Coconut Milk Ice Cream

April 15th, 2012 | Posted by Nicole in Food Review - (2 Comments)

I don’t like a lot of coconut flavors, but I decided to give coconut milk ice cream a try. I had steered away from it in the past because I thought I would hate it, but it is actually quite tasty! (And no, I was not paid to write this and did not receive anything from the company)

Found this So Delicious brand. They make regular and no sugar added varieties that are sweetened with stevia. I decided to try the stevia sweetened one because I had never had a stevia ice cream before, and it seemed like the healthier option.
I would highly recommend this (especially the toasted almond chip one). It does not taste like a super creamy ice cream, it taste like what it is–coconut milk blended and frozen with  chocolate, almonds, and stevia. It has a strong coconut flavor, but reminded me of an almond joy.

All coconut products have high saturated fat, but what research has been showing is that this saturated fat is not “bad” for us. Actually, it may help us burn fat! The important thing to know is where your fats are coming from. If it is plant-based, you are probably doing well.

Most no sugar added products have tons of artificial ingredients, additives, and sugar alcohols that can upset the digestive system. This doesn’t, and only has 4 g sugar alcohol per serving (not too bad).

Ingredients: ORGANIC COCONUT MILK (WATER, ORGANIC COCONUT CREAM), GUM ARABIC, CHOCOLATE FLAKE [COCONUT OIL, ERYTHRITOL, INULIN, COCOA PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, CHOCOLATE LIQUOR, VANILLA, REB A (STEVIA EXTRACT)], ALMONDS (ALMONDS, COTTONSEED OIL, SALT), VEGETABLE GLYCERIN, CHICORY ROOT EXTRACT, ERYTHRITOL, NATURAL FLAVORS, SEA SALT, LOCUST BEAN GUM, GUAR GUM, CARRAGEENAN, MONK FRUIT EXTRACT.

Anyway, I am not sure why they added so much fiber. One bad thing is the price. Costs about $5 for the pint.

Overall, I would rate this ice cream product as one of the healthiest that you can buy because of the very low sugar, and natural ingredients. Next, I am going to try the cookie dough flavor!

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Make Half Your Plate Veggies

April 5th, 2012 | Posted by Nicole in Healthy Living - (3 Comments)

A simple technique to improve your diet is to follow the half plate vegetable (non starchy) rule. If you can’t get a half plate of veggies, then at least include some fruit on half of the plate.

This is my number one recommendation to all of my patients. It’s easy to remember and easy to do once you start implementing it!

Ex: Half a plate of asparagus and mushrooms, 1/4-1/3 plate sweet potato (starch/carbohydrate) and 1/4 of the plate an organic breaded chicken patty (protein).

This plate rule helps to keep you full and satisfied with fiber and meal balance. It helps to make sure you get the vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals that you need. And keeps the calories in check!

Easy side dish: Add asparagus and mushrooms to saute pan with 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Add seasonings, and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Then, add a splash of white wine. Reduce the liquids, and you are done!

Are you making half your plate vegetables?

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Quick and Filling Vegetarian Eats

March 16th, 2012 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week | Food Review | Recipes - (0 Comments)

When Mr. Cyclist is not home, sometimes I make all kinds of creations in the kitchen. The other night I made artichoke hearts, vegetarian meat balls (I know… strange), tomato sauce, and Parmesan cheese.
This is similar to the simple artichoke side dish I have mentioned before. The only difference is that I added the veggie meatballs.
These are not bad. They are not as heavy as real meat meatballs, and are a quick way to add protein to any meal.

The main ingredient is soy, so I try not to eat these too much because I try not to eat too many processed soy products. If I eat soy, I prefer it in its whole form or as tofu.

The artichokes are an excellent source of fiber, so this meal is very filling.

I have also had these chocolate covered frozen bananas this week as a dessert:
The ingredients are very simple–bananas and chocolate! And just over 100 calories per serving. I didn’t know if I would like these, but I have become a big fan because they are a satisfying and filling snack.

And then I got these flowers from Mr. Cyclist today to brighten my day:

Hope everyone else has a great weekend and Happy St. Patrick’s Day. If you need some green food ideas, you can check my old post on it here.

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Tomato Olive Spaghetti Squash

January 11th, 2012 | Posted by Nicole in Recipes - (0 Comments)

I have made one other successful spaghetti squash recipe, and thought it was time re-create a tomato version that I had tried to do, but a little unsuccessful in the past. The flavors just weren’t 100% perfect.

This time, everything came out awesome!
 The key is to cook the spaghetti squash in the oven at 375 for about 45 minutes, and then cut it open and add it to your sauce mixture. It is important to continue to cook the spaghetti squash in the sauce because then the squash will absorb the flavors of the sauce.

For the Sauce:

  • Add 1 medium yellow onion, chopped, to a large saute pan (that contains about 1 Tbsp. olive oil). Cook until starts to turn golden.
  • Add 2-3 plum tomatoes that have been diced. Cook for another 3-4 minutes.
  • Add your spices: Mrs. Dash tomato basil, more basil, parsley, oregano, pinch of rosemary, garlic, crushed red peppers flakes, pinch of salt and pepper.
  • Slice about 1/4-1/3 cup olives (doesn’t matter what kind–use whatever you like) and add to saute pan.
  • Add your spaghetti squash and cook for 1-2 minutes.
  • Add 1 can of stewed tomatoes to the mixture, and cook off the liquid for about 5 minutes.
  • Garnish with fresh parsley if you like.

I added some Parmesan cheese and a pinch of feta cheese to mine.

This recipe is super filling. I dished myself out a medium size bowl, and had a hard time finishing it. If it was normal pasta, I would’ve had no problem at all. The reason it fills you up is because of the added fiber, and higher water content of the squash.

Filling=less calories in the long run. And this is a good alternative for anyone trying to eat gluten free, or avoid pasta products! Enjoy!

I will leave you with a Love Your Humps Wednesday musing:

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I Love Taco Salad… When It’s Healthy

January 3rd, 2012 | Posted by Nicole in Recipes - (0 Comments)

Whenever I go to Chipotle, Moe’s, or Willy’s I usually get some form of a taco salad. I love that you can get veggies, high quality carbohydrates (from the beans), protein, and salsa all in one!

But, be careful of some taco salads when they have an edible shell–avoid this because those are deep fried. Also avoid a lot of cheese and full fat sour cream at restaurants because they will give you too big of a portion.

Here is my version of homemade taco salad:
Healthy Taco Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

  •  1 lb. extra lean ground turkey
  • 1-2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 1 large red pepper, chopped
  • 1 tsp. minced garlic
  • 1 can original Rotel
  • 2 Tbsp. taco seasoning
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 tsp. onion powder
  • 2 tsp. cilantro (I use these cute little frozen cubes that I find at Trader Joe’s)
  • 1 head of romaine, chopped
  • Salsa, reduced fat cheddar cheese, and light sour cream or Greek yogurt for toppings

Directions

  1. Saute the onions in a large saute pan for about 5 minutes with the olive oil. Add a pinch of salt and some pepper. Then, add the red peppers and good for another 1-2 minutes.
  2. Add the ground turkey and seasonings, and cook for another 3-5 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, start the black beans in another small sauce pan. Drain some of the juices off the can, and then add the entire can to the small saucepan. Cook on medium-low, and add the onion powder and a pinch of cumin.
  4. Open the Rotel can and add some of the liquid to the black bean pan. Then, add the rest of the Rotel to the turkey mixture.
  5. Allow the Rotel’s liquid to cook off and reduce. After, add the garlic to the turkey mixture, and the cilantro.
  6. To assemble: Put the romaine in a bowl, then the black beans, then a few pinches of cheese, then the turkey mixture, then top with salsa and sour cream.
    Note: I also heated up some whole grain/high fiber torillas to serve on the side for some crunch.

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New Food Product Finds of The Week

December 15th, 2011 | Posted by Nicole in Food Review - (2 Comments)

1. Jala Frozen Yogurt Ice Cream Sandwiches
I was looking for a cleaner ice cream dessert. This caught my eye even though the price was a bit high (I think close to $4!). But, I always like to give everything a try, and these sandwiches were delicious for 140 calories. I highly recommend them. They still have added sugar, but they are less processed than your standard ice cream bar or treat.

Ingredients: VANILLA YOGURT: skim milk, whole milk, sugar, corn syrup, whey, stabilizer(dextrose, soy lecithin, guar gum, xanthan gum, carrageenan), natural vanilla, yogurt culture (bifidobacterium lactis, lactobacillus acidophilus, lactobacillus delbrueckii bulgaricus, streptococcus thermophilus), vitamin a palmitate, asorbic acid, dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate. chocolate yogurt: skim milk, whole milk, sugar, corn syrup, whey, cocoa processed with alkali, nonfat dry milk, maltodextrin, dextrose, soy lecithin, guar gum, xanthan gum, carrageenan, yogurt culture

2. Lifeway Pomegranate Kefir
Found these super convenient single serve bottles of kefir at Whole Foods today. Super tasty. If you are wondering, kefir tastes just like a drinkable yogurt!
 I like flavored kefir, so I am willing to sacrifice a small amount of added sugars for the great health benefit (and taste!) that kefir provides. You can read here (my post on Diet-Blog) where I talk all about the health benefits of kefir, and why you too should drink it everyday :)

1 Cup is about 140 calories and 20 g carbohydrate which is comparable to other Greek and light yogurts.

3. Wholly Guacamole 100 Calorie Packs
I normally wouldn’t buy something like this because I believe it to be a non-budget friendly purchase. But, the price of avocado these days is pretty high anyway, so I figured I would try this portion controlled guac.
My favorite part about these packs is that they offer great portion control for a healthy food that can easily get high calorie. Perfect for bringing to work for lunches or snacks. You could spread it on a sandwich instead of mayo, or eat which a whole grain cracker, or some veggies!
You can see that you get a decent amount for 100 calories.
 A great way to get in monounsaturated healthy fats!

I have a few more new things I have bought this week, so I will let you know how those are in the next few days! Enjoy the weekend!

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Still Think about Calories from Thanksgiving?

November 28th, 2011 | Posted by Nicole in Miscellaneous | Recipes - (2 Comments)

Never fear! Remind yourself it takes 3500 calories extra to gain 1 pound!

And if you still have leftovers, there are plenty of creative ways to use them up here:

It’s the start of a new week. Time for healthy habits :)

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Pumpkin Greek Yogurt

November 9th, 2011 | Posted by Nicole in Food Review | Recipes - (3 Comments)

I discovered the most amazing healthy snack yesterday:

Low sugar/high fiber cereal (you can add fruit if you like as well), topped with plain fat free Greek yogurt, and then a dollop of pumpkin butter!

OK, this is not a chef extraordinaire dish, but it was tasty. I ate it before I left to ride my bike, and it was a perfect pre-workout snack.

We also bought some pumpkin ice cream.

I don’t usually buy big tubs of ice cream because I am not the best at portion controlling ice cream :) But, since it is seasonal, and you can only get it one time a year–why not?

But, you have to wonder, how much pumpkin is really in these pumpkin treats? In most cases items are just loaded up with sugar.

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Apple Chips for Halloween

October 31st, 2011 | Posted by Nicole in Miscellaneous | Recipes - (1 Comments)

I finally made apple chips last week. It was quite the endeavor. They take forever in the oven. They are very simple to make, but take so long to cook. You smell them cooking, and can’t wait to be able to eat them.

Directions:

  • Preheat the oven to 250. Slice the apples thinly on a mandolin. I highly recommend using a mandolin for this so that you get even slicing and it makes it ten times easier.
  • Place the apples on a baking sheet in a single layer. Add a little cinnamon and pinch of salt. I recommend using more than one baking sheet in the oven at a time to speed things up. During cooking, just rotate the baking sheets for more even cooking.
  • Bake for 90 minutes. Allow to cool so that the chips will crisp-up.

There you have it! A healthy and delicious fall snack that is not Halloween candy. These chips came out a little darker (I may have cooked them longer than really needed), but they still tasted great.

What are you being for Halloween? I dressed up with my sister and my man as a flight attendant, Pan Am style.
Happy Halloween!

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Healthy Snack: Lentil Spread

September 21st, 2011 | Posted by Nicole in Recipes - (1 Comments)

I was at Trader Joe’s the other day and picked up a lentil spread to try. I get tired of hummus sometimes, so I figured I would try something else in the legume family.

This dip/spread has a ton of flavor, and I had lentils and jar of masala sauce at home, so Mr Cyclist decided he would try to make his own version of the dip. It was a great idea because making this type of spread at home is a much cheaper way to eat this snack. Homemade lentil dip makes about 4 cups (or more) while this one from Trader Joe’s is only 7 ounces!

Homemade Lentil Spread Ingredients:

  • 1 Jar Masala Sauce (Trader Joe’s has one, or you can make your own)
  • 2 Cups or more Lentils (Didn’t measure, just poured into saucepan)
  • 1-2 Cups Water (Just add some to cooking as needed to let the lentils absorb more moisture)
  • 2 Tbsp. Dried/Fresh Cilantro
  • Juice of 1 Lemon

You can add any extra spices and herbs that you like. In fact, I am not exactly sure what Mr Cyclist put into the spread. I know he added extra brown sugar for a little sweetness, and I did not like that–too sweet for me.

Anyway, you can experiment with this type of dip/spread and you could make all kinds of variations on this. This one just happened to have more Indian flavors. I will definitely be making something like this again because it was pretty filling, tasty, and nutritious!

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