you small? Do sequins make you go "eeeee"? Then you need to know about Ivivva. Ivivva is Lululemon's line for girls. It debuted this summer and somehow I missed it until now.

The clothes - and accessories - are so damn cute. The skirts and leotards are particularly squeal-worthy. (If only this stuff had been around when I was figure skating!)  And while the prints are girly - expect lots of pinks, purples and sparkles - the Lulu aesthetic pervades.   

The best part: if you are a size 2, 4 or 6 in Lulu, you will fit into a 10, 12 or 14 in Ivivva. Really truly. I wear a size 4 in Lulu, and pretty much fit into 12's, although for some things I prefer the fit of 14's. For the sports bras and the Studio Pant, for example, I'd probably take the 14's, but I took 12's for the leggings. Also, don't expect the sports bras to do much. I'd wear them for yoga or on a lifting-only day, though.

The Luon material is the same, and the cuts are familiar. Even the colors are the same, so I'm planning on mixing and matching with my Lulu gear. It's the same stuff, just cheaper.*

You can find Ivivva online, or you can visit their Upper West Side showroom, which has limited hours. Ivivva will do free hemming in house, or you can take their stuff to a Lululemon store and get it hemmed there.

I visited the showroom on Saturday - so fun. The tiny store was slightly overrun with little girls (and their moms). The staff was quick to assure me that "lots of grown-ups" wear this stuff, too. I have no doubt.  I bought the cute mint outfit and these amazing pink heathery leggings that I'm obsessed with and match my pink sneakers.  I also bought socks (size M-L).  

I did not take the sparkly leg-warmers... I may need to go back.

-Gym Belle-

*They don't accept Lulu's R&D discount.

Hazelnut & Almond Flour Shortbread Cookies

My parents gave me back a bag of Holmquist Hazelnut Orchards hazelnut flour that they brought back from Washington.  This stuff smells so good.  It's just been begging to become some kind of cookie.

There are not a lot of (paleo) hazelnut flour cookie recipes out there.  And I was somewhat hesitant to risk my one little bag on an experiment.  So, when I found a recipe for almond and hazelnut tart crust that boasted enough dough for some cookies, too, I decided to work with that.

I consider these cookies paleo enough for me.  That said, they do contain baking soda, salt and a healthy amount of honey, so they are not for the super-strict.  Next time, I'll try swapping in coconut sugar in place of the honey because it has a lower glycemic index.  This time, I wanted to stick with something tested.  The only thing I edited out were the chia seeds.

I mixed 1 1/2 cups of almond flour, 1 cup of hazelnut flour, 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a bowl.  In a separate bowl, I mixed 1/2 cup of coconut oil, 5 tablespoons of raw honey, 1 teaspoon of almond extract and one egg.  Then I combined wet and dry.  I was very excited to see the mixture form into a real dough.  Very often, paleo "doughs" don't hold together at all, so this was a nice change.  I put the blob on a baking sheet and put it in the fridge for a bit to get it sliceable.  

I baked the dough at 350 in three separate batches.  The smaller cookies went in for eight minutes, the bigger ones I kept in for 11.  

The cookies came out really nicely.  They're nutty and just a bit sweet, and almost cake-like in texture.  They definitely have a strong almond kick to them.  I may try a different flavored extract next time to see what happens.

I'll keep you posted.

-Gym Belle-

In the Kitchen

You do not have to cook to be paleo.

A lot of the time, I don't bother.  My go-to meal is grilled chicken breasts (grilled by others, sliced into approx. 4 oz portions by moi), cut up peppers (this part I do, largely because no one sells organic peppers pre-sliced) and some (read: 10)  olives.  Occasionally, I'll sauté some spinach.  (Or buy some pre-sauteed)  Done.  I can eat this a lot.  

But, when lawyering doesn't get in the way, I actually do prefer my own cooking.  Last Sunday, I cooked up a bunch of Livin Paleo's baked chicken fajitas.  (I left out the cumin because I didn't have any.  Also, I baked for an extra 10 minutes.)  That night, I ate it with some cauliflower rice (made my moi) and guac (made by Fairway).  

Voila: Mexican paleo.

The next morning, I scooped some into my eggs for a Mexican scramble.  

Being paleo does mean eating a lot of eggs for breakfast.  Or chicken.  I made a batch of "egg muffins" this past week to save time in the mornings.  They were very convenient, but not my favorite flavor-wise.  I'm going to have to play with the ingredients a bit.  

Also on my menu this week were hazelnut chicken tenders.  (Cut slices of chicken, dip in egg, roll in hazelnut flour, bake at 350 for 15 minutes).  These were yummy, but I will probably try this recipe next.  

-Gym Belle-