Left Over Rice Pudding

In search of breakfast this morning, I discovered that we had a lot of leftover rice.  I'd like to tell you that it was yummy, fluffy brown rice from some healthy home cooked meal.  I can't do that, however, because the reality is that it was hard dry white rice left over from Chinese take out.  Instead of just tossing it, I turned it into something good.  I don't know if this can technically be called rice pudding since traditional rice pudding has butter, eggs, lots more sugar, and is baked in the oven.  My version is vegan, and I did it on the stove top.  Maybe a rice porridge is closer to what this really is. Whatever the case, it's really good; it's really easy, and it uses up left overs, so you don't waste any money.

Fruity Oatmeal Muffins

My goodness.  Forget everyone else, I might fall over from shock!  Two recipes in two days.  Amazing.

Anyway, I had a bunch of odds and ends fruit in the house - bananas, blueberries, oranges, apples, blackberries, and I needed to do something with it. I know I could always freeze it for smoothies, but that's not very creative, and truthfully, we are such avid smoothie people that we already have a ton of frozen ingredients on hand.  

I decided on muffins, because they make for a quick, easy, healthy breakfast or snack, and it's been awhile since we've had any.  I didn't want a dessert muffin though.  I wanted a lightly sweet, hearty breakfast muffin that was appropriate for both me and the toddler.  These are a goldmine of awesome, if I don't say so myself.  There is no added sugar or sweetener of any kind; they're sweetened soley by the fruit, and there's no added fat at all.  They're also vegan.  Win win win, right?  Lastly, I was able to mix up the whole thing in ONE bowl.  Minimal dishes!  I just doesn't get much better than that.

Tropical Oatmeal Vegan Pancakes

My OB says that pregnancy cravings aren't real and that I should ignore them.  I don't believe her though, because nothing but a pregnancy craving could account for the intense desire I've had for pancakes since Friday night, especially considering, as I've mentioned before, I don't especially like pancakes.  I tried to listen to her; I ignored it for as long as I could, but today, on my way home from the gym, I just knew I was going to have to finally have some pancakes, and the tropical oatmeal pancakes were conceived on the drive home.

Peanut Butter Banana Breakfast Pizza

Pizza for breakfast.  This sounds like a winning idea to me!  When I saw Chocolate Covered Katie's Breakfast Pizzert, I knew I was going to have to try it out ASAP.  Because I'm me, however, I can't just let a recipe be.  I had to tweak it to suit my needs and tastes.  These days I do my best to use oat flour instead of any other, or at least a combination.  I'm all about the lactogenic foods!  With the exception of the chocolate chips, this is quite healthy, as well.  It's no added fat, refined sugar free, and made with oat flour and fruit.

You could probably make this into a healthy dessert actually, but you'd have to sweeten it up a bit.  It would be really good with maple syrup, I think.

Rebellion of the Rice Cooker

Last night I thought that I would like to have a healthy rice pudding for breakfast this morning.  However, rice and I are not friends.  I have NEVER been able to cook rice.  I can't even make Minute Rice turn out right.  I spent a year in a Caribbean third world country where all we ever ate was rice, and I STILL can't cook it.

A friend of mine gave me a rice cooker.  It's just a simple one, no programming or options.  You just put in the rice, the water, and hit the cook button.  That's hard to mess up, right?  I've even managed to make decent enough rice in it a couple of times, though mostly I use it to cook millet.

Well, since I can't make rice on the stove, I figured I probably couldn't make rice pudding there either, so I decided to put it all in the rice cooker.  I wasn't making real rice pudding anyway.  I just wanted to cook up some brown rice with a lot of liquid so it got a thick pudding like consistency.  Last night before bed I put one cup of brown rice and two cups of soy milk into the rice cooker.  I thought that soaking the rice would help break it down and make it thick and sticky when it was all cooked.  

Wheat Berries of Joy!

I've got a deep and abiding love for wheat berries.  It's strange actually since I have a just as deep and abiding loathing for wheat bread and wheat crackers.  However, I love wheat pasta way more than regular white pasta.  As usual I digress, but there's a glimpse into one of my interesting and adorable quirks.  What was I talking about?  Ah yes, wheat berries.

Wheat berries are whole, unprocessed wheat kernels that contain all three parts of the grain:  the germ, bran, and endosperm. Only the hull has been removed. Because of this, wheat berries retain all of the grain's vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals. Wheat berries, like all whole grains, have tons of health benefits. Whole grains can help lower the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer.  Eating whole grains instead of refined/processed grains can help with weight control, as well.  The best part though, is that wheat berries are yummy.

Pumpkin Oat Pancakes

Oh my goodness it's a recipe!  It's super simple, super yummy, and everything I needed was either out on the counter or on the top shelf of the cabinet or fridge.  I didn't have to bend or lift a thing, so this recipe fulfills both my requirements and those of my doctor.  It's win/win here!

Now, this recipe isn't vegan, but it would be super easy to veganize by making flax eggs.  This is what I would have usually done, but my little personal blender with the grinding blade has bitten the dust (I'm very sad about this!), and since I've been pregnant, the desire for eggs has been astronomical.  I NEVER just eat eggs under normal circumstances, but I've eaten my fair share over the last several months.  I fully plan to go back to being egg free after the baby is born.

This recipe came about, because I had a wicked craving for pancakes, but I've also never really liked plain ol' pancakes.  I'm not a huge fan of things made with refined white flour in the first place, and I'm very very picky about my pancakes anyway.  I need them to TASTE like something!  I went on an internet search to find some inspiration, and I discovered a lot of gluten free folks using oats as a flour substitute.  What a fantastic idea.  Oats are so healthy!  I decided to give it a try and a twist or twelve of my own, because you know I've got to get rid of as much added fat and as many animal products as I possibly can, and I'm surely glad I did.  These were fantastic!

Pumpkin Oat Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups traditional oatmeal (not the quick cook or instant variety)
• 2 cups almond/soy/rice/whatever milk of your choice
• ½ cup canned pumpkin (or fresh pumpkin puree-also see further notes below)
• 2 large organic eggs (I used ½ cup of Egg Beaters--much healthier.  You could also use egg replacer or the aforementioned flax eggs.)
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder

Directions:

1.  Grind oats into flour using food processor.  As you can see, I used a blender, but that's only because the food processor weighs a bazillion pounds and was in a bottom cabinet.  The blender was on the counter, so it required no bending and lifting.  I totally recommend doing this in the food processor.  It's faster, easier, far less messy, and a breeze to clean up.

2.  Pour milk into oat flour and mix very well using a fork or wire whisk.  You'll have to pay attention here, because you need to get all of the lumps out.  It will be VERY thin.  In fact, you'll think, "I'll never be able to make batter out of this!" but trust me, you will.

4.  Soak oats in milk, storing in fridge overnight.  You need to soak at least 12 hours, and you can soak for up to 24 hours.

5.  Next morning, mix all other ingredients into the soaked oats.  Mix well.

6.  Heat griddle or large skillet over medium heat and lightly spray with olive oil.

7.  Pour about a ¼ of a cup of batter onto the skillet and cook two to three minutes, until edges start to dry and brown and bubbles form and pop on top.

8.  Flip with spatula and cook until bottom is golden brown, two to three minutes more.

Enjoy!

Notes:  If for some reason you don't want to use pumpkin, there are lots of substitutes.  You could use ½ cup of apple sauce, ½, cup of well mashed banana, ½ cup of plain soy yogurt (or dairy yogurt if you aren't trying to veganize), 4 T oil, or even 4 T of melted butter.

This recipe made a bakers dozen.

Savory Oats

This started out as a bit of experiment, inspired by a craving for grits I had last night.  I love grits, but I haven't had them in years, so needless to say, there were none in the house.  I started wondering if I could make oatmeal into a savory dish, like grits.  I broke out my Google-fu to see what Dr. Internet had to say about the subject, and I found a lot of people who like savory oats, but I didn't find any real recipes--just lots of statements like "Oh I love my oats with soy sauce" and "I make mine with green onions and cheese."

This morning I decided to try my hand at savory oats, catered to my own tastes.  I'm a HUGE fan of everything savory.  You've probably noticed that I don't really add any extra sweeteners to my recipes; the fruit or milk tends to have enough sweetness for me.  I've never had much of a sweet tooth, but I can put away the salty and/or savory dishes!

I made mine with water, but I would have used milk had I had any milk that doesn't have very distinctive flavors.  All I had on hand was coconut and vanilla soy.  We're moving at the end of the month, and I'm actually trying to stretch the food until then, so we don't have to try and move very much food.  But I digress...  Use whatever type of oats you would like, but follow the cooking directions on the package as to oat/liquid ratio and cook time.  Please excuse the wonky pictures.  It's cloudy outside today, so the natural light  wasn't so good.

Savory Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Steel Cut Oats
• 3/4 cup water or milk of choice
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten with a pinch of salt (I used Egg Beaters)
• 2 TBSP shredded cheese
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1/8 cup onion, diced

Directions:

1.  Lightly spray medium sauce pan with olive oil and sauté onions and garlic, over medium heat, until just translucent.  You need to stir constantly so the garlic won't burn.

2.  Add the water or milk and the oats, turn heat to high, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

3.  Once boil is achieved, turn down the heat to low and simmer for five minutes, stirring occasionally.

4.  Temper the egg by adding a spoonful of the hot oatmeal to the beaten eggs and stirring thoroughly.  Now do this again with a second spoonful of oatmeal into the eggs.  This brings the eggs to the temperature of the oats, ensuring that there won't be any big pieces of egg in your finished product.

 5.  Slowly add the eggs back into the sauce pan with the oatmeal, stirring well to incorporate.

 6.  Return heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly, until eggs are cooked through, about four minutes.

7.  Stir in half of shredded cheese.

8.  Top with a few grinds of fresh black pepper and the remaining tablespoon of shredded cheese.

Enjoy!

Better Than Oatmeal?

Impossible you say?  That's what I said too, until I tried this oat, rye, barley, and wheat mixture. I bought it on a whim at Trader Joe's.  I went in for THREE items, and I came out with two bags stuffed full, and $54.00 poorer.  Somehow that always happens to me in Trader Joe's.  But I digress...  This bowl of hot grain goodness was creamy and chewy all at once.  It was just slightly sweet, and so amazing.

• 1/2 cup organic multi-grain cereal
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 cup water
• 1 large banana
• Extra dollop Greek yogurt for topping
• Few chocolate peanut butter chips

Directions:

1. Place multi-grain cereal, coconut milk, and Greek yogurt into container with lid.
2. Stir well, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
3. Next morning, slice banana into medium sauce pan and cook over medium heat until it begins to melt and caramelize.
4. Add soaked grains and 1 cup water to sauce pan, and cook until boiling.
5. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for three to five minutes more, until desired creaminess is achieved.
6. Let cereal sit in bowl for a minute before serving.
7. Top with a dollop of Greek yogurt and a few chocolate peanut butter chips.

 Enjoy!

Handheld Oatmeal to Go!

Yes really.  This is like the most brilliant thing ever!  I got the original idea from here, and then I changed a few little things tweaked the hell out of the recipe.  I've got no clue why I've never thought of this, but now that it's on my radar, there's just no looking back.  I have already thought of about four dozen different variations of this recipe that I want to try.

There are days when, despite my best intentions, I just don't make it out of bed in time in order to accomplish everything I need to before I have to be somewhere.  This recipe is perfect for those types of days.  In just a few short minutes I can turn my beloved bowl of oatmeal into a big ol' oatmeal "cookie" and take it with me.  Cookies.  For breakfast.  It just doesn't get much better than that!

Handheld Oatmeal to Go

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/8 cup Egg Beaters
• Liberal dash of cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• Splash vanilla
• 1 TBSP dried cranberries or blueberries
• 1 TBSP chopped walnuts
• 1 TBSP natural peanut butter
• 1/2 small banana, sliced thin
• 1 TBSP raw sugar
• 2 TBSP whole wheat flour

Directions:

1.  Put everything in a bowl and mix it up really well with a fork, mashing the banana pieces into the batter as you go.

2.  Pat firmly into bowl with the back of a spoon.

3.  Microwave on high for two minutes.

4.  Let cool for about a minute before removing from bowl.

Enjoy!

The Best Bowl of Oatmeal Ever!

Alright so this bowl of oatmeal was a complete accident.  It's something of a mash-up of Kath's overnight oats and my own tropical oatmeal, though with fresh fruit instead of dried.  I was making regular overnight oats, except I used coconut milk instead of soy milk.  I figured I'd have a coconutty tropical bowl this morning and just eat a banana on the side.

Two things happened.  First of all, I used steel cut oats.  I love them!  They are way better than rolled oats--firmer, chewier, heartier.  That's the problem here.  They don't really make good overnight oats.  They don't completely absorb the liquid and get all soft like rolled oats do.  The second thing that happened was that it's cold.  Yes, I know it's almost May.  Don't tell me; tell Mother Nature. 

Since my oats had been soaking in coconut milk and yogurt all night, I thought about scrapping them and just starting over.  I had no idea how cooking them would go with all that yogurt.  I am loathe to waste food, however, so I decided to give cooking them a shot.  What's the worst thing that could happen, right?  What resulted was the best bowl of oatmeal I've ever had!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup steel cut oats
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup plain soy yogurt
• Liberal amount of cinnamon
• Dash of allspice
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 mango

Directions:

1. Place oats, coconut milk, yogurt, cinnamon, and allspice in a container with a lid.
2. Stir well and allow to soak overnight in the refrigerator.
3. The next morning, cut up half of a banana and half of a mango into chunks.
4. Place fruit in medium sized sauce pan, and cook it over medium heat.  The fruit will start to get soft, melty, and caramelized.
5. Add soaked oats and one cup of water to the pan and stir well.
6. Let cook until it begins to softly bubble, about three minutes.
7. Once it begins to bubble, cook, stirring continuously for three to five minutes more.
8. Let sit for a minute before serving.

I garnished mine with a few fruit slices (that I didn't eat while waiting for the oatmeal to cook!) and a few spoons of the cream from the top of the coconut milk.  If you don't shake the milk before using, the cream rises to the top, with the milk underneath.  Just spoon off the top.

Enjoy!

Banana Nut Bread Oatmeal

It's like having dessert.  For breakfast!  This bowl of oats was once again inspired by kath, who is the reigning queen of oatmeal.  I used her whipped banana oatmeal recipe and added some toppings, and suddenly I had banana bread in a bowl.  I felt guilty for eating it for breakfast, because it tasted like it should have been forbidden.

Banana Nut Bread Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/3 cup unsweetened soy milk
• 1/2 large banana (I LOVE banana!) cut into chunks
• Scant pinch sea salt
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla

Toppings:

• 3 TBSP chopped walnuts
• Healthy sprinkle cinnamon
• Few banana slices

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° and toast walnuts while you're preparing your oats.
2. Put oats, salt, water, soy milk, and banana into medium sauce pan and bring to boil over medium heat.
3. Once oats are boiling nicely, begin to stir continuously to melt the banana into the oatmeal.
4. When most of the liquid is absorbed and the banana chunks are melted, stir in vanilla, and turn off heat.
5. Top with hot roasted walnuts and a liberal sprinkle of cinnamon.

Enjoy!

Laura's Healthy No-Bake Breakfast Energy Bars

Whew.  That's a long name.  I didn't think it would be kosher to just call them Laura Bars, though, because that's kinda taken, even if they do spell it wrong!  Anyway, my mother recently sent some Rice Krispy Treats, and I was immediately reminded that they were my favorite childhood treat.  I never wanted a birthday cake; I wanted Rice Krispy Treats.  I'm much wiser now, and I realize that they are nutritionally devoid of ... well, everything.  There's not a single redeeming quality in a Rice Krispy Treat.  Not one.

This got my mind whirring.  Surely I could make some sort of comparable treat that was much much better for me.  What I ended up with didn't resemble the original inspiration in the least.  In fact, the only thing in common ended up being cereal, and it wasn't even the same cereal.  However, my bar is full of healthy yummy things, and it makes a great breakfast on the go or pre-gym snack.  Now all it needs is a shorter name!

Laura's Healthy No-Bake Breakfast Energy Bars

Ingredients:

• 7 cups puffed whole wheat cereal.  This does not have to be an expensive endeavor.  I used the super cheap store brand in a bag.  It cost me 98¢, had no added salt or sugar, and it had no preservatives.  Win!
• 1 cup dried fruit.  I used bananas, apples, and blueberries simply because that's what was hot off the dehydrator this week.  Use any combination you'd like.
• 1/2 cup nuts.  I used a mix.
• 2 TBSP ground flax seeds
• 2 TBSP wheat germ
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup honey
• 1 cup almond butter.  I made my own from raw almonds.  I suppose you could roast them first if you wanted.  I suppose you could even buy the kind in the jar; though you know I don't recommend that!
• 3 TBSP unsweetened apple sauce

Directions:

1.  Mix the cereal, fruit, nuts, cinnamon, wheat germ, and ground flax in a large bowl.

2.  Put the honey, almond butter, and apple sauce into a microwave safe bowl, and heat for a minute and a half.

3.  Mix very well, until almond butter is melted and incorporated and pour over cereal/fruit mixture.

4.  Stir very well, making sure all of the cereal mixture is coated.

5.  Press cereal firmly into a 9 x 13 glass baking dish.  I tried using a spatula, but it just didn't work.  I ended up getting my hands wet and pressing it into the dish with my hands.

6.  Stick in freezer for 30 minutes, and then cut into 15 bars.  Store refrigerated.

Enjoy!

Overnight Oats

My love of oatmeal is no secret.  I stick it into anything I can--smoothies, breads, muffins, breakfast bars.  I like it in its traditional form--hot and steaming in a bowl for breakfast.  Aside from being yummy, it's just so good for you. 

Over at katheats is a post about overnight oats.  Somehow I had never heard of this before, and I had such an Ahah! moment.  I have no idea why I've never thought of this, because it's so easy, totally fits in with the desire to eat raw, and it's good!  Basically it's just soaking rolled oats in liquid and yogurt (and whatever add ins or spices you desire) overnight and having a bowl of yummy filling health ready for breakfast the next morning.  Head on over to Kath's blog for the complete instructions.

My overnight oats included:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup lite soy milk
• 1/2 cup fat free soy yogurt
• Dash of cinnamon
• Dash of allspice
• Splash of vanilla

I topped it with:

• 1 TBSP organic honey
• 1 TBSP cashew butter (that I made myself!)

I figured they'd be good, because they're oats after all, but I didn't know how good.  The yogurt made them so creamy and so tangy.  I'm definitely doing this again.  Oatmeal for breakfast just left the realm of winter months!

Quinoa Breakfast Porridge

I love quinoa.  It's one of those things I ate before I knew it was good for me.  Once upon a time, a long time ago, I spent a year living in the third world.  We didn't have a lot of food, and the food we did have was rice.  I grew rapidly sick of rice, and I couldn't eat it for a VERY long time after returning to the states.  Even now, 19 years later, while I can eat it again, I don't ever really want to eat it.  I love stir fries and other Asian dishes though, so I was thrilled when I discovered quinoa.  It makes a wonderful stand in for rice.  It's super easy to cook and so versatile.  It's good hot or cold, sweet or savory.

Quinoa also happens to be fantastic for you.  It's an ancient grain (though it's not technically a grain either), and it was a staple of the South American indigenous diet.  It was called the gold of the Incas.  Quinoa is high in protein.  Not only that, but it's a complete protein, which means it supplies all nine essential amino acids.  It's got a whole slew of health benefits.  I'll spare you the continued rhapsodizing about the wonders of quinoa, but if you'd like, you can read more about it HERE.

Anyway, this breakfast porridge was my first attempt at making quinoa as a main dish instead of a side dish and sweet instead of savory.  Not surprisingly, I loved it, and I've been eating it ever since.  You can, of course, change the liquids and the dried fruits to suit your own particular taste.

Quinoa Breakfast Porridge

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (uncooked) quinoa
• 1 cup lite apple juice
• 1 cup lite soy milk
• Splash vanilla
• Dash cinnamon
• ¼ cup dried cranberries
• ¼ cup dried blueberries

 Topping Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon maple syrup (If additional sweetener is desired.  I don't sweeten mine; I think the apple juice and dried fruit provide plenty of sweetness.)
• ¼ cup plain soy yogurt
• 1 tablespoon slivered almonds
• 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts

 Directions:

1. Rinse and drain quinoa well.
2. Add quinoa, apple juice, milk, cinnamon, and vanilla to medium sauce pan and bring to a boil.
3. Cover and reduce heat to simmer.
4. Simmer for ten minutes.
5. Stir in cranberries and blueberries, cover.
6. Continue simmering for ten more minutes, until all water is absorbed and quinoa is firm.
7. While quinoa is simmering, toast nuts in oven at 350°, shaking every two minutes until evenly golden brown.  Time will depend on your oven and on how done you like the nuts.  I leave them in for about ten minutes.
8. Spoon portion into bowl (recipe should make approximately four servings).
9. Stir in maple syrup, if desired.
10.   Top with yogurt and then nuts.

Enjoy!

Tofu Breakfast Sandwich

It's like an Egg McMuffin except with no egg.  And no meat.  And no cholesterol!  This is totally my kind of meal right here, though I prefer to have it for lunch instead of breakfast.  I tend to stick to smoothies and oatmeal for breakfast. 

I've been craving this for a few days, but it takes some planning, and I'm still feeling rather scattered after our whirlwind weekend in New York.  While it's very easy to make, you've got to time it right, because the tofu needs to be frozen/thawed/drained, and then it needs to marinate for about eight hours or so.  I suppose you could skip the freezing/thawing step, but I prefer not to.  It gives the tofu a firmer, more toothsome texture.

Do I even need to say that if the tofu doesn't say "non-GMO" on the package, you shouldn't buy it?

This makes enough for two sandwiches.

Tofu (for) Breakfast Sandwich

Ingredients:

for marinade:

• 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 6 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

for sandwich

• 4 rectangle slices from block of extra firm tofu, frozen/thawed/drained
• Breakfast bread of choice (bagel, English muffin, biscuit)
• Extras of choice (breakfast "meats"--this would be a good place to try out the tempeh bacon, tomato slices, avocado slices, mushrooms, cheese, etc.)

Directions:

1.  Mix marinade  ingredients in a small plastic container with a lid.  The consistency should be a pasty liquid.

2.  Add tofu to container, close lid, and shake gently to cover.  Make sure tofu is covered completely, top and bottom.

3.  Refrigerate at least 8 hours.

next morning

1.  Spray non-stick skillet with olive oil and heat over medium heat.

2.  When oil is hot, place tofu in pan along with any non-absorbed marinade.

3.  Fry the first side four to five minutes.

4.  Prepare your breakfast bread in the toaster or toaster oven.

5.  Flip tofu and fry four to five minutes more.  It'd done when both sides are a light golden color.

6.  Remove bread from toaster and add fried tofu and any extras you desire.

I had mine on a whole grain English muffin with provolone, "bacon", and spinach.

Enjoy!

Scrambled Tofu with Grilled Vegetables

The kiddo has baseball practice tonight, so that means we'll be eating a late and light dinner.  I decided that a filling and hearty lunch was in order.  I've been cooking all day, so I also wanted something quick and easy.  This meal came together in mere minutes.

Scrambled Tofu

Ingredients:

• 1/2 block firm tofu, frozen/thawed/drained 
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• pepper to taste

Directions:

1.  Crumble tofu into small mixing bowl.

2.  Add all other ingredients and mix well with fork, making sure tofu is evenly coated.

3.  In an oiled skillet cook the tofu for eight to ten minutes over high heat.  It's done when the tofu begins to brown around the edges.
 

 
Because I live in Chicago and went from three feet of snow to never ending thunderstorms in the course of a week, I had to grill my vegetables inside.  I used the George Foreman Grill.  This is a fantastic invention and not just for meat eaters!
 

 
Anyway, cut your vegetables into uniform thickness.  I used zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, and onions.  Spray George with some olive oil, lay out your veggies, mist the tops of the veggies with more olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, and then cook 'til grilled through.  Mine took about five minutes.
 

See, aren't they lovely?

 
Enjoy!

Pinch Your Pennies - Breakfast Convenience Foods

Greetings!  I'm back after a long and sunny weekend in New York.  There are no recipes today, because I'm in the midst of unpacking, laundry, checkbook balancing, and getting myself organized again.  You know, the normal post travel agenda. 

I do have a penny pinching post, though!  If there's one thing I go out of my way to do, it's save money wherever I can.  Too much goes to waste in this world.  Anyway, I'll be the first to admit that breakfast convenience foods are ... well, convenient.  However, they are generally neither healthy nor are they inexpensive.  For example, at my local grocery, a box of French Toast Sticks costs $6.99, making them $1.09 per serving.  One serving of five pieces, has 330 calories.  I make my own French Toast for a fraction of the cost and about a bazillion times the health.  Mine ends up having 76.5 calories for the same serving size, and the total cost per serving averages out to be 15¢.  That's a savings of 253.5 calories and 94¢ per serving!  That's a big deal, you guys.

You can do this with pancakes and waffles, as well.  Not only are you saving a lot of money, you get to decide what goes into your food.  You can make it completely vegan, low fat, sugar free, organic, etc. etc.  It's all up to you.  You get to decide what kind of bread to use in your French toast, or even make your own bread.  You get to decide what types of flours go into your waffles or pancakes.  Find a hour or so of free time, make up a big batch, freeze it, and then pop the (French toast, waffles, pancakes) into the toaster (just like the expensive, caloric, chemical filled grocery store kind!) for a fast and convenient breakfast.

I recently made two loaves of French Toast.  The total cost for both loaves was $5.68.  That's 40 servings of French Toast sticks for $1.31 less than six and a half servings of the store bought variety.  Mine was sugar free, salt free, and of course chemical and preservative free.  It was not vegan, but the point is that it could have been.  This is what you make it.

I mixed up a big bowl of Egg Beaters, soy milk, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, and I used whole wheat bread.  I staged everything so I'd be ready to go.  I made mine on a griddle, but you can just as easily use a nice skillet.

Next I dipped the bread into the egg mixture and cooked it in batches on the griddle.

No matter what it is that you're making, be sure to cool it COMPLETELY before freezing.  I do this by laying the pieces out on a clean, dry dish cloth.

When it is completely cool, then you can freeze it.  I just put my French toast pieces back into the original bag that the bread came in.  You can store it in Ziploc bags.  You can put it in freezer safe containers.  You can wrap it in waxed paper and tinfoil.

When it's time for breakfast, just pop a couple of pieces into the toaster, and you're all set to enjoy a quick, convenient, low cost, and healthy breakfast!

Tropical Oats

You've got to plan ahead a little for this, because the oats need to be soaked over night.  The soaking aids in digestion, and it really ups the creaminess factor.  And who doesn't want a decadent creamy breakfast that tastes sinful but is actually good for you?

I used to be afraid of coconut milk.  It's high in fat, and it's caloric.  I started doing a lot of research, and I discovered that the fat is the good kind of fat, and that not only is coconut milk not bad for you, it's actually really pretty healthy.

 If you are concerned about the saturated fat content in coconut milk, know that this saturated fat has been shown in many independent studies to be a good saturated fat, easily metabolized to give your body quick energy. Contrary to popular myth, it does not transform into bad cholesterol to clog up arteries. In fact, cultures around the world that depend on coconut as their main source of fat have been found to be free of heart disease. The principle fatty acid in coconut milk is lauric acid, which is the same fat found in abundance in mother's milk and is known to promote normal brain development and contribute to healthy bones. It also has important anti-carcinogenic and anti-pathogenic properties and is less likely to cause weight gain than polyunsaturated oils.

The potent anti-viral, anti-fungal and anti-microbial effects of coconut oil have implicated it in the treatment of both AIDS and Candida. Whatever bad things you may have heard or read about coconut milk have not stood up to scrutiny by unbiased food scientists; however, the goodness of coconut milk has not been given equal press because of intensive lobbying against it by the powerful vegetable oil industry. Southeast Asians, meanwhile, have been staying healthy for generations with coconut an integral part of their diet. 

Now, a word about dried fruit:  for heaven's sake dehydrate it yourself!  If you're not going to do that, at least go on a hunt for fruit dried WITHOUT sulfur dioxide.  It's more expensive, and it's also worth it.  Sulfur dioxide is found in pretty much all commercially packed dried fruits, and it's TERRIBLE for you.  It's been known to cause asthma and other breathing difficulties in children, and in rare cases, even death.  It's produced by volcanoes, for goodness sake.  Volcanoes don't tend to be very good for our health!

[Sulfur Dioxide] is produced industrially as a bleach alternative, a reducing agent, and for sulfites (preservation). As it has no role in humans or mammalian biology, when introduced it inhibits specific nerve signals, restricts lung performance, and is a direct allergen - over 65% of asthmatic children sensitive to SO2 (World Health Organization, 1999), and negatively affects over 70% of children with behavioral problems.

...

Sulphur dioxide is still being used as a food preservative in many common snack foods despite being one of the top two air pollutants in urban areas, a corrosive gas, a primary cause of haze and acid rain, and a cause of respiration problems, lung disease, early death (due to a thiamine deficiency), documented water and plant damage, cardiovascular disease, blood toxication, developmetal toxication, gastro-intestinal and liver disease, neurological disturbances, irritable bowel syndrom, behavior disturbances, skin rashes, asthma, folic acid deficiency, as well as a nose and ear irritant. During the 1970's and 1980's over one hundred deaths were attributed to the addition of sulphur dioxide in foods including meat with twelve deaths occurring as a result of restaurants spraying salad bars with this poisonous gas.

The entire article is HERE at the Raw Guru.  It's worth the read.  Educating yourself about what you put into your body is always a good thing!

Tropical Oats

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats OR 1/4 cup steel cut oats
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup or agave nectar
• 1/4 cup mixed tropical dried fruit (I used banana, mango, and guava that I dehydrated myself.)

Directions:

1. The night before, soak the oats and the fruit in the coconut milk.
2. In the morning, place the oats in a saucepan, adding water to reach desired consistency.  If you used steel cut oats, you will need to use enough water to thin it out substantially, as they must simmer longer than rolled oats.
3. Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently.
4. Add the vanilla and sweetener.
5. Cook for about 3 minutes for rolled oats or about ten minutes for steel cut oats, stirring often, until oats are gently bubbling.  Add water as needed.
6. Pour into a bowl and top however you would like.  Roasted almonds or walnuts are good.  A dollop of yogurt works.  You can drizzle with a bit more coconut milk, if you'd like.  Most of the time I just eat mine with no topping.  It's already a sweet, creamy, rich breakfast.

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Muffins

A good for you muffin?  No way!  It's a dream come true, if you dream about such things.  A perfect handheld snack you can grab on the way out the door to the gym or even as a breakfast if you're running late for work.

I LOVE sweet potatoes.  I could eat them every day of my life and not get tired of them.  It's a real bonus that they're one of the highest ranked vegetables on the nutrition scale.  They're a superfood, high in fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, potassium and manganese. They can also help stabilize blood sugar, which means they're a good choice for diabetics, and by stabilizing blood sugar levels, they curb the appetite longer. They can satisfy a sweet tooth, and they're rich in antioxidants and have anti-inflammatory properties. There's just nothing bad about a sweet potato, and best of all they're relatively low in calories for all of the nutritional power they pack.

Turning a sweet potato into a healthy muffin is a snap.

Sweet Potato Muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup raw sugar (in the name of all that is holy, don't use that refined white crap!)
• 1 TBSP baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 3/4 cups cooked chopped sweet potatoes (baking is the best way to bring out the sweet taste and creamy texture, but if you're in a hurry, boiling them will work)
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

1. In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
2. Mash sweet potatoes and add to dry ingredients, along with water.
3. Stir until just mixed.  This doesn't look like your typical thinnish muffin batter.  This is thicker.  It's not pourable and must be spooned into muffin tin.
4. Lightly spray muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and fill cups to the top.  This will only make nine muffins, so don't even try to get 12 out of it unless you want small, flat muffins.
5. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until the tops of the muffins bounce back when pressed.
6. Let stand several minutes before removing from pan.
7. Cool completely and store in airtight container in the refrigerator.

Enjoy!