Have a HEALTHY Holiday!

If you’re like me, the holiday season brings the joys of discerning the “safe” holiday foods from those that will leave you feeling like a bloated whale ready to go belly up. Although I do love the occasional indulgent peanut butter ball, I prefer to know that at least some of the foods adorning the table on Christmas Eve are “Claire-approved,” as my friends and family would say. This is why, for the next few days, I’ll be posting (mostly) vegan, healthy modifications to some of my holiday favorites! (You don’t want to end up looking like Santa when it’s all said and done, do you?)

Veg Out

Yogi, earth worshipper, hippie, animal-lover, tree-hugger, blonde-haired freak…feel free to call me one, a combination, or all of the above (don’t worry, I won’t get offended easily). For the past five months or so, I’ve come to a (semi) new way of thinking…in some aspects, at least. I’ve decided to veg out..or in other words, go vegetarian/almost vegan (at times I still can’t resist the occasional Greek yogurt). Why do I need meat anyways? It’s not sustainable, earth friendly, or by any means humane. There’s plenty of other, healthier, artificial hormone-free protein sources out there for me to experiment with and I intended on doing so (my body and the animal population applauds my decision). I know that deciding not to eat met may seem, to some people, like I’m voluntarily placing one of those cones on my head so hated by dogs that makes it ten times harder to eat, but to tell you the truth it’s rather freeing. Instead of having the options of chicken, steak, or pork for dinner, I now have to decide between tofu, tempeh, vegan chicken, and a multitude of other options. It’s new, it’s different, it’s weird, and I like it. It puts cooking into a new, more challenging perspective, and fosters a certain creativity that typical “American” cooking restricts. So as I get back into the blog groove, I’ll be focusing on vegetarian and mostly vegan recipes….and while I’m not in the kitchen, I’ll either have my nose in the school books or my feet on the yoga mat. Until next time, good food and good vibes (:

Products I LOVE

“How do I know what’s truly good for me? What foods will help me achieve my health goals? With all of these products, how do I know which ones are the best?” Let’s be honest, folks. We’ve all been faced …

Strawberry Flaxseed Smoothie

• ¼ cup Chobani plain Greek yogurt
• ½ cup fresh strawberries
• ½ cup frozen strawberries
• ½ cup frozen mango
• ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
• ¼ cup water
• ½ scoop vanilla protein powder
• 2 Tbsp. flax seeds

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender, and blend until completely emulsified. For a thicker consistency, add less water or more frozen fruit. Garnish with another pinch of flaxseeds and enjoy!

Featured Ingredient: Flaxseeds

      Flaxseeds are an excellent source of the omega-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Although ALA is a shorter-chain fatty acid, it does contain many health benefits such as reducing the risk for heart disease, and, according to some studies, decreasing the risk for breast cancer or slowing breast tumor growth in women. Flaxseeds are also considered nutritionally exceptional for their high levels of dietary fiber, iron, and potassium. 

New Beginnings.

Just like many of you, I have a passion. I would hope that by reading the name of my blog and the subsequent tagline you have an idea of what that passion is, but if you seem to have missed that I’ll just step right out and say it. FOOD is my passion. Not just any food, though–real food. Unlike those food-like substances bombarding the shelves of grocery stores these days, I take pride in experiencing and preparing food in its natural, straight from the ground, untouched by chemicals form. I believe that local food is the best food, the fewer the ingredients the better, and a good fruit smoothie can make just about anything better. I never use any recipes other than my own, and if it’s not colorful, I don’t eat it.

 A few months ago, I came to the conclusion that in order to further my passion, it had to be shared. In hopes of doing so, I created an Instagram account (@nutritiously__delicious). Ever since then, I find myself spending countless hours in the kitchen experimenting with new foods, creating original recipes, and snapping more pictures than I care to admit. As I am headed off to college in the fall (to pursue a degree in dietetics, of course) and will unfortunately have limited kitchen access, I’ll use this blog as my food-fix. From wholesome food recipes to tips and motivation on how to lead a healthy lifestyle, I’m your girl. I’d love to make even the slightest difference in someone’s outlook on food and show you all just how fun eating a “rainbow” assortment of foods can be. Please ask any questions that you may have or simply comment with your thoughts or criticisms. Be happy, be healthy, be inspired. (: