5…4…3…2…1…

Posted on December 31, 2010 by kissmybroccoli

I hope everyone is having a fantabulous New Year’s Eve and if you plan on going out tonight, have fun but please be safe!

I will be joining the masses this coming year with a list of New Year’s resolutions, though I like Averie’s term a little better: intentions. Like she say’s, “resolutions are easily broken [but] you cannot break an intention the way you can “break your New Years resolutions'”.

New Year’s “Intentions” for 2011:

1. Drink at least 64 ounces of water every day
I usually only drink water and coffee (only 1 cup of 1/2 caff in the am), but some days I will go all day without a single sip of water! I need to get better with this.

2. Eat at least one serving of fish high in omega 3’s once a week
Fish is so good for your heart and cardiovascular system. I LOVE seafood, but I rarely ever eat it, especially at home. This is going to change.

3. Get 7-8 hours of sleep each night
‘Nuff said!

4. Try out one recipe a month that challenges my knowledge in the kitchen
I like to challenge myself and try new things, this year I would like to attempt to make a few classic dishes that I have never tried before as well as new techniques. Suggestions are more than welcome!

5. Read one book a month
All I ever said throughout college was how much I wanted to read something that wasn’t from a textbook. After I graduated, I read about 5 books. Since then, over 3 years later…zilch!

6. Do 30-60 minutes of physical activity every day
I already have a plan set into place with this one. I joined Team HEAB yesterday and am so excited to see what Lindsay has in store for us! My ankle is finally getting better from my horrible sprain back in late September so I think it’s about time to see what I can do. Plus, I am so much happier when I’m active!

7. And last but definitely not least, reconnect with family and friends, more phone calls and more visits this year!
I am so bad about visiting and calling my family and friends. A lot of times, I tend to let work rule my life and everything falls to the wayside until the weekend. Well, by the weekend, I’m usually so tired (hopefully #3 will also help with this) that I don’t even feel like leaving my house, much less being sociable. The relationships with the people in my life now are so very important to me and I want to try to do my best to convey that to them by setting up lunch/dinner dates and the occasional phone call when scheduling conflicts don’t allow for visits.

My lucky number is sever, so I figured this was perfect for me. Plus you don’t want to burden yourself with too many goals or you more than likely won’t even achieve one!

Well, I’m off to put some of my own touches on a take-and-bake pizza I bought from Papa Murphy’s. Then it’s time to get ready to paint the town tonight! This will be my first time going out to celebrate New Years and I am so excited!

Have a great night everybody!

Posted in Uncategorized | 11 Comments

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