Oat Smoothies

Looking for a real treat? These breakfast smoothies will have you pleasantly satisfied for hours. Heavier than our favourite vegetable/fruit smoothies, but another perfect way to start the day, especially for when ravenous and on the go. Basically, it’s your oatmeal breakfast thrown in a blender.

Oats are a great way to start the morning, packing a great punch of nutrients and minerals. High in carbs, oats are a great source of energy and strength to kick start your morning. Check out these percent daily values for 1/4 cup!Oats Nutritional InfoFor their in-depth nutrition profile, check it out here.

Here are two variations for you to try out – you are in for a treat!Oat smoothiesNutty Banana Oat

Blend – 1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk, 1 banana (ripe or frozen), 1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats, 2 tbsp natural peanut butter or almond butter, 1/2 tsp agave, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, & 1/4 cup ice.Peanut Butter Banana Oat Smoothie

Blueberry Banana Oat

Blend – 1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk, 1 banana (ripe or frozen), 1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats, 1/2 cup of fresh or frozen blueberres & 1/4 cup ice.

Blueberry Banana Oat Smoothie

Also, don’t be afraid to add in some greens to the Nutty Banana Oat! Everything is better when you add kale. I added in 2 cups and I barely noticed a change in taste. Give them a whirl and let me know your thoughts!

xx.

Parsnip Noodles with Roasted Butternut Squash & Kale

Happy Monday Friends! Hope you all had a beautiful weekend. 🙂

With the New Year already off to a busy start, I am trying to be more prepared when it comes to meals. Sundays are all about planning and prepping, freeing up extra time during the week.

Tonight’s dish was all about combining simple ingredients that are robust in flavour. At first glance, it looks like it probably takes a lot more time than it does. I promise you, that if you are prepared and know the recipe ahead of time, it is smooth sailing!

I don’t cook with parsnips often but am trying to incorporate them more to keep things interesting. This juicy nutty root veg is rich in healthy properties. From phyto-nutrients, vitamins, minerals and fibre. Plus it’s low in calories, fat, sodium and naturally cholesterol-free. Not to mention, super versatile when it comes to consumption!

Need more convincing? Check out these percent daily values:

Parsnip Nutritional Information

Now on to the deliciousness of tonight’s dish. This Parsnip noodle recipe comes from one of my favourite places to be Inspiralized – the definitive resource for cooking with a spiralizer. A few minutes exploring around Ali’s site and you’ll instantly be inspired by her wonderful and beautiful creations. This spiralized parsnips with roasted butternut squash and kale had me dancing in my kitchen with excitement, I was so inspired to give it a try.Parsnip Noodles with Roasted Butternut Squash & Kale

Easy to make, this recipe is really 3 simple components + a couple dashes here and there. Basically you just have to roast the squash, spiralize and cook the parsnips and wilt down the kale. Pretty basic steps. From here all you have to do is dress it up! (more details below on that). 🙂

Parsnip Noodles with Roasted Butternut Squash & Kale (yields two servings)

  •  1 cup cubed butternut squash
  • 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil, divided
  • himalyan sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 4 parsnips, peeled and spiralized
  • 2 cups chopped kale (curly or laminate)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • crumbled feta to top (optional)
  • red pepper flakes, to topIngredient List
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In bowl, toss butternut squash with 2 teaspoons of olive oil and season with salt, pepper and paprika. Toss to combine and once oven is preheated, lay squash on baking sheet and roast for 30-35 minutes or until tender.
  2. Ten minutes before the squash is done, place a large skillet over medium-high heat and add in the rest of the olive oil. Add in the parsnip noodles and let cook for 5-7 minutes or until cooked through. Transfer the parsnip noodles to a plate.
  3. In same skillet, add in the garlic, sauté for a 2 minutes and add in kale. Let cook until wilted, about 5 minutes and then add in the parsnip noodles and toss.
  4. Divide onto two plates and top with butternut squash, feta (optional) and the red pepper flakes.

Dive in! xx

 

 

 

RunLAB

Spring is just around the corner which means Marathon season is also nearing. Making it time to lace up and hit the streets.

After the Nike’s Womens Run I lost a bit of my passion for running. Time seemed to be hard to come by and everything else took priority. Next thing I knew the winter months were amongst us and naturally I succumbed to hibernation mode. I do admit, a break was welcomed and I hadn’t sworn off running completely. I was still getting out one or twice a week but I had lost that love for running on the daily. I knew I had to spice things up before it began to feel like a fitness chore.

Now to ignite that spark!Nike RunningOne of my running goals last year was to be more social with running. Which unfortunately,  I hadn’t quite accomplished. I definitely was more social with sharing and I did do some runs with friendships, but on the day to day – not so much. So, as the year-end neared, I decided to join a run crew! I was unsettled with nerves, undecided on my level of commitment and uneducated on what each run group was really all about. I found it all a tad intimidating to be honest. However, I was super excited at the challenge and as with many of my running queries, I turned to my trusted friends and my biggest runspirations and that is where Academy of Lions RunCrew came into play. Academy of LionsMy good friend Natalie had always been encouraging me to come out to her crew, so finally I committed myself to doing just that. Once a week, half an hour, running with the community – perfection! I made it out a handful of times before the holidays and started to feel that happy flutter once again. Plus, I got to catch up with some pretty awesome people! I was excited to return in the New Year and with my luck – the launch of their first ever RunLAB. Timing couldn’t have been better!

A 16 week program designed to challenge yourself but not by yourself. Weekly runs led with the best support (3 energizing and experienced coaches) and the motivation of MANY, as we all train towards our own goals and distances (5K, 10K, 21.1K & 42.2K) on #TheRoadtoGoodLife (Toronto’s Good Life Marathon).

I should note, that what is truly incredible about this training program is that it is open to all and free! No matter what your goal is, whether you are new to running or looking to run your 20th marathon, this Run Crew is welcoming to all levels of athletes and it doesn’t go unnoticed. Academy of Lions is truly doing something remarkable to help bring the community together and inspire one another on their running journey. Insert High Five!

We just finished off week 2 and it’s going great so far. I’m already feeling stronger, more confident in my ability and super motivated! I’ve yet to decide whether it’ll be a half or a full marathon for me (I’m leaning towards the half, the full scares me), but I am training towards the Around the Bay 30K again (see last year’s recap here) and will gauge at that point on how I will finish these 16 weeks. I’m excited to see how much stronger I am this time around with a proper program to follow. 🙂 I’ll be sure to keep you all posted! Running Selfie

Find your Strong. xx

 

 

Glowing Green Smoothie Bowl

Despite the wicked snow storm we were having early this morning, I had a bit of extra time and was feeling inspired. Since we rang in the new year, I’m finding muse in all the social sharing that is taking place with everyone’s new healthy 2016 regime – there have been some beautiful creations posted out there. With that being said, I wanted something different than my typical blend of fruits and veggies.

I recently organized my spice/toppers/baking/coffee/tea cupboard (yes this a thing haha) so I knew I had a handful of delicious add-in ingredients. So I decided to get creative and jazz up my smoothie with something beautiful and even more filling – a smoothie bowl!

I took some of my favourite toppers/ingredients – chia seed, coconut, hemp hearts, and strawberries and topped them onto my trusted Glowing Green Smoothie recipe (limit the water part to keep it on the thicker side).

What a simple and gorgeous dish to start off the morning – it definitely brightened my day!Glowing Green Smoothie Bowl

Be creative. xx

Sriracha Buffalo Chicken Wings

Surprisingly so, a weakness of mine, is a love of chicken wings. Not so much for the chicken but for the delicious sauce that ensues each pound (so bad- I know haha). I most recently discovered an at home oven-fried method to get the crispy crunch of your restaurant style fried wing and an easy to make Sriracha buffalo sauce that is bomb, courtesy of Honestly Yum (and really they are!)

The trick is to get the skin of the wings as dry as possible before baking at a high heat. This recipe I discovered uses baking powder to help crisp up the skin to that perfect golden crunch, which really works!

To sauce up your wings, Sriracha, cilantro and jalepeno combine for an extra spicy twist to the classic buffalo wing. These three ingredients together make a killer combo. I’ve tried several sauces for these oven-fried wings, but this one is by far a favourite in our household. Here’s the dish –

Chicken Wing Ingredients:

  • 4 pounds of chicken wings
  • 1 tablespoon of baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon of himalayan sea salt

Sriracha Buffalo Sauce Ingredients:

  • 1 cup of Sriracha
  • 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter
  • 2 jalapenos, thinly sliced
  • 1 small bunch of cilantro, roughly torn

Pat dry the wings with paper towels. Combine salt and baking powder in a bowl and toss wings to coat. Arrange on a baking rack on top of a baking sheet. Leave wings out for at least an hour to dry out the skin. To speed this up, next to a window or fan can help.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees with the rack placed at the top of the oven. Bake for 20 minutes, flip, bake for another 15 minutes, until golden brown.

To prepare the wing sauce, melt butter and Sriracha together in a small pot until simmering. Pour into a bowl and toss hot wings in the sauce. Add jalapeños and cilantro and toss.

Pair with blue cheese dressing with extra blue cheese crumbled within and your wings are ready!

Sriracha Chicken Wings

Keep it Spicy! xx