It's official - chocolate goes with everything! Yep - even bacon...!

Sun Rose Cafe Longmont Colorado

I had the pleasure of attending an evening of wine, beer & chocolate tasting at The Sun Rose Cafe

Now, dietitian or not, anyone who really knows me is aware of my lifelong love of chocolate!  Candy, cakes, cookies & desserts have never been my thing - but chocolate....has always been my thing!  So I was delighted to be invited by the owners Steve & Susan to this event.

They had arranged 4 wines and 4 beers specifically chosen for their chocolatey undertones and perfectly  paired with a variety of chocolate desserts (in the perfect bite size portions!)  The desserts were made personally by the owners or provided by local businesses such as Breadworks and New Moon

Barista Pinotage with chocolate covered berries

The first combination I tried was my favorite!  It was Barista Pinotage from South Africa and tasted divine with the chocolate covered blueberries, pomegranate & acia berries!

You can't really go wrong with chocolate and fruit together! Making your own trail mix with dried fruit, nuts/seeds and chocolate chips makes a perfect snack & just a small handful  is guaranteed to banish that 3pm energy slump!

As I made my way down the line I was treated to wine from Chile paired with chili chocolate popcorn!  Which was sweet, sweet, sweet then suddenly spicy!  I love the combination of chocolate and chili and  - strange as it may sound - you've really got to try it!

Next I tried the tawny port paired with a homemade chocolate & Earl Grey Tea Mousse (which was incredibly light and not too sweet or sickly as mousse can often be) then a dessert wine which although it was too sweet for my liking was served with delicious homemade macaroons.

Then, although I'm not a big fan of beer, I was determined to try those offered as one of them was paired with....chocolate dipped...bacon!!

So this was a first for me and I admit I was apprehensive....but it was incredible!  The sweet and salty combination was superb and it really enhanced the flavor of the Sri Lankan beer it was served with!

So it's official - chocolate really does go with everything.... even bacon!

Yes - this really is bacon dipped in chocolate!

The Sun Rose Cafe is everything I love about a restaurant.  The owners are always right there with the customers, serving & chatting and making you feel at home.  They choose local & organic produce as much as possible and cater for gluten free & vegetarian diets.  As a result, they say their menu 'evolves with the seasons' and if you live in Colorado I highly recommend a visit!  Their aim is to bring terrific food to their customers and provide a relaxed, friendly atmosphere for people to meet for business or pleasure.

Even when striving to eat a healthy diet, there's room for treats - the secret is getting the balance of these right.  Food should be shared and enjoyed and a  little indulgence now and then does you good!

Do You Feel Guilty if You Take Time for Yourself?

When did life get so busy?  We have internet to give us instant access to information, bread makers to bake bread while we sleep, crock pots to cook dinner while we're at work, vacuums we can program to clean the carpet all by itself,  a multitude of kitchen gadgets to help food preparation, car pools to give us a week off from taking the kids to school - so how come we're always running around with not a moment to ourselves?



It seems despite all the modern day conveniences we're all busy doing something almost every minute of the day.  This leads to stress, our sleep suffers, we grab food on the go and as a result our health suffers and we don't take time to enjoy the life we're so busy creating.


I'd like you to stop for a moment, take a deep breathe and tell yourself not only is it ok to take time to look after yourself but it's essential to take time to look after yourself.  You really will be better able to look after your family and/or cope with the demands of work if you are spending time on your own wellbeing.


While I was a stay-at-home Mom I became a consultant for Pink Papaya Spa Parties and would go to ladies houses who had invited a group of friends over. They'd try the products and have a fun evening.



It was always interesting for me to observe the ladies during the evening - they would arrive in a stressed out rush apologizing for being late and explaining how they had to work late or help with their son's school project which was due tomorrow or collect their daughter from volleyball and drive 4 friends home before they could get here.


Then I'd watch as they sat down and started trying the lotions and scrubs I offered.  I'd watch the tension leave their face & their shoulders relax.  By the end of the evening they would leave with a smile, looking very calm and ready to deal with whatever chaos had happened at home while they were out for the evening.


My point is, just taking a short time away from your regular routine can rejuvenate you.


This is National Women's Health Week and the theme for 2011 is "It's Your Time".  National Women's Health Week empowers women to make their health a top priority.  I encourage women every where to give up the guilt we often feel about making time ourselves.  Look at your life and find time each day that's just for you.  It can be reading a book, listening to music, going for a walk, deciding that yes - you will go to that exercise class you've been wanting to try or learning more about  healthy eating.  But most of all it's deciding you won't feel guilty about doing it!


If you are eating well, sleeping well & exercising your body you will feel more relaxed, balanced and better able to cope with the ups and downs of daily life.   What a great role model you will be for your children when they see you looking after your mental, physical & emotional health.  From this they will be learning terrific life skills.


So make that Doctor appointment you've been putting off; make the effort to plan your meals to improve your nutrition and reduce the mealtime madness; write 'exercise' on your calendar; decide to finally ask for help to stop smoking and make this Women's Health Week the start of  you taking control of your health!


Let me know what National Women's Health Week has inspired you to do!

Dad's Cooking! Happy Mother's Day!

Photo by agifttotreasure.com

Before I go any further I have to mention how good my husband is in the kitchen (in case he reads this!)  He really enjoys cooking and will follow a recipe with a huge number of ingredients!

I know several of my friends whose husbands are also handy in the kitchen but I also know others whose husbands never set foot in there!

With Mother's Day coming up this weekend I thought I'd look at ways Dad's can contribute to raising healthy eaters.

From the very moment you become a Dad you have a vital role to play in feeding.  Supporting Mom when she's feeding a new baby, providing her with drinks and meals when she's too busy or exhausted to prepare anything for herself.

As your little one gets older and more aware, the most important way to raise a healthy eater is to lead by example.  In other words let the kids see you eating healthy foods - grab an apple as a snack, take fruit to work with you, eat your veggies at dinner time!  This has a HUGE impact on children who notice everything that's going on around them.  They will then view eating fruit and veg as 'normal' and not something only they are being made to do.

Photo by The Pottery Stop

We all know how much Dads like to BBQ!  Be sure to toss some corn-on-the-cob, veggie kebabs or baked potatoes on the grill.  Add tomatoes to your burgers and always include a vegetable or salad dish on the side.  Be adventurous!  Try grilling stuffed mushrooms or stuffed peppers, aubergine (eggplant) slices or add chunks of apple to pork kebabs!

Are junk food & soda the staples of your diet?  Everyone is busy these days and it's all too easy to grab fast food.  Limiting your intake of these foods not only sets a good example to your family but will benefit your health which in turn will improve your ability to enjoy and interact with your children.

Are you in charge of taking the kids to their sports at the weekend?  Be prepared with bottles of water and healthy snacks such as fruit, cheese sticks or cereal bars to hand out when they complain they're "starving!" 

Try as often as possible to eat together as a family.  This doesn't mean with trays on your lap all watching the TV over dinner but really sitting together, eating, talking and making mealtimes a relaxed, fun family affair.  Research has shown that family meals help improve healthy eating, reduce the risk of obesity and reduce the chance of teens getting involved in substance abuse.  Just making the effort to sit and eat together whenever  possible brings families closer and makes parents more involved in their children's lives - healthy eating aside - it's worth it for this...

We value your input regarding meals and need you to back us up when we're encouraging our kids to eat healthily.  It's so important for their health, your health and your family's health - and you may even discover some new veggies you love!

So when you and the kids are preparing a meal for Mom on Mother's Day, please know that we really are very grateful (however the meal turns out!)