I is for Ice Water

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OK, it's not the first healthy thing that pops into one's mind, but there's nothing healthier or more refreshing than good ol' water!

both from Pinterest - no sites attached  :(

I personally drink easily 100 oz of liquid a day, and I can tell if I don't get as much as I need.  My gums will feel odd and I'll have a metallic taste in my mouth - yuck!  

I start out with a 16 oz glass of water with strawberry Crystal Lite.  Once I get to work, I have a can of Coke Zero (Weight Watchers counts it as a liquid!!) Then over the course of the day, I'll refill a 20 oz bottle at least 3 times from the drinking fountain.  Once I get home, I'll have at least another 2 - 16 oz glasses, sometimes with Crystal Lite, sometimes with sweet tea Mio (good stuff!!) and maybe another can of Coke Zero at dinner.  

Do YOU get enough to drink??

H is for Hemp

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I personally thought hemp was stuff you made rope out of, I never thought it was something edible.

This bag cost $11.50.
I'm not sure if that'a a good price or not.
I went into the health food store with the thought everything would be more expensive anyway.

As I attempted to find recipes using this stuff, I found Here that "Hemp protein powder works best in savory recipes or in sweet recipes using strong-tasting ingredients like cocoa -to ‘counterbalance’ hemp’s natural taste."  

Oh man. 

At least there seems to be a selection of recipes I can choose from to use this stuff. I'm curious to try the Microwave Chocolate Sponge Cake, that also uses flaxseed (see my "F" post), but I'm going to keep it simple this time so I can get the true flavor of the stuff. 

First impression - when I opened the bag it smelled like dirt.

Mix it with yogurt. 

What I thought it tasted like was dried leaves, but oddly - not offensive.  It has a very strong flavor so I can see where mixing it with chocolate would be a good idea.

Serving size is 2 tbsp.  I barely had a teaspoon in the dish up there & because it's powdered, it looked like a LOT!

Oh look - a recipe for hemp cinnamon muffins on the bag!

1.5 g  of fat.
4g of carbs
3g of fiber
6g of protein

This is equivalent to 1 Weight Watchers PointPlus.  Awesome.

The front of package says hemp seeds are one of nature's best sources for plant-based protein.  Contains all the essential amino acids the body needs, hemp protein powder is a perfect boost to your morning.

I shall have to try this is a smoothie, too!

Have you ever tried hemp?

G is for grapes

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Grapes

 Ew - I did rinse these off.  

 For some reason I thought honey Greek yogurt would go well with this.  

Vanilla probably would, too.  

I simply cut the grapes in half, tossed them in a bowl and poured the yogurt over them & stirred. 

It was a nice cool, sweet snack and the Greek yogurt gives it some staying power.

I'd make this again. 

F is for Flaxseed Meal

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Alrighty - I'll be referring back to my "B" post in this one!  My bananas finally ripened, so I was able to make my 'special ingredient' banana bread.  And since I stopped at the health food store Saturday and picked up some flaxseed meal, I replaced 1/2 cup of the flour with flaxseed meal - just to see how it would work.  I also got a bit happy with the 'special ingredient' and therefore left out the butter from the recipe, too. I didn't want it too soupy.  I actually should have left it in, since my darn oven temp is wonky, so I slightly overbaked it. 

 This bag was about $3.50.  Pretty reasonably priced, I thought. 

Looks pretty normal to me!

So how was it??

Pretty darn good, I think!  

You couldn't taste anything different going on, so you just have to sit back & enjoy the flavor & the knowledge that you're eating good stuff! 

The package also said you could mix it in meatloaf.  So I tried that for dinner last night. BTW - I even got the blessing of little Miss Picky!  She was in the health food store with me when I read the package and she said she'd try it!   I used about half flaxseed meal & half breadcrumbs & got the same verdict.  You couldn't tell it was there.  

Now to look online and see what else I can use this for!

E is for Eggs

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We occasionally enjoy having breakfast for dinner. 

Last night was no exception. 

 I was apparently playing short-order cook since everyone had something different. 

Miss Angela wanted French Toast.

2 eggs, a splash of milk & cinnamon. 

Yummy!

Next up is Randy's scrambled eggs, toast & bacon. 

3 eggs & a splash of milk. 

 

 I bake the bacon.  I lay it on a wire rack over a cookie sheet lined in aluminum foil. 

Pop it in a cold oven & set the heat to 400 for about 20-25 minutes. 

Super easy clean up!  

I make mine last, with the hopes that Randy is done and gone so he's not grossed out by it. 

Eggs & grits.

I apparently married the only Southern boy who does NOT like grits. 

And he really doesn't like my "snotty" eggs.

 They're actually done more than I usually like, due to me messing around with the camera and such.

Good stuff, Maynerd!