Sarah Elton, author of Locavore, is not an ‘all or nothing’ local eater. In the first chapter she states that she buys products that would otherwise be off-limit to a 100% local Canadian eater: bananas, oranges, olive oil and rice.

Instead, her point of view is, “if you can grow it here, I won’t buy it from there“.

From this point on, I knew I would love this book. This is exactly how I feel about local eating; you don’t need to give up the bananas, but you can buy the eggs/meat/dairy/wheat/root vegetables/summer produce that you do have available. And when you start looking, you’ll be surprised how much is available!

If you are a fan of In Defense of Food, Animal Vegetable Miracle, or Food Inc, you will love Locavore. It touches on many of the same issues – such as how we’re not eating real food anymore and  the power of Farmer’s Markets – and expands on what’s happening all over Canada with respect to Local Eating. From a farmer-run food coop in New Brunswick, to organic and heritage wheat in Saskatchewan, to an urban farm in Vancouver, Locavore optimistically tours Canada.

And while Canadian-focused, I’d be willing to bet that across the US similar stories are occuring. You don’t have to be Canadian to enjoy this book!

Sarah’s tips for eating locally include:

1. Ask Questions. Whether at a Farmer’s Market or grocery store, ask where your food is from.
2. Eat in Season. It tastes better anyways.
3. Avoid Processed Foods. It’s healthier too.
4. Choose organic and humanely raised meat. The largest impact you can have for local eating, and your dollar spent.
5. Voice your opinion. Tell your grocery store manager you want local potatoes

Want to win a copy of Locavore for yourself?

{The Giveaway}

One Eat Clean Live Green readers will a copy of Locavore!

{how to enter}

Leave a comment telling me what your city/province is known for growing or producing!

{extra entries}

Leave another comment for each of the following (up to 4 chances to win!)

• Follow @EatCleanLiveGrn on twitter, and tweet about the giveaway: @EatCleanLiveGrn is giving away a great read: Locavore! www.eatcleanlivegreen.com

• Link back to this giveaway on your blog

• Subscribe to Eat Clean Live Green

{details}

This giveaway will end Friday, April 30 11 at 10 PM, MST. Winner will be drawn at random, selected from random.org. Contest open to those with Canadian shipping addresses only.

(sorry US readers! More giveaways coming soon!)

I was sent a copy of Locavore for free to review, but this review is entirely my opinion!

What does it mean to be healthy? The word is tossed around (it’s everywhere!) easily – without reasoning as to what healthy actually means. There have to be countless definitions – to name a few:

• non processed
• high protein
• a preferred ratio, such as 40/40/20 (protein/carb/fat)
• whole grain
• low calorie
• vegetarian
• vegan
• organic
• low-fat
• raw

There really is no right or wrong – healthy can vary day to day and person to person. What we consider healthy is constantly evolving – it can be hard to keep up. Saturated fat was bad, now it’s maybe not. Low carb and high protein was golden, now we know how important complex carbs are.

My definition of a healthy meal varies. Sometimes I’m looking for something higher in protein. Sometimes lower calorie. But in general, my definition of healthy is balanced: some protein, some healthy carbs in the form of whole grains, fruits and/or vegetables, and a moderate amount of fat, all made from real foods.

There really is no right or wrong – but I’m curious – what is your definition of a healthy meal?

Are you wanting to make more vegetarian meals, but don’t think your boyfriend/husband/children will be on board? Is your family cringing when you mention beans?

No one likes what they don’t know – and if your family isn’t fluent in bean-based meals, they don’t know there’s nothing to be afraid of.

Don’t Cut Out – Add In

How about a ‘less is more’ approach? Adding beans to your meals is a great way to add volume, without tons of fat or calories. In exchange, you can use less meat - saving money, and familiarizing you and your family with how easy and satisfying a bean-based meal can be.

Intro to Lentils 101: Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• 3 cups tomato sauce
• 1 cup dry red lentils
• 1/2 pound lean ground beef (optional)
• 2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 1 box whole-wheat spaghetti

Directions

1. Rinse lentils, until water runs clear.
2. Place in a large pot with 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to med-low and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. If using, brown ground beef in a large skillet.
4. Meanwhile, cook spaghetti as per package directions. Once cooke, drain, and set aside.
5. Combine cooked lentils, ground beef, tomato sauce, red pepper flakes and red wine. Let simmer atleast 5 minutes.
6. Serve spaghetti topped with tomato and lentil sauce, and parmesan cheese if desired.

It’s still spaghetti and tomato sauce – bulked up with lentils.

Usually deep-fried, calorie and fat-filled and greasy, Taquitos can be found in the frozen food aisle and 7-11. Those neon lights aren’t exactly flashing ‘healthy’.

But taquitos are fun.  Like a burrito, but minature. This version cuts the fat and calories by replacing the ingredients with real, whole foods – but keeps all the flavour, and lots of spice!

The star of these taquitos are these Sprouted Corn Tortillas made by Food For Life. I found these at Superstore, so I’m sure they are easy to find in most grocery stores – and at $3 for 12, they don’t break the bank! The ingredients are so simple: Organic Sprouted Corn, Filtered Water, Sea Salt, Lime.  2 tortillas clock in at: 120 calories/2g fat/3g fiber/3g protein.

Eat Clean Taquitos

Ingredients

• 12 corn tortillas
• 1.5 cups (1 can) black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1.5 cups (1 can) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1-2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup reduced fat cheddar, shredded
• canola or olive oil spray

Directions

1. If using frozen, thaw tortillas. 
2. In a food processor, combine pinto beans, half black beans, spices and oil. Process until smooth.
3. Combine mixture with remaining black beans and cheese.
4. Microwave tortillas, 1 or 2 at a time, for 10 seconds, until soft.
5. Place approximately 1/3 cup bean/cheese mixture in the center of each tortilla. Roll into a cylinder.
6. Place seam-side down onto baking sheet, sprayed with non-stick spray.
7. Repeat steps 4-6 for all tortillas.
8. Spray tops of taquitos with canola or olive oil spray. (Alternatively, use a pastry brush, and brush about 1 tsp of oil over the taquitos)
9. Bake at 400* for 10 minutes, or until crisp.

Serve with as much hot sauce as you can handle, and with sour cream, salsa or guacamole to dip in. Enjoy!

*********

The winner of the Nature’s Path Giveaway is:

#30, Valerie! Congratulations

Over the past few weeks, I’ve read variations of the following on different popular food blogs:

• “don’t worry, I didn’t eat that butter”
• “i have no control over nachos”
• “i ate way too many cookies”
• “i didn’t want to eat any vegetables with dinner, but added them for the blog”
• “i won’t go out to dinner without reviewing the menu, and planning ahead of time”

and my personal favourite: “i’m never going to calorie count again. i want to listen to my body, not diet and not have to be accountable. but i’m going to take pictures of everything i eat”

(Image: Blueberry Topped Stuffed French Toast)

Don’t get me wrong – I enjoy reading food blogs. I love discovering new ideas for workouts, snacks, meals and new products to try.

But for some (and it was for me) posting everything you eat can be a slippery slope – describing each meal, and justifying your choices to an audience can add a lot of pressure, and the need to seem healthy, all the time.

For me, I like posting select meals and snacks that I’ve tried and enjoyed – I feel like this lets me be creative with Eat Clean Live Green, but no feelings of guilt if I eat 2 bowls of ice cream, or not enough vegetables in one day.

I haven’t been able to get one line, from one popular blog out of my head for a few days now: “i didn’t eat that butter”. It’s not right or wrong for that blogger to have eaten the butter, but it really left an impression on me, as if it would have been “bad” to eat the butter, and it was “good” to not eat it.

Sometimes I just want to shout – on the internet – to stop stressing about food. Knowing that these bloggers have in general, very healthy lifestyle habits (regular exercise, lots of whole grains, fruits and vegetables) a little butter won’t hurt you. Neither will an extra cookie.

It doesn’t even have to be justified as a splurge. It’s just life.

What do you think – do you post your all of your daily eats on a blog? Do you feel pressure to eat healthier because of it?

I’ve recently started using dried beans instead of canned – it’s cheaper, tastes better, and no crazy amounts of sodium to worry about. And I promise – it’s really easy!

I resisted using dried for a long time – all the instructions I could find to soak/cook dried beans were confusing, and when I tried to cook them, the beans ended up still crunchy, and it felt like it took a really long time.

But the truth is, cooking dry beans is easy – it does take some time, but it’s mindless cooking. 1 cup of dried beans will result in 2.5 cups of cooked beans – to minimize preparation time, I make a large batch at once, and freeze in meal-sized portions (1 can of beans = 1.5 cups cooked beans).

Soaking Dried Beans

1. Rinse dry beans, to remove any dust or small particles.
2. Place beans in a large bowl with a lid – cover with water, so that 1-2″ of water sits on top of the beans.
3. Cover with lid, let sit at room temperature for atleast 8 hours.
4. Drain, and rinse beans.
5. In a large pot, place soaked beans and again cover with water, so that 1-2″ of water sits on top of the beans.
6. Bring to a boil – do not add salt.
7. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer (med-low heat).
8. Let beans simmer 1-1.5 hours, stirring every 20 minutes or so. If beans absorb all water, add more, again to cover.

How do you know once your beans are cooked? Taste them! If they’re still crunchy – keep cooking. I find I need the full 1.5 hours to get beans cooked to my liking.

If you’ve never cooked beans from dry before, you’ll be surprised how much more flavour they have than canned! These plain beans could be eaten alone as a snack

Cooked beans can be stored in the fridge for about 1 week, or frozen for 3-4 months.

I often buy Nature’s Path products – my cupboard often contains their Heritage Grains cereal, and the puffed millet I use to make granola bars is Nature’s Path brand. I’ve used their waffles to make waffle breakfast sandwiches,and I often use their granola on top of yogurt.

Why am I a Nature’s Path fan? All of their products are organic, and the company is focused on sustainability. They keep making their boxes smaller – without changing the amount of cereal inside. Less packaging = better for the environment. In addition to all this, Nature’s Path products aren’t expensive. Their products cost maybe $1 more than a non-organic, non-sustainable brand. 

So, when Nature’s Path contacted me to see if I would like to review some of their new Maple products – I happily agreed. My favourite was the Crunchy Maple Sunrise cereal.

It combines corn, quinoa, flax seeds and maple syrup, and tastes amazing. It’s sweet – I more often ate this as a snack than breakfast – and has a very happy and satisfying crunch. I will definitely be buying this cereal again.

I also really liked the MMMaple Pecan Granola bars. Again, these were very sweet – they felt like a candy bar to me (and 150 calories for a candy bar is a pretty good deal!). I recommend these as a sweet treat, as opposed to a filling snack. 

I was also sent the Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch Cereal. I didn’t really know what to think of this cereal – it had comparable calories/fat to a granola per serving, but felt/looked/tasted like a flaked cereal. It tasted ok – not as much maple flavour as the granola bar or Sunrise cereal – but was certainly crunchy. I used it as granola over yogurt, but as it didn’t have that crispy-oat-nut feel of real granola, I don’t think I’d buy this cereal again.

Overall, I really enjoyed the Maple products from Nature’s Path. I’ll definitely keep purchasing their products on my own; I really feel that Nature’s Path is actively concerned with sustainability and they produce a high quality product for a reasonable price. In addition, while all of these products I reviewed are fairly sweet, they have many products that are much less sweetened (the Heritage Grains are my favourite) and very clean eating friendly.

Nature’s Path gets an enthusiastic two thumbs up from Eat Clean Live Green!

The Giveaway:

One  Eat Clean Live Green reader will win a package of the same products I reviewed:

•  Crunchy Maple Sunrise Cereal
• MMMaple Pecan Granola Bars
• Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch Cereal

To enter: Leave a comment with your favourite Nature’s Path product (or one you’d like to try!)

No tweeting/linking/telling your friends required. But it is always greatly appreciated!

Giveaway will end Thursday April 8 at 10 pm MST. Open to Canadian/US shipping addresses only.

Spinach in a smoothie. Genuis idea? Or just plain weird? If you’ve tried it, you love it. If you’ve never heard of it, you think I just said something really crazy – spinach in a smoothie. Maybe you’ve heard the phrase, “Green Monster” and have absolutely no idea what that is. I don’t know who came up with the idea – Dr. Oz has his green drink, Eat Drink and Be Vegan has a recipe to Drink Your Greens, and Oh She Glows loves her Green Monsters – but blending greens into smoothies isn’t anywhere near as crazy as it sounds. 

Seriously – green smoothies. You can’t taste the spinach. But you do get lots of fruit + vegetable servings, a total boost of energy, and a refreshing drink, all in one.

Green Smoothie Guide

What’s in it? The basic:

• 1 cup spinach
• 1 cup milk 
• 1 frozen banana

Couldn’t be easier! Blend and serve. Try one out – I promise, you can’t taste the spinach – it adds a bit of a ‘refreshing’ feel – but all you will seriously taste is banana.

Want to get a little more adventurous? Increase the amount of spinach you’re using. go crazy! Adding ‘colour neutral’ fruit, like pineapple, orange or peaches will change the flavour, without making the appearance anything other than that pretty, if a little off-setting, bright green.

Tried it, love it? Go for it – add frozen berries, juice or cocoa – it won’t be pretty any more, but looks aren’t everything! You can make any of your favourite smoothies with greens

Really like your veggies? Sub spinach for kale, add other green veggies like cucumber or celery! In this particular ball game, I make no claims as to whether or not you can taste these veggies. It’s more of a choose-your-own-adventure story.

The possiblities are endless. Some of my favourites to add to a Green Smoothie are (mix + match!):

• coconut milk
• flax seed
• vanilla protein powder 
• pineapple + coconut extract
• apples
• peaches
• cacao nibs or cocoa powder
• frozen raspberries
• rolled (uncooked) oats
• hemp seeds
• nut butter
• almond milk
• coconut flakes
• carrots
• honey

 If you don’t try a green smoothie, you’ll wonder what it tastes like. Try one – you’ll love it!  And if you don’t like it – at least you’ll know

What is your favourite smoothie add-in? 

I’m looking forward to hearing your favourites – I’m always up for trying something new!

There are so many eating ‘rules’ we think we need to adhere to, whether we consciously think about them or not, and especially when we’re trying to eat healthy.

As far as I’m concerned, there is one clean eating guideline: avoid processed foods. Choose whole foods whenever possible. Avoid ingredients you can’t pronounce. This isn’t a rule, it’s a goal.

That’s it. That’s clean eating. There are no more rules. The following ‘clean eating rules’ are no longer acknowledged by me. I Quit.

Eat 5 or 6 small meals a day, 2 or 3 hours apart. I don’t like doing this; I’m always counting down the time until my next meal. I prefer to listen to my body’s hunger signals, and my body likes 3 meals, and 2 snacks a day

Combine lean protein and complex carbs at every meal. In most cases, this is a very balanced and filling approach. But it’s not required at every meal (or snack). A bowl of oatmeal with nut butter (neither oats or nut butter have any significant amount of protein) is extremely filling and satisfying.

Drink Your Coffee Black. I like milk in my coffee, and 2 tablespoons of skim or 2% milk will not make a difference.

Egg Whites Only, and Lots of Them. There is no need to be afraid of an egg yolk! The yolks contain almost as much protein as the white, and lots of vitamins and minerals, including vitamin A, D, E and K (which are fat soluble – you need the fat from the yolk to absorb these!), zinc, calcium and folate. If  egg whites are natures ‘perfect protein’ we’re not understanding nature: an egg comes with two parts.  Not to mention, the yolk has all the flavour. Do we really need 3-4 egg whites every day? No. I much prefer 1 or 2 eggs, a few times a week. 

Sub Ground Beef for Ground Chicken or Turkey. Sure, if you don’t like beef. But fat/calorie wise, extra-lean or lean ground beef is still an excellent option. 

Skip the cheese and butter. Research is now finding that saturated fat is not as bad as we’ve always thought it is – it’s actually a necessary fat. I’m not suggesting we start deep-frying grilled cheese sandwiches in butter, but there is no need to avoid saturated fats. Switch to 1% milk, use a little butter when you’re cooking, and go ahead – enjoy a burger with cheese on top. 

The above are clean eating rules as presented in The Eat Clean Diet, by Tosca Reno. Good in principle, but not requirements. 

Are there any eating rules you want to quit?

I love making veggie burgers myself: they’re so easy, so good for you, so cheap, and so tasty.

They’re also a great way to use up leftovers! I had half a sweet potato hanging out in the fridge with some celery, and some black beans bubbling away on the stove (I’ve started cooking dried beans – so much cheaper than canned!)

All I did was combine those vegetables with some spices, and blend away. I blended way past combining, into a ’smooth criminal’ black bean and sweet potato puree. The result was a light, yet filling and wonderfully crisp burger, with bites of spice to surprise you.

Smooth Criminal Black Bean and Sweet Potato Veggie Burgers

adapted from my Very Vegetable Veggie Burgers

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cooked black beans
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup steamed sweet potato
• 1 t chili powder
• 1/2 t cumin
• 1/4 t sea salt
• 1 T canola oil
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 T flax meal
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F
2. Place sweet potato, and 2 tbsp water into a food processor. Blend until a smooth puree is formed.
3. Add all other ingredients except the seeds and flour into food processor. Process until mixture is blended. (Optional: keep blending until mixture is completely smooth, obtaining ’smooth criminal’ status)
4. Transfer vegetable mixture to a large bowl. Add seeds and stir to mix .
5. Add the flour in ~1/4 cup increments, stirring well until blended.
6. Using a 1/4 cup measure, drop burger mixture onto a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Use a spatula to flatten out to ~1/2″ thickness.
7. Bake for 15 mins at 375F, flip and bake for another 5-10 minutes.

Makes 6 large burgers. Store in the fridge or freezer.

Each burger is approximately 165 filling calories.

Served with melted cheddar cheese, on top of spring mix and ezekiel bread. The burger was excellent: sweet (potato) and spicy (chili powder) with some excellent black bean filling-ness.

and go ahead, sing along while you make them. annie you ok? you ok annie?  you’ve been hit by a smooth criminal.