Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Weekend Excitement: No Rest Again!

Wow it was yet another crazy weekend!  I don't know how to be mellow I guess.  LoL!

Friday, I was just itching to get out of the house.  I had had a long week and really just wanted a night out with Rob.  We decided to head down to the outlets to look for new cleats for him and running pants for me.  Rob wasn't successful but I got some new running gear.  I really want to go back and get this shirt.  I did get myself some really nice running tights from Under Armor.  They had the best options and I am really going to need them this winter!

After that, we decided to head to Tun Tavern for dinner since its right next to the outlets.  The food was ok but the beer was excellent.  I got apple stout and loved it!  It is seasonal so we got a growler of it to take home.  Yum!






Saturday was again a bit crazy.  I had to get (more) gifts for my friend Callista's baby shower.  Usually I am on top of these things but it snuck up on me!  I headed out and got back home to wrap them.  I had enough time to head over to the Irish festival with Rob for a bit (he was there with his rugby buddies selling shirts and recruiting). 




Then it was off to the baby shower and wish Callista well.  She is just the cutest pregnant woman ever.  She is only 5 months along but she is still tiny.  She looks lovely!  It was a nice party!



 I went back to the Irish fest for a bit to walk around with Rob.  We went to my two favorite shops (Historic Smithville is like a little old fashioned shopping area).  I got some good things!



Dutch Chocolate Coffee
Pumpkin Spice Coffee
Granulated Honey
Hawaiian Sea Salt
Horseradish Cheddar

We finally got home exhausted but went out to eat with Jess.  See, we go nonstop!  Finally, we got home, relaxed for a bit and crashed.

Today has been spent cleaning, cooking, and doing midterms.  I have two take home midterms due tomorrow.  I worked on them and whenever I needed a break, I did something around the house so it worked out well!  I started my day off with a nice hot cup of "pumpkin latte" coffee.  Pretty good!  But a lot of the pumpkin settled on the bottom.  I also tried my first version of savory oatmeal.


It was really good!  I loved the flavor.  I made my usual oatmeal but without the milk.  I used a little less water but I think next time I need to use the whole amount.  Anyway, I made an egg over-easy.  I added some tomatoes to the oatmeal, pepper, and olive oil.  I then topped it with the eggs, some of the horseradish cheddar and a sprinkle of the Hawaiian salt.  It was DELICIOUS!!!  The oatmeal still had a "this should be sweet" flavor but I will definitely do this again, especially since I'm trying to cut down on my fruit addiction.  LoL.  I can't wait to have it again tomorrow!

Anyway, we had quite a few things going on today.  Rob decided to bake up a storm because we had like 6 dozen eggs in the refrigerator.  Time to get cookin!  The first task was homemade pasta.  I convinced Rob to make Butternut Squash Ravioli.  We found recipes in my two cooking-from-scratch type cookbooks and got started.  We both worked on them together.


They were pretty good!  The pasta was a little too thick though but we don't have a pasta machine so I had to roll it out by hand.  I did the best I could!  They were still pretty darn good!

Next up was Angel Food Cake.  First, we had to make "medium peaks" with the egg whites... without a hand mixer.  You heard me right, we whipped up egg whites for about 45 minutes, taking turns between Rob and I, to get a nice meringue going!  I'm counting it as an upper body workout for today.  LoL


We didn't have cake flour so we used whole wheat.  We also didn't bake it quite long enough so it came out kind of strange.  It tastes really good though.  Its more moist than angel food usually is.  Still tasty! 

Now, I'm just relaxing with a glass of the apple stout (even better out of the growler!!!).  In other news, I'm feeling a lot better but I still have a lingering part of the cold.  I stopped taking the medicine I was using and I think that actually helped.  Tomorrow, I really need to work on getting in all my water.  I have been bad about that and I can feel it.

My eating was much better this weekend.  We ate out but I really felt like I controlled myself.  I didn't go crazy at any point and didn't have any ice cream (which was an issue last week because its in my freezer!  How did that get there?)  I think feeling better from the cold helps a lot.  When I am sick, I get pouty and cranky which leads to a lot of splurging!

Hopefully I can go for a little run tomorrow and see how it goes.  I think there will be a lot of sniffling and maybe some minor coughing but nothing terrible.  Half marathon is next weekend!

To end, some pictures of the cute kitties.  They were just being adorable today and the lighting was great in the apartment for photos!
















Friday, October 7, 2011

Oatmeal Heaven

I had originally posted a version of this blog on SparkPeople on December 14, 2010.  This will be modified to reflect updated knowledge!

I love oatmeal. I really do. But I'm also extremely picky about it. I don't just give my love to any ol' oatmeal. That 1 minute quick oats crap? Well, you can see how much I enjoy that. So let me start off with some acceptable brands/forms of oatmeal.

emoticon Rolled oats (as above). Quacker original oats are fine. NOT the 1 minute ones!! Bob's Red Mill sells thick oats and regular oats. I prefer their regular because they cook before they overflow (which happens often when you microwave oatmeal).
emoticon Steel Cut Oats. They are kind of chunky. They also need to be cooked on the stove. I have not found a way to microwave this one. They are totally worth the effort though.
emoticonOat Bran.  This reminds me of what I would consider "porridge".  It has a mushy texture and is very fine but is really delicious on a cold morning.  It gives your oatmeal a totally different texture.
emoticon Scottish Oatmeal. This is kind of mushy but still yummy. It can be microwaved. It turns into a bit of a paste. Still delicious.
emoticon I'm sure there are lots more variations (and I have seen them at the store like Irish oats) and I would love to hear your thoughts on those!



 I have to note that oatmeal varies greatly depending on how you prepare it. My favorite is to use Bob's Red Mill Quick Cooking Oats with half water, half milk, microwaved for 1 and a half minutes.  This has taken years to perfect.  You will have to find your own way.

You might like it with just water.  Rob enjoys it by making it with only half the amount of water suggested.  Maybe you like it with all milk (the milk will make you oatmeal overflow in the microwave so be careful!).  Maybe you like to make it with water and then add a little milk after its done cooking.  Maybe you only like it cooked on the stove.  Etc.  Experiment!  And don't forget about the different types too.  You might hate thick cut but adore the steel cut.  Give it all a try!

I decided I would collect some suggestions for you all so you can start enjoying your daily cup of oats!

Banana Oatmeal
Oats with bananas. I always cook my oats with 1/3 cup oats, 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup milk. Its more "sticky" if you use all water and more "runny" if you use all milk. This is a simple one. Cut up banana, put in cooked oats. The end.

Blueberry Oatmeal
Oats with blueberries and cinnamon. Cook the blueberries IN the oats. It comes out tasting like blueberry pie! Nom nom nom!!!!

Peanut butter oats! (I think you are getting the recipes here, peanut butter + oats)
Crazy oats: oats, cranberries, walnuts, flaxseed
Reece's Oats: Peanut butter and chocolate chips (this one is too sweet for me in the morning but I know people who swear by it)
Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal
Maple Oatmeal (just add some good old fashioned maple syrup)
Apple oats: dice up the apple in small pieces and cook in the oats, add cinnamon for that apple pie flavor
Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal:  Canned pumpkin + pumpkin pie spice
Peach Cobbler:  Add diced peaches to your oatmeal prior to cooking (like the apple oats).  Add spices to taste (cinnamon is good!)



 
Other Additions:
Nuts of all types
Honey, Agave, etc.
Dried fruits
Ground flax seeds, chia seeds, etc.
Fresh fruits
Spices of all types
Protein powder (some people love this, add it after cooking!  My protein powder tastes terrible like this though, maybe try using 100% whey)
Greek Yogurt


You can ever create savory oatmeals although I have yet to try it!  I found this neat tool on Quaker's website to create new and interesting oatmeal recipes.  How about bacon?  Pickles?  Salsa?  Hm, I think there is a "Savory Oatmeal" blog in the works here.

 
Well, enjoy your lovely oatmeal concoctions!  I have a bowl every morning.  One more note, I make half the recipe suggestion.  Its ok to not make a whole serving so you can add more "fixins"!  Yum!

What is your favorite oatmeal recipe?

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