Melt in Your Mouth (and we're not talking about M&M's!)

We love a good snack as much as the next guy (or gal), but we don’t love extra calories, especially post-holidays.

Try this amazing recipe for a sweet and savory guilt-free snack that’ll most definitely satisfy your snack craving.

Spicy Popcorn Cashew Mix

-2 cups of air popped popcorn

-2 tablespoons of chopped and toasted Cashews

-1 teaspoon of olive oil

-1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

-1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

-1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika

-1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Toss it all together (we suggest using your hands) in a big bowl and enjoy your healthy snack!

Nutritional Info:

163 calories

9 grams of fat (2 grams of sat. fat)

19 grams of carbs

3 grams of fiber

5 grams of protein

"An Apple A Day"

News Flash!

An apple a day really does keep the doctor away!

For every 200 grams of fruit there’s a 32% decrease in stroke risk!

One large apple = 200 grams of fruit. It’s that easy. And delicious!

Here’s an easy snack to whip up that’ll give you those 200 grams of fruit, and satisfy a late-afternoon (or late-night) craving:

-1 large apple

(It doesn’t matter which type- we love a Gala, a Pink Lady or a Green Apple.)

-juice from ½ a lemon

-a pinch of large sea salt flakes

-1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

(optional, or add more if wanted)

-1 teaspoon of honey

(optional, or add more if wanted)

1. Cut up the apple into slices, (removing the core,) 

and halve the slices to make smaller bites. Place into a bowl.

2. Squeeze the juice from ½ a lemon all over the apple. 

Use more lemon juice if you love lemon!

3. Sprinkle the sea salt and cinnamon all over the apples and give it a good stir.

 

4. Drizzle the honey on top, stir if you’d like.

Enjoy! And keep the Dr. away!

Vega starts a MAJOR Pinterest #BestSmoothie CONTEST today! @VegaTeam #VegaSmoothie

Pilates Platinum announces an exciting contest that one of our absolute favorite brands, Vega (@VegaTeam) is running for September! Today's the day to join in on the fun, and win some amazing prizes!!

If you don’t already know about Vega you can learn more about the lifestyle brand on their website. Here’s the quick version: Vega’s founder and Professional Ironman athlete, Brendan Brazier (@Brendan_Brazier) created this plant-based, whole food diet to help him recover faster and train harder. Vega immediately propelled his athletic career, and ultimately inspired the creation of the complete award-winning Vega line of nutritional supplements.

Here’s just a small preview of what Vega has to offer: 

*Made with all natural, plant-based ingredients 

(absolutely no animal products)

*Free of dairy, gluten and soy

*No artificial colors, flavors, or sweeteners

*Tastes good (even with just water!)

*Easy to prepare for on-the-go convenience

NOW TO THE CONTEST…

Here’s what you need to know:

Visit myvega.com/pinterest-smoothie-contest

Then…

1.   Follow Vega on Pinterest

2.   Create YOUR OWN Board Titled: Best Smoothie Recipes

3.  Pin & Tag 10 (or more) of your favorite smoothies using #BestSmoothie #VegaSmoothie

4.   Submit your name, e-mail address and link to your board here.

Contest Runs NOW! TODAY Sept 9^th – Sept 30^th

Why?

1. This is going to be a big contest with great prizes.

2. Vega’s promoting it across social and will promote the best smoothie boards.

3. Up your followers and build your name in the Pinterest world!

4. Pinterest is the #1 Free Organic traffic referrer (no other social channel comes close!)

WIN Prizes!!

Vega for One Year

So Delicious – Fill Your Pantry & Cooler

Justin’s- Fill a Cupboard

Vitamix- Blend it UP!

myvega.com/pinterest-smoothie-contest

Ready…set…GO!

Get social with @VegaTeam!

#BestSmoothie

#VegaSmoothie

myvega.com/pinterest-smoothie-contest

Spruce up your Chicken Soup with these simple add-ins

Got an ordinary chicken soup recipe laying around that just doesn't seem all that exciting anymore?  There are many options you can create to add variety and excitement to your chicken soup recipe.

 

 

 

Lets start with a simple chicken soup recipe like the one found here.

Ingredients:

500 g skinless chicken breasts
3 carrots, chopped
4 celery, chopped
1 parsnip, chopped
1 leek, chopped
1 cup green beans, chopped
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped finely
1 garlic clove, crushed
3 -4 tablespoons chicken stock
8 cups water
salt & pepper

Directions:

1 Bring water to boil.
2 In the meantime, cut up all the vegetables into small cubes.
3 Cut the chicken into 1cm cubes.
4 Add the vegetables and garlic and stock and boil on high heat for 5 minutes, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
5 Add chicken and bring to boil for 2 minutes, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or longer.
6 Soup is ready when all ingredients have sunk to the bottom!

One Way to add some extra flavor to this recipe is to add it at the end.  This is an easy variation if you are serving it to a number of people with different palates.  Each person could potential have their own toppings to their own liking, or a variation of the toppings I added to mine.  The toppings I added to my soup are: jalapenos, sliced avocado and diced cherry tomatoes.

A second way to add variation is to play with the ingredients themselves while it is cooking.  Testing out different vegetable options can add a great about of variation and color to your soup.  Try some zucchini and red paper flakes.  I would recommend spiraling the zucchini to give it a noodle texture to the soup.  These can simple be added when you add in the vegetables.  For the red pepper flakes I would add those in the very beginning when you start boiling your water.  That way the red flakes have time to open up and release their flavors into the water, vegetables and chicken.  You can even allow the red pepper flake water to boil a few minutes before you begin adding ingredients.

If you are lacking time to create a soup.  Throw everything into a slow cooker and let it do its magic beginning in the morning.  Allowing the soup to cook all day will give you the chance to enjoy the soup for a nice warm dinner.  Another option to lessen time is to buy an organic rotisserie chicken already cooked.  Whole foods is a great option.  Just take the skin and chop up the meat.  No need to cook the chicken beforehand...just warm it up again with your vegetables in the boiling water.

Lastly, if  you find you are someone who doesn't feel satisfied after a soup or don't have something to go along with your soup then just add brown rice.  You can add the rice in with your ingredients if you are doing the slow cooker option.  Just make sure you add in a couple more cups of water for the rice to absorb.  Or you can cook your rice along side your soup at the same time.  Then add together at the end.  Or for the time crunch, places like Trader Joe's offer single pouch quick cooking rice that you can heat up real quick and add to your soup.