Raspberry-Banana Smoothie



Fresh Raspberries
Photo from Wikimedia Commons

After I exercise, I like to indulge in a fruit smoothie. The natural sugars prolong my post-workout energy high. Plus, it's an easy way to get part of my daily fruit intake without lots of chopping, juicing or peeling.

Today I created a banana-raspberry smoothie. It's sweeter than most of the morning drinks I create, but it makes my sweet tooth happy!

Here's the recipe:

1 cup milk (use any kind you like: cow, almond, soy, etc.)
1 peeled banana, chunks
1/2 cup fresh raspberries, washed and whole
1 Tbs. raw honey
1 Tbs. milled flax seed
5-6 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth and creamy. Enjoy!

Now, while you sip, here's how you're fueling your body. The banana serves up a healthy dose of vitamin B6, potassium and fiber. Plus, one banana only has 1 gram of sodium and helps prevent high blood pressure. The raspberries are full of skin-clearing antioxidants, vitamin C and dietary fiber. And, the Omega-3 fatty acids in the flaxseed reduces inflammation and blood pressure.
Drink up!
　

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!

Angela
Whole Foods Living

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All About Pumpkin!

Colorful maple leaves blanket my yard, the evenings beg for a roaring fire in the fireplace and fall produce abounds at the farmer's market. It's pumpkin season!

Fresh Pumpkins
Photo by Ladyheart, Morguefile.com

I truly love everything about autumn including the availability of local squash. From acorn and butternut to spaghetti, I really enjoy them all. But, the best known player in the bunch is probably the pumpkin.

Nutritional Information About Pumpkins

One cup of fresh mashed pumpkin contains 49 calories and 2 grams of protein. Pumpkin is cholesterol and fat free. If you're looking to increase your vitamin C, E or riboflavin levels, pumpkin is a good source of these nutrients.

The number one vitamin found in pumpkin is vitamin A. One mashed cup contains 245 percent of your daily requirements!

Pumpkin is even good for your skin. Check out my article about pumpkin seed oil on Daily Glow.

Cooking and Baking with Pumpkin

Once you've sparked your curiosity about baking with pumpkin and gobbled up a homemade pumpkin pie, get ready to experiment. In addition to pumpkin bars, pumpkin muffins and pumpkin cookies, the squash also works as an ingredient in a few healthy dishes.

Mashed Pumpkin
Photo by Maxstraeten, Morguefile.com

Australians serve pumpkin soup as often as Americans enjoy a bowl of chicken noodle soup. During my time in Melbourne, Australia I sampled many versions of pumpkin soup. One of my favorite cooks, Alton Brown, offers his recipe for Squash Soup here.

Cubes of pumpkin caramelize beautifully under a drizzle of olive oil in a hot oven. Add a few sliced onions and green peppers to the pan to create a colorful autumn side dish.

If you're looking to skim a few calories from your dinner tonight, whip up mashed pumpkin in lieu of mashed potatoes. Boil and mash the squash the same way you prepare potatoes, then season with sea salt, fresh cracked pepper and sweet cream butter.


Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!
Angela

My Secret Cookie Ingredient

In addition to learning about whole foods and their nutritional properties, I enjoy experimenting in the kitchen. And, it's partly out of necessity.

We don't have vegan, vegetarian or whole foods restaurants in my neck of the woods. If you want to avoid processed foods, fried foods or unnecessary calories, you need to get crafty in the kitchen. Luckily, I look forward to my "kitchen time" each day.

My Secret Ingredient: Raw Sugar

Raw Sugar
Photo by Fritzs, Wikimedia Commons

My most recent unexpected discovery is the baking quality of raw sugar. Everyday all-purpose baking sugar gets processed with chemicals to create a pure white, even-textured sweetener. A package of raw sugar contains uneven granules of honey-colored sugar cane. Although raw sugar isn't a true whole food, it's much closer to natural sugar cane than white sugar.

Using Raw Sugar

Sprinkling raw sugar atop a homemade apple pie gives it a rustic look. The oversized sugar granules add a tasty, sweet crunch to the top of blueberry muffin. And my personal favorite: Cookies baked with raw sugar stay thicker than those made with brown or white sugar. If you like a dense chocolate chip cookie, substitute raw sugar in your next batch.

Magically, when I made my first pumpkin pie of the season with raw sugar it turned out perfect. I was unsure if the large granules would melt. Pumpkin pie should have a creamy, smooth filling. The raw sugar didn't let me down.

Although I could sing praises about raw sugar all day long, it's still best enjoyed in moderation. But, if you need a recommendation for a calorie-free sweetener, try my other kitchen buddy, stevia.

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!

Angela

What are Lentils?

Dried Red Lentils
Photo by Jules,
Wikimedia Commons

As a vegetarian, I'm often asked, "So, what do you actually eat?"

Usually my response includes a list of what I've eaten recently such as chickpeas, lentils and whole grain pasta. Lentils almost always make the list because I absolutely love them. Not surprisingly, I am usually faced with a blank stare.

When a friend recently told me her only experience with lentils was watching her friend's pet ferret use them as bedding in a playpen, I knew it was time to write a post about my favorite protein-packed food.

Lentil Nutritional Information
I usually start my response with something like, "Well, they look like a tiny flat bean. But, they're a legume." Lentils come in several colorful varieties including brown, green and red.

This whole food provides a great source of protein, B vitamins, magnesium, iron and folate. Lentils can help lower cholesterol and regulate blood-sugar levels. Plus lentils are nearly fat-free and low in calories. One cup of cooked lentils contains just 229 calories, according to the World's Healthiest Foods.



Boil green lentils to soften.
Photo by Alvimann,
Morguefile.com

Cooking with Lentils
I use lentils in everything. They thicken soups and stews, mash into a fabulous meatloaf or burger-like structure and toss well in a salad. I've even found a brownie recipe using lentils that I'm dying to try.

Next time you want to try a meatless meal, use cooked lentils in lieu of ground beef. The tiny little legumes tend to take on the flavor of other foods in the dish, making them a filling way to bulk up any recipe.

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!
Angela