You are here: Home / Archives for Oatmeal

Back to Basics: Overnight Oats

February 17, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Back with another basic recipe that I eat all the time, at least twice a week for breakfast. It’s overnight oats!

It is very hard to get a good and appetizing picture of this, but just go with it…

photo 1-2.jpg

Overnight oats are basically cold oatmeal made with milk and yogurt instead of water. I write often how I don’t like to prep my breakfast in the morning and much prefer to “grab and go” of something I prepped the night before. Overnight oats are also eaten cold, which is perfect because it’s too hot for a hot breakfast most days!

I like this better than hot oatmeal because it has more protein from the milk and yogurt. The texture is kind of like mush, but I like it. Don’t say I didn’t warn you if you’re expecting it to be like oatmeal. Adding something crunchy helps.

Here is the basic recipe of how I like my overnight oats, and below I list some ways to change it up.

Basic Overnight Oatmeal

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 C old fashioned Quaker oats
  • 1/3 C vanilla Greek yogurt
  • 1/3 C milk
  • 1/2 sliced banana
  • 1-2 T gold or black raisins
  • dash cinnamon
  • ~1T peanut butter
Instructions:
  • In a tupperware or the bowl you’re going to eat breakfast in, mix everything together.
  • In the morning, top with something crunchy, more fruit, or leave as-is. Eat and enjoy!
Other mix-ins or toppings could be any kind of nut butter, a jam, a cereal on top, chia seeds mixed in, nuts on top, coconut, other dried fruit, etc. I really keep it as simple as in the picture all the time! The peanut butter mixed in is my favorite part.

photo 2-1.jpg

For more of the Back to Basics series, see the How To page.

Filed Under: Breakfast, How To · Tagged With: ,

Savory Oatmeal

February 13, 2012 by 2 Comments

Happy Monday, I’m still here, but the cooking has gotten a little less impressive. We hosted our neighbors last night for a potluck dinner and made two kinds of enchiladas–veggie and chicken. I’ll post those as soon as I sit down to upload pictures.

It is getting much harder to grocery shop, unload groceries, cook, clean, serve, clean, etc. You try doing your daily chores with a large kettlebell strapped to your stomach! Luckily, my husband is the sous chef on the weekends and enjoys cooking too. There would definitely be less homemade food on Sunday nights without his help!

IMG_6546.JPG

One thing on my “to cook” list for a long time has been savory oatmeal for dinner. This is basically treating raw oats like any other grain used for dinner–rice, quinoa, pasta, etc. Instead of adding milk and sweet ingredients, you add vegetables and spices. It sounded easy and interesting, and like a simple dinner for one!

Savory Oats

Serves 1

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 C old-fashioned oats
  • 1 C water
  • dashes of salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika
  • 1 fried egg on top (cooked separately)
  • handful of raw spinach
Instructions:
  • Bring water to a simmer in a small sauce pan.
  • Add oats and whisk.
  • Add spices and keep whisking.
  • Stir in spinach and stir to wilt
  • Top with egg and more salt and pepper.

I cooked my egg so it wasn’t very runny since you can’t eat runny eggs while pregnant, but an over-easy egg would have been gooey and great too. Other toppings if you plan ahead could be avocado or cheese whisked in, also sounds really good.

I liked that this was super simple and different. You can modify the spices to your liking, but I liked pairing oats with savory ones.

IMG_6553.JPG

Have you ever tried oats for dinner like this?

Filed Under: Dinner · Tagged With: ,

Back to Basics: Hot Oatmeal

February 10, 2012 by Leave a Comment

IMG_6536.JPG

While hot oatmeal is nothing new and special, I have finally figured out the proportions that I like to make a good bowl of thick oatmeal. I don’t like it too soupy, and I don’t like it when I still want more at the end of the bowl. What I also don’t like about making hot oatmeal is that it’s hot (so I don’t eat it most months of the year), and that it takes time to cook. One pot to cook and one bowl to eat=more mess. I promise it has redeeming qualities too.

However, I do think it’s filling, and a good way to get some important nutrients. It is also a good alternative to a dairy breakfast, which I eat most days. I want to learn to like oatmeal because some babies don’t tolerate mom’s dairy well. This Winter, I have made hot oatmeal maybe a dozen times total, and I’m liking it more and getting faster.

Here is my recipe for my best hot oatmeal, made in one small pot and ready in under 10 minutes.

Basic Hot Oatmeal

  • 1/3 C old fashioned Quaker Oats
  • 1/3 C milk (or milk substitute)
  • 1/3 C water
  • dash cinnamon
  • 1 T gold or black raisins
  • spoonful peanut butter stirred in at end
  • 1/2 banana, thinly sliced

Instructions:

  • In a small sauce pan, I bring the water to a simmer, then add oats and whisk. Then I add the milk, cinnamon, raisins and banana and stir. Let thicken until bubbly, stirring often.
  • While still on the heat, I stir in peanut butter to get it nice and melty. This is the best part.
  • I top it with a variety of things, usually granola and berries like in the picture.

IMG_6534.JPG

Filed Under: Breakfast, How To · Tagged With: , ,

Back to Basics: Granola

January 27, 2012 by 1 Comment

I have a new idea for the blog–a series on basics. Not all recipes can be creative, take a half a day to make, or use lots of ingredients. And not all weeks have original content all the time! We like repeats too, especially when they are awesome. It also takes a lot of time to continuously find new things to try and write about!

IMG_6480.JPG

This week, we’re talking about granola! If you were reading about a year ago, I was on a granola kick. There were bars, sticky bites, loose granola. It was crunchy, sticky, one burnt batch from not watching close enough, and some were fruity or full of good spices. We went through a lot of Quaker Oats!

Recently, I’d been thinking about granola again. I like it with breakfast, on top of yogurt for a snack, and I had a lot of raisins in my pantry.

I referred to my favorite recipe from last year and made some modifications based on what I had in the pantry. From the original recipe, I accidentally left out the brown sugar and didn’t notice in the taste. I don’t have flax meal in the pantry anymore, and I used more raisins instead of craisins. I also didn’t have almonds so I used more pecans and peanuts. Use what you have!

IMG_6488.JPG

Oatmeal Raisin Granola

Ingredients:

  • 2.5 C old-fashioned oats
  • 3/4 C pecans, chopped
  • 1/4 C unsalted peanuts
  • 1/4 C sweetened coconut
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • pinch nutmeg
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 C gold rainsins
  • 1/2 C black raisins
  • 1/4 C maple syrup
  • 3 T applesauce
  • 2 T smooth peanut butter

Instructions:

  • Mix maple syrup, applesauce and peanut butter in a small pan on the stovetop and let simmer for 8-10 minutes over low heat. It will get thick and caramel-like. Don’t let it burn.
  • Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl and add the wet to the dry once thickened.
  • Pour on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
  • Bake at 300* for 45 minutes, stirring every 12-15.**
  • Cool for 20 minutes before eating.

For this batch, I actually had to take Lily for a walk while the granola was baking. She insisted. I turned the oven off at about 20 minutes and left the tray in. It was perfectly done when I got back. Just watch your batch so it doesn’t burn!

 

Print
Oatmeal Raisin Granola
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

 

Ingredients
  • Oatmeal Raisin Granola
  • 2.5 C old-fashioned oats
  • ¾ C pecans, chopped
  • ¼ C unsalted peanuts
  • ¼ C sweetened coconut
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • pinch nutmeg
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • ½ C gold rainsins
  • ½ C black raisins
  • ¼ C maple syrup
  • 3 T applesauce
  • 2 T smooth peanut butter

Instructions
  1. Mix maple syrup, applesauce and peanut butter in a small pan on the stovetop and let simmer for 8-10 minutes over low heat. It will get thick and caramel-like. Don’t let it burn.
  2. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl and add the wet to the dry once thickened.
  3. Pour on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
  4. Bake at 300* for 45 minutes, stirring every 12-15.**
  5. Cool for 20 minutes before eating.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Snacks · Tagged With: , , ,

Blueberry Banana Breakfast Squares

September 9, 2011 by 1 Comment

IMG_5187.JPG

With my return to baking, I realized all the cookies and muffins in my freezer are months old. That just didn’t look appetizing. It was time to bake something new! I tagged a recipe for Chocolate Banana Breakfast Bars and wanted to adapt it to add a fruit and subtract the chocolate. Just to make it a little more guilt-less. Even with the added fruit, these were pretty sweet for breakfast.

I also doubled this recipe and baked it in two square pans. One batch for me to freeze for breakfasts, one for a friend with a new baby.

IMG_5258.JPG

Blueberry Banana Breakfast Squares

Adapted from Eat Live Run

makes about 12 bars

Ingredients:

  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1/3 cup canola oil
  • 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2/3 cup chopped banana chips
  • 2/3 cup blueberries
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 cups quick cooking oats

Directions:

  • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
  • In a large bowl, mash the banana with a fork and then add the canola oil and brown sugar. Mix well until there are no sugar lumps left.
  • In another (smaller) bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and oats. Mix wet into dry ingredients and add banana chips and blueberries.
  • Spray cooking spray into a square 8-inch pan and pour in batter.
  •  Bake for 25 minutes, or until edges are golden. Let cool before cutting into squares.

IMG_5266.JPG

I wouldn’t really call these healthy for breakfast, they were a little sweeter than I was expecting. I also didn’t love the texture of the banana chips, but I don’t really enjoy them plain.  You could easily leave them out or sub a nut for crunch or leave it out. They were a nice alternative to a muffin with the same idea, and tasted best over tart Greek yogurt.

After slicing, I put mine in the freezer about two days later to help them stand up to crumbling a little better. They were a bit sticky to the plate I put them on, which was probably a result of the oil and bananas.

Did you also realize these are vegan? A pretty good snack idea for a vegan one!

IMG_5268.JPG

Print
Blueberry Banana Breakfast Squares
 

Ingredients
  • 1 ripe banana
  • ⅓ cup canola oil
  • ⅔ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ⅔ cup chopped banana chips
  • ⅔ cup blueberries
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 2 cups quick cooking oats

Instructions
  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl, mash the banana with a fork and then add the canola oil and brown sugar. Mix well until there are no sugar lumps left.
  3. In another (smaller) bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and oats. Mix wet into dry ingredients and add banana chips and blueberries.
  4. Spray cooking spray into a square 8-inch pan and pour in batter.
  5. Bake for 25 minutes, or until edges are golden. Let cool before cutting into squares.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes · Tagged With: ,

Snack bar squares

June 5, 2011 by 12 Comments

IMG_4263.JPG

It’s nice to do things for other people. It’s even nicer when it involves food, and when it’s not a time consuming deed. These little oatmeal bars are a perfect gift. Here’s why:

  • IMG_4256.JPG
  • They have a short ingredient list.
  • They are healthy.
  • They are good for breakfast, snack, or dessert.
  • They freeze well.
  • They are quick to make with few bowls to clean.

I really think this makes for a perfect goodie. Easy on the baker, easy on the recipient. I made two batches–one each for two friends with newborn babies. These little treats would be such a nice gift for new parents who don’t have time to grocery shop or research easy recipes to try. A grab and go bar to eat with one hand seems like a good idea. I’d like to receive something like it! Gifts baked with love are the best.

IMG_4245.JPG

Chewy Oatmeal Bars

Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 C rolled oats
  • ¼ C chopped walnuts
  • 1/4 C sunflower seeds
  • 1/2 C dried fruit (I did raisins in one batch and raisins + apricots in another)
  • ¼ C brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1 ½ C milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp. vanilla

Instructions:

  • Preheat oven to 350.
  • In two separate bowls, mix dry ingredients, then wet ingredients. Pour wet into dry, mixing until combined.
  • Pour batter into a square baking dish lined with parchment paper for easy transferring. My dish is 9 x 9.
  • Bake 30 minutes. Once cool, cut into bars or squares.

IMG_4252.JPG

If you are curious about the nutritional info, they are 2 Weight Watchers Points Plus for a square, and 5 PP+ for a bar. The recipe makes 8 bars or 16 squares.

They are most tasty when slathered in peanut butter. For two points (not counting peanut butter), they would be a great little meal ender or something to snack on. I see a third batch in the making.

I saw two similar recipes online, one by Anne and one by Kath. I compared ingredients and instructions and  created my own as the recipe above. Things you could change would be the type of dried fruit and seeds or using chocolate chips.

IMG_4240.JPG

I loved that these bars were chewy and easy to slice, and not too sweet. A short ingredient list is also nice. These would be so nice to wrap individually and freeze to take when traveling. And I do encourage the use of nut butter slathered on. Makes it last longer.

IMG_4298.JPG

I boxed up the squares in this box lined with foil on the bottom and tissue paper on top. And tied with a bow.

IMG_4307.JPG

Since we didn’t get our own batch, I’m off to make another!

What’s your favorite food gift to give?

Filed Under: Recipes, Snacks · Tagged With: , ,

Ode to Overnight Oats

April 1, 2011 by 3 Comments

Happy Friday! Happy April! My computer played a not funny April Fools joke on me yesterday. It had a heart attack! My computer is only four months old, it’s so pretty and new and fast. And it died. The hard drive just stopped moving. I’m in mourning. You may ask if I back things up, and well, no. I don’t know why, as organized and responsible as I am, that I have never been a computer backer upper. I have basically everything but the last four months because I have my old computer that still works. The new one took over from there.

And lucky for you (and my sanity), I pre-wrote some posts for the next few days because I had a back log of things to show. So those are all set, like this one.

And while we’re talking about the blog, March was another record month for me. My 11th straight month of increasing page views, just one more to go until I hit one year of blogging. Can I do it again? Hope so! Thanks, as always, for visiting. Your comments and visits and Tweets make me happy to keep blogging. You know I’d do this whether you came or not. But viewers make me feel like someone finds it interesting.

IMG_2965.JPG

I wanted to share my latest breakfast obsession with you. You see, I love a simple, cold breakfast. When thinking about breakfast, here’s what I want:

  • I want it to last until lunch.
  • I want it to come together in a jif.
  • I want it to be healthy and not weigh me down all morning. Between 350-450 calories is good.
  • I like things sweet over savory.

Foods I like for breakfast–yogurt, cereal, fruit, oats. Some combination of those. Breakfast is really important to me because I am a morning exerciser, meaning I am hungry for breakfast! No plain toast will do.

Last summer when I first started reading a lot of blogs, I saw overnight oats. I really never ate oatmeal much before, hot or cold. Honestly, I didn’t like that it takes two bowls for hot oatmeal–one large one to microwave or a pot and then a bowl if on the stovetop. And I don’t like burning my tongue. I had never heard of cold oats!

In the fall and winter, I figured out hot oats to make them how I like them, but it still takes about 10 minutes and it still burns my tongue.

Anyway, now that it’s hot again, I don’t like to sweat after a shower through breakfast. Hot oats are gone.

I experimented with a few combinations of cold oats, and have found the one I love the most.

Here’s why I like it:

  • It is sweet.
  • It is sooo thick.
  • It is versatile to what you want (berries, peanut butter, chocolate, protein powder, nuts, cereal, etc).
  • It takes zero time in the morning because you make it the night before.
  • It travels on planes! Airlines have not figured out what to think of this. Is it a liquid? A solid? Like toothpaste? They don’t know. I don’t either.

Here’s how it works (I apologize for not pretty pictures, I’ll work on it, but it’s not that pretty.):

IMG_2884.JPG

Simple Overnight Oats:

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 C old fashioned oats
  • 1/3 C Plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/3 C almond milk
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 T raisins
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1 tsp flax meal

(top picture has 1/4 C canned pumpkin and no flax meal with Fiber One on top.)

added in the morning–anything you want, this picture shows a muffin crumbled on. This muffin. A crunch is nice.

Instructions:

  • Combine all ingredients in a tupperware if you want to take it somewhere in the morning, or in any bowl if you eat at home.
  • Place in refrigerator overnight.
  • Add your toppings in the morning.

IMG_2927.JPG

The yogurt + milk is key. Too much milk makes it runny, too little makes it paste-y. The raisins really POP. They are fundamental. The banana adds a nice texture, and the oats really dissolve in the liquids. I can’t wait to try more combos. This has the most staying power of any recent breakfast. I love it!

IMG_2928.JPG

My goal will be to get some better pictures. I’ve just been too excited to eat it and not tinker with lighting.

P.S. If you want to see how lighting changes a picture, check out these:

First one is flourescent back lighting in the kitchen, second is overhead room lighting, third is natural light outside.

IMG_2962.JPG IMG_2963.JPG IMG_2968.JPG

Can you eat hot oats in the summer? What’s your go-to hot weather breakfast?

Filed Under: Breakfast · Tagged With: ,

Day in the life

February 9, 2011 by 1 Comment

I haven’t written about a whole day of food in a really long time, so let’s have a show and tell today. Breakfast through dessert in pictures. This was all Monday’s foods.

IMG_2060.JPG

Breakfast: Steel cut oats

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 C steel cut oats
  • 1 T flax meal
  • sprinkle chia seeds
  • 2/3 C water
  • 1/3 C almond milk
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 T raisins
  • 1/2 banana

topped with spoonful of jam, coconut, Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal

IMG_2063.JPG

Lunch:

This was a big salad of lettuce, tomato, carrots, and leftover vegetables from a Sunday grocery salad (beets, cheese cubes, red pepper, slaw, zucchini). Big blobs of hummus on top.

On the side was the other half banana from breakfast with one Banana Bread muffin from the freezer and a spoonful of peanut butter.

IMG_2066.JPG

This is maybe one of my favorite pictures below.

Snack:

Oikos Greek yogurt Vanilla with strawberries, blueberries, and a little Kashi Go Lean on top for crunch. Served with my cute porcelain spoon.

I am not really good at afternoon snacking because I think it’s when I’m most hungry. I had more than this bowl of yogurt + berries, and some cashews and dried apricots too. Just telling you the truth.

IMG_2075.JPG

Dinner:

This dinner would normally not be blogged about because it wasn’t very good. Jeffrey has requested I give chicken another chance, so we found a recipe we liked from this month’s Rachael Ray magazine called Chicken with Wine. It’s basically a lightened up coq au vin.
The chicken was yucky. It was too chewy, purple, and limp. That’s on the left side of the plate.
The salad was really good–grapefruit, lettuce, avocado, slivered almonds. The dressing was the juice from the grapefruit with olive oil, salt and pepper.
And the rice was Uncle Ben’s 90 second wild rice. I liked this kind a lot.
IMG_2081.JPG

Dessert was one of these.

If you’re wondering about my exercise on this day, I did CrossFit in the morning and walked around the block with Lily once. We take a few shorter walks but it’s not that long.

Do you like seeing what I eat in a whole day?

Filed Under: Daily Update · Tagged With: , ,

Coc-Oatmeal

January 27, 2011 by 2 Comments

IMG_1295.JPG

Lots of things happening in this post. I’m trying to write about recent things I’ve tried and they are all getting dumped in this post.

See my latest story on CultureMap? It’s about this Sunday’s Houston Marathon and how to be a great spectator. Check it out! I have two more posting before the weekend too.

Coc-Oatmeal

I made my normal oatmeal and added 1 tsp of cocoa to the pot to give it a chocolatey color and aroma. It didn’t add much in overpowering sweetness, and probably didn’t add any nutrition, so it was just for fun of flavor. Pretty color too!

In the mix:

  • 1/3 C old fashioned oats + 2 T flax meal
  • 2/3 C water
  • 1/4 C almond milk
  • 1/2 mashed banana
  • 1 T raisins
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp cocoa
  • topped with coconut and homemade granola

Cook like usual: Boil water, add oats and milk. Whisk. Add rest of ingredients. Whisk, whisk until thick. Enjoy!

Easy Weeknight Chicken Dinner

IMG_1240.JPG

I am trying to come around to chicken a little more, so I bought organic chicken breasts and decided to try a new method of cooking by using the stovetop to crisp the top and the oven to cook the inside.

I adapted this recipe from a cookbook called “Chicken.” I figured they would know well how to cook the best chicken!

IMG_1238.JPG

Ingredients:

For two large chicken breasts:

  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 T rosemary, chopped
  • 1 tsp each salt and pepper
  • 2 T EVOO
  • 1 C milk with 1 tsp lemon juice (or 1 C buttermilk)

Instructions:

  • Marinate chicken in Ziploc bag overnight or for a few hours.
  • Cook on stovetop in Le Crueset pan (this was my first time trying it).
  • Move to oven at 350* after 10 minutes. Cook 15-20 more, until cooked through.

For potatoes and green beans:

  • Season with EVOO, salt and pepper. Bake potatoes for 40-45 minutes and less time for green beans (add them to the baking sheet with about 25 minutes to go.
  • I should have seasoned the potatoes with more seasoning, like something spicy or savory.

We liked the flavor of the chicken, but it didn’t crisp on top as much as we hoped. We’ll keep trying!

Parsnip Fries and Perfect Tofu

IMG_1828.JPG

If you still haven’t tried parsnips, let me convince you why again. First, they look like French fries, but they are a vegetable. Second, they are easy and quick (chop, drizzle with EVOO, salt and pepper and roast at 425 for 35 minutes), and third, they are a great addition to anything when you might want a starch (but it’s a vegetable) or a second vegetable.

IMG_1225.JPG

I had mine with asparagus (roasted with the parsnips) and stove sauteed tofu. I have been trying different ways of cooking tofu (oven, grilled in rectangles, with more marinade), but the best way is on the stovetop. It gets them crispy outside and soft inside, and they are cute little bite sized pieces.

Here are the steps:

  • I used Nasoya Firm tofu and sliced it into 6 long pieces.
  • I pressed it with a heavy block for about 15 minutes, then cut into bite sized pieces. It should make about 64 bites.
  • Then I seasoned with a mix of Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (more on that later) mixed with 2T olive oil and pepper and garlic powder (just a few shakes of each). I did not add salt because liquid aminos are kind of like soy sauce, and naturally salty.
  • Then I sauteed on the stove for about 5 minutes per side, flipping so they don’t burn.

I have read about liquid aminos recently as an alternative to soy sauce with far less sodium and a similar taste. It comes in a spray bottle and can be used for sauces or dressings. I wasn’t fond of the smell when prepping, but it blended fine when cooked.

All together, this meal was roasted parsnips and asparagus, tofu, pickles and BBQ sauce. A nice balanced meal!

Are you scared of tofu?

Filed Under: Breakfast, Dinner, Vegetarian · Tagged With: , , , ,

Real Good Eats

January 7, 2011 by 3 Comments

I am happy to say that I have been cooking at home a lot this week, it seems even more than usual since our dishwasher is running often. Or maybe it’s just better than usual, from the Kale Salad to the Chili and Cornbread to the Asian Stir Fry. That’s a lot of real dinners in a row for us, plus breakfast and lunch which are made or eaten at home too.

I also haven’t been baking. Since it’s January and all, I have made an effort to cook dinner at home this week and not bake treats. It also helps to know that yesterday through Sunday will be full of birthday eats and treats, so I better start the week right!

I haven’t posted a whole day of meals in a long time, so here are a breakfast, lunch and dinner that I am really enjoying on repeat.

P.S. Thanks for the birthday wishes yesterday! I had a great birthday. Now it’s on with starting my #27 year.

Perfect Oatmeal

IMG_1077.JPG

Starbucks has their version, I have perfected mine. I have been in the mood for thicker oatmeal, and I also found that it cooks much faster. Here’s the mix:

  • 1/3 C Oats (Scottish in this batch)
  • 2 T Ground Flax Meal
  • 1/2 banana, mashed
  • 1/4 C almond milk
  • 2/3 C water
  • pinch chia seeds
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • small handful raisins
  • topped with spoonful of peanut butter and sweetened coconut

Instructions:

In a small pot, bring the water to a simmer. Add the oats and flax and whisk. Wait a minute and add the milk. Then banana and everything else. Whisk well until it thickens and bubbles. I turned the heat to low so it wouldn’t cook so fast and burn.

Served in a cup so it looks cuter and more fun to eat. The peanut butter makes it stick-to-your-ribs good. The coconut is a really nice addition of sweet. And the texture with less liquid to more oats is much better for me. I still love cooking the raisins in the pot so they really pop. It all just works together so well. Mmm. This is really, really good.

IMG_1078.JPG

An easy lunch with a special treat on the side

In the salad mix: Lettuce, tomato, carrots, hummus, guacamole, 1 hard boiled egg white

On the side is Pumpkin Ginger Bread with a little pumpkin butter. Mmm hmm. I think I made the salad just so I could eat the pumpkin bread. This is my favorite creation of the last few months.

IMG_1054.JPG

Quinoa with Veggies, Dates and Apples

IMG_1067.JPG

I am really proud about this dish. I don’t know why, but making use of things in the pantry and refrigerator without having to buy more seemed like I was making use of what I have.

Ingredients:

  • 1 C dry quinoa
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • big bag of green beans (1 pound?) with ends cut and chopped into thirds
  • 1 apple (I used Braeburn), chopped
  • EVOO, salt, pepper
  • 1/2 C dates, chopped
  • 2 T apple juice

Instructions:

  • In one pot, cook quinoa like it says on the box (1 C quinoa to 2 C water), boil and then let simmer 10 minutes until liquid is gone.
  • In a separate pan with a little EVOO, cook green beans and red pepper until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Add apple and dates and let soften too.
  • Add apple juice when all fruits and vegetables are in the pot and stir around for a few minutes.
IMG_1064.JPG
  • When quinoa is done, pour on top of vegetables and mix to combine.
IMG_1065.JPG

I ate this as dinner with some leftover tofu on top. The apple juice was key! It added a really nice but not too sweet flavor to the quinoa since it had no seasoning. And don’t leave out the dates! I don’t like dates plain, but I love to add them to things. It’s like a raisin but more chewy and sticky. It was a perfect addition to this dish.

This would also be a great side dish to serve more people. It made a lot! I’ll have a lot leftover for a few days. I think it would also be great for lunch over lettuce.

IMG_1070.JPG

And I thought that dinner was just too healthy, so for dessert, I had one piece Ezekiel Raisin Bread with Orange jam and chocolate chips. This is a favorite dessert. I have seen it a lot with peanut butter, but I lightened up the calories and did a light jam.

IMG_1073.JPG
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Filed Under: Breakfast, Daily Update, Dessert, Dinner, Lunch, Recipes · Tagged With: , , ,
«Older Posts