Found - Julian Bakery Granola

A patient brought in this Julian Bakery granola she found online. It meets our CBS nutritional guidelines with NO ADDED sugars/NO ADDED fats, and has quite a bit of protein thanks to egg white powder, chia and flax seeds. Pumpkin seeds not only add some protein but also iron. The texture is different from most granola, it is more cereal like then the toasted oats we are used to seeing but it is crunchy nonetheless. Definitely a good addition to yogurt or ricotta cheese. My only complaint is that I could taste monk fruit sweetener, but to those who are used to consuming monk fruit, stevia, splenda etc, the taste will not be as noticeable.

 Current price of the granola is $17.99 for a twin pack. Each bag contains approx 15 - 1/2 cup servings or $1.67/serving.

ENJOY!!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Shake, by Chef Joe

Chocolate, 100% Whey Isolate protein powder
2-3 tablespoons peanut butter*
2 cups skim milk**
1/2 cup silken tofu

1. Blend protein, milk, and peanut butter in blender until smooth. Add tofu and blend again. If shake is to thin, you can add more tofu and/or ice and blend more.

approx 100 grams protein for the entire recipe, to be sipped over the course of the day

*feel free to substitute almond butter, cashew butter or soynut butter as long as they don't have added sugars
**unsweetened soy milk or unsweetened almond milk are also good liquids to use in this recipe and will feel better to to people's GI systems who might be struggling with lactose post-operatively.

ENJOY!!

Food Trend: Extend Nutrition's SF Protein Bars

New brand of protein bars that I came across - Extend Nutrition. Initially created for diabetics these bars have roughly 4.5 grams of fat, 150 calories, 0 grams of sugar (about 8 grams of sugar alcohol) and 10 grams of protein. Click the link below to be redirected to their site!

Extend Nutrition Protein Bars

Cocotein - Protein Drink

A patient brought me in this protein drink to try that she is totally in love with. It is a nice alternative to all the 'dessert' flavors that protein drinks tend to come in, which cause a sweetness overload to the pallet. Coconut is not my most favorite flavor in the world and so I found this tolerable when diluted by 50% with water, otherwise the coconut completely  overwhelmed me, so for a coconut lover this is for you! I found the consistency also a little thick and almost sticky. If you are a looking for a refreshing beverage this is not it. (It should be noted, that I also find the texture of coconut water to be slightly 'sticky' as well, so if you like that you are looking at the same type of texture but just slightly thicker).

It is made with whey protein isolate, which is almost 100% available to your body for absorption and it is lactose free, gluten free and aspartame free (it is sweetened with sucralose or Splenda).

Cocotein can be found at the following places for the following approx prices:
Amazon: varies
Vitamin Shop: case of 12-16oz bottles $41
BodyBuilding.com: case of 12-16oz bottles $35
Luckyvitamin.com: 1 bottle $3
Vitamin Shoppe: 1 bottle $4.30

CHEERS!!

Looking for a new planner?

Because you're tired of having to charge your phone all the time to keep track of your life? Try this Wellness Planner from Moleskine. It's old fashion, so don't forget to buy a pen too!

Wellness Planner

Having trouble staying away from the cookies?

Try the 'Kitchen Safe'. A friend just sent this link over and I found it practical and amusing at the same time. Decide for yourself!

Kitchen Safe Website

Monk Fruit - the latest sweetener on the shelf

The latest sweetener reaching super market shelves is a native of Asia.


The Monk fruit contains a natural compound that is approximately 175 times sweeter then sugar called mogroside. This compound contains no calories and when extracted it looks similar to granulated sugar.

Monk fruit sweeteners have already made their way to store shelves but have not been widely picked up yet by chains like stevia has been.  You are guaranteed to see it more now that McNeil Labs (the makers of Splenda) have begun production of their version of monk fruit, called nectresse, which is being marketed as a competitor to Splenda (great timing in light of the allegations that Splenda causes leukemia aye?). If you are the person looking into the sugar caddy on a restaurant table and wondering what is in the ORANGE packet, that's the monk fruit sweetener - give it a try :)