If you’re looking for a delicious breakfast/brunch for Christmas morning, look no further than these holiday-inspired protein pancakes! They all have 23 g of protein and 7 g of fibre, keeping you full for awhile. They’re also perfect to make ahead of time and simply heat up in the morning AND you can make a variety of flavour to suit your family’s taste preferences.
Tell me which one you’re trying first!
Tis the season to be…stressed out. As wonderful as the holidays are, I, like many others often feed excess stress and anxiety during this time as well. Anyone else relate?
Along with therapy and self care, nutrition can play a key role in helping to manage that stress and anxiety. I’ve put together this post and a meal plan which highlights how certain nutrients can play a role in assisting with managing stress and anxiety. Food is number one but if you are having trouble meeting certain nutrient targets, I’ve partnered with @Megafood to showcase which of their real food supplements can be used to help you meet those nutrient targets.
Meal Plan:
Below are the highlights of which key nutrients in this meal plan could play a role in managing stress and anxiety:
Omega 3: A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids helps keep cortisol and adrenaline from spiking when you’re feeling tense. The omega-3 fatty acids have anti-inflammatory properties that may help counteract the negative effects of stress hormones.  Load up on flax seed, chia seeds and walnuts!
Magnesium: Magnesium assists in calming nerves and muscle relaxation. Magnesium is found in spinach, almonds, avocado, bananas, beans and seeds. I’ve also been turning to Megafoods Magnesium Triple Complex which is a highly absorbable 3-in-1 magnesium blend (bisglycinate, malate and citrate) formulated to assist with muscle function.
B Vitamins (B6, B12, Folate): We need B vitamins for healthy nerves and brain cells, and feelings of anxiety may be rooted in a B vitamin deficiency. For example folate helps the body create new cells and supports serotonin regulation. You can check out Megafoods Balanced B Complex which contains B vitamins from real food like kale and brown rice.
Food sources of B Vitamins: Green leafy veggies, avocado, legumes, nuts and seeds.
Vitamin C: Vitamin C can assist with lowering cortisol and boosting immunity. Each of these recipes are a significant source of vitamin C. Peppers, tomatoes, oranges, marinara sauce and pineapple are all vitamin c champions found in these recipes!
This lego lunch meal prep was a game changer last week, so I had to come back with another edition. Making and freezing each meal components separately in these silicone containers allowed us to mixing and match meals throughout the week, resulted in zero wasted meals and allowed my husband and I to build our meals according to our preferences.
Once you are ready to eat, defrost in the microwave and add flavour enhancers like hummus, guacamole or additional herbs and spices.
If you want to meal prep like this, I recommend starting with 3-4 veggies, 2-3 proteins and 1-2 starches. Save this post to steal this meal prep strategy. Have you ever meal prepped liked this?
For this meal prep I made:
– Tofu & Black Bean Taco Bowls
– Soy Curl & Black Bean Taco Soup
– Orange Soy Curl Bowl
– Edamame & Veggie Rice Bowls
I used the following ingredients:
PROTEINS:
– Soy Curl & Black Bean Taco Soup
– Orange Soy Curls
– Edamame
– Tofu & Black Bean
VEGETABLES:
– Roasted Peppers
– BroccoliÂ
– Cabbage
– Zucchini
STARCHES:
– Roasted Sweet Potatoes Cubes
– Quinoa
– Jasmine Rice
The way I meal prep may have just changed for good when I discovered the concept of lego meals – which blew my mind. This is the perfect solution for families with different meal preferences or for those that like variety throughout the week but still want to meal plan. Also an amazing way to save money and reduce waste.
Basically you make components of the meals and freeze them in individual containers. You can then mix and match meal ingredients based on your preference. Once you are ready to eat, defrost in the microwave and add flavour enhancers like hummus, guacamole or additional herbs and spices.
If you want to meal prep like this, I recommend starting with 3-4 veggies, 2-3 proteins and 1-2 starches. Save this post to steal this meal prep strategy. Have you ever meal prepped liked this?
For this meal prep I made:
– Sweet potato chili bowls (one with rice and carrots, one with sweet potatoes and green beans)
– Teriyaki tofu bowls (teriyaki tofu with rice, peppers and broccoli)
– Lentil Bolognese pasta ( with peppers)
I used the following ingredients:
PROTEINS:
– Teriyaki Tofu
– Lentil Bolognese
– Bean Chili
– Protein Pasta
VEGETABLES:
– Roasted Peppers
– Green Beans
– Broccoli
– Carrots
STARCHES:
– Roasted Sweet Potatoes Cubes
– Jasmine Rice
My nutrient requirements have changed significantly in the last 1.5 years – from before pregnancy to pregnancy and after pregnancy and breastfeeding. Save this post as a guide for those key nutrients, along with supplementation recommendations. I’m working with Megafood to showcase how their supplements have supported this journey
Before Pregnancy:
Before I got pregnant, I had struggled with low iron so along with meal planning around iron-rich foods (pumpkin seeds, beans, lentils, edamame) I routinely took a supplement. Before getting pregnant I starting taking Megafood Baby & Me 2 as it provides 18 mg of iron for two tablets. It’s also important to take a prenatal prior to conception, to ensure adequacy of important nutrients such as choline, iron and folate. I also took 2000 IU of Vitamin D daily from Megafood, to ensure those needs were getting met.
During Pregnancy:
During pregnancy, not only did my iron needs increase but so did my calorie requirements, protein requirements, folate, omega 3 and choline. To meet my increased calorie requirements, I looked at more significant snack options as I could only eat so much at a time due to feeling full easily. I also made sure these snacks were protein-rich and fibre rich (edamame was my BFF). I also had chia seeds or breakfast each day for the omega 3 and fibre boost.
To meet my folate requirements, I upped my leafy green and bean intake but I also relied on the active form of folate in the Megafood Baby & Me 2. It’s important that folate is present in its active form for best absorption (aka not folic acid). Look for a prenatal that contains folate in a highly bioavailable form (5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF) so your body has to do less work converting it into a usable form. In Megafood Baby & Me 2, folate is found in the 5-MTHF form.
After Pregnancy & Breastfeeding:
Your calorie and protein requirements actually are higher during breastfeeding compared to pregnancy – wild! It makes sense though, as you are quite literally making milk for your child from the nutrients in your own body. I switched to supplementing with Megafood Baby & Me 2 Postnatal Multi, as I didn’t need as much iron vs during pregnancy but needed more of some nutrients such as choline. I also appreciated that this supplement also contains moringa which can help milk production.
