So, I Made Homemade Mayo....

I admit that I've fallen off significantly from my little health and fitness kick I was on last year. After feeling like a lazy slob and with a renewed desire for bikini-worthy abs, I'm slowly but surely easing back into it. To start, I need to get back into eating healthier. That doesn't mean I'm gonna become a vegan or anything (because lord knows I love a good sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich) but the least I can do is start making healthier choices in my diet.

I was over on a website/blog called 100 Days of Real food started by a mom who took the challenge with her family to cut out processed foods for 100 days. That's a bit much for me and I know I couldn't just jump into it. They also have a 10 day challenge which I may start at a later date. For now, the idea of slowly cutting out processed foods appealed to me.

My homemade mayo. I think it looks pretty good.

I've never been one to read labels but you'd be surprised at all the extra crap in everyday food. Things like mayonnaise for example. Anyway, long story short I was inspired to try to make my own mayonnaise and the results were pretty good. This is the recipe I used ---> click here.

I only had two real issues with my results. At first it came out more like a creamy salad dressing than a mayo but after being in the fridge a couple of nights the consistency is more like real mayonnaise. I also don't care for the olive oil taste. It's a bit strong for me so next time I'll either add a bit less or use a different type of oil (some have suggested grape seed.) Try it for yourself and enjoy!

And again....yum!

Organic Reese's......Sort Of.

Okay, so it's not actually a Reese's cup but it's an incredible simulation. I was walking around the snack aisle in Target and happened to see some organic product by Justin's. To be honest I'm not sure if the company is just called Justin's or if it's Justin's Organic but whatever. According to the wrapper it's Justin's organic milk chocolate peanut butter cups.  

The back of the wrapper says to "Think of your favorite peanut butter cup. Next, magnify that feeling by a gazillion - that's ours." Now I must say I was worried at first because usually when think organic + candy = unsweetened nastiness but I was pleasantly surprised. These organic peanut butter cups were REALLY good! I'll definitely buy these again. I can't say for sure that I'll totally replace my real Reese's cups with these but they're an excellent substitution. I'll also be trying more of Justin's organic products in the future. Give them a try for yourself! 

My Favorite Snacks (of the moment)

"These are a few of my favorite things......."

Originally I did NOT like Chobani Greek yogurt but this little snack has changed my mind...sort of. I still don't like the plain vanilla flavor but these raspberry with dark chocolate chips bites are really good. I can't get enough.

I bought these on a whim while I was in Trader Joe's. I do a lot of snacking so I picked these up because I figure they'd be a healthier choice than my usual bag of Reese's Minis. Sweet potato tortilla chips. What's not to like? 

These Tostitos chips I literally bought today. I was actually looking for some guacamole chips (which I'll list later) but happened upon these instead. Very good. No salsa needed.

These things are just.....I love them. I can't even describe how much. I've convinced myself that they're a healthy snack because it's dark chocolate. I could be wrong but IDC!!!

There are plenty of others but that's all for now. Good day.

Date Smoothie Recipe

So I'm still experimenting with different flavors of smoothies so I'm not just alternating between the same two recipes ALL the time. I recently bought some dates from Trader Joe's because I love them and wanted to see what they might taste like in a smoothie. I looked up some recipes online and pretty much took bits and pieces from each to come up with my own recipe. I didn't make too much because I didn't want to waste it in case I didn't like it so feel free to alter the amount of ingredients used to yield more servings.

                         

-Pitted dates, chopped ( I didn't count or measure them so I really have no idea how many, sorry)
-1/2 cup of unsweetened vanilla coconut milk ( I may use more in the future)
-2 Tbsp of vanilla coconut milk yogurt (I added this mostly just to thicken it up a bit)

                         

Blend it together and boom! There you have it. My one issue is that there was still some date chunks in the blender that I just couldn't get rid of. Maybe I didn't chop the dates up enough? I'm not really sure what happened but for the most part everything blended together nicely. My taste buds are VERY happy.

Coconut Milk Smoothie Recipe

I recently decided to give coconut milk a try because of this health kick I'm on. A while back I tried almond milk but it was just gross. I've never been a fan of almonds so I don't know why I thought I'd like the milk but whatever. Usually I make my smoothies with yogurt but I decided to try looking up recipes that use coconut milk and I found this one. It's very simple and only has three ingredients.

This picture isn't mine but this is pretty much what my smoothie looked like.

-1 cup coconut milk
-1 banana
-2 cups of raw spinach

Mix it all in a blender and there you have it. My only "issue" with this smoothie is the very milky texture. By using yogurt all the time I'm used to the texture of my smoothies being thicker, almost like a milkshake but this wasn't a big deal. Anyway, try it for yourself and enjoy!

Banana Pancakes Recipe

This is a simple, 2 ingredient recipe once again from blogilates.com. I tried it for the first time this morning and it was really good and also super easy to make. Give it a try for yourself!

Here's how mine turned out (I promise they taste better than they look lol)....

                               

Stuff I Like: Red Jacket Juices

The purpose of this post is to pimp out yet another healthy drink I discovered at Whole Foods. Gotta love that place. Admittedly I haven't done much research but from what I understand, Red Jacket makes a line of apple juices mixed with other fruits. This is not to be confused with a regular mixed fruit drink. The primary component is apples. I haven't tried all of them but the ones I have tried I really like. My favorites are the strawberry apple juice and raspberry apple juice. The best part is that this drink is healthy and really tasty. And according to the label the only ingredients are apples, strawberries (or another fruit) and vitamin C. 

I'm sure they sell these at places other than Whole Foods but honestly I haven't bothered to look. Give them a try and enjoy! 

Cranberry Spinach Salad Recipe

I think it's safe to say this is my new favorite salad recipe (my first is a Caesar salad with grilled shrimp...yum!). I originally saw this recipe over at blogilates.com and it sounded delicious so I had to try it for myself. It was even better than I expected. So good in fact that the first time I ate it I made two! Wait, does that sound greedy? Anyway, give it a try for yourself.

               

Ingredients Include 
Baby spinach (washed)
Dried cranberries (a regular pack of Craisins will do if you like)
Candied walnuts (the original recipe uses almonds but I prefer these)
Goat cheese (I used Chevre brand from Trader Joe's)
Raspberry vinaigrette

                

Mix it all together and bam! There you have it. Enjoy!

Stuff I Like: Bolthouse Farms

Has anyone heard of the company Bolthouse Farms? I'm sure you have. They have a pretty decent sized line of drinks and salad dressings but to be honest the only thing I really pay attention to are their drinks. Mostly healthy and full of protein, fruits, veggies, etc. Anyway, the point of this post is just to highlight my two favorite drinks of theirs (so far....I haven't tried all of them). The Vanilla Chai Tea drink which I've been a fan of for years and the Green Tea Soy Latte which I discovered only a few weeks ago. I'd definitely recommend giving the entire line a try because everything I've had has been pretty good. Look in the produce section of your local grocery store.

A small idea of the rest of the drinks but they have WAY more than this.

Banana-Pineapple Smoothie

This should be pretty brief but as I said it my last post I have two favorite smoothie recipes that I really like so far. Again, the recipe doesn't include measurements so I'm just going to tell you what I put in to give you a basic idea. Honestly the only thing different from this recipe and the previous one is the use of bananas instead of strawberries. If done correctly, this smoothie tastes like a virgin pina colada. In the future I may add my favorite rum into the mix for a little smoothie party.

                             

Banana-Pineapple Smoothie
-Frozen bananas (I tried using fresh but they ended up going bad from not using them so frozen works better)
-Crushed pineapple
-Coconut manna
-Goat's milk yogurt
-Vanilla extract (again, a little goes a long way)
-Honey
-Kale

Frozen bananas....

                                                

Looks gross I know lol. Yogurt, kale, pineapple, bananas on the bottom.

                           

And there you have it, one of my favorite smoothie recipes. Enjoy!

My Favorite Smoothie Recipes

As I mentioned in a previous post, I've started making my own fruit smoothies at home as a way to try to add some healthiness to my diet. Lord knows I don't eat anywhere near the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables each day. Right now I'm sticking with fruit but maybe someday I'll branch out into vegetables or mixing the two together. I haven't decided yet but we'll see.

                           

Let me preface this by saying that I never measure anything with my smoothies (or cooking in general for that matter) so I'm just going to give you the ingredients I use and a general idea of weather it's a good amount or just a pinch. Personally, I'd say to just add things based on your personal taste and preference. That seems to work well for me. After a bit of trial and error I've found two smoothie recipes that will be my staples. To be honest I haven't tried very many varieties and mixtures but I'd rather just stick with what I know I like for now. Check them out below:

Strawberry-Pineapple Smoothie
-Frozen strawberries (you can use fresh if you want)
-Crushed pineapple (I prefer to just buy cans and put the leftovers in the refrigerator)
-Goats' Milk Vanilla Yogurt (you read right, goat's milk...it's actually pretty tasty)
-Coconut Manna (after melting it I add a few tablespoons)
-Kale (I just take a few leaves and break them up into the mix)
-Vanilla Extract (less is more so I'd say no more than a teaspoon)
-Honey (no idea how much, just let it drip for a bit)

Coconut manna and goats' milk yogurt both bought from Whole Foods.

                                   

Like I said, I never measure anything. Just use your best judgement. Blend and taste test until you get your desired results.

Stay tuned for my other favorite smoothie recipe in the next post!

Stuff I Like: The Series

In the spirit of Random Kat Facts, I've decided to start another semi-regular thing on my blog called stuff I like. Obviously it's gonna be posts about stuff I like at any given moment or maybe something that I've always liked but just feel like sharing.

Today's thing I like:

Frappes. To be more specific the caramel frappe from McDonald's. I had one for the first time the other day when my friend and I were walking around NYC dying from the heat. I figured the frappe would keep me cool and awake because it has caffeine in it. It was pretty good and I could definitely drink those on a regular basis. Not sure if I'm gonna try the mocha. I'm a chocolate freak so it seems only natural that I would but something about mocha flavored drinks and my stomach doesn't mix. TMI? Perhaps. That's all for now.