the no bake ball

i made these healthy balls for a ladies party tonight. 

hope they're a hit :-)

 1 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup ground flax seeds

3/4 cup unsweeneted coconut

1/2 cup nut butter (i used peanut)

1/3 cup honey

handful of chocolate chips

mix all the above together except chocolate chips. 

i used my hands.

then mix chocolate chips.

roll into balls and roll into coconut. 

refrigerate for an hour. 

enjoy. 

 

the divine blueberry

We were at the dufferin grove farmers market this afternoon and I splurged on organic wild blueberries. 11$ for a container! when I got home my smart boy Aidan says, "they are worth it mommy, they are so delicious"! Whenever I buy blueberries he quickly asks if they are wild. I think I created a food snob! The 3 kids gobbled them up by the handful in minutes flat.

I was interviewed recently for a magazine about the health benefits of blueberries and thought I would share a few points with you here.

• Blueberries are one of the few fruits native to North America. Forget the goji berry, go for the local and less expensive blueberry!
• the US department of Agriculture determined out of 24 fruits, 23 vegetables, 16 herbs and spices, 10 nuts and 4 dried fruits, that blueberries were the highest in total antioxidant capacity per serving. Sounds good to me!
• Wild blueberries are much smaller than the big, juicy cultivated ones. About 80-90 cultivated blueberries fit into a cup, while the same size can hold up to 150 wild ones. The supernutrients are in the skin, so we find a cup of wild blueberries have almost twice the blueberry skin as the cup of cultivated ones. Twice the skin, twice the antioxidant power!

So go support your local farmers and pick yourself up some local blueberries! 

an everything salad

i'm really not a great cook, but i can put together a darn good salad.
it's not that hard really, after all no cooking is actually involved, just organizing of food (which i am good at!)

today's creation is arugula; i like the bitter quality of this leaf and so does our livers.
grated carrots and beets; also really supportive for liver health.
avocado; for healthy fats and substance to the meal
cilantro and parsley; these are heavy metal detoxifiers and support the kidneys.
cucumbers;  are nice and cooling on humid days.
walnuts are rich in omega 3's, and support the nervous system and brain function. they are actually shaped like the brain with 2 hemispheres (we call this "doctrine of signatures")

the dressing is a tahini one i make often. you can actually use it as a dip as well. i'm really bad with measurements but it's something like this; 1/2 lemon, 2 garlic cloves (today i put in 1 garlic scape from my garden and 1 clove), a handful of cilantro and parsley (whatever fresh herb you have on hand will do), and then i slowly add some water while i handblend to the consistency i want.

easy. quick. healthy. 

it's what i'm about.

first days of summer...

we kicked off summer with a trip to drayton. i have shown pictures of this place before, i just find it so inspiring and beautiful and the property just keeps getting better and better. you can find out more about what they do here.
the garden is amazing! flourishing with veggies. they built a greenhouse over the winter that has tomatoes, cucumbers and even a  peach tree. how amazing is that! i can't even manage to get some raised beds on my small piece of nothing land, yet alone what they manage to accomplish! maybe one day.
they have about 30 chickens, ducks and a sweet little bunny. the chickens basically graze in a pack all day long. 
the kids had a great time, as they always do and we all came back exhausted.

 

 

 above is the crew. 

all 1 grade apart. 

5 boys and a girl. 

(and a kai.)

first and last

first day of grade 3

 last day of grade 3 (has he ever changed!)

i love surprising him with secret notes and a rare treat

 first day of SK

 last day of SK (she kinda looks the same....)

 

her secret note. which she can read on her own.

"The days are long, but the years are short." Gretchen Rubin

time sure does fly, my loves....

saturdays and watercress

saturdays are long and busy days. 3 kids and moi. 

all. day. long. 

our mornings start like this.

aidan then might have a drum lesson or we head over to the wychwood barns farmer's market

sometimes i get adventurous in the kitchen 

(other times we have mac and cheese and i take a nap)

  i'll show you the adventurous side. 

marinating organic tofu skewers

or

veggie sandwich on pita break's one bun with watercress, tomato, avocado and olives. 

it was divine. (obviously, the kids did not eat this....)

did you know that watercress tops the list of "powerhouse" fruits and vegetables?
take a look at this link to read more about it. who knew?

 

Popsicles

We went to the Evergreen Brickworks on Saturday for the market. We had a wonderful time. Surrounded by nature, great food, the kids were thrilled. We got these ice pops that were coconut pineapple flavoured and I decided to re-create something similar at home. A healthy and delicious popsicle treat.

1/2 pineapple, cut into chunks
1/4 cup unsweetened organic shredded coconut
2 scoops of GH proteins + (I use the whey, but they have a vegan protein as well). A simple way to get some extra protein into my kiddies.
I put all of the above in a blender and topped with a almost a whole can of coconut water.
Coconut water is rich in electrolytes (and a much better option than gatorade).

 drinking the leftovers. makes a great smoothie too!

 couple of pranksters making bunny ears over their little brother. it's only just begun.