Stay Cool & Win Big!

Win a cookbook &

Make up some refreshing poolside drinks this summer

I am so excited about my Cookbook giveaway!
This summer I am giving away a copy of RickiHeller's amazing cookbook Sweet Freedom. Ricki is a colleague of mine who has recently published an amazing cookbook full of sweet treats baked without any refined sugar! Using ingredients like maple syrup, agave nectar or pureed fruit, Ricki has compiled a great cookbook with gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free treats. To find out how to get ballots to win a copy click here!

Poolside drinks for the summer
Even though it has been a relatively cool summer, it is still important to stay hydrated in the summer. Click here to read my newsletter post from last summer where I covered to gamut of summer drinks; from iced caps to gatorade and everything in between...

Do you remember Freshie? According to Wikipedia it was the all-Canadian alternative to Kool-Aid. Well now that I am all grown up and a nutritionist, my summer drink menu has changed a little. My mom always made our Freshie and Kool-Aid with 1/2 the sugar required so I never really developed a taste for the super sweet drinks and have since preferred a tarty drink for summer (peanut gallery can pipe down!). Of course soft drinks, bottled iced tea and lemonade from concentrate are no match for real refreshing lemonade with it's tarty bite - and it's really easy to make. Just make up a batch of simple syrup to keep in your fridge so you can whip up a fresh lemonade in no time. In my constant effort to stay away from refined sugars, I have found it is easy to make a simple syrup from Agave Nectar or Honey.

Agave Nectar has a low glycemic index, which means that it does not cause your blood sugar to peak and crash, but it's still nice and sweet. It comes from the Agave Cactus, which is actually the same plant that produces tequila. I find that it has a fresher taste than honey. It can be found at most health food stores. To make a simple syrup combine equal parts of agave nectar and water (start with 1/2 C) and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes and then let cool. Keep it in a closed container in the fridge and use it to sweeten your beverages.

Honey is another alternative to refined sugar. We all know where honey comes from and it has nutritonal benefits. Honey contains riboflavin, vitman B6, iron and manganese. It also has antioxidants, it enhances energy and can heal wounds! To make a simple syrup combine 4 parts honey to 1 part water (try 1 C honey with 1/4 C water) and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 mintues and then let cool. Keep it in a closed container in the fridge and use it to sweeten your beverages. Note: Honey should not be given to children under 1 year of age.

Here are some recipes to try by the pool or lake this summer

Orange Lemonade
1 large navel orange
4 medium lemons
4 Cups of filtered water
1/4 - 1/2 C Agave Simple Syrup (directions above)
Ice or mineral water
Squeeze the juice from the orange and lemons into a pitcher. Add filtered water. Add 1/4 C agave simple syrup. Taste. You may want/need to add more agave syrup. Add it until you get the right sweetness. Serve with ice and/or add some mineral water to make it sparkly!

Blueberry Cucumber Cooler
1 C English Cucumber cut into large chunks (you don't have to peel it)
2 C filtered water
1 C fresh or frozen blueberries (frozen blueberries should be thawed)
1/4 - 1/2 C simple syrup (honey or agave)
2 C filtered or mineral water
Combine cucumber and 2 C water in a blender. Blend until well combined. Strain into a pitcher. Put blueberries in the bottom of a pitcher and 'muddle' them; smash with a spoon. Pour cucumber drink over blueberries and add simple syrup and 2 more cups of water. Add still water if you are putting it in the fridge, add mineral water if serving right away. Add more simple syrup if you think it needs to be sweeter

Agua Fresca - This is a classic Mexican drink and is the most simple of drinks to make. You can customize it depending on the freshness of the fruit available. Try any number of fresh summer fruit, peaches, blueberries, strawberries, cherries... enjoy!
4 C filtered water
2 C fresh fruit (mix different fruits or stick with just one)
1/4 C simple syrup (or more to taste)
Juice from 1/2 lemon or 1 lime
In a blender combine the water and fruit; puree until it is smooth. Strain into a pitcher. Stir in lemon or lime juice and the simple syrup. Garnish with a slice of fruit and serve!

Cool Summer Drinks

I sent this newsletter out last summer. I thought I would post it here so that it could be read again. There is lots of great information about what drinks to choose to keep you cool in the summer...

Cool Summer Drinks
It’s summer and we all know how important it is to drink plenty of fluids to stay cool. The important thing is to choose drinks that are healthy, tasty, nutritious and are not going to be an empty addition to our daily calorie intake. Many of the drinks advertised today are advertised as healthy (“It has antioxidants!”) when really they have more sugar than nutrition.

Coffee Drinks – I hope people are aware that the cool and creamy coffee drinks available at coffee shops are to be treated as a treat, not as a daily drink. Full of sugar, cream and flavouring these drinks have the same amount of fat and calories as a piece of cake and have no nutritional value. If you must, choose an Iced Americano – this is brewed espresso served over ice. You add the milk & sugar if you want, controlling your sugar intake. Remember Swiss-water processed decaf is best!

Iced Tea – Bottled Iced Tea and Iced Tea Mix drinks are full of sugar – read the label – if corn syrup, sugar, glucose or any other word ending in ‘ose’ are in the Top 5 ingredients there is more sugar than anything else, let alone antioxidants. This includes all bottled teas that are being promoted as healthier, such as Green Tea, White Tea, Raspberry Tea. Brew up your favourite flavour of tea, sweeten with a little honey and let it cool in the refrigerator. Carrying this in your own bottle also helps reduce the need to recycle one more bottle.

TIP! Look at the label: Find the grams of sugar – divide that number by four & you will get how many teaspoons of sugar are in that one drink. For example, one bottle of Lipton Green Tea with Citrus (20 oz.) has 52.5g of sugar. Divide by four: there are 13 teaspoons of sugar in that one bottle!

Soft Drinks - In addition to the mounds of sugar in one can of pop - 8 tsps of sugar in one can of Ginger Ale - soft drinks are really detrimental to your health. The high levels of phosphates in soft drinks create a chemical imbalance which results in a loss of calcium from bones. Even a ‘natural’ soft drink from the health food store, may not have the phosphate level, but still contains lots of sugar. Mix mineral water with juice to get a refreshing and fizzy drink for a hot summer day.

Electrolyte Drinks – Gatorade and it’s cousins are great for athletes, but are not necessary for the average individual. These drinks are targeted at athletes who need a high level of carbohydrates (sugar) for energy and electrolytes (salt) to counter-balance perspiration. Individuals who are not marathon runners will find they gain weight and retain water from the high levels of sugar and the salt in these drinks.

Diet Anything – Aspartame, sucralose, splenda are all used to sweeten drinks without adding calories. As a holistic nutritionist I cannot recommend a drink that contains these chemicals. I would rather see you drink a sugary drink than something containing any of these sweeteners. The animal studies conducted with these sweeteners show increased levels of cancer and other health problems. Using these sweeteners also does not help people get beyond their addiction to sugar.

Juice – So tasty and sweet, but so high in sugar. While most people think juice is healthy because of the vitamin content, it is missing the fibre that you find in fruit. The fibre is important for sugar absorption and is what makes the sugar in fruit good for you. Without this important element, juice causes increases in blood sugar which can contribute to weight gain and the development of Type 2 Diabetes. Make yourself a smoothie – blending fruit with ice ensures you get all the goodness of the fruit in a drink on a hot summer day – add plain yogurt for a creamier version.

Water – Liquid of the Gods? Personally I love water, but many people find it boring. You can add a squeeze of lemon or lime to your glass of water to flavour it or, as mentioned above, mix mineral water with juice, just remember you do need to drink water straight up. Many ‘studies’ today are saying that we do not need as much water as previously thought, because we get water in our coffee and tea. What these studies neglect to mention is that the caffeine in many drinks (coffee, tea, pop) are diuretics which cause a loss of water. For every cup of these drinks you should have one glass of water to ensure your body is getting the water it needs.