You know it's the holiday season...when the cartons of clementines arrive!

Yum! My favorite time of the year for citrus fruit...those delicious, juicy and easy to peel clementines are here!

Not only are these little delicious oranges easy to eat...they are easy to pack for lunches, grab on the run...or in other words...are an EASY way to increase your fruit/vegetable intake. Most of adults should be getting upwards of 8-10 fruit/vegetable servings daily. Unfortunately, most Canadians are lucky if they get in 2-3.

Why are they so important? Fruit & Vegetables are jam-packed with nutrition--high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fibre! Just to mention a few! Not only are they nutritious, but they are also lower calorie options than many other food items! Which means we can eat more of them, without the same calorie damage. (This does exclude deep fried vegetables and cheese sauce over the broccoli...haha).

Sooo, chances are you need to work on the fruit/vegetable intake....grab a few clemetines and you are well on your way! Not to mention a great source of Vitamin C which always helps in this immunity-based craze we are all experiencing now with H1N1!

Snow...yes I said Snow.

Well, it's officially winter season. We had our first snow fall today...not a lot...but enough to make drivers panic and the ground white!

Nothing like a mug of hot chocolate on a cool, chilly day! If you have ever looked at any of the pre-packaged hot chocolate mixes, there are more ingredients that I can't pronounce, than ones I can!

My new favorite winter chocolate fix: Dark Hot Chocolate mix by Just Us! All organic ingredients and no crazy chemicals.

Time for a mug of hot chocolate! Cheers!

Recipe of the Week

Recipe of the Week: Spicy Roasted Chickpeas

This might sound like a weird snack to some of you; however, for those of us that want a crunchy healthy snack...these are a great option! Snack on them by themselves or throw them on top of salad for a high protein, high fibre snack!

Ingredients:
- 2 cups chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp maple sugar flakes
- 1.5tsp cumin
- 0.5tsp coriander
- 0.25tsp cinnamon
- 0.25tsp each, salt & pepper
- pinch of cayenne pepper

Instruction:
- Preheat oven to 425F
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl, toss well to coat
- Spread chickpea mixture on foil-lined baking sheet
- Roast in oven for about 20-25min (until golden and toasted), stirring about halfway through
- Cool and store in air-tight container (refrigerate until serving)

Nutrition Analysis: per 2/3 cup serving
140 cal, 5g fat, 4g fibre, 6g protein, 460mg sodium