CHOCOLATE & RASPBERRY PROTEIN BROWNIES

I have been having a go at some healthier baking recently which has been lots of fun. I love to bake cakes, buns, cookies etc. and to try out new yummy recipes. However with just two of us in the house, it may taste great but it's not the best for our belly's to be sharing big batches of cupcakes between just the two of us! So although I'm not stopping the 'naughtier' baking I've been having a go at some lower calorie, 'healthier version' recipes.

Now there have been quite a few disasters. Working with alternate ingredients that I'm not used to has led to cupcakes that look more like pancakes and muffins that quite frankly taste like salty rubber! However I found this little recipes on a blog called ambitious kitchen, that looked too delicious not to try and I have to say I am pretty proud of myself with this one!

These little brownies are only 100 calories each with 6g of protein packed in there! A delicious and easy way to get a bit more protein into your diet, something that I find difficult sometimes. They are very chocolatey with a lovely fudgy texture as brownies should have and the raspberries add a sweet tang that just tops them off perfectly as well as making them look nicer too with a pop pink.

I have noticed I am put off by a lot of 'healthier' or protein recipes because I don't have some of the ingredients in the cupboard already and don't want to spend lots of money in order to bake them. But when I looked more closely I realised how cheap or easy to make these ingredients are. For example these brownies contain oat flour which is literally blended up oats! (easy peasy and already in the kitchen cupboard) and unsweetened applesauce which I made a big batch of in half an hour by stewing apples and I now have in my fridge ready for the next recipe I try. So it's worth trying something new sometimes and a lot easier than you think.

These little beauties will definitely be joining my regular recipes and I'm sure Rob won't be complaining when I make them again. ♥

HERSHEY

Around two weeks ago, this little pup became the new addition to our family.

Meet Hershey!

The saying goes, 'dogs are for life, not just for christmas' and I knew getting a puppy would be hard work but I didn't realise how 24/7 he would be! However having a puppy is also very rewarding, over the past couple of weeks he has made us laugh a lot and already feels like a part of our family but it definitely changes things more than you think...

5 THINGS YOU CAN'T DO WHEN YOU HAVE A PUPPY

1. Walk around barefoot
Puppies love to lick and chew things so walking around the house barefoot is not an option unless you want nibbled toes.

2. Tie your laces
Following on from the last one puppies love shoelaces! So if you bend down to put on a pair of trainers and tie up your laces, trying to pull them off seems like the most exciting game in the world to them!

3. Have a lie in
This is fine for the week as he's just like an alarm to get you up and going for the day but on a saturday or sunday morning when you could just use those extra few hours in bed your puppy will be having none of it and you can't really explain the difference between a monday and a sunday to a dog.

4. Cleaning/doing housework
Well you can do them but it is likely you will be interrupted by crying or you'll come down to destruction or poop on your nice clean floor.

5. Come and go as you please
Especially while he's a new little pup he needs lots of training and attention so you can't just leave him alone in the house all day. You have to plan things around feeding him and letting him out to wee as well as making sure he doesn't get lonely being left all by himself for too long.

Saying all that I absolutely love him and love having him around so here are 5 bonuses of having a puppy that even it all out and the good definitely makes up for the bad.

1. You've got a new friend
Dogs really are great companions and although I knew this I didn't think I'd enjoy having him around so much. He sleeps at my feet, cuddles up to me on the sofa and follows me round the house like my shadow.

2. You'll explore some new places and meet new people
Having a dog gives you the excuse to find new places to take him to explore and to go on walks. Beautiful parks and woods and hills.. lots to look forward to. I also hadn't spoken to a single one of my neighbours before getting Hershey and now I know them all by name. Puppies are like magnets to most people and they are also very friendly and love to run up to strangers to make friends.

3. You'll always have someone who's happy to see you
Whether you popped upstairs to grab something or you went out for a few hours your little puppy will be over the moon excited to see you which is definitely not a bad feeling.

4. There'll be a new form of entertainment around
Puppy's are so funny. Hershey's always lying about in funny positions, running around trying to carry things twice his size in his mouth and loves to play games so he provides lots of fun for Rob and I. He also managed to fall of the sofa head first and be picked up all whilst still asleep which we just found hilarious.

5. You have a new cushion for your sofa (or something like that)
Puppies are so soft and cuddly and warm! It's almost like having a little hot water bottle that just loves to snuggle up to you the second you sit down.

If you're thinking about getting a dog especially a puppy it's definitely worth doing your research and being sure as they are a lot of work and will be around for a long time, but now that we have him I couldn't imagine life without him. ♥

INSTA-APRIL

My blog is just about carrying on each month with these monthly instagram diary posts and not much else (oops). Sorry there hasn't been a lot going on over here but I am determined to get back into the swing of things again. So here it is anyway, my little look back over April. A busy month for me with lots of memories made that I want to keep forever and these little photos will help to do that. Also you may spot a new addition to my insta feed... more on that coming very soon! ♥