Egg white omelet

My favorite protein yummy!

Egg White Omelet
4 egg whites
a handful of fresh spinach and a couple of mushrooms
spike
Olive oil

very light olive oil in your pan (non stick is great too). wilt spinach and saute mushrooms a couple of minutes. Pour in egg whites. season with Spike. I think Eggs taste best on a low/medium temperature. Serves 1.

Be careful on your olive oil because this is where you can add too many extra calories by accident. Eggs are easy, delicious, good source of protein, cheap, readily available.

I recommend free range eggs, fresh if available. They taste delicious!

More smoothie goodness

Davey's smoothie
one cup OJ, 3 big slices frozen mango, 1/4 cup guava. blend. yummmy. optional honey, wheat germ, ground flax seed.

Meemee's smoothie
one cup rice milk, 2 tablespoons almond butter (or PB), 1/2 frozen banana. blend

Sudie's smoothie
one half cup oj, one half cup soy yogurt, frozen blue berries, pineapple, mango, guava. I add ground flax seed, honey and wheat germ. (I use the salad bar for this recipe)

Happy and delicious health to you. Cheers.

Smoothies

Yummo! as Rachel Ray would say. so easy. I like to use my immersion blender for this. Less mess to clean up. Easy Peasy. a great kid-pleaser, too.

Bananas are good thickeners for these especially if you are trying to go dairy-free.
But here is a good recipe that we like.

Mango Yogurt Smoothie
about 1 cup ripened mango, peeled and cut up
about 1 cup vanilla soy yogurt
crushed ice or frozen bananas. Blend., Enjoy!

It is full of vitamins and delicious. I add ground flax seed to mine.

Organic

What does that mean exactly?

You always hear, "read the labels." but sometime I wonder if I know what I am reading.

Here is a brief explanation about the differences in "organic" labeling:

~ 100% organic: only organically processed, except for salt and water
~ organic: contains at least 96% organic ingredients
~ made with organic ingredients: contains at least 70% organic ingredients
~ "natural" does NOT mean organic. There is no requirement for natural products

Source: US Department of Agriculture

Organic means food processed without artificial hormones, pesticides, or fertilizers by farmers using renewable resources to enhance the environment. That production emphasizes the use of renewable resources and teh conservation of water and soil with distinct concern for enhancing the ecological balance of natural systems.

Start small. Think big.

This is a good approach to changing to a healthier lifestyle.

How about starting today, adding one more glass of water to your day?

You can add a slice of orange or lemon for a "twist."

The trouble with Bananas

As Gilda Radners said, "it's always something!"

Our beloved banana does have a major drawback to work with, it turns brown after a while. Not looking super appealing. So you need to keep that in mind when planning meals or snacks. I do not like to include bananas in my fruit salad for this very reason.

All things considered, this is a relatively minor inconvenience. Instead of recipes, I am just going to list a couple of banana tips today.

Tip #1 overly ripened bananas are great for banana bread. You can use right away, or remove from peel and freeze.

Tip #2 Bananas are great thickeners for cold drinks. Peel and slice bananas into coins. Fast freeze for later use in smoothies. Our favorite smoothie has frozen bananas, peanut butter and apple juice. Yummy! Seriously yummy!

Tip #3 Bananas can be cut in many interesting ways with the peel on. Now I am not tryign to get you to fashion a banana into a bust of Lincoln or anything. But kids and adults like interesting diagonal cuts. This also makes these small bite-sized snacks easier to pick up.

Tip #4 Dip it! Some kids (and my husband) cannot resist a good dip. One of my wee ones will eat just about anything if she can dip it into something. Little pieces are great for dipping. or you can skewer with some other fruit for a shish kabab which is Latin for "fruit salad in disguise." After the dip, there is nothing better than double dipping. Have seeds or chopped nuts for a final delicious dip. I mix wheat germ in with my chopped nuts for an extra healthy coating.

Tip #5 Stick up! Peel and cut banana in half. Put on a pop stick (like a corn dog). Freeze. Great summer snack.

So what is your favorite banana tip?

Thanks for stopping by and visiting us today.
Healthy eating!

Banananana

Bananas are one of those big bang for your buck kinda snacks. There is so much you can make with a banana. and of course, they are delicious just straight up. They are inexpensive, readily available all year long, and full of good nutrients including a good source of potassium.

This is one of those things that I strongly encourage you to buy organic. It is my opinion that there are some produce that it really doesn't make a huge difference between organic and convention. But bananas do make a difference. Conventional bananas are gassed with very dangerous chemicals to kill insects and to ripen them. ack!

My current favorite banana snack is so easy and my children think they are enjoying a decandent treat. It is a recipe inspired by Elvis himself.

Elvis's Baked Banana Surprise
Take a medium organic firm banana. (the star of our show)
Peel down leaving the peel attached. Take a knife and make a shallow cut for the peanut butter down the length of the banana.
Take up to 2 tablespoons of ground peanut butter (or almond butter) and fill in the semi-slice.
Sprinkle a couple of chocolate or carob chips and a few marshmellows.
Replace peeled back peel.
Wrap banana with peel in aluminum foil.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes. You can use a toaster oven.

Let cool and remove banana treat from peel.
Eat and enjoy. It is like a banana split. It is really delicious and goey. mmmm. and did I mention that it is a healthy snack? We sprinkle some wheat germ on ours too.

What is your favorite healthy banana recipe?

Healthy eating.