Tasting Thursday (coconut chips)

Back with another tasting today.  My daughter has grown to like this activity.  She asks what the treat is for the week and reminds me when Thursday is coming up.

I picked up another treat from Dollar Tree.  It's not that I frequent the store that often; it's just luck of the draw when I remember to grab something.

I brought up the idea of sampling all the food in the produce section but, she didn't like that idea.

Today we sampled Coconut!  I have used coconut in baking so it's a taste the kids have had.  It's hit or miss depending on how it's used.

These coconut chips were purchased for $1.00.  These coconut chips are by the brand Real Coco.  I bought the original flavor but am interested in what else is available. The bag was 1.43 oz and it was filled!  Might I add it was filled with a lot of air so definitely packed for safety. Plus if you like coconut the smell is amazing.

These little chips are crunchy to be expected but, the flavor is 100% coconut.  The chips sizes vary.  These are not the same size as a potato chips. They are more like shavings but each piece is delicious.

Check out the stats!

Did you know coconut is a good source of fiber?

My kids actually liked this snack. YEAH for their approval! They ate this straight from the bag but, think of the endless possibilities of snacking.  You could sprinkle these on anything or blend them into things. This is  definitely something we will buy again!

What have you snacked on this week? Have you tried anything new?

Week 8 Goals

  Let's get ambitious this week and aim high!  No, don't we do that already? 

1.  Finish 2 books!

2.  Fitness: 25 miles, 4 classes

I like TRX I just struggle with the time.  I like all types of cardio but, to meet 25 miles of accountability I need to stick to machines because I don't have a fitbit, lol.  So if I choose to swim or even dancing those are free unaccounted for steps/miles 

3.  Cleaning: freezer

4.  Make a snack for the week.  I'm thinking granola this week! This is my favorite recipe.


  I'll stop at 4!   Anything after that will just be a freebie!

  Good luck on your new week. A new week is a clean slate!  Full of new opportunities and possibilities! Challenge yourself and be kind to yourself. 

Taster Thursday with Apple Slices

  I have decided to start a taste test post with the help of my picky eaters.  I may buy or just make a new recipe and serve it up to the kids!

  I have spoke before of their pickiness and lack of healthy choices.  I have tried several ways to get a veggie in them and the only way to do it is to blend it and hide it and then that doesn't always work either. 

  I have had them help me in the kitchen and that doesn't help either.  Smoothies work sometimes and bean brownies work a little too but, I would love to get them to eat healthier more regularly.

 This week I tried a snack.  A healthy snack.  I picked this bag up at The Dollar Tree so I'm only out a buck it is not a good option.

These apple slices by the brand So Natural are freeze dried.  They are all natural, contain no preservatives and are gluten free.  

Check out the stats on the back if your one of those people!

1 bag is 0.71 oz.  I did split it between both kids to gauge how they liked it and to not disrupt dinner appetites. 

Both kids liked it and I think could have eaten their own bag.  Yeah!   

The apple slices have a crunch like an apple but, just lack the juice.  They taste like an apple which both kids like so that was also helpful.  I know my daughter liked it and I think my son liked it but maybe only because it was his only snack alternative.

I think this is a great snack alternative.  It's healthy. It's apples which are healthy and nutritious. A dollar is great plus too.  I would have liked a zip lock bag but that's the only thing I would say is lacking.

I will consider picking these up now on a road trip or snacks for the beach!

Do you have a favorite healthy snack that your kids really like?  I would love to hear about it!

Week 5 Recap

  Week 5 done!  My goals this past week were:
1. Fitness
2. Book
3. Snack
4. Meal prep
5. Oven

Let's check out what/how I did!

1. Fitness was better this week. I did hit 50 cardio miles with a combination of walking the indoor track, cycling indoors and the elliptical. 

one day of cycling!

  I also took 5 classes this week.  TRX, kickboxing, Ride 30, power aqua and Mixxedfit.

kickboxing!

2. Book number 3 was finally finished and I started on The Girl on the Train for my book club.

3. Snacks!  I hit this mark on Monday.  I made brownies and healthy cookie dough balls.

Chickpea-Cookie-Dough-balls

Double-Fudge-Brownies-No-Beans

4. Meal prep!  This week my salad was utilizing spinach along with some carrots, mushroom, chicken and some dressing.

5. Cleaning! The oven is cleaner then what it started out as.  So the process has started but it's a work in progress.  Before and after pictures are not necessary. We all know what an oven looks like that needs to be cleaned.

  Thanks for reading!  I hope your week was as productive as you wanted or needed it to be.

Week 5 Goals

  I may not do a lot on Sundays but, I set time aside to set my goals for the week.  Last week I did pretty good in the fitness department having attended 6 different classes but missed the goal of 50 miles.  I will not be to hard on myself as I stayed active and discovered some great classes.

This week I would still like to shot for that 50 miles because with a little bit better planning on my part it can get done.

I can cycle 12 miles in 35 minutes so with a combination of other cardio or just 5 days of cycling I can do 50 miles! I can't get miles from swimming but enjoy that and rowing machine just requires me to calculate meters.  It is possible but I need to be focused.

I want to start focusing on setting that time aside to read.  I want to be done with book 3 that I'm still on and done with 4 this week.  So that I can at least start book 5 on week 5!

I did make fudge last week but would like to make a snack.  Something for everyone to munch on during the week.

  I wasn't planning meal prep this week but, I did pick up some spinach so I will plan on salads this week.

So we have:
1. Fitness
2. Book
3. Snack
4. Meal prep
5. I'll clean......the oven. Uggg!

Alright  I'm going to stop there. You know I like 5 things for 5 days!   Good luck with your new week.  I hope your goals are reasonable and you don't become overwhelmed with them and not enjoy life.

Have a good week!

Goals for week of October 30

Its a new week and I'm excited.  I have taken the last two weeks off from my fitness and now I'm ready to get back into it.

1.  So fitness goal is 25 miles of cardio.... do stipulations. Walk, jog, run, hike or bike!  Preferably spread out during the week instead of 2 days of cycling.

2.  Reading goal will be finish the book I didn't complete last week!

3.  Snack for the kids for the week.  Even though we made cookies last night.

They will appreciate something to nibble on in the afternoon. I'm thinking either Jell-O, granola bars or energy bites.

4.  Start on November goals. Organization is my focus for the rest of the month.

5.  Get ahead on blog posts.

  How busy is your week going to be?  Do you already know what needs to be done for the month of November?

Arctic Frozen Desserts Review Part 2

  Yes, there is a part two because I didn't try all the frozen treats at one time.  I had to savor it and spread it out.  So over the weekend we cracked open the other package!

  The other package of cold healthy goodness.  Cake batter flavor dipped in red velvet.  I'm going to give you a minute to think about that!  Ok yep it's as good as it sounds!  Regardless of how many calories it's missing!  The label states the facts and I'm stating a fact. This was delicious. Speaking from a sugar lover.  I don't know what happened or how but, this was good. Lactose, GMO and gluten free! 80 calories leaves you room to sneak something else!

You know you might not even take my word for it so here's  my proof!

Convinced yet?  I didn't have to bribe them to take bites.  I just had to take quick pictures before it was devoured. It's a shame you can't taste mine.

  I was provided this product along with the tubs complimentary and for tasting and review purposes and all opinions shared here were my own.  You can pick up a variety of flavors at a grocery store near you. Catch the sale and pick up more then one flavor!  

Check out their site here for more options!

Arctic Frozen Dessert Review Part 1

   I received a box of frozen goodness outside my door.  I must admit the first delivery was not successful but then I received a replacement box! This frozen dessert was a nice sight in a week of temperatures in the high 90's.

  I the packaging was very sweet to include a handwritten note! A catalog of other flavors and the bow was a nice touch over the cooler.

  In the box were 3 pints of various frozen desserts, a cute heart shaped bowl and a box of cake batter pops!

Let's talk about the flavors!

  Rocky Road Trip first off was this gorgeous chocolate flavor with chunks of almonds and marshmallows.  Sadly this one was not my favorite.  I dug into it first anticipating chocolate and didn't taste it as much as I wanted.  Aside from that it was hearty and full of chunks. There were bits in every spoonful.

  Peanut Butter swirl was a combination of peanut butter and white chips swirled in vanilla.  I enjoyed this one and although I would have liked more swirl; the flavor was there.  You could  visible see tell peanut butter and chips so again you were getting spoonfuls but this one was more appetizing to me.

  I finish with Cherry Chocolate Chunk. Another chunk dessert.  Similar to the first flavor with big pieces mixed in.  I liked this flavor the best.  The cherry flavor combined with burst of chocolate was delicious.  Even if you managed to get a scoop without the chocolate it was still good.

  What I love about Arctic Zero frozen desserts is there is a whole variety of flavors as well as the healthier choice aspect.  These desserts are not only gmo free, gluten free, lactose free and but have between 75-80 calories.  So after a hard work out or a week of eating right this makes the best treat!

Part 2 my review of the Cake Batter pops to follow shortly.  

  I received this awesome box complimentary for my tasting and review pleasure.  All opinions are my own.

St.Patrick's Day Bark

  In keeping with the theme of the upcoming holiday.  I made a fee treats for the kids.  One treat was chocolate bark.  The kids have voiced their appreciation for it in the past and I wanted to make it festive.

  I purchased:
  White candy melts
   Green candy melts
   Wilton Gold Spray and Sprinkles
  Sixlets in white

I melted the whole bag of chocolate and about 6 green candy melts.  I sprayed it out on a cookie sheet and swirled the colors on the tray more.

  I sprinkled the gold sprinkles, added the Sixlet candies and sprayed the gold spray randomly on the chocolate.

  I like the color of the gold. I have never used spray before but you can see the shimmer and it's kind of pretty.

  I sat it in the fridge for about 15 minutes and broke up the pieces.

  The kids liked it and it made a nice treat for an afternoon snack.

  Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Ice Krispies

  I want to share with you the best ice cream treat that will not melt.  It's still summer and there are a few hot days sprinkled throughout the week so take advantage of this tasty treat to cool off.

I'll take a chocolate cone please!

A few ingredients

and some creative construction and I have now learned will earn me points with my kids as well as a pretty cute end result.

  Melt your marshmallows down

and prepare the krispie treats as usual.

  I scooped out the tops with an ice cream cone scooper and added the side on by hand to give it an all around "perfect" scoop.

  I added some chocolate topping to the cone.  Melt chocolate chips and dip the cone (carefully) or drizzle/spoon chocolate evenly on the krispies top.

  Top your cone off however you please we went with sprinkles and a cherry on top!

  This is one of the cutest snacks I have made and I will make it again in the future.  I can't wait to change up the flavors maybe strawberry or mint chocolate chip next time.

  This was one of my Pinterest wins.  You can find that and other wins under that board title on Pinterest.

#pinterest
#pinterestwin

Let's Drink to that (Strawberry recipe review)

  We picked up strawberries yesterday so I am able to try a few more recipes.  Today I decided to try a drink. Not a smoothie or a milkshake but good ol strawberry milk.

  I followed the recipe to a point but I actually didn't use all the strawberries but, most of them.  I looked at a few recipes and choose this one based on the maple syrup instead of the large quantity of sugar.

  I am very interested in trying to make strawberry milk minus all the other secret ingredients that come in the traditional strawberry milk.  It would be nice to make my own with minimal ingredients making it healthier!

  This recipe just required 3 ingredients.  I think as basic as that is it should be enough to accomplish the taste I want without the over abundance of sugar, artificial flavor and color.

  I cooked the berries down;

added the maple syrup and cooked for a bit longer then added it to the blender.

  I followed the directions to run the berries through a strainer to reduce if not remove the berries.

  Next you add the berry syrup

then the milk.

  Overall the recipe was very easy to make but I didn't taste a strong enough strawberry flavor.  I would make this recipe again and increase the berries, follow the cooking, blending and straining steps again just to see if I can reach that level I'm looking for.

For now bottoms up to the first round!   Notice the top of my drink! I strained it and this was still the result.  I didn't mind though it kind of looks like a special garnish.



 Find the recipe here: http://www.laurafuentes.com/homemade-real-strawberry-milk/