Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

I love balsamic vinegar, as does the rest of my household. In fact, I just bought a fresh bottle from a local wine maker in Barrie last month and have been roasting my vegetables with it ever since. That's one of my favourite ways to use it. It adds so much flavour! They make their own and sell it at a very good price. This stuff is gold!

It's such a versatile ingredient and I love using it to make all kinds of salad dressings and vinaigrette's. It's also a great addition to warm toasty sandwiches. I have yet to be adventurous enough to try it on ice cream. Apparently it's to die for, but for now I think I'm just going to stick to making salad dressings and marinades with it. I bet it would be great in a reduction! Hmm, me thinks I'll have to come up with something. . .

Balsamic vinaigrette isn't very hard to make; all you have to do is mix some balsamic vinegar with olive oil right?

Well sort of, but not really. It's not set in stone, but it's important remember to use a 3 to 1 ratio of oil to vinegar. This is the sweet spot when it comes to making a salad dressing. Often people will use too much vinegar and it comes out tasting harsh or tart. If you use this ratio as a general guide next time you make a dressing then you'll never need a recipe again. And of course it's important to let your taste buds be the judge. Only you know what you like. Take a taste test by dipping a small leaf of lettuce in and give a try!

Now, Let's face it, store bought salad dressings can be pretty atrocious when it comes to long lists of strange ingredients that you can't pronounce. This vinaigrette will beat any store bought version hands down.

Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette (makes approx. 1 cup)

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp whole-grain Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method:

1. To make the dressing combine the mustard and vinegar in a large mixing bowl or blender. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking to emulsify. Whisk in the maple syrup and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
2. Store in a jar with a lid or air tight container and keep refrigerated.

*Make sure your olive oil is at room temperature. If it is cold it will be more difficult to emulsify with  the  vinegar.

*If you let the dressing sit for an hour or so and then refrigerate, the flavours will meld together better.

I can't wait until apples are in-season and then I can start adding them to my salads along with this vinaigrette. Maybe some soft crumbled goat cheese and dried Bala cranberries too!

I'm getting ahead of myself. I shouldn't start wishing for fall when summer only just started, even though it's my favourite time of year.

Fall is far too short and winter is way too long. I should just buy an island with a small boat somewhere tropical and live there during winter.

Problem solved!

7 Ways to Stay Healthy While Traveling & Healthy Snacks on the Go

It's that time of year again. The kids are out of school, the weather is gorgeous and you're ready to pack up and take a vacation. I can hear the beach calling my name right now.

Costa Rica anyone?

This is a picture from the boat of the sunset cruise in Tamarindo when I went a few years ago.

I wish I was there right now!

Maybe next year. But, when you do set off on vacation especially when its a road trip, how do you continue to eat healthy and stick to your clean diet? I know I certainly don't stop at road side McDonald's among other gross fast food stops and eat greasy food, but unfortunately, most of the time that's all there is to be found. It seem's like no one is looking out for the mindful eater. Let's face it, fast-food restaurants are called fast-food for a reason, the food is almost always full of bad fats, high levels of sodium,preservatives, artificial flavours, and empty calories -and let's not forget about portion distortion. Even their "healthy options" aren't exactly nourishing.

That's why I'd like to share with you today my favourite healthy travel tips and tricks and also some great snacks that are portable and easy to take with you while you're on the go.

With a little bit of effort and planning you'll be on your way.

Tips and Tricks to Stay Healthy While Traveling:

• Start your day by eating breakfast and avoid excess sugar. This will get your metabolism going first thing.
• Drink plenty of water.  I can't underestimate the importance of this one. It keeps you hydrated, keeps your body running smoothly and also helps to detox.
• Pack a cooler with healhty food before you leave home. 
• Find the local grocery stores or farmers markets. Summer is a great time to hit up the local farmers markets and almost every community has one. You can pick up fresh fruits and pre-cut veggies, and stock-up your hotel mini bar with them.
• Choose healthy options while dining out. Being on vacation doesn't mean you have to splurge at every meal. Eat like you would if you were enjoying a meal at home. Enjoy your time with the people you are dining with.
• Incorporate some fun activities for exercise. Take walks on the beach with your family as a way to start or end the day, find bike or hiking trails, explore the area by foot. The list can be endless!
• Enjoy and indulge in a treat. Everyone loves a good ice cream, and eating out at restaurants is all part of the fun of going on vacation so don't beat yourself up about it, just be mindful and keep a balance. Have something you really want and enjoy every bite. Have fun and relax, you will get back to your regular clean eating when you get home.

Healthy Snacks For the Car:

• Fresh-cut veggies. Remember that cooler I told you to pack, well this is where it comes in. Fresh cut veggies are great portable snacks when they're cut into small bites. Remember the ice packs to help keep them fresh.
• Sandwiches made with baked or grilled chicken breast and mustard or natural peanut butter/ almond butter and homemade chia jam or sliced bananas. These can be cut into triangles for snacking.
• All Natural Nut Butters.
• Individual containers of oats. All you have to do is add a cup of hot water cover it back over and wait 5-10 minutes and viola, oatmeal on-the-go. Add some fresh fruit and nut butter or protein powder.
• Whole grain crackers or tortilla chips. 
• Homemade humus, guacamole, or salsa. All great condiments that are clean eating.
• Low-fat mozzarella string cheese. A great source of calcium and protein.
• Mini yogurts. Also a great source of calcium and protein.
• Hard boiled eggs. The perfect portable protein
• Fresh fruit. Apples, bananas, pears, peaches, grapes, oranges, apricots, cherries, berries of all kind are the perfect hand sized portable snack.
• Individual bags of mixed dried fruit and nuts. Great sources of healthy fats and fiber, and even protein. Almonds, walnuts, brazil nuts, raisins, dried apricots, cranberries, dates. You can even add some healthy dark chocolate chips and make it a real trail mix!
• Lara Bars. These are a little high in sugars but the ingredients are all real foods. No preservatives.
• Vega also has some great on the go products that I sometimes buy like their Vibrancy Bars, energizing smoothie snack packs (individually packaged - all you have to do is and it to juice or water), and their savi seed are a great healthy superfood snack rich in nutrients. I really like Vega because they base all their products on real whole foods and use no strange ingriendents. They are also completely Vegan. If you're interested in finding out more about them, their web site is full of info.

Here are a couple of other great snack recipes that you can make at home: