Summer Smoothie: Mango Madness

Ahhhh the summertime!  Long nights, hot days  and cool drinks…. My favorite thing about summer ,are the mangoes ! We wait all year round for them to ripen ,off our front yard tree.  While we are waiting for them to be hand picked ready, frozen mangoes chunks will just have to do.  Here’s my recipe for a summer green smoothie “cocktail”  that i call “mango madness” in it is 2 handfuls of spinach, a handful of mangoes chunks, and a dash of coconut water dash of aloe vera juice with pulp for sweetness and a cup of water.  And that my friends is a summer smoothie that  is tasty and refreshing all in one. Blend the summer away mi amigos! 🙂

Welcome to Italy!

So the other night, my sis was in a “whip something up mood” , and decide to make “caprese salad” on ciabatta bread. The ingredients are so simple and go so well together. She sliced  Mozzarella Cheese, Tomato and had Fresh Organic Basil on hand, but she also did a nice little concoction for the bread. She mixed olive oil, dried basil, and crushed garlic and drizzled it on both side of the slice bread and  baked  till toasted. She than layered the cheese, and tomato with basil to top it off. In 15- 20 minutes  tops you got “caprese salad on ciabatta bread”…. Welcome to Italy!

Thought of the day: Alkalizing the body

As Promised, let’s talk about Alkalizing the body. Alkalizing the body is actually a key step to promoting overall health .Eating alkaline-rich foods helps to cleanse the body by flushing out acidic wastes caused by poor diet, environmental toxins, stress, drugs and other destructive substances. Incorporating  salads and green smoothies daily is a great way to alkalizing your body. Leafy greens are said to be the best and high alkaline forming foods,but there are others foods that contain them as well. Check the list below:

Vegetables
Asparagus
Broccoli
Cabbage Lettuce, Fresh
Cauliflower
Cayenne Pepper
Celery
Chives
Cucumber
Dandelion
Garlic
Lettuce
Onion
Peas, Fresh
Red Cabbage
Spinach
Zucchini

Root Vegetables
Beet
Carrot
Potatoes
Red Radish
Turnip

Fruits
Avocado
Fresh Lemon
Limes
Tomato

Nuts
Almonds
Brazil Nuts

Party in a glass

Since purchasing the NutriBullet, I’ve been having a smoothie or a “NutriBlast” once a day. Depending on how i feel on any given day , i might have two.  The other night was one of those any given days. I threw in a couple frozen bananas, strawberries and kiwis that i pre-cut earlier in the week with a handful of spinach and raw almonds. For texture and creaminess I added uncooked organic oats, hemp protein and almond milk.  I’ve done  this recipe for breakfast twice this week, and my family think its a hit!  The color might be off putting but it’s a party in a glass. Fruits, Leafy greens, Grains and Nuts, and Dairy. What more can you ask for?

Gotta Love Papa!

Today was one of those bummy days. Those days where you just want to stay in bed under the covers watching netflix all day eating the most unhealthiest thing you can find, To only regret it the day after. The only problem was: I had work  today, So that was out of the picture.  So i decided to order pizza. Lol It sounds random but at that moment it all made perfect logical sense.

Anywho let me be the first to say that: I love Papa Johns Pizza! Lol….. Coming from a person that always chose Spicy Italian Sausage with Pepperoni  or Meat Lovers as their go to pizza. Papa Johns  Garden Fresh on thin crust pizza is like they best kept secret. I was skeptical at first that vegetables on pizza, if its not with “The Works” is a waste of pizza.  But since this transition, i gotta say I’m finding and trying new vegetarian options that are making things a lot easier to transition.

FYI: If’ you’re in the South Florida area and is following the Miami Heat in the playoffs. Every time they win, the following day after you can get 50% off you’re entire order. Promo Code: WhiteHot . GO HEAT!!!

Thought of the day: Freeze it up

As I stated before, I tend to do all my shopping on the weekends for all my fruits and veggies. But I was getting tired of  throwing out a good amount of food due to spoiling every week as well. So this week i decide to cut up all my fruits that I bought and made little zip lock baggies (sandwich size) of the fruits i planned on putting in my daily breakfast  smoothies and green smoothies. This took about a good hr but it really cut down on the time i take to prepare my smoothies the night before. To stop the formation of a big block of ice the morning of, the night before i thaw out the fruits in the baggie and then drop them in my Nutri Bullet except the bananas.  In the morning I throw in the bananas and a couple of the frozen fruits in, making my smoothie creamy and ice cold. Its great way to get ice cold smoothies with out the use of ice while saving you money at the same time!

 

Green with envy

Over the weekend i decided to switch things up with my green juice smoothie with suggestions from my sis.  We’ve been reading up on alkalizing the body lately (more on that in a later post),  so we decided to step it up in the greens department. So I bought Organic Girl’s triple washed super greens that came with baby red chard, baby tat soi, baby spinach, baby green swiss chard, baby arugula. Mixing it with some alfalfa  sprouts, kiwi and green apples.

FYI: Alfalfa sprouts are very bitter tasting, so a little do go a long way. Unless you’re a fan of them and actually like the taste. Also if the taste is too bitter for you a ripe banana will sweeten it right up.

Be Kind, Why Dont Ya?

I came across Kind Fruit and Nut bars while on a trip to my local Whole foods, but I found that they sell these also at Publix in their GreenWise organic section. I’ve tried other flavors but this hands down  is my favorite. Almonds and Coconut to me is like peanut butter and jelly, they just go so well together.  The thing i love about these is that they use natural ingredients  so you getting  a good amount of  almond and coconut and no artificial flavors .  Another thing i love about this bar too is that its made with honey and not fructose corn syrup. As I’m transitioning  I’m trying my best to stay away from a lot of processed food mainly ones that contains FCS. There’s no particular reason why, but its just a preferences that i decided to go along with when i started transitioning . In my area these tend to be sold at $1.79 each which is a bit pricey, but i find myself never being able to eat a whole bar in one sitting cause this bar is quite filling for me . So i tend to eat one half  during my morning snack and the rest for my afternoon snack which works out great for my pockets lol.

Dinner Time!

So the other night  my mom made Breadfruit with Snapper for dinner.  I’m not sure how to explain the taste of  Breadfruit but according to Wikipedia it has a “potato-like flavor, similar to fresh-baked bread”. We tend to eat this and other types of starches like yams, yuca and plantains. Anytime I eat any of these I always feel like I’m back home in Haiti 🙂 .

Sushi anyone?

One thing about me i love trying new things,  in food but not much else lol.  So since this whole lifestyle switch, I’ve been trying new things to see if i can incorporate new foods to my day to day food intake.  Here is where sushi comes in, never in a millions year would i think i would be eating sushi. But when i actually took the time to read what is in sushi, i saw that i pretty much eat all these things separate so why not eat it together. Don’t get me wrong i love my fish cooked, and always will. So i tend to stay away from any raw fish or raw sushi. Eventually i might try it, but it wont be anytime soon lol.