Posts Tagged ‘snacks’

A New Greek Lover

I wrote this post while participating in a blog tour conducted by Clever Girls on behalf of Dannon. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program but my opinions are my own. 

For more information and recipe ideas, visit www.oikosyogurt.com or www.Facebook.com/oikos. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

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This morning when I went to make my breakfast, I wanted only one thing. And surprisingly it wasn’t more of the Mocha Oats (although amazing) from yesterday’s breakfast.

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The infatuation with my yogurt bowls has returned! Since it’s a rest day and I wasn’t having a quick pre-gym snack, I need breakfast stat after waking up. That meant no cooking. That meant tossing things willy nilly into a bowl – a sliced banana, some mixed nuts, peach flavored Greek yogurt, and some Fiber One 80 Honey Squares cereal.

If you have read my blog for a few months, then you know my adoration of a few things -

1) Greek yogurt
2) cereal
3) bananas
4) perfection of all together in one filling bowl for breakfast or snack

You also know that I have an affinity for a particular brand of Greek yogurt that shall remain nameless. Although, as Katy puts it, it made me a “CHO HO”. You’ve seen the pictures. Despite all that, I’m no “food snob” and will take someone up on their offer to show me there is more than one way to fill a yogurt bowl.

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Through the Clever Girl Collective network I had the chance to try Dannon Oikos Greek yogurt with it’s high claims of the following:

  • Dannon® Oikos® 0% Fat Berry Flavors beat Chobani 2-1 in a taste test!

I would be the judge of that! I tried any I could get my hands on. I hemmed. I hawed. I apparently turned 87 years old doing things like “hemming” and “hawing”.

I cooked with the yogurts….

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Fresh Peach Muffins

I used them as sour cream substitutes…

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I ate them straight up or with a basic handful of my favorite granola…

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I made a “yoatgurt” (yogurt mixed with my oatmeal…the closest thing to overnight oats you will see me eat)…

chocolate raisin oats

…and as the yogurt bowl breakfast I shared at the start of this post.

And after all of that, I finally came to a few conclusions. A penny for my thoughts? Here’s the breakdown:

Pros

  • not-runny! (the thick consistency makes for a filling, satisfying yogurt)
  • a variety of flavors (even Black Cherry!)
  • Dannon® Oikos® 0% varieties contain active yogurt cultures and range from 80 calories (Plain) to 130 calories (Fruit on the Bottom) per 5.3 oz. cup.
  • comparable nutrition stats – 12 g protein, 20 g carbohydrates (mostly from natural milk/fruit sugars), 0-3 g fat (depending on variety)
  • the honey and berry flavors really are VERY good tasting

Cons

  • slightly smaller size – 5.3 oz instead of a full 6 oz comparatively
  • some flavors too sweet – the non-berry fruit flavors (like peach) are sweeter than I think necessary

So, all this boils down to you will probably find some varieties of Dannon Oikos in my fridge (the honey flavor!) alongside some of my other favorite Greek yogurts (pineapple, hello?!). Or whatever is on sale. Or whatever I have coupons for.

  • What do you look for in a Greek yogurt? What is your favorite flavor?
  • Are you a “food snob” or a “brand snob” for any particular products? What?

Disclaimer: While I have partnered with Dannon in the Dannon Oikos Greek Yogurt Series and been compensated for my time commitment to the program, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments. You know my honesty!

Posted by on September 2nd, 2011 28 Comments

A Better Recipe: Fresh Peach Muffins

I never officially thanked you all for the prayers, thoughts, and encouragement for my mom and myself. I wish I could send you each a batch of fresh peach muffins to even begin to show my gratitude.

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Instead, I will do the best I can manage and type the words “thank you”, hope the feeling  expresses itself well enough, and give you a recipe for the peach muffins instead.

The muffins are basically an adaptation of my Lemon Raspberry Muffins. I followed that recipe but subbed out some things to make them peach instead of lemon and berry. As a standard in the blog world you should NEVER re-post someone’s recipe in full when subbing out only a few of the ingredients.

Well, this is my own recipe… so I’m reposting even with only a few substitutions. Besides, it might be good to put to use some of the recipe creation tips I learned at Healthy Living Summit. I learned such tips as not breaking a recipe up with pictures, being more specific in the ingredients and recipe details. Note: I also learned I’m a recipe train wreck and thankful I’m not a food blogger in one fell swoop.

I may not share recipes in the most helpful way…and I may not share many of them..but, by golly, you better believe any recipe I put up on this here blog is worth trying! And yes, that “by golly” just happened.

Fresh Peach Muffins

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Wholesome, yet light – these muffins make a great item for a quick breakfast or even a grab-and-go snack. Made with whole wheat pastry flour, a high fiber stevia baking blend, and applesauce instead of oil, these muffins taste like their sugar and fat laden counterparts, but satisfy more on taste, quality, and nutrition. You can make many variations of this same recipe using different fruits or yogurts. Also, feel free to use sugar or another form of sweetener instead of stevia or a mix of whole wheat and all purpose flours if you don’t have whole wheat pastry flour. Happy baking!

Servings: 12 muffins
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients
1/2 cup NuNaturals More Fiber Stevia Baking Blend (or sugar/sweetener of choice)
1/2 cup peach flavored Greek yogurt
1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 fresh peach, diced into 1/2” chunks

Step-By-Step
Preheat oven to 400. Coat a muffin tray with non-stick cooking spray. Add the stevia baking blend (or sweetener of choice), yogurt, almond milk, applesauce, egg, and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl. Stir until combined. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until evenly combined. Do not overmix. Gently fold in the diced piece chunks. Spoon batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 15 minutes until tops start to brown.

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Yep. I’m definitely not a food/recipe blogger. But I am a food lover…and I love these. Hope you will too! Smile

Posted by on August 30th, 2011 47 Comments

 

 
Catch Up With Recent Posts

Announcement Time

Posted: November 23, 2011 at 7:47 am

Well, I have had a whirlwind of a few weeks over here. I missed all of you so much! I can’t express enough gratitude for your patience while I got some important things sorted out. Some scary things. Are you ready for the announcement? Here goes! I will no longer be blogging at Faith Fitness […]

88 CommentsRead more →

Self-Love Reflection: The Road Not Taken

Posted: November 20, 2011 at 11:47 am

Hello FFF readers! Nice to meet ya! My name is Carissa and my husband and I blog at Fit2Flex.  Well, I blog…he consults! We are both certified personal trainers with a passion for healthy, active living and clean eating.  I am also studying to become a registered dietitian, a race announcer, and a runner.  Stop […]

24 CommentsRead more →

Healthier Eating For Kids

Posted: November 19, 2011 at 10:56 am

Thanks to Plum Organics for sponsoring my post about tips for baby feeding magic. What if you let baby choose what’s for dinner? Check out their cute "Quest for Yum!" video and see what happens! As parents, we want the best for our children. We help them to feel loved. We strive to teach them […]

14 CommentsRead more →
 

Announcement

Posted: November 17, 2011 at 3:36 pm

Hey, everyone! I wanted to pop in and say I am working on some new and exciting changes.  As a result,I may not be posting as much during the coming week.  Please stay tuned for the big announcement! Love you all! And still feel free to find me on Twitter and Facebook for the time […]

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Where The Change Happens

Posted: November 16, 2011 at 7:54 am

It’s kind of funny. I become a certified personal trainer and the first workouts I turn to this week come from someone else. The book came in for me at the library last week and, after flipping through it, I couldn’t wait to give the circuits a go. Making The Cut includes a lot of […]

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From Beginning To End

Posted: November 15, 2011 at 11:53 am

Good morning! First off, thanks for the many congrats yesterday. Love you all bunches for the tons of support you have given me in so many things this year. I hope I can return a little bit of that love through this here blog as well. So yesterday I had my first parent-teacher “conference” for […]

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