The Nutritionist Reviews

February 28, 2014

U-Be-Livin-Smart Muffins Review and Giveaway

I have some super healthy and tasty muffins to share with you today. They are called U-Be-Livin-Smart and are nutrient dense muffins filled with real ingredients. I was blown away by the simple and healthy ingredient list and am excited to share these with you today. These muffins come in 4 different flavors: apple cinnamon with chia, Belgian chocolate with banana, orange cinnamon with mango and smoothie berry medley with chia seeds. My favorite flavor was the apple cinnamon with chia so I will share the nutrition information with you on those muffins. Ingredients include: sweet potato, Egg Whites, Avocado, Apple, Dates, Whey Protein Isolate, Orange , Banana, Blackberry, Cranberry, Blueberry, Pomegranate, Chia Seeds, Coconut, Natural Flavour, Cinnamon, Baking Soda, Baking Powder.  Each muffin is only 130 calories, 2.5 grams fat, 3 grams fiber, 8 grams sugar (from fruits and vegetables) and 7 grams of protein. These are gluten-free, nut-free and dairy-free. The mu

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February 27, 2014

So I have an announcement to make!!!

My husband and I have some news that I have been hiding from all of you for about 6 weeks now. I'll let the pictures do the talking.... Baby Hernandez- coming September 2014!!!! More details to come! 

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February 27, 2014

A3 Bars Review and Giveaway

By now, you know that I am big fan of trying all different kinds of bars. I recently found these bars called  A3 Bars  which come in fun, dessert-like flavors and are pretty low in calories. Personally, when it comes to selecting a bar, I like for it to be mostly under 200 calories. When it comes to the 300+ calorie bars, I find that they do not fill me up much more and I’m just consuming a ton of calories. I was sent their three flavors of bars to try: Peanut Butter and Jelly, Honey Graham S’Mores and White Lightening Marshmallow. Each of these bars have 110-150 calories per bar. This is very low which makes it a great snack if you just need a little something sweet.   My favorite of these bars is by far the peanut butter and jelly. It takes like a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich and is delicious. I had this at room temperature and heated up in the microwave and both ways were great. This bar has 150 calories, 15 grams sugar and 5 grams protein. It is higher in sugar

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February 26, 2014

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today, I am not going to be posting any reviews, giveaways or recipes here on The Nutritionist Reviews. Instead, I am taking time to say happy birthday to my Mom who is turning 50 today!!! Love you Mom! She is a big supporter of my blog and I'm sure will see this post. Also, my mom is on a really awesome journey to health including eating right and incorporating exercise! It is really great. We are celebrating with a fancy dinner out tonight and a party this weekend. Happy Birthday Mom!

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February 25, 2014

13 Healthier Kinds of Pie

I don't know about you, but I love pie. It is easily one of my favorite desserts. My favorite kinds are strawberry rhubarb, raspberry, my Mom's apple pie with homegrown apples and key lime pie. The thing about pie is that while it is always delicious, it is often high in fat, calories and sugar. One slice is easily 300-500 calories each. In collaboration with Foodie.com, I found 13 recipes for healthier versions of different kinds of pies. These pies look delicious and I want to try them soon when I need to make a dessert. I love all kinds of pie and will never turn down the opportunity for some pie. With healthier options available, you can eat pie guilt-free. Disclosure: This is a sponsored opportunity with Foodie.com. All opinions are my own.

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February 25, 2014

Eppa SupraFruta Sangria Review

I participated in an Influencer Program on behalf of  Mom Central Consulting  for Eppa SupraFruta Sangria. I received product samples to facilitate to my review and a promotional item to thank me for participating. I have reviewed the red Eppa SupraFruta sangria in the past and really liked it. This sangria can be found all over and I have purchased it before at Whole Foods. It is not too expensive and is fun and fruity for a party. This time, we were able to try the white sangria which I had not tried before. My husband and I took this sangria with us on Valentine’s Day. We went to an amazing concert ( George Strait ) and my husband had a glass of sangria before we went into the concert. We opened up the  Eppa SupraFruta  white sangria to try. My husband liked the fruity and sweet flavor of this sangria. It would be good for those who do not like dry wines and prefer a sweet alcoholic beverage. This would be awesome with white grapes, white nectarines and orange slices.

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February 24, 2014

PACT Review and Giveaway

**Big giveaway ahead- 7 pairs of high quality PACT women’s socks and 7 pair’s of men’s socks I was recently sent some PACT products to try and I have nothing but amazing things to say about all of them. PACT sells socks for men and women, underwear, tank tops, leggings and more. Their products are all made of organic cotton. For my review, I was sent a variety of products to try. My favorite items that I tried are the Fair Isle and the North Star leggings. They are well made, not at all see through and are very comfortable. These can of course be worn very casually or can be dressed up. I have been enjoying wearing these to work with a long sweater and pair of boots. The leggings are a bit more expensive that some at $30-$35 each. Due to the high quality, I think that they are worth it. My husband was excited to be able to try out some of the socks. Any socks with patterns we call “teacher socks”. The reason is because when Troy became a teacher, he got really excited to

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February 23, 2014

Brooklyn Brew Shop Review

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial. My husband and I had never made our own beer before but loved the idea of doing so. My parent’s have been making their own wine for over 10 years and have made beer a few times before. I found the company  Design 55  and became interested in trying out their beer making kit. We were sent a kit to make a gallon of IPA beer. It is supposed to have a citrusy aroma with Columbus and cascade hops. The beer will be 6.8% alcohol. The kit comes with:   1 Gallon Glass Fermenter, Airlock, Tubing, Thermometer, Tubing Clamp, Packet of Sanitizer, Stopper and Blowoff Attachment. Right now, the beer is bottled and my husband will be able to try it soon. It was a long process to get to where the beer is now. The hops had to be cooked for a long period of time and monitored closely. I do not think that it was the amount of work that we minded so much but more of that after all of this work, it only made a gallon of beer w

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February 22, 2014

Trident Dental Health + Giveaway

Disclosure: I am being compensated by Trident Gum for this campaign in relation to Mom It Forward Blogger Network . Oral health is so important yet many people do not know a lot about how to protect their teeth. Trident gives some information on teeth and how they can help you and your kids keep their mouths healthy. I am a big fan of Trident and have been chewing it my entire life. I remember when I was young, my Busia (grandma in Polish) would always buy my siblings and I trident gum. My favorite flavors are spearmint and the original peppermint. ·          Did you know that Trident was the first sugar-free gum in the US. It has been around for 50 years and helps people maintain oral health. ·          Chewing Trident gum can help to fight cavities. ·          Trident is part of an ongoing 10 year partnership with the SmilesAcross America program which helps provide oral disease prevention services for children in poverty. Trident has donated more than $2.5 million t

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February 22, 2014

New Whole Foods Products

  I was recently contacted to try some new products that Whole Foods is carrying. I was excited to try these since Whole Foods is my favorite grocery store and I am a huge fan of most of their products. That’s It fruit bars  - These all natural fruit bar snacks use only real fruits as ingredients. They are made with only non-GMO foods and offer two whole servings of fruit in a convenient portable snack. Each bar is 100 calories which makes a great small snack. I was sent the apple and banana bar to try. I had tried the other flavors in the past which I really like. The banana and apple bar had a strong banana flavor which was tasty. I do prefer the other flavors better such as the cherry and apple.   Amazing Grass Chocolate Chip Coconut Whole Food Energy Bar   -This energy bar includes antioxidant rich fruits and vegetables, combined in a bar that will satisfy your hunger and deliver nutrients to your body the way Mother Nature intended...unprocessed, organic and delicious.  T

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February 21, 2014

belVita Review and Giveaway

I have reviewed the crunchy belVita breakfast biscuits before but had never tried the chewy ones. When I was contacted by belVita, I was excited to try these new-to-me cookies out.  Their products come in 4 flavors: blueberry, apple cinnamon, oat and cinnamon brown sugar. The soft baked varieties come in oats and chocolate and mixed berry. I like that these are chewy and they are good warmed up. belVita has a campaign going on right now where they focus on celebrating little victories also know as #MorningWin. Here are some of my Morning Wins: -Every day this week before work, I have gotten up early to exercise. I know that it helps me to feel my best for the day and even though it is super hard to get out of bed sometimes, I try to get in at least 15 minutes of walking before work. -I have been choosing healthy breakfasts each day (today was a whole wheat English muffin with a fried egg, cheddar cheese and ketchup- yum!) to fuel me through my morning. -I have b

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February 20, 2014

Top 6 Brown Bag Lunch Ideas

I work as a dietitian full-time and bring my lunch to work everyday. I do this to save money as well as to have healthier foods on hand compared to going out to eat. Since I love variety, my meals differ greatly each day. This is the basic outline of foods that I bring: a snack for about 10 AM, 2 fruits, 1 vegetable, an entrée and another snack. I switch each of these foods up daily. Here are some of my favorite lunch combinations: 1. Big salad with a bunch of vegetables (spinach, romaine, broccoli, tomato, red peppers, carrots, cabbage, green onion, etc), chickpeas, homemade vinaigrette. On the side: greek yogurt, baby carrots, an apple and a clementine. 2. Spaghetti squash with pesto and Morningstar Farms veggie meatballs. 3. Morningstar Farms Greek veggie burger , whole wheat bun, mustard, lettuce, tomato, onion, olives (all assembled at work). 4. Leftover pasta with homemade tomato sauce, grapes, strawberries and celery sticks. 5. Taco salad with Morningstar

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February 19, 2014

Lightened Up Deviled Eggs

These lightened up deviled eggs are full of flavor with sun-dried tomatoes and are made healthier with less mayo! Deviled eggs have always been a food for special occasions in my family. My dad often makes them on Thanksgiving morning for the family to eat and we all love them. I was recently sent some Bella Sun Luci sun dried tomatoes and FollowYour Heart Vegenaise to try out. I had a hankering for deviled eggs so on a day off work, I whipped these light deviled eggs up. Lightened Up Deviled Eggs Ingredients: 10 eggs ¼ cup reduced fat mayo 3 tablespoons finely chopped sun dried tomatoes 1 tablespoon vinegar 2 tablespoons dill relish 1 ½ tablespoons yellow mustard 1 teaspoon black pepper Paprika for color on top Directions: Hard boil eggs. Once cooked, run under cold water. Immediately remove shells from eggs while they are still warm as it is easier this way. Cut eggs in half, remove yolks and add to a bowl (throw out two of the yo

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February 18, 2014

Staying Healthy this Winter with Insync Natural Probiotics

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  (#collectivebias) Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser. As I have blogged about before, I am a big fan of probiotics. When I have been on an antibiotic in the past, I have taken probiotics to help restore the good bacteria in my body. Probiotics are also recommended for those with digestive issues to help regulate digestion and for digestive system balance . I recommend these fairly often at the nursing home that I work at for my patients. Probiotics can not only help you when you are sick but can also help keep you healthy. Along with taking probiotics, there are many things that we can do to stay healthy in the winter. Here are some tips : Loving the apples and citrus fruit! -Eat a balanced diet- Just because summer produce is not available does not mean that you should skip out on your fruits and veggies. Choose meals

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February 18, 2014

Explore Asian Review

I was recently sent some Asian pasta to review from Explore Asian . This brand has unique types of organic noodles and bean pastas. Their products are gluten-free (some), vegan and organic. For my review, I was sent a few varieties of pastas to try. Unfortunately, my dachshunds broke into 3 of the bags and scattered little pieces of noodles all over my living room so I could not try some of the kinds. They have pasta made with soybeans, mung beans and black beans. This is not like your typical pasta because it is very high in protein- no meat needed in your dishes. I was able to try the organic lo mein wheat noodles. These can be used in Asian cuisine and in Western type dishes. For my meal, I decided to make a peanut stir-fry. I used purple cabbage, onions, mushrooms and celery. For the sauce, I added peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic and onion powder. It turned out really well. The noodles had a nice texture and were only slightly different than regular noodles. In the

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February 17, 2014

Yaktrax Pro Review and Giveaway

Here in Michigan for the last 2 1/2 months, it has been so snowy and cold. As a runner, I have been trying to not let the cold stop me but it is very difficult. On snowy and icy days, it can be downright dangerous to run outside. One day a couple of weeks ago, it was snowy but I felt the need to get outside and go for a run (cabin fever for sure).  I was sent a pair of Yaktrax to try which slip right over your running shoes to give you traction so that you do not fall. They have heavy-duty ice traction coils on the bottom of the Yaktrax for grip. These fit over my shoes perfectly and within a minute, I was ready to go. I cannot believe how awesome these are! I did not slip at all while wearing these. As long as I was in snow that was half an inch, they did not bother me to run with them. In areas with drifts of no snow, they felt funny on the pavement for a second but were not bad. I think that these Yaktrax are an amazing invention to help keep you safe in the winter bu

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February 16, 2014

Memphis The Musical

I posted about a month ago about The Addams Family musical at the Macomb Center for the Performing Arts. My husband and I enjoyed it so much. Prior to this, we have not been to many musicals or plays and this particular show blew us away. The theater was clean, the show was well organized, the acting was very good and the singing/songs were entertaining. Coming at the end of March, Memphis The Musical is coming to the Macomb Center for the Performing Arts. I had not heard about this show before but looked it up and it looks awesome. Here is some information about Memphis : “ From the underground dance clubs of 1950s Memphis , Tennessee , MEMPHIS is a TONY award-winning Broadway musical that bursts off the stage with explosive dancing, irresistible songs and a thrilling tale of fame and forbidden love. Inspired by actual events, MEMPHIS is about a radio DJ who wants to change the world and a club singer who is ready for her big break.” Memphis has won several a

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