Dec 31, 2012

Fabulous New Year's Looks and More Yummy Breakfast Foods!

First, Happy New Year's Eve!

Obviously half the fun of New Year's Eve parties (except for that whole shiny ball dropping out of the sky thing) is checking out everyone's sweet threads.


You know I'll be watching and judging.

 Here are some fabulous looks that I'm hoping to see tonight.

Glam


Glam


Forever Unique short cocktail dress
$445 - vanmildert.com


Cashmere coat
etsy.com


Oasis glitter handbag
$48 - oasis-stores.com




Shiny


Glam


Dolce Gabbana long sleeve shirt
$1,265 - flannelsfashion.com


Dice Kayek metallic pleated skirt
$655 - farfetch.com


Kelsi Dagger red shoes
fashion.ebay.com


Bcbg max azria
bcbg.com


Bride earrings
etsy.com


Lip makeup
etsy.com



Formal


Fab


Giuseppe Zanotti wedge sandals
lindelepalais.com


Freshwater pearl stud earrings
$800 - astleyclarke.com


Aubin Wills rhinestone jewelry
$20 - aubinandwills.com


Tarte mascara
tartecosmetics.com



Just look fly, y'all!

On the theme of healthy breakfasts, and for everyone who's New Year's Resolution is to eat breakfast regularly, here are some more delicious, nutritious foods that will make that resolution the most fun resolution you've ever kept!


MoonShadows Farm all natural gourmet jams are a great option to top your toast with or flavor a cup of lain yogurt with. All of the jams are homemade in small batches, using lots of fresh fruit and just real cane sugar - no high fructose corn syrup, preservatives, dyes, or anything else that you don't want in your healthy breakfast! Some of the jams are even sweetened with just fruit juices!

The jams are all very fruity and the consistency is just right. I like my jams a little pulpier than the norm, so I would have preferred a bit more fruit flesh, but the flavor in all of them is great.

The jars are really big, so you're getting a lot of jam for your $6.50. It's actually a quite good deal, especially for a homemade jam! I was really surprised by how large the jars are - they're 20oz each, much larger than the standard 12oz jar of jam!

My favorite of the three flavors was probably the strawberry. It's bursting with fresh strawberry flavor, almost as though you're eating breakfast on a farm in the peak of summer!


I liked that they kept some of the seeds in the jams, but there aren't too many. So for those who aren't particularly enamored of seeds in their jam, these are still very enjoyable.


The black raspberry was also very tasty, with a very intense dark raspberry flavor, and the peach is really good on cashew butter toast. Reallllly good.

Or if you're more of an oatmeal or cereal than bread person at breakfast, topping your bowl with some all natural red raspberry syrup will liven that breakfast right up!



It's super fruity and delicious, with less sugar than some comparable brands. It also doesn't have any high fructose corn syrup, unlike many of the big name syrups, so it's something you can feel good about pouring over your flakes or oatmeal. Or flavoring some plain yogurt with!

Also, the syrup has some consistency to it - it's not too watery or liquid-y. There's no pulp or seeds (it's a syrup, not a jam) but it's almost close to a thinner jelly in consistency.

MoonShadows Farm fruit preserves are delicious!

Do you prefer bread or cereal for breakfast?

What's your favorite breakfast?

What's your favorite spread for bread?

Don't forget to enter my LUNA Protein Giveaway to win 24 yummy bars!

Dec 30, 2012

Starting the Day Off Right!

As most of us are thinking about the blessings of the past year and what we resolve to do differently (or the same!) next year, I'd like to put breakfast on the table as a suggestion.

Pardon the pun.

Anyway, resolving to eat breakfast regularly next year is a great resolution! Breakfast eaters have been shown in a number of studies to be healthier, more efficient workers, and (in my personal experience, though I'm not sure about studies) happier. I'm sure a lot less of a grouch when I've had a good breakfast!



Grandy Oats foods are organic and crafted in small batches of only the best, most nutritious ingredients - like whole oats, almonds, sunflower seeds, dried fruits, and honey! There are a bunch of different varieties of granola and convenient on-the-go oatmeal cups to keep fun and variety in your breakfasts.

And they make trail mix and nut snacks as well! Like these delicious toasted coconut almonds!


They're sweet (I could even stand to have them be just a touch less sweet) and very coconut-ty. They're like crunchy candy, or a healthier nut brittle!

The granolas are my favorite, though, and even just a bit (as a mix-in with other cereals or a yogurt topping) adds that extra something to breakfast! 

I really liked that the chocolate almond crisp granola had a good chocolate flavor, but the chocolate didn't overwhelm the almond flavor. You get both of the flavors in just about equal parts!



An all of the granolas are nice and crisp and sweet, not at all stale or soft.

The cranberry chew granola, however, was my favorite of the granolas. After all, I love dried cranberries - and the ones in this granola are plump and juicy and sweet-tart!



The addition of unsulphured dried apples was a nice touch and I liked that they used orange juice to sweeten the granola!

The cashew raisin granola, too, had a nice blend of nuts, seeds, and dried fruits!


This isn't a big-clumps-and-clusters granola (none of the Grandy Oats ones  that I tried are), but they are nice and crisp and flavorful.


If it's past the breakfast hour (or you're just treating yourself to an extra special breakfast) these granolas make an excellent topping for ice cream!

The convenient oatmeal-to-go cups are great for breakfast or convenient snacking. You can add hot milk or water, but I prefer just adding cold (or room temperature) milk or yogurt (not greek, just regular yogurt). I love that they're very generous with the dried fruits!


Eating a nutritious breakfast isn't a tough resolution to stick to when it's this delicious. Enjoy getting your whole grains in the New Year! It's a resolution you'll look forward to keeping each and every morning :)

To make it even easier to do, Grandy Oats is offering $5 off web orders of $50+ for LLE readers with the coupon code GOLLE5. As always, all orders of $35+ have free shipping!

Do you do New Year's Resolutions?

Have you tried Grandy Oats products?

What's your favorite way to eat granola?


Don't forget to enter my LUNA Protein Giveaway to win 24 yummy bars!

Dec 29, 2012

Snarky Stylist and PUR Gum: A Review

I've shared some of my favorite things with you guys in my superlatives review, but the fact is that you just won't (and probably can't, if you're being 100% honest) like everything that you're sent to review, even when the product has some great selling points.

PUR gum is an example of that for me.


I love gum (and it's definitely a habit of mine) but I don't love the artificial sweeteners in it and have always felt a bit odd about avoiding artificial sweeteners in the rest of my diet, but taking in who-knows-how-much through gum every day. PUR gum sounded like a great alternative, since it's sweetened with just natural xylitol and none of that going-to-give-you-cancer ickiness.

Unfortunately, the reality of PUR gum was a bit of a let-down.


There are four flavors of PUR gum - pomegranate mint, wintergreen, peppermint, and spearmint. All four taste great, with the minty-fruity combo of the pomegranate mint as my favorite.

Two pieces is a serving and it's vegan, non-GMO, aspartame-free, and diabetic-friendly. Health wise, it's pretty great for gum!



But the problem with the gum is that the taste just doesn't last. I think a piece of gum lasted about two minutes before it started losing its flavor! Within five minutes you may as well spit it out. To get in an average length amount of active gum chewing time, you'd pretty much have to chew through a whole pack - no bueno.



Maybe I've been spoiled by my long-lasting gum standards, but PUR gum just isn't quite there for me yet. It's tasty (at first), but until they can make a serving last at least ten minutes (better yet, at least fifteen) I'm going to have to pass.

Anyway, it's Snarky Stylist time!

Christmas is over (boo!) but here's a little flashback for those of us who miss it already.



As always, Selena looks amazing here. I like how she went all-white with her outfit, but added red shoes. If you're out and about in a similar outfit, a matching red handbag would be quite cute!

I like this red Miu Miu bag:
It's nice and big, perfect for fitting a cell phone, wallet, lip gloss, a drink, a book, and plenty of snacks - all the essentials!

But since great fashion is about taking risks, it's only natural that even the most stylish of us miss the mark now and again. Here's a look I'm not loving:


The shoes are boxy and awful (they look like they came straight out of a poorly drawn Cartoon Network daily), the socks would best be left for her tennis shoe days, and the jacket has less shape than a burlap sack. I love Rihanna as much as everyone else, but this is definitely bad fashion happening to good people.

It's not a lost cause, though! The skirt is adorable and her shirt, necklace, and bracelet aren't bad either. The red cropped cut is not only festive but tres chic and her makeup is absolutely glowing! If she traded the clunker shoes and socks for these Stuart Weitzman Partna booties -

- and this jacket -


- she'd still have her edgy rocker look, but it would work. Plus, the Studded Moto Jacket from Pynk Nylon is only $72, which I bet is less than Rihanna paid for that hideodorous gray thing.

For those of you who, like me, love Disney, you've probably already fallen in love with Debby Ryan. I know that she's definitely one of my new favorite actresses!

And here's one more reason to love her:


I wouldn't change a thing! She looks amazing and super classy, but without edging into granny.

I love the floaty blouse with the high waisted skirt and the hi-lo effect strikes the right balance between showing off her legs and keeping a little mystery. Way to go!

How long do you like to chew a piece of gum?

Have you tried PUR gum?

Thoughts about the celeb looks? I want to hear what the Snarky Stylist in you says!

Don't forget to enter my LUNA Protein Giveaway to win 24 yummy bars!

Dec 28, 2012

Friday Foodie Finds #26

Since I'm on vacation (my first time ever to a tropical island!) this week's Friday Foodie Finds is island cuisine themed. Enjoy!



Oualie Beach Resort Hotel's Guava Smoothie

Guava Smoothie Recipe


Katrice's Jamaican Bammy


Georgia's Mango Chutney


Erin's Vegan Johnnycakes (V)

Johnnycakes

There's plenty more of all of that (though my Johnnycakes probably won't be whole grain and vegan, like Erin's yummy recipe) in my near future!

I hope that, wherever you are, your days are filled with good food shared in good company. (Continued) Happy Holidays!

What's your favorite ethnic cuisine?

Plantains - love 'em or hate 'em?

What's the best vacation you've ever been on?

Don't forget to enter my LUNA Protein Giveaway to win 24 yummy bars!

Dec 27, 2012

Stress-Free Group Travel and The (great) Good Bean is Great!

If any of you got a trip for Christmas, there's probably some group travel in your future. Group travel can be a lot of fun, but it can also be stressful. It's all about how you approach it!

Here are some of my best tips for stress-free group travel:

Stick together.
It's no fun racing through a terminal trying to find those missing members of your travel party five minutes before boarding closes. I know the gift shops are tempting, but just say no. Remember Home Alone 2? Lesson learned, guys.


Be prepared.
Travel is tougher for some people than others. Keep some gum, pain killers, and anti-motion sickness pills on hand, in case any of your travel mates are having a tough time dealing.

Keeping Hangry at bay.
Have plenty of snacks and take enough snack breaks, so that the divas don't come out! You'll be everyone's favorite travel partner if you pack enough to share :)


Snickers and Reese's are great choices now and then, but you'll want to keep the snack balance even by alternating with more healthful snacks. It's all about the balance!

Which brings me to the second part of the post - I recently got the chance to try The Good Bean snacks.


As soon as I heard about them, I was really excited to try their bars and crunchy chickpea snacks - they're great for anyone with nut allergies, because they're snacks and beans are all completely nut free. They get their crunch from protein and fiber rich beans, instead!

I tried the Chickpea snacks first - they're amazing.



Each bag has two servings and I tore into the Cracked Pepper bag first, as a topping on one of my yogurt messes. The Chickpea snacks were so tasty, however, that I ended up eating the second serving straight out of the bag!



They're super crunchy, just the right amount of spicy from the cracked pepper, and slightly sweet. They're a bit salty, but not too salty. They're satisfying, but not greasy - and they really provide the mouthfeel (and pretty close to the taste) of snacking on nuts! Yum!



The sweet cinnamon Chickpea snacks are a little sweeter and make a great granola alternative for those looking for a little extra protein :)

The sea salt ones are a nice simple flavor and would make a great topping for ice cream, too, if you don't just want to eat them plain!


But the smoky chili & lime have to be eaten plain. They're absolutely delicious, like the other three varieties, but also super flavorful. I really like the lime flavor, I think there's just the right amount!

The Fruit + No Nut bars are also super delicious. They basically taste like fruit and nut bars (think Kind bars) but the first ingredient is beans!



There are more ingredients in these bars than some others, but the stats are pretty good and they're a nice light snack bar with a good protein and nutrient punch.



The Chocolate Berry bar is my clear favorite of the three flavors, because I'm a real chocoholic! The chocolate is smooth and delicious, contrasting nicely with the crunchy beans - and the berry flavor complements it nicely,  but doesn't overwhelm the chocolate.



The Fruit & Seeds bar is a great trail mix type bar with a nice mix of dried fruits and extra crunch.

The apricot & coconut has great apricot flavor, but a little too much coconut for my tastes. I do like coconut a lot in certain places, but I'm not just a general big coconut fan and this combo just didn't do it for me - I would have liked the bar better with just apricot. But it's still a tasty bar that I'd snack on now and then! And, again, I love the crunchiness of these bars :)



So far, I've only seen these in Whole Foods stores. I hope they come to other grocery stores soon, too, because Whole Foods can be a little pricey!

But it's good stuff - all fair trade, non-GMO, and high fiber yumminess :)

Have you seen The Good Bean snacks?

Have you tried any of them?

What's your favorite snack bar of the moment?

Don't forget to enter my LUNA Protein Giveaway to win 24 yummy bars!

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