Category Archives: Product Review

Chobani Bites

Posted on March 19, 2013 by | 10 Comments

Hi there, everyone! We have made it through Monday and Tuesday and now we only have three more days to go before the weekend. I already have some plans for Friday and Saturday so I am definitely looking forward to these next few days hopefully flying by! One thing that’s been getting me through the week? The Chobani Bites yogurt that Chobani sent to me last week! Chobani Bites have only 100 calories and are packed with flavor and protein — score for sure :)

chobani1

I received quite a plethora of flavors! Coffee & chocolate, fig & orange zest, raspberry & chocolate, and caramel & pineapple. I have to say, being the chocolate and coffee lover that I am, this flavor is definitely my favorite. These make great snacks before the gym, or as a nice breakfast when paired with some fruit and a little sprinkle of cereal.

greek yogurt and cereal1

They really hit the spot! Thank you, Chobani.

Question of the Night: Which snacks have been your go-to lately? Are you a greek yogurt fan?

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Posted in Chobani, Greek Yogurt, Product Review

Cray WIAW

Posted on January 16, 2013 by | 14 Comments

Hi all – as usual, shit’s been cray up in here. Things to do after work each night which basically makes each day run into the next. What can I say? The life of a busy NYC girl. Speaking of NYC life, my room mate Britt and I will be doing another video in the next week or so speaking to NYC related thangs so get ready ;)

I wanted to type up a ‘What I Ate Wednesday’ post today since I haven’t been able to participate for a few weeks. It’s lacking a little, but still, you can get the feel of what I’ve been eating/what’s been going on! Thanks as always to Jenn for throwing this shin-dig together :)


This past Sunday evening, my parents and I (my parents are living in the city for the next few months for those of you who don’t already know) had some great snacks that I put together while watching the Golden Globes. Cheese, carrots, tzatziki dip, prosciutto, and crackers were the main features. It was a lot of fun! I have to say my favorite dresses were Jessica Alba’s, Kerry Washington, and Kate Hudson. They all oozed glamour, sex appeal, and femininity. Perfect combination!

snacks for globes

Aside from snacking here and there, I’ve been trying to be really good about eating more fruits and vegetables to cleanse myself out a little. Instead of having a juice every few weeks, I’ve been having about 4-5 juices a week and also including lemon in my water, spinach in about everything, and eating citrus fruits as much as possible. I’ve definitely been feeling the benefits.

Working out has picked up a bit. I completed a challenging Tone It Up workout at the gym yesterday morning before work and have my trampoline class tonight! Gotta switch it up sometimes to see results! So a lot of what I have been eating (aside from occasional treats) has been egg whites, tofu, veggies, fruit/veggie juices, almonds, and chocolate covered blueberries/cranberries. I can’t wean myself off coffee because… well basically I don’t want to.

greens

To be honest, I have my birthday night next Saturday and I want to look great in the dress I’ve picked out. I’m not being too hard on myself, trust me, but my dress is kind of… shall we say… sexy and slightly revealing so I want to be in tip top shape ;)

I’ve also been noshing on some great products that Cascadian Farm sent me. Honestly guys, this is one of my favorite companies. Their food is so consistent, tasty, and filling. I would love to visit their head quarters at some point in my life to see the production and how they figure out what to bring to the market!

package from cas farm

I love having the crunchy granola bars on hand to munch on before a workout or to have whenever I am feeling hungry! They’re delicious and definitely satisfying. The granola is also out of control when it comes to flavor and I love sprinkling it on anything from yogurt to oatmeal. The granola on its own is just plain perfection, too!

cas granola

So that’s kind of what I’ve been up to in these parts! After work, like I said, I’ll be hopping on over to my trampoline class which should be great. Um, and my latest TV show obsession, Washington Heights, is on tonight sooooo yeah I’ll be watching that right after. Hope you all have a wonderful day!

Question: Do you have any tips for dropping a pound or two or leaning up? What are some of your little fixes? I need more ideas!

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Posted in Balance, coffee, Family, Fashion, Food, NYC, Product Review, WIAW, Workout

VitaPizza

Posted on November 4, 2012 by | 4 Comments

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to receive the new VitaPizza’s from the generous people at VitaLicious. These pizza’s could not have come at a better time, with Sandy causing an upheaval in food purchasing and basically leaving shelves empty. I was able to try both the Meatless Pepperoni Supreme and Cheese & Tomato.

I was so happy to be able to try these new pizza’s – who doesn’t want to taste-test PIZZA? Now don’t get me wrong, obviously these aren’t the kind of slices you pick up at your local Italian restaurant, but sometimes that’s a good thing. We don’t always need to be eating tons of cheese and thick-cut crust that makes us feel lazy right after we consume it. I’m always up for some pizza here and there – in fact I had a slice (and a half) myself the other weekend – but I’m glad to have this as an alternative.

First up was the Meatless Pepperoni Supreme. I’ve always been a fan of pepperoni, so I decided to give this one the first try.

What I loved was the ‘meatless’ pepperoni – it was full of flavor but not too overwhelming. The only thing I felt this pizza was lacking was cheese. I wish there had been a little more cheeese! Then it would have been perfect.

Next up was the Cheese and Tomato:

This one was my favorite out of the two. There was the perfect ratio of cheese and tomato sauce which I really enjoyed.

Overall, I think these are a great alternative for when that pizza craving hits. They make a great meal when accompanied by a side salad or a small soup :)

Question of the Day: What is your favorite topping to have on your pizza? Or do you prefer plain cheese? Thin or thick crust? I love mushrooms and onions on my pizza and I think I enjoy thick crust more but there’s definitely something delicious about thin crust!

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Posted in Food, Health, Pizza, Product Review

UNREAL Candy Review

Posted on October 8, 2012 by | 4 Comments

Hey all! I have a great review for you today here on StephSnacks. Being that Halloween is practically right around the corner (PS–are you planning to dress up?) I was happy to review a ‘healthier’ version of candy. Halloween kind of kicks off the Holiday season in terms of candy/sweets/junk being just about everywhere — the office, at home, at school, parties, you name it. And while we should all take some time to enjoy it — we also need to be conscious of just how much and exactly what we are eating.

Enter — UNREAL Candy. I was sent a few of their products to try and I was pretty impressed with not only the caloric/sugar stats but the taste as well.

The chocolate candy shell peanuts were so delicious. With 200 calories in a bag, 6g of protein, and 16 g of sugar, I don’t think that’s bad at all for an entire personal bag of candy. They tasted a lot like Peanut M&M’s except Peanut M&M’s have 220 calories, 22 g of sugar, and only 4g of protein.

I also really enjoyed the Chocolate Caramel Nougat. It literally tasted just like a Milky Way Bar and again the statistic were impressive. Only 170 calories per bar, seven grams of fat, and four gram of protein. There are 240 calories in a Milky Way Bar along with nine grams of fat and only two little grams of protein. That’s a pretty nice calorie slash when you’re craving a candy bar!

My favorite product, though, was the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups since I am a mayyjaaa peanut butter lover. For two cups (of which are a pretty decent size) there are 190 calories, 11 grams of sugar, and five grams of protein. The regular Reese’s candies have 210 calories, 21 grams of sugar (whoaaa buddy) and five grams of protein.

All in all, I thought UNREAL candy was awesome. Such a good alternative vs. eating candy that is stuffed to the brim with fat and high fructose corn syrup. I crushed most of the candy up and put some on top of some froyo. Awesome idea, if I do say so myself ;)

Question of the Night: What’s your favorite candy?? I’d have to say mine is Reese’s peanut butter cups. Are you dressing up for Halloween?

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Posted in Candy, Halloween, Peanut Butter, Product Review

WIAW

Posted on September 19, 2012 by | 2 Comments

Hi there! Well here we are again, ‘What I Ate Wednesday’! Can’t believe we are half way through the week–but I certainly don’t mind. Thank you as always to Jenn for throwing this party together ;) Below you’ll see a few things I have been enjoying recently!

Breakfast:

In my smoothie mix was the following:
-1 cup skim milk
-1/2 cup frozen berries
-1/4 cup pure pumpkin
-1 tbsp cocoa powder
-pinch xantham gum

I also tossed in about 1 tbsp of oats on top for a little extra texture. It makes a difference to me!

A couple weeks ago, I was lucky enough to receive some Hershey’s Lite Chocolate Syrup to taste-test. It has been recommended by professionals to drink a glass of chocolate milk post-workout in order for the muscles to experience a solid recovery. Protein from the milk helps restore the muscles, vitamins and minerals sustain strong bones, and chocolate milk has the perfect carb to protein ratio–3:1.

To be honest I have been loving having a glass of chocolate milk either before or after my workout. I really enjoy that it’s not too filling, but also provides me with the energy I need. A huge perk of the Hershey’s Lite Chocolate Syrup is that it has 50% sugar than other chocolate syrup products. Score!

Lunch lately has been some sort of soup. It’s easy on the stomach yet filling. I wasn’t the biggest fan of having soup as a meal, but I am slowly but surely changing my tune. The soup below is a can of 99% fat free New England Clam Chowder (220 calories for the whole can) with some pretzels stirred in. Ya gotta try this soup with pretzels mixed in–insanely good.

Dinner last night was a serious winner in my book:

I drizzled the above with a bit of olive oil and sprinkled on some sea salt. Perfection!

Before signing off, I wanted to share two links with you — each warmed my heart. They are both about accepting our bodies in world that can be very non-accepting. It shows that we can break the mold and be happy with ourselves if we really want to. Hope you enjoy!

Deep Thoughts: Body
Model Robyn Lawley

Question of the Night: What are some meals you have been enjoying lately? Any new snacks?!

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Posted in Body Image, Breakfast, Dinner, Food, Lunch, Product Review, Self-Esteem, Smoothie, WIAW

WIAW

Posted on August 22, 2012 by | 3 Comments

Happy WIAW everyone! Not only will I be showing you what I’ve been eating over the past week or so, but I also have two awesome product reviews. Let’s get the ball rolling — thanks so much Jenn for throwing this party together each week :)

The above picture includes a new bread by Ezekiel 4:9 called Sprouted Flax Bread. I absolutely loved this bread for a few reasons. The fact that it’s free of artificial flavors, additives, and preservatives is pretty amazing. Quite honestly, what I really liked about the bread is how satisfied I felt after eating just one piece of it — sometimes when you opt for the lower-cal versions of bread, you just aren’t satisfied. When I included the Sprouted Flax Bread in my meal, I was totally content.

I’ve also been eating a lot of these:

The above are some of the most delicious chips I have ever eaten and I was lucky enough to receive two bags from the people at ‘The Garden of Eatin’. The Garden of Eatin’ Sprouted Blues Chips and the Sweet Potato Tortilla Chips were packed with flavor and made for a great snack or to eat along with my lunch. I offered some of the chips to my co-workers, and the majority liked the sweet potato version more than the sprouted blues — and I have to agree. The sweet potato
flavor was incredibly good. If I can find these chips in the supermarket they will definitely make it into my basket!

Question of the day: Have you tried any new food/beverage products lately??

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Posted in Dinner, Food, Frozen Yogurt, Lunch, Product Review

Grahamfuls

Posted on August 14, 2012 by | 8 Comments

Hi there! I have a really fun review for you all. The awesome people at Kraft sent me their new product, Grahamfuls, to try out — I was super excited to receive them, since I love a good snack ;)

Disclaimer: While Kraft sent me the below products, all thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

The first one I tried was the Chocolate and Peanutbutter:

I really liked this flavor – it tasted as good as it sounds. The combination of the chocolate, peanut butter, and graham cracker made me feel like I was eating a treat without the extra calories. The next flavor I tried was just Peanut Butter. While I missed the chocolate flavor, the peanut butter with the graham crackers by itself reminded me of the Nutter Butter’s I used to eat as a kid. I loved those!

Last up was the Banana Vanilla Creme:

I must admit, I was a little apprehensive to try this flavor at first. For some reason the ‘banana’ flavoring didn’t sound appealing to me, but I was totally wrong and it must be said that this may have actually been my favorite Grahamful of the whole bunch.

Thanks again, Kraft, for having me taste test these awesome snacks! I definitely enjoyed each Grahamful.

Question of the Night: What were some of your favorite snacks as a kid?

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Posted in Cookies, Peanut Butter, Product Review, Snack

WIAW

Posted on August 8, 2012 by | 8 Comments

It’s that time of the week again! What I Ate Wednesday! I’ve been taking pictures of random meals I’ve had so far this week. My ‘summer staples’ seem to be salads, vegetables, frozen yogurt, greek yogurt, and snacks! Thanks so much, Jenn, for throwing this party each and every week :)


I was sent this ‘Infuse Your Mood Tea’ by Sun Chlorella USA. It is caffeine-free, 100% natural, and claims to support your body against the every day stresses of living. It also states that the tea enhances inner calm and focus, supports physical endurance, and improves concentration and memory. I’ve been drinking a cup of this tea in the morning before I leave for work (and before I drink my coffee) and have really been enjoying it. The flavor isn’t too over-whelming and it actually feels kind of cleansing. I’ll be making this a morning tradition from now on!


Stay tuned for a review of these soon!

Hope you all had a great Wednesday :)

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Posted in Breakfast, Cleanse, coffee, Dinner, Frozen Yogurt, Greek Yogurt, Lunch, Product Review, Snack, WIAW

Giveaway Time !

Posted on July 26, 2012 by | 27 Comments

Hi there, everyone! I received such positive responses from my last post about living in the now rather than thinking about the past and anticipating the future. It seems that we all tend to think about situations and things from our past that could have happened but didn’t. It’s sometimes tough to move forward, but if you want it bad enough, you definitely can!

Onto a few other things–before I get into my product review and give away, I wanted to let you all know really quick that a friend of mine named Stavros is currently working for the Steve Harvey show, which is coming out in September. One of the shows is going to have a segment about weight loss and trying to help certain people lose weight in a healthy way. If you are interested or you know of anyone who may be interested in being considered for the show, please email Stavros at daytime1@deepdish.tv :)

Onto the review! A couple weeks ago, the awesome peeps at Cascadian Farm sent me their new Ancient Grains granola to review. I absolutely love Cascadian Farm products so I knew that I was in a treat to try this new stuff!

Anndddd let me just skip straight to the verdict; I love this stuff! What I really enjoyed was that the granola is actually packed with really great nutrients, including spelt, quinoa, and and kamut while also being tasty. Taste + health? Score! The calorie stats are pretty good, too. Only 220 calories for a cup of the granola which also has 5 grams of protein and only 9 grams of sugar. Good looks! :)

I enjoyed mine in greek yogurt:

And all by itself:

And now you can enjoy the granola, too! Cascadian Farm offered to host a giveaway of the Anicent Grains granola on StephSnacks! There are up to four ways you can enter:

1) Leave a comment telling me your favorite way to eat granola.
2) Follow me on Twitter, @StephSnacks, and leave a comment here telling me you did so.
3) Follow Cascadian Farm on Twitter, @cascadianfarm, and leave a comment here telling me you did so.
4) ‘Like’ Cascadian Farm on Facebook, and leave a comment here telling me you did so.

You have until next Tuesday night, July 31st, to enter. Good luck!

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Posted in Give Away, Greek Yogurt, Product Review

WIAW: Nut Butter Time

Posted on April 18, 2012 by | 10 Comments

Hiya, everyone! It’s that time of the week — What I Ate Wednesday. Except this time, I have a little spin for you. A couple weeks ago, the super cool peeps at Artisana Organic Foods sent me a bunch of their nut butters to try, so I’ll be showing you all of the delicious spreads I have been consuming over the past couple of weeks. As always, thank you to Jenn for putting this partay together!

As you can imagine, I was incredibly excited when this was the package that was delivered to me:

The first one that I decided to dive into was the coconut butter. I put it atop my morning oatmeal along with some blackberries:

I had been seeing coconut butter all over the blog-o-sphere. Healthy living bloggers seem to love this stuff for the taste and the healthy fats so I figured this stuff would rock. Well, it is totally incredible, but took me a couple of tries to get used to. I absolutely loved it over oatmeal because when it melted, the texture was kind of like frosting without being as sweet. If this stuff wasn’t so expensive I would purchase it all the time.

Next up? Pecan:

Now, this sentence may sound kind of funny, but I loved the Pecan Butter so much because it tasted like I was eating a bunch of crushed up pecans. This nut butter in particular was so delicious because I could tell how natural the ingredients were. It was delicious on its own and also when paired with a drizzle of honey!

Then I went for the Macadamia Nut Butter:

While I loved the crunch from the macadamia nuts, I wished there had been a bit more flavor. It was a little bland for me.

The Cashew Nut Butter was next:

This was another nut butter I really enjoyed! Cashews are my absolute fave, so I knew that I’d love this one, and I was right!

There are still a couple other nut butters (and coconut oil) that I have to try, but I wanted to share all of my thoughts that I have with you; and What I Ate Wednesday seemed like the appropriate time! What I really loved about the Artisana nut butters was how natural they tasted. With each nut butter I tried, I couldn’t believe how simple yet delicious each one was, reminding me that processed food and foods pumped with fillers just aren’t good for you. Thanks again, Artisana!

Question: What is your favorite nut butter? What do you like to eat nut butter with?

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Posted in Nut Butter, Peanut Butter, Product Review, WIAW