what's in my fridge now?

Wow, just organizing my fridge and there is very little room because there is not only "Horizon" Organic Cow's milk, but now "Almond Dream" Unsweetened Almond milk, "Silk" Unsweetened Soy Milk, and "SO Delicious" Unsweetened Coconut milk as well as "Silk" French Vanilla Creamer (which I'm sure is not that healthy) and my husbands "Organic Valley" Organic half and half, which he can't live without for his coffee. Not to mention my yogurt of choice (for now) Fage Strained Greek Yogurt and "SO Delicious" soy yogurt sweetened with Agave Nectar. I also got another yogurt made from grass fed cows called "Siggi's Icelandic style strained non-fat yogurt. This yogurt is just like the strained Greek Yogurt, really thick and packed with protein. I got the "orange and ginger" flavor as well as "vanilla" and "Pomegranate & Passion Fruit" for my kids and they do like it - it has a little funky taste, (probably because of the grass fed milk - we're not used to that) but the kids like it.

I forgot to talk about coconut milk yesterday and my vegan friend also commented on my blog about Hemp milk, which I'll also touch upon as well. I drink "Zico" coconut water a lot (my cousin turned me on to it right before I did my first marathon two years ago) but have never tried coconut milk before. Coconut water is great because it's chock full of essential electrolytes, 15 times more potassium than a sport's drink, has low acidity and no fat or sugar added and gives you natural energy. It's touted as a "natural" sports drink. "Zico" makes a natural "flavor" drink (which I buy) as well as "passion fruit" and "mango". It's a great, healthy drink to help replenish the body after working out!

Ok, back to Coconut milk. I really like the taste of the coconut milk - I bought the "unsweetened" so it's not that sweet (we have to try to get away from added sweeteners to the products we buy) but it has a nice thickness with a semi-sweet, mild coconut taste. It is made from the meat of a mature coconut (while coconut water is made from young coconuts) which is high in oil and is very rich.

It does have 5g of fat and 50 calories per 1 cup serving compared to Skim milk's 0 grams of fat and 90 calories per serving, but has 15 mg of sodium and 0 grams of sugar compared to Skim milk's 130mg of sodium and 12 grams of sugar, but has only 1 gram of protein. The fats in coconut milk are recognized as "medium chain fatty acids" (MCFA) which are good fats. The two primary MCFA's according to the carton of coconut milk I bought are lauric and capric acid which are known to support the body's immune system It is naturally cholesterol free and a good source of calcium, vitamin A, magnesium, and high in Vitamin D and B12. It is another good alternative to dairy and soy. A couple of "Ayurvedic" (definition: Hindu system of medicine based on the idea of balance of the body through diet and herbal treatment and yogic breathing) benefits of coconut milk is it can be used as a laxative and for healing mouth and other forms of uclers.

Hemp Milk is another good alternative to soy and cow's milk. It is made from the seeds of the hemp plant and has only just begun to be sold in the U.S. within the past few years. The chemical THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) which is in marijuana is not in this milk, which I'm not sure is good or bad thing! It has all 10 essential amino acids, as well as omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids, 4 grams of digestible protein, no cholesterol, and has 46% of RDA of calcium as well as vitamins A, E, B12, D, folic acid, magnesium, iron and zinc. The hemp plant is primarily grown in Canada, France, and China. More hemp is exported to the U.S. than any other country. The seeds cannot only be made into milk but can be eaten raw, ground into meal or sprouted. My kids like "Nature's Path" Hemp frozen Waffles - but we have not tried Hemp milk - yet!

You can go to the website below and enter your zip code to find out where you can buy "Living Harvest" Hemp Milk - there is plain, unsweetened, chocolate and vanilla varieties.

http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce/ExecMacro/livingharvest/home.d2w/report?hbtype=ppc&hbv1=google&hbv2=lhhempmilk&gclid=CPzI07qm9Z8CFWEO5Qod8SlyfA

I will tackle eggs next time I write and will talk about egg alternatives as well!

TAKE AWAY:

UPS came today with three books for me, "The China Study", "Healthy at 100", and "The Food Revolution". I will start reading and blogging about what I read from those books. Please feel free to read those books with me and give me your comments, thoughts, ideas....

Here comes the snow - again!!