Lazy Sunday + A Brutally Honest Review - POM

Hola Bloggies:

How was your weekend loves? We spent our Saturday largely doing wedding stuff and other random chores, which of course meant that we felt fully entitled to relax on Sunday. Woohoo for lazy Sundays!

It was crazy hot here in the Rocky Mountains combine that with the intense sun and it was blistering up in the casa. To seek some relief we decided to back some cherries and blueberries, water, a massive sub for sharing (bought at our local Safeway on the way out of town) and head out to a local lake. This was the first time we attempted to do anything like this since getting Daisy. Little did we know how difficult it would be for us to find a lake that would allow us to bring our puppy to the shore.

We tried multiple parks and no luck. So eventually we ended up heading down a forest service road and finding a remote lake in the mountains. A pristine mountain lake with no rules? Bonus!

The weather up at the lake turned out to be much cooler than down in the city, mostly by virtue of a subtle but continuous breeze.

I purchased the cherries at the local farmer’s market on Saturday. While it would be cheaper to purchase them at a grocery store (where they would likely come from Washington State) I chose to buy produce grown in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley.

The sandwich was something we had to purchase since I never keep the necessary ingredients at home. I know most people consider bread a stable but I seldom keep any around; mostly because if it’s there I’ll eat it all a lot.

It wasn’t the healthiest option but it did the job. I picked off the salami and had two small pieces. Plenty to keep me full. I don’t know about you but I just don’t get very hungry in the crazy hot weather.

Once we finished our meal we walked around the lake and went for a dip in the water. It was so refreshing and perfect for a lazy Sunday!

A little bit later in the evening we headed out to see Inception. It was kind of trippy and a bit of the Matrix meets James Bond. Overall it was really good and made you question reality. That’s basically my measure of a good movie – does it leave you thinking afterwards? This one sure did!

 

A POM Review and GIVEAWAY

 

Some time ago I received coupons for free bottles of POM from their very gracious manufacturers. I kind of heart me some POM so I was thrilled at the opportunity to officially review the product for the blog.

 

I still remember the first time I heard about pomegranate juice, it was while I was talking to some Persian friends in High School. I was told Iranians swore by the health benefits of pomegranates. I couldn’t even begin to fathom what would be so great about those small little seeds. And how in the world did they manage to get juice out of those things anyways!?!?

Back then I wasn’t really interested in healthy living so it wasn’t until some years had passed that I learned the Persians had a good thing going! POM juice is made up of 100% pomegranate juice; which means it’s absolutely jammed pack with antioxidants. Current research seems to indicate that antioxidants help to prevent oxidization in our bodies and as such may help protect us from diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes (amongst others).

Many people turn to red wine for its antioxidant content. Indeed, there’s this whole school of thought that attributes the health of the French, despite their diets high in indulgences, to their red wine consumption; this is known as the French Paradox. Well it turns out that POM contains a higher antioxidant count then even red wine!

For my review I took two of the coupons I was sent and used them to purchase two flavours I had never tried.

First up was POM Kiwi. I wasn’t sure how the kiwi would stand up against the pomegranates. Overall I would say that the kiwi gave the POM a slightly increased tanginess which was distinctly different from the usual POM taste. The flavour of the kiwi was distinctly prominent.

The next flavour I tried was the POM with mango. Also a first for me. This flavour seemed to lessen the usual tartness of the POM juice but overall it seemed to get lost in the juice. I would recommend this flavour to those that find POM juice a little too tart in its original flavour.

Now I’m not going to pretend that POM juice is cheap – that it is not. But like organic produce or free-range products, I consider POM an investment in my health. Whenever possible I keep a bottled on hand. And I figure since it’s so jammed pack with antioxidants, a little can go a long way. While I know a lot of people drink their POM juice in shot glass portions I tend to make mocktails out of POM Wonderful.

Start out with your POM flavour of choice and a bit of club soda. Don’t forget a lovely glass.

Pour a bit of POM juice into the bottom of your glass. I was generous with my pour.

Top the rest off with club soda and enjoy your delicious drink. If you’re feeling particularly fancy pants, feel free to add a slice of lime to your glass or maybe some raspberries. And if you’re having a party, don’t forget to add a splash of vodka.

Overall Review? I absolutely LOVE POM juice! It’s one of my go-to healthy food splurges and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to my readers. If you don’t do it for the taste then at least do it for your health.

And here’s the GIVEAWAY part – I have two coupons for free POM juice to give away to one lucky reader. To enter all you have to do is comment on this entry. Contest closes on Friday, July 30th 2010 at 8AM PST. Best of luck bloggies!

Question: Have you ever tried POM juice? Did you like it?

Can I Buy a Whole Bottle?

Hola Bloggies:

Once we finished our lovely Indian meal a couple of things became obvious: you should never judge a book by it’s cover and that was some good wine!!! I loved the Trebbiano and thus googled the winery on my iPhone (once you have one you’ll never go back). I knew tastings and tours wouldn’t be running but I had hopes the winery store would be open. In search of the coveted bottle of white, the Fiancé and I set on a bit of a safari.

The scenery from the vineyards was spectacular!!! It was the kind of place where I imagined I could live out my “A Year in Provence” fantasies (involving long bike rides, picnics in idyllic spots, featuring wine, lovely local food, and orchard fresh fruits). Hester Creek had chosen a beautiful location!

We were expecting to purchase our bottle and walk away but very kind winery workers had other plans. They invited us to a complimentary tasting of all of their wines!!! Score!!!

In the end I exercised a tremendous amount of self control and only walked away with the one bottle. But on the whole I was delighted with the winery, our tasting, and the views! Of course it helped that in the middle of winter the weather was warm enough that I actually feared a sunburn. Already, I was contemplating my return trip to the region.

That afternoon, on our drive home, we stopped near Anarchist Summit to take in the view of the Okanagan Valley. And it was then I had one of those moments when I realized what a charmed life I lead sometimes. I felt alive and incredibly blessed. I think it’s called being perfectly content.

Have you ever been to a winery? Where? Did you enjoy it? I have been to the Niagara Region and the Okanagan but Napa and the Loire are high on my to-do list!

An Unexpected Surprise

Hola Bloggies:
Back to the Kelowna (a.k.a. K-town) recap . . .
After my work commitments were over the Fiancé and I decided to take the long way home. The particular path we chose was designed to take us through the wineries of the Okanagan Valley. But given how ridiculously early it was in the season we weren’t sure our idyllic dreams would come to fruition.



Our first stop was to the incredibly well stocked Wine Country Centre located in beautiful Penticton. There we chose some presents for the family that was kind enough to look after Daisy while we were gone (the wine and the Riedel wine glasses were a HUGE hit!). We also talked to the friendly people at the tourism information centre to see if we could find a place to have lunch in the vineyard. They let us down gently but told us we were a couple of weeks too early. Still, the lady raved about a tiny little Indian restaurant in the town of Oliver. Since it was on our way we decided to stop there for lunch.



The tiny little town of Oliver is the last place in Earth you’d expect to find an honest to goodness Indian restaurant. In fact, I have to confess I was doubtful enough that on our drive there I checked my iPhone and it turned out this little restaurant was a town institution that had been written up in big city publications! All with rave reviews! In fact there were even people who claimed to drive hours (from the United States!) just to eat their yummy Indian food. I was sold.
We arrived early for lunch but no worries – we had eaten a very light breakfast and were starved by this point. My initial inclination was to eat the butter chicken, until the elderly couple at the table nearby (obviously regulars) chimed in and suggested that we try the lamb. They said it was their favourite and totally worth having. On their advice the Fiancé and I both chose the lamb accompanied with a serving of naan bread.


The restaurant served exclusively the wines of Hester Creek – a nearby vineyard. Since we were in wine country we decided to have wine with lunch – a rare treat! I ended up choosing the Trebbiano, an Italian grape that is frequently used in blends but seldom by itself. In the end I was thrilled with my choice! It was light, not overly dry, and went perfectly with the mildly spicy meal!!





The recommendations of the elderly couple were spot on! The lamb dish was in a veggie like sauce. A little bit of spice but not too much. And really not too heavy. Paired with a beautiful plate of basmati, and the naan and it was delicious. If anything I would say the portions were too big for little old me. Don’t worry though – the Fiancé polished off both our plates! lol
For dessert the lovely couple that ran the place presented a small dish full of candies. When I bit into one I was surprised to discover a small fennel seed (at least I think it was fennel) inside. The candies were really cleansing to the palette. Lovely after our delicious meal!
This little restaurant was a gem – definitely an unexpected surprise! In speaking to the very kind owners they mentioned they had been in the area for some 15 years and had owned the restaurant for nearly just as long. They also told me that there were hundreds of Indian families in the area and in fact they owned some 80% of the orchards in the region. Who knew!?!?!
Question of the Day: What was your last unexpected surprise restaurant-wise? Have you randomly discovered some gems in the most unexpected of places?