How Cheese Got It's Groove Back: Nuttin Ordinary

I'm always asked if there's anything that I miss being vegan now.  At first, I missed a good piece of fish and my eggs scrambled hard with cheese in the morning but then I discovered the breakfast and brunch options that varied from the norm (not to mention the wonderment of avocados) and after that, the non-vegans cravings subsided.  I used to levitate towards the smell of bacon, but now I salivate over the the smell of garlic-roasted veggies.  Admittedly, eating vegan is made out to be a huge laborious undertaking especially when you read product labels and realize they put something from an animal in everything, but all in all there are many delicious substitutes that make you not miss the meat or dairy at all.  However, as with anything there are bad eggs in the bunch (no pun intended) and not all vegan food is healthy food, but after awhile and through moderation you get a better sense of the kind of vegan that meshes with your will.

Well I discovered Nuttin Ordinary recently and I must say that they are certainly not one of the bad eggs in the bunch.  Here I was thinking that my staple breakfast while in high school, a bagel with cream cheese, was to never be enjoyed by me again and then in comes this great product line.  Nuttin Ordinary is a line of 100% plant-based cashew cheeses that are just simply amazing.  Of all the nuts used to make vegan products I must say that I've found cashews to produce the creamiest end results. This is one of the reasons why Nuttin Ordinary is so delicious.  The creamy texture of these spreadable cheeses are so great for lathering onto a bagel, crudités-dipping and sandwich-topping.  The other reason that makes Nuttin Ordinary so flavorful is that it keeps the ingredients simple and to a minimum while having no gluten or preservatives.

That's something that sets it apart in the fast-growing vegan product world.  It's taken the simplicity of the ingredients and created something that is familiar to non-vegans and vegan alike without bizarre additives.  The results are the smooth and buttery consistency of their stellar Original flavor, the herbal loveliness of their Italian Herb flavor and the zesty fire kick of their Spicy flavor.  My post-vegan bagel has found a wonderful friend to fill the void.  

Nuttin Ordinary is now available at Fairway, Wholefoods, Wegman's and MOM's and for a list of other locations please check out the company site here. 

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Dave White

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Motivation Akin To Hydration: Ultima Replenisher

So with the official start of Summer only a little bit more than a month away and the unofficial start of Summer being almost a week ago, let me pose some questions to you.  How have you been working to A) maintain that beach body or B) turn that holiday dad body into that DILF body?  Well without knowing what your means to your chiseled, toned, bulked-up or tightened ends will be, I hope that your motivation has been strong and unyielding.  That's a big part of it though right?  Your motivation!  Lack of it can keep you in bed when you should be up and at the gym.  Lack of it can make you fall into the comparison trap and make you not think it's happening fast enough like it is for others.  Then lack of it can make you yo-yo like a mo-fo and not see contented results.  However, there's another aspect to consider.  

Ever on the expressway and run out of gas or ever printing out a 20 page document and run out of paper or ink on the 8th page?  Well sometimes we run out of steam which can literally render our motivation dismal.  There's something to be said about equipping oneself to start off on the most beneficial foot as possible.  That means, if your motivation is high then don't let over-exhaustion creep in and kill it.  This is exactly why it's important to stay well-hydrated during your fitness regimen.  However, since we can often sweat more water than we can drink during a workout it's important to stay clean hydrated without ingesting substances that could cause post-workout crashing.  This is exactly why an awesome product like Ultima Replenisher is a fitness must.  

Admittedly I am not a huge sports drink fan and reason being is the salt taste.  Ultima Replenisher is an electrolyte-rich powder that combats the excessive salt by being a healthy alternative to many fitness-centered drinks and methods that are loaded with sugar, salt, caffeine, preservatives and artificial ingredients.  Naturally sweetened with stevia leaf, Ultima Replenisher has nothing artificial and has very low sodium since the average person's diet consists of at least 2000mg of sodium.  The formula that makes this product so great is the presence of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and low doses of sodium and chloride including support minerals that create such an electrolyte-rich product that you're able to get clean healthy hydration essential for proper muscle performance and fitness-brain function.   

The end result is a powder that dissolves easily in water, tastes natural and not medicinal/synthetic and is packaged ready for a home workout in an assortment of conveniently-sized tubs or a gym workout in on-the-go travel packets that can slip conveniently into the tiny pocket of your running shorts or your gym bag.  Five vegan, non-GMO, gluten-free, paleo/keto friendly flavors in lemon, cherry pomegranate, orange, grape/raisin and raspberry are available now to suit your palate.  For more information on the amazing Ultima Replenisher check out their website here. With such a great and useful product that offers zero carbs, zero, calories and zero sugar, as long as you keep up that motivation, you now have zero excuses.

www.UltimaReplenisher.com

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Dave White

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This Wine's Got An Interesting Story To Tell: 1000 Stories Wines

On a typical rainy Spring evening in New York, a lot can be found nestled in the little nooks and crannies of the city streets.  Delightful little eateries with locally-sourced specials, goodnight kisses had under the awnings of Old-World high-rises and the little peeks of west and eastside sky-line pushing their way through the dusky fog. 

It was on such an evening in classic New York fashion that I found myself tucked behind a beautifully arranged table for sixteen at the wonderfully hidden Fine & Rare at 9 East 37^th St.  Usually the restaurant can be found offering up cool live jazz-infused acoustics to go with your pappardelle Bolognese and burrata heirloom tomato salad.  However, on this night I was ushered to the back of the restaurant to that grand table and intimately introduced to a wonderful collaboration of wine and spirit for the palette in the form of 1000 Stories Wines.  

1000 Stories is a line of exquisite and well-executed wines that distinguish themselves from the lot as they are aged in bourbon barrels.  The fineness of the grape meets the distilled beauty of the bourbon in 1000 Stories and creates broad flavor profiles that pull from the diversity of the loveliness of zinfandel and Bordeaux grapes and merges them with the lingering and definitive essences of oaky, sweet and herbal bourbon.  On that evening, winemaker and co-founder of 1000 Stories, Bob Blue gave a verbal soft-sell of how the brand came to be and then walked us though an exclusive tasting of the brand’s renowned line-up together with one of its latest, The Prospector’s Poof.

We started the pre-dinner tasting with a 2016 Zinfandel Batch 42, a peppery full rounded fruity wine then moved onto 2016 Zinfandel Batch 52, a wine sourced from grapes all over the Californian Redwood and Sanel Valleys that carried a welcomed depth that grapes from this Mendocino Region are recognized for. Then onto 2016 Zinfandel Batch 54 which was smoother yet carried a delightfully weighted depth while being soft and satisfying on the palette.  The 2017 Gold Rush Red was strong and full-bodied with its mélange of intense and bold grapes from the California Hills.  Finishing off the bunch was the 2017 The Prospectors Proof Cabernet Sauvignon another bold wine with the spiced pop of vanilla and fragrant herbs from the bourbon barrels.  With each wine it was important to note the presence of the grape characteristics and the presence of the bourbon attributes working together.  With the lesser-bodied wines, the sharp higher tannin zinfandels in their various aged stages allowed hints if the bourbon notes to carry through more while the Gold Rush and Prospector’s Proof carried weights that created a harmonious intermingling of full flavor.  Altogether, it was an evening of wine lessons that, when combined with the guests’ wine understandings, left us all with our favorites and a greater appreciation for brands like 1000 Stories that has found a way to make a wonderful staple even better.

www.1000StoriesWines.com

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Dave White

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