Best Cookie for Breakfast

I was looking for a healthy, wholesome baked good I could prepare for our upcoming tea party and I stumbled upon this little recipe. Well let me tell you... it was Brent's favourite! He loved the hint of orange zest in these. After he finished the last cookie one morning he actually called me at work to tell me that this was the best cookie I had ever baked and could I please make some more. How sweet eh? Well they are good, they are very soft, I prefer a  harder cookie- but to all who enjoy soft cookies, these will be a delicious addtition to your repertoire.

Morning Glory Cookies (adapted from http://sogoodandtasty.blogspot.ca/2010/02/morning-glory-cookies.html)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 cups rolled oats, not quick cooking

1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup cane sugar, or regular white sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

2 tablespoons flax meal

6 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup grated peeled carrots (about 2 carrots)

3/4 cup grated peeled apple (1 apple)

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease or line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix the 2 tablespoons of flax meal with the 6 tablespoons water, set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugars, and orange zest until smoothly blended. Add the flax meal mixture and the vanilla and mix until blended. Mix in the carrots, apples, coconut, and walnuts. The batter will be very wet at this point. Add the flour and oatmeal, mixing just until incorporated. The dough will be soft and sticky.

Scoop 2 rounded tablespoons worth of dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake until the cookies are set but still light in color, about 13-15 minutes. You don't want to over bake these! Allow them to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store in a tightly covered container for up to 4 days. I made 28 cookies.  

Nutritional information for 1 cookie:

109 calories, 13g carbs,  6g fat, 2g protein, 1g fibre, 5g sugar

Soupy Sundays- Spring Minestrone

This soup was so delicious for our Soupy Sundays. Brent was able to cook the meatballs ahead of time so I just had to chop all the veggies and from there it was real quick from there. I found this nice recipe from Epicurious.com- it was so good reheated for leftovers too!

Spring Minestrone with Chicken Meatballs (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/395039)

6 ounces ground chicken (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
6 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan, divided, plus more for garnish
4 garlic cloves, 2 minced, 2 thinly sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1 large egg, whisked to blend
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 leek, white and pale-green parts only, sliced into 1/4" rounds
5 cups low-salt chicken broth
3/4 cup ditalini or other small pasta
1 cup 1/2" rounds peeled carrots
1 cup (packed) baby spinach  (I used 4 times the amount to add more green stuff to this soup)
Chopped fresh basil

Mix chicken, breadcrumbs, 3 tablespoons Parmesan, 2 minced garlic cloves, chives, egg, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Form into 1/2"-diameter meatballs (makes about 28).

Heat oil in a small pot over medium heat. Cook meatballs until golden all over, about 3 minutes (they will finish cooking in soup). Transfer to a plate; set aside.

Add leek to pot and cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften, about 3 minutes. Add 2 thinly sliced garlic cloves; cook for 1 minute. Add broth and 2 cups water; bring to a boil. Stir in pasta and carrots; simmer until pasta is almost al dente, about 8 minutes. Add meatballs; simmer until pasta is al dente, carrots are tender, and meatballs are cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add spinach and remaining 3 tablespoons Parmesan; stir until spinach is wilted and Parmesan is melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with chopped basil and Parmesan.

Nutritional information for ¼ of the recipe:

370 calories

34g carbs

16g fat

21g protein

 3g fibre

 5g sugar

Nice Nails- Black Plum

This Black Plum Design was inspired for the French Manicure. For me, the regular French Manicure is far too pale and demure... I am BOLD and so are my nails!

I used these 2 colours- Black Wet 'n Wild and Finger Paints -Plum Pumps.

On a mission to find the best burger!

Growing up, my mom would serve us hamburgers every Saturday night and we would get to watch the Looney Tunes- Bugs Bunny and friends. It was a treat, but for a long while, I was 'tired' of hamburgers. But since we have been eating healthy at home for 7 months now, I started making homemade hamburgers using extra lean ground beef and light cheddar cheese and whole wheat thin buns. It's been great... but I have been watching those shows on the Food Network and they promote restaurants making delicious homemade burgers... so for the past few Saturdays we have tried a few different burger joints that touted making fresh hamburgers with all natual ingredients.

Here's our first stop. Here Certified Burgers. Brent had heard about this restaurant and so we tried it.

I love the graphics on the Diet Coke cup!

So they certify that it is 100% Angus Beef and the wrapping for the burger is cute eh?

Brent took his first bite and he loved it!

This was mine- the small lady size, the bun was good, but to me, the meet was 'pressed' and 'fake' like a Harvey's Hamburger- it's a thumbs down for me. However, we shared a small sweet potato fries- and those were delicious!

Next weekend, we tried the South Street Burger company owned by New York Fries. I had been here a few years ago... but not with the same 'healthy focus'. This time I took the whole family... and it was hit for all.

We got a hamburger, which tasted fresh, homemade, not processed and it was charcoal grilled for us. The condiments they have there were unbelievable. I made mine with lettuce, cucumber, mango chutney and hot peppers with mustard and ketchup- all on whole wheat bun. This was a winner for me!

Here's the BEEF!

Sharing my success with you... another Healthy Lifestyle Update

I have great news to share! I have lost another 5 lbs folks! That's a total of 55 lbs ( or 54.2 to be exact... but I am gonna say 55 because I was wearing a heavy necklace when I weighed in)!
I feel awesome! I am delighted and so grateful that my hard work preparing food, blogging about it, taking pictures and working out is all paying off! The fire is still burning deep within me and it's never going to die. This is my new life and I am LOVING IT!

Talking about working out... remember when I showed you my new Nikes - black with the hot pink stripe- and how I mentioned that I would have to get the matching hat. Well this weekend my daughter dragged me to the mall- we walked around for almost 3 hours, but in that time, mama got some stuff for her too! I came into the mall and found the most gorgeous fuchsia purse- shinny and big and loud... just like me!  I had to buy it, it was on sale and I needed a new Spring bag!  Then we stumbled upon a store called Lids, and we found it... my Nike hat- black with a white swoosh! I have never paid so much for a hat.... but it was worth it!

Do you like how my purse matches my shoes and my shoes match my hat... oh the fashionista that I am!!!! So even after hours at the mall, I came home, put on my hat, my shoes and posed for the picture and went for a big long walk ( I did remove the purse though!). I think the hat gave me superpowers- I have never walked so fast!

You say it's your birthday??

Well then... let's go to Swirls Cupcakes in Streetsville and pick your favourite cupcake out! That's how we roll at my work... ok it's a tradition that we just started for Nancy's birthday, but Iain was really excited about this, he even sent us an 'Appointment' for our Outlook Calendar for this very lunch time excursion.

No, they're not a couple, we are all just work friends!

Here was the daily selection of fresh cupcakes. Now, I did ask the clerk if they had nutritional information, but none was available... but I do know that they use fresh, wholesome ingredients. This is what I love about my new lifestyle... nothing is really off limits- I just need to make sure I log the information in myfitnesspal and I make it part of my calories for the day and don't eat cupcakes everyday and guess what, the weight just keeps sliding off!

Iain us trying to choose which ones... do you see the bottom right? Those are the Red Velvet with Cream Cheese icing- they are the most popular. Well that was my choice, his choice and Nancy's too. Iain is such a nice guy, he brought 2 home for his Fiancee- Red Velvet of course.

Nancy- the birthday girl... she just wants to eat them all! Look at the clerk looking at her with a nervous smile- (probably thinking... these people are maniacs, they should really get out of the office more often).

We brought some back to work to share with the rest of our colleagues. From left to right, in order of my personal favourites... Red Velvet, Raspberry Cream, Chocolate-Chocolate, Chocolate Oreo, Chocolate Mint. 

Oh and.... Boston Cream, Mango Cream, Vanilla and Lemon Coconut.

Here's Nancy enjoying her's, we wanted to taste a few, so we shared a Red Velvet and Lemon Coconut. Do you like the nice background poster in our lunch room?

Iain and Red Velvet - Part 1.

... and Part 2, oh what a fun time we had. Everyone loves cupcakes!



Eat, Shrink and be Merry- Great Source of Ideas!

Always on the lookout for fresh ideas for dinner that are made with fresh wholesome ingredients... I often turn to one of my favourite cookbooks. Eat, Shrink and be Merry. Almost 100% of what I have created from this cookbook turns out delicious. Check out my latest attempt. It turned out delicious!

Na-Cho Ordinary Taco Salad (adapted from Eat, Shrink and be Merry)

Ingredients

Beef:

1 1/2 lb ground extra lean ground beef

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tbsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin

2 cups grape tomatoes, quartered

1/3 cup ketchup

Salt & pepper

Salad:

1 head of iceberg lettuce, cut into bite-sized chunks

1 cup frozen corn, thawed

1/2 diced red or green pepper

1 cup light old cheddar, shredded

4 green onions, chopped

Homemade Guacamole (the Szos recipe of course)

Organic Nacho Chips to garnish – I use Garden Fresh Gourmet

Directions:

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, add your ground beef, jalapeno and garlic and saute until cooked through. Stir in chili powder and cumin and allow to cook for about a minute. Add the grape tomatoes, ketchup, corn and salt and pepper and cook for two minutes until the flavors have combined and the tomatoes soften. Remove from the heat and set aside.

To assemble the salad, arrange the lettuce on the bottom of your plates, top with beef, red pepper, cheese, tomatoes, green onions. Top with guacamole, salsa and sour cream and place Nacho chips on the side or crumple them on top!

Makes 6 servings- 280 calories, 11g fat, 25g protein, 22g carbs, 6g fibre

Dig In!

Organic Garage Shopping Fun... on a mission for 'Healthy Salt'

I had heard from my friend Szos, who's Guacamole recipe I shared with you, that using natural, not overly processed salt was actually good for you- so much better than the iodized stuff that I should avoid because of my high blood pressure. So I wanted to visit my fav. organic store and look around...

All these choices....

Then I stumbled upon these cute little bottles, with the grinder built in- I always seem to get crappy grinders, so this would be a hole-in-one! But which one to choose?

I remembered my colleague Joan had this salt in her goody bag of healthy tricks, so that is what I purchased. Pink Himalayan Salt. So I did some research when I got home about the benefits. Here is what I found about this salt that tastes to 'good' and you really don't need very much at all. I found this info on:

http://jeenaskitchen.blogspot.ca/2009/05/benefits-of-himalayan-pink-salt.html

"What is Himalayan Crystal Salt?

Himalayan pink salts are the most natural, cleanest and most pure salts found on the face of the earth. The salts are a fossilized sea salt that have been dried by the sun over millions of years from a time when there was no man made pollution on the planet.

Himalayan crystal salts are pink in colour unlike the normal standard table or 'sea salt', this is because the minerals in the salts have not been removed by the refining process.

What makes Himalayan Salt healthier than Table Salt?

Himalayan salts contain a massive 84 minerals and trace elements such as copper, potassium, magnesium, calcium and iron to name only a few - the pink colour in the salt is due to the Iron content within the salt.

Himalayan salts helps eliminate toxins from the body, helps circulation, and helps to balance the body's PH levels (acid/alkaline balance ), keeps the nervous system working correctly and keeps your muscles in tact as well as relaxing muscles.

The tiny mineral particles in the Himalayan sea salt are metabolised easily inside your body to help the human cells function correctly.

As you are aware doctors and health experts will say that too much salt is bad for your health and advise people to lower their salt intake.

This is true with any salt even the most natural cleanest salt on earth can be bad for you if it is consumed to excess. But why are refined salts so much more unhealthier than unrefined natural salts such as the Himalayan?

Refined salts are just sodium chloride, standard table salt and even most varieties of sea and rock salt have the minerals removed from the salt because they are refined.

The minerals are classed as impurities and are stripped from the salt which leaves the salt with no mineral content and just a high amount of sodium chloride. This is extremely unhealthy for the body as high amounts of it cannot be excreted from the body and cause all kinds of health problems as it can store in the body (bones and organs).

Sodium chloride needs the other trace minerals in the correct amounts for it to function correctly in your body.

We all need salt to live as our body's are made up of water and salt it is very important. But do you really want to put a refined salt that has been heated up to a massive 1200F and had every nutrient stripped from it into your body?"

So what do you think? I think I made a good choice!!!!
 

Onto another subject.... quick, kid-friendly, healthier alternative foods. Here comes Annie's! This replaces Kraft Dinner, it's made with healthier ingredients and tastes sooo much better. Best of all Melanie loves it!

I bought 2 different kinds for those nights when you need a real quick- I don't feel like cooking- moments. Just serve with a healthy salad and you have a quick meal.

I also bought these Organic Earth's Best Cookie Monster cookies- 'ME WANT COOKIE'- that's Oatmeal and Cinnamon cookies for you Miss Mella.

How about these? A healthy version of Bits and Bites- Bunnies Style. The cheddar flavour is really authentic and it's nice with the crunchy pretzels.

Love these, so good in your purse for a snack or my favourite application.... and Mella's too, sprinkled over salads!

Ok, but if you really want to know the truth, Melanie's favourite thing to sprinkle over salad is CROUTONS! She eats them like candy... I had never looked for a healthy alternative, but then I stumbled upon these. Organic Fresh Gourmet Seasoned Croutons. They taste great...

Look at these 'good for you' ingredients-I am sold!

But seriously.... you've seen me blog about these before.. they are my absolute favourite treat. The Honeybar... all natural honey, peanuts and some dried fruit... that's all- and they taste so good and are so filling... and good for you!

Crockpot Chicken with Asian Flavours

Brent did it again...He made another delicous crockpot dish for us! This was delicious and really easy to make. We used to order out a lot of Chinese food and would spend sooo much money and eat so many unhealthy dishes- fried, battered... you name it, we loved it. But I find that we now make our own Asian meals and we don't really miss the other 'unhealthy' stuff. Here's why....

Crockpot Chicken with Asian flavours (adapted http://southernfood.about.com/od/crockpotchicken/r/bl94c3.htm)

Ingredients:

•3 lb. chicken thighs or leg quarters (I used a large pack of boneless, skinless thighs)

•1/4 cup Hoisin sauce

•1/4 cup plum sauce

•1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

•1 medium piece fresh ginger root, about 2 inches, peeled and thinly sliced or grated

•juice of 1 whole fresh lime

•3 tbsp. corn starch

Preparation:

Remove skin from chicken, if desired. Combine hoisin sauce, plum sauce, soy sauce, ginger, lime, and cornstarch in a large bowl or food storage bag; blend well. Add the chicken pieces, turning to coat well. Place everything, including marinade, in slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 5 to 7 hours, until chicken is tender and juices run clear. Serve with hot cooked rice. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Serves 6



Soupy Sunday- Sweet Potato Soup and Mango Salad

This was one of my favourite soups by far. And guess what... it was my soupy friend's recipe recommendations. She holds 2 of my 3 favourite soups so far. Roasted Red Pepper soup is her other recommendation.

Sweet Potato Coconut Soup (adapted from www.canadianliving.com)

Ingredients:

6 cups diced peeled sweet potatoes

5 cups chicken stock

1 cup coconut milk

2 apples, peeled, cored and diced

2 onions, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 tbsp chopped gingerroot

1 -2 tsp mild curry paste

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Sweat the onions in a soup pot, add sweet potatoes, stock, coconut milk, apples, celery, ginger, curry paste, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and cook until sweet potatoes are cooked trough- about 15-20 minutes. Take off the heat and use an immersion blender to puree the soup. Stir in lime juice. Serve garnished with the cilantro.

Makes 8 -10 servings.

Nutritional information: 176 calories, 5g protein, 6g fat, 27g carb, 3g fibre

Are you wondering what this is? Well, it's me showing you a trick I've seen on the Food Network. This is all you need to do to peel fresh ginger. Take the side of the spoon and scrape the ginger and it just peels off... it's like magic!

I made a nice fresh salad and used this new delicious Tropical Mango salad dressing that I discovered at Organice Garage.

It went really well with my Mango Spring Mix salad... I added shredded carrot, bean sprouts, cashews and cilantro.... oooh so tropical, eh?

Colourful meal, colourful tablecloth.... what more does a girl need?

...maybe some sourdough mutligrain Stonemill bread to share with her family?

Pampered Chef- for the healthy aspiring chef in you!

A few weeks ago my friend Robin hosted a Pampered Chef Party. I have always loved attending these parties and this one was no exception! We had a small intimate soiree with our hostess Crystal, Robin, her sister Rory and our kids. Mella took care of the little kids, 2 and 3 year olds and the moms had fun learning all about the fun tools and sampling great snacks.

Here's the catalogue-oooooooh, so much fun- It's like Christmas time for cooks! I was so impressed, I am going to host my own show in June.

With my focus on healthy homemade foods and prepared at home- these really good products came in all handy. I'll have to show you what I got later.

Here we are holding the tools and Robin, her red pepper!

This is a dip that Crystal made with all the Pampered Chef tools- VERY CREAMY AND DELICIOUS. I tried just a few bites though... I would have to make mine 'lighter'.

She also made a quick chicken fajita in the microwave with this delicious homemade salsa. It was so good... the sisters loved it... and so did Melanie!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chococlate Chip Chia Seed cookies

I'm always looking for a healthy alternative to store bought snacks. So I found this recipe surfing the net, it had all the ingredients my family loves, peanut butter and chocolate....with a new 'health' food I have heard alot of great information about - CHIA SEEDS. These were really delicious!

Chia Seed Peanut Butter Cookies

http://www.yummymummykitchen.com/2012/01/chia-seed-peanut-butter-superfood.html

What the heck are chia seeds?

Chia seeds were an ancient Aztec staple and have recently become popular for their health benefits. Chia seeds are higher in Omega-3 acids than flax seeds, higher in antioxidants than blueberries, balance blood sugar, are a complete protein, packed with vitamins, and are very filling.

Chia Seed Peanut Butter Cookie

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup all purpose or gluten-free flour

1 1/2 Tablespoons chia seeds

1/4 cup butter, room temperature

1/2 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup peanut butter

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup dark or semisweet chocolate chunks or chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together oats, baking powder, flour, and chia seeds. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter with sugar until creamy. Add peanut butter, eggs, and vanilla. Slowly stir in oat mixture to combine. Stir in chocolate chips.

Place heaping tablespoons of dough onto cookie sheet. Press dough into balls with hands, as dough will be crumbly. Bake 12 minutes. Cool.

I made 26 cookies

So nutritional value per cookie: 131calories,  13g  carbs,  8g fat, 3g protein,  1g fibre, 7g sugar 

These are delicious right out of the oven.

Or warmed up for 12 seconds in the microwave a few days later.