The new year is officially here which means that the gyms are full of people who have vowed to make 2019 the year that they live better. Are you one of these people? While working out plays a vital role in losing and maintaining weight, and we have some great tips on working honey into your workout, nutrition is also key to achieving your lifestyle goals, and honey can help you out here too.
If you're trying to cut back on your sugar intake, honey is a great tool to have in your pantry. Because honey is one to 1.5 times sweeter than sugar, you can actually use less of it to achieve the same amount of sweetness.
In addition to diet and exercise, your own body plays an important role in living a better-for-you lifestyle. We hear the term thrown about a lot, but basically metabolism is how your body breaks down the foods you eat into energy to fuel it. There are a lot of ways to boost your metabolism, and one of the simplest is to eat breakfast, so we're going to share a series of blog posts with delicious honey-inspired recipes based around a central ingredient or theme to help inspire you to get your morning started off right.
This week's theme is smoothie bowls. While smoothies have been popular for a long time, the trend of smoothie bowls has seen a rise in popularity in recent years. A great way to slow down your morning and incorporate whole food nutrition, it is easy to see why they are becoming a favorite way to kick off the day. From chocolate and peanut butter to tropical flavors, we've got three smoothie bowls that are sure to please.
Ingredients:
For Smoothie:
- 1 banana, cut into large chunks, frozen
- 1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 cup of coconut milk
- 1/4 cup honey
Toppings:
- 1/2 cup fresh pineapple, diced
- 1 mango, sliced
- 1/4 cup toasted coconut
- 2 T macadamia nuts, toasted and chopped
- 2 tsp. chia seeds
Directions:
Blend the frozen fruit, yogurt, coconut milk, and honey until smooth and divide between two bowls.
Top each bowl with the fresh fruit, toasted coconut, macadamia nuts, and chia seeds. Eat immediately.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie Bowl
Ingredients:
For Smoothie:
- 2 frozen bananas
- 1 1/4 cup unsweetened chocolate almond milk
- 3 T honey
- 2 T peanut butter powder
- 2 T cocoa powder
- 1 T cocoa nibs
For Peanut Butter Honey Sauce:
- 2 T smooth peanut butter
- 2 T honey
- 1 T coconut oil, melted
Toppings:
- 1 banana, sliced
- 1/2 cup favorite granola
- 1 T roasted peanuts, chopped
- Drizzle of Peanut Butter Honey Sauce
Directions:
Whisk the Peanut Butter Honey Sauce ingredients together in a small bowl until smooth.
Blend all the smoothie ingredients in the blender until smooth and divide between two bowls.
Top each smoothie with sliced bananas, granola, and roasted peanuts, drizzle with the Peanut Butter Honey Sauce and serve.
Ingredients:
For Honeyed Almonds:
- 1 cup almonds, sliced
- 2 tsp. coconut oil (melted) or vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 T honey
- 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. kosher salt
For Smoothie:
- 1 frozen bananas, broken in half
- 1 avocado, peeled and pitted
- 2 cups baby spinach, loosely packed
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup honey
Toppings:
- 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced
- 1/2 cup grapes, sliced
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 2 tsp. hemp seeds
- Honeyed Almonds
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- Additional honey for drizzling
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 F.
Toss the almonds, oils, honey, and cinnamon together until almonds are coated. Spread on a parchment-lined sheet pan and sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake for 20 minutes, tossing once halfway through, remove and let cool.
Blend all the smoothie ingredients in a blender until smooth and divide between two bowls.
Top each bowl evenly with the fresh fruit and some of the Honeyed Almonds, a dollop of Greek yogurt, a sprinkle of hemp seeds, and a drizzle of honey.
We want to hear from you! Did you set any New Year resolutions for 2019? Sound off in the comments below.