Strawberry Fondue Smoothie

I got this inspiration for this smoothie at a local coffee shop. They were advertising a strawberry fondue latte and I thought wow that would make a really tasty smoothie. So, later that day I went to work in the kitchen to create this Strawberry Fondue Smoothie!



If you love strawberry fondue then this smoothie is for you. It combines the chocolate and strawberry flavours beautifully while really letting each flavour shine on its own as well.



Not only does this smoothie taste great and feel like your are eating a treat but it's healthy! All that is in it is fruit, waters and some natural sweeteners like coconut sugar and dates, making this a great "treat" for when you are feeling like you need to stop a sweet tooth. I hope you try out this creation and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:

Chocolate Fondue Layer:

1 frozen banana

1 tbsp. cocoa

1/4 cup ice

approx. 1/2 cup water

1-2 tbsp. coconut sugar

Strawberry Layer:

1/4 cup fresh strawberries + 1/2 cup frozen strawberries

1/4 cup coconut water + 1/4 cup water

1/4 cup ice

2 medjool dates

1. Blend all chocolate fondue ingredients together. Pour into 3/4 of a mason jar.

2. Blend all strawberry ingredients together, pour into the remaining space of the mason jar. Enjoy!

Grocery Haul: July 2014

Grocery shopping is one of my favourite things to do. I love seeing all the different products, reading food labels and most importantly gathering inspiration for future recipes and creations. Grocery shopping is also the first step to a healthy, clean life, full of fresh food and colourful meals.

With this being said I thought I would share with you guys my typical grocery haul. This collection of food is a pretty standard haul for me, minus a few things that I already had plenty of in my home.

Let's start with fruit. On this trip to the grocery store I picked up some berries (blueberries and strawberries), frozen fruit ( mangos and blueberries) which are great in smoothies, oranges, two kinds of apples and of course bananas.





Next we have the vegetables. I am a huge vegetable eater, I eat salads at least 4 times a week and most of my dinners are plant based. This week for veggies I picked up, romaine lettuce, ice burg lettuce, avocado, peppers (red,orange,yellow), beets ( which are one of my favourite vegetables), onions, spinach, spring mix and finally cherry tomatoes.



 



Continuing on we have the grains category, in which I picked up some rice crackers ( which I love eating with peanut butter or hummus), bread (this is for my family as I eat UDI's gluten free bread), and finally coconut water, which I know is not a grain but it fit nicely in the picture.



Lastly, I have the miscellaneous groceries which includes, black and mixed beans, garlic, hummus and of course a big jar of coconut oil as this is an essential ingredient in a large amount of my baking.



 

What you keep in your fridge/ pantry is so important. Healthy food is the first step to leading a healthy lifestyle, so enjoy your trips to the grocery store and choose health concious that your body will love.

 

Pea Shoot and Mixed Green Salad

Over the weekend my mom and I headed over to our local farmers market. Along with a dozen farm fresh eggs we picked up a bag of fresh pea shoots and sunflower shoots... I was so excited!



At that moment I decided we would be having salad for dinner, this way I had an excuse to use my fresh new ingredients. So this is the salad I created, it is just a simple combination of mixed greens, spinach, peas (one of my favourite salad toppings), red pepper, chickpeas and of course the star ingredient pea shoots! The combination was simple, clean and delicious, great for a quick dinner on a warm summer night. I hope everyone is enjoying their summer... what is your favourite summer salad combination?

 

Ingredients:

1 cup mixed greens
1 cup spinach
1/2 cup of peas
handful of red pepper, chopped
approx. 1/4 cup chickpeas
a small handful of pea shoots

1. Combine all ingredients, top with your favourite dressing ( I used my Garlic Oregano Salad Dressing) and enjoy!

Gluten Free Chicken Stir Fry

What You'll Need:

Veggies: red peppers, broccoli, carrot, purple cabbage, soya beans

Cook chicken breast

2 cloves garlic

Gluten Free Rice Noodles

Sauce: Black Bean

1 cup chicken stock

3 tbsp. black bean sauce

1 tbsp. corn starch

1 tbsp. rice vinegar

( Combine all ingredients and mix well) 

- Cook your noodles, put to the side, prepare your veggies and chicken , place them to the side as well.

- Add a drizzle of peanut oil to your wok, cook chicken & garlic for 3-5 mins

- Remove chicken from wok, place to the side. Add hardest veggies to wok first, as they will need more time to cook ( carrots, purple cabbage,broccoli). Cook for 10- 12 mins, then add softer veggies ( red peppers, soya beans).

- Add half a cup of your black bean sauce, allow to cook and thicken for 7-10 mins. 

- Pour remaining 1/2 sauce into a pot, bring to a boil, then simmer on low for 2 mins. 

- On a plate place, rice noodles, topped with veggies & chicken, drizzle with desired amount of sauce. 

Chicken Salad w/ Walnuts & Pumpkin Seeds

My lovely dinner from lastnight. I always enjoy a healthy, clean salad, it is fast and obviously easy to put together. 

For my salad I seasoned my chicken breast with some spices and garlic, then grilled it on the BBQ until tender. I then combined it with romaine lettuce, spinach, arugula, cucumbers, red peppers, cherry tomato’s, broccoli, red onion and shredded carrots. 

I topped it with walnuts, pumpkin seeds, alfalfa sprouts, feta cheese and finally a drizzle of Kraft huile d’ olive oil greek feta salad dressing.