Tip Tuesday- Lemon Water

How you start your morning is vital to how the rest of your day will play out.  To get a jump start on my day I love drinking warm water with freshly squeezed lemon juice.  This offers many benefits and allows me to relax before I begin my day.  I highly recommend everyone to adapt this morning ritual that will improve your health in the long run!


Benefits:

• Boost your immune system.
• Lemons contain pectin fiber, this aids in colon health and acts as a natural antibacterial. 
• Helps flush out toxins.
• Balances pH levels in the body.
• Helps with the prevention of acne and wrinkles (MAJOR PLUS!)
• Purifies blood.
• Helps with weight loss.
• Aids in digestion.
• Reduces inflammation in joints as it dissolves uric acid.

These are only some of the benefits that come from drinking lemon water on a daily basis, give it a try!

Yummy Baked Oatmeal

Waking up in the morning for classes can be a struggle sometimes, it's easy to have something ready to go waiting in the fridge.  On weeks where I know I'll be busy I like to make a batch of baked oatmeal, something healthy and convenient. Researching various healthy baked oatmeal recipes I came across Skinny Taste Baked Oatmeal, its super satisfying and delicious.  Here is the original link: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/01/baked-oatmeal-with-blueberries-and.html

Baked Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 2 medium ripe bananas
• 1 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 cup uncooked quick oats
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup Almond Milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 375° F.  Lightly spray a 8 x 8" or 9 x 9" ceramic baking dish with cooking spray; set aside.  Now,  cover the bottom of the pan with blueberries and bananas, sprinkle with cinnamon and honey.  Bake this for 15 minutes.

Mix Dry Ingredients together, and put this directly over the fruit.  Then take the wet mixture and pour this evenly over top.
 

Bake oatmeal for 30 min, enjoy.

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Going Bananas!

Anyone who knows me personally knows I am obsessed with Bananas.  I don't skip a day without having at least one banana. Being such a versatile fruit, I use them in baking, smoothies, oatmeal or just as a yummy snack.

Some are picky on the color of their bananas but I'll take them any color, the more spots the sweeter! Here are some helpful tips when it comes to storing bananas:

• If bananas are too green, put them in a brown paper bag with an apple or tomato overnight to speed up the ripening process.
• To slow down the ripening process store the bananas in the refrigerator, this causes the skin to darken but the flavor will be just right for a few days.  
• If your bananas are too ripe, cut them up and throw them in the freezer! This is a easy way to add sweetness to any smoothie and also acts as ice cubes.

 Now, what does this fruit have to offer?

• 20% of Daily Value of Vitamin B6
• 15% of Daily Value of Vitamin C
• 15% of Daily Value of Manganese 
• 13% of Daily Value of Potassium
• A single serving also contains 12% of the recommended dietary fiber intake for an adult. 

Here are some of my banana creations:

Baked oatmeal

 

Gluten Free waffles with PB

Smoothie 101

Making smoothies has always been fun for me but after getting the Nutribullet I've been on a smoothie craze.  Now, you could just throw whatever you have left in your fridge but here is a step-by-step guide I follow:

1. 50% Leafy Greens:  spinach, kale, romaine, spring greens, swiss chard, collard greens.
2. 50% Fruits: Apple, Avocado, Blackberry, Banana, Green grapes, Kiwi, Mango, Peach, Pear, Strawberry, Raspberries, Blueberries, etc.
3. 1/4 cup "Boost": Nuts (walnuts, almonds, cashews); Seeds (Chia, Flax, Hemp); Super Chargers (Goji Berries, Acai Berries)
4. Add water (or any juice you prefer), Ice (if you want)
5. BLEND, BLEND, BLEND! 

Tips:

• Add 2 cups of greens to get the recommended full serving of leafy greens
• If you are a beginner in smoothies, add greens that are mild in taste such as spinach and spring greens as you work your way up to the others.
•  Eat sensibly throughout the entire day.
• If drinking in morning, drink a warm glass of water with lemon before. 
• Have fun experimenting!

A few of my Smoothies:

Banana, spinach, raspberries, almond milk

Spinach, raspberries, lemon, almond milk

Spinach, Avocado, Banana, Apple, Water

NutriBullet

I just got the NutriBullet for Christmas and was so ecstatic! I love making smoothies and having them for breakfast,  prior to getting the NutriBullet I made my smoothies every Sunday and had them for the following week.  This worked for the first few days, however the smoothie began to separate and decrease in taste.




I've been using my Nutribullet for about two weeks now and I love it, here are some reasons why:

• fresh smoothies every morning
• allows for variety 
• easy to use
• quick clean-up
• powerful
• extracts nutrients (easy digestion) 
• space saver
• portable
•  great source of fiber (juicing extracts fiber)
• durable
• price

Overall, I've only been using the Nutribullet for a short amount of time but that was more than enough to get me hooked, I will keep you updated on recipes I try with it over time.