Catherine’s Cabinet Review
I have fond childhood memories of my time spent in the East Coast of Canada, wandering the fields along the coast line, picking as many wild berries as I could and then shoving them into my face before being forced to share them with the other kids. When I opened my first bottle of Bloo Juice, I had all of those same feelings rush back at me, including not wanting to share it with anyone. So, I guzzled it down faster than you can say “Catherine you better share missy or you’re going for a time out”. I digress.
Bloo is 100% natural blueberry juice, with no added sugar, no artificial flavours, no preservatives or colour. Each bottle is filled to the brim with juice squeezed from a blend of 600 blueberries. The growers are based in the beautiful and bountiful Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia where they grow over 30 varieties of Highbush Blueberries which are indigenous to that area! Sounds kinda fancy and exotic eh? Man I need to get out more often.
As a Holistic Nutritionist, I am an advocate for eating as clean as possible, so I did a bit of research for you guys on how these are grown. Here is what I found:
“Country Magic products are grown with an emphasis on natural fertilizers and using integrated pest management practices. The use of herbicides and pesticides is minimized through careful agronomy and employing natural solutions wherever possible. For example, the Highbush Blueberry plants are fertilized with seaweed extract, a naturally nutrient-rich product. The extensive spring pruning also helps to minimize disease.”
Always try your best to know where your food comes from and what else goes in or on it! Bloo is sourced from Blueberries that are Canadian grown and have minimal pesticide usage with natural fertilizers. But the best part of this juice? THEY USE REAL BLUEBERRIES! You would be surprised at how many of the boxes and bottles stocked on your supermarket shelves use fake, chemically coloured “blueberries”… yes you’re just eating the colour blue. There aren’t any blueberries in the colour blue, last time I checked the rainbow.
Would you like to know what these awful fake blueberries are made out of? Well, the LA Times published an article stating that “The nonprofit Consumer Wellness Center reported… that its investigation found “blueberries” that were nothing more than a concoction of sugar, corn syrup, starch, hydrogenated oil, artificial flavours and — of course — artificial food dye blue No. 2 and red No. 40. ” (Roan, 2011). Here’s a quick tip: if the ingredient list contains a colour, don’t eat it. But did I really need to tell you that? Come on.
Now it’s time for me to talk about some of the benefits of REAL blueberries (get excited). Remember that word “Phytochemicals”? Well they are full of them! These lovely little chemicals can help to protect us from nasty pathogenic bacteria and viruses. Perfect for the changing of the seasons which always brings on nasty colds and flus! And we can’t forget that blueberries have antioxidant properties. They’re the bouncers at the bar inside your body, throwing the toxicity out the door and protecting us from cellular structural damage. Even though you can’t see your cells, they’re working really hard so show them some love!
This is also really good news for your heart. Keep that ticker in working order by eating foods loaded with flavonoids. There has been a lot of research done on the benefits of blueberries and strawberries on their ability to aid in decreasing the risk of Myocardial Infarction (no, I didn’t make this word up). Usually it’s an action-reaction situation with people when it comes to heart health. Something goes horribly wrong, and then we work on fixing it, after it’s already broken. Well, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to wait until it’s too late. I’d rather work on prevention!
I decided that I would try experimenting a little with Bloo, so I made this recipe just for you!
Bloo-Berried Treasure Pudding
with homemade coconut cream
(A sugar free, naturally sweetened treat – for breakfast or desert! The “buried” treasure is finding the berries underneath your chia pudding! Great healthy treat for kids.)
1/4 cup Chia Seeds
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup Bloo Juice
1/2 cup Coconut milk
1 tsp natural vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt
1/4 cup organic mixed berries of choice
Mix chia seeds, cinnamon and sea salt together in a large bowl. Pour in Bloo juice, coconut milk and vanilla extract and mix together. Line the bottom of a couple bowls with the berries. Pour the chia seed mixture over top of each, do not stir! Let set in the fridge overnight or set for 30 mins
Top with a dollop of the coconut cream or substitute with a natural organic probiotic yogurt! On the go tip: This recipe can be done in mason jars instead for a grab-and-go option! Just throw it in your bag and enjoy!
Coconut Cream: Leave the can of coconut milk in the fridge overnight and the top half will solidify. Flip it upside down and open from the bottle of the can. Pour out the liquid on the top (and use for the pudding). Scoop out the cream left on the bottom of the can into a bowl, add a bit of vanilla extract and WHIP with a mixer until fluffy and creamy. You can also add a bit of sugar or maple syrup for sweetness (but you probably won’t need it).
If you haven’t already, head to bloojuice.com where you can download more delicious recipes and find out how to get your hands (and mouth) on a bottle. After all, berries are nature’s candy (except without all that refined sugar and CRAP)!
Photos by : Bloo Juice