Lightened Up Date Shake

Living in Southern California my entire life, I grew up going to Palm Springs every Easter with my family. Every trip to palm springs always included a quick stop by the date gardens in Indio to get a date shake. Since you guys know I love “healthifying” comfort foods, today is the day for a Lightened Up Date Shake. Traditional date shakes consist of full fat vanilla ice cream, whole milk, and dates. My recipe still consists of 3 ingredients, but adds up to nearly a fraction of the calories! Plus it’s vegan, gluten-free, lactose-free, paleo, and low-fat!

A traidtional date shake adds up to:
Calories: 626
Fat: 25.3g
Sugar: 77.5g
Fiber: 4.5g
Protein: 13.2g

And my Lightened Up Date Shake totals:
Calories: 330
Fat: 1.25g
Sugar: 57.5g (all natural unrefined sugar)
Fiber: 8g
Protein: 3g

Not all sugars are created equal. Say a candy bar (refined sugar) has the same amount of sugar as a banana (natural sugar). They process through your body completely different. Whole fruit has a lot of fiber, which actually slows down your body’s digestion of glucose, so you don’t get the crazy insulin spike (and crash) that candy causes. That also means your body has more time to use up glucose as fuel before storing it… as fat.

That’s the #1 reason why I love using Medjool Dates as a sweetener in baking and other recipes versus regular table sugar!

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Lightened Up Date Shake
Serves 1

3 Natural Delights Medjool Dates, pitted
1 frozen banana
1/2 cup unsweetened original almond milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Remove pits from dates. Blend blend blend until smooth and creamy!

Tip: To make this more filling as a meal replacement, try adding 1/4 cup of dry rolled oats to the blender!

Huge thank you to Natural Delights for supplying the dates for this recipe!

Spinach Chips

Hoppy Monday everybunny!
I am so excited to announce that I am taking over the Natural Delights Medjool Dates Facebook page this week! I have a special recipe for tomorrow and I’m hosting a live chat this Thursday (1/9) at 12pm (noon) PST! The live chat will take place on the Natural Delights Facebook page, so if you have any questions about cooking or weight loss, be sure to join me!

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This could be my new favorite recipe. I’m calling it right now, Spinach Chips are the new Kale Chips. Actually, I’m probably way late to this party since I remember a few readers mentioning spinach chips before haha. But man oh man are they good! They literally melt in your mouth. I’m pretty sure you’re going to LOVE these. They’re super easy to make, have a short baking time, and only 4 ingredients! What’s not to love? They’re the ultimate healthy snack!

My friend Anna Marie and I just ate the entire batch of them, so I’m not sure how well they store if you have leftovers. Pretty high change you will eat these in one sitting, but no shame or guilt, they’re actually good for you! Completely gluten-free, vegan, low-calorie, and awesome! Not to mention, packed with vitamins and minerals!

Spinach-Chips96 Facts About Spinach:

  • Filled with powerful antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, manganese, zinc and selenium, which combat the onset of osteoporosis, atherosclerosis and high blood pressure.
  • One cup of spinach contains over 337% of the RDA of vitamin A that protects and strengthens “entry points” into the human body, such as mucous membranes, respiratory, urinary and intestinal tracts.
  • One cup of spinach has nearly 20% of the RDA of dietary fiber, which aids in digestion, and curbs overeating.
  • The abundance of vitamin K contributes to a healthy nervous system and brain function.
  • Contains two anti-inflammatory epoxyxanthophylls; Neoxanthin and violaxanthin.
  • Packed with magnesium, folate, iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B2, potassium, and vitamin B6, and a great source of selenium and niacin.

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Spinach Chips
Serves 1-2

2 large handfuls of spinach (I used about 1/2 the bag)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 Tbsp Italian herb seasoning  (I use Frontier & sometimes McCormick)
1/8 tsp sea salt, or to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Massage oil into spinach until all leaves are completely coated.  Add italian seasoning and salt, combine until evenly dispersed. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place leaves on the parchment paper so that they aren’t overlapping (this will allow them to cook evenly). Bake for 9-12 minutes until crispy.

Simple Green Smoothie

So this smoothie has been my absolute obsession recently. I’ve been drinking this every morning to give me energy and strengthen my immune system during cold season. The best part is that it’s sooooo easy to make and fastest great with just about any tropical fruit or citrus added in!

I’ve been posting it all over my Instagram and Facebook page and it;s gotten great reader feedback. It’s a must try!

Other reader suggestions:
Blueberries
Pomegranate
Cocoa Powder

Let me know what your fav combo is in the comments!

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Simple Easy Green Smoothie

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Simple Green Smoothie
Serves 1

2 small oranges (or 1 large), peeled
1 frozen banana
1 huge handful of spinach
1/2 cup of ice

Blend blend blend until creamy and smooth.

Don’t like bananas?
Try 1 cup of frozen peaches, pineapple, or mango!

Don’t have a high powered blender?
Try adding some almond milk for a creamsicle flavor, or try pineapple or apple juice for an all alkaline smoothie.

Raw Gingerbread Men

Congratulations to the winner of my #ChotallyAwesome Chobani Giveaway: Kaitlin!
Don’t forget to check your email to claim your prize! xo

Giveaway Winner 12:13:13
Merry Christmas Eve Eve little bunnies!

Is it just me or has this holiday season been crazy? I’ve been working on a lot of graphic design projects and I’ve barely had time to create new recipes, which makes me bummed. But today, that changed! It’s been a way-too-warm 70 degrees here in southern California, and as awesome as it sounds to have beach weather and sunshine, it makes it feel less like Christmas. I literally don’t even want to turn on my oven to bake anything because it’s too hot in my house, haha.

Instead of traditional gingerbread cookies, I created a no bake, raw, vegan, paleo, gluten-free, gingerbread cookie recipe with no grains or refined sugars! How do you like them apples?! I don’t want to toot my own horn, but toot toot, this is probably the healthiest gingerbread recipe you will find! Minimal dishes required. What whatttttt!

Grab your almond milk, turn on Elf, and prepare to be a man-eater. ha. ha .ha.
But seriously, these Medjool men are so scrumptious!

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Raw Gingerbread Men

1 cup + 1/4 cup Natural Delights Medjool dates, pitted
1 cup almonds
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp cloves

Before you begin, REMOVE PITS FROM DATES! Combine all spices and almonds in a food processor and blend until finely chopped. Next add the dates and vanilla extract and blend until well combined. Even if it doesn’t resemble dough, it should stick together when pressing it into a ball. Transfer the ball of dough onto a picee or parchment or wax paper, cover with another sheet of parchment paper, and flatten to 1/4 inch thickness with a rolling pin. Remove the top layer of parchment paper and cut into gingerbread men or various shapes using a cookie cutter. Continue balling up the dough, rolling it out, and cutting into gingerbread men until there is no dough left. Eat right off of the plate, or store in refrigerator until serving!

Note: If you don’t have a cookie cutter, you can also roll them into 1 Tbsp sized balls as Gingerbread bites!

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Have a Merry Merry Christmas my loves!
xo Catherine

#ChotallyAwesome Giveaway (CLOSED)

You guys know that my blog is very light hearted and most of all real. As a blogger for Chobani, I think it’s important to address what’s going on in the world of yogurt!

As you may have heard in the news, Whole Foods will no longer be carrying Chobani Greek yogurt. Whole Foods said it will no longer sell Chobani because they are phasing out items that contain genetically modified ingredients. The decision was also influenced by Whole Foods’ plans to sell more exclusive products, and Chobani is available in most supermarkets. Funny that Whole Foods sells Dannon’s Oikos – which isn’t GMO-free, and Fage – which is available at tons of other grocery chains… makes their statement a little odd!

Of course, like everything else in this day and age, there’s now tons of controversy surrounding Chobani and GMOs (Chobani’s dairy cows are fed food that contains GMOs). This is a subject that comes up a lot on my Facebook and Instagram.

I often get asked “Why do you support brands that contain GMOs?” Well I don’t actually support GMOs, but I support healthy eating! I believe in promoting healthier options whether they be organic or not. While I do think organic is great for our bodies and should be consumed as often as possible, I also think that when it comes down to it…  the important thing is to eat fruits and vegetables and make healthy choices. If you can afford organic produce and dairy, that is great, but if you can’t, you’re still going to be better off than eating other foods (i.e. fried and junk foods). Fruits, veggies, and protein packed Greek yogurt for the win!

Something I truly love about Chobani, besides the fact that their yogurt is loaded with protein, preservative-free, and free of artificial flavors, is that they are an official sponsor for Team USA for the Winter Olympics Sochi 2014! I was beyond excited to see Chobani as an official sponsor for the London Summer 2012 Olympics because for the first time, Team USA was sponsored by a brand that athletes actually eat. Since the olympics are all about athletics and performance, it drives me crazy seeing sponsors like McDonalds and Coca Cola, because we all know that’s not what these incredible athletes are eating. I’m so pumped to see Chobani powering Team USA once again with their all natural yogurt!

To some people, consuming a 100% organic non-GMO diet is very important, but my main focus for myself and my blog is to choose the freshest and most natural foods that I can! Now that I’ve shared my take on the GMO/organic topic, it’s time for the fun stuff!

This past Sunday, the Chobani Yogurt Truck made a stop by my house as a way to say thank you. They’re HUGE truck had an awesome quote on the side of it that read “Every cup is preservative-free and artificial flavor-free. And we’re giving every cup in this truck away totally-free.” I invited tons of friends and neighbors to come over and enjoy some free Chobani Greek yogurt with me and the CHO team.
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Chotally Awesome Chobani Yogurt Truck 2The recycle bin aftermath! Can you tell Key Lime was a fav?

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Chotally-Awesome-Chobani-Yogurt-Truck-6  The team asked “where the corgi was” so of course my famous, handsome, beautiful, precious little Teddy made an appearance along with his labrador sister Elin! They got to enjoy a nice cup o’ Cho with us : ) Teddy was a huge hit, he’s such a ham. #chopuppies

As a way to say thank you to my readers this holiday season, I am hosting a Chobani giveaway.
One lucky RFFMBT reader will win a case of 12 assorted 5.3oz Chobani yogurt cups!

For your chance to win:
1. Comment on this post telling me your favorite Chobani flavor.

2. Tweet ” I entered this #chotallyawesome #giveaway to #win a case of 12 assorted @Chobani yogurt cups from @EatRabbitFood http://bit.ly/19BhvwJ ”
– To complete your Twitter entry, leave a separate comment with the url to your tweet!

2. Post a photo on Instagram of your Chobani Greek yogurt along with the handle @RabbitFoodForMyBunnyTeeth and hashtags #RFFMBTcho and #chotallyawesome
– To complete your Instagram entry, leave a separate comment with the url to your Instagram photo!

This means you can earn up to 3 entries!
Contest ends Sunday, December 22nd at 11:59pm PST.
Winner will be announced Monday, December 23rd.
Must use a valid email address when entering. Open to U.S. residents only.

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