Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal/Buckwheat Breakfast

Serves 4


Top this nutritious, hearty breakfast with fresh berries, dried fruit, walnuts and ground flax seeds and then pour a bit of hemp or almond milk over the top. The flax seeds and walnuts add a ton of Omega-3 and fiber, which lowers the glycemic index of the meal. Only have frozen fruit on hand? Stir it into the pot during the last few minutes of cooking.

Ingredients
1 cup of gluten free whole rolled oats
1/2 cup buckwheat groats
2 cups pure apple juice
1 handful of walnuts
2 cups water
1 cinnamon stick

Directions
Put oats and groats into a medium pot and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until toasted and fragrant, 5 to 7 minutes. Meanwhile, put juice, water and cinnamon into a small pot and heat over medium heat until hot.

Carefully add hot juice mixture to oats and groats and return to the heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is absorbed and oats and groats are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove and discard cinnamon, ladle into bowls and serve.

Nutrition
Per serving (about 10oz/283g-wt.): 210 calories (15 from fat), 2g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 10mg sodium, 43g total carbohydrate (4g dietary fiber, 15g sugar), 6g protein

Choosy Mom's Should NOT Choose Jiff.....

American mom's have been brain washed to think that "Choosey Mom's Choose Jiff!" I ask myself, did these choosy mom's ever look at the label on a Jiff Jar? Jiff contains Fully Hydrogenated Oil! That is one of the worst things you can put in your adult body, much less your children's.

What is Hydrogenated Oil? It is a product that scientist was made a long time ago to harden soap! That's right, I said soap. Then the U.S. food makers thought it would be a great idea to add this to our processed foods to make them more shelf stable. How long do you think a twinkie can sit on the shelf before it goes bad - probably 100 years. It is so important to check the ingredients list on the foods that you are eating and feeding your children. So many foods these days have Hydrogenated Oil in them, such as crackers, peanut butter (Jiff), processed cheese, snack bars, cookies, cakes, dounuts, coffee creamers and if you think your doing yourself any favors with margarine, just stop now!

Eating Hydrogenated Oil is like eating plastic, it causes laseration in your arteries and can lead to high cholesterol and coronary heart disease, and many other things that we probably don't even know about yet.

A great alternative to Jiff, and all those other peanut butter brands that have hydrogenated oil, is Smuckers All Natural Peanut Butter, with or without honey. You will see the oil at the top of the jar, so make sure to mix it up good before using it. Smuckers only puts what you would think would be in peanut butter: peanuts and a very small amount of salt. So next time you "choose," choose Smuckers!

Summer Smoothie

This is a smoothie recipe that I created. It is low-glyecmic and delicious! The agave syrup and fruit gives it the perfect amount of sweetness without the blood sugar rush. You can find Agave Syrup/Nectar at pretty much any grocery store these days. It may be located in the "Health Section" and I would recommend buying organic. It is a natural source of sweetner without all the empty calories and it won't spike your blood sugar like regular cane sugar or honey. Enjoy!

Ingredients
1 Serving

• ½ cup of nonfat plain Greek Yogurt

• ½ cup of frozen berries, can add 1/2 banana

• ¼ cup of skim milk

• 1 tablespoon agave syrup

• 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed

*Add a scoop of protein powder and fiber powder to give it an extra kick!

Directions: Take all of the ingredients and blend in a blender. It’s that easy!

Top 10 Superfoods

If you eat a diet with predominantly these foods, you will feel more energy, get rid of toxins and have overall better health.  Thanks to ExtendSnacks for the following Top 10 Superfoods:

1. Low Fat or fat free PLAIN YOUGURT:  Great for protein and potassium as well as that friendly good bacteria.  MAKE SURE IT IS PLAIN AND FEEL FREE TO ADD SOME BERRIES AND AGAVE SYRUP TO SWEETEN.

2.  Eggs:  This is a very complete food.  Contains 12 vitamins and minerals.

3.  Nuts:  Walnuts, for example have Omega 3's (good fat) as well as protein and fiber.  Limit to 1 handful per day because of the fat content.

4.  Kiwis:  One large kiwi will give you your daily allowance of Vitamin C for the day.

5.  Quinoa:  This is an ancient grain that is one of the best whole grains you can eat. It is high in fiber, protien and many essential minerals and nutriets. It can be used in place of rice or couscous.

6. Beans: Loaded with insoluble fiber and soluble fiber which may help to lower cholesterol. They are a wonderful low-glycemic carb which is high in protein and fiber and help to keep you full longer.

7. Salmon: This is considered a super food - very low in calories, but rich in omega-3's, which is great for your heart and cholesterol.

8: Broccoli: It is jammed packed with essentail vitamins such as vitamin K, vitamin C and vitamin A.

9: Sweet Potatoes: These are a wonderful alternative to a white potato. Did you know that a white potatoes are actually considered high-glycemic and will spike your blood sugar very quickly as compared to a low-glycemic sweet potato? Sweet potatoes have many essential vitamins and fiber and will keep you full longer.

10: Berries: These wonder fruits are low in calories and high in fiber, antioxidants and phytonutrients. Anytime you have sweet craving grab for cherries, blueberries, strawberries or raspberries vs. something with refined sugar.

Found some great snacks that taste good and keep you full

Extend Snacks
ExtendSnacks were designed to do one thing particularly well - help stabilize blood sugar levels for up to 9 hours! Their patented formula converts gradually to blood sugar over 7 to 9 hours - instead of all at once like so many other snacks - to help even out blood sugar swings.


Click the link above for more info.  We love the chocolate peanut butter bars, peanut bars, and apple cinnamon the best.   You can get just bars or just snacks, etc.  These are great when you are in a hurry and you want to stay satisfied with no blood sugar swings.  Have a Healthy Day!