Category: Nourish

Before William was even born I knew I wanted to exclusively breastfeed William until he was at least 6 months old. I cried while breastfeeding William to sleep the night before his half birthday… It was the last time he would ever just have milk to nourish him before bed and it broke me a little. My baby boy was growing up and I just didn’t (and still don’t know) where the time has gone.

To celebrate Williams first 6 months of life we wanted to introduce him to avocado! We introduced William to avocado first because it is creamy, delicious and full of nutrients! Avocado is loaded with fat (good, whole fat that) and rich in calories. Avocado is a great source of fibre so it aids in the digestion of the food. A lot of babies get constipated when solids are introduced so this is a great supporting food to start out with!

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I mashed it up instead of pureeing it. I also let him feed it to himself. I believe if he desires to eat food he should be able to do it himself. I didn’t want to force anything into his mouth that he didn’t want to eat. This was his first experience eating food that isn’t just milk and I wanted him to experience it the way he wanted to! I fully expected him to play with the avocado and having it in his hair and all over his body! It amazed me how well he did with getting food into his mouth. I thought he must be so ready to eat solids since he handled it so well and enjoyed every second of it, avocado up the nose and all!

Super proud of my baby boy, and so is his daddy (as you can tell by his beaming smile!) 

When William had his first bowel movement after his avocado smash it was just about the exact same as it went in. I felt like his digestive track wasn’t ready for solid foods so we have put a stop to introducing solid foods. I don’t want to stop breastfeeding William at all, that wasn’t the point of introducing solids. William was really showing signs of wanting to eat food, ex: he was grabbing food off of my plate, out of my hands and grabbing at the food when it was going into my mouth. He would watch me prepare food so intensely, like he couldn’t miss a beat. I didn’t give him food to play with because I knew it would immediately go straight into his mouth to eat and I didn’t want him to eat any solids until he was 6 months old. I just felt that deep down he wasn’t ready for anything other than muscle milk until his half birthday.

I read some information on iron deficiency in children and that William may have a decreased risk of iron-deficiency anemia if he is exclusively breastfed for 7 months! I plan on breastfeeding him as long as I can, and primarily breastfeeding him for a few more months.

“Food before 1 is just for fun.”

Since William had avocado (1 month ago) he doesn’t freak out at the sight of food like he use to… We will try avocado again in a few weeks and see how he enjoys it and how his bowel movements are. I think the next food after avocado is going to be spotty b-a-n-a-n-a-s and I am so excited for him!

My girlfriend Jamie made this for me a few months ago….. and it is exactly how it sounds. It is so good, so fresh and my life actually changed once I tried it! I made this smoothie *almost* every day I was pregnant for the last few months. I felt more energized and overall a bit more healthy. I wanted to make sure I was eating enough green leafy veggies so I could fight any sickness that came my way! I switch it up from spinach to kale to a mixed green blend (which I did today). If you don’t have pineapple, add mango. No mango? Peaches. I had bags of frozen peaches from our trip out to BC and I used them up in no time!

This recipe makes 4 smoothies… because of the avocado and the can of coconut milk. To make the smoothie you can put the other 3 in freezer bags to make your mornings (or night time cravings) easier! Or make the whole batch for a brunch at your place!

Ingredients:

1 avocado, peeled, pitted 
and quartered – don’t throw the pit out!
4 cups peeled and chopped pineapple – I have used mango and peaches before.
4 handfuls baby spinach (kale or mixed greens)
1 can coconut milk
2 limes, halved with the skin off
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 quarter size pieces of ginger (I do extra think pieces)

I have altered this original recipe a bit from Clean Eating because I find that I like these portions better. It is easier to just throw 1/2 of the lime into the blender or bag instead of squeezing the juice out and same with zesting the ginger. I am a mom… who actually has time for that anymore? And I add more coconut milk because who doesn’t love it extra creamy?! Alter it however you want!

Throw 1 smoothie portion into a blender… add water if it is too thick. POOF!

Delicious and nutritious. 

WITH THE PIT you can put it in the over at 250° F for 2 hours. Take it out and carefully cut it into pieces, blend into a powder and add it to future smoothies! The pit is nutrient dense, full of fibre and antioxidants. It is bitter so add a little for the first time!

Enjoy!

Gluten free – Dairy free – Vegan (option) – Guilt FREE.

My girlfriend Tiffany gave me this recipe after she made me this cake for my birthday this year. I don’t know how I lived 23 years without it! It is moist, delicious, chocolatey AND healthy. Seriously, what person doesn’t want to eat a cake that is actually good for them?

I recently made this for my mom’s birthday and it was a huge hit! My dad even liked it….. and if you know him, you know it’s pretty hard (impossible) to introduce him to new food. Needless to say this cake is divine and even the pickiest eaters will be scraping their plate clean!

(If anyone knows my dad please do not tell him there is quinoa in it or that it was healthy!)

Chocolate Cake Recipe

Chocolate Cake ingredients:
2/3 cup quinoa
1 1/3 cup water
1/3 cup almond milk
4 large eggs OR egg substitute**
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup coconut oil, melted & cooled
1 1/2 cup sugar (coconut sugar is a bit better if you’re looking for an alternative)
1 cup cocoa
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Chocolate Cake Directions:
• Rinse quinoa before cooking, it will take away the bitterness.
• Bring quinoa and water to a  boil. Cover, cook for 10 mins. Turn off heat and leave for 10 minutes. Fluff with fork and let cool.
• Preheat oven to 350°
• Grease 2 8″ round cake pans with parchment paper (I have used only 1 pan)
• In blender combine milk, eggs & vanilla. Add 2 cups of cooked quinoa & melted coconut oil and blend until smooth.
• Add sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt to blender.
• Mix well, pour into pans
• Bake 30-40mins and use toothpick to see if cake is cooked through.

**You can make this cake recipe vegan by adding chia seeds instead of eggs:
1 tbsp chia seeds & 3 tbsp water replaces 1 egg. 

Raspberry Sauce

I absolutely l o v e fruit (I did through my whole pregnancy) and when I found this recipe I put it on everything I could!! I used it as jam, waffle topping, cake topping… anything!

Raspberry Sauce Ingredients:
• 2 1/2 cups raspberries
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tbsp cold water
• 2 tbsp cornstarch

You can add 1/3 cup sugar or preferably raw honey to the raspberries when cooking if you need the extra sweetness but I love the natural sweet and tartness to it!

Raspberry Sauce Directions:
• Cook the raspberries and lemon juice in a pot for 5-7 minutes until the raspberries start to break down, make sure to stir often.
• In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and cold water then add to the raspberry sauce.
• Cook for 30-60 seconds, until thickened.
• Let cool and store in fridge.

Coconut Whip Cream:

Coconut Whip Cream Ingredients:
• 1 can coconut milk, chilled
• Maple syrup or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract (or both!)

Coconut Whip Cream Directions:
• You want to make sure the can of coconut milk has been chilled (in fridge) for a few hours. That will allow the milk to separate and you will use the top layer (cream)
• Whip to your desired consistency
• Add maple syrup to taste or pure vanilla extract
• Whip till it is evenly mixed in.

Enjoy a piece… or two! ♥