Sugar and Spice

Here are some of my favorite places and products:

One of my favorite bakeries in Providence is Seven Stars Bakery . They have wonderful sandwiches, coffees, scones and baguettes and many other wonderful goodies. There are a few locations in Rhode Island. Check out their website for the location closest to you.

I will often pick up a loaf of bread at Great Harvest Bread Company.  I love the honey whole wheat, and the High 5 Fiber breads.

Here are some products that we use quite often around the house:

Barney Butter is an amazing almond butter that I love!

Quaker Oats – I love having oatmeal for breakfast in the morning. It is so good for you, and it helps me get through the morning without hunger!

Agave Nectar is a great food discovery! I found this bottle at Whole Foods, and I use it when I want a sweetener, instead of sugar. Agave is organic, and has a lower glycemic index than honey – it also maintains its liquid form and never crystallizes!

We use flaxseed quite often. I will include it in my bowl of oatmeal, and in smoothies that we make in the summer.  Here are some of the benefits of flaxseed is thought to have:

• protect bone health
• protect against cancer
• protect against heart disease
• protect against diabetes

Non-fat Greek Yogurt: This stuff is amazing! There are lots of different brands out there, and different people have their favorites. Some of the widely available ones are: Chobani, Fage and Oikos. People often comment about the price of Greek Yogurt being more expensive than regular yogurt. I am not an expert in this area, but my guess is that this is due to the amount of yogurt it takes to make one container of Greek Yogurt. This yogurt is much thicker than your normal yogurt, and it takes more product to make. I love Greek Yogurt because of the amount of protein you get, with no fat and low calories. A container of Greek yogurt will keep me full for hours! You can also substitute sour cream with Greek yogurt for healthy recipes for dips, salad dressings, etc.

Multi-vitamin and calcium: I take one multi-vitamin a day, usually at bedtime. I usually take a vitamin made for women so that it will have more vitamin D and calcium. I also eat Adora calcium suppliments – usually one a day (although I have been known to forget them!) Adora is a fun way (a chocolate way!) to get more calcium into your diet!