Breakfast of Champions & A Giveaway

Sunny, warm weather means it’s time to break out the blender.  I don’t know about you but I cannot drink smoothies during the cold Winter months!

I was in search of a protein powder to add to Spring/Summer smoothies – one that would provide protein, fiber, and didn’t have added sweeteners (natural or artificial).   I stumbled upon Manitoba Harvest Hemp Pro Fiber and am happy I gave it a try.

This powder packs a punch:

One serving (4 Tbsp.) includes 54% of your daily recommended fiber intake (14 g) and has 11g of protein, and adds up to only 130 calories, 3.5g of fat (0.5 Saturated, 0 Trans, 2.5 Polyunsaturated, 0.5 Monounsaturated).  Total carbs are 14g and here’s an added bonus…10% of daily recommended Iron, 4% Calcium, and 1% Vit C.  

The Manitoba Harvest powder is certified organic and vegan.

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It’s green, so it does cause your smoothie to look like this

I think the taste is a non-event when blended in with good things like frozen berries, banana, nut milk, etc.  Straight out of the jar, it almost has a freshly-mowed lawn smell to it.

The product website suggests using hemp protein powder as a flour substitute in baked goods…1/4 cup of the powder for every 1 cup of regular flour.  I haven’t tried that yet but what a great idea for muffins!

The nice folks at Manitoba Harvest recently sent me their Hemp Hearts to try.

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These little seeds can be eaten right out of the bag, added to baked goods, sprinkled on salads, added to smoothies, etc.  So far I’ve added to salads and used in my home-made granola bars (receipt to come).  I appreciated the addition of healthy omegas, protein, and fiber.

I didn’t know much about Hemp Hearts before receiving them.  Here are the details straight from Manitoba Harvest:

Hemp Hearts are packed full of protein with 10 grams of plant-based protein per 30 gram serving size. Hemp Hearts are a great way to get an ideal ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3‘s including the rare EFA known as Gamma-Linolenic Acid (GLA). Testimonials have shown that GLA alone helps with arthritis, joint mobility, eczema, hormonal balance, migraines, menopause in women, healthy cholesterol & blood pressure levels and even weight management. Check out our testimonial section to read for yourself.

Hemp food is extremely easy to digest. Hemp foods contain vitamins, chlorophyll, fiber, calcium and are rich in folic acid.

Have you tried hemp protein, Hemp Hearts, other Manitoba Harvest products?

Giveaway time – I’d like to spread the Hemp Heart love and send one reader a bag of Hemp Hearts.  (This is only open to U.S. residents.)

You can enter by doing any or all of these things:

1. Leave a comment below saying why you’d like to try the Hemp Hearts.

2. Follow @applesarteries on Twitter and leave a comment saying that you’re following me. (If you already follow me on Twitter, just leave a comment saying that.)

3. Follow @Manitobaharvest on Twitter and leave a comment saying that you’re following them.

4. Tweet the giveaway “I entered to win a bag of @manitobaharvest hemp hearts thanks to @applesarteries http://wp.me/p263ht-gP.”

You can enter through Thursday and the winner will be randomly selected.
Note:  Manitoba Harvest sent me one bag of Hemp Hearts to try.  I’m providing the bag to the giveaway winner.