Food Product Archives - Page 2 of 3

Weekend Finds

Happy Monday? Eh. I could’ve used another day off. Anyone else?

I’m happy to report that a lot (relative term) was accomplished over the weekend. Since this was a “free” weekend for Vishnu, we did a little apartment shopping – we bought some baskets and picture frames. Per my husband, I’m not allowed to share pictures until everything is finished. Y’all may have to wait a while! I have a feeling we’ll be decorating for another few months.

Other than shopping on Saturday, we spent time lounging around. It was nice to not have much going on and to be able to spend that time with Vishnu. He has a total of six exams this month, so it’s likely we won’t have another weekend like this again until December.

A few other things worth mentioning…

A large chunk of my time was consumed with this –

I am about half way through and completely sucked in. I’ll do a review once I finish!

This was a delicious impulse buy at the farmer’s market.

It contains a little bit of pretty much everything and tastes great with roasted sweet potatoes.

I found a $1 off coupon for this.

Coupon or not, go out and buy some ASAP. It’s the perfect after dinner treat. And this coming from someone who never goes for the fruity flavors. I absolutely loved the shortbread pieces and the creamy consistency of the yogurt. Annnd Vishnu just read this sentence, laughed, and said “who are you?”. I’m not changing it because it’s true! B&J’s makes some seriously good frozen yogurt, people! Try it.

Ok, time to tackle my Monday to do list. Have a great day!

Any fun weekend finds on your end?

Wedding Shoes!

written by Parita 8 Comments

How did you spend your weekend? Outside enjoying some great weather I hope! I tried to avoid being outside as much as possible to tell you the truth. It’s HOT in Florida. I’m not complaining by any means though…sun equals fun in my book!

I feel like I spent a lot of time on the phone this weekend. We’re trying to nail down some wedding details, and since I’m not in Atlanta with my parents, the only way to communicate is via the telephone. We’re getting there!

Speaking of the wedding, I found my wedding shoes this weekend! I’d been going back and forth trying to decide what I wanted, and ultimately, all I knew was that the shoes had to be gold and comfortable. After looking and not having anything stand out, I gave up and decided that I’ll find them when I find them. Well, I guess it’s true that the best things come to those who wait because I found my shoes without even truly looking.

*Crappy lighting*

I went to DSW to look for some summer sandals and happened to wander over to the formal heel section and found these Liz Claiborne heels. The material and color are going to pair so well with my reception outfit! One more thing checked off my list.

I also found these…

The picture really doesn’t do any justice. They look super cute when worn. And the sales associate brought up a good point, they’re Tory Burch”esque” without the huge price tag. The last time I bought summer sandals was almost 3 years ago (when I bought four pairs). I was looking for something different, and these fit the bill.

I also found a couple of dresses this weekend, both of which will be be perfect for my bachelorette party in Miami! More on that in a couple of weeks.

Overall, this ended up being a great weekend. The next few are going to be pretty busy – my cousin’s wedding in Atlanta this coming weekend, apartment hunting in Fort Lauderdale the weekend after, my bachelorette party the following weekend, and back to Atlanta for a friend’s wedding at the very end of April. Phew! Lot’s of little trips coming up.

Before I peace out and get ready for bed, I want to share another fun find…a food related one.

I “happened” to be wandering down the ice cream aisle today and found some So Delicious mini ice cream sandwiches. This dairy free treat is good! I bet if I tried this without knowing it’s not a “real” ice cream sandwich, I would’ve never guessed. Personally, the chocolate wafers stole the show! And they’re only 90 calories! The only con I can think of is that these are truly mini…one second it’s here, the next it’s gone!

I’m off to bed. T.I.R.E.D.

Have a great Monday!

February Foodie Penpal

written by Parita Leave a Comment

You probably didn’t notice, but I took a Foodie Penpal break over the past few months. Life got a little too busy, and I didn’t want to fully commit and not be able to follow through.

But I’m back, baby!

First some information. Foodie Penpals is the brainchild of Lindsay at the Lean Green Bean. It’s basically a fun way to connect bloggers and readers from around the country (and even Canada!) and have them share their favorite foodie treats. If you’re interested in participating, email Lindsay (theleangreenbean@gmail.com) before March 4th and be sure to include the following information:

-Your full name
-Your email address
-Your blog name/address
-Your twitter handle (if applicable)
–WHETHER YOU ARE A US RESIDENT OR CANADIAN RESIDENT. – this is SUPER important so you get on the right list!

Now for the great reveal…

My February Penpal was Brittnye from the Healthy Living Chick, and she put together an AWESOME box for me. When Vishnu saw all the goodies she sent me, he was amazed and asked if I was going to continue participating after the wedding. Haha.

The first item I want to talk about is a delicious Texas salsa…

Umm, y’all, this stuff is freakin’ good. I literally top every dish I make with at least a couple of spoonfuls of this stuff. The flavor is unlike any store bought salsa I’ve ever tried. The smokey spices and slight sweetness take every dish to the next level. So far, it’s made it’s way on top of my enchiladas, salads, omelets, and tacos. I’m kind of a fan!

Next up, we have what I would call a snack stash…

Pistachios…the nut I love but am too cheap to buy. I wish I were kidding.

The bars that have kept me one step ahead of intense hunger during my last couple trips. If I had to choose favorites, I would definitely go with the Chocolate Almond Go Lean Crunch bar, the Chocolate Dipped Coconut Luna bar, and the Kind bar. YUM!

Also in my box were some yummy “butters/spreads”…

The almond butter made it’s way into a breakfast smoothie, the chocolate hazelnut butter found itself paired with a banana after work one day, and the Nutella has not been used yet (only because I have an entire open jar that needs to be finished first). And thanks to these little samples, I will be driving down to the Tampa Whole Foods this weekend to buy myself some hazelnut butter. Heaven in a jar I tell you!

And there’s more…

To be honest, I’m not a huge tea person, but I gave this honey lemon kind a chance early last week, and I was surprised by how much I liked it. If hazelnut butter is heaven in a jar, then this tea is comfort in a cup! I wish I had some when I was sick a few weeks ago.

Brittnye also sent me a Maple Pancakes tea candle from Yankee Candle, my old employer! I worked at Yankee Candle my senior year of high school, and this little candle took me back to the “good old days!” And writing about it now has me craving pancakes!

And FINALLY, my wonderful Foodie Penpal also sent me a piece of Chocolate Texas…literally a piece of chocolate shaped like the state of Texas. Sadly, I don’t have a picture of this delicious treat because Vishnu and I ate it up before I remembered to take a picture. I assure you it was good…very good!

Brittnye, thank you SO much for everything!!! I would never have guessed that I was your first Penpal! You did a terrific job picking out all of my foodie treats. And thank you, Lindsay, for organizing and hosting – you rock as well!

So if this post didn’t convince you to sign up as a March Foodie Penpal, I don’t know what will! If you need more convincing, be sure to check out what everyone received over on Lindsay’s blog.

If you had to send your favorite foodie treat to a stranger, what would you pick? I would have to go with Lindt’s 85% Extra Dark chocolate bar.

Check-in + Second Chances

written by Parita Leave a Comment

Right before the new year, I set a number of daily goals for myself. And seeing that the first month of 2012 is done and over with (CRAZY!), I think it’s time for an honest check-in.

Good thing I don’t believe in perfection!

Let’s see how I’m doing so far…

FOOD
– I’m more than exceeding the 48 ounce minimum I set for myself with regards to my daily H2O intake. And I think my coworkers can attest to the fact that I am indeed hydrating myself all day long!
– I am definitely eating 3 servings of fruit a day but still need to work on the veggies. I’m going to start meal planning next week, and veggie packed meals are going to be a priority.
– I am proud to report that 99% of my meals have included some sort of protein – eggs, protein powder, peanut butter, beans, tofu, Greek yogurt, etc.
– So as far as the new to me meals go, I did make a few things, but not all of them were blogged about. My bad! I did share my black bean dip recipe though. I do need to get a little bit better with this one though because I can’t say with 100% certainty that I’ve tried one new meal a week.

So far so good…

EXERCISE
– Spinning classes are going really well. I’ve been going to two a week pretty consistently. Yay!
– Y’all know about my issue with running, but I’m proud to report that I did complete 4 run/walk (mostly run) miles on Sunday. I listened to my body and walked when needed, but I must say that I felt stronger during that run then I have in a long time. Maybe this changing things up idea really works!
– And I’ve also been strength training twice a week as planned. I’ve been finding a lot of fun full body workouts lately that are perfect for my home gym. And if all else fails, I can always count on Jillian to have my back.

On to some areas that still need improvement…

MISC.
– As far as prepping for the next day goes, I honestly haven’t been keeping up with this the way I planned. I know it only takes about 15 minutes to do, but on most days I just don’t. It’s kind of frustrating because I know if I can master this, the next morning will be so much easier. I’m going to try harder to stop being lazy and get myself to just do it…February is my month!
– So this next one also has a ton of room for improvement because I haven’t been unplugging at 9:15 every night…more like 9:45. This frustrates me too because it’s not like I’m doing anything important. And I really do need and would love to have an extra 30ish minutes of sleep every day.
– As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve been blogging pretty consistently in 2012. I don’t know what it is, but I’ve had lots of ideas floating around in my head lately. Hopefully this continues…who knows!
– The slow down challenge is still in effect. I’m finding that this one is a little hard to change because I’ve been a fast eater my whole life. And right now, I don’t have anyone to call me out on my speedy ways. But no worries. Vishnu knows that telling me to slow down is going to be one of first husbandly duties come June.

With regards to my food and exercise goals, I’m happy that I’m remembering to incorporate each of those things into my daily routine. However, I think it goes without saying that I need to work on my miscellaneous goals a bit.

It’s ok…as I like to say, we’re all works in progress!

*****

And finally, I want to say that I take back my statement from yesterday about PB2 not being as great as real peanut butter. It’s still nothing like the real thing, but I’m starting to believe that it can and will have a place in my kitchen. It’s all about giving second chances. Take for example my after work snack…

…a Greek yogurt, PB2, honey, and cinnamon dip alongside some fresh strawberries.

I decided to get creative today because I’m sick of eating the same old thing every day. I was about to settle with just yogurt and honey (when true hunger strikes, that’s creative) when I remembered my jar of PB2 at the last minute and mixed some in as well. This. Was. So. Good. A little sweet, a little peanuty, and super delicious – and this coming from someone who isn’t a huge fan of anything but sweetened yogurt with simple toppings. This “dip” would be perfect all on it’s own or with some granola too. Make this a must try!

PB2 Yogurt Dip

1 6 ounce container 0% plain Chobani Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon chocolate PB2
1/2 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all of the ingredients together until smooth and enjoy.

Did you set goals at the beginning of 2012? What’s your progress look like?
Are you a fan of Greek yogurt? Favorite brand?

A Little Review of PB2

written by Parita 17 Comments

After reading about PB2 on Courtney’s blog, I decided to order some for myself and try it out. I was intrigued by the idea of a chocolate powdered peanut butter that has 45 calories a serving. Here’s a little more information from the iherb website…

Superior quality peanuts are first slow roasted then pressed to remove the fat and oil. We then blend the finest cocoa beans for a natural roasted peanut butter taste and chocolate flavor that’s rich in taste, easy to enjoy and wonderfully healthy.

You have no idea how excited I was to try this stuff. All I could honestly think about was using this in my oatmeal, my smoothies, and my cookie dough cereal bowls.

So, I got up on Saturday morning, made a serving of banana oatmeal, and got to work on “making” my peanut butter. I took two tablespoons of PB2, mixed in one tablespoon of water, and stirred until smooth. I topped my oatmeal with it and dug right in…

In all honesty, I was not omgsoinlove with oatmeal + PB2. I was looking for the thick, creaminess of real peanut butter, and this wasn’t it. But that’s completely my fault because I went in thinking this was going to taste exactly like the real thing. [Note to self: nothing can really compare to real peanut butter.] PB2 has a runny consistency, and although I could taste peanuts and a bit of chocolate, the richness just wasn’t there.

But I wasn’t going to let my almost $7 jar go to waste, so I tried again – this time with my morning green smoothie.

Pre spinach view…

And I must say, in a green monster smoothie, PB2 actually works. There was a slightly different taste to this morning’s breakfast, but it wasn’t really noticeable. Probably because I don’t use very much peanut butter anyways and because there were so many other competing flavors in the mix(chocolate protein powder, instant coffee, banana, almond milk, and spinach). Overall, a winner in my book!

One more thing…if you abide by the two tablespoon serving size every time, you’re only going to get 15 servings out of one jar. When I saw that, I was like “ummm…what?” That’s not a whole lot for someone who drinks a smoothie every morning 4-5 times a week. Therefore, PB2 will probably be a once in a while purchase for me. I’m going to stick to the real thing as much as possible!

Although…I have been meaning to try peanut flour…

Are you a peanut butter fanatic like me? Have you ever tried PB2 or anything like it?

Random But Delicious

written by Parita Leave a Comment

After a much needed grocery store visit Sunday evening, I came home feeling pretty ravenous. You would think that I would be able to whip something up pretty quickly with everything I bought but no…it took some thought.

After a quick debate in my head, I decided to make a slightly random version of my Healthified Mexican Pizzas.

Enter…my new favorite food. But first, credit must be given where it’s due. My friend Monica was actually the one to introduce me to said food, but I kind of forgot about trying it at her place until it caught my eye again at Trader Joe’s. Now it’s here to stay.

Dun, dun, dun…

Source

Each wedge is about 35 calories each, and I kid you not when I say that each one is also packed with tons of flavor. YUM!

Anywho…these little pizzas may not look like much, but the flavor factor is there – trust me!

Healthified Mexican Pizzas II

2 whole wheat tortillas, crisped using my method
1/3 cup refried beans (I love the Trader Joe’s brand), divided
1 Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb cheese wedge
1 small tomato, sliced thin
1/2 avocado, diced
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

Spread half of the refried beans on each tortilla and then spread half of the cheese wedge on top of the beans. Top each half with tomato slices and diced avocado. Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon nutritional yeast on each pizza. ENJOY!

Now, these little pizzas may not sound like much or look like much, but you better believe they tasted awesome. And this is coming from the girl who used to inhale Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas like it was her job…

What’s the most random thing you’ve eaten lately?

It’s Finally My Turn…

written by Parita Leave a Comment

…to taste the LOVE! Love Grown Granola that is! Y’all have no idea how excited I was when Laura from Love Grown Foods contacted me about trying their granola. I think I screamed YES at my computer as soon as I finished reading her email. I really was that excited!

I raced home after work today to pick up my box of goodness from the front office. The doors were locked, but I saw someone walking around so I knocked and knocked and knocked until she came and opened the door for me. Obnoxious? Maybe. But in my defense, I’ve been waiting months to try this stuff. Smile

And the wait was sure worth it. Laura was kind enough to send me not just one but three whole bags of granola plus some little sample bags. Granola heaven here I come!

First off, let me just say that I LOVE what this company stands for – the balance between “living a healthy life while still enjoying great tasting foods.” And to top it off, the granola is free of added chemicals, free of gluten, free of trans fats, and free of a lot of other nasty things. In other words, it’s simple, wholesome, and delicious!

The three varieties I was sent included Raisin Almond Crunch, Sweet Cranberry Pecan, and Cocoa Goodness.

First up was the Raisin Almond Crunch…

It really was the perfect mix of sweet and crunchy. I’m not a huge fan of raisins, but there was a really good balance of all the ingredients. I can see myself eating this with some thick Greek yogurt for breakfast or as a snack.

Next up was the Sweet Cranberry Pecan…

I don’t even know what to say about this one. It wasn’t too sweet, the flavors of all the ingredients shined through, and I can definitely see myself gobbling this up in less than 48 hours. Oh boy…

And finally, the granola that stole my taste buds away…Cocoa Goodness…

It’s not a huge surprise that this one ended up being my favorite. I am a self-proclaimed chocoholic after all. What I loved the most about it was the natural, subtle chocolate taste. Oh, and the little pieces of dark chocolate helped too… Smile YUM! This one will definitely be eaten straight out of the bag. Fun times ahead!

If you ever get the chance to try this stuff, go for it…no disappointments here!

Well, off I go to wash some dishes, clean up a little bit, and chow down snack on some granola.

Disclaimer: Love Grown Granola was kind enough to send me these complimentary samples. I was not compensated for my review of their products. All opinions stated are my own.

Are you a granola lover? If you could try any one of the Love Grown Granolas, which one would it be?

P.S. Stay tuned for a fun giveaway on here tomorrow…it’s a very special day for myinnershakti!!!

Weekend Finds

Wedding Shoes!

February Foodie Penpal

Check-in + Second Chances

A Little Review of PB2

Random But Delicious

It’s Finally My Turn…

categories

Archives

Top Posts!

Follow me on Instagram!