Loulou's views

We all lead busy lives—from juggling work to extra-curricular activities, sometimes it feels like there aren’t enough hours in a day to get it all done. Trying to find the perfect balance can be challenging, but one thing remains constant in my household: connecting around the dinner table. Coming from a Greek family, dinnertime was always a priority, no matter how busy our days were, and this is a tradition we’ve kept with our children. Now that our boys are older (13 and 10 years old) my husband and I often get them to help out when it comes to dinner preparation, and even cooking; I’m happy to say that my even my youngest son can make a delicious homemade tomato sauce, with some ingredients coming from our own backyard vegetable garden, like basil, tomatoes, oregano, and onions.   Growing a garden was a new venture for us this summer, and one we thoroughly enjoyed. It made meal time prep more fun, and also forced us all to eat more vegetables than we were used to.  ...

We all lead busy lives, and sometimes, meal planning can be a bothersome chore, especially if you're someone like me—a person who doesn't love spending countless hours in the kitchen preparing dinner. Yet, we all need to eat, so what's the perfect solution? Thankfully I have Greek parents and in-laws who cook and drop off dinner for my family. (This is one reason I don't cook enough—or at least that's my excuse). However, this is not every day, so what's the other solution? SupperWorks . My friends have been raving about SupperWorks for a long time, and I was finally given the opportunity to attend an Ottawa bloggers night to put SupperWorks to the test. It was a fun night with a great group of bloggers, as we all put together yummy meals to take home to our families, wine and appetizers in hand. I left with six servings of Beautiful Baja Fish Wraps, six servings of Glowing Goddess Quinoa Veggie Wraps, and a 4-Cheese and Garlic Crusted Chicken Breast for ...

Now that spring is almost here (we'll get through this last snowstorm, I promise!) it's time to start planning ahead to warmer days. There is so much to look forward to, like spending countless hours outside with friends and family. Remember those days? Hot, summer days that turn into nights, endless laughter, kids splashing in the pool, and adults enjoying cold beverages and delicious food... it's all coming back—and I'm so excited, because we've had a long winter. When it comes to preparing a big bash with the extended family, Catelli Pasta has some great ideas for making your next reunion a special one. Not only is Catelli helping families across the country come together in a special way, with incredible recipe ideas that'll make the preparations even easier, they are also running a contest as a thank-you to celebrate their 150th birthday. (How timely, as it's Canada's 150th birthday as well!). The Canada-wide  Catelli Family Reunion Contest ...

The holiday season was a wonderful time spent with family and friends, and overindulging on delicious foods and baked goods. Now that the holidays are over, and with routine finally back in our lives,  it's time to start eating healthy again. And thank goodness for that, because with an upcoming trip to Miami, there's no better time than now to get back to eating healthy, well-balanced meals. As much as I love getting back into my normal routine, I don't love meal planning (thinking of something different for my family to eat every day can be challenging) or the prep work in the kitchen. I recently had the chance to experience HelloFresh Canada , and my entire family loved it. HelloFresh Canada now delivers healthy, delicious, and convenient meal kits to your front door, so all the hard work—thinking of what you want to make for dinner, and then shopping for the right ingredients—is already taken care of for you. HelloFresh Canada takes care of meal planning, shopp...

Now that we've settled back into the fall routine, it's important to take note of what we're eating as we move away from the carefree days of summer. I know I'm definitely more pressed for time now that I'm working a full-time schedule again, and with my boys in school, I want to make sure each meal is as healthy as it can be—so we're getting the proper nutrition we need, and the energy to keep us going all day. I go grocery shopping several times a week, but I've never considered using the support of an in-store Registered Dietitian at Loblaw. This great (and did I mention free?) service provides shoppers a range of services, like: Grocery shopping tours to make healthier choices (You'd be surprised what you'll learn!) Health and wellness workshops and lunch and learns  Developing a customized meal plan based on your dietary needs  Interactive cooking classes  Tips for encouraging children to try new foods  Nutrition check-ups to assess dieta...

As summer comes to an end, (how did that happen?) I'm doing everything I can to enjoy the last moments before we get back into the fall routine. There is so much left to enjoy, especially spending time outside, with family and friends—swimming, BBQ-ing, and just soaking up the sun as much as we can. An important part of my day-to-day life is gathering my family together for meal times, and in the summer, we kick back, relax, and enjoy eating fresh foods with each meal, outside. (It's just so simple to eat health during the summer months, isn't it?) I love that Loblaws provides a great variety of fresh, local ingredients, especially during summertime. In fact, 40% of produce sold in Loblaws stores is sourced by Canadian growers during this peak season, and Loblaws is also the largest purchaser of locally grown food in the country. Loblaws recently teamed up the vegan YamChops butcher to create unique and tasty, seasonally inspired recipes perfect for summer dining and...

I love cooking, and preparing meals for my family. I am an organized chef in the kitchen, and cookbooks surround me. I'm Canada's Martha Stewart! Oh, who am I kidding? I actually do not love cooking. I sometimes remember my family needs to eat dinner on my drive to pick up the boys from school—oops! And, cookbooks, for the most part, scare me. However, despite the fact that I'm no expert in the kitchen, I feed my family well, and I am great at making a handful of meals—meals that my children love, and meals that are healthy. I like to make sure my kids are eating healthy Greek meals a few nights a week, and we eat fish at least once a week, too. We also loving our "Mexican" themed nights where we eat fajitas or quesadillas. To the rescue? Old El Paso, of course. Old El Paso has been around for as long as I can remember, and they've just launched their new premium Restaurante product line, so even when we're eating Mexican at home, it feels lik...