An anti-inflammatory, from-scratch, amplified hot chocolate! What could be better at this time of year? As I struggle to stay warm amidst these bitterly-cold temps here in #YYC, a from-scratch hot elixir is never a bad idea! Why a homemade hot chocolate? There is a distinguishable difference between raw cacao powder and refined cocoa powder, the latter being what we find in store-bought hot chocolate mixes (amidst other undesirable ingredients that have no business being in t

Anything you buy in a coffee shop can be replicated at home, saving you $5-$7 dollars a pop and supporting the building up of a Culinary Nutrition-focused pantry of goods! Here is my take on a homemade, dairy-free 'London Fog'! (Dairy-Free) London Fog Yield: 1 serving (about 1.5 cups) Ingredients: 1.5 cups plain/unsweetened almond milk (or homemade almond milk!) 1 tbsp. collagen powder/peptides 2 tsp. coconut butter 1/2 tsp. alcohol-free vanilla extract 1/2 tsp. raw, unpas

I'm a HUGE fan of a high-quality protein and fat-powered breakfast that can be prepared in just a few minutes the night prior to enjoying it! Cue the "Overnight Oats"! With so many ingredient combinations and flavour profiles available as options, Overnight Oats make for a versatile and reliable breakfast that keeps me satiated leading up to lunch! When we're considering how to incorporate high-quality protein into our breakfast, we can consider relying on: Raw nuts and/or se

Rainy Saturdays call for new recipe experimentation! It was definitely time to make some homemade, organic coconut kefir once again, and change up the flavour profile once again! You can't go wrong with chocolate! Coconut milk-based kefir is a non-dairy alternative to dairy kefir - a fermented milk-based beverage that, like other homemade ferments, is very easy and economical to make at home! A bit thicker in consistency than milk, it mimics a yogurt-like beverage. It may be

In needing to change up my smoothie game as of recent, and given that I found myself staring at an almost-full container of Moringa sitting on my counter(!), it was time to pick up that Moringa and experiment with it! It is a pretty new ingredient to me, in terms of incorporating it into my day-to-day, so I'm excited to rely on it more often in the near future! Moringa, from the Moringa oleifera tree native to northern India, is highly valued for both its nutritional properti

Homemade chocolate is a MUST! Super easy. Economical. Guilt-free pleasure! Given the key ingredients required for homemade chocolate are items that constitute a culinary nutrition pantry (i.e. organic, virgin coconut oil, raw cacao powder, high-quality sweeteners and sea salt), if you're feeling the need for some high-quality dark chocolate and don't feel like running out to your local health food store to get some, I've got you covered! The Recipe! Yield: ~16-20 pieces (dep

ELIXIRS are my jam! ESPECIALLY during the chilliest months of the year! Who doesn't love a flavourful and cozy hot beverage when it's cold and snowy outdoors?! If it can be a health-promoting, nutrient-packed and immune-supporting beverage, EVEN BETTER! I consider an elixir, in the context of culinary nutrition, to be a strategically-crafted beverage (enjoyed hot, or chilled) that is nutrient-dense and therapeutic in nature. Each of the strategically-chosen ingredients con

In visiting Australia for the first time, along with its stunning, geographical beauty, ultra-friendly people and unforgettable food scene, I couldn't wait to learn about the foods indigenous to this country! Between reading several articles and websites and coming across various products, I finally purchased a handful of herbs and spices. These were found at the Kingston Night Market from vendor Bent Shed Produce, while adventuring around Canberra, Australian Capital Terri

A chocolate-flavoured smoothie is my jam, so any smoothie with raw cacao as an ingredient is calling my name! Given the many nutritional benefits of raw cacao (see nutritional highlights below), it allows for guilt-free intake of this smoothie, whether it be for breakfast, as a snack, or as pre- or post-exercise fuel. As a balanced recipe containing complex carbohydrates (i.e. banana), a high-quality source of protein (i.e. hemp seeds and fermented protein powder) and a high-

An elixir is a concoction of superfoods that requires just minutes to create! It often has a base consisting of a hot, herbal tea and is blended to perfection in a high-speed blender, or simmered to perfection on stovetop. Regardless, I put my culinary nutrition pantry to the test and experimented with what would ultimately become my go-to (natural) coffee-flavoured beverage, boycotting the price, sugar, syrups and coffee cup waste you inevitably encounter at your local coffe

With the warmest months of the year in FULL FORCE (let alone vibrant and bustling farmers' markets...can you sense my excitement?!), farm-fresh greens, including the pea shoots shown below, are at my fingertips! In looking to add new types of greens to my day-to-day meals, pea shoots seemed like an intriguing choice! They’re versatile, as they can be used in smoothies (see sample recipe below), as part of your salads, in sandwiches/wraps and in main dishes (i.e. stir fry, pad

Bee Pollen. A superfood like no other! I had been curious about working with this ingredient for some time, and now that I have it in my hands (and in my pantry!), there’s no way I’ll ever be without! Regarded as a holistic remedy, bee pollen, the food of a young bee, astonishingly possesses nearly all of the nutrients required by the human body[i]. As such, it is regarded as one of the most nourishing foods you can ingest[ii]. Bee pollen is highly rich in protein (about 40%

The Heavy Metal, Green Detox Smoothie is a smoothie like no other! While recently attending a weekend health and wellness retreat, I learned about the specific power of chlorella (a green algae that grows in fresh water sources and is traditionally used for both nutritional supplements and medicinal purposes) and cilantro, when paired together. Let's just consider them to be a "POWER COUPLE"! Whether you realize it or not, the human body is regularly exposed to heavy metals

Within the last year or so, I have learned all about elixirs, in the sense of hot or cold concoctions that bring together several superfoods in a powerful formula. Recently, I have also learned about the medicinal impact of mushrooms. More specifically, Chaga and Reishi varieties. My first exposure to mushroom tea was at the Whole Foods Expo in Toronto, ON in the Fall of 2014, where I first tasted a sample of this tea. While it was a very unique taste, a taste far from your