GO VEGGIE® cheese alternatives thumbs up or thumbs down?

GO VEGGIE® cheese alternatives thumbs up or thumbs down?  Hard to say.  The GO VEGGIE® Lactose & Soy Free Bars in the Sriracha was good with some crackers as a snack.  My 19 month old daughter even had some.  It comes in individual packaging so it's great for traveling with kids. Good thing is I got it for free from BzzAgent!

Here are highlights about the cheese from the company:

• 2 flavors: White Cheddar, Sriracha
• 50 calories each
• 40% more calcium than ordinary cheese
• 50% less saturated fat
• No cholesterol, gluten or lactose        

I found the GO VEGGIE® cheese and cream cheese in the produce section of Publix near the tofu.  Deciding on which cream cheese flavor was difficult.  I went with the chive & garlic and regret my decision.  The plain might have been better.  Normally I like the taste of dairy free products so I'm thinking it was just the flavor of the cream cheese that I did not like.  

My daughter enjoyed it!  My husband did not care for it but he loves his milk! For me it was just the flavor that I did not enjoy.  I would eat the cheese again though. #HealthierCheese #GotItFree

Raving Fan of Tropicana Vitamin C + Zinc

My husband and I like to make fresh squeezed OJ in our juicer. Since having my daughter, little over a year ago the juicer has been stored in the closet. We just do not have the time to make fresh squeezed OJ these days. On Friday we received our #tryforfree Tropicana Vitamin C + Zinc bottle of juice. It has three times as much Vitamin C and is made without added sugars, water or preservatives, Tropicana Vitamin C & Zinc has 3x as much Vitamin C as regular OJ. That must be why it tastes so good! My husband's comment was, "is it just me or does this taste really good?"

Even our daughter could not get enough in her sippy cup. We finished off the bottle in 3 days! Eventually we will go back to making our own fresh juices! In the meantime we will be purchasing more Tropicana.

Crest® Pro-Health Advanced Mouthwash + Extra Whitening

Carrots, Kale and Sweet Potato

Carrots, Kale and Sweet Potato -  Baby Recipe

This is a super easy recipe and great for Baby!

My Baby is anemic so I have added Kale, Spinach and chickpeas to her diet.

For this recipe I took:

• 1 carrot
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 kale leaf

Steamed it in Cuisinart Baby Food Maker for 25 minutes and then chopped it up to my desired consistency!  You may freeze in ice cube trays or fancy 2 oz glass containers.  So easy to pack up in the morning for day care!  Baby loves this recipe.

Easy Healthy Baby Recipe

Avocado and Banana 

Take a fresh ripe banana and ripe avocado and mush together!

So simple and tasty! Baby will love it and you will feel good about what you are feeding her.

Organic Baby Recipe

Veggie Lentil Medley

Makes 1 1/2 cups or 12 1- ounce servings

- 1 cup butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 - to 1-inch pieces
- 1/2 cup carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-to 1 inch pieces
- 1/4 cup sliced celery
- 1/2 cup cooked lentils

add 1/4 cup parsley for extra flavor (still yummy without)

1. If you have a baby food processor like the Cuisinart Baby which I highly recommend you can use it to steam and chop all at once. Use 225 ml water. The Cuisinart Baby makes clean up easier, only one thing to wash when you are done!

2. Put the squash, carrots, parsley and celery into the work bowl fitted with the steam blade bowl with lid.

3. Once steaming is done, add the lentils to the bowl and process until it is the desired consistency for Baby!

4. Lentils are a great protein source for your Baby! You can save some cooked ones and add them to your puree if you want to thicken it up.

5. I freeze them in ice cube trays and take them out each day to bring to day care!

Best Butternut Squash Soup

- butternut squash

- 5 shallots

- chicken broth

- olive oil

- salt and pepper

Optional:

- greek yogurt

- chives

Preheat oven to 350

Pour chicken broth into pot, put on low heat

1. cut off the ends, peel the squash and cut in half lengthwise

2. scoop out seeds and dark pulp/flesh (looks like a pumpkin)

3. cut the squash into 1-inch cubes

4. peel shallots and cut in half (try to keep the same size as the squash pieces, and set aside)

5. place only squash on a baking sheet and drizzle olive oil, salt and pepper (use your hands or a spatula to make sure all pieces are coated in oil and salt and pepper)

6. bake for 30 mins.

7. open oven and add shallot pieces coated in oil and salt and pepper (these cook quicker than squash, so they are added later)

8. bake for 15 mins more (check the squash, if you can put a fork thru a piece easily, it's ready, and should have brown edges from roasting)

9. remove baking sheet and transfer 1/2 of the squash/shallots to the Blender, add 2-3 ladles of warm broth and blend (be careful with the heat, be sure to remove the cap while blending to allow heat to escape. You can add more broth if too thick. Once blended smooth and creamy, pour into a fresh pot that and keep on low-heat)

10. repeat (unless you have a massive blender, you have to do this in batches)

11. once all blended and in the new pot, adjust seasonings or add more broth to thin out the soup. stir and serve.

Serve with a dollop of yogurt and diced green chives on top