Testing, testing.. FAST Pudding

FAST Pudding is a new protein product, launched by FAST Sport Nutrition in October-November 2012. Finnish personal trainers, fitness models and competitors have been "hyping" this for a month now, and I've been meaning to try it out myself to see what the fuss is all about. Now, because this is a Finnish product, I'll be writing this in Finnish, too.

The product comes in two flavours: creme caramel and chocolate. I got my hands on a 700 g bag of creme caramel. The bag costs around 26€ and will give me up to 24 servings of pudding.

The instructions are very simple: mix a scoop of protein pudding powder with 1,5-3 dl milk in a shaker, pour in a bowl and let it set in the fridge for 5 minutes before consumption.

Picture source

/// FAST Pudding on loppuvuodesta 2012 lanseerattu proteiinivanukas, jota suomalaiset valmentajat, fitnessmallit ja -kilpailijat ovat kovasti mainostaneet ja kehuneet viimeisen kuukauden aikana. Olen itse ollut jokseenkin kiinnostunut kokeilemaan tuotetta, vaikka aiemmat kokemukset proteiinivanukkaista eivät ole olleet maininnan arvoisia.

Tuotetta on kahdessa maussa: toffee ja suklaa. Sain käsiini toffeen makuisen 700 g säkin, josta ehtiikin "testailla" tuotetta jonkun aikaa. 700 g säkki kustantaa kaupassa noin 26€ ja siitä riittääkin noin 24 käyttökertaan, eli yhden annoksen hinta on noin 1€.

Puddingin käyttöohjeet ovat hyvin selkeät: sekoita yksi mitallinen (n 30g) jauhetta 1,5-3dl maitoa "sheikkerissä" (eli proteiinisekoittimesta, esimerkiksi tällaisessa), ravistaen seosta kunnolla. Kaada seos kulhoon ja anna seistä jääkaapissa 5 minuuttia ennen tarjoilua. 

WHAT IS IT MADE OF?

Nutritional info and ingredients of FAST Pudding (Creme Caramel).

Calcium caseinate is a protein derived from casein in skim milk. Caseinate is widely used by bodybuilders and other athletes. Calcium caseinate is ingested before bed or after a workout, as it breaks down at a slower rate than whey protein and supplies the body with a sustained amino acid release. This can help you prevent catabolism, i.e. the breakdown of muscle proteins. Additionally, calcium caseinate contributes to a feeling of satiety, aiding in weight loss. Also, calcium caseinate has a high content of L-glutamine, which is an amino acid essential to building muscle. Calcium caseinate is soluble and does not clot in the stomach. Other than possible allergic reactions, there are no known side effects associated with use of calcium caseinate. 


Inulin is a carbohydrate produced by many types of plants (banana, agave, garlic, onion and many more). Since inulin is not absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract, it is considered a dietary fiber. Inulin is used in processed foods, because it can be used to replace sugar, fat, and flour. Inulin is generally recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The consumption of large quantities (in particular, by sensitive or unaccustomed individuals) can lead to gas and bloating, and products that contain inulin will sometimes include a warning to add it gradually to one's diet. If you're interested in learning more about inulin, read this article.


Sucralose is an non-caloric artificial sweetener. Sucralose is stable under heat, so products containing sucralose can be used in baking. Sucralose is ranked as "safe" and is accepted by the FDA and the European Food Safety Authority, after reviewing more than 100 safety studies on sucralose.
 

// FAST Pudding toffeen ravintosisältö ja ainesosat:


Kalsiumkaseinaatti on maidosta johdettu proteiini, jota kehonrakentajat ja muut urheilijat käyttävät katabolian eli lihaskadon estämiseksi. Kaseinaattia suositellaan käytettävän iltaisin tai treenin jälkeen, sillä se hajoaa kehossa hitaammin kuin heraproteiini, taaten pitkäkestoisen aminohappojen erityksen. Kalsiumkaseinaatti sisältää myös korkean määrän L-glutamiinia, lihaksen kasvuun tarpeellista aminohappoa. Kalsiumkaseinaattia käytetään myös painonpudotuksen apuna, sillä se luo tunteen kylläisyydestä. Mahdollisten allergisten reaktioiden lisäksi kalsiumkaseinaatin käytöllä ei ole raportoituja haittavaikutuksia.


Inuliini on hiilihydraatti, jota esiintyy luonnossa useissa kasveissa (suurimmat pitoisuudet mm. banaanissa, agavessa, valkosipulissa ja sipulissa). Inuliini ei imeydy ruoansulatuselimistössä, joten se lukeutuu ravintokuituihin. Inuliinia käytetään yhä enemmän prosessoidussa ruoassa, sillä inuliinilla voi korvata sokerin, jauhot ja rasvan. Inuliini on Yhdysvaltain elintarvike- ja lääkeviraston mukaan turvallinen aine. Suurten inuliinipitoisuuksien käyttö saattaa aiheuttaa vatsavaivoja (ilmavaivoja ja turvotusta), jonka vuoksi inuliinipitoiset ruoat suositellaan otettavan käyttöön vähitellen. Jos olet kiinnostunut lukemaan enemmän inuliinista, tsekkaa tämä artikkeli.

Sukraloosi on kaloriton keinotekoinen makeutusaine. Sukraloosi kestää hyvin kuumuutta, joten sukraloosia sisältävät elintarvikkeet soveltuvat hyvin mm. leivontaan. Sukraloosi on luokiteltu turvalliseksi Yhdysvaltain elintarvike- ja lääkevirastossa sekä Euroopan elintarvikevirastossa yli 100 turvallisuustutkimuksen perusteella.

I mixed the pudding powder with 2 dl skimmed milk. It coagulated almost instantly, I had to scoop it out of the mixer - a pleasant surprise. The pudding felt almost like a mousse, not at all like a decent pudding. Not sure whether I like that or not, because the "pudding" was a lot lighter than I expected. The taste was OK, a bit too sweet for my taste. I'm not that into caramel flavoured products, so I'm a bit biased. I tested the product again with satsumas and grapes - MM! Now there's a combo I can honestly recommend. You can also add a teaspoon of raw chocolate powder to the mix to get a lovely chocolate pudding.

Sekoitin pudding-jauheen 2 desilitraan rasvatonta maitoa. Pudding hyytelöityi samantien, jouduin kaapimaan sen sheikkeristäni - olin tähän positiivisesti yllättynyt! Olin odottanut puddingilta aika paljon, tekstuuri ei ollut lähellekään niin hyytelömäinen kuin odotin, enemminkin moussemainen ja aika kevyt. Itse maku oli todella makea, hieman liian makea omaan makuuni. En ole hirveämmin toffeenmakuisten proteiinivalmisteiden ystävä, joten olen tässä puolueellinen. Toisaalta, söin puddingin välipalaksi aamupäivästä, enkä ollut kovinkaan makeanhimoinen, joten vanukkaan makeus meni mulla vähän hukkaan. Kokeilin tuotetta uudelleen satsuman ja viinirypäleiden kanssa - tätä komboa voin suositella :) Voit myös kokeilla sekoittaa pudding-jauheeseen 1 teelusikallisen raakakaakaojauhetta saadaksesi suklaisen vanukkaan.

Conclusion: The product is OK to use when you have a serious hankering for something sweet. The ingredients of the product are pure and suit most people well (but not for people with milk protein allergy!). Because the product has inulin and sucralose, I recommend that you start using the product gradually to minimize any side effects (see above).

Yhteenveto: Tuotetta on ihan OK käyttää, kun on järkyttävä makeanhimo - ihan perus "välipalaksi" tämä ei sovi ainakaan allekirjoittaneelle. Vanukkaan ainekset sopivat suurimmalle osalle ihmisistä hyvin (huom. ei maitoproteiiniallergikoille). Inuliinin ja sukraloosin vuoksi suosittelen puddingin vähittäisen käyttöönoton, jotta mahdollisilta haittavaikutuksilta vältytään (kts. yllä). 

Did I answer all your possible questions about the product? If not, leave me a comment :)

Vastasinko kaikkiin mahdollisiin kysymyksiisi tuotteesta? Jos en, jätä kommentti :)

/Ulrika  

Clean eating: making raw chocolate

My post on raw chocolate earlier received quite a lot of attention, and since I got a few emails about making raw chocolate, I wanted to share the recipe I (always) use.

Making raw chocolate is actually quite simple. You need to buy a lot of ingredients, but once you've got them in your cupboards, you can make raw chocolate as often as you like.

Clean eating: Raw chocolate (makes ~20 small pieces)

Ingredients
125 g cacao butter
1 tbsp organic honey (or a tsp Stevia)
5 tbsp raw cacao powder
3 tbsp raw lucuma powder
2 tbsp raw maca powder
a pinch of high-quality salt (pink Himalayan salt, grey sea salt)
(2-4 drops mint oil)
(nuts, dried berries or fruits)

1. Grate the cacao butter (or chop it up to tiny pieces).

2. Boil some water in a pan. Remove it off the heat after it's boiled.
3. Place the grated cacao butter in a bain marie and wait until all the solids have melted. 

4. Add the honey (or stevia) and the cacao powder and mix with a spoon until smooth.
5. Add the lucuma, maca (, mint oil) and salt and mix until smooth.

6. If you want a little twist, put some (crushed) walnuts, goji berries, mulberries or other dried fruits in silicone moulds and pour over the raw chocolate mixture.

7. Let the raw chocolate set for a few hours in the fridge (or if you're as impatient as I am, place the moulds in the freezer for 30 minutes).
8. Pop out your chocolates and share them with the people you love.

Our friends love these delicious treats. The chocolates in the picture above are flavoured with mint oil and I've added a few crushed walnuts. These tiny walnutty pieces were delicious! In case you haven't got greedy friends like I do ;) , these chocolates will store in the fridge (or freezer) for a week or so.

Try this recipe out and let me know what you think!

/Ulrika

Clean eating: Sweet potato chips

Thursday treat: sweet potato chips!
 
Do you love chips or french fries, but can't stand the excess calories? Do you want to keep your meals clean, yet exciting? If you answered yes, here's a recipe you should definitely try.
 
This is one of the easiest cheat meals ever. If I can do it, you can. I really love the simplicity of the recipe. Few ingredients plus a really simple preparation is always a plus when it comes to eating clean!

The chips take about five minutes to prepare plus the 15-30 minutes in the oven. You could easily cut up the slices in advance to cut a few corners. I usually keep cubed and sliced veggies in the fridge to save time.

Ingredients (makes 2-4 servings)
1 sweet potato
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Salt, herbs and pepper to taste


  
1. Preheat the oven to 200C. 
2. Peel the sweet potato and cut it in thin slices (approx 5mm each). 
3. Spread the slices evenly on a oven-proof pan, drizzle on some evoo and the spices of your choice. 
4. Bake in the oven for 15-30 minutes (depending on the thickness of the slices) and enjoy as a snack or with some chicken.

Tip #1: Mix it up by using different veggies. Sweet potato, yams, potato, zucchini and aubergine are perfect for this, and they work splendidly together.
Tip #2: Use different spice mixes. Try cinnamon, different herbs (rosemary potato is one of my personal favourites) or a low-sodium & sugarfree spice mix (e.g. bbq or pumpkin spice mix)
Tip #3: In the summer, use the grill. A smokey flavour is perfect with the sweet potato.

Enjoy!

/Ulrika

Clean eating: Breakfast pancakes

"Start every day like it's your birthday!"

OK - So it's pancake time!

I've had an awful start of the week, so a mini-birthday-Wednesday was in order. I usually plan all my meals for the week on Sunday nights, making all preparations and shopping if necessary. This Sunday I prepared a few OJ&Greek yogurt popsicles and a few other treats to get me through a stressful week. Today's breakfast menu was unplanned, but luckily I always store these ingredients at home. I've tried a lot of different protein powder pancake batters, but I'm still not quite convinced. I really don't like the aftertaste of protein powder, especially unflavoured rice protein. If you've got a decent recipe to share, I'd be more than happy to try it!

The pancakes are dairy-free, flour-free, sugar&sweetener-free and sooo simple to cook!

Clean eating: Breakfast pancakes (serves one)
1 ripe banana
1 egg (organic, if possible)
1 tsp unsalted butter

Step #1: Peel the banana and chop it to small pieces. Preheat a pan to medium-heat.
Step #2: Put the banana and the egg in a blender, blend until smooth. The batter should be soft and airy, almost like a mousse.
Step #3: Melt the butter in the pan and make four or five mini-pancakes of the batter. If possible, use a frying pan made for pancakes to create prettier (and symmetric) pancakes. Fry the pancakes for a few minutes, until they're golden brown. Turn the pancakes carefully! The pancakes will rise a bit, but after turning them they will fall. So be careful when turning them, you don't want to ruin your perfect ("birthday") breakfast.
Step #4: Enjoy! Serve with home-made strawberry "jam" (the strawberries are really sweet by themselves, no thickening sugar needed - I used pectin for thickening) and some Greek yoghurt on the side. Yum!

So try this out and let me know what you think!

/Ulrika

Eating clean: raw chocolate ice cream

I used to be an ice cream monster. Seriously, I could gulp down a litre of ice cream in one week - that's an enormous amount of unnecessary sugars and bad fats. I felt really bad too - my digestion wasn't exactly thrilled about the dairy I stuffed myself with. And the guilt! Almost unbearable.
I've lived without sugar since April this year, when something just clicked in my head. I realized that all my workouts so far have been wrong, my diet was totally off and my stress levels were way too high. Now I'm eating clean and I do mostly strength workouts. And I'm feeling awesome.

This is my absolute favourite cheat meal so far. My weekend treat, the best way to start a Friday night.

Raw chocolate ice cream. Pure deliciousness in a bowl. The texture feels a bit like sherbet with a taste of chocolate and banana. The taste is just divine, so chocolate-y and sweet.

Raw chocolate ice cream (makes 2 small servings or 1 big serving)

Ingredients
2 bananas
1-2 tbsp powdered raw cocoa
1-2 tbsp powdered lucuma
½ dl chilled green tea or coconut water


1. Peel and chop the bananas and stick them in the freezer for a few hours.
2. Put the frozen bananas and the rest of the ingredients in a blender. Blend until the mixture is a fluffy smoothie. I recommend using a lower RPM on the blender for best results.
3. Enjoy!


Tip #1: Season the ice cream in different ways. My favourites are mint chocolate ice cream (using 1 drop of peppermint oil), mocca ice cream (using a chilled espresso in stead of the green tea) or coconut ice cream (with coconut milk as the base).
Tip #2: In case you need an additional sweetener, add a few drops of stevia or honey to the mix. Lucuma is a natural sweetener (powdered fruit) - I find the ice cream sweet enough with 1-2 tbsp of lucuma.
Tip #3: Raw cocoa and organic lucuma can be bought at several webshops, my favourite is Luontaispörssi. You'll find loads of superfood in this section, click click.

//EDIT: I made choco ice cream, and satisfied my chocolate needs quite fast. Here's the result of my raw chocolate popsicles:

I simply poured the ice cream into popsicle moulds, and stuck the moulds in the freezer. I did a small experiment, crushed a few blueberries in the mix - the taste was so much lighter and more fresh than a simple chocolate ice cream. I sincerely recommend testing it ;)

Let me know what you think!

Love,
Ulrika

Clean eating: Smoothie (part 2)

Part two of my "clean eating: smoothie"-series. My goal is to share different smoothie recipes for clean eating and "cheat meals" - i.e. reward foods. I'd go crazy if I didn't reward myself with some delicious smoothies, home made frozen yogurts or other treats. I eat clean 90% of the time, giving myself a 10% cheat margin for each week, i.e. 1-4 meals of pure delight.

Everyone deserves a reward meal, no matter where you are from reaching your goals. Having a reward meal every now and again is good for your metabolism when you're following a strict, clean diet. Eating a high-calorie meal has your body working hard to process the food and boosting your metabolism. So endulge once in a while. No need to count calories, when you remember the facts I list below.

The main thing with cheat/reward meals is to:

• Keep it in proportion. Don't make it a cheat day!
• Eat at a table, focusing on your food. Once you get up, the meal is over! No snacking or refills.
• Avoid large portions, fried foods and plain junk food
• Enjoy!

Now, back to the recipe.... This smoothie works really well as a morning smoothie, a snack or a special treat. The fiber from the apple makes the smoothie a little thicker than usual and fills you up really well. If you find the smoothie too thick, add a little extra water to it. Chia seeds work as thickeners, so make sure you control the use of them. If you find the consistency too thick, ditch the chia seeds.

This is a dairy-free and sugar-free smoothie. Really easy to make, too. I grow the ingredients in my back yard, but in case I need to buy groceries, I always prefer organic ingredients.

I love to vary this recipe by changing the liquid part. I get easily tired of eating the same stuff, and I often use different teas and veggie milks as base in my smoothies. Green tea has a detoxifying (and fat burning!) effect on the body and gives a caffeine kick in the morning. I'm one of those people who are caffeine-sensitive, so I don't make this with green tea if I plan to enjoy it after 4 p.m.
(I didn't include soy milk in my ingredients list. Soy doesn't work well for me, but you could use unsweetened soy milk as well, if you like it.)


Clean Eating Cinnamon Apple Smoothie (Makes 2-3 servings)
2-3 dl cubed or sliced apples (I prefer tangy apples)
2-3 dl raw spinach or oak leaf lettuce
2-3 dl unsweetened almond milk, rice milk or chilled green tea
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp chia seeds
(½ tsp spirulina powder)

Place the ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Tip #1: Make this smoothie with different types of apple. For a sweeter version, you could also use pears or add a banana to the mix.
Tip #2: No need to peel the apples. Blend the apples for a little longer for a smoother texture.
Tip #3: If you like to use spirulina, make sure that you taste the smoothie before serving it! Spirulina has a funky taste, and you might want to use smaller amounts before getting used to the taste.. Spirulina is one of the world's most antioxidant-packed nutrients. It's used widely by athletes and health enthusiasts, and there's a reason for it. ;)
Tip #4: If you find yourself "too busy" to make yourself a smoothie in the morning, make it the night before. Add a splash of lemon juice to keep the apple a light colour. The spinach and spirulina are actually natural preservatives (because of the high antioxidant levels), so by using a larger amount of greens you make sure your smoothie stays fresh a little longer.

I haven't yet made popsicles from this smoothie, but I'm eager to try it sometime. Today there were no leftovers (soooo yummy!).

Have a strong day!
/Ulrika

Clean eating: Smoothie (part 1)

I'm now introducing one of my favourite morning smoothies. I first started making this one to soothe my tummy aches during my periods (sorry for the excess info!), and it worked. The fats from the coconut milk are polyunsaturated ("good fats"), the fibers aid your digestion and the berries are packed with antioxidants! It tastes really good, too: almost like strawberry ice cream! What's not to love?


Clean eating strawberry and coconut milk smoothie (serves 4)

1 can organic coconut milk
2-3 dl water
2-3 dl frozen strawberries
1-2 tbsp psyllium or other fiber source
If you need additional sweetener, try using a banana or a few pieces of mango. (or stevia, if you need something really sweet)

Here comes the easy part: place everything in a blender and blend until smooth.


Tip #1: try making this smoothie with different berries and fruits. If you're not that into sweet flavors, try making this with lingonberries or cranberries - the coconut milk has a soft texture and it brings the tastes really well together. Experiment with different berries and spices. I really love the combination of coconut milk, raspberries and cinnamon!
Tip #2: This is one of my "cheat meals", in case I get cravings. I always store cans of coconut milk and frozen berries at home. Use this smoothie as a compromise, in case you crave for ice cream or something sweet. My hubby doesn't really fancy my smoothies, so I often freeze the leftovers. This smoothie sure makes a delicious popsicle ;) (I bet kids love it too!)
Tip #3: For a less-fat version, replace half of the coconut milk with natural low-fat yogurt.

Hope you enjoy this one as much as I did.

Love,
Ulrika