Acai Bowl Recipe

So it was not too difficult at all to create an acai bowl at home. I went to a health food store, Evergreen Natural Foods and purchased some Sambazon frozen organic acai berry puree (smoothie packs). Printed on the package was directions on how to make an acai bowl! Here is my version:

One package of Sambazon frozen acai puree
1/4 cup coconut dream or other non dairy milk
1/2 banana, sliced
1/4 cup granola
1/2 cup mixed berries of your choice
1 tsp honey or more to your taste

Blend acai puree and milk in blender until thick and pour or scoop into a bowl. Drizzle with honey. Top with granola, sliced banana and berries-enjoy!
Enjoy as a light breakfast, healthy snack or dessert.

Salad Inspiration: Mijita jicama salad

The jicama salad at Mijita in the Ferry Building of San Francisco is an all time favourite salad of mine. Mijita is a casual taqueria opened by chef Tracy Des Jardins. This salad has the perfect blend of flavour, texture and nutrition. There is vitamin C and other phytochemicals in both the jicama and grapefruit. Healthy fats are found in the avocado and toasted pumpkin seeds. The taste and texture of it all is outstanding! I have written in to Bon Appetit RSVP to try and get the recipe. 

Blue Hawaii Acai Cafe

I saw a few spots on Oahu, Hawaii last year that served 'bowls' of fruit, non dairy milk and granola that looked interesting, but I did not get around to trying out. I finally tried an acai bowl yesterday at Blue Hawaii in San Francisco. What I ordered was called the Blue Hawaii and it consists of frozen acai pulp blended with organic soy milk, topped with organic granola, sliced banana, strawberries, blueberries and honey. It was a delicious refreshing treat that was satisfying and great to have for some energy just before a run. I imagine it would be good to have after a workout as well. My Blue Hawaii bowl was so delicious that it qualifies as a healthy dessert, breakfast or snack in general. The antioxidant boost that the acai and berries provide is a great bonus!

Blue Hawaii Acai Cafe is in Honolulu, San Francisco and Shanghai so far. Look for an acai bowl at a juice bar near you. Otherwise, I will have to try and replicate the recipe myself and post it here.

60 Minutes: Is Sugar Toxic?

I do not watch much television. This piece on 60 minutes was mentioned to me by many people in the past few days, because it scared them, so I made an effort to watch it. Here are my thoughts.
I found it interesting and provided some good information to the public. Essentially, eating a diet that is high in sugar or refined carbohydrates contributes to chronic disease such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease.
I disagree that sugar and high fructose corn syrup are equally bad. Sugar consumption has gone down by 40% and has been replaced with an equal or greater volume of high fructose corn syrup. However, Americans are heavier than ever before. High fructose corn syrup is a highly processed food product, much more so than organic sugar, which is from crystallized cane syrup.
Dr Stanhope's study where people were given 25% of their caloric intake from a high fructose corn syrup sweetened beverages just proves the point that it is not a good idea to drink those beverages. 25% of a 2000 calorie diet would be 500 calories and that is the rough equivalent of 3.5 cans of pop.
When Dr Gupta goes in for his MRI with a sip of soda and has his brain reward centres light up, that is understandable since the start of the piece lets you know that we are wired to like sweet tastes. It is linked to survival. Eating calories, keeps you alive and well.
Jim Simon from the sugar industry didn't have a chance against the doctors (he was set up), because he had no 'science' to back him up. He did have a good point that we should try to have a balanced diet and exercise. He is the only person in the piece that mentions exercise! Exercise is a part that is missing in many dietary debates and we know that is something that is missing in the North American lifestyle in general.
The recommendation in the end is to limit your added sugar intake to 150 calories for men and 100 calories per day for women. That is the equivalent of 37.5 grams and 25 grams of sugar per day for men and women respectively. This a reasonable limit to aim for. It is actually the equivalent of the majority of a 100g dark chocolate bar.

My advice: Be active, exercise regularly, eat lots of veggies/fruit, eat real food and truly enjoy the moderate amounts of sugar you consume. No pop-regular or diet!

Quinoa Tabbouli Salad Recipe

Tabbouli is a salad that I have always loved and purchased frequently from falafel shops. I tried a version with quinoa and have made it a constant in my quick lunch ideas. The combination of flavour from lemon juice, parsley, tomato, shallot, onion and cucumber makes it one of my favourite ways to eat quinoa. If you have it on hand, try one tablespoon of chili macadamia oil (found in Hawaii) and one tablespoon olive oil for extra special flavour. Serve it on a bed of baby spinach for some extra veggie intake.

1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups veggie stock or chicken broth
1 tsp salt
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Juice of one lemon

1 shallot, finely chopped
2 green onions finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped cucumber
1-2 plum tomatoes seeded and finely chopped
1 cup parsley (at least half a bunch) finely chopped

Cook quinoa in stock/broth and salt. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer for about 15 minutes or desired tenderness. Let the quinoa cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, toss quinoa with olive oil and lemon juice. Add chopped shallot and green onion. Mix well. Add cucumber and tomatoes, toss together. Add chopped parsley and mix well.

Serve at room temperature.

The Jamaican Workout

On a recent trip to the south coast of Jamaica for a yoga retreat, a friend and I went for the most enjoyable 30 minute brisk walk/run. It was early, before our 8:15am yoga class and the scenery was just too wonderful to miss, so we brought a camera!

This was the general beautiful landscape just outside of the Jakes property.

Just down the road was the beach with the fishing boats.

And just a little further down the beach was the most incredible unspoiled feeling that was still part of a regular community where people live.
This was one of the most enjoyable 7am 'workouts' I have experienced and I am not an early morning exerciser at all!

Laurent Perrier Champagne

I purchased a two bottle package of Laurent Perrier last year at the London airport duty free shop. Buying and collecting duty free champagne is a ritual I have had for many years. There can be great prices, brands that are not ordinarily available in Toronto and the champagne becomes a travel memory to be enjoyed at a later date. I've been 'aging' the bottles of Laurent Perrier for about a year. My dear friend and pilates instructor Lisa Kojola and I shared a bottle last night. We loved it! It was exceptionally smooth and delicious with delicate bubbles for a non vintage bottle of champagne. Laurent Perrier is on par with my perennial favourites Pommery and Moet. Sharing and enjoying a bottle of champagne with strawberries definitely makes life good!