FRIIIIIIdayyyyyyy… again!!!!
And we’re only 5 days away from Hawaii!!!!
It appears (not on purpose) that my 3 faves I am sharing with you guys this week are all edible items. I like to vary it up and have all different items, but this week it just so happens it’s all food/drink. BUT if I do say so myself, they’re some great recos, so stay tuned!
Alright, up first lets talk about this Powdered Peanut butter. As a side note – we ordered this from Amazon, and it literally came a day and a half later. I thought that was worth mentioning because I was SUPER impressed with the delivery speed! (and free shipping!)
Okay… now first of all I know I am SUPER late to the game on this because apparently… this stuff has been out for a long time. Well – we live in Canada. We get all the good stuff years later than they do in the states. haha
So what is this stuff? Well, it is exactly as it sounds. Powder that is peanut butter flavoured. Basically they squeeze the oils out of the peanuts (so it’s lower fat/cals) and then grind up what’s leftover so it still tastes like peanut butter when you mix it with water or add it into things like they suggest below … but it’s way lower fat and cals.
There are of course two sides to this. I feel like I need to share the FoodBabe article that is written on this stuff… and of course, because she’s all about totally natural, organic etc she’s not a fan of this stuff. And I get it – I am 100% an advocate of natural and organic as much as possible… But lets be honest… sometimes it’s a trade off. And for me… If I’m trying to shed a few pounds for an event, then I would definitely appreciate this as an alternative.
In her article she talks about them adding lots of salt and sugars in order for it to taste good (since they remove the oils). From what I can see on the label, it still looks pretty good to me. Yes you’re going to be taking in a little more sodium and 1g of sugar… but I will sometimes take that over the extra several grams of fat. Guilty! But again – that is my opinion. Take it for what it’s worth.
Like anything else, I would definitely recommend looking into the specs of this product before just taking my word for it (or FoodBabe’s word for it!) and assuming it’s right or wrong for you.
Do we still eat real nut butters? ABSOLUTELY! Every.damn. day! This is one of those debates that could go on for days because many people argue that ‘good fats (like coconut oil, nut butters and avocados) won’t make you fat’… and others will argue that low fat is the way to go! I am for sure more on the side of the former… but I also believe everything in moderation.
When I’m buying nut butters – I do chose all natural varieties for my cashew and almond butter… and with peanut butter I’m actually not supposed to have peanuts as I have a slight sensitivity so I don’t buy peanut butter – but I will use a little bit of this stuff every now and again 🙂
Okay… moving on!
Secondly, I want to share with you guys my recent love for OIL PULLING.
I had heard about oil pulling in the past, and thought it was a little ridic to have to do it for 15-20 mins in the morning.. like who has time for that? Turns out, I do! Because you can do it when you’re doing pretty much anything else. Showering, replying to emails, getting ready etc.
All you do is put 1tbsp of coconut oil in your mouth and swish it around for as long as you can. Aim for 15-20 mins but if you’re just starting, just go as long as you can! You’ll notice the amount of oil in your mouth seems to ‘grow’. This is because it’s doing its job and pulling out all the toxins and bacteria in your mouth, so when you’re finished there will be a lot more in there than what you started with.
I use coconut oil because it’s my fave. There really isn’t much you can’t use coconut oil for … but that’s a whole other post.
So why oil pulling ? Here are some of the reasons you should give it a try:
- whitens teeth
- increases energy
- detoxifies the body
- aids hormonal changes
- reduces headaches
- keeps skin clear
- promotes oral healing
(list found on foodmatters.tv)
And I can honestly tell you guys I have noticed a huge difference since I started oil pulling. I used to use the crest white strips on the reg (so bad for your teeth!) and I would get compliments on my teeth all the time. I haven’t used those in over a year… I’ve been oil pulling on and off for about 6 months, but for the last 2 months I have been doing it at least 5 days a week and it’s awesome. I notice my skin looks great and my teeth are staying super white totally naturally 🙂
The third and final fave for this week is near and dear to my heart.
You guys know that I LOVEEEE love love tea – I mean, I have a whole section of the blog dedicated to it! So I want to talk to you about my all time favourite tea. That is a BOLDDDDD statement…. since I have tried hundreds of teas and have loved SO many.
So what’s so good about this one?
This tea – Called coconut bongo oolong – is just so delightful. It’s from a wonderful little shop in Toronto called Tealish.
I found out about this tea about 6 years ago when I lived in Toronto. I knew that oolong tea is known for boosting metabolism and helping block enzymes that build fat.. so I always gravitated towards them.. but when I saw that it was a COCONUT oolong (I love ANYTHING coconut) – I knew I had to try it.
This tea is light, creamy, subtly sweet and ohhhh so delicious. I also really like adding this tea in with other teas to get the benefits of the oolong and the tastiness of the coconut with other flavours. For example – I add this in with a rooibos Maldivian Chai from Nineteen-02. Then I get the benefits of the rooibos tea (amazing for your skin, helps with lactic acid build up after a workout) and the oolong, plus the flavours go gloriously together!
I took a pic with the banana to show you this SIZE of the bag I have. I have 2 of these. haha
My mum in law makes sure I am taken care of … She gets me a couple bulk bags of this tea for Christmas, AND for my birthday (in July). So I never run out. Opening the bag is like heaven… it just smells SO good.
I can honestly tell you this is the ONLY tea that I have every single day. I either have it first thing in the morning, or after dinner (or both). Greg and I have a pot of tea after dinner.. always oolong, green or pu’erh (for the digestive properties).. so we often have coconut oolong (sometimes mixed with something!).
If you haven’t tried anything from this lovely little shop… please do! Free shipping over $50 (in Canada) and $75 in the US.
Also stay tuned, in the coming weeks I am going to do a full review of a bunch of different teas from these guys and I can’t WAIT to share them all with you 🙂
HAPPY WEEKEND y’all!
xxx
Andrea