Is it time for a tequila, rosé or chip intervention?

Clearly not my stash, no Summer Water or Miraval, also enjoy the cans (portion control)!

On Sunday nights, I remind our Foodstalking clients they signed up for the week ahead. If you have no idea what I’m referring to, Foodstalking is our e-nutrition program. For a week, we send a tip to participants in the morning and they send a complete food log to us at night. It’s a great way to tighten things up with added accountability. Typically, clients say “yup” or “got it” when I send the reminder. Last night it was, “I really need this” or “I’m looking forward to structure” across the board.

Whether your “thing” is chips or dessert or wine or portions, summer eating is tricky. Summer can be more social and there are many seasonal temptations. Here are a few tips if you’re looking to tighten things (or yourself) up:

 Pop a probiotic: sugar, carbs and wine wreak havoc on your intestinal flora. Why does that matter? Well that flora is sort of like a control tower for your body. One of the things it controls is cravings. 

I like this one.

Build momentum on Monday. If summer weekends are indulgent, make Monday matter. Skip booze and carbs to start the week.

Sprinkle cinnamon. Sugar cravings are caused, in part, by yeasts in your body (candida) that feed on sugar.  When no sugar is present they signal brain for more. Cinnamon wipes away these evil yeasts. Cinnamon also keeps you fuller longer. Put 1/4 to 1/2  teaspoon cinnamon in your morning coffee or smoothie.  This is the best type of cinnamon.

Lavish fats- as you’re working on decreasing carbs, sugar or wine consciously increase good fats in your diet. Coconut oil (despite recent brouhaha), avocado, chia seeds, olive oil and walnuts are some Foodtrainers’ favorites.

Give fruit a friend- summer fruits are tricky too. I’m pro fruit but, for now, try not to eat fruit on its own. Fruit and nuts, fruit and cheese, fruit as part of breakfast fine (once a day).

I know summer is about kicking back and relaxing and that’s all good. I just want you to feel your best and be without rose’ regrets come September. Fair?

Tell me how your summer eating has been, what’s your biggest challenge? Any questions or topics you’d like me to cover?

Cinnamon on CBS

I'm spice obsessed and talked about cinnamon's super powers with CBS. 
Cinnamon can reduce your appetite and balance blood sugar levels. It's an immune booster. I was mainlining cinnamon with my family sick last week (I didn't get sick, just sayin). Cinnamon also has beneficial effects on your cholesterol levels. I always advocate food first. Try cinnamon in your coffee, smoothies, as a rub on poultry and meats or in Greek yogurt. My favorite brand is Ilā (pictured below). 

Aim for half a teaspoon per day. And be sure to choose Ceylon cinnamon over cassia cinnamon.  Sure, you can take cinnamon supplements but you'll be missing out on all the deliciousness. 
What's your favorite spice? Do you use cinnamon often (baking doesn't count)?

Bake it Happen: Paleo Pumpkin Brownies

Yes, the look decent but read on...

Last night, I was on my way home from work tired and hungry. I’ve had a couple travel days and as a result my office days are packed which isn’t a problem until the end of the day. I knew the boys would be getting home from hockey and they’d need dinner and I also had brownies to bake. My friend Shari started a campaign called Bake it Happen where you bake one of her mother’s recipes and in the process raise money for breast cancer research. One of the recipes is Judy’s pumpkin brownies.I had the tired thought “do I have to do this tonight?” and quickly reminded myself of Shari’s work and Judy’s battle. I was going to bake.

 I would’ve had an easier time if I stuck to Judy’s recipe but no, I insisted on making a gluten free/paleo version. I expressed to Shari my conflict with unhealthy (Minute Made pink lemonade on my recent Delta flight) in the name of disease research. Shari explained she wasn’t looking at things through the lens of healthy she just got such pleasure knowing everyone was making her mom’s recipes. Duh- of course.

Last year I somehow had an easy time Foodtrainers-ifying the banana bread recipe. Things were different this year. On Monday, I gathered a bunch of healthy pumpkin brownie recipes. The boys were off from school and we gave one a whirl. Pumpkin and cocoa and coconut flour, how could it be bad, right? When the consistency and flavor isn’t right, that’s how. The boys gave me the “they’re ok”. So last night was make it or break it. I didn’t have time to experiment so I used this recipe from the jaybird blog. 

The photos looked beautiful, the comments were positive and I liked the idea of the pumpkin and chocolate being separate.  As I prepared to bake the cocoa powder was on the tippy top shelf on top of a jar of almond flour. Rather than getting the stepladder, I attempted to pull down the almond flour with the cocoa tin on it. Of course there was a massive cocoa spill.  Half laughing, half crying I cleaned the cocoa mess and the cocoa out of the grout of every tile. When I finally got to work I thought about Shari saying no matter what Judy cooked every night. 

Ugly photo, messy counter I didn't have time to food style

I measured and I whisked. I followed the instructions or so I thought. 

When it came time to assemble the 2 batters something was off. I was to layer the chocolate and the pumpkin and “repeat” but I only had enough batter for 1 layer of each.

 I swirled the top with a chopstick (as directed) and felt pretty fancy.

When the brownies came out of the oven the pumpkin layer seemed a little moist. 

Ugh. I let them cool on the drying rack and cut them up. The boys were now asleep but my husband came in from hockey (yes everyone plays) and grabbed a brownie. I asked for his review and received “well I’d eat them”. He’d eat anything. I can’t even blame the recipe because clearly I am the only one who messed it up. Maybe my baking powder (which I never use) is old? Was I not meticulous enough with my measurements? I’m not sure.

You can try these (and let me know) or try Judy’s delicious version. It almost felt like Judy was trying to tell me something. I didn’t know her well but “just stick to my tried and true version” entered my mind.

Any idea where my brownies went wrong? Do you bake? Do you do gluten free or paleo baking?

On another note, earlier this week I saw a friend with advanced cancer and talked about breast cancer awareness month. Her concern was the percentage of funds that actually go to research, toward a cure not just awareness. She told me of an organization called METavivor that focuses on metastatic breast cancer. This is what Judy had and this is what my beautiful friend has as well. Please check out their site and Bake it Happen.

Beckham’s Bee Panacea: Yay Or Step Away?

We’re slacking. We pride ourselves on being  on the front lines of nutrition knowledge and yet when Harper’s Bazaar asked for thoughts on Victoria Beckham’s sought after supplement I hadn’t heard of it. Bee Panacea hmn. Panacea is a bold statement. I think we learned from Dr Oz that we have to watch our overly enthusiastic language when it comes to nutrition. So we’re introducing a new feature called Yay or Step Away? I can’t take credit for this, one of our clients included this with a query (and I promptly told her I’d steal that slogan).

Curious about a product or trend? Use #YOSA @Foodtrainers on twitter or insta

OK back to the bees

What the heck is this? It’s a blend of superfoods (ginger and goji berries and spirulina). Here is the full ingredient list from Virgin Raw Foods:

Raw Royal Honey, Organic Maca, Organic Cinnamon, Goji Berries, Reishi, Bee Pollen, Astragalus, Organic Spirulina, Organic Chlorella, Propolis, Organic Ginger, Ginseng, Organic Schizandra Berries, Royal Jelly, Chaga, Shilajit, Cordyceps, Ormus

I’ll admit, I’m normally more of an a la carte girl when it comes to my diet. I use cinnamon, spirulina (be sure you’re signed up for our newsletter, more on this one Monday) and bee pollen regularly.  However, when I scanned the ingredient list looking for evidence to indict these panacea people, I was pretty impressed. So I did what any reluctantly curious person would do and shelled out over 45 dollars for ingredients I already own.

The claims: with my panacea package came a little chart showing how the different ingredients help with everything from digestion to detox. Words like “adaptability” and “longevity” led to eye rolls and sighs but I persevered. I opened my expensive jar and found an unattractive, brown paste. This may have been off putting if not for the scent which is sort of spicy from the ginger and cinnamon. I tried it (straight on a spoon) and liked it. It has a sweetness that we thoroughly enjoyed at the end of our sugarlessness. The reports that it tastes like chocolate… I think that’s a stretch.

I’ve been using a tsp. from my jar in the morning before a workout and find it’s the perfect little something. I also traveled with this last weekend and liked having a portable source of my superfoods. Even for me, there’s a limit as to how many supplements to schlep. I’ve also added this to smoothies and tea.

Ok, I know you’re waiting for the big reveal. Am I suddenly taller, thinner and ageless? Of course not. I think the notion that additions to our diet produce dramatic results is sort of silly.  You can expect a product that’s anti-inflammatory, a bonafide bloat beater and a great travel tool. In our very first yay or step away, I’m going “yay”. Don’t worry we’ll have fun with many “step aways” in the future.

Have you heard of this? Tried it? Do you use any of the ingredients? Do you like this new feature? Tweet or insta us using #YOSA @Foodtrainers and we’ll give you our reviews.

Coveted Condiments

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Sue (now Susan but that’s another story) picked me up in her car. She had come in from Connecticut and we were headed to a reception for a high school teacher who was retiring. All I can say is times have changed since high school. Quickly our conversation turned to cooking and I was entering “Sunny Spain” a lemony spice mixture in my blackberry. I assure you as the night progressed we talked about slightly cooler topics. And then yesterday, I was scanning my Facebook updates and saw this from my friend Nelson’s brother “Sriracha hot sauce on a grilled cheese sandwich! Life-altering experience. How come nobody told me about this?” Maybe it’s our age, that it has been a while since high school, and what we are “consuming” has changed. That reasoning is a little depressing so I’ll go with the argument that condiments just make food more interesting.

Coveted Condiments:
1. Shiracha hot sauce- this hot sauce has almost a cult following. In preparation for this post I requested a chosen condiment from a few cooking pals and received multiple Shiracha replies. Shriacha is a delicious, not super hot, hot sauce. I am testing recipes for homemade Shiracha but for now use the bottle with the rooster on it. Combine it with Greek yogurt for a creamy variation (my secret ingredient on fish tacos).
2. Sunny Spain my friend Sue is the human equivalent of Google. No computer required, Sue will answer your questions. Well this is Sue’s condiment selection. It’s salt free, delicious and great on roasted chicken.
3. Penzeys Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon as long as we were talking Penzeys (who have a location in Grand Central market) I had to mention this cinnamon. It’s insanely good. My boys love it on applesauce and French toast. I love it on oatmeal.
4. Bernard Michaud’s Thousand Flowers Honey  I received this honey as a gift from a foodie client. Prior to tasting this, I wasn’t much of a honey person but was quickly converted. I now use this in smoothies, tea and marinades. It’s also an excellent gift as it comes in a beautiful red tin pail.
5. Nicolas Alziari Olive Oil- though listed as #5 this is my #1, can’t live without, makes everything better condiment. This olive oil is from Nice and has a unique taste. I combine it with lemon juice and kosher salt for salad dressing and its heaven every time. In NYC, you can purchase it at Citarella Markets.
6. San Giacomo Balsamic Condiment- I didn’t make it up that’s that it’s called on the bottle. This isn’t just balsamic vinegar, this is love. This was another one of those “you have to call this number and order this vinegar” commands I take very seriously. I love this on strawberries…don’t question it until you try it.

Please chime in; what are your coveted condiments? Any interesting uses for them? How did you discover them? I found it funny that my mother (the best cook I know) replied to my request for her favorite condiment very simply “butter and olive oil.”