I love looking through cookbooks and finding recipes that inspire me to nourish my body with healthier food. I believe that eating healthier leads to a better me physically and mentally.

Over the years I have acquired a lot of different types of cookbooks. Some are definitely more dog-eared than others. One cookbook that I love is Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks’ Super Natural Love: Five Delicious Ways to Incorporate Whole and Natural Foods in to Your Cooking. Not only does it have a lot of great recipes, but it also has a lot of great information on different types of natural ingredients. 

Because Valentines Day is just around the corner I wanted to giveaway some love – love that will help you become a healthier person! I am giving away a brand new copy of Super Natural Love: Five Delicious Ways to Incorporate Whole and Natural Foods in to Your Cooking. To enter all you need to do is leave a comment and let me know what your favourite healthy snack is.

Deadline to enter is February 12th and giveaway is open to Canadian/ U.S. residents only. Winner will be randomly selected using a random number generator and will be announced on February 13th.

Please note that I have no affiliation with the author of this cookbook. I just really like it!

Sometimes you just got to have something sweet. If you happen to work or live near the Commerce Court food court in Toronto I recommend checking out Four restaurant’s takeout counter and sampling one of their very mini but delicious desserts. Truly just enough sweetness to get you through the day. After all sometimes you don’t need to eat the whole cake to feel satisfied.

A much healthier option.

If you are curious about Four and what they are all about I would suggest you check out their website. Up until now I have only been able to grab something from their takeout counter, but would love to try their sitdown option as everything sounds very delicious and nutritious.

PS: Booty Camp Fitness’ founder has some pretty neat videos with Four, so check them out as well.

Tonight after work I’m going to the Running Room to first take my lovely ladies out on a 4km training ran and after that run do 6/7 hill repeats of my own. As much as I love running and working out there are most definitely times when I wish I could skip the workout and try out things such as the Gladstone Hotel’s Harvest Wednesdays. This totally appeals to my try to eat local as much as possible self (mostly happens on weekends and dinners).

Now in its 4^th year Harvest Wednesday is a chance for Torontonians to sample fresh and local produce. Each week is a different menu and I for one will definitely be skipping a Wednesday run to sample this prior to it ending in mid-October.

Mmm, maybe this would be a good post-workout meal?

Flickr: foodistablog

So, finally it is hot and I for one am not complaining. I like the heat and I also don’t want to be one of those Canadians that complain no matter what the weather. A complete side note here, but don’t you find that Canadians talk a lot about weather? In the winter it is too cold and in the summer too hot.

The hot weather means I am just not as hungry for cooked food and I have been spending a lot of time in the past few days experimenting with some healthy salads. This is truly thanks to Mark Bittman’s 101 simple salads for the season - just reading this list made me want to eat salad more.

Today, I thought I would share today one of the recipes that I have lately become obsessed with – #38:

A spin on the traditional Greek salad

Cube watermelon; combine with roughly chopped mint, crumbled feta, sliced red onion and chopped Kalamata olives. Dress lightly with olive oil and lemon juice.

At times I have strayed a bit from his recipe and have added either tomatoes or cucumbers to the mix. I find both work just as well and add a little extra kick to the dish.

For those of you who are wary of mixing fruits and vegetables…don’t be scared I promise you that this salad works!

It is also perfect as a light post-workout treat.

One of my biggest issues in trying to be healthy is that I love to snack. My snack of choice up until recently was the deadly, but comforting salt and vinegar chips. I never could find a snack that could replace or satisfy my snacking needs. If one more person suggested why don’t you try carrot sticks as a substitute I was going to lose it! Didn’t they realize I was looking for a healthy snack that was at the same time somewhat tasty? Carrot sticks were just not going to do the trick.

But then I discovered Lara Bars via the nutritionist I was seeing. I was shocked these bars are so delicious and came in flavours like Key Lime Pie, Coconut Cream Pie and Peanut Butter Cookie. I now stock up on these bars and turn to them when I need a mid-afternoon snack pre-workout. The bars are also vegan friendly, dairy free, gluten free…basically suitable for anyone!

I recommend you track these bars down immediately. In Toronto I have been able to find them at the Metro grocery store at Yonge and Eglinton, Noah’s Health Food store (better selection of flavours) and at a Health Food store in Kensington Market. They are an amazing pre and post workout snack. You can also order them in bulk via their online store.

They also were recently featured in the current issue of Real Simple magazine as one of their picks for a nutritious snack.