The World is My Oat-ster!

Posted on December 30, 2010 by kissmybroccoli

A few of you asked about my Scottish oats I had for breakfast the other day. Scottish oats are actually just steel-cut oats (also known as Irish oats) ground into a meal that when cooked resembles a porridge. Since pre-packaged Scottish oats can be a bit on the pricey side, I decided to take a cue from Ashley and make my own.

Steel-cut oats: whole grain groats (the inner portion of the oat kernel) which have been cut into only two or three pieces by steel rather than being rolled. They are golden in color and resemble small rice pieces. *source*

One of the biggest differences between Irish and Scottish Oats is the cooking time! Since the steel-cut variety is thicker, it takes much more time to cook down than it’s ground up cousin!

Super Nutty Steel-Cut Oats:

  • 1/4 cup steel-cut oats
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • dash of vanilla
  • 1/2 banana, sliced thin
  • 3 Tbsp egg whites

1. Bring water and milk to a boil.
2. Stir in oats and vanilla and reduce to a low simmer.
3. Whisk in banana slices until creamy.
4. Cook for 10 minutes (al dente) or 20 minutes (creamy), stirring occasionally.
5. In last couple of minutes of cooking, stir in egg whites.
6. Remove from heat and let stand for 2 minutes.

Toppings: FROG preserves (Figs, Raspberries, Orange, and Ginger) and a mix of dry roasted nuts I got for Christmas.

This batch of oats turned out pretty creamy thanks to the addition of the banana and the egg whites. Last time I made them, I didn’t have any creamy mix-ins and they kept more of their original texture and chewiness.

Almond Joy Irish Oats:

  • 1/4 cup steel-cut oats
  • 1/2 water
  • 1/2 unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • dash of vanilla

*Cooked the same as above only without addition of banana slices and egg whites.

Toppings: Chopped almonds, toasted coconut and HEAB’s chocolate coconut butter.

I love steel-cut oats for their chewy texture and strong nutty flavor, but if you cook them according to package instructions, it takes 20 minutes to get a good creamy bowl of oats. I can be a bit impatient with my breakfast (usually because I am starving!), so on mornings that I just can’t stand there, hovering over a pot of oats for 20 minutes, I whip up some Scottish oats!

Froggin’ Almond Butter Scottish Oats:

  • 1/4 cup steel-cut oats, ground in blender or food processor for a couple of seconds
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • dash of vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 Tbsp ground flax

1. Bring water and milk to a boil.
2. Stir in oats, vanilla, and cinnamon, and flax.
3. Cook for 8-10 minutes until it reaches your desired thickness (I like my oats THICK!)
4. Remove from heat and let stand for 2 minutes.

Toppings: Almond butter and FROG preserves!

I was in a hurry for dinner tonight and since I already had oatmeal on the brain for this post, I decided to whip up some savory oat bran.

Oat bran is made from the outer-most layer of the oat kernel, the part that contains the most fiber.  *source*

5 Minute Savory Oats:

  • 1/3 cup oat bran
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 slice Canadian bacon, sliced
  • 1 egg, sunny side up
  • Seasonings to taste

1. Bring water to a boil and add oat bran.
2. Cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add nooch.
4. Remove from heat and let stand for 2 minutes.
5. Cook egg in a skillet sprayed with cooking spray.
6. Heat ham through while egg cooks and then dice into little squares.
7. Top oat bran with egg and ham and season with whatever floats your boat (I chose fresh black pepper and…can you guess? Ms. Dash Southwestern Chipotle!

Well, I’m off to bed! Gotta be at work in the morning at 6:30am! 🙁 We won’t have any outpatients scheduled because of the holiday, so I’m hoping to get off early and maybe take a nap before my New Year’s Eve night out! 🙂

Posted in Breakfast | Tagged , , | 25 Comments

Feelin’ Cheesy

Posted on December 29, 2010 by kissmybroccoli

Let me just say one thing…I absolutely love cheese! I really don’t know how you vegetarians/vegans do it. You can take everything, but don’t lay a finger on my butterfinger cheese! At this very moment, there are eleven different kinds of cheese in my fridge…ELEVEN! I know I have a problem. I’m reminded every time I go to SAMs Club and pass by the cheese cooler. I just can’t walk away from that golden cheese oasis without taking at least one more home with me!

 

I so need this! *source*

 

Not so long ago, when I was a fat-fearing woman, I would never buy full fat cheese, but you wanna know something about reduced fat cheese? It’s so over-processed that it loses all that wonderful strong cheesy flavor! You feel like you have to use more of it in recipes to get the taste to come through and I’m no rocket scientist here, but doesn’t that kinda defeat the purpose of buying it to begin with? Now I only purchase strong flavored, full fat cheese and I swear it makes a world of a difference!

This morning, I decided to whip up some of Lindsay’s Eggins for breakfast.

Eggin=a vessel to carry gooey melty cheese to my mouth! 😉

What’s an Eggin you ask? Simple, it’s a muffin-like egg…or maybe it’s an egg-like muffin?? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Oh, nevermind!

Cheesy Salsa Eggins for One:

  • 1 whole egg
  • 1/3 cup egg whites in the carton
  • 1/2 Tbsp flax meal
  • dash of almond milk
  • Ms. Dash Southwestern Chipotle Seasoning
  • 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

I whisked up all the ingredients except the cheese, filled 3 muffin cups and baked them at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Then I added the cheese on top and allowed just enough time for the cheese to melt and topped them with some mild salsa.

Eggins, 3 strips Fakin' Bacon, English muffin with jam, and COFFEE!

Y-U-M! That’s all I have to say!

For lunch I had a leftover Cheesy Black Bean Enchilada and a big ol’ salad of spinach, celery, carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, cottage cheese and nooch (’cause you can NEVER have too much cheese!)

After work, I went on a search for a dress for my night out on the town on New Year’s Eve. This will be my first time actually going out to celebrate! Well, if I can find a dress that is. I must’ve tried on twenty dresses…no luck! 🙁

Am I the only one here that HATES getting completely undressed in a freezing cold dressing room 27 times and then walking out of the store empty handed after an hour?? Grr!

I didn’t get home until after 7pm and I had no idea what I wanted to eat for dinner. I wanted something warm and comforting, but there was no time for soup making, I was hong-gry! This is how I decided:

Warm thoughts -> childhood -> dinnertime-> mac ‘n cheese -> one dish dinner? ->
TUNA MAC!

“Cheezy” Tuna Mac: (serves 1)
Inspired by Ashley’s Mac ‘n Cheeze

  • 1/2 cup dry whole wheat macaroni noodles
  • 1 oz unsalted cashews
  • 1/2 cup + 1-2 Tbsp unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 heaping Tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1/8 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/8 tsp ground mustard
  • 1/8 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/16 tsp onion powder
  • 1 5 oz. can of tuna, drained
  • 1/2 cup peas (I was out so I used chopped up green beans)

1. Cook macaroni according to package.
2. While macaroni is cooking, blend cashews, 1/2 cup milk, nooch, and spices in a blender until smooth.
3. Add “cheeze” sauce to drained, cooked noodles.
4. Add tuna and heat over low-medium heat until cooked through (this is where the extra milk comes in to play, add more to keep the consistency creamy and not dry).
5. Stir in cooked peas (either canned or thawed from frozen), again…no peas so I used gb’s
6. Top with more smoked paprika

Man, all this talk about cheese reminds me I still have yet to make THESE!
Oh my freakin…*drool*

1. Do you like cheese? Do you have a favorite?
If I had to pick a favorite, I would have to say crumbled goat cheese!
2. What are your plans for this New Year’s?

 

Posted in Breakfast, Entree, Vegetarian | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

Cheesy Black Bean Enchiladas

Posted on December 28, 2010 by kissmybroccoli

After a midnight binge of leftover Dough Ball fail last night, I woke up this morning with a bit of an uneasy tummy and a sudden distaste for cookies. For the past week, I’ve gone back and forth between holiday eating and normal eating and now I feel like I’m finally back on track! Hello, my name is Heather and I have been cookie free for 1 day! 😉

Breakfast: Scottish oats topped with AB&J and bananas & black coffee

Lunch: A HUGE salad topped with roasted pine nut hummus, sunflower seeds, & pepper...YUM!

Dinner!

Cheesy Black Bean Enchiladas: (serves 2)
Enchiladas:

  • 1 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup red bell pepper, diced (I used a jar of roasted peps)
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
  • 1 tsp. taco seasoning
  • Ms. Dash Southwestern Chipotle Seasoning (LOVE)
  • 2 whole wheat tortillas (I used Trader Joe’s brand)

Enchilada Sauce:

  • 1 1/2 Tbsp tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/4 tsp taco seasoning
  • 1/8 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/8 tsp onion powder
  • 1/8 tsp cumin
  • 1/8 tsp chili powder

1. Saute onions and peppers until tender.
2. Stir in beans and shredded cheese and heat until cooked through. Season with taco seasoning and Ms. Dash .
3. Whisk all ingredients for sauce in a small bowl. Feel free to add more or less seasoning to taste.
3. Pour half of the homemade enchilada sauce into a small baking dish.
4. Spoon half of the filling into each tortilla, roll up, and place in baking dish. Roll enchiladas in the sauce filling bottom of pan until entire outside of tortillas are coated.
5. Sprinkle with additional shredded cheese.
6. Place baking dish in a 350 degree oven and bake until cheese is melted and tortillas are crispy (15-20 minutes).
7. Top with sour cream, salsa, and/or avocado if desired though I thought they were perfectly tasty in the nude! 😉

* This meal was prepared in under 30 minutes! *

To be totally honest, before whipping up this new recipe, I’ve only ever made ground beef/turkey enchiladas. I’ve never attempted a vegetarian version of my recipe. I can tell you right now, I did not miss the meat in any way! The flavors came out cheesy and smoky with a hint of spice (again feel free to kick it up a bit in the spice department if you like).

I usually use the canned red sauce for my enchiladas, but I realized halfway into the recipe I was all out and had to improvise. This homemade version is a great money saver and healthier alternative (a LOT less sodium). I love being able to control the amount of spice and salt that goes into condiments and sauces and since this was SO EASY to mix up, I doubt I’ll be purchasing the canned stuff again!

I served up my Cheesy Black Bean Enchilada with a nice green salad of spinach, green beans, red peppers, and sweet corn.

Before topping with olive oil, nooch, and black pepper.

Well, the Netflix fairy came by the house this afternoon, so I’m off to my date with Emma Stone in Easy A! So excited! I’ve been wanting to see this for months! See ya!

Posted in Entree, Vegetarian | Tagged , , , | 17 Comments