4 Sandwich Ideas

1. Grilled miso tofu with sprouts, pumpkin seeds, balsamic glaze and cheese

2. Organic turkey, cheese, red bell peppers and dill with a pepper cream sauce (made with 2% fage yogurt and bell peppers)

3. Fava or hummus with olives, pumpkin seeds, tomato and sprouts

4. Chicken salad (made from last night's chicken and mixed with bell pepper and yogurt or light mayo if you prefer) with cheese and cabbage/lettuce

The Magical Seed- Pumpkin

Today I got home from a cold, wet, rainy day in the town center. I am starving and when looking in the fridge I know I would like to eat something warm and something nutritious. We are going to a family dinner tonight so I also want to eat light. Here is my remedy: two small onions, one green bell pepper and half a head of cabbage diced into small pieces and thrown on the stovetop with a balsamic and olive oil glaze. Then I top it off with some fresh light Greek cheese and pumpkin seeds.

What is it with me and pumpkin seeds this week? Well, these little seeds are great for your body. I have listed a few reasons below:

1. A full handful of pumpkin seeds contains 92% of your daily value of magnesium- a mineral most of us lack and that is essential to good health. Magnesium also helps to keeps the immune system healthy, strengthens bones and helps regulate blood pressure and sugar levels

2. High in zinc- a natural protector to osteoporosis

3. Contains phytosterols, which has been shown to reduce both LDL cholesterol and cancer

4. Contains L-tryptophan, a compound which has been proven to combat depression

So eat your pumpkin seeds!! You body (as well as your mother) will thank you :)

I Love Cupcakes- DELICIOUS cupcake store in Glyfada

Well, we truly believe that we have tried the best cupcakes in Athens yet!

I Love Cupcakes is located in Glyfada (south of city center in Athens) and is run by the loveliest women- Elli and Amalia. I had the chance to meet Elli today and she was darling. She recommended the chocolate cupcake- as it is one of their best sellers. I had already chosen my four cupcakes, so I promised I would come back and try that particular cupcake next time.

The store is very inviting, the packaging cutsey and memorable. Now the most important part was the taste of the cupcakes. These were definitely homemade- the cake was moist and the frosting fresh and DELICIOUS! We tried the banana, brownie, oatmeal cheesecake, and red velvet. YUM, YUM, YUM!! And I really loved the brownie cupcake- there was an actual brownie on the top, which was divine, and the chocolate frosting really hit home. If you are an Athens local please do yourself a favor and grab one of these cupcakes. I believe that a good dessert is worth gold and even though the cupcakes might seem a bit pricey, up to 3.50 Euro/each, these cupcakes are a real treasure and worth every penny. I will give up my Starbucks drink for one of these goodies any day! Great job ladies :)

For the love of jars...

We had our weekly excursion to IKEA tonight and we delighted in the purchase of jars. So what exactly will we do with these jars? Well, we will organize our kitchen cabinets, by filling these jars with healthy ingredients such as lentils, quinoa, and pumpkin seeds (as seen in the picture.) By having such jars I am able to see what is in the cabinet and can therefore quickly whip up new creative recipes. Some other ingredients we currently have in jars include: natural granola, high fiber cereal, quaker oats, flax seeds, polenta, and other various nuts and seeds.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Tonight we made lettuce wraps with fresh chicken from the biological store. I feel it is very important t make sure that the meat you consume has been both raised and treated properly. Much of the mainstream chicken is full of antibiotics and hormones and crammed in cages so small that the chickens cannot even move. Remember you are consuming this energy and it will pay off in the long run to pay a few euros more and keep unhealthy meat out of your system. Plus your purchases show manufacturers what is important to you, so make your purchases count. This goes for eggs too!

Tonight- we made healthy low- calorie wraps. The contents included: grilled chicken, cut up bell pepper (red is my favorite because it is sweet), sauteed onions with organic corn, olive oil and cumin, homemade sour cream and fresh cheese topped with pumpkin seeds. If we had avocados on hand I would have made guacamole, which always tastes good with this dish. You can get creative and put anything in your wrap: sun-dried tomatoes, nuts/seeds, and among other things, various types of cheese or sauces. By wrapping this meal in iceberg lettuce, as opposed to tortillas, the meal stays a bit leaner and if you are in the mood, you can save room for dessert! We also boiled seasonal greens and topped with lemon and olive oil as a side dish.

Due to a sugar filled weekend we had planned to lay off the desserts for a few days, however today I did wander into the store "I Love Cupcakes" in Glyfada and I bought 4 cupcakes.I could not resist! We will be testing these yummy concoctions in the next 24 hours :))