Tag Archives: oats

Fingers Uncrossed

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I went to bed dreaming of a workout, but apparently everyone else was crossing their fingers for snow.

Instead of gyming it I had breakfast with the husband, who’s going to drive me to and from school for BioChem, thank god.

At least breakfast was good.

Last night I took a near empty peanut butter jar and added 1/4 cup raw oats, 1 Tbsp chia seeds, and a lot of plain soy milk; I was going for the soupy but gummy texture.

Didn’t it ended up looking kind of like the inside of a dragon fruit?

This morning I added a drizzle of maple syrup and dug in.

Overnight Oats in a Jar for the win!

Have you ever eaten a dragon fruit?  I’ve actually only seen pictures.

Slipping into Grumpsville

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The good news?  Several $100 later, I’ve got my computer back!  The bad news?  I’ve got a major case of the grumps.  I’ll try to keep this quick.

I haven’t been to the gym in a week.  I’ve also been cranky for a week.  I think that is solid scientific evidence that I’m happier when I workout 🙂  In the interest of considering all the data, I should also mention that I haven’t been going because my knee hurts and it’s possible I’m also cranky because I’m pissed about my knee.  <– that is extra-strength ironic, you’ll see why in a minute.

First, a breakfast that didn’t make me cranky.

I didn’t want to use banana so instead I beefed up my normal stove-top oats (1/3 cup oats, 1/2 cup each water and So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk) with 1.5 Tbsp of chia seeds and 2 tsp dark brown sugar.

I topped my chewy-in-the-best-way-ever creation with Trader Joe’s Sun Butter.

Sooo good.

Then I walked to school for lab.  And I slipped on the ice.  And fell.  Into a puddle.

Yeah, I don’t even really know what else to say about that.  I was angry and soaking wet and I wrenched my already hurt knee and bashed my ‘good’ knee into the sidewalk.  And as the day went on I realized my back also is killing me.  Hence the trip to Grumpsville.

After lab I walked home, gingerly, and took advantage of the Subway $5 Footlong promotion along the way.

I ate half today, and have the other half leftover for tomorrow.

I got the veggie sub with lettuce, tomato, spinach, red onion, green peppers, cucumber, black olives, and pickles.  I added a little Stubbs BBQ Sauce when I got home.

Delish.  Also another sandwich that did not miss the cheese.

I also got a large diet coke with ice and dipped pretzels into it.

Heaven.

And then I ate this thing of cashews.

Unfortunately the sandwich and massive snack attack didn’t take care of my other complaint – I was hungry, all day long.  Pretty much all day when I wasn’t complaining about my back I was frantic with hunger; Adam thinks I’m a joy to be with.  I took unphotographed nibbles of pretty much every item in the fridge (chickpeas leftovers, potatoes, peanut butter…).

Happy Sidenote – I was recently sent some Arnold’s 100% Whole Wheat Flax and Fiber Sandwich Thins to sample.  [I like them a lot]  The husband is obsessed with them!  Look at his lunch –

When we got the last-minute call about my computer (yay) we headed out, scrapping our dinner plans and opting for Moe’s instead.

I housed this veggie burrito with rice, pinto beans, sautéed mushrooms and onions, guacamole, and black olives.

I actually still have an assignment to do tonight (and of course I still have to complain about it) so I’ve got to go.  You’ll miss my cheery disposition 🙂

Have you ever slipped on the ice?

The Best Reason

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I’ve got to keep this snappy, today’s a busy day.  In addition to it being my long day (classes from 11 – 8:40) I’ve also got a lot of on-campus errands to attend to.

Luckily I’ve learned that busy days aren’t a good reason to skip the gym, they’re the best reason to get a work out in!  Starting my day by working out gives me energy, gives my day a sense of purpose, and helps me have a sense of accomplishment all before breakfast!

This morning I headed to the gym for a treadmill workout.  I’m trying to balance not increasing my distance too quickly with building endurance, so I decided to run longer for slower.  I set the treadmill to 10mph and plugged away for 20minutes and 2miles.  5 minutes each of cool down and stretching and I was on my way.

I also prepared for my busy day by setting up my breakfast last night.

Sidenote – blog reading has given me major chia envy, so I was super excited when I found this bag of Bob’s Red Mill Chia Seeds on sale at Wegman’s the other day.

I decided to try them out using a method cobbled together from a few different blogs.

Last night – in a mostly empty jar of peanut butter – I combined 3/4 cup So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk, 1/3 cup raw oats, and 2 Tbsp chia seeds.

This morning I added in a splash of Vanilla So Delicious and half a sliced banana.

The end result was fantasmic!

The chia seeds really did make a sort of vegan ‘yogurt’ and you can never go wrong with oats in a jar!

Have you tried chia seeds yet?  What’s your favorite way to use them?  Have you ever grown a Chia Pet?

Caramel Corn Sounds Good…

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I don’t know what my deal is because my hunger never abated last night and when I woke up this morning I was still starving!  Actually, what I was hungry for was butterscotch (and that was before reading Kath’s post); but that was clearly out of the question.  I went ahead and made a sweet and healthy breakfast plate.

A serving of Van’s Vitamin Boost Waffles,

topped with 1 Tbsp maple syrup,

a fresh banana,

a drizzle of Trader Joe’s Sunflower Butter,

and a sprinkle of my simply sweet granola.

This was so tasty!  The granola made the dish, you guys need to try this recipe!

P.S.  I might not care about the Super Bowl, but you know I care about popcorn 😉  The Popcorn Factory wanted me to let you guys know that their commemorative Super Bowl tins are on sale.  DISCOUNT CODE: Your readers can use code WINNER for $10 off $50 at ThePopcornfactory.com (expires March 31, 2011).

A Loaded Lunch Post

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Hi guys; I hope everyone is having a good Monday!  I prewrote this lunch post and set it to publish in advance because I’ve got a lot to talk about today.  While I’m actually eating lunch, you guys will be getting a lunch-time recipe!

First up, the recipe!  Homemade Veggie Burgers –

  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • half a large sweet onion, chopped
  • 1 large purple eggplant, chopped
  • 2 T worchestire sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 15 oz can chick peas, drained
  • 1/2 cup raw oats
  • 1 tsp sweet curry powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • salt and pepper to taste
  1. Preheat oven to 400*.  Spread two baking sheets with aluminum foil and grease thoroughly with cooking spray.
  2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion to pan and saute until starting to become translucent, 2-3minutes.  Season with pepper and salt to draw out the moisture.
  3. Add eggplant and worchestire sauce* to the pan.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5-7minutes. 
  4. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
  5. Place chick peas in the bowl of a medium food processor and pulse twice.  Do not pulse until smooth, remember, you are not making hummus!
  6. Working in 1/2 cup batches, pulse eggplant mixture into the chick peas. 
  7. Pulse in oats and seasoning until well-combined, scraping down the sides as need be.
  8. Remove the food processor’s bowl from its base, being careful to mind the blades.
  9. Shape mixture into 8 palm-sized patties and place on the prepared baking trays.  The patties will be very soft, but will firm up as they cook.
  10. Bake for 30-35minutes, until the outsides of the burgers have started to brown.

*please note – worchestire sauce is actually not vegan.  But, we’ve got three bottles of it in our pantry (from a review for the blog) and I can’t afford to buy another bottle of something else.

For lunch I packed a veggie burger on an Arnold Multi-Grain Sandwich Thin spread with a bit of horseradish mustard.

Delish!  I snuck a bite of the burgers during production last night and I’m loving the use of eggplant as a base.

On the side, a baggie of sliced cucumber.

The Sandwich Thins were actually sent to me for free to review the two newest varieties.

I’ll let you know in my evening post what I thought, but I’ve tried other varieties in the past so I’m expecting to love them.

The review is part of a healthy living initiative, so I was also sent this wicked cool Le Sportsac gym bag.

Way too cool for me 🙂

What are you having for lunch today?

Instant Playback

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Since last night was the Super Bowl, I thought I’d give you the play-by-play of my evening.  Here are some of the things – other than scarfing single-serve pb cookie dough – I did while I was home alone –

  • found the articles (hopefully) for my big nutrition presentation
  • watched the new Super Bowl commercials online
  • organized three years worth of study note cards
  • sat in a 62* apartment for two hours before I realized the heat was off

Overall I’m not sure whether or not I’d call the evening a win or a fail 😀

I’ve gotten stuff done this morning too.  Like a kill-two-birds-with-one-workout trip to the gym where I studied notecards on the elliptical.  30minutes, elliptical level 6 and random.  I did several minutes of sprints intervals and got all my studying done.

And I made a tasty breakfast.

Before I got into the shower I made a batch of quick stewed apples – 1 chopped apple, 1 Tbsp agave syrup, 1 Tbsp h20, dash cinnamon; microwaved for 150 seconds.

Then after I got out of the shower, and my apples had cooled down a bit, I put them atop a bowl of Stonyfield Vanilla Soy Yogurt,

with a drizzle of maple syrup and 2 Tbsp of my simply sweet granola.

It was like a healthy, vegan apple crisp!

For reals though, this tasted exactly like – if not better than – apple crisp.  Make it!

What was your favorite Super Bowl commercial?  I didn’t see them all – and I wasn’t that impressed – but I think the “angry wife” Pepsi Max one was my fav.

Friday Night Frozen Yuuuums

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I did the Friday shuffle!  In fact I shuffled right on through to bedtime!

After class I walked down Elmwood to meet up for lunch with Katie at Wasabi.

I’d like to tell you I ordered a hot water to drink because I’m so mature and healthy, but really it was more of a Japanese waitresses cannot understand me when I’ve got retainers in my mouth thing.

I ordered the lunch special which came with a miso soup (not always vegetarian, fyi, though this one was),

and two sushi rolls.

I got a cucumber and asparagus roll,

and a tempura sweet potato roll.

We had a great lunch and spent a long time catching up.

Then I headed to the Spot to get my study on.  I ordered a grande soy latte with two shots of amaretto syrup.

But then I discovered that drinking hot coffee with retainers in is disgusting and threw it out.

Caffeinated or not, I managed to get all of my notecards for the week done, phew!

Adam and I didn’t both didn’t get home until after 7, so all plans of a fancy dinner flew out the window.  Thank goodness I had the best frozen meal on earth on standby.

The Tandoor Chef Veggie Pad Thai is ridiculous tasty and vegan to boot.

Yuuuuuuum!  It’s nothing like nyc, but this is literally the best Thai food I can get in Buffalo.

I also had some unsweetened applesauce topped with red hots and simply sweet granola.

Can I say “yuuuuuuuuum” again?

Any exciting plans for the weekend?

Snow Day

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In the most exciting turn of events ever, school was canceled today!

Adam says I shouldn’t be that excited about not having to go to a place that we pay money to allow me to go to (got all that?), but today was my extra long day (11-8:40), and it ended in my awful music class.  So “yippie” I say!

I’m also pretty jazzed about the bowl of Snow Day Oats I whipped up.

I started with a batch of stove top oats – 1/3 cup oats, 1 cup water, 1 small banana, and a pinch of salt.  Then I added some snow (coconut) and 3 Tbsp of fresh granola (more on that in a bit).

The oat base was good, but not as good as when I use half skim milk and half water.  I think I’m going to experiment a bit with soy/almond milk and if all else fails I’ll make my base a little lighter and my toppings a little heavier this month.

Now about that granola.  The other day I was intrigued when Brandi made stove top granola.  So today I did something wonderful.

Simply Sweet Granola

  • 2/3 cup raw oats
  • 4 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 Tbsp water
  • 2 Tbsp vanilla soy milk
  1. Toast the oats in a skillet over medium heat.  2-4minutes, but use your nose and eyes to guide you.
  2. Remove oats to another container and lightly wipe any oat dust out of your pan.
  3. Add sugar and water to pan and allow to caramelize.  Do NOT stir, just lightly swirl the pan with the handle.  Cook just until a light brown color develops.
  4. Carefully pour soy milk into caramelized sugar.  Turn off the heat, and return toasted oats to pan.
  5. Using a wooden spatula, fold mixture together until well-combined.
  6. Spread onto a flat surface and allow to dry.

This granola was so quick and easy to make and the end results were soooo good!  Super crunchy and sweet but each 1/3 cup serving has only ~200calories (and as a topping you only need a few tablespoons or so).

We even made fancy coffee.

I usually hate the taste of creamers, but the nutritional stats on the Silk Hazelnut Soy Creamer we bought for Adam compelled me to try some.

Pretty darn good.

I’ve got a warm, full belly, cuddling weather, and somebody to cuddle with – life is good!

Have you gotten any snow days yet this season?