More Protein Pancakes!

I was really craving some pancakes this morning, but my usual recipe calls for protein powder and we are still out of it! Grrr! (I can't decide if I want to buy a different protein powder or stick with my usual) Soo..I started googling recipes for oatmeal protein pancakes and I found this amazing pancake recipe from One Healthy Munchkin.

Oatmeal Protein Pancakes (Protein Powder-less)
Adapted from One Healthy Munchkin

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup oat flour (I grind my oats up in my magic bullet)
• 1/2 cup liquid egg whites
• 1 small banana
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp baking powder

Directions:

1. Mash half of your banana in a small bowl then add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. Let the batter sit for 10-15 minutes so that it can thicken up.

2. Spray a small skillet (10 or 8 inch) with non-stick and turn burner onto low. Let the skillet heat up for 1 minute, then add the batter (you could put blueberries or any other kind of fruit on top at this point) and cover with a lid. Keep checking on it periodically, but it should take about 5 minutes to cook just enough for you to be able to flip it without making a mess. 

3. Carefully loosen up the edges of the pancake first and then flip over onto the other side, cooking for 1 minute (this may take some practice). Don't worry if it doesn't look pretty, it will still taste good!

4. Plate up your pancake and top with the other half of your banana and some sugar free syrup(or not)!

This recipe makes 1 large pancake or 4 smaller pancakes if you don't like giant pancakes. 

Yum! So good! You could also make this recipe gluten-free by using gluten-free oats and grinding them up yourself!

The perfect start to your day!

Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal

I was in a baking mood last night, but we were all out of protein powder so I couldn't make any protein bars. Then I saw that we had just enough oatmeal to make a batch of baked oatmeal. I usually make a really delicious and moist banana baked oatmeal, but we didn't have any bananas(shocking!) so I went on a search for baked oatmeal with apples. I stumbled upon this recipe from Finding Joy In My Kitchen and changed it just a bit.

Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
Adapted from Finding Joy In My Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup stevia baking blend
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon (I just realized that was a tablespoon. I used only 1 tsp in mine and it tastes pretty cinnamon-y. Adjust to your liking) 
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond breeze)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large apple, chopped (I used a granny smith)

Directions:


1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2.. Mix together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl, then set aside.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the wet ingredients, then add the dry ingredients and stir until combined.
4. Lastly, fold in the chopped apples. Grease a 9x13 glass baking dish (I used a slightly smaller dish to get thicker squares) with non-stick spray. Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
5. Let cool before cutting into 12 squares.

The whole pan is only 1200 calories, so each square clocks in at only 100 calories. Of course, you can cut them into however many servings you like to fit your needs.

Happy Baking!

Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats!

Good Morning and Happy Mother's Day to all the moms and moms-to-be out there! I'm so lucky to have such an amazing Mom, but I miss her a lot. :(

This mornings breakfast was a repeat from a few days ago, but I thought I would share the recipe because it was oh so good!

Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats
Adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie


Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (40g) rolled oats
• 1 1/2 cups + 1/2 cup water or milk (I use 1 cup of water and 1 cup of almond milk)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• half a banana sliced
• 1 tbsp pb2 (you could also use regular peanut butter)
• add cinnamon to taste

Directions:

1. Place your oats, 1 1/2 cups of water or milk, and salt in a large microwaveable bowl. 

2. Stir to combine, then microwave for 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup more liquid and chia seeds. 

3. Microwave for 4 more minutes then let sit in the microwave with the door shut for 5 minutes. 

4. Then, stir your mixture and let it cool before placing it in the fridge, covered, overnight. 

5. In the morning, stir your oats slightly to fluff them up a bit before placing them in a bowl. If you don't like your oats cold, you could heat them up for a minute in the microwave.

6. Cut up your banana and mix up your pb2, then top oats with your add ins and a sprinkle(or more) of cinnamon.

The original recipe only required 5 minutes total of cooking time, but I found with our 700 watt microwave that 7 minutes was perfect. 

What are your favorite oatmeal mix-ins?

Protein pancakes!

It's the weekend! Although, everyday is pretty much the weekend for me. Sometimes I even forget what day it is until I look at the calendar.

Breakfast

I started off the morning with some protein pancakes, rooty tooty fresh n' fruity-style..

Protein Pancakes


Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1/4 cup liquid egg whites (or 2 egg whites)
• 1 scoop (30g) any flavor protein powder (I used ON 100% whey in vanilla)
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:


1. In a bowl, add rolled oats and hot water, then let sit for 1-2 minutes to let the oats "cook" until they are soft. Add the rest of the ingredients to the oats and mix well.
2. Preheat a skillet to medium-low heat, spray with non-stick spray and pour in half the batter, spreading it out a bit with a spoon.
3. Heat until partially cooked and carefully flip pancake.
4. Cook on the other side for 1 minute then plate it up.
5. For the strawberry topping, I just heated up a handful of frozen strawberries in the microwave for 1 minute, then broke them up into the pieces with a fork.


While I enjoyed my breakfast at the computer, I had a little visitor eyeing the last bite of my pancake...

And then he claimed what was his...

Needless to say, I did not eat the last bite of my pancake. It was covered in fur after this incident!

At the end of April, I signed up to join Foodie Penpals for May, so today I went and did some foodie shopping for my penpal, and also picked up lots of fruits and veggies while I was out. I frequent the 99 cent only store often for fruits and veggies, and today I picked up 3 lbs of plums, 6 lbs of oranges, 2 lbs of kiwi, 4 lbs of apples, and 3 mangos, all for only $12! I love bargains!

I was starving by the time I got home from my shopping adventure, so I fixed a quick lunch.

I had some sliced turkey on a sandwich thin with lettuce, tomato, and a queso fresco & chipotle laughing cow wedge. On the side, I had a huge mango from the 99 cently only store and some cucumber slices. It was delish! I also had an unpictured plum too.

And now it's time to go watch the season finale of The Secret Circle...and then I should probably stop procrastinating my exercise. By the way, Cardio 1 of Body Revolution will kick your butt! 

The Avengers and Cheesecake!

I had a great time last night with Randy(a.k.a the husband). We went to the Cheesecake Factory for an early dinner. I couldn't believe how busy it was for it being 4 o' clock on a Thursday! But then we realized it was because of happy hour. I ordered the Mexican Tortilla Salad from their Skinnylicious menu, and let me say, it was sooo good! I will be getting that again the next we go. I was so hungry by the time it came, that I forgot to take a picture! Randy ordered a turkey burger and he let me sneak in a small bite before he devoured it all. :) I was pretty sure we were supposed to get bread with our meal, since the last time I went to the Cheesecake Factory they did, but that was fine by me. No bread in your face, means no extra calories!

After we filled our tummies with some healthy food, we left to go see the Avengers! Again, it was packed also for a Thursday afternoon! We got there just in time to find a good seat before it filled up. Some people had to sit alllll the way in the front, but I'm glad we didn't have to! I thought the movie was good. I love action movies, and there was plenty of that in this movie.

Since we didn't get cheesecake at the restaurant, I made myself a yummy fruit and yogurt parfait for dessert when we got home. Yum! Ten times better than McDonald's!

 

Fruit n' Yogurt Parfait 

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
• 1/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1- 6 oz container of vanilla yogurt
• 1 tbsp granola  (I made my own using Julie's Cinnamon Chia See Granola recipe)

Directions:

1. Place berries in a bowl and nuke it for 60 seconds or until they're soft. Crush them up a bit with a spoon.

2. Put half in the bottom of the glass, top with half of the berry mixture, the other half of the yogurt, and then the rest of the berries. 

3. Now top it off with a tablespoon of any granola. Dig in and enjoy!

This morning for breakfast I had some overnight oats, using Katie's Never-Ending Oatmeal Bowl trick. I topped it off with half a sliced banana and some cinnamon.

Then I decided to add a PB2 drizzle to the top...

Now it's time for me to go mop the floors and exercise before I head over to Randy's grandparents for lunch. Yay for cleaning!

First post eats! Yay!

Hi everyone! I'm so excited to finally start my very own food blog! I have been stalking many other food blogs daily for the past 5 years or so, and now I get to join the blogging world family!

This morning I decided to fix a yummy egg white and cheese breakfast sandwich on a whole wheat english muffin, with an unsweetened applesauce cup on the side (we're out of fruit, argh!).

And a close up of the melty goodness...

Mmm! It was delicious! Way better than any breakfast sandwich you could get from McDonald's or Dunkin'. Speaking of Dunkin' Donuts, I'm missing their iced coffees. :( I was born and raised in Florida and there are DD's everywhere! However, that is not the case with Cali. Can you believe there is not a single DD in the entire state?! While I do enjoy Starbucks, DD is just more reasonably priced.

And on that note, I would like to share my caramel latte recipe!

 

  Sugar Free Caramel Latte

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup any milk (I use regular skim milk because it froths better than almond milk)
• 2 tbsp sugar free caramel flavored syrup (My local Dollar Tree carries these)
• 1 tsp instant coffee (I used Nescafe Clasico)
• 3 tbsp hot water
• a milk frother or whisk

Directions:

1.Pour milk into a measuring cup and microwave for 2 minutes.
2. In a small cup, add instant coffee and water, then heat for 30 seconds.
3. Add caramel syrup to milk and use frother to create foam. The milk should double in size.
4. Pour milk slowly into your cup, holding back the foam with a spoon, then top with foam. Slowly  pour the shot of "espresso" in the center of the foam. Stir (if you like) and enjoy!

This little gadget is so awesome! I got mine from Amazon.com. It's just the cheap IKEA one, but they also have a $20 one called the Aerolatte. Although, if you have an IKEA near you, I think it's only $1.99 in store. 

Click here to buy one, you know you want to. :) Free shipping too if you have Amazon Prime. 

And now, it's time for you to meet our kitty-child, Artemis! It's been almost a year now since we adopted him from the pet shelter last August. He is probably one the happiest cats I've ever had. He loves laying in laps and always wants to be near us, even right on top of our heads when we're sleeping. You'll probably be seeing a lot of pictures of him because he's always doing something crazy!

Before I had lunch, I decided to do day 2 on phase 1 of Jillian Michael's Body Revolution. It was a nice workout, but not all that challenging really. I'm hoping as the days progress in the first phase, it will get a bit more intense. Although, this is probably only as much as I can do right now. I came down with a bad flu 3 weeks ago, 2 weeks before I would have finished P90X. That made me so angry but what can you do, right?

I'm planning on continuing with the Jillian Michael's program for at least a month or more(the whole program is 90 days), then stepping it up and trying Insanity for the second time again. The first time I tried it, I only made it through the first 2 weeks before my feet were killing me. The pain only lasted for a couple seconds, but it was stopping me from being able to do the moves correctly. My plan this time is to go barefoot and use an extra thick mat designed for high impact exercises. Lets hope it works!

By the time I was finished with my exercise for the day, I was starving! I wanted to keep my lunch on the light side though since the husband and I were going out later to the Cheesecake Factory.

Here's what lunch looked like:

Om nom nom nom!

A simple BBQ chicken sandwich with lettuce and laughing cow cheese on a sandwich thin, with a side of baby carrots and some jicama! I have never tried jicama before until recently and I discovered that I really liked it! It's almost a cross between an apple and pear, but with a slight peppery taste. 

Oh no, he's awake!

And now it's time for me to go dig into my lunch and watch some Revenge!