Do You Supplement?

February 23, 2015 by camoozle

I’ve been struggling to get back into my workout and diet routine. The aftermath of the holiday free for all wreaked havoc on my routines. Then I went back to work and immediately got sick. Two months and one antibiotic later, I’m finally getting back to the gym. Everything is heavier and I’m so much more fatigued during my workouts. It seems like my muscles are taking longer to get back to normal and I’m just plain tired. Additionally, I’ve felt pretty weighed down from my consistent diet of chips and salsa and margaritas. So I went online to look for some stuff. It’s overwhelming how many pills and adaptogen complex powders there are out there in supplement land. I’ve used DoTerra products before and I’m assuming they’re pretty natural so this is what I chose:

This is a ridiculous amount of pills and I’m taking them all day long. And, well, they tend to get things moving, if you know what I mean. And by get things moving, I mean bowel moving. They’re definitely are cleaning me out. But I don’t have any more energy and they’re so darn expensive. There is a huge market for people like me who don’t really like things that are hard like eating vegetables and exercise. I worry about the nutrients my body isn’t getting from my diet. I try to keep it balanced, but let’s get real. I have a job, grad school, kids…I don’t always have time for good choices. And there is no way I can eat half my weight in protein every day. Are supplements a legitimate way to get what I need? Web MD had this interesting article. And then there was this:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/new-york-attorney-general-targets-supplements-at-major-retailers/

This is scary stuff, man. I tend to live on the natural side of life. But I have purchased every type of vitamin, drop, serum, powder, etc…there is trying to balance my desire for health with my desire for things like sleep and macaroni and cheese.

I have friends who swear by their supplements. They have this perfectly orchestrated concoction. I just haven’t had that moment, I guess, where me and my supplements truly understand each other and become one with the universe. What are your thoughts, scootadooters? Are you and your supplements in a committed relationship? Or is it all bologna?

A Taste of Try the World

February 18, 2015 by kpjenn

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Valerie of Valerie & Valise tweeted her vlog about her latest Try the World box.

She’s a travel guru and on any given weekend is traipsing about the globe visit fabulous places, taking beautiful pictures and eating amazing food. Needless to say, she inspires wanderlust in me on the regular.

Anyways… she tweeted about this Try the World thing. Not being one to turn down a good subscription box, I decided I needed to check out this nonsense. Generally, I’m of the opinion that if Valerie endorses something, I’m probably going to like it. This has been true since I was about 13. Things haven’t changed much.

The gist behind Try the World? Discovering the world through food. Every two months, you get a box of gourmet food from a different country. Simple and delicious. It’s a little pricey ($39 a box for the subscription that auto-renews every two months), but you can cancel any time and for what you’re getting (and where it’s coming from) I can handle that cost every two months.

I decided I needed to try this magic out, because if I can’t travel places, then at least I can eat the food.

When my first box arrived, I greeted it with glee!

Happiness is a box of treats from a foreign land

This is the Paris Box, and let me tell you, France is a wonderful place to start. Inside the box was a beautiful array of things that almost looked to pretty to eat. I didn’t let that stop me though, because I’m all about those snacks.

There are seven items in the Paris box – six pictured here, and a mystery treat (that I ate and forgot to get a picture of. Sorry I’m not sorry). Some things look or sound familiar (dark chocolate in any language is fine by me) and some I recognized with a little help from my high school French classes. Thank goodness the box comes with a card that describes each item!

What was in my box? Well, let’s take a look! The following descriptions are from the card… there’s no way I could describe food like this. My take on the food is in italics after.

La Mere Poulard, sables – The famous restaurant and bakery namesd after its founder, La Mere Poulard, remains to this day a benchmark in French gastronomy for its variety, originality and light touch. With only five ingredients including salted butter from Brittany, these delightful cookies are loved by locals and visitors alike! These cookies were the bomb dot com. They are simple and don’t need any adornment – not too sweet but so, so yummy!

Maison d’Armorine, salted butter caramels – This delectable recipe was born in the summer of 1946 when the French celebrated the return to leisure at the beach in Brittany. Maison d’Armorine makes these salted butter caramels using Breton butter and Brittany’s famous fleur de sel. For any French gourmand, each bite of these chewy caramels evokes childhood memories of seaside holidays. It’s caramel. You can’t go wrong. I’ve only had one, but it was TASTY.

Domaine des Vignes, whole grain mustard – The origin of mustard production in France dates back to the Roman Empire, who exported the mustard seeds to Gaul, centures BC. Vineyard Domaine des Vignes uses vinegar produced from its grapes as a base for the mustard. Enjoy this mustard with charcuterie, with roasted meat, or as a dip. I tried this in a marinade with some roasted chicken last week. Serious flavor. Definitely excited to find more things to use this with!

Charles Antona, Corsican jam – Charles Antona is a Corsican brand whose secret lies in its ingredients. Each fruit is ordained with the scent of herbs from bushes that cover the island, and staying true to his grandmother’s recipes, Antona combines Mediterranean herbs and local fruit in his line of preserves. Mine was cherry. I tried a little on one of the sables cookies… I didn’t regret it.

Celement Faugier, chestnut spread – This unique recipe was created by master confectioner Clement Faugier in 1885 and combines chestnuts picked in the Ardeche region with a delightful hint of vanilla. This delicious puree can be used alone as a dessert, enjoyed with cookies, used as a sweet topping for yogurt, or spread on toast, a croissant or fresh brioche. I totally put this on one of the cookies as well, and I’m newly obsessed with it. I want a croissant right now, because I’d slather this nonsense all over it. Chestnut spread. Who knew?

Flagrants Desirs, dark chocolate bar with raspberry – With this 72% cocoa chocolate, Flagrants Desirs continues the tradition of the greatest European master chocolatiers. They achieve this rich cocoa taste by using only real cocoa butter, unlike industrial chocolate producers that ofter use other vegetable fats. This fine selection of cocoa beans mixed with a delicate balance of fruity aroma is a perfect midpoint between milk and dark chocolate. I don’t even need to say anything else about this. Because that pretty much summed it up. Rich, dark, chocolaty deliciousness. More please.

The mystery treat? Two gummy candies – one pear-flavored, the other apricot. Both were very fruity, but in the natural way, not the fake candy fruit flavor way. The pear one tasted just like I was biting into a pear. Swearsies. Super yum. And not too sweet! I usually don’t enjoy candy that much because I don’t eat a lot of sugar and even a little can sometimes be too much. These were very good, and just enough sweetness to do the job.

I don’t get another box for another couple of months, but I’m excited to see what’s next! Try the World is a great way to travel the world on a budget – the world comes to you!

If you’re interested in Try the World, use my referral link: http://fbuy.me/bVMjQ and get $15 off your subscription!

Calling All FitBit-ers – Let’s Feed America!

February 3, 2015 by Jennifer

Do you like helping people? Did you know that being hungry sucks? Do you own a FitBit?

If you answered yes to these life questions like I did, then LEMME TELL YOU A STORY.

Last Thursday, I found out about the FitBit/Feed America challenge to make the calories I burn between today and March 3rd count toward 1.5 million meals for hungry Americans. HELLO, SIGN ME UP!

It’s ridiculously simple. All you need is a FitBit and a few minutes of time. Here’s the scoop:

1. Read more about the project on the FitBit Blog and on Feeding America’s Website.

2. Sign up here.

3. Track your calories on your dashboard.

4. Watch the video because it’s kinda hilarious.

I hope you’ll join Mer, Vic, and I in this virtual race to punch hunger in the face! MyFitBit Profile Link

Not Gonna Half A** My First 1/2

January 5, 2015 by Jennifer

Today is a BIG day for me. Exactly fourteen weeks from today, I will be in Atlantic City with a few of my fellow Chicks, laughing and eating and giggling and running in the AC April Fool’s Half Marathon. It will be my first half, and I really want to have a strong race. It’s important to me that I’m able to keep up with Mer, Vic, and Cam because it’s not often that I get to run with my girls. I registered for the race many moons ago, determined to train safely over ten months. I stuck to that over the summer, but then the fall semester started up and training was replaced with homework.

Blahhhhhh.

So here I am, fourteen weeks out from my first half marathon and not nearly where I wanted to be. Same old song and dance, right? YUP. Not for long, though, because this girl has a plan.

Jenn’s First Half Training Plan:

Start Training in Earnest. I found a fourteen week half marathon training plan from Women’s Running Magazine that I think will work well for me. I’m super excited to start it, and even though day one (today) is a “rest day”, it is SO ON tomorrow. The plan offers enough flexibility with the strength training and cross training that I can pick activities that I enjoy like rock climbing and vinyasa yoga. Yay for variety! Without variety, I know I would fail a few weeks in.

Eat healthier. Notice I didn’t say eat clean or diet. I’ve accepted that there are few things in life that I just cannot and will not give up. My life without any bacon, chocolate, or those blasted lemon poppy seed scones the local store bakery sells really couldn’t be called life. What I need to practice is moderation.

I’m like Rick Astley with these things.

Also, I could do a better job of satisfying my demanding sweet tooth with healthy alternatives like the chocolate chip chia seed energy bites from Gimmesomeoven. I made them yesterday and my husband called them “balls of yummy goodness.” I was forced to tell him to back off my chocolate fix. It was about to get ugly.

No Bake Energy Bites Recipe from Gimme Some Oven

Stay Motivated This is likely the most difficult aspect of training in any sport. The strategy I chose was to carefully plot out my goals and the plan for achieving them. I created an achievement board, a training calendar outlining the 14 week plan, and organized a cork board to act as a half marathon command center. I was sure to highlight the reasons why I enjoy running such as the sense of accomplishment after a race and how it helps me burn off negative energy. I also broke up my goals into to smaller more manageable segments because I have a tendency to overwhelm myself with the BIG picture.

Board of awesome!

Accept My Limits I discovered this fall that running in cold weather aggravates my asthma too much. The treadmill at the office gym and I are soon to be quite well acquainted. I can’t continue to let asthma hold me back eight months out of the year. I HAVE THINGS TO DO, LUNGS! I am terrified of getting bored on the treadmill early on in my training. Audio books are definitely on tap, and I’m going to try to learn meditation running. I’ve been wanting to read “Running With The Mind of Meditation” for a while now. Anyone have any experience with this technique?

Read to Achieve!

That’s it, that’s my plan. Admittedly, I’m sort of winging, but it’s my plan nonetheless. More importantly, I want to hear your go-to training strategies, as well as what you feel doesn’t work for you. Please share your wisdom with me, I’d be so grateful! I might even make you some balls of yummy goodness.

How do you stay motivated? Do you have a favorite training workout? Do you have to hide your chocolate stash from your husband like I do? Let’s trade hiding places in the comments!

Whole 30 Holidays

December 31, 2014 by kpjenn

Remember how I sprained my ankle last month? Remember how that meant no running for an undetermined amount of time? Yeah. We’re still at no running status.

And for a while, #bustedankle meant no exercising at all. Which is generally a problem, because no exercising means eventually, my clothes don’t fit. Which is REALLY a problem because I’m in a friend’s wedding this weekend and there’s a dress that I have to fit in to.

Knowing this a month ago, I decided to preemptively combat the clothes-not-fitting and the holiday food and drink onslaught by doing Whole 30.

If you’re not familiar with the Whole 30 plan, the easy explanation is this: no sugars, no grains, no legumes, no dairy, no alcohol. No processed foods. Only meat, veggies, fruits, and nuts. (There are more rules, so check them out here: http://whole30.com)

I’ve done a strict Whole 30 before (when I was training for the Chicago marathon) and I generally try to eat Paleo most of the time, so I knew that 1. I could do it, and 2. It would be a good way to avoid most of the crazy holiday food nonsense and hopefully help me fit into the dress for this wedding.

I actually love eating Whole 30-compliant food and have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to paleo/Whole 30 recipes. My favorite this round? Bacon Brussel Sprouts. I seriously made them at least once a week.

Some of my other go-tos: apples and almond butter, guacamole and plantain chips, and any breakfast bake with eggs and sausage and sweet potatoes and all of the veggies.

Now that the end of December is here, I can say this about my attempt: doing Whole 30 during the holidays is really stinking hard. Also, I didn’t stay strict the whole time. Reasons: 6 million holiday parties. It just gets really annoying to say “oh I’m not drinking because…” Or “no thanks, I don’t need any cookies…”

Or really, quite frankly, to hang out with family and not join in the frivolity.

That said, I did do fairly well. I allowed myself a few nights of fun and treats (not too many), but stayed to the plan the rest of the time. Which is really the big takeaway. If you eat the healthiest you can 80% of the time, and use the other 20% to enjoy yourself, you’ll be okay.

I also got the okay to start exercising again, which helped, too. Back on the bike and in spin class, and on the elliptical and the rower. Thank goodness!! I’m still not cleared to run, but my PT seems to feel confident that I’ll be able to start doing that early next year. (In my head that means tomorrow. Because hello 2015!) Until then, more physical therapy and crossing of fingers.

A handful of my coworkers and I will be doing a Whole 60 when we all get back from Christmas break, so now that I’m on my last official day of this Whole 30, I’m excited to partake wholeheartedly in the wedding festivities this weekend. BRING ME THE FINEST DRINKS IN ALL THE LAND. And cake. Also bring me cake.

Tried the dress on this morning, and it fits, so SUCCESS YOU GUYS! Boom. Nailed it.

Have you ever done Whole 30? How successful were you? What are your favorite recipes?

Happy Boxing Day!

December 26, 2014 by camoozle

In various countries all over this beautiful blue planet today, people are queuing up to sort out those last little holiday trifles. In Europe, stores open early and banks are closed in recognition of this day of goodwill. In ye olde tymes, Boxing Day was a day to give gifts to those in need or in service positions. It has since become a shopping day, akin to the US Black Friday, where shoppers can score sweet deals on some sweet merch.

Here in the States, Boxing Day takes on a whole different meaning. I’m spending the day cleaning up Lego boxes and Amazon boxes and clothing boxes torn apart by eager little hands. I’m packing up red and green boxes with ornaments and decorations to be stored until next year while demolishing little gold boxes of chocolate. I’m reboxing items that need to go back to the store; duplicate presents from liked minded friends who know us so well. And I can’t help but think it a chore. Grumble all the way.

And this is what won’t fit in the recycling bin.

Two sets of wireless headphones. They know me so well.

The sheer enormity of what needs to be done to get my house, and my health, back in order is daunting. All I want to do is drink wine and binge watch National Lampoon movies. I love Christmas. I’ve watched Love Actually four times this week. I’ve indulged in sugar cookies and macaroni and cheese and fine alcoholic beverages. I’ve enjoyed out of town friends and family immensely and laughed until my belly ached. But today I’m suffering from a holiday hangover. I haven’t been to the gym in a week, I need a sugar detox and quite frankly, I’ve been buzzed since Monday. And it’s not even over yet! I still have to make it through New Years.

I’ve been supposedly involved in this Holiday Health Challenge at my gym. And I’ve completely let my team down because I have fallen off the wagon in a big way. I’ve been so good at monitoring myself throughout this year. I’ve felt healthy and strong and proud of my accomplishments. In one short week, I’ve given in to this sluggish, lazy, gluttonous routine that I know I need to leave behind but I just can’t find the energy to start.

How, my fitness family, do you avoid the three signs of the apocalypse: sugar, bread, and alcohol? I am perfectly fine with indulging on this special occasion, but now that it’s winding down, my biggest obstacle is figuring out how to stop. I have a half-marathon in two weeks! “Just get back on track”, they say. Easier said than done, Pinterest.

I need some out of the box ways to get motivated. How do you recover from the holidays? Share with me your wisdom, internet world!

Crazy Christmas Coping

December 17, 2014 by Jennifer

Let’s be honest, the joyous holiday season is sometimes not very joyous. The decorating and shopping and party going and hosting and cooking takes a toll on us. I didn’t even mention the cleaning for guests, the wrapping of presents, or the shelving of the elf.

Carlos is concerned. (Mer is so clever.)

And there are those members of the family that just lie around, soaking up the Christmas cheer while you do all the work.

SHINY TWINKLES.

Can I open my presents YET?

All the hustle and bustle can zap us of our holiday cheer. I know you know that I know that you know. We all know the trick is to remember what the season is really about and to focus on the big stuff. To be clear, by big stuff I do not mean giant tins of caramel corn. There are techniques to avoid eating your holiday malaise because your visiting relatives are driving you bonkers. Here are some ways we cope with the Christmas crazy.

Crazy Christmas Coping Tip 1: Many Christmas’ past, my family decided to draw names instead of buying gifts for everyone. It’s quite possible that this is the best family decision we ever made. Here’s how it works in our jolly clan. After Christmas dinner, the adults each draw a name, and they buy for that person the next Christmas. This strategy gives us a year to shop for the perfect gift at the perfect price. There is a set dollar limit, and we keep track so that someone doesn’t draw the same name two years in a row. Everyone buys gifts for all the kids in the family (as it should be).

Because this is about my level of Christmas spirit come the 25th.

Crazy Christmas Coping Tip 2: Wassail, my friend. Yes, as in “Here we come a wassailing among the leaves so green…” It’s warm, it’s cinnamon-y, it’s divine. It’s an inexpensive cupful of winter warmth and cheer that guests will rave about. Plus, it’s just the thing to curl up with Christmas night when the kids are tucked away in bed and you can enjoy the blessings of the day like your family and your health and the existence of wassail.

Always buy the BIG bottle of rum.

Crazy Christmas Coping Tip 3: Why is setting reasonable expectations of ourselves and our time SO HARD? We feel like we can do it all and then some and still be creative and adorable to boot. We totally can be that person who hosts a gingerbread house party and makes her own gifts because we can do it all. But we shouldn’t have to. So we need to delegate. We need to make parties we’re hosting a potluck. We need to shop online to free up time and stress. We need not worry about getting it all done. Instead, we focus on doing what we realistically can accomplish and remember that those who love us don’t us judge us.

Lots of stockings on the wall means a big happy family lives here.

This goes without saying, but this season, try to remember what’s truly important. Pause and be grateful for your blessings. As life swirls on around us, the need to take a moment every day to be present and compassionate is more important than ever.

How Mer retains her sanity:

The majority of my holiday shopping is done online. We hit the stores here and there for little specialty gifts but otherwise I am Amazon Prime’s biggest fan!

Additionally, I’m cutting down on the hustle and bustle of this time of year by taking short cuts. Usually I bake cookies for all of my neighbors but this year I saw tins with shortbreads – 4 for $10 – at Sam’s Club. We have four neighbors, how convenient! Done.

I’m trying to focus on what’s important to me and my family and not stress about the rest.

Wassail Recipe:

In a crock pot or large stove top pot, combine 1 part oj to 1 part cranberry juice to 2 parts apple cider. Add rum or spiced rum to taste. Add ground cloves, ground cinnamon, and a pinch of allspice. Stud an orange with cloves and tie 2-3 cinnamon sticks together and drop them in the pot. Let simmer and serve hot. The alcohol will burn off after a while so you may need to add more.

Enjoy, and be sure to collect people’s keys!

How do you cope with holiday stress (besides running your feelings out)? What are your favorite holiday traditions? Does the Elf on the Shelf creep you out, too?

Product Review: MyOatmeal.com

October 14, 2014 by bec2point0

Every once in a while, we talk about our enjoyment of oatmeal. There may have been posts dedicated to oatmeal before.

Fine, we’re obsessed. You caught us. If you think we talk about oatmeal a lot on here, you should see the number of times oatmeal comes up in email between Mer and I.

But, when I first happened upon myoatmeal.com, I skipped email and went straight to text! And there was some back and forth flailing.

Because custom oatmeal? Where do I sign up for that??? On the My Oatmeal website, of course! (I’m not even kidding. You can literally sign up for the Oatmeal of the Month Club, and along with sending you a bag of handmade oatmeal each month, they will donate a bag of oatmeal to a hungry child in the US for each subscription purchased).

So, when I got the chance to do a review for myoatmeal.com, I was beyond excited. To say it took me a while to decide is a vast understatement. I just wanted to make sure it was the PERFECT blend. And there is a lot to choose from! Thankfully, the website is super easy and has lots of information on the ingredients.

Custom Built Oatmeal? Best ever.

First, you decide on your size (1, 2.5 or 4 pounds) and pick your oats. Rolled oats, Steel Cut, Instant… they’re all there, just pick your favorite. Then you add your flavors, which are 100% Natural, Vegan, Gluten-Free and Non GMO. Also, they’re FUN! And then, you’ve get to decide if you want to do add-ins (you really do, I swear). Fruits, nuts, protein, sweetener. There are practically limitless options to make your custom oatmeal exactly what you want it to be.

And then? The most fun part of all? You get to name your oatmeal! (I accept that this might not be the most fun part for everyone, but I got totally dorky with this part. You’ll see below.) I’ve seen some pretty cute things people have done here, including on person who named theirs ‘Don’t Touch This Bag’. I feel you, friend.

If you can’t figure out what you would want in your oatmeal (hardest choice ever), they also have some Seasonal and Popular blends already picked out for you. And, they have a Mystery Blend option if you think “I don’t care what’s in it, just send me some oats!”

Myoatmeal.com also sells PBLean, which is dehydrated Peanut Butter powder. You can reconstitute it with water for a Peanut Butter with 85% less fat, mix it with any liquid, throw it in smoothies, use it in baking, etc. And it’s just as customizable as the oatmeal!

But if you’re watching what you eat, which I always am, one of the coolest parts was the nutrition calculator. It sits on the side of the screen and updates as you add customization. So the whole time you’re making your oatmeal, you can keep an eye on the nutritional impact and make sure it fits your points/calories/carbs/macros/whatever.

All in all, it’s a pretty rocking process. But let’s get down to brass tacks. How does it taste??? I’ll break down each of the products I tried for you.

Mystery Blend Oatmeal

I decided to try out a bag of the Mystery Blend. Sometimes, I don’t have to have complete control! This was one fine bowl of oats, I tell you. It had fruits and nuts and spice. YUM. That said, this is not what I was expecting. When it said Mystery Blend, I thought that the mystery would be solved upon arrival. Essentially, I thought that when I got the bag, it would tell me what was in it, so that if I wanted to, I could order again. No such luck. I’m not sure if Mystery Blend is always the same, or if it changes every time you order. Either way, it was delicious and at only 6.99 for a 1 pound bag, it was a very cost-effective option.

Bananas Foster the People

See? I told you I was a dork. But, once I went with banana bread and dark caramel flavor, the name just hit me! For my custom blend, I added the following: Smash Blend Oats, Banana Bread and Dark Caramel Flavor, Banana Chips, Ground Flax Seed, Quinoa Flakes and Brown Cane Sugar Granules. This was SO good. On the sweet side, which I like. The smash blend oats, which have some added barley, rye and red wheat, were nice and chewy. I hate mushy oats, so this was good. I could definitely taste the banana and caramel flavors. The only thing I would change would be the banana chips. They stayed a little too hard, and didn’t add much in the way of flavor. Next time, I think I’d throw in some pecans instead.

Bananas Foster the People Oatmeal with Fresh Bananas and Caramel Bits

Sticky Toffee Pudding Butter

PBLean is not my first rodeo with powdered peanut butter. I’ve had products like this before, and I’ve always enjoyed them. But this was the first time I could customize it! I went with Light Roasted Peanuts, Dark Caramel and English Toffee flavors, and Brown Cane Sugar Granules. This was complete and told win. I made a smoothie with vanilla protein powder, milk, ice and PBLean. Dude. So good. And below, I reconstituted it with water and thinned it more than I normally would to make Caramel Toffee Peanut Butter syrup to go with Double Chocolate Waffle Sticks. Insanely good.

Sticky Toffee Pudding Butter ‘syrup’ with Double Chocolate Waffle Sticks

All in all, I’m a huge fan of this company and their products. They were incredibly nice to deal with, and they’re selling an awesome, healthy product line. I will totally be making myself some more. If you think this all sounds like the most fun ever, or even if you just want some PDT (Pretty Darn Tasty) oatmeal, you can use coupon code Scoot15 to get 15% off of your order. Do it! No pressure. Seriously, though. You won’t be sorry. And then you should come tell me what you picked and we can talk even more endlessly about oatmeal!

Win/win.

*The products I tried were provided by myoatmeal.com in exchange for an honest review.

Pumpkin Yogurt Throwdown

October 10, 2014 by bec2point0

Can we talk about pumpkin? Can we talk a lot about pumpkin?

I have a serious crush on pumpkin this year. And because the universe is kind/cruel, it seems I am not alone and the product gods are blessing all of us pumpkin lovers with an abundance of items.

Ahem. Anyone want to stage a Pumpkintervention? (Please don’t, I’m happy in my obsession).

While many of the pumpkin-y items aren’t all that healthy or Weight Watchers friendly, there is one standout that I saw a lot of this year.

Pumpkin yogurt. And boy, is there plenty of it to go around.

In the interest of scientific research, I decided to do a little compare and contrast of all the different pumpkin yogurts I could get my hands on. Really, I did this for you, fair readers. #denial

Over the past week or so, I’ve been taste testing one of these beauties every day, and keeping a handy dandy spreadsheet for notes on taste, nutrition, cost and availability.

So, without further ado, I give you my findings, in really gross to OMG order.

Yo Crunch Pumpkin Pie with Pie Crust Topping

This came in dead last in both taste and nutrition. This was too sweet and very artificial tasting. It also didn’t really taste like pumpkin. As one of the only two regular (non Greek/Australian/Icelandic) yogurts, it was also too thin. Ingredients wise, this wasn’t a winner either, with a lot of additives and preservatives. The only thing this had going for it was price (about .55 per 4 ounce cup/ 2.29 for a four pack). But with an ingredients list that reads like stereo instructions and a horrible protein to carbs ratio (3 grams to 25 grams), coupled with a terrible taste, you could give this away and I wouldn’t eat it. Not even with a little cup of pie crust sprinkles on top.

365 Organics Pumpkin Spice

This was almost a tie for last, but it wasn’t quite as artificial tasting. This was the other ‘regular’ yogurt, and again, I found it too thin. I think that is likely due to the fact that I’ve just gotten used to thicker, Greek-style yogurt over the last few years, so now regular yogurt seems watery. This didn’t seem to have much pumpkin or spice flavor. This is organic, but that doesn’t always mean healthy or good for you. This was another fairly low protein/high carb item (7 grams/25 grams). 365 Organics is a Whole Foods brand, so you won’t find this anywhere else, and this was around 1.00 for 6 ounces.

Trader Joe’s Greek Nonfat Pumpkin

Mehhh

I love Trader Joe’s almost as much as I love pumpkin. Maybe I love it more? It’s close, at any rate. Sadly, I did not love this yogurt. I wanted to. Other people had been raving about it, so I went in with high expectations. I found this to be nice and thick, but it had a sour taste to it (even for yogurt), and was more spice than pumpkin. This one did have a decent ingredients list, with the exception of corn starch, and the protein is much higher (18g) but the carbs are on the high side (29g) for something not very sweet. Only carried at TJ’s (obviously), and 1.09 for 6 ounces, this one just wasn’t a winner for me.

Oikos Pumpkin Pie

Yumkin Pie, more like it.

If taste were the only consideration, this might have won. It was really delicious. On the sweet side, but not too sweet, with the perfect amount of spice, I wanted there to be more days that included this item. Ultimately, this one wound up in the middle of the list due to ingredients (can we please not put corn starch in my yogurt??) and mid range nutrition (11 grams protein/20 grams carbs – I like a little more protein and a little less carbs from my yogurt). This was reasonably priced, 1.19 for 5.3 ounces, and is available at major chain grocery stores.

Chobani Pumpkin Spice

Topped with TJ’s This Pumpkin Walks Into a Bar. See TJ’s, I still love you!

Now we’re getting to the good stuff. I loved this! It was creamy, had good pumpkin flavor, was spicy and sweet, without being too much of either. This also has a good ingredients list, mostly clean, and no corn starch! With a 14 g protein/13 g carbs ratio, this is the first item on the list with more protein than carbs. This is also probably the most readily available, as I’ve seen it at grocery stores, Target, etc. And the price was average, 1.19 for 5.3 ounces. For me, this will totally be in regular rotation.

Noosa Pumpkin

The cheesecake of pumpkin yogurts.

Okay, have you tried Noosa? If you haven’t, I highly recommend it. Unless you shop at my Target, in which case, don’t go there. It’s all mine. Noosa is Australian style, which seems similar to Greek, but a bit less tart. It is incredibly creamy. Made in Colorado, this product is made with milk from a local dairy, and local honey. Awesome. And the ingredients list doesn’t suck at all. Nothing unpronounceable, except the yogurt cultures. But, let’s talk taste. The pumpkin Noosa is incredible. More than any of the others, this tasted like PUMPKIN. It was lighter on the ‘spice’ element, which totally let the pumpkin through. It had decent protein (14 grams), but high carbs (30 grams). This one had by far the highest calories, and was the highest price (2.39) but also the biggest portion size (8 ounces). The container is almost too big to eat at once, and it has an almost dessert-y taste. My advice? If you’re eating this for breakfast or a snack, have half a container. And then you get some for later! Noosa is starting to be more widely available, but the pumpkin flavor is a Target exclusive.

Siggi’s Pumpkin Spice

Hello, new favorite yogurt!

Top spot. Or bottom, since we went from worst to best. Guys, this one won it for a lot of reasons. I had never had Siggi’s before this, so this Icelandic (again, similar to Greek) yogurt was brand new to me. And wow, am I glad I found it. This was incredible. Very creamy, not too sweet (bordering on tart, but not quite), it had the perfect (for me) pumpkin and spice ratio. Also, this was one of the only two that had more protein than carbs (14g/13g). But the ingredients list! Short, clean, natural. The pumpkin flavor I could only find at Whole Foods, and at 1.99 for 5.3 ounces, this was the highest price per ounce. But you totally get what you pay for and this worth every penny.

So, that’s the skinny on all yogurts pumpkin. I hope this is helpful in your search! Have you guys tried any of these? Like ‘em? Hate ‘em? Know of another pumpkin yogurt that I missed (don’t even say the Yoplait, I looked for that everywhere!)? Tell me all about your love of yogurt, or pumpkin, or pumpkin yogurt below!

Breakfast Protein: And the Eggs Have It

September 26, 2014 by bec2point0

I think I featured eggs in each one of my breakfast protein posts. Yup, here, when it was so hot I couldn’t cook. Totally here, when I was all about breakfast on the go. Even here, when I featured and awesome lemon-y recipe in honor of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Million Mile Run-Walk-Ride.

So, do they need their own post?

They do. In my search for good sources of protein for breakfast, eggs showed up more than anything else. They’re versatile, generally easy to prepare and with 6 grams of protein per 78 calorie large egg, you get a lot of bang for your buck (which goes a long way, because eggs are also typically a cheap protein source, even if you’re buying the good, cage free, pastured, organic ones, or fresh from a local farm, which I highly recommend).

I’ve made eggs a bazillion* ways. Hard boiled. Soft boiled. Poached. Fried. Over easy. Over medium. Over well. Scrambled. Baked. Omelette. And they’re all good! But these are a few of my recent favorites.

*Slight exaggeration

Mexican Scramble

This is my favorite easy, throw together, toss in whatever you’ve got, breakfast.

Cheese? Sure. What kind? Cheddar? Pepperjack? Yes. Or Yes.

Black beans? Chili? Salsa? Go for it! One of those. All of those*.

Avocado? Most def. Sour cream? If that lights your fire.

Kitchen Sink Breakfast

And if you don’t have some of those things, they will still be super yummy and filling. I used egg beaters here, because I had some, but regular eggs, or egg whites, would be just as tasty.

*Okay, maybe not all at the same time. I don’t want you to need a post breakfast nap.

Italian Baked Eggs

You GUYS. These are SO good.

Italian Style Baked Eggs

And with four ingredients, it’s barely even cooking. You all probably know by now, I don’t really ‘recipe’, but I’ll break this down for you.

4 large eggs

1 cup of marinara sauce

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Fresh basil

Spray a baking dish with cooking spray and then spread the marinara over the bottom of the dish. Crack the eggs on top of the sauce, spreading them out as much as you can. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top, avoiding the yolks. Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Throw some fresh basil chiffonade on top.

I took a picture before I inhaled these. The struggle is real.

Shove in mouth. Cry over amazing yumminess and burnt tongue. Take picture and post on Instagram*.

*Optional, but appreciated.

Poached Eggs and Sweet Potato & Apple Hash

Poaching might be my favorite way to prepare eggs, especially since I got these kick ass poach pods. Total game changer.

My babies

And then there’s hash. Which is awesome. And another dish where you can throw in a bunch of whatever. In this case, I had some left over pork chop, a couple of small sweet potatoes that I wasn’t sure what to do with, an apple and an onion. What am I going to do with that? Make hash, of course.

Delicious, hearty, all kinds of autumn flavored*. It doesn’t get much better than that.

Hash and eggs, healthy style.

*Flavors of autumn. Not flavored like autumn. Because what would that even taste like? Dried leaves?

So, I hope you guys have enjoyed following me on my hunt for protein-y breakfasts! I’m totally not done talking about breakfast either. Over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be posting a review of MyOatmeal.com, and I’ll be doing a taste test of all the pumpkin yogurts I’ve found. Cool? Cool!

What’s your favorite way to prepare eggs? Any other breakfast protein suggestions? Other breakfast items you want to talk about? Want to just head over to Bec’s house for breakfast? Let’s go!

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Category Archives: Food