Tips

Tips

How To Pick A Ripe Avocado

I get tons of questions asking how to pick the perfect avocado. I have become a master over the years and have to pass this simple little trick to all of my readers so you can learn how to pick a ripe avocado each and every time! Happy avo picking! How-to-pick-a-ripe-avocado-1

If you love avocados (seriously, who doesn’t?) it can be such a bummer to slice one open only to find brown and black inside. I’ve bought hundreds of them over the years, and I must confess, every once in a while I used to get a spotty one.

The avocados you’ll see in grocery stores usually range in color, from bright green to dark black. Most people choose their avocados based on their color — bright green being unripe, black with a green sheen being ripe, and dark black being overripe. However, this method is pretty unreliable. For the past couple of years I’ve tested the ripeness of avocados by gently squeezing them: very firm is under ripe, gently firm is almost ripe, slightly soft is ripe, and very soft is overripe. Again, this method works for me most of the time, but I still sometimes pick bad avocados based on touch alone.

Based on the suggestion of a friend, I started choosing my avocados based on one particular method, and I have yet to choose an overripe or under ripe one so far.

Essentially, you pull out the knob of your avocado and check the color of the avocado’s fruit. Using that method in combination with checking the firmness gets you a ripe avocado 100% of the time.

How-to-pick-a-ripe-avocado-2 An unripe avocado is usually bright green. The texture will be very firm, with no give at all when pressed. But it’s most important to check is the knob. Unripe avocados will have a knob that’s difficult to pull out. If you do manage to pull it out — though you should generally just move on to a different avocado — the flesh will be bright green.  How-to-pick-a-ripe-avocado-3 ripe avocado is dark green/black. Some ripe avocados will still have a bit of green on them, where others will be totally black. A ripe avocado has a bit of give. Most importantly, the knob comes out easily and the color of the avocado flesh is solid green How-to-pick-a-ripe-avocado-4Overripe avocados are completely black. They are often very soft and squish to the touch, but sometimes seem to have a nice give: they can be hard to differentiate from avocados that are actually ripe based on touch alone. An overripe avocado knob comes out easily, but the internal flesh will be mottled gray-green, brown, or black. How-to-pick-a-ripe-avocado-5 Use this tip to find perfect, ready-to-eat avocados every time!  Source: Integral Natural Yoga Foods

Easy Veggie Burger (for the busy days)

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First of all, sorry for the lack of posts last week! I have been shipping shirts like a mad woman, and then I went on a blogger trip where my car broke down! Stories of that crazy adventure to come later this week!

So you guys know that I’m not the biggest fan of frozen meals and such. I try my hardest to eat fresh fruits and veggies and cook meals from scratch as often as I can, but like everyone else, some days I’m just too busy or tired to cook dinner. On those days, when I’m low on time or energy, Dr. Praeger’s Veggie Burgers have been a lifesaver for me. Just a little FYI, this is not a sponsored post, nor are half of the products that I post here; I sincerely love these veggie patties, and had to share them with you guys! This is the absolute easiest meal to make and still stick with The Rabbit Food Pyramid.

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I love that their ingredient list doesn’t include any type of preservatives, chemicals, or modified ingredients. They’re vegan, GMO free, kosher parve, and free of saturated fat, and cholesterol! Plus they even contain 5g of protein and are only 110 calories per patty!

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Nothing ever looks that pretty when frozen, but here it is in all of it’s frozen glory. I love the texture and that there are whole pieces of corn, and soybeans in there, as well as bits of carrots and other veggies. To find Dr. Praeger’s Veggie Burgers near you, check out their store locator.

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I don’t really buy buns unless I’m having friends and family over for a barbecue, so I love eating my burgers on a slice of toasted Dave’s Killer Bread in Powerseed. It’s really hearty and so soft! To Find Dave’s Killer Bread near you, check out their store locator.

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I treat this veggie burger as an open faced sandwich. I like to eat it with a knife and fork! It also slows me down from nom noming the entire thing at lightening speed haha.

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Easy Veggie Burger
Serves 1

1 slice whole grain bread (my fav is Dave’s Killer Bread in Powerseed)
Dr. Praeger’s Veggie Patty
1 slice reduced fat (or vegan) cheese (I used jack)
1/4 small avocado (mashed or sliced)

Optional: 1 Tbsp of your favorite condiment like Vegenaise or organic ketchup!

Toast bread, heat veggie patty on a microwave safe plate for 1 minute. After 1 minute, flip the patty and add cheese, microwave for 40 more seconds. Transfer patty to the toasted bread and add freshly sliced or mashed avocado and desired condiments.

The Rabbit Food Pyramid Breakdown
Produce: Dr. Praeger’s Veggie Patty
Whole Grain: bread
Protein: cheese
Plant Based Fat: avocado

Banana Freezing 101

“How do you freeze bananas?”
This is a super common question that I get all the time. And no, it’s not a stupid question! Freezing bananas is something that I discovered along the way of my weight loss/healthy eating journey. I would buy a bunch of bananas and some weeks I could eat them all, and others they would be left alone on the kitchen counter to wither away and turn into brown blobs. Instead of wasting bananas and throwing them away, I learned about freezing them for smoothies! Frozen bananas are the best discovery I’ve made! When you use frozen bananas in your smoothie, there is no need for ice because it makes your smoothie so thick, creamy, and cold!

Now before we get into Banana Freezing 101, I want to teach you guys about ripe bananas. A banana is fully ripened when it is CHEETAH SPOTTED! There should be absolutely no green, even around the stem. At the cheetah spotted stage, the starches will have fully developed into sugars. If you have the astringent puckering feeling in your mouth after biting into one, you will know that it isn’t fully ripe! You know what weird taste/feeling on your tongue that I’m talking about? Yuck! Wait for the cheetah spots : ) they are the best for perfect shmoozies!

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Banana Freezing 101

1. Wait until the bananas have become cheetah spotted.
2. Peel
3. Place in a Ziploc bag.
4. Freeze!

-If you don’t have a high powered blender such as a Vitamix, you can chop up the bananas before freezing so it’s easier on your blender. I like leaving them in one piece so I know I’m getting a full banana serving when I use them in smoothies! You can literally store them in the freezer for months (although I make a lot of smoothies, Banana Nicecream, and Yonanas, so I go through them pretty fast)!

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I hope you learned something new today!
Have a healthy & happy weekend!
xo Catherine

Rabbit Food Pyramid Refresher

Today’s post is a little different than the norm. After reading a comment from a reacher: Stephanie, I noticed that I haven’t talked about the Rabbit Food Pyramid since I started my blog in 2012! Since I often have new readers, I think now would be a great time to re-introduce the rabbit food pyramid and how it works!

How it started:
After being on Nutrisystem for a few months and not liking the groggy lethargic feeling that overly processed shelf stable foods gave me, I branched out on my own to continue my weight loss journey. After reading numerous health and fitness magazines and articles by registered dietitians and nutrition experts, I experimented with different styles of eating and found what works for me. I quickly realized that drastic diets and cutting out food groups following “no-carb” or “fat-free” fads were not for me. It left me hangry (hungry and angry) all the time, which led to uncontrollable binging and even worse, a severe eating disorder of restrictive eating, and eventually bulimia and a brief stint with anorexia. As you can tell, food rules were a terrible idea for someone like me who has OCD perfectionist qualities.

Determined to lose weight the proper way this time, I educated myself on how to portion meals properly with balance. That meant carbs, fat, produce, and protein to keep my body nurtured and healthy. This is when the Rabbit Food Pyramid was born. I gathered the proper recommended* serving sizes of each food/food group into a huge list and divided them into four categories.

Weight loss using the Rabbit Food Pyramid: 4 small meals per day!

Breakfast:
1 serving of fruit
1 serving of whole grain
1 serving of protein
1 serving of plant based fat

Lunch:
2 servings of vegetables
1 serving of whole grain
1 serving of protein
1 serving of plant based fat

Dinner:
2 servings of vegetables
1 serving of whole grain
1 serving of protein
1 serving of plant based fat

Snack Meal:
1 serving of fruit
1 serving of whole grain
1 serving of protein
1 serving of plant based fat

Free Extras:
Spices! Anything from cinnamon to chipotle or even zero calorie natural sweeteners like Stevia.

Now that you know the formula for each meal, all you have to do is pick your food for each category! I’ve provided ideas and sample servings for each category here.
If you aren’t sure what the proper measurement is for a certain food, refer to the Rabbit Food Pyramid page to double check!

LET’S START WITH AN EASY BREAKFAST:
PB & Banana Toast

Breakfast:
Produce/Fruit: 1/2 sliced banana
Whole Grain: 1 slice whole wheat bread
Protein: 1 cup (8oz) of soy milk
Plant Based Fat: 1 Tbsp unsalted peanut butter
Free Extras: Sprinkle of cinnamon

Easy peasy! No calories, points, carbs, or macros required! Just balance from each food group!
NOW LETS GET TRICKY WITH A BREAKFAST RECIPE:

Whole Wheat French Toast

Breakfast Recipe: French Toast
Produce/Fruit:
 1 cup fresh raspberries
Whole Grain: 1 slice of whole wheat bread
Protein: 1/4 cup egg whites
Plant Based Fat: 2 Tbsp sliced almonds
Free Extras: 1/8 tsp cinnamon & 3 drops liquid stevia

Combine egg whites, cinnamon, and stevia in a bowl.  Soak the slice of bread in the egg mixture until it is absorbed. Place the bread in a pan lightly coated in cooking spray over medium heat. Pour excess egg mixture on top of the bread. Flip and cook both sides until the egg is no longer runny. Transfer to a plate and top with fresh raspberries and sliced almonds.

Maintenance:
To maintain my weight, I learned that adding one additional snack meal or protein shake per day worked perfectly for me. Of course it took some trial and error to figure out what worked for me!

I hope that this breakdown of the Rabbit Food Pyramid helps you to better understand the way that I portion my meals and create recipes!
Health & Happiness xo
Catherine

Let me know if this was helpful or if you have any questions about the Rabbit Food Pyramid!

*What works for me, might not work for everyone. The suggested serving sized are based on my own personal experience. Everyone is built differently, so if you are taller or heavier than my starting weight, you may need another small meal in your diet to fit your nutrition needs. Please consult a doctor before making any changes to your diet. This is only a suggestion based on my personal experience.

Frosty Light

Hi honeybunnies!

I had a super fun photoshoot with my friend Brett yesterday to photograph all of my new RFFMBT shirts! After traveling to San Francisco, Denver (twice), Palm Springs, Nebraska, Iowa, and Monterey,  I’ve finally had some down time to get the ball rolling on my shirts! Ohhhhhh my goji I’m so excited I can’t even stand it!!! I did Brett’s hair and make-up yesterday (she looks like the ultimate rffmbt bunny!) and then we blasted some top 40 hits while taking pictures. We had so much fun that I ended up with over 500 pictures! Oopsiessss! Now I have lots of sorting and editing to do in order to get my store up and running. Hopefully (cross your little bunny paws) that the new inventory will be ready for the store this weekend or early next week! Of course I will definitely notify you guys in a post as soon as they are up!

Eat More Rabbit Food Shirt Promo
So I’ve seen this recipe for a healthy Frosty Shake floating around the interwebs recently, and this morning my friend’s mom (Brett’s mom, actually!) posted it on my Facebook! It was pretty much a sign that it needed to be tried. I had all of the ingredients on hand, so I decided to go for it. The end result? Not up to RFFMBT standards… It was a little too icy and bland for my taste, so I took to the kitchen to perfect a Frosty Light for you guys!

Frosty Light
Did you know, that a small Original Chocolate Frosty from Wendy’s has a grand total of 290 calories, 7 (g) fat, and 40 (g) of sugar? Yes 40 grams of sugar! OMG! Ya, I had no idea either. I’m usually really good when it comes to reading nutrition labels, but when I indulge in ice cream I usually avoid the label and enjoy. So when I do look up the nutrition information for things like this, sometimes my jaw drops! I forget how much sugar restaurants add!

Behold the Chocolate Frosty Light! Only 5 ingredients (well 6 if you count ice cubes) that you probably already have in your kitchen! Score! I’ve used a frozen banana for natural sweetness, almond milk for that rich creamy texture, and chia seeds for thickness! Chia seeds in a “Frosty?” You betcha! Chia seeds swell to about 10 times their natural size when combined with liquid, resulting in a thick gel-like texture. Blend them thoroughly in your Frosty Light and get a nice ‘n’ thick smoothie and an added bonus of healthy Omega-3s and fiber. Trust me, after they’re blended up you won’t even know they’re there!

Chocolate Frosty Light
Serves 1

1 cup original unsweetened almond milk
1 frozen banana
1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp chia seeds
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
8-10 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in a high powered blender and blend until smooth.

Frosty Light

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