Foodtrainers' Favorite Daytime Drink

I am a sucker for packaging. I buy wine based on the label and my favorite skincare has a clean modern design. Ultimately though, if it isn’t good wine or there aren’t good ingredients in a food or cosmetic, I will not purchase it but I like pretty things. In full disclosure I will tell you that I received an email last Friday from Paige at Herbal Water. I’ve loved these interestingly flavored water for a while. They have no sweeteners or juice added and instead use natural flavors like lemongrass and cardamom. My only objection to these drinks was the container…plastic. Paige told me they were sending me out some of the new sparkling waters to try.

When I arrived at work on Monday, the packages from Herbal Water were already there. I opened the box of sparkling water and my excitement intensified. They were beautiful frosted, large, GLASS bottles. The labels were in bright colors and the flavors, Ginger Lemon Peel and Cinnamon Orange, were right up my alley. I put them in the refrigerator and then realized I didn’t have much time before my first client arrived. Into the freezer went Ginger Lemon Peel with a little worry that the bubbles would make it explode. It didn’t explode and with the enthusiasm of a 3 year old I poured a glass of my new sparling water. I also left the bottle on my desk to show it off.

It isn’t easy to get giddy about water but this water feels special. They have a lot of flavor (think lemon zest not lemon). They could easily work as a hostess gift. They’re also great for pregnant women who cannot have “real” drinks and just fun for a change of pace. Is it non-nutritionisty that I also wonder how these zero calorie mixers will work in drink drinks?  I hope not.

Do you fall prey to pretty packaging? What are you favorite water variations? Are you sparkling or “flat”?

*Be sure to comment there’s a sampler of Herbal Water we’re giving away to someone who does and here’s a coupon ($12 off) in case you do not win.

5 FNCE Favorites

Every year, around this time, I attend the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo organized by the American Dietetic Association. Part of the conference involves seminars on various topics in nutrition, the other part is the expo. The expo is a giant, generally subterranean, windowless room filled with booths. The booths are run by food companies, big and small, virtuous and questionable. This year’s conference is in Boston. In between lectures, my friend Keri and I headed to the Expo Hall checking out the offerings. The whole process reminds me of trick or treating for nutritionists. There are some trick or treaters who want to gather as much as they can. Others survey the "candy" selecting only their favorite treats. After all these years, I am selective. I take samples from a few companies and taste a couple of items. Here are some of my favorite finds from FNCE this year:

 Mary’s Gone Cookies

The company behind the crunchy, gluten free crackers we love now makes a cookie. The cookies are also gluten free; they also have chia seeds and quinoa in them I tried the ginger and oatmeal and preferred the oatmeal. These are a great snack or a breakfast option.

 Sweet Leaf Liquid Stevia
Sweet Leaf makes stevia packets that are good for coffee or tea. I was excited to see Sweet Leaf Liqiud in interesting flavors such as English Toffee and Hazelnut. These work in oatmeal, yogurt or coffee drinks. The flavorings used are all natural.

Guayaki

Guayaki makes yerba mate, a caffeinated drink from a South American plant. Their yerba mate comes in tea bags, bottled drinks and a 35 calorie organic energy shot that contains ginger and goji berries. Guayaki is great before a workout or mid morning.

GG Scandinavian Bran Fiber Sprinkles
GG crackers have been a Foodtrainers’ favorite for years. They’re high in fiber and low in calories and a great bread stand in. GG now makes “sprinkles” a crumbled version of their crackers perfect in yogurt, mixed into a salad in blended in a smoothie for added fiber. We will be adding these to our Open Sky store.

Mu “measure up” Bowl

Regardless of what we eat, portions are important. Taking out measuring cups at 7am is more than I can handle so I loved finding these all-in-one bowls. There are subtle lines indication varying amounts on the inside of these bowls. Finally your serving can match what’s suggested on the package.

So I came, I tasted and I'm ready to head home.
Were you at FNCE, what were your favorite finds? If you weren’t any favorite new food finds? Any of these you’d like to try?

A Day in the Life of Lauren

I am not very good at receiving compliments. Without fail, if somebody says “I like your shirt” I say “oh this? It’s old.” I once had a friend who gave me a good lesson, she said “how about just saying thank you?” Of course she was right and for about a week I implemented her suggestion. The truth is that I love compliments, when they are genuine, don’t we all? Last week I received this at the end of an email complimenting my blog (which for me trumps any physical compliment):

Anyway, I have a suggestion (because I don't think you have done it already). I have ALWAYS thought that you look great, have a great figure and flawless skin. Is there a reason why you don't get specific about what you eat?
What's a day in the life of Lauren? I could really use a jump start this March!

My reply to this was, true to form “does anyone really want to hear what I eat?” However, because this email was so sweet, I pledged to write about my food. Here it goes.

The alarm goes off at 5:45am. I love the hour I usually have before anyone else gets up. I don’t eat or drink anything until 7ish, well actually 7 on the dot. I’ll make a pot of coffee with either Caffe Mocias  (#1 coffee in NYC in my book) or Le Pain Quotidien beans. This coffee gets a splash of Horizon half and half and a squirt of agave. I don’t eat a lot of dairy after taking it and wheat out of my diet last year. I had been waking up with my eyelids puffy and scaly (so much for the “flawless skin” mentioned above) and after lots of experimentation found that wheat and dairy were the 2 probable culprits. Argh, this is why I didn’t want to write about me. I am not anti wheat or dairy but don’t eat a lot of it.

Most days I take breakfast to the office. It tends to be liquid a lot of days. I love my Breville juicer and will make a green juice (kale, cucumber, celery, lemon, ginger, and apple) or a smoothie. My smoothies tend to be a little weird. On some days I use hemp protein as a base, other days avocado and I may add acai or frozen berries, I love basil or mint and lemon zest for flavor, it’s really a matter of what’s on hand. Hard boiled eggs are another breakfast favorite of mine and 1-2 days a week I’ll have 2 Country Hen hard boiled eggs. Calorie for calorie nothing keeps you more satisfied than eggs. In the wintertime I’ll eat brown rice or quinoa as a warm breakfast option.

My day can easily get away from me when I see morning clients until 1pm. I have learned the hard way that I need to stop and eat a real lunch. I have no issue whatsoever with leftovers. Today I had leftover tilapia and veggies. Another day this week it was leftover scallops and asparagus. Spring vegetables have me so pumped that I’ve cooked a lot this week. Otherwise I always have prewashed greens, avocados, Zoe tuna, Eden canned beans (the only BPA free canned goods) to throw together a quick salad.

From here I’ll do one of two things. My favorite days, for multiple reasons, are the days I am home when the boys have dinner at 530 or 6pm. When I an “early bird” dinner, I feel the best. A few days a week I see clients until after 7 so this plan doesn’t work. On those days I’ll have walnuts or pumpkin seeds around 3:30. We have a ton of delicious snacks for our clients so I also may grab a small bag of Food Should Taste Good chips, a Zing Bar or a Kookie Karma.

I try to cook as many days as I can. We eat a lot of fish, generally with a seasonal veggie. We also love soba noodles, sweet potatoes and squashes and can make a “one pot” meal with some combination of these. One night during the week we’ll order sushi, Thai or Indian and Saturday nights we are generally out to eat. After dinner I may have a couple squares of dark chocolate or medjool dates.

OK, I told you now tell me (briefly) what your day is like.