Pacific 7 Grain Non-Dairy Beverage Review

Pacific 7 Grain Non-Dairy Beverage

On a recent trip to Whole Foods I found this non-dairy beverage on sale, had a Whole Foods store coupon, and a manufacturer’s coupon so I decide to give this a try (it was basically free!). This “milk” product contains oats, brown and white rice, triticale, wheat, barley , spelt, and millet. It is on the sweeter side, so drinking solo was a bit overpowering for me, but we use it in smoothies and it is the perfect base for our fruity treats such as our recent favorite- mango pineapple smoothie.

 

“Yes to” Facial and Body Care Product Review

Today, Plum District is offering a deal for “Yes to” Facial and Body care products. You can get a $35 voucher for $12 ($15 and the 20% off with promo code “PDBDAY”). I’ve been using the Yes to Carrots Face Wash for some time now and love it. The products are free from petroleum, sodium laurel sulfates, phthalates, and parabens. With my deal, I bought 2 face washes, 1 daily moisturizer with SPF, and 1 tinted lip balm. So I am now set for the rest of summer!

Annie’s Homegrown Frozen Pizza Review – 2 Thumbs Up!

 

Here is one of my new favorite products: Annie’s Homegrown Frozen Pizza

This pizza is DELICIOUS! Just a warning though- It’s addictive too! Be careful because just 1/5 of the pizza has over 300 calories. I suggest topping it with grilled chicken, ground turkey breast, and/or veggies and serve with a side salad so you don’t eat ha;f the pizza!

For those with Celiac disease, Annie’s Homegrown offers a variety of pastas and snacks that are gluten-free so you can  enjoy their wonderful products as well.

Kettlebells For Me!

While some wives may get offended if their husbands came home bearing a gift suggesting they exercise, I LOVE my workout equipment surprises that Scott brings to me! While out garage saling on Saturday, he came across a brand new, still sealed in the box set of Jillian Michaels kettlebells. This morning was the trial run for these new-to-me weights. I found this kettlebell workout from Women’s Health Magazine, and completed two sets of the 8 moves.  So in 20 minutes, research says it is possible to burn an initial 300 calories and then continue to burn more as the muscles tear down and repair from the workout. Not a bad return for my investment (both the time and the money!)

Fresh Salsa for Your Cinco de Mayo

For those of you that have the pleasure of living in the Melbourne area, you can make your Mexican Fiesta a little easier by picking up some local, all natural salsa from some of the local stores. Mary’s Downtown Salsa is made fresh weekly and distributed to the following locations:

  • Downtown Produce Market & More
  • Thrify Quality Produce
  • Petty’sMeat Market (Melbourne and Suntree Locations)
  • Melbourne Beach Market
  • Indialantic Seafood Company

You can also visit the website and find out how to place an order. Enjoy!!

Brewed Chocolate for Your Monday Morning (And Every Other Morning!)

Recently, I was introduced to Choffy- 100% pure cacao beans roasted and brewed for a coffee-like drink. It is great by itself or mixed with your morning cup of coffee. Here are some Choffy facts:

  • Has an ORAC rating of 4874.4- more antioxidants than 2 servings of blueberries
  • Only 20 calories per 8 oz cup
  • Contains Theobromine- a long-lasting stimulant that makes the heart’s job easier by dilating the cardiovascular system
  • Contains flavanols which help to prevent vascular disease

Get more information about Choffy here, and if you live along the Space Coast, Tina Descovich can help you get your first bag of Choffy. And it goes fabulously with your morning whole grain toast and sweet hummus!

‘Eating Clean (Breakfast) on the Cheap’ – Strawberry Maple Syrup

I made this syrup to go along with the Van’s Waffles that are on sale this week at Publix. By adding the strawberries (also on sale!), it increases the fiber content of the syrup, and therefore lowers the glycemic index of the sweet, pure maple syrup.

Strawberry Maple Syrup

  • 3/4 cups chopped strawberries
  • 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Place all ingredients into a sauce pan. Place over medium heat and allow to warm through- about 4-5 minutes. Serve over Van’s Waffles or your favorite whole grain pancakes. Save the leftover syrup for the morning!

Check out my ‘Eating Clean on the Cheap’ Dinner for this week’s Publix sales ad.

Our Easter Basket Goodies

Our Easter Basket Goodies

Since the Easter Bunny hops all across the earth in one single night, he needs some Easter basket treats that energize him and allow him to fill every basket along the way. So, our family’s Easter bunny makes sure that the kids also have baskets filled with goodies that they deem as treats but are also not sugar and fat laden. Here are some things that will be awaiting my little ones as they head down stairs on Easter morning:

  • Annies’ Bunny Grahams
  • Annie’s Snack Mix
  • Peeled Snack Dried Fruit (Paradise Found is our favorite mix)
  • Clif Kids Z Bars- S’mores
  • Mixed Nuts
  • Dove Dark Chocolate Squares
  • Archer Farms Fruit Bites
  • Gum
  • Skittles –My Anna loves Skittles, so I bought a small box that I will divide among the 3 kids. I never want to totally restrict them, so I’m happy to indulge them just a bit. Most of the other items that I bought are things that I buy occasionally, so these will also be a welcomed sight.

Publix Greenwise Market

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Aleyah only had a half day at school today, so we decided to keep everyone at home for the day and take a trip to the new Publix Greenwise Market that opened over the weekend. This new breed of Publix stores caters to those who are seeking more organic and all-natural products. This store has all the traditional/conventional products found in a typical Publix, but just has a much larger selection of the “greenwise”-type groceries, a cafe, and a salad and hot bar to name a few extras.

Today, Scott did some shopping for the youth camping trip this upcoming spring break weekend, The contents of my cart, however, varied quite a bit from Scott’s cart. Because of the grand opening, Publix had some great deals. I picked up some new items that we are looking forward to trying. They include:

But the best part of my day was that we were never in a rush to get somewhere. We took our time, played, did art projects, and even cleaned together. Our “mental health day” was a success in many ways!

S’mores Doughnuts (Gluten Free!) For My Kids

For Christmas, Aleyah, my six-year-old,  received a “doughnut basket” under the tree. In it was:

  • Babycakes Covers the Classics Cookbook
  • A Bella Cucina Mini Donut Maker
  • A mixing bowl and a spatula
  •  Sprinkles and chopped nuts

On New Year’s Eve, we had the opportunity to give this no-fry donut maker a test drive. We had fun and it turned out to be a delicious little treat! I chose a gluten-free cookbook because I love giving my family more than just wheat-based products. I used the plain donut recipe which calls for garbanzo bean and fava bean flour as well as brown rice flour. (She recommends Bob’s Red Mill flours)

After the 7 minutes or so it took to make 7 donuts, we let them cool a bit and then dipped the tops into our dark chocolate sauce (see below), placed several organic mini marshmallows on the chocolate, and then crushed graham crackers (NOT gluten-free) to finish our indoor “s’mores”. My favorite part of the night? EVERYONE in the house that night, even those who “oppose” healthy food (we kept the recipe to ourselves), enjoyed every bite!

I highly recommend this cookbook. From breakfast to savory crepes to redos of our favorite treats, this NYC baker has a great insight into creating delicious creations.

FYI – I did discover that xanthan gum is a standard binding ingredient in gluten-free recipes, and that it is expensive! I did a little research and discovered I could use milled flaxseed in its place. For these little donuts, it seemed to work out find. If we had a gluten-free need in our house, I would have invested in it, but since this is an occasional switch for our family, I was happy to find this substitution.

Dark Chocolate Sauce

  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon oil (extra light virgin olive oil, extra virgin coconut oil, or canola oil)

Place both ingredients into a microwave-safe bowl. Melt chocolate in 30-second intervals, stirring after each time until chocolate is completely melted.