I’m going through fresh fruit withdrawal.

Last summer, the Farmers Markets around Calgary had the best strawberries. And blueberries. And peaches.

And it occurred to me, that I should buy extras and freeze them for the winter. I think I froze two bags of blueberries.

They were gone within a week. I probably used them for smoothies.

This summer, I am going to buy extras. Lots of extras.

Because buying frozen fruit is neither cheap, or nearly as tasty as those Farmers Market local fruits.

However, this Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie is pretty awesome. It’s super chocolately, which means that it doesn’t really matter how great the strawberries are – this is a smoothie for the frozen grocery store strawberries.

‘It’s not Quite Spring Yet’ Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie

Blend together:

• 1 C frozen strawberries
• 30 g dark chocolate hemp protein powder
• 1 C milk
• 1/2 banana

It might get me through until the fresh strawberries!

What fruits are you looking forward to buying locally this summer?

Spaghetti in my house is a debateable subject. My mom always made spaghetti with a meat sauce – brown ground beef, add tomato sauce, serve over spaghetti. That’s how I know it. Easy. Simple.

But then I got married. A pasta-loving girl married a pasta-disliking guy. We’ve been together almost 7 years, and I still wonder how someone can dislike pasta. It’s a mystery to me.

But there is one form of pasta he does like: spaghetti with meatballs. Not meat sauce.

The things we do for love. I’ve also switched from skim milk to 1% milk, deciding neither of these (meat sauce and skim) were that important to me.

No worries – he’s learning to love vegetables. It’s about compromise, right?

Meatballs always seemed like a complicated mystery to me. Turns out, they’re just as simple as browning ground beef!

The secret to amazing meatballs is this (not) secret ingredient: crushed red pepper flakes. It’s a magic spice.

Marriage Saving Meatballs

Ingredients

• 1 egg*
• 1/2 C instant oats
• 1/4 C milk
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 pound lean ground beef*

*preferably organic

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400*. Coat a baking sheet with non-stick spray.
2. Combine egg, oats, milk and spices.
3. Add beef, and gently mix until combined – try to handle the meat as little as possible – overmixing will result in tough meatballs.
4. Make 20 uniform meatballs, about 1.5” in diameter. Place on baking sheet, not touching. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until no longer pink inside.

Serve with spaghetti and tomato sauce, of course!

Do you an your significant other disagree on how a food should be cooked?

Up next on Eat Clean Live Green: A Surprising Way to Deal With Stress!

Have you ever had one of those days where you just have so much going on, that healthy eating falls low on the list?

That was my morning today. I had a seminar at lunch to go to, and no time to pack a lunch to bring. I knew there would be lunch provided, but I was expecting it to be some form of soggy wet mayo-filled, cheese and meat-like substance on white bread, with chips on the side. Not exactly real food.

I was trying to figure out how long the seminar would be – did I have time to buy something afterwards, or would I be absolutely starving?

Imagine my surprise when lunch included Mediterranean wraps (with spinach, peppers, hummus and falafel) and a mixed green salad (with strawberries, almonds, goat cheese and a vinaigrette)!

A healthy (and ethical eating) lunch victory! Not to mention, it was delicious

I lucked out today, definitely. A real food lunch, without any effort by me – and it was free! But what’s a girl to do when the next time one of those on the run days comes along?

Turns out, there’s lots of Real Food In The Real World. You just have to look for it! Here are some of my go-to on-the-run, but still healthy, meals:

Subway: Veggie Sandwich on Wheat, lots of veggies. I heard a rumour you can even find black beans at some Subway’s!

Jugo Juice: I love their smoothies! They’re made without any fillers, so it’s just fruit + juice. The Mediterranean Veggie Wrap is awesome too.

Extreme Pita: Lots of options! Try the Market Fresh Veggie (I add the Pepita Mole sauce – tastes just like the Fiesta Mexicana – you won’t miss the chicken!) or the Falafel. Have some pita chips with hummus or Tzatziki on the side

Do you have a go-to Real Food In The Real World meal?

I love drinking smoothies, and by adding protein powder to smoothies, you get both protein (surprise!) and staying power. However, most protein powders on the market are incredibly processed, filled with artificial sweeteners and flavours.

Convinced that there had to be a better option, I’ve been on the lookout for real food protein powders. I was then really excited when Prairie Naturals offered to send me some protein powder to try. The ingredient lists are simple (3-4 ingredients!) and the protein powders are free from dairy, eggs, corn, soy, preservatives, added sugars, artificial sweeteners and artificial colours – vegan, vegetarian and ethical eating friendly!

For review, I received the French Vanilla Organic Rice Protein, and Organic Dark Chocolate Hemp-Force Protein.

The ingredients for the Organic Dark Chocolate Hemp-Force Protein Powder are: Hemp Protein Powder, Organic Cocoa Powder, Organic Dark Chocolate Flavour and Stevia Extract. The hemp protein itself comes from raw, cold-milled hemp seeds.  In 2 tbsp, there are approximately:

• 110 calories
• 3.5 g fat (saturated 1 g)
• 5 g fibre
• 13 g protein

The ingredients for the French Vanilla Organic Rice protein are: Organic, Sprouted Whole-Grain Brown Rice, Organic Vanilla Flavour, Stevia Extract.

In 2 tbsp, there are approximately:

• 110 calories
• 0 g fat
• 2 g fibre
• 24 g protein

The hemp protein powder has less protein than the brown rice, but it also has more fibre and some healthy fats too! Both have pretty impressive nutrition stats, in my opinion.

(and I love those short ingredient lists!)

These protein powders are much more powdery than conventional/super-processed protein powders.

To compare texture: shown here is the French Vanilla Rice Protein (right) and a Whey-Isolate Protein Powder from GNC (left).The Whey-Isolate is much more crystalline, and the Rice Protein is more powdery. I also couldn’t believe how fake the GNC brand smelt compared to the Rice Protein.

The texture of these protein powders is similar to cocoa powder.

How do they taste? Excellent! My favourite is the Rice Protein Powder, I really like the flavour and the consistency – it blends really well. I’ll definitely buy this for myself! The hemp protein also tastes great, but it’s a bit more grainy – not a surprise with all that fibre!

I made one of my favourite smoothies with the Chocolate Hemp-Force:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Smoothie

Combine in a blender:

• 2 tbsp Organic Dark Chocolate Hemp-Force Protein
• 1 cup vanilla almond milk (also great in smoothies!)
• 1/2 frozen banana
• 1 tbsp natural peanut butter

{The Giveaway}

Two Eat Clean Live Green readers will a {full sized} container of Prairie Naturals Protein!

{how to enter}

Leave a comment telling me which Prairie Naturals Protein Powder you want to try!

{extra entries}

Leave another comment for each of the following (up to 4 chances to win!)

• Follow @EatCleanLiveGrn on twitter, and tweet about the giveaway: @EatCleanLiveGrn is giving away @PrairieNaturals Protein Powder! www.eatcleanlivegreen.com

• Link back to this giveaway on your blog

• Subscribe to Eat Clean Live Green

{details}

This giveaway will end Thursday, March 11 at 10 PM, MST. Winner will be drawn at random, selected from random.org. Contest open to those with Canadian shipping addresses only.

(sorry US readers! More giveaways coming soon!)

Scrambles are one of my favourite meals to make – for breakfast or dinner!

They’re quick and easy, yet packed with flavour (and vegetables!). Depending which vegetables you add, a scramble can have a completely different flavour – here’s one of my favourites:

Easy Breakfast Scramble

Ingredients

• 5 medium potatoes, chopped into ~1” pieces
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 tsp coconut oil (or canola oil)
• 4 eggs + 4 egg whites*
• 4-5 slices bacon, cut into ~1” pieces*
• 1/3 cup shredded low-fat cheddar

*preferably certified organic or free range

Directions

1. Boil potatoes, until fork tender (~ 10 minutes).
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet. Add green pepper and onion. Cook until tender (~ 3 minutes).
3. Fry bacon in another skillet. Once crisp, add to green pepper and onions. Keep warm. Drain as much fat as possible from skillet.
4. Combine eggs and egg whites in a large bowl. Beat with a fork, and scramble in the skillet used for bacon.
5. Add potatoes, and eggs to green pepper mixture. Cover with cheese.
6. Serve with hot sauce

serves 4

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Good Reads

• Lara finds a meat-free chicken nugget that fools her husband
• Kristen posted a delicious sounding recipe for Beef and Butternut Squash Stew
• Matt made lentils on toast sound exciting – I think it’s the onions!
• Abby’s pictures of Pork Pappaderelle make me want to starting cooking it right now.
• Nicole ran an inspiring 20 miles

Tomorrow on Eat Clean Live Green: a real food protein powder giveaway!

Hope you’re having a great and sunny weekend!

Nut butters are a delightful food. They combine healthy fats and a little protein, to make something incredibly filling and tasty. And while I love a classic PB&J, there are so many more nut butters, and ways to eat them!

Almond butter. With apple slices.

Walnut butter. With waffles, banana and maple syrup.

Pecan butter. With pumpkin oats.

Cacao Bliss. With a spoon.

Coconut butter. On toast, with cinnamon and honey.

Thanks to Artisana for the samples – I enjoyed trying them! I did find that the pecan butter had a bit of a bitter aftertaste, and the Cacao bliss had a rather insane amount of calories (200 for 1 tbsp!). However, I loved  the walnut butter, and bought a full sized jar today. It has definitely become my favourite nut butter! I also enjoyed the almond butter – it was very smooth, and the coconut butter – it smells like coconut icing!

I’m also in love with all the little empty jars I have now – at 1 tbsp volume, they’re perfect for packing nut butters or salad dressings for lunches!:D

What is your favourite nut butter, and how do you eat it?

Browsing through the Eat Clean Live Green archives, I came across 3 amazing recipes I haven’t made in way too long – they are simple, delicious and real food winners!

Winner #1: Cookie Dough Almond Butter

Winner #2: Pumpkin Red Lentil Soup

Winner #3: Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

There were some fantastic entries in the You Know You’re a Health Enthusiast When…. contest!

Katie:

When a bowl of oatmeal is never just oats.  In goes: almond milk, almond butter, agave, cinnamon, maca powder, home-dried fruit and any seed you can get your hands on and that’s just the breakfast version!

Rachel:

Your breakfast no longer consists of a granola bar but turns into a huge ordeal consisting of 5-7 ingredients filled with seeds, nut butters, oats, and yogurts.

Morgan:

when driving past a fast food place makes your stomach turn, and you want to run in there and lecture everyone about what awful things they are putting into their bodies!

Tracy:

a guy knows to ask you out in the gym for a date…to go hiking.

Ashley:

I know I’m a health enthusiast because I’m always explaining the different ingredients I use like wheat germ, flax seed, and chia seeds.  It’s fun to inform them .

Sharon:

You get excited when you see a fridge full of fresh produce. Your heart pumps faster, can’t stop smiling, and your mind starts racing to think of what delicious food you are going to make and share with others.
You love grocery shopping, but have troubles resisting temptation – that is, temptation to overbuy on fresh produce. Damn, those fresh crisp apples look so beautiful, that you cannot resist but to buy 2 boxes of them (and each box is already 7lbs). And goodness gracious, do you need 10lbs of oranges? Yes, yes you do.

Andrea:

your mom sends you pictures of what she cooked that day, because she knows you photo document your food!
and your friends start texting you random food facts about themselves (tonight, the boy texted me: ‘Satsuma mandarins are my favorite’.

Cynthia:

You buy 4 jars of Almond Butter and 5 containers of Greek Yogurt at Trader Joe’s and fear it won’t make it through the two weeks until you can go for a return trip.

Karissa:

Your dresser is covered with a stack of race shirts from this running season.

Jean:

You no longer eat meals called "breakfast, lunch and dinner", instead your eats are most commonly referred to as:

"Pre-Workout….

"Post-Workout"….

…and on endurance days, "Mid-Race Fuel" –

Kayla:

my google reader is fully dedicated to food and nutrition blogs!

Winner #4: Number 5 – Ashley! Congratulations – I hope you buy something fun with the Amazon gift card

Winner # 5: The winner of the Sun Warrior Protein Powder is #42, Heather!

                               If you weren’t a giveaway winner, no fear, many more giveaways to come!

Winner #6: me! It feels like spring has come early to Calgary this year – it’s been gorgeous outside this week! Perfect running weather

I hope that doesn’t mean March will be in like a lamb, out like a lion instead of the other way around!

Winner #7: you! How are you winning today?

How could one little avocado have so much potential?

It’s not enough to be the star ingredient in a taco salad, but then it goes on to create a fantastic, five-minute, vegan, healthy – and dare I say it? delicious chocolate ice cream.

Don’t be scared – you can’t taste the avocado! Instead, the avocado brings a very smooth and creamy texture, and when blended with cocoa and ice, the ‘ice cream’ has a consistency and flavour very similar to soft serve.

The recipe as follows isn’t overly sweet, so feel free to add more sweetener as your tastebuds desire!

Choco-cado Ice Cream 

inspired by The Fitnessista’s Choco-cado Pudding

• 3/4 avocado
• 1.5 tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp agave nectar or honey
• 2 tbsp natural peanut butter
• 2 tbsp almond milk
• 2 cups ice*

Combine all ingredients in a high-speed blender*. Blend until smooth – serve immediately.

*If you don’t have a high-speed blender, try using crushed ice to start with!

Check out those nutrition stats! 230 calories for a cup of ice cream – with 6 g of fiber, and loads of healthy fat too

You should make this! and soon!

What are your favourite ice cream toppings?

This week’s ethical eating item is potatoes! (previously: eggs)

Somewhere along the line, potatoes got a bad reputation. In the midst of the Atkins low-carb frenzy, potatoes were shunned and portrayed as the bad guy – “you might as well eat a loaf of white bread!”

We eat carbs again now – we all know that a healthy diet is one balanced in carbohydrates, fat and protein. But potatoes seem to be stuck with their bad reputation.

Sweet potatoes became a trendy replacement for the poor little white potatoes. Restaurants began serving sweet potato fries (newsflash: no matter what kind of potato it is, if it’s deep fried, it isn’t healthy!)

Don’t mistake me for a sweet potato hater – I love sweet potatoes! However, you don’t need to join the 100% sweet potato club and banish potatoes from your life – potatoes are good for you too. Potatoes are a vegetable! They shouldn’t be lumped together with processed food-like substances, like white bread or instant white rice – potatoes are a real food! And a pretty good-for-you one at that:

Image: Potatoes.com

• 45% of the daily value for vitamin C
• 620 mg potassium (comparable to bananas, spinach and broccoli!)
• 110 calories, and 2g of fiber

The great news is that potatoes are a very easy item to buy ethically! The not so great news? Potatoes are a really important item to buy ethically.

The problem is all of those fast food French Fries – even if “healthy eaters” don’t usually eat a lot of potatoes, North America sure does. Potatoes are one of the most heavily treated vegetables!

The problem: Root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides that wind up in soil. In the case of potatoes—the nation’s most popular vegetable—they’re treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After they’re dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting. "Try this experiment: Buy a conventional potato in a store, and try to get it to sprout. It won’t," says Moyer, who is also farm director of the Rodale Institute (also owned by Rodale Inc., the publisher of Prevention). "I’ve talked with potato growers who say point-blank they would never eat the potatoes they sell. They have separate plots where they grow potatoes for themselves without all the chemicals."

What can you do instead? Buy organic potatoes. Washing vegetables won’t help if the chemicals have been absorbed into the flesh.

Since potatoes grow all over North America, local varieties are easy to find. In addition, since potatoes store well, local varieties should be available year round!

Recipe to try: Eat Clean French Fries

*********

Keep the entries coming for the Sun Warrior and Amazon Gift Card (how are you enthusiastic about health?) giveaways! I’m so pleased to be getting entries from new commenters – I hope you keep on commenting, it makes my day!:)

*********

Tomorrow on Eat Clean Live Green: a clean eating chocolate ice cream – it’s oh so good, and good for you! You won’t want to miss this!

*********

What’s your favourite way to eat potatoes (regular or sweet potatoes!)? Baked  or roasted or mashed or pan fried or ______ ?

                  I’m tempted to say all of the above, but my favourite-est is probably roasted.

It will change your life

Are you ready?

The Secret to an awesome smoothie is:

Banana. Frozen Banana.

Adding frozen banana to your smoothie will take it from a mixture of fruit and ice, to something smooth, sweet, creamy and so refreshing.

When my bananas are starting to go brown, I peel and chop them, then stick them in the freezer. Once frozen, they’re perfectly ready for smoothie deliciousness!

To try out my new blender, I mixed together:

• 1 C almond milk
• 1 apple, chopped
• 1 C frozen raspberries
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 packet Sun Warrior Vanilla Protein Powder

It was awesome!

Raw Elements sent me a few samples of Sun Warrior Vanilla Protein Powder – I’ve been looking for a real food (aka minimally processed) protein powder. Sun Warrior fit the bill! Check out this ingredient list:

• Whole Brown Rice Protein (Bio-Fermented Raw Sprouted Whole Grain Brown Rice Protein)
• Vanilla
• Pectin
• Xanathan Gum (Natural Bio-Fermented Stabilizer
• Stevia

It also blended great, and while it wasn’t very sweet, it complemented the fruit well. (I’m not sure I’d drink this without some form of additional sweetener, whether it’s fruit/honey/agave/sugar but since I rarely drink protein powder + liquid, this isn’t an issue for me!)

The nutritional information is impressive: 15g of real food protein for 70 calories!

*** The Giveaway ***

One Eat Clean Live Green reader will win some Sun Warrior Protein to try!

*** how to enter ***

Leave a comment telling me your favourite smoothie combination.

*** extra entries ***

Leave another comment for each of the following (up to 4 chances to win!)

• Follow @EatCleanLiveGrn on twitter, and tweet about the giveaway: @EatCleanLiveGrn is giving away Sun Warrior Protein! www.eatcleanlivegreen.com
• Link back to this giveaway on your blog
• Subscribe to Eat Clean Live Green

*** details ***

This giveaway will end Thursday, March 4 at 10 PM, MST. Winner will be drawn at random, selected from random.org.