"The quickest way to know a woman is to go shopping with her." (Marcelene Cox)

Ever wonder what dietitian’s put in their shopping cart? While it totally varies depending on mood, hunger, time of the year, etc., I definitely have staples I grab each shopping trip. Since beginning my job as an in-house dietitian at a grocery store, I’ve stumbled upon a few new products that have been added to the list of staples that come home with me… Here’s 9 of my new favorites (in no particular order). Enjoy!
**Click on the links (blue words) if you'd like to learn more about each product.**

1. Bell Plantation’s PB2 – Powdered Peanut Butter with Premium Chocolate

I’m having this strange love affair with peanut butter recently, and PB2 allows me all the peanut butter flavor without the calories and fat! You can reconstitute this powder to a peanut butter consistency with water, milk, juice or jelly... dip fruit straight into the powder... or use it in recipes, in yogurt, or (my personal favorite) on ice cream – light ice cream, of course! 

2. Peanut Butter & Co. – Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter
PB&Co. started as an NYC restaurant dedicated solely to all things peanut butter. Um, genius?!  Check out the menu.  Definitely on my bucket list to check this place out in-person one day. My store only carries Cinnamon Raisin Swirl, but I’ve also tried Dark Chocolate Dreams, and White Chocolate Wonderful, and seriously (if you couldn’t tell just from the names) you can’t go wrong. The Cinnamon Raisin Swirl is great with apples, in the recipe below, or just by the spoonful.

Pumpkin-Peanut Butter Dip

1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1 cup peanut butter (Cinnamon Raisin Swirl)

½ to ¾ cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla
Mix all ingredients together, and serve with apple slices, graham crackers, pretzel sticks.

3. Cinnamon pita chips

It’s well-known to anyone close to me that hummus & pita are pretty much my favorite things ever created. Along with Hugh Jackman, pita & hummus reassures me that there is a God who loves me, and wants to send things to this earth to make me happy. Also look here. And here.
 Oh yeah –and I did mention he’s not only a dead-sexy superhero with an Australian accent, he can ALSO sing and dance?! (start at minute 4)

Oh right, I was talking about pita… err… So yes, I discovered this delightful surprise – cinnamon sugar pita chips! While these would be atrocious with hummus (which is a statement I’ve never said in my life), they make a scrumptious snack. Try them as “nachos,” topped with fresh berries, a drizzle of yogurt and some shredded coconut. Fun for the whole fam!

4. Kashi GOLEAN Crisp – Toasted Berry Crumble

You can’t go wrong with the Seven Whole Grains on a Mission! Packed with fiber, protein, and a sweet berry flavor, this crispy crunchy cereal makes a great breakfast paired with soy milk, Greek yogurt or on its own! Omm nom nom…

5. Snapple – Diet Peach Green Tea (a retired staple)

While trying to wean myself off Diet Dr. Pepper after a year in Dallas (aka, the heart of Dr. Pepper Country), I found solace in a bottle – of diet peach green tea. Our love affair only lasted the summer (or as long as it was marked down at the grocery store). I told myself green tea had more health benefits than soda – which it totally does… just not when super-processed, watered down, and artificially sweetened. We did have a good run though.

(I’m back on the DDP now… ergh.)

6. FlatOut Flatbreads

As my friend Jen would say, “FlatOut awesome!" My favorite is the Healthy Grain – Multi-Grain with Flax (yeah omega-3’s!). These flatbreads are ideal for wraps and for FlatOut Awesome PIZZAS! (Jen also introduced me to these.) Top a flatbread with your favorite marinara, some part-skim mozzarella and your favorite veggies… throw under the broiler for a few minutes… and voila! Quick and easy dinner on the skinny.

7.  Laughing Cow Light Wedges

Not a new product to me, but definitely a new obsession, especially with all their new flavors! Each light wedge has only 35 calories, but is totally creamy-dreamy. I love the Mozzarella Sun-Dried Tomato & Basil flavor with Sun-Dried Tomato Wheat Thins (another new favorite), the Queso Fresco & Chipotle on warm pretzel bread, or the Light Swiss flavor on a FlatOut wrap with reduced-sodium deli turkey, spinach, and cranberry relish. Yum-o!

8. Skinny Cow – mint chocolate ice cream sandwiches

First of all, how can you not love a company whose logo is a “sexy” (?) cow posing as a centerfold?! Hilarious. Secondly, ice cream is right up there with hummus and Hugh Jackman on my list of favorite things… and the combination of mint-chocolate rivals hummus-pita for the spot of “Laura’s Favorite Flavor Combination.” So what could be better than a reduced-fat mint chocolate ice cream sandwich with added fiber (oh, have I mentioned my fiber fetish?). Trust me, it still tastes heavenly. Mmmmm…

9. LÄRABAR

“Energy in its purest form.” These bars are made with seven ingredients or less – just nuts, dried fruit and spices. No preservatives, no added sugars or fats, no worries! Of the flavors I’ve tried, apple pie and cherry pie are probably my favorite… but there’s really not one I’d turn down (especially with their new chocolate line!). They’re also gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, vegan, non-GMO and kosher. Great for an on-the-go pick-me-up (enough hyphens for ya?).

What are some of your fun, favorite grocery staples?? Comment below! Happy shopping y'all!

Another fresh new year is here...

Another fresh new year is here...
Another year to live!
To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!

This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest...
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!

I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!
William Arthur Ward

Happy 2011 everyone! I'm embarrassed it's taken me sooo long to write another post. That's definitely one of my New Year's resolutions -- to write more! I hope everyone had a very happy holiday season - Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah for my Jewish followers (Joanne you out there?), and Cheers to another New Year -- as this beautiful poem says, another year to live.. to laugh and love and give.

I don't generally make many resolutions.. not serious ones anyway. My resolution for 2010 was to make more money in 2010 than I did in 2009. And considering in 2009 the only income I had was from working very limited part-time hours making minimum wage at SLU's rec center for about 4 months, and in 2010 I landed a full-time gig with benefits, I'd say I did what I set out to do!

For 2011, there are just a few things I really would like to work on, and what better way to hold myself accountable than to publicly share those resolutions with all of you? Here's my top four:

1) Pray more. Attending a Catholic university provided me the unique opportunity to really nurture and grow my faith life during undergrad. Staying active in campus ministry activities, participating in several retreats, and attending 10pm Mass weekly with fellow students, I was constantly working on improving my relationship with God. Unfortunately, since graduation, my relationship with The Big Guy has been moved to the back burner... and it seems that burner wasn't on, because it's definitely lost its steam! 

Since I started working full-time, my routine has become: work, work-out, come home to shower/eat/relax/sleep, repeat. And while I take time every evening to relax, I'm not spending quiet time with myself or with God; instead, I'm filling that time with internet surfing, Facebook, TV, doing puzzles, reading... not bad things, but also not really productive things. I'd like to spend a little more of that time quieting myself and tuning in, instead of distracting myself and tuning out.

2) Write often. Not only would I like to update this blog on the regular (already have 2 other posts started -- stay tuned!), I also would love to get back to journaling. I kept a journal religiously my senior year of high school, and have made shoddy attempts here and there to get back into it over the past several years. Not only is it a great way to track memories (and ensure hours of laughter and eye-rolling when you uncover said journal again in the distant future), journaling is a perfect way to slow down, reflect, vent, problem solve, and really get to know and examine your inner-self a little more closely.

3) Keep in touch better. I loved so many things about going to school at Saint Louis University. The absolute best part, however, was the people I met and relationships I built there. Through SLU, I came to know some of the coolest, most inspirational people... and I'm lucky enough to still call many of them close friends. The only downside of them being so "cool and inspirational" is where their "cool and inspirational" adventures have taken them.

To give you a few examples: Joanne is working on a graduate degree and learning more about her faith in Israel. Carrie is a physical therapist around Seattle, WA. Julia is working in student affairs and Greek life at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. Erin, Brigid and Justin teach middle schoolers outside Honolulu, HI; Astoria, OR; and Sacramento, CA, respectively. Caitlin is in law school at SMU in Dallas, TX. Theresa, recently back from a year in Ecuador, is in medical school in Columbia, MO. Sarah works in corporate responsibility for the Rams in St. Louis, MO. Lily teaches piano lessons in Iron Mountain, MI. Mandy is a school foodservice director and registered dietitian near Cincinnati, OH. Morgan is in corporate writing in Chicago, IL. Dan is a theology graduate student in Boston, MA. Greg, recently back from a year in Alaska, is "selling beer" in Saratoga Springs, NY.  Pat C. works at the Cleveland Clinc, while Pat D. is in the Navy and hard to keep track of lately - maybe in Japan? Not to mention all my internship pals in the DFW metroplex, and high school friends scattered about, soon to include Mitch playing pro football in Austria. And this is literally just a few. (No offense to any of you I left out! Love you all..)

As you can see, I have friends in every time zone, let alone on multiple continents, and in all lines of work. It's not easy for us to match schedules and find time to catch up. (Just ask Katie, Pat & Mandy - all of whom I've been playing phone tag with for waaay too long!) But sometimes it's that I "don't feel" like picking up the phone to make the call, or am "too lazy" to open my laptop and crank out a quick email. But because all these people are so important to me, I'm making it a priority to keep in touch better and maintain these relationships. With today's technology it shouldn't be hard -- Skype, email, Gchat, texting, cell phone calls, etc. make keeping in touch possible virtually anywhere, anytime. (Although I am quite partial to good old fashion snail mail and in-person conversations too!)

4) Get closer to figuring out my life. I obviously don't expect to have my life figured out at the close of 2011, but I hope by next January to be a little more clear about where I'm headed. While working in my hometown and living with my parents in fine for now, I know it's not what I'm supposed to be doing (or WANT to be doing) long-term. The problem is, I'm not clear about what I do want, so I'm having trouble figuring out the next step. I'm confident that the above goals.. quieting myself, praying, reflecting, journaling, having discussions with my great friends.. will definitely help me move in the right direction, toward achieving goal 4.

Stay tuned for more posts soon -- including "24 Goals for 24" (I turn 24 in a couple weeks, and am planning 24 goals to work toward in the year ahead -- different from resolutions.) and my favorite new products I've discovered working in a grocery store!

Here's praying that 2011 is a year of health, happiness and blessings for you and those you love!