hot and healthy quinoa breakfast bowl

that's right. quinoa. for breakfast. why had i never thought of this before? when it cooks it fluffs up like mad, so it would clearly just be an awesome alternative for your joe shmoe oatmeal or cream of wheat. quinoa is just so much cooler. gluten free and jam packed with nutrition (complete protein, iron, niacin and fibre), quinoa is pretty much just the best way to start your day! it was thick, creamy, filling and ridiculously satisfying! this meal is something i like to call a superfood. it has so many vitamins and minerals its basically a big, delicious dose of health! pecans and almonds added healthy fats, extra protein, tons of antioxidants, 18 essential nutrients and of course, the crunch factor. the ground flax added your daily dose of omega-3 fatty acids, fibre and phytochemicals. cinnamon and nutmeg provide all the manganese you need, blood sugar control and all that nice stuff.

i added quite a bit of cinnamon to my quinoa cause it makes it so much more comforting for those cold, early mornings! also, i used soy because i invited a not-so-milk-loving-but-quinoa-loving friend to taste my little experiment. plus i like that it has all sorts of vitamins, minerals and goodness in it as well. basically, i would add a bit, taste, and adjust to your liking. so, without further ado, here's the recipe!

oh. yeah. my little bowl of comfort, right there!

what you need:
1 cup quinoa
1.5 cups vanilla soy milk (or whatever milk you like)
1/2 cup water
handful chopped pecans
handful chopped almonds
handful of fresh berries (blackberries were the best!)
3 tbsp crushed flax seed
2-3 tsp cinnamon
2 pinches of nutmeg
* if you use regular milk, add 2 tbsp brown sugar to make it sweeter

step 1:
pre-heat oven to 350. put a large pot onto medium high heat. add your water and milk, and wait for it to boil. if your quinoa isn't pre-washed, place it in a sieve under water until it runs clear. once boiling, add your quinoa and cook for ~15 minutes or until big and fluffy or until all the liquid is gone.

bubble bubble bubble

step 2:
chop up your pecans and almonds and toast in the oven for a few minutes. be careful not to burn them! once your quinoa is cooked, stir in your flax, cinnamon, nutmeg and nuts. serve and plop on the berries of your choice!

doesn't that just look glorious?!

this batch made enough to last me the entire week, plus give some to a friend! to reheat, simply scoop in a bowl, add a bit of milk and heat for ~1.5 minutes or until milk starts to bubble. you can use other fruit as well, such as pears, apples, bananas or nectarines! i looooved it with blackberries though. so delicious!

smoothielicious

smoothies have really saved my life this week, with the whole no-fresh-veggies-or-fruit-in-the-fridge thing. they definitely helped me get the nutrients that i was missing! it may seem weird, but frozen veggies and fruit contain the same essential nutrients and health benefits compared to fresh, so don't be afraid to buy them. they are basically just fresh fruit or veggies that have been blanched and frozen within hours of being picked. sounds good to me! anyways, here are a couple smoothie recipes what i really liked from the last week or so.

best breakfast smoothie

what you will need:
~ 1 cup apple juice
4 frozen strawberries
4 frozen pieces of peach
1 big handful of frozen blueberries
2-3 ice cubes
* 1 scoop whey or soy protein
step 1:
blend all ingredients in blender until smooth. add extra juice if needed. i had the smoothie along with some oatmeal with milk and fresh banana for breakfast!

* to have a smoothie as a meal replacement, i suggest adding soy or whey protein no matter if it's for breakfast or lunch. also interesting would be adding in some ground flax seed to the smoothie. it's important to note that flax seeds must be ground for your body to fully absorb the omega-3 fatty acids.

blueberry binge

what you will need:

1 cup milk

1 cut up frozen banana

1-2 big handfuls of frozen blueberries

step 1:
add all ingredients to blender and blend until smooth. add extra milk if needed.

this smoothie was really creamy and rich - and the milk provided protein and calcium to keep my bones strong. as a complete side note - i have a history of osteoporosis and early arthritis in my famjam. plus i've already got some sort of rheumatism thing - i can tell you when it's going to rain or when the pressure changes.

davinci's anatomical drawings - keep them bones strong

even though you can get calcium from milk, yogurt, cheese and green, leafy veggies, some days you just don't get enough which is why i take a calcium supplement. any extra just gets peed out! dr oz says to take ~1,000 mg of calcium a day, broken up into two 500 mg doses (your body can only absorb 600mg at a time). it's also important to take vitamin D and vitamin K along with calcium, as it increases the amount of calcium your body is able to absorb. vitamin D is also shown to slow the progression of arthritis. i take a chewable calcium supplement that contains 500 mg of calcium, 100 IU of vitamin D and 40 mcg of vitamin K. i take one in the morning with breakfast, and one at night after dinner. yaaay for calcium!

persephone's fruit

pomegranates. i love them. and in the last couple of years the pomegranate has soared in popularity due to it's health benefits (hellooo antioxidants!) with juices and concentrates in almost any supermarket you walk into.

in reality, the pomegranate is an ancient fruit with a rich history in myth, religion, medicine, symbols and art throughout many cultures. for example, ancient greek mythology tells the story of how persephone was kidnapped by hades. once in the underworld, hades tempted persephone with a pomegranate (a sign of marriage). by eating some of the arils before her rescue, persephone tied herself to the underworld. persephone's mother, demeter, was so upset at the loss of her daughter that she prevented the earth from bearing fruit unless she saw her daughter again. zeus arranged a compromise: persephone would spend 1/3 of the year in the underworld with hades, and the rest of the year with demeter. this myth was used by the ancient greeks to try and explain the changing of the seasons.

my favourite kore - thought to represent persephone

in modern greece the pomegranate still holds strong symbolic meaning. you can find cute little pottery pomegranates to decorate your home in any crafts store. in fact, our house in victoria is known as the 'pomegranate house' by my mum's friends because we have so many. this summer on our trip to greece i was lucky enough to pick up some for my own apartment.

one of my hand crafted pomegranates

pomegranates also grow everywhere in greece - the mediterranean climate is perfect for them. anywhere you went you could find little pomegranate trees.

a pomegranate outside out hotel room near chania, crete

anyways, back to my point. i was grocery shopping last weekend and stumbled upon a pomegranate and was so excited that i just had to buy it! when i got home, i decided that i wanted to make something interesting with the fruit. and so, here's what i made - pomegranate balsamic chicken with grilled vegetables and brown rice.

add a few fresh arils for a pop of colour and texture

what you need:

          chicken:

1 chicken breast

1/2 cup pomegranate juice

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/8 cup honey

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp grainy mustard (i used maille ancient grain)

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken stock

pinch of thyme

          grilled vegetables:

half a zucchini

half a red pepper

any other vegetables you want to put in (i recommend butternut squash)

1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

step 1:

cut chicken breast into small pieces. pour pomegranate juice, honey, vinegar, sugar, mustard and thyme into a freezer bag and add in the cut up chicken. refrigerate for 20 minutes. during these 20 minutes, roughly chop up your veggies, and pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

step 2: 

put your veggies, oil, salt and pepper into a dish and mix together. put in the oven. lightly greas a glass dish and add in your chicken, put in the oven. cook for approximately 20 minutes, depending on how thick you cut your chicken. save the marinade.

step 3:

add remaining marinade to a small pot and bring to a boil. add chicken stock and allow time to thicken. about 10 minutes into cooking, turn over your veggies and chicken.

boiling the marinade ensures any bacteria are killed

step 4:

when veggies and chicken are done cooking, heat up your pre-cooked* brown rice and add all onto plate. sprinkle on your sauce and enjoy!

*hint: i cook about a cup and a half of dry brown rice every sunday night so that it's ready to go during the week. since it takes longer than white rice (umm yeah 55 minutes..) it's much easier to cook ahead!

*hint: i used a whole pomegranate to get about a 1/2 cup of juice. it was a time waster! buy POM pomegranate juice instead, and save the fresh pomegranate arils as a quick, healthy snack and as a garnish for this dish!

breakfast of champions

i love smoothies. i always have... the meal-in-a-glass concept just rocks my world! anyways, my love for them was intensified this summer, when i was lucky enough to get a job at one of my favourite smoothie and juice bars. dangerous. not only did i get a free smoothie per shift, i accidentally added extra juice to the blender so that i could drink the little bit of leftover smoothie. all day, every day i would drink smoothies. i became addicted. it was bad.

anyways, since i no longer work there, i do suffer from smoothie withdrawal. everytime i go to cambie skytrain station i have to stop in and get a smoothie. so, my fix? make some at home. while it is almost impossible to replicate the smoothies exactly (do you have 'tropical nectar' sitting in your fridge? didn't think so) but you can get pretty darn close.

here was my first attempt!

my smoothie   :)

here's what you need:
a blender
3 - 4 ice cubes
3 handfulls of frozen blueberries
1 frozen banana
2 handfuls of frozen mango
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup juice (i used mango pineapple cause that's all i had)

step 1:
add ice cubes, juice, milk, banana, blueberries and mango into blender.
step 2:
blend until desired consistency if achieved.  
j
hint: if your blender keeps going but the contents are not moving, add more liquid. you want the perfect "smoothie tornado". you'll know what i mean if you see it.
note: to make this a proper meal-in-a-cup, i'm going to go out and buy some soy protein and some sweet coconut tofu to add to my smoothies. this way, not only am i getting vitamins B6, C, E, A, vital minerals such as potassium, manganese, calcium, loads of fibre and TONS of antioxidants from the fruit, i'm also getting the protein my muscles and body need to stay strong throughout the day.

TA DA!

so, here's some quick nutrition facts on the fruit i put in my smoothie!
bananas:
- the average banana contains ~470 mg of potassium and only 1 mg of sodium; this means a banana a day will keep high blood pressure and atherosclerosis (build up of plaque along artery walls) away
- very rich in prebiotics, which nourish the probiotics (healthy bacteria) in our colon. the probiotics produce substances which increase our ability to absorb nutrients - especially calcium

blueberries:
- contain huge amounts of antioxidants phytonutrients called anthocyanidins, which help neutralize free radical damage. these enhance effects of vitaminn C, improve capillaries, stabalize collagen matrix (protein blocks for bone, cartilage, tendons and all other connective tissue)
- studies have shown that blueberries and their antioxidants can reduce the effects of conditions such as alzheimer's disease and dementia (dad! just kidding, haha)

mangos:
- very rich in dietary fibre which not only helps the digestive system, but has been shown to reduce the risk of some gastrointestinal cancers
- contain beta-carotene which can slow the aging process, reduce the risk of some cancers, improve lung function and reduce complications of diabetes

so, go now and make yourself a smoothie.
it will be awesome.