Go Macro Giveaway!

Hello readers! I'm excited to announce the first give away by Flavor To Go Fast! After riding for and doing some reviews for GoMacro last year, they've come back interested in helping you guys try out some delicious Macro Bars!

Today I'm going to review the Chocolate Protein Bar, a new addition and my new favorite. But first the giveaway details:

Any reader of this blog can use the code BLOG15 when ordering off of the GoMacro Shop will receive 15% off of one case of bars (not individual bars).

Second, anyone that likes the GoMacro Facebook Page and comments on this blog post is automatically entered to win a free case of MacroBars ($43.35 value!). The winner will be chosen and announced 4 days from today.

Rating: A-

To explain my review of this bar I'll have to give a little info on the progress of my personal nutrition. I used to simply eat gluten free, but after cutting out all grains and legumes for a few months, I now only consume rice for grains because it sits with me the best. I do miss my oats, and for most people they are ok, but like gluten, often times cutting it out will reveal some benefits. I was attracted to this bar for that reason! It does not also make one starving after eating it or shortly after, due to it's lower sugar/carb content and therefore glycemic index. I would prefer whey protein over brown rice, but then it would not be vegan, so I cannot really complain. The use of brown rice syrup for sweetener is also one of my favorite aspects because fructose can definitely be hard to get down and is less ideal for health (sorry all you agave fans!), especially when consuming during training (I've been riding with these bars every day recently!).

On the flavor, I love it! Chocolate protein is a simple title that works for a number of audiences, but to me its more like Chocolate Tahini Crunch or Chocolate Sesame Crunch! And that's a great thing! I never new cocoa could go so well with a bit of grainy crunchy sesameness and sunflower seed.

If you want a tasty and nutritionally appropriate bar that's not overly carb heavy/sugary (especially not from fructose) for good long lasting energy and a little extra protein, this is the ticket!

I'm sad to say I just finished my last Chocolate Protein Macrobar on my 3.5 hour training ride today! And it made me feel so strong on those intervals!

Triple Chocolate Cookies

This post is all about these Grain Free Super Chocolate Cookies which I will be making again, but first a bit about Kombucha!

I've made my own for a while before, but only drink 1-3 bottles per week and with my travel/limited time I've now switched to buying GT's again. Especially since they reintroduced the Classic stronger variety (actually raw, more health benefits) after the Kombucha Outlaw last Summer.

They really give me some good energy as well as help digestion, and now with the Chia varieties, I can sneak in some extra healthy nutrient packed fat with Omega 3's (although my main sources are still fish oil and grass fed meats/pastured eggs and yogurt, since you only convert 10-15% of Omega 3's in the ALA form to the beneficial stuff).

The Chia versions aren't carbonated, so easier to drink for those not used to Kombucha, and they remind me of slurping jello as a child. I've tried Cherry and Raspberry so far and they are delightful.

The also new "Third Eye Chai" flavor which is exactly as awesome as it sounds.

Now for Chocolate. Cookies.

I'd like to call them Triple Dark Chocolate Cookie Dough Almond Fudge Cookies!!!

I actually followed the recipe for once (since it didn't require any grains/sweetener/dairy), almost:

•  1/4 Cup Cacao Nibs and 2 Squares of 88% Dark Monkey Chocolate (the best) 

The changes were good, I would just recommend adding the nibs/chocolate at the end for crumbly purposes. They really are like fudge and cookie dough at the same time, with a tiny hint of delicious salty creamy coconut. Is that possible?

I even made another batch for my house/teammates (using chocolate chips this time, but only melting in some of them), and they all got gobbled right up.  I also made one extra cookie separate out of the batch where I really melted most of the chocolate in. It turned into way more of a crunchy biscuity chocolate type cookie! Much less crumble but I loved both variations (cookie dough vs biscuit).

Persimmons and Pumpkin Smoothie Epic Bowl Fun

I've finally jumped onto the Fall Bandwagon! Pumpkin Pie Spices (I don't have the actual mix), Pumpkin, and Persimmon in everything! My favorite time of year (been waiting for persimmons for so long!!!).

Bam: First Fall Breakfast!

I have been into using the frozen Acai Smoothie Packs from my freezer and they've been making some epic bowls. This one went:

• Acai
• Pumpkin
• Persimmon
• Hazelnut Butter and Macadamia Nuts
• Pumpkin Pie Spices (Ginger, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Cloves)
• Vanilla Protein Powder

I'm burned out on cloves since I hit them heavy handed a few times and ruined too many foods.  Hazelnut goes epicly with the spices though, and the persimmons are sweet and creamy within the amalgamation of yummy vanilla protein and acai. Also more of my new favorite hot cocoa (note that delicious melty drop of coconut oil, mmmm).

This time in the bowl went:

• Pumpkin (maybe 1/4c)
• 1T Chia Seeds
• 2 Scoops Vanilla Whey
• 2-3T Nonfat Greek Yogurt
• Pumpkin Pie Spices
• Topped with a bunch of Melty Coconut Butter
• Persimmon

At this point when I open a can of pumpkin I can just eat it straight without any extra sweetener or spices, but I've held back for the most part to make it even better first...

The Turtle Shell Chocolate Sauce - Coconut Butter trick is quite delicious (fun?), and I definitely enjoy pumpkin pie flavoring (I've literally had it in so many smoothies/recovery drinks/breakfast bowls recently), but also the Vanilla Whey with Chia Seeds combo makes an epic vanilla poppy seed theme/texture.

I also experimented with Pumpkin Pie Hot Cocoa. Pretty good (just added Pumpkin Pie Spices and 1-2T Pumpkin to my regular combo), although definitely something to be in the mood for since my regular mix is so tasty already. I might try way more pumpkin next time.

*On a side note hard boiled egg yolks mix into the pumpkin quite well for a pleasant creamy taste (I definitely mixed some hard boiled eggs into my pumpkin breakfast bowls a couple of times).

Here's another meal replacement/recovery smoothie party I had:

I went with:

• Frozen Banana + Blueberries
• Vanilla Whey Protein
• Macadamia Nuts
• Ginger Juice/Ginger Powder
• a Persimmon, Macadamias, Coconut Flakes, Cacao Nibs, and a Coconut Chocolate Chip Macaroon mixed in

These Cocoroons are straight up dangerous. Way too good.

It was creamy, gingery, sweet and full of delicious cookie like crunchies. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Enough said.

Now I just have to step it up and actually bake with pumpkin and persimmon instead of being lazy and eating them in quickie breakfast bowls/smoothies!  Stay tuned...

Quick Tasty Experimentation

I made an effort to use up my waffles after having an excess post waffle-testing (and having to leave for home).

This was a bit of the standard set up: Toaster-ovened with or without the Blueberries and Cacao Nibs at the same time, and accompanied/mixed with Vanilla Vegan Protein Powder mixed with just enough water and PLENTY of Cinnamon. Hot Cocoa for occasional dunkage.

Then I had an idea...

Gluten Free French Toast Waffles? Taffles?

After seeing so many delicious egg/quinoa bakes and other similar bakes in the food blog world I decided to just throw some of my favorite free range eggs in the toaster oven with my waffles. Definitely an easy and delicious way to enjoy a French Toast like waffle providing the essential morning fat, carb, and protein! Cinnamon and Cacao Nibs included. A little soggy and a little crunchy for the win.

Another morning I tried out making some high protein more blueberry muffins to use up the last of my brown rice flour and quinoa.

They were a little dry, but rose the right amount. Super sweet, tart, and delicious blueberry clusters were epic (I used a lot!).

Melting coconut oil all over the top makes up for a bit of the dryness and is super tasty.

Epic Blueberry Insides

I don't know if the recipe is sharing but I'll include it anyways for inspiration/if you feel like using up some brown rice flour and quinoa flour or quinoa. And lots of Blueberries!

• 2 Eggs
• 1c Blueberries
• 1/2c Brown rice flour
• 1/4c Quinoa flour
• 1/4c Whey protein
• 2g Baking soda
• 50g Olive oil
• 20g Agave nectar 40g Brown rice syrup
• Dash of Salt
• Cinnamon 6g
• Contents of 1 Vanilla Bean

Baked for 27.5 minutes at 350ºF.

All of these Gluten Free treats make me extra happy because A) I've discovered that the less wheat I eat, the less my knee tendonitis bugs me when I ride (no advil or rocktape needed) and B) Aaron Gwin (best American mountain biker ever thus far, just truly came out of the woodwork this year and won the world cup overall) is gluten free!

Waffle Testing

Although using my super easy protein waffle/pancake batter to make waffles is ideal, sometimes an even faster breakfast is in order. And I was out to find the best.

I looked online first at various gluten free freezer waffle options, and none will be as healthy as making your own due to the use of vegetable oils and potato starch, but on occasion the best of them all will suffice.

I narrowed it down to two brands based on the best ingredients and here's how it went.

This Nature's Path Buckwheat Berry Waffle was good, I would prefer it without the berry flavor but all around I can't complain.

It paired perfectly with 'Protein Yogurt' (Just mix powder with less liquid) made with Vanilla Vegan Protein, Coconut Milk, and some extra Cinnamon of course. I could eat it for days. I dabbed a little coconut oil to melt on as well.

I also toasted the waffle with some berries from the freezer, and they got nice and tart/on the verge of explosion! Some were just enjoyed fresh as well to mix it up.

I've been on a hot cocoa with the weather in Canada going from summer to winter in <24 hours (85º to 45º). This is the healthiest best i've had, no sugar. Just Unsweetened Dagoba Cocoa w/ Hot water, a little Coconut Milk and 3-4 drops of Stevia. Even better tasting than the decadent version.

At first I instantly thought, wow this van's waffle is truly plain and less good than the nature's path buckwheat (where the buckwheat really makes a difference for a fresher more whole real waffle taste) but then I realized it tastes like an eggo! Ironic?

They are about equally healthy, so in the end if you want a slightly berry flavored, more whole wheat real tasting waffle go with the buckwheat, and for an eggo substitute go with the van's. I care for both!

Sometimes I just feel like munching on a ton of steamed vegetables. Extra soft, with sesame oil and seeds on my squash. Hummus as well, and some tender lightly spiced with herbs chicken breast, melt in your mouth with a hint of coconut oil...

And some more experimental cookies! Pretty successful this time qith quinoa/brown rice flour, and Japanese sweetened red bean.

 Cherries and Cacao Nibs go so well together...

The Experimental Whistler Kitchen

I am definitely going to be going out of my way in the future to get my hands on grass fed meat.

I enjoyed this local grass fed rib eye steak for lunch (below) and (here) dinner with my first time making a massaged kale salad. Stoked on both!

I went for Japanese theme with some Baked Kabocha Squash (one with less green/more orangey skin, so much sweeter?) topped with coconut oil and cinnamon of course (INSANE TASTING), and then included mozuku and nori seaweed in the salad with a Kimchee Juice, Flax Oil, Yuzu (Citron Juice), and splash of Temari dressing.

 I was skeptical about the raw kale but it was delicious and digested fine. Kelp noodles, Lemon Cucumber and Basil in there as well. The kelp and mozuku made it extra slimy and delicious. Not cooking the kale seems to give you so much more bang for your buck! I think i'll be on a new kick...

I simply broiled ~5 minutes on each side after patting dry and doing a little Cumin, S&P on each side w/ olive oil.

For lunch I paired it up with some delicious roasted sweet potato wedges I discovered (see below) and topped with cumin/turmeric, and then a traditional Balsamic Salad jazzed with Cashews and Seaweed (greens, flax oil, cider/balsamic vinegar, basil, cucumber. It goes with steak perfectly! I think I like the bison I tried out before a little more, but definitely don't mind this to change it up at all!

These sweet potato wedges are super convenient (as if throwing a potato in the even isn't easy enough). A bit faster though and more roasty than the baked version. Plus topping with spices is easy + delicious (Rosemary and Sea Salt to come...).

Nice short ingredient list: sweet potato. 

I could have bought the fries cut but they had more ingredients I didn't want.

I've been baking/experimenting a lot to use up the ingredients I have laying around and see what happens.  These cookies were a hit with the flat mates and I discovered the effects of whey protein powder+baking soda!

They puffed up quite a bit, turning into muffin top cookies. Good depending on what your going for, but the flavor was dialed.

 

I used carob chips and they were delicious. Gluten free with nut and oat flours. Not quite recipe share worthy, but they were largely based off this, which is.

No more oats and nuts, onto the quinoa and brown rice flour. The rest of the carob chips (some of which were melted into a clump, so I melted it and mixed it into the batter) + some dark chocolate chunks.

These were quite grainy from the quinoa flour, which might not be the best for chocolate chip cookies. They were chewier and mushier which I liked, thanks to reducing the baking powder. More to come!

Settling Routines

Pretty much just posting this to show off the quality Salmon! 

I toaster-ovened it with some leftover broccoli and yam, topped with plenty of coconut butter. It tasted bomb with a hint of dill that I wanted more of so I sprinkled some extra on. I cant wait to properly grill the next one with some creamy lemon dill dressing.

Onto the real goods: some more protein pancakes, more off of this recipe this time.

• Some Coconut Water
• 1 Scoop Vanilla Whey
• 1t Vanilla
• Blueberries
• 1T Cacao powder
• 1T Coconut flour
• Some coconut shredded
• Some Cacao nibs
• 1T Chia seeds
• An Egg white

The Cacao-Coconut Side

I thought I put too much coconut water but they actually puffed up a bit and made nice thin pancakes!

 Chocolate Chip Pancakes gone protein and primal! (grain free)

 So chocolatey and coconut-y with delicious cooked blueberries, with some more fresh and melty coconut butter on top. Win.

These taste so much like traditional choco-blueberry pancakes! Imagine the coconut butter as completely melted and drizzled all over if you'd like (more like frosting instead of a butter replacement upgrade).

Wasn't going to post this but I had to highlight one thing:

1) I'm loving seaweed in salads, it soaks up the dressing and becomes undried and the flavor is delightful. This was some turkey breast, greens, avocado, and sweet potato with some Flax Oil-Bangkok Pesto-Lemon Dressing.

I followed up the seaweed in salads theme with the most packed Asian Salad Bowl ever.

• Raw Hotate Scallops (for Sushi)
• Kimchee Liquid, Lemon, Flax Oil, Minced Ginger, Minced Garlic Dressing
• Greens, Cucumber, Avocado
• Shirataki Noodles and Sushi Ginger
• Nori Seaweed
• Steamed Crookneck Squash w/ Sesame Oil
• Artichoke Hearts
• Macadamia Nuts and Sesame Seeds

 The scallops, even plain were insanely good: a bit creamy, not fishy at all, the perfect soft texture.  The dressing had plenty of spice from the kimchee with ginger-lemon-garlic flavors. The seaweed and noodles  made some noodly texture. Then some crunchy macadamias and mushy avocado and tasty squash. It lasted forever and never got old!