Chocolate Chip Oat Bars

I saw this recipe in my Food & Nutrition Magazine (one of the few I still get and actually read!) and wanted to give it a try. I’m not adverse to mixes as this one starts with just that and then kicks it up a notch with some added oats, nut butter, goji berries etc. Easy to make and a new treat for the fam.

Ingredients:

1 box Simple Mills Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix

1/2 cup oats

1/4 cup goji berries (or other dried fruit)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 Tbsp oil

2 Tbsp nut butter

1 tbsp maple syrup

1/2 cup water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine wet ingredients. Stir in the dry ingredients. Spread mixture into a loaf or cake pan. Bake 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Favorite Food: Legumes

What are they: kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, black-eyed peas, chickpeas (garbanzo beans), soybeans (edamame), lentils and even green peas.

1. Legumes are high in Fiber

They have insoluble fibre which helps keep our bowels regular. They are also a good source of soluble fibre which can help lower LDL (or “bad”) cholesterol levels.

2. Macros:

Legumes are a good source of carbohydrate as well as protein, which makes them an affordable way to meet protein needs.  They also have a low Glycemic Index (GI), which means they are broken down slowly so you feel fuller for longer and they don’t cause a rapid rise in blood sugar, which makes them particularly good food for preventing and managing diabetes.

3. Micros:

• High in B-vitamins, phosphorous, and zinc
• Good source of folate
• Good source of antioxidants and phytonutrients

How I eat them:

Black-eyed pea salsa – with tortilla chips for a crunchy snack

Slow cooker Minestrone soup – great for a no fuss high veggie meal on a rainy day

Slow cooker Chili – throw it in, forget about it AND have leftovers!

Garbanzo beans on salad – easy peasy

Black bean brownies – you would never know they were in there!

Check out my Pinterest page for these recipes and more!

Sweet Talk on Sugar

Now that another sweet Holiday is over let’s take a look at the sugar in our day.

Sugar-sweetened beverages are the biggest source of dietary sugar in the US diet. There has been a good amount of research on how soft drinks have a negative impact on health.

The questions that remain unanswered: Is sugar added to nourishing foods a health hazard? Is sugar added to pasta sauce (to make it less acidic) bad for you? What about the sugar added to bread (to help make the dough rise) — Is that a cause for concern?

Too many consumers fear foods which list sugar on the food label.

Sugar may be one ingredient in the food, but don’t forget to look at the others too. For example, cooked tomato products are a great source of the photochemical, lycopene. Bread is a hearty carbohydrate source and provides some protein and fiber. Chocolate milk has sugar (that refuels muscles) but it also offers protein (to repair muscles), sodium (to replace sweat loss), calcium & vitamin D to enhance bone health.

10% of calories should come from added sugar according to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. If you eat 2000 kcal in a day, that’s 200 kcal from added sugar or 50 grams. This does not include sugar coming from milk or fruit.

Focus on limiting added sugars from foods such as cakes, pies, cookies, soft drinks, candy, pastries, ice cream, jams and syrups. It’s not that you can never eat these foods, but they should not be foods you choose to eat often, in large quantities.

Base your diet on fresh or frozen fruit, vegetables, beans, whole grains, unflavored oatmeal, unprocessed meats, fish, nuts, seeds, milk, yogurt, cheese and drink plenty of water. Occasional sweets can still have a place when you start with a healthy base.

#WhatIEat

I have found that many people are fascinated by what I eat. I can’t say I think it’s all that exciting, but I thought I would share with you my day’s worth of food, every now and then. Couple things before I start:

I don’t eat dairy products and haven’t for 2 years. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t unless of course you’re vegan or it doesn’t agree with you, which I found to be the case with me. I use to eat yogurt daily along with milk and cheese and it was a big change for me to cut it out.  However it makes it a little easier when the food makes you feel bad. Anyway, I do drink regular almond milk and a protein fortified almond milk from Orgain.

I tend to eat small meals throughout the day, when possible. A typical day would be meals at 7:30, 10:00, 12:30/1:00 (Sometimes I train at noon so lunch is later), 3:30, 5:30, 7:30. Evenings can get busy as I’m driving kids around to activities, but meals always happen whether it’s before, after, or in between.

99% of my days start like this. Sometimes it’s peanut butter, sometimes it’s ½ a banana, but it’s been a part of my day for as long as I can remember. Some days I eat it as a pre-breakfast snack :).

Today I had it with a slice of wheat sourdough bread. I also ate an egg and 2 egg whites scrambled and an Orgain almond milk latte.

Next meal was oatmeal made with almond milk, hemp seed, chia seed, raspberries and cinnamon. Most days I have some version of this with fruit or I may add nut butter and banana to it.

My kids think it’s funny that I eat so much for breakfast, often joking that I’m on my 5^th breakfast for the day. BUT, they are so proud of themselves when they eat a big breakfast too – just like mom.  I do tend to front load my day and eat the most in the mornings, but also try to save a snack for after dinner. Also because I LOVE breakfast foods and could eat them all day if I had to!

Lunch was a leftover pasta with sauce and asparagus from a dinner 2 nights ago. I made an extra serving that night, so I could have a meal ready to go for another day. I also had a clementine and every day I drink 8 oz of Kombucha.

Next up, 2 tacos with ground meat and pico de gallo. These taco trucks are pretty handy too!

After picking the girls up from school I made a smoothie with ½ a frozen banana, 1 Tbsp of almond butter, 1 cup almond milk, and spinach. This is my version of a peanut butter moo’d from Jamba Juice. Have you ever had one of those? So good, but I like to make my own. My kids like them too.

Dinner was a big Cobb salad. I used my Instant Pot to make the chicken and hard boiled eggs earlier in the day. It also had bacon and avocado on it. I’m not a huge dressing fan. I feel if the salad is well made and has lots of ingredients, the dressing drowns it out and I’d rather taste the ingredients than the dressing. Anyone with me on this?! Especially if there’s fruit in the salad – fruit in salad is the BEST! If I do use dressing, it’s a store bought balsamic vinaigrette or sometimes just a flavored vinegar.

After Dinner, I had ½ of an RX Sea Salt Chocolate bar and another clementine.

I also drink tons of water – about a gallon a day.

So that’s a wrap for this day, stay tuned as I will be sharing more days in the upcoming weeks.