Month: July 2019

GreenCupcake

Strawberry & Cream Marbled Smoothie – With Agave Nectar.

Green Cupcake

I made this super light smoothie as a nice way to start your day. I  have been asked how I marble these drinks and it is sooo simple that I wanted to share with you. The key is the texture of the smoothie and the puree in this instances. I used agave in the puree and that gave the puree a nice thick texture and allowed it to stick to the glass and not move around. The smoothie was very light. Here is what you will need : 1 frozen bananas, 1 cup almond milk and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Blend, Blend Blend!! Super simple! 

Now here is the tricky part, you take a tsp of Strawberry puree and run it along the inside of the glass to create a marble effect.

Then step 2 is easy, gently pour your smoothie into the cup and garnish with strawberries!

Blue Agave is a plant that is part of the succulent family. Known for its fleshy leaves it is often compared to an aloe plant. However it is recognized for its Blue tint. Agave nectar is one of the main ways to consume this plant. The nectar is a fantastic replacement sweetener. I love to use Agave nectar in baking and in smoothies but Agave is great to use in almost every senario.  Agave contains saponins and fructans. Saponins have anti-inflammatory and immune system-boosting properties. Fructan is a fiber that has many health benefits, including being effective in weight loss. It has a low impact on blood sugar and helps to increase satiety and decrease appetite. Another way to use Agave Nectar is by incorparating it into your skin care. It has been used for many years to remove dead skin cells and reduced the appearance of wrinkles. Agave is also the plant that Tequila is made from. Cheers to all these amazing benefits from such a pretty plant! 
I love Agave and use it in a ton of recipes, it was so good in this puree and gave just enough sweetness.

I hope you try this recipe and add agave into more recipes!! Guys it is sooooooo good 🙂

Tag me in your pictures on Instagram @greencupcaketo 🙂

Have a great afternoon my loves! XOXOXO

GreenCupcake

DIY COFFEE SCRUB | Body Polishing Scrub made with Coconut oil and Jojoba Oil.

Green Cupcake

Hey my loves! Happy Self-care Sunday!!! Summer has arrived and I have to share my favourite DIY. It is my Coffee Body polishing scrub. It is so simple to make with only 4 ingredients. You will love how bright and radiant your skin looks after using this scrub. 

I truly do not think I can live without Coffee, I have tried lol ! 😜 I have fell in deep love with café. I love trying different coffee  whenever I travel. One of my most unforgettable experiences was in the dominican republic on a excursion we stopped at one of the tour guides “tia’s” homes and she made the most incredible cup of cafe. I truly felt blessed to have met her and connected over cafe. Happy Sunday everyone I hope you are having your café and connecting.☕️ 💚💚💚

Coffee has so many benefits there is no surprise why it is the most popular beverage in the world. Coffee has high levels of antioxidants and has a great nutrient profile. Some of the super benefits of coffee include : 

1. Improved Energy levels. 

2. Can help you burn fat and improve your physical performance. 

3. Coffee contains important nutrients, including riboflavin, pantothenic acid, manganese, potassium, magnesium and niacin.

4. Coffee can reduce the appearance of cellulite, and has anti-aging properties.

5. Can lower the risk of Parkinsons, type 2 Diabetes, and alhezimers.

6. Coffee has calming effects the improve your mood.

I did not need much convincing to continue using coffee in my day to day life but these super benefits just made it that much easier! ****Turns on coffee maker*** 💃🏻☕️

What is your favourite coffee ?

Mine: Cafe Bustelo, omg sooo good 🥰😍

I posted my full tutorial for this amazing Coffee Scrub!!

My full tutorial on how to make this Amazing DIY Coffee Scrub

I wanted to share this DIY recipe with you so you could make it for yourself. Its so cheap and easy easy to make. I love products like anyone else but for me they sometimes have way to many fragrances and extra ingredients that can irritate my skin. This scrub is 4 simple clean ingredients and your skin will thank you!

Here is everything you will need :

4 tbsp of Coffee Grounds ( I used arabica coffee)

4 scoops/tbsp raw coconut sugar

4 tbsp coconut oil

3 tsp of jojoba oil

1 glass jar with a seal to keep your scrub fresh and dry in the shower.

IT IS SO SIMPLE!! All you will need to do is put all of your ingredients into the jar and give it a good mix.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog!! I hope you so try this coffee scrub. If you do please feel free to share on Instagram tag me in your pictures @greencupcaketo.

I hope you week is filled with a lot of love and joy! Have a amazing week!! XOXO!

GreenCupcake

DIY TIE DYE FRAPPUCCINO – SUMMER TREATS

Green Cupcake

DIY TIE DYE FRAPPUCCONO

Hey Loves! Welcome back to my channel. Today I wanted to share my take on the Starbucks Tie Dye Frappuccino. I created this colourful drink with almond milk and Vanilla Protein to make it non diary. It turned out incredible and was so easy to make. 

Here is what you will need: 

1 cup Almond Milk 

1 banana

1/2 cup ice

1 scoop plant based protein

1 tsp of Vanilla extract

1 drops Yellow food colouring. 

1 tsp of pink and blue food colour powder. 

1 tsp of sprinkles (optional) 

and lastly a blender of your choice. 

This was one of the more complex drink ideas I have decided to attempt. It is really impressive to look at but it wasn’t easy to get the food colouring powder to stick to the glass.

Here are my “simple” instructions:

First combine Bananas, Almond Milk , Protein Powder, Ice cubes and yellow food colouring. Blend away for 30 second.

Now is the fun part. Try to wet the inside of the cup so the food colouring powder will stick to the sides. I had to use a spoon to press the powder into the sides. It took a few minutes but it worked.

Then pour your Banana Frapp into the cup and watch the tie dye magic happen.

Here is my Youtube video showing the whole process start to finish.

Don’t forget to Subscribe for more beautiful recipes. ❤

This was so fun to make and now I want to experiment with other colour combinations. 

If you do try this recipe, I would love to see pictures!! Tag in me in them on instagram @greencupcaketo.

Have a great weekend everyone!! XOXO

GreenCupcake

Banana Sushi with Blueberries, and Almond Butter.

Green Cupcake

Happy Wednesday!! Go Bananas 🙂 

Banana sushi is such an impressive snack. It looks like you put a lot of effort into this tasty treat. One of my favourite food is sushi, but I don’t like the after feeling of carb overload. With this banana sushi you will have a boost of energy and feel truly satisfied!! This banana sushi is sweet and savoury. I added almond butter and greek yogurt  for additional protein. The banana is such a great fruit for the sushi. Bananas are one of the most consumed fruits world wide. They come is a number of shapes and sizes. Bananas are filled with tons of nutrients. The health benefits if Bananas is endless. It is no surprise they are so popular. 

Here are the top 10 benefits of Bananas. 

  1. Bananas are high in potassium and contain good levels of protein and dietary fiber.
  2. Fresh Bananas are available year-round. Super easy to incorporate into diet. 
  3. Bananas contain Pectin – a fibre that provides our flesh its spongy form. 
  4. Bananas can help moderate blood sugar levels after meals and may reduce appetite by slowing stomach emptying. 
  5. Bananas are rich in fibre and resistant starch, which may feed your gut good bacteria and protect against colon cancer. 
  6. Bananas are high in antioxidants that help reduce damage from free radicals and decrease the risk of some diseases.
  7. Bananas can help in recovery after exercise. Relieving muscle cramps and also provide excellent fuel for endurance exercise.

So ofcourse I couldn’t be more excited to share my variation of Banana sushi.

Here is what you will need: 

1 Banana 

2 tbsp Almond Butter 

1/2 Blueberries 

1 tsp Raw Honey

1/3 rolled oats 

1/3 Dragon friut

1/2 Greek yogurt – plain or blueberry flovor

Step 1: 

Slice Banana in half and remove seeds in centre to create space for the almond butter.

Step 2: 

Add almond butter into the banana space, and add a line of blueberries. Top with honey. 

Step 3: Place Banana half on to top the sushi. Now all your toppings. I added another layer of almond butter, and blueberries. I diced dragon fruit into cubes and added a cube to the tops.Sprinkled the toasted Oats for some texture.

Step 4: Carefully cut into rolls and Enjoy. I added greek yogurt as a side to dip your sushi roll into. 

These Banana Sushi were so good! I love that this sushi roll was a nice bitesized snack that is packed with nutrients. 

I have so many variations I can not wait to share with you.

Have you tried Banana Sushi before? What is your favourite type?

GreenCupcake

PINA COLADO CRYSTAL RING POPS with BCAA’s

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This summer I wanted to focus on sweet summer treats that are primarily plant focused recipes. I always think of ice cream or popsicles when I think of summer treats. I found these amazing crystal ring pop molds at the dollar store and they inspired this recipe. 

They are so cute, and nostalgic! The ring pop reminds me of being a kid again. I wanted to make the crystals on the ring pop look like a surprise was inside of them so I had just made some strawberry puree and I knew that both the puree and slices of fresh strawberries would look great with the coconut milk base. 

Nothing says summer to me more than pina coladas and the beach. I wanted to make these ring pops super tasty and boost your energy. I decided to add Pineapple BCAA (branch chain amino acids. Bcaa’s are used to activate protein synthesis and increase muscle recovery. Bcaa are fantastic for reducing exercise fatigue. I love to incorporate Bcaa’s into my water when working out to get the most out of my workouts. This was the perfect option to add to these ring pops. Coconut milk + Pineapple Bcaa = Pina Colada ring pops. ❤ 

These Ring pops are made with only 5 ingredients, and so easy to make.  I added Pineapple BCAA’s to the coconut milk to give the Pina Colada flavour. The molds are in crystal shapes but I wanted to add strawberries to add a little jewels to the ring pops. I added drops of strawberry puree to marble into the rings. These were incredible I felt like I was drinking a pina colada.

Here is everything you will need for 6 Ring pops.

1 cup of Full coconut milk

1 scoop of BCAA pineapple flavour

1/2 strawberries 

1 tsp lemon juice 

1 tsp of coconut sugar. 

Instructions: 

Combine coconut milk and BCAA until smooth, add sliced strawberries and puree. Freeze overnight. Next dip them in hot water to remove from the molds and ENJOY!!!!!!! 

Simple right!!!

I Posted my first Youtube Video!! This video gives you the super easy steps to make these incredible ring pops!! Don’t forget to LIKE AND SUBSCRIBE 🙂

Here is everything you will need for 6 Ring pops.

1 cup of Full coconut milk

1 scoop of BCAA pineapple flavour

1/2 strawberries 

1 tsp lemon juice 

1 tsp of coconut sugar. 

Instructions: 

Combine coconut milk and BCAA until smooth, add sliced strawberries and puree. Freeze overnight. Next dip them in hot water to remove from the molds and ENJOY!!!!!!! 

Pina Colada Crystal Ring Pops

Simple right!!! 

Follow my instagram page : @greencupcaketo 

Thank you for visiting!! Subscribe and Like for more amazing Videos. 

What is your favourite summer treat??

Pineapple has a high amounts of manganese, which is important for antioxidant process.  Pineapples are high  thiamin, a B vitamin that is involved in energy production. These naturally sweet fruit are packed with nutrients with vitamin C and Fibre being significantly high. Did you know that Pineapple contain great allergy fighting nutrient called Bromelain which helps reduce mucas in the nose and throat. Another amazing benefit of pineapple is it can be used both externally and internally to improve your skin condition, thanks to the great anti-inflammatory qualities of vitamin C, bromelain and special enzymes. Pineapple is full of amino acid tryptophan that your body uses to produce serotonin – the “happy hormone”. Pineapples has so many other fantastic benefits , but one of my favourites is this delicious fruit stands tall and even has its own crown!! That is a confident fruit. lol ! 

Now its time from the debatable question, PINEAPPLES on PIZZA? 

ME: OH BUT OFCOURSE, EXTRA PINEAPPLES!

GreenCupcake

Mint and Watermelon Mojito – Mocktail with Sparkling Water.

Green Cupcake

Summer Cocktails are so refreshing on a hot day. I love Mojitos because of the fresh limes and mint. I decided to add watermelon to this cocktail for some add nutrients and flavours as we know watermelon is rich in a amino acid called citrulline. Citrulline is a great source to boost your endurance and help aid in recovery time. So I thought since this mocktail is alcohol free and sugar free we will need a super boost of energy from the watermelon and mint.

Mint is known for its refreshing aroma and cooling taste. Mint has many plants in the mint family like the most common ones spearmint, and peppermint. All the mint plants belong to a family called “mentha”. The health benefits of menthe are amazing. Mentha is a soothing and calming herb that has been used for centuries to sooth upset stomachs. Another fantastic benefit of mentha is how nutrient rich this powerful herb is. Since mint isn’t typically consumed in large amounts I was happy to know for a cup of tea you would getting a good amount of your daily required nutrients for Folate, Manganese, Iron, and Vitamin A.  Peppermint is my favourite essential oil and it packed major health benefits. Peppermint oil has been been shown to improve brain function such as alertness and improved memory. My favourite use for peppermint oil is to diffuse the oil when I have low energy. The aroma invigorates me by allowing me to feel energized and less fatigued. 

I love how this Mojito turned out, It was extremely satisfying!! The best part I didn’t need a huge blender or shakers. I used a traditional marble morter and pestle. So easy!!

Here is everything you will need! 1 cup of watermelon, 1 lime, and 12 leaves of mint. 1 sprig to garnish.


Step 1: dice watermelon, limes and mine. Put in Morter and muddle until the liquify.

Step 2: Fill glass with ice and pour watermelon juice over ice. Fill with sparkling water.

Step 3: Garish with extra mint sprig and mini water melon slices. CHEERS!

How do you like your summer cocktails?

What is your favourite Summer drink?

GreenCupcake

Cherry and Chocolate Overnight Oats.

Green Cupcake

Overnight Oats are so refreshing and super satisfying. If you do prep your meals this would be fantastic to do for the next few days. Overnight oats are really great year around, especially during the warmer months. I have tried a number of different combinations and this Cherry and Chocolate recipe is my favourite.

There are so many options to add like Oats and Chia Seeds. For this recipe I chose to just use rolled oats.

Oats are a whole grain food and are also gluten free. They are a great source of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Oats contain more protein and fat than most grains. So other nutrients oats are packed with are Mangenese, Magnesium, Iron, Folate and B1 (thiamin).  Oats are rich in Antioxidants and contain a powerful Soluable fibre called “ Beta Glucan”.

Beta-glucan fibre has been proven to reduce LDL and Cholesterol levels and reduce blood sugar. Another benefit of eating oats is the gut response to beta glucan. Beta Glucan promotes the release a peptide YY which is a hormone that is proceeded when eating.  This hormone is a Satiety hormone that will help reduce calorie intake and make you full quicker. I love to incorporate oats into many baked goods to increase the fibre. I even add oats to my smoothies or smoothie bowls. Most people prefer rolled, crushed or steel-cut oats due to the faster cooking times. How do you like to prepare your oats?  Muffins? granola ? 

One of my favourite reason to make overnight oats is the simplicity of it. You take it out of the refrigerator top it with your favourite fruit and you have a hearty meal that will giving you tons of energy.

Overnight Oats in 3 steps :

Step 1 : Pour 1/2 cup of rolled oats into mason jar. 1/2 Almond Milk. 1 tsp of vanilla extract. Cover oats and refrigerate overnight.

Step 2: The next day, Take oats out of refrigerator and give the oats a stir. I added a scoop of diary free vanilla yogurt.

Step 3: Chop up cherries, and chocolate. Top your oats and Enjoy!

How simple was that? What is your favourite Overnight Oats Combination?

GreenCupcake

Vegan Tacos with Vegan sour cream

Green Cupcake

It is my favorite day of the week ” TACO TUESDAY “. LOL! This week keeping with the theme I wanted to focus on Plant based protein. I chose to incorporate Legumes into these delicious tacos. I had some leftover kidney beans and know those would be perfect for the tacos. Legumes are High in Fibre and packed with protein. Eating Legumes and beans can be a life saver on a plant based diet. They are a good source of a complex carbohydrate so you will find them highly satisfying. The actual legumes definition is: “the fruit or seed of plants of the legume family (such as peas or beans) used for food.”  They have so many options to choose from so it is no surprise they have become a staple in Vegetarian and Vegan cooking. Legumes can also aid in Weightloss and promote gut health due to the high fibre content. They have also been proven to stabilize blood sugar and promote heart health.  Some of my favourite legumes are  chickpeas, Kidney beans , peas, and lentils. 

I went out to the garden and pick some fresh herbs to spice these tacos up. I picked some green onion, cilantro , and basil. I also couldn’t resist adding some spinach.

Fresh herbs from the Garden.

I made my own taco seasoning so it is low sodium. I used my seasoning on the grilled peppers and onions with tsp of olive oil in the oven for 15 mins. Then I added the kidney beans that were already cooked for the lasted 10 mins.

Here is the taco seasoning recipe:

3 Tbsp Chilli Powder

1 Tbsp Cumin Powder

1 Tbsp Garlic Powder

1 Tbsp Onion Powder

1 Tsp Cayenne Powder

1 Tsp Paprika Powder

1/2 Tsp Pepper Powder

Combine all ingredients and store in a mason jar. This taco seasoning is Spicy!! How do you like your tacos?

I love homemade Pico de gallo. I wanted to top these tacos with something fresh and this pico de gallo is perfect! It is so simple to make only 4 ingredients. Here is what you will need : 1 large Tomato cubed, 1/2 white onion diced, 1 lime, and Cilantro. Thats it! In a bowl mix the tomato, onion and cilantro together. Then squeeze your lime and mix together. place in refrigerator to chill before serving.

Plating your taco is the best part! I layered the onions peppers and kidney beans on the bottom, added a bed on spinach and topped with the pico de gallo. I bought the vegan sour cream which was delioucis! But I will need to work on my own recipe very soon!

These tacos were packed with protein and so flavourful! Who said Taco’s can’t been healthy??

How do you make your favourite tacos?

Happy Taco Tuesday ❤

ENJOY!!!

GreenCupcake

Green PB & J Smoothie.

Green Cupcake

Green Smoothies are a great way to start your day. I love trying new ingredients and making new variations of the smoothie but this Green PB AND J smoothie has been one recipe I keep coming back to. It reminds me of a Peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a smoothie. This recipe was not intentional at all. When I tried it it brought me back to my childhood. I love Peanut butter and Jelly but don’t tend to make them anymore. Its nice to have it in smoothie form.

Smoothies are great because you can load them with tons of nutrients. I chose to use a nut butter is this smoothie. I want this smoothie to have protein and healthy fats.

Getting my daily protein in can seem challenging because I  have eliminated meat and diary from my diet. This week I want to focus all of my recipes on natural sources of plant based protein. Some amazing benefits of nuts and seeds are the are packed with nutrients. A great example is the  brazil nut, Just one nut is more than the daily recommended intake for selenium providing over 100% of the nutrient. Another benefit you may not think about when you think about nuts and seeds is they have anti inflammatory properties. One of the more obvious benefits is the great source of fibre. My favourite benefit of of nuts and seed is the Versatility! You can never get bored with them. You can have them in nut butter, toasted, raw, chopped and so much more.

For this recipe I chose Almond Butter and Almond milk.

Here is everything you will need:

Ingredients: 

1 Ripe Banana 

1/2 avocado 

1/2 almond milk 

1 tbsp almond butter 

1/3 cup strawberries 

1/2 cup ice cubes

1 tsp spirulina powder

1 scoop of strawberry protein powder. 

Now all you have to do is blend and enjoy this amazing smoothie. ❤

What is your favourite nut butter? I hope you give this recipe a try!! Thank you for visiting the blog.

GreenCupcake

Strawberry & Spinach Salad with Honey Balsamic Dressing and Spicy Almonds.

Green Cupcake

We just celebrated Canada day!! Happy Canada Day 🙂 We had a small family BBQ and I decided to make a fresh salad. I love salads and other sides. I usually don’t plan these recipes in advance so I went out to the garden and was soooooo excited at how much spinach we had. I picked a good amount of spinach. I remembered we had fresh strawberries from strawberry picking that would pair nicely with spinach.

Here is a snap of the Spinach growing like crazy.

Spinach is my favourite leafy green for so many reasons. It has so many fantastic health benefits.

6 Health Benefits of Spinach.

I loved how this salad and dressing turned out. It was so light and refreshing. I loved that it was fresh from the garden. I felt really good about growing my own vegetables. I am so looking forward to the rest of the garden veggies that are growing nicely. I have so many ideas for recipes. This Strawberry and Spinach salad had so many flavours. Sweet from the strawberries, Tangy from Balsamic Vinegar, Savoury from the Spinach and Spicy from the almonds. I will have to make this salad again very soon.

This salad was so easy to prepare, here is everything you will need for the salad, dressing and spicy almonds.

This salad was so easy to prepare, here is everything you will need for the salad, dressing and spicy almonds.

Serving 6 people

Salad :

2 cups of Spinach 

1 sweet onion 

1/2 cup of strawberries 

Dressing : 

1 cup of olive oil

2 tbsp of Balsamic Vinegar 

2 cloves of garlic 

1 tsp of red chilli flakes 

1 tsp of raw honey

1 pinch of salt

1 pinch of pepper

1 tsp raw cane sugar

Almonds:

1/2 cup of raw almonds

1 tbsp of honey

1 tsp of cayenne pepper 

1/3 cup of lemon juice 

The salad is best served chilled so I prepared it and placed in a large serving bowl and refrigerated for an hour. To start you will need to wash and dry spinach throughly. I rinse well in a strainer and shake out excess water. Then Slice onion into slices and break apart so you get little rings. Chop strawberries into 4ths and assemble your salad.  Simple right? 

For the dressing you will need a food processor of you can grate garlic and mix by hand alternatively. In the food processor mince the garlic. Add olive and vinegar and blend. Add the spices and sugar and blend until everything is combined. Place Dressing in a jar and place in the fridge. 

Pre-heat your oven to 350, and line a baking pan with parchment paper. In large bowl mix honey, lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Add Almonds and mix until every almond is coated. Place in over for 35 mins. 15 mins in flip the almonds to ensure both sides are toasted.  Allow to cool before transferring to bowl so they don’t stick to each other. 

When you are ready to serve you can add almonds and dressing to the salad. Give it a final toss and let your guest enjoy. 

Do you like fruit in your salad? What do you like more Sweet or savoury?

Have a great weekend and enjoy the beautiful weather. 🙂