Starbucks: Health Food on the Go

I know a lot of people hate Starbucks, but I have to commend them for providing some healthy food.  Fortunately, there are a lot of healthy alternatives to the donut.  Not only do they have raw, unsalted nuts, but they also let their customers customize their drinks.  This means that you can elminate fat and calorie-laden extras like cream, flavour shots and syrups.  2%, skim and non-fat milk are always available and can make a difference of up to 300 calories.  

In addition to the usual breakfast foods like the healthy cookie, yoghurt and fresh fruit salad, Starbucks is now offering oatmeal!  

I have yet to find nutritional information online for this new treat, but I can tell you for sure that it should be low in fat and full of fiber.

I’ll try to find out how they make it–hopefully it’s just with hot water and not milk.  If it is made with milk, try  nixing the dried fruit that they put on top, don’t add any sweeteners save for honey or raw sugar.  And, if you must top it with something, try cinnamon.

If you have info, pass it on!

Bar Food

The good news is that with the cleanse complete (yes, complete!), I feel a genuine sense of accomplishment. I also feel like I’ve learned a great deal about myself, my relationship with food, nutrition and   discovered a bunch of new foods and recipes.

The worst part is that last night–with the cleanse finished–I went to a local pub with friends after work.  I was not really in the mood for drinks so I stuck to my usual–soda water and lemon.  A couple of hours later, though, I started to feel hungry…and the pub menu was sooooo tempting.

I ended up having a vegetarian pizza. It was really, really good.  Hot, melty cheese, spices and a crispy, thin crust.  I didn’t suffer any physical side effects from eating the pizza, but I felt so guilty–pizza is NOT a whole food and my resolution is to eat, whole food–organic and local where possible. Having eaten some pizza, I started to panic that now the cleanse is over I’m going to go mad with food and put on weight.  

I know that the cleanse is about health–not weight loss–but I guess I just wasn’t prepared for the worry, the guilt and the remorse that comes with eating “bad” foods. Clearly, my relationship with food is not as amicable as I thought.  I do not want to have to maintain all of my prescribed eliminations–but I also do not want to feel guilty about eating foods I enjoy.  I am going to have to speak with Meghan about this once she returns from holiday. 

In the meantime, do you have any advice?

Friday Food Face Off: Restaurant vs. Vegetarian Restaurant

Thanks to Breanna, my friend Nicki and I went to Cafe 668 to beat the cold weather.

While the location of this restaurant is a bit odd (885 Dundas St., West), it’s worth visiting. The atmosphere is relaxed and while the waiter wore jeans, a dress would not be out of place (for me, not the waiter).

Let me tell you how great it is to go to a restaurant where I can eat almost anything off the menu. Everything looked so good, but we finally settled on soup, some black bean eggplant and taro wrapped yam.  Things were a little bit pricey (we paid $50), but for the sake of this post, we did order more than we usually would. Normally, the soup alone would suffice as the portions are very generous.

I have only two criticisms:

First, the bathrooms–while clean–have very low ceilings and I bumped by head. I’m tall-ish for a girl, but I was wearing flats.

Second, there were a lot of foods in quotes on the menu. You know, brown rice and assorted vegetables with your choice of  ”beef”, “chicken”, or “salmon”.  I hate it when vegetarian food is made into “meat.” I may be wrong, but for the most part, I’m assuming that since vegetarians have chosen to give up meat, they would not want to eat things that look and feel like meat, but don’t taste like meat.

While I normally prefer to head out to restaurants that serve meat, fish and vegetarian entrees, Cafe 668 is an excellent vegetarian/vegan alternative. The food is well-flavoured, fresh and they offer a lot of choice–including vegetable sides that can be steamed or stir-fried (Meghan would be so proud!)

Normally, vegetarian restaurants get a bit of a thumbs-down from me, especially when they serve “meat”, but the final verdict for Cafe 668 is Four Thumbs Up–two from me and two more from Nicki.

Not into restaurants and prefer to cook at home? No problem! Check out these courses from Meghan Telpner:

Cooking Party Program

February 17th (Tuesday) marks the start of my 4-week cooking program. If you can’t commit to four Tuesday, you are free and welcome to choose just one that fits with your schedule or split it with a friend where you can each come to two. How awesome is that?  $210.00 for four classes, $60.00 for a single. Book it! or  Click here for more info.

Weekly Healthy Meal Prep

March 1st or April 5th, (Sunday) 2:00-4:00m. A splendid afternoon full of yummy food and lifestyle altering information. Get easy, simple and quick ways to healthyify your life every day of the week with minimal time and effort. Learn the secrets to my ridiculously healthy way of life and how you can apply them to your own.  $55.00 Book it! or  Click here for more info.