Chocolate Flaxseed Honey Peanutbutter

I recently got a peanut butter machine which basically creates any nut butter you can imagine! I love it because I know EXACTLY what is in it! This mixture was to DIE for! 1/4 cup peanuts, 1/8 cup flaxseed (whole), a dash of cinnamon, 1 tbsp of honey and 1 tbsp of cocoa powder. The cinnamon, honey and cocoa powder I added After I made the butter. So I know you probably don't have a peanut butter machine. Well then just buy natural peanut butter and mix these ingredients together. Its very easily done. If you want to enjoy the luxury of making your own peanut butter, some health food stores have peanut butter machines. For example, in Kalamazoo the Natural Health Center off Drake and West Main has one.

Graveyard

Have you ever heard of a "graveyard"? It is usually refers to mixing together a bunch of soda flavors from the soda machine. I think it's called this because it kills you. So I guess this isn't exactly a graveyard because it doesn't kill you. In fact, it makes you live LONGER. so anyways, the concept is the same.... except I just mixed together a crap ton of vegetables (and a few extra ingredients). Feel free to create your own of course!

here's what i threw together, literally: spinich, carrots, black eyed peas, edemame, chickpeas, quinoa, bamboo shoots, alfalfa sprouts, mushrooms, parsley and basil. I also added some yeast flakes, which contains vitamin B12 and can be used as a parmasan cheese substitute. I then squeezed a half a lemon into the mixture and mixed it all together! Like I said, pretty much just took random stuff out of my fridge. and it was great! ***This recipe is dedicated to Bree McCormick because she was the one who originally gave me this idea :))

carrot wrap

My roomate Bree made these delicious carrots and black eyed peas! It was a combination of black eyed peas with carrots (sliced and cooked), earth balance, and fresh dill. So i decided to make this wrap:

1 whole wheat tortilla, hummus, Bree's carrot and pea mixture, quinoa and spinich. Just grill the tortilla on a frying pan with all the toppings for a more "toasted" style.

Oatmeal for the fabulous

Okay, so if you only try ONE of my recipes, I would like to suggest that you make THIS ONE. This "Out of this world" recipe takes boring oatmeal to a whole new level. Alright, so here is what you do: combine 1/2 cup of oatmeal (straight up oats. not that packaged sugar-filled crap!) with 1 cup of water and about 1 to 2 tbsp of loose leaf tea (I use Teavana, something nutty or chai). microwave for 1 minute. Then add one banana sliced, a handful of blackberries, a half cup of kashi "go lean crunch" cereal, 1 to 2 tbsp of peanut butter, a dash of flaxseed, a dash of cinnamon and one packet of stevia if you want extra sweetnener. Microwave the entire mixture for 45 seconds to a minute, depending on how hot you like it :)

so why does this oatmeal make you fabulous?----*The tea basically acts as a flavor in the oatmeal without all that artificial stuff and adds caffeine if it's caffeinated! *Peanut butter adds a creamy texture, healthy fats and protein. *Kashi adds protein and crunch. *Flaxseed adds omega-threes. *Blackberries adds a natural sweetness and fruity touch. *Bananas just taste awesome and have lots of potassium. *Cinnamon adds an extra spice and has many health benefits such as improving memory, preventing blood clot, lowering blood sugar, etc. *The stevia just adds some more sweetness if you have a sweet tooth and it doesn't add any extra calories or sketchy ingredients. *Last but not least, the oatmeal itself helps regulate/lower our cholesterol levels, is high in fiber and has a decent amount of protein (10g in 1 cup)

on the go!

So as a student with two majors, a job and rehearsals while trying to still have a social life, I can admit, LIFE IS BUSY! It is so easy to rely on pre packaged bars and snack foods that might not be so healthy for us when we are on the go. well this takes about 10 seconds to prepare and will keep you enegized feeling great!---

All it is, is rasberries, blackberries, blueberries and raw almonds. any berries or nuts work! it will tide you over without all those extra preservatives and junk :))

Yummy quick sandwich

Sandwiches are my all-time favorite food. Why? because you can put just about anything on a sandwich, creating more opportunities to eat healty foods without getting bored. So if you are in a hurry and don't have time to cook, TRY THIS!!!

Ingredients~~~ 2 slices of whole wheat or 12 grain bread (make sure it is actually whole wheat. just because something says "wheat" on the package or "healthy" doesn't mean that it is. Don't let the government fool you), 1 frozen veggie chicken patty( if you are trying to be vegan, make sure that it doesn't contain eggs or milk. Veggie burger doesn't mean vegan. Boca burgers usually don't use eggs or milk), vegan cheese, spinich, cucumber, tomoato, hummus and italian seasoning to spice it up. You can always substitute the "chicken" patty for a veggie burger!!

Mocha Cappuccino (but healthier)

So yes, too much coffee is awful. However, you can enjoy your coffee in moderation. But when you add 4% milk, processed sugars, chocolate syrup and whipped cream, there's pretty much nothing healthy about it. So heres an option, that tastes even better.

Ingredients: 1 cup of coffee (flavored coffee if you wanna jazz it up), 5oz of semi-sweet baking chocolate square, 1 packet of stevia (natural zero calorie sweetener), and 1 tbsp of coconut milk creamer ("so delicious" has this, or soy creamer works too. coconut milk cream is so smooth, and tastes way bette than dairy creamer, i promise!) If you wanna be extra fabulous, top it with some soy whipped cream. but thats kind of expensive...