Fruity Wraps

Fresh Fruits make everything taste better

I absolutely love eating fruit salads because frankly, tossing some spinach and lettuce with some veggies can get boring, Fruits add sweetness and juiciness (especially when they're in season!) to everything and are great sources of vitamins and nutrients. Anyway, after eating so many fruit salads, I, of course, needed a change. So here is my fruit salad inside a wrap. This tasted so fresh and sweet from the fruits with a kick of spice from my favorite sriracha. I also tried putting in grapes and it tasted excellent! On the other hand, adding mango made it a little too mushy for my taste.

What's next on my list? Maybe some kumquats...my current obsession.


Fruity Wraps

Whole Wheat Wrap
Turkey
Blueberries
Strawberries
Beets
Chayote
Red Onion
Avocado*
Spinach
Romaine or Iceberg Lettuce
White & Purple Cabbage
Horseradish Mustard
Sriracha
*I ran out of avocado for my picture, but it definitely tastes so much better with some creamy avocado


1) Bake wrap, turkey, and onion in toaster oven for about 2-3 minutes at 350F degrees or until warm
2) Spread some mustard and sriracha on the turkey (Plain Greek yogurt is also a great spread!)
3) Layer the beets first, then spinach, fruits, and lettuce to make the rolling a cleaner process
4) Stick in 2 toothpicks on each side to hold, slice diagonally, and enjoy your sweet, juicy, crunchy wrap!

More strawberries this time

Kumquat Balsamic-Glazed Salmon

Balsamic-Glazed Salmon w/ Kumquats

Everyone needs a "go-to" quick and easy dish to whip up. This is mine...and of course it involves salmon.

Salmon is my absolute favorite fish to eat because of its taste and omega-3 content. It's also an excellent source of Vitamin D, which I currently need more of. How perfect. I've also been in this whole kumquat mood lately because I love how it's a cross between a sweet orange and a sour lemon--the best of both worlds. The rind also contains 1 gram of fiber per kumquat, so use it, eat it, love it!

I usually cook salmon it in three different ways depending on my mood: Stove, Baked, or Broiled. Here, I have it cooked on the stove and baked in the oven. Broiled to come.


Kumquat Balsamic-Glazed Salmon
Serving Size = 2

2 salmon filets
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
6 kumquats, chopped w/ skin
3 tbs onion, chopped
1 garlic, minced
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 cayenne pepper
salt & pepper


On the Stove:
1) Dry the salmon with a paper towel and season with salt, pepper, ginger, and cayenne pepper. Set aside
2) Heat skillet over medium high with cooking spray and place salmon skin side down.
3) About 2-3 minutes in, add balsamic, kumquats, onion, and garlic to pan. May decrease heat to medium if balsamic splatters
4) Cook for approx. another 1 1/2 minutes, then flip salmon over and cook for another 4-7 minutes depending on thickness. I usually just test it towards the end to see when it flakes. Let it sit for a few minutes and serve.

Baked:
1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2) Dry the salmon with a paper towel and season with salt, pepper, ginger, and cayenne pepper.
3) In medium pan over medium high heat, sear salmon (skin side down) for 1-2 minutes, flip, and repeat. This gives it a nice crust prior to baking it in the oven.
4) In small bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Place salmon on baking sheet covered with foil. Pour balsamic mixture on top
5) Bake in oven for about 8-10 minutes depending on thickness. Let sit for a few minutes and serve.

Kashi vs. Fiber One Cereal

I just happened to come across the cereal aisle when I was searching for some dark chocolate at CVS. I'm more of an oatmeal and granola type person than I am a cereal person, but I figured I'd grab a few boxes since they were on sale.

I went with two popular "healthy" cereal brands, Kashi and Fiber One, because I oftentimes see them on commercials and websites, so I decided to entertain myself with a cereal nutrition feud. They're actually quite interesting...

Fiber One

Wait, is that dog food? No, it's Fiber One with its brown crunchy twigs. This is your basic yogurt parfait using plain Greek yogurt. I chose to pair the Fiber One cereal with Greek yogurt because it compensates for the lack of protein in the cereal. Likewise, the Fiber One cereal, with a whopping 14g of fiber per 1/2 cup, makes up for the lack of fiber in Greek yogurt. This makes for a nice fiber protein balance.

Yogurt Parfait w/ Berries

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt 

1/2 cup blueberries

4 strawberries, chopped

1/4 cup cereal or granola

4 toasted walnut halves, chopped

2 dashes of cinnamon

Kashi GoLean

Kashi's GoLean offers more variety in appearance and texture. I had this cereal with almond milk because Kashi has a bit more protein in it than Fiber One after converting the serving sizes...and I was in that milky mood. Actually, Fiber One holds up to milk a lot better than Kashi, which tended to get soggy after a few minutes.

Notice difference in serving size. Tricky tricky

If I had to choose a winner, I would go with Kashi. Why? Primarily because Fiber One ruined it with Aspartame. I'd rather have honey, agave nectar and the like...or even plain ole brown sugar. IMO, there's just too much controversy and potential "side effects" over this ingredient that I prefer to avoid it as much as possible. 

Kashi also offers a great balance between fiber and protein and also contains more potassium. It has 9 grams of insoluble fiber, which is what it sounds like--it doesn't dissolve in water, so it simply passes through your body. Yep, it basically helps you poop due to its laxative effect. The list of ingredients are also easier to understand, which is definitely a good sign.

Don't be offended if you love Fiber One. The thing I actually like about Fiber One is the fact that it contains a wide variety of vitamins and minerals as you can see in the picture. But really, aspartame killed it for me.

Fiber One...Aspartame?? Whyyy

 
Strange Ingredients:

*Guar Gum: Fiber from the seed of the guar plant. It's used as a laxative and may help in weight loss by making you feel fuller as it expands in your intestine.

*Cellulose Gum: Thickening agent. Apparently it's safe because it just passes through the body with no nutritional value.

*Aspartame: Controversial artificial sweetener which I try to avoid due to its potentially harmful side effects. If an ingredient has this much debate over it, there's got to be something going on.

*Evaporated Cane Juice: Healthier alternative to refined sugar (although still from the same source) mainly because it undergoes a smaller degree of processing, thus, retaining more nutrients

.