A Sweet Batch of Bites: Raw Dates, Walnuts And FlaxSeeds
Posted by Karen Bishop | 7 Comments
When March Break comes around not only do you have to keep your kids entertained, you have to keep your kids fed more often than usual.
Wait. That may sound bad.
What I mean is, they are constantly snacking on everything. At school, they are occupied, busy, and you’d be lucky if their lunch comes back half-eaten. When they’re home all day, they eat.
While my son enjoyed his (version of the perfect) vacation with endless beverages, snacks and uninterrupted PS4 playtime, I did my best not to give Lay’s BBQ Chips all of our money and try our simple version of healthy snack bites.
Another 20 minutes or less healthy snack recipe I hope you enjoy!
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Raw Dates, Walnuts And FlaxSeed Bites
PREP TIME: 20 minutes
COOLING TIME: 20 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup (250 ml) of dates (or use figs as an alternative)
1 cup (250 ml) of crushed walnuts
1 teaspoon (5 ml) of ground flaxseed (placed in a small bowl)
1 tablespoon (15 ml) of ground flax seed for rolling/topping
INSTRUCTIONS
– Remove the seeds (if any) and cut up the dates and place them in a blender
– Crush up the walnuts and place them in the blender
– Blend together and once the mixture forms a peanut butter-like texture, make a small ball using your hands and place in the small bowl filled with ground flax seeds.
– Roll each ball in the flax seed
– Place the balls in the refrigerator for at least twenty minutes to harden.
The mixture can make approximately ten bites. They have a quite rich taste, I couldn’t eat more than two at a time.
Enjoy!
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Recipe: Gluten-Free Cacao Cranberry Loaf
Posted by Karen Bishop | 1 Comment
I’m not a lover of cooking. I mean, I don’t like long prep times to prepare meals. If I can spend less than 20 minutes in the kitchen to make a meal, I’m all for it. Anything beyond that, I get a bit antsy. Okay, I’m exaggerating a little (not really) Christmas breakfast took me at least one hour to prepare. Not including the slow baked ham. So the holidays are an exception.
It’s a new year and with a new year comes new goals. My number one goal is to keep to a solid healthy eating routine. I don’t mean simply minimizing the amount of bad food that I eat but really making an effort to cut them out of my diet permanently. My number one priority is to eliminate all gluten.
In general, I’m conscious of what I eat. I very rarely eat white flour, drink pop, or fried foods. I drink lots of water, not always a full 8 glasses but I get up there. I do occasionally have a sugar and bread binge but eventually I get back on track. Since being gluten-free is my priority and snacking tends be a weakness, I’ve decided the best way to control my gluten intake (especially when I crave sweets) is to make my snacks from scratch. I’m not sure how long the Betty Crocker effect will last. Remember, I’m not one for slaving away in the kitchen for too long. But at least, I can feed my occasional craving in a fairly healthy way.
Enter in my gluten-free-cacao-cranberry loaf….
A personal recipe inspired by whatever I had sitting in my kitchen cupboard (mostly). It was only my third time making the loaf but it’s been a life saver for breakfast or as a quick snack. And the best part is it only takes 20 minutes to prepare. Like I said, 20 minutes or less and I’m a happy camper!
Bon Appétit!
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PREP TIME: 20 minutes or less
COOKING TIME: 30 – 40 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup of gluten-free flour
1 cup of brown rice flour
1/4 cup of flax meal
1 tablespoon of baking soda
1/2 cup of organic cane sugar (1 cup if you want a sweeter taste)
1/4 cup of organic cacao bits
1/4 cup of cranberries (fresh, frozen)
2 1/2 cups of Almond milk (3 cups if you want to make the batter a bit thinner)
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
1/2 tbsp of nutritional yeast
INSTRUCTIONS
Mix the brown rice flour and gluten-free flour in a large mixing bowl with a fork. Then mix in the baking soda, nutritional yeast, flax meal, again continue to use the fork. Then mix in the cane sugar.
Once all of the dry ingredients are mixed together, add the milk, cocoa bits and cranberries and then mix everything together one last time. Let it sit for a few minutes and dust a bread pan or cake pan with a bit of flour and pour in the mixture. Put in the oven.
Let bake for 30 minutes or until brown at 275 – 300 degrees. To ensure the middle is cooked insert a butter knife or toothpick in the centre of the cake. If it comes out clean with nothing sticking, the cake is done.
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All Things Natural At The Textur’d Hair And Beauty Show
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I’ve worn my hair naturally mostly under protective hairstyles for a few years now. It just made things easier. But easier isn’t always better if you let a busy schedule and a non-existent hair care routine get in the way. If your natural hair isn’t getting TLC on a regular basis it will take a toll on the health of your hair. Let’s just say, my hair is in need of TLC, a good hair care routine and a few good products to match. Coincidently, timing couldn’t be better. The Textur’d Natural Hair & Beauty Show was happening right in my neck of the woods and I was able to catch day 2 of the event.
With over forty (mostly female) vendor’s, I looked forward to chatting it up with hair and beauty brands from Toronto and the United States. It was hard just to choose just one item from the variety of organic, vegan and naturally handmade products available. Almost all of the brands had a solution to maintain, repair and encourage healthy hair growth.
Not just a vendor showcase, several workshop facilitators shared their unique knowledge on everything to do with natural hair, body and skin care. Nutritional Consultant, Trisha Smith, discussed natural remedies and the connection between digestive disorders and the various effects on the hair. Certified Shea Butter Technician, Kedar Waterman, discussed the many healing properties of premium grade Shea Butter and it’s benefits.
I ATE whole wheat roti, coconut curry chickpeas and quinoa salad courtesy of Chic Peas Veg, a plant based catering company. I CHATTED with Ndija Anderson-Yantha, a natural hair advocate and author of “What are you going to do with that hair?” A non-fiction book encouraging young girls to celebrate and love their natural hair. And I BOUGHT, (with so many wonderful products to choose from) En’tyce Your Beauty’s Herbal Temple Root Gro to help with thinning edges. And Muthaland Secrets’ Three Leaves Special Body Bar to help tone and purify your skin. It was a great afternoon fill with positivity and love for all things natural!
My haircare brands wish-list to definitely try,
- Up North Naturals
- Flawless by Gabrielle Union
- Design Essentials
- London Ivy Products
What do you use in your natural hair?
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Must Try Turmeric Infused Energy Boosters
Posted by Karen Bishop | Leave a Comment
Getting through a tough work week can be tricky when overloaded with tasks and to do lists. For me, working a 9-5 while slowly transitioning to full-time blogging can be a bit stressful (mentally and physically). Working long hours can often make me feel sluggish and lack energy and a great energy booster often gets me through the day. I was never a coffee drinker and for better health I stopped drinking caffeinated teas and pop some time ago. As a natural alternative to any sugary or caffeinated drink, pure turmeric infused juices have been my savings grace!
Why turmeric juice?
- It’s a great detoxifier for your liver and blood
- It promotes good digestion and improves gas and bloating
- It acts as a natural anti-inflammatory
- Helps to boost the immune system
Haven’t tried a turmeric infused juice yet? Lucky for me our city has a number of organic juice bars with great tasting pure turmeric juices.
Here’s a few to get you started,
FRESH
Their cold pressed Healer blend is a mix of turmeric root, ginger, orange, pineapple, celery, lemon and Himalayan pink salt. They produce their juices in small batches, is 100% organic, raw, vegan and cold pressed.
THE GROW UP
Their Golden Potion is a mix of yellow turmeric root, grapefruit, lemon, orange, ginger and hemp oil. They also have Runner’s High blend with white turmeric root, ginger, pineapple, lemon and chlorella.
VILLAGE JUICERY
Their turmeric booster shot is a fresh blend of turmeric root, orange and black pepper.
GREEN HOUSE JUICE
Their YYZ booster is a mixture of orange, turmeric, ginger, organic camu camu.
Try one it will be well worth it!
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Chilli Roasted Sweet Potatoes
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If you know me you know that I have a thing for sweet potatoes. A few nights ago I visited Flock restaurants and had the best tasting roasted sweet potatoes with chilli and lime salt. It truly hit the spot and I will definitely be visiting them again. With very little ingredients, I knew the recipe had to be simple enough that even I could make it. So on the hunt I went to find a similar recipe. And Voila! Budgetbytes.com has a version of the dish (minus the lime but you can add that in) that takes only 10 minutes to prepare. Hope you enjoy!
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