September 26, 2012

Healthy Fridge Muffins

First of all...Let me sum up my life in one picture....


Computers, reading, planning oh my! I have literally been on my lap top SO much lately.  I have been studying, finishing up assignments, lesson planning...and my life has been looking a lot like this pic! 


And now it looks like more this...a little bit worse I'd say! Oh well! I officially finished my last assignments of my post degree and have my last day of classes tomorrow! EXCITED yet sad...I have been with this group of amazing people every day for over a year and I am going to miss them all very much.

But I won't get all mushy on ya! Let's get down to business.  First of all...don't let the name of this post fool ya! These muffins are probably one of the best muffins I have ever made.  Weird, but the best.  You'll see what I mean a bit later!

Healthy Fridge Muffins

adapted from Whitewater Cooks Cookbook, Healthy Fridge Muffins

Ingredients
2 cups spelt flour
3 cups oats
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
2 whole eggs
2 egg whites
2 cups plain greek yogurt
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup grated apples
1/4 cup grated carrot
1/4 cup raisins

For the Drizzle
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp apple or orange juice

Directions


1) In a VERY large bowl, combine wet ingredients (except apples and carrots).  


2) In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients and add to the wet mixture.  



3) Cover and refrigerate overnight (this is where I thought it was really weird.  I have never made a recipe like this)



4) In the morning add the grated apples, carrot and raisins.  Note: the mixture will be quite thick and it will be difficult to combine everything together.  Don't be afraid to mix with enthusiasm ;)



5) Fill muffin cups to the top (these don't rise or fluff up much) and bake at 350 for 35 minutes.  


6) Heat the honey and juice and drizzle over the tops of the warm muffins! Mmmm...

Note: These are extremely dense muffins so they have a bit of a doughy texture.  If this isn't for you, I'd recommend baking them for another 5 mins.  Don't take my word for it though, because I haven't do that :-)

I would definitely recommend making these muffins! I am going to try to make a pumpkin spice version, you know, to keep up with my pumpkin spice theme!

Off to plan!

Goodnight

xo






September 10, 2012

Fall Has Arrived

Well, fall seems to have arrived here in Victoria and I am more than okay with that.  I recently got back from my vacation visiting Francis' family in California (was an AMAZING trip, I will post about it soon...trying to gather all of my pics first!) and it feels nice to be home.  There is something about September that I just love.  Everything is fresh.  A new school year has begun (in my case anyways), the air gets cooler, cozy sweaters and scarves come out to play as well as warm and comforting meals, most of which include some of my favourite things: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, curry, cumin, PUMPKIN, candles, warm drinks! You also don't have to worry about sweating profusely in your sauna of an apartment like you do when the temps are super hot (TMI?).  

I am finishing up my degree in the next three months (I will be a certified teacher, AHH!), which means I am going to be extremely busy but I am super excited about what's to come.  Including...delicious recipes, like this bad boy...


On Sunday morning I decided to try a little something different.  As you all know, I am a TRUE oatmeal lover and could eat it every.single.day, however, when I was away I was eating more cereal and toast and then when I got home I got a sudden craving for eggs.  I remembered seeing something online about baked eggs so I played around a little bit. 


I sprayed a small onion soup bowl, or other small oven safe dish (I used a brie dish) with oil and cracked in two eggs.  Sprinkled them with salt and pepper.  Topped with some steamed kale, chopped fresh thyme and rosemary and freshly grated cheese.  Baked for 13 minutes at 375 degrees.  Oh man...SO SO SO easy and yummy in the tummy! I may or may not have made this again for Francis and I again this morning...


 For dinner on Saturday night I made this simple Mulligatawny soup with panfried chickpeas.  I actually followed a recipe almost to a tee, so here is the link.  I topped it with some greek yogurt, green onions and a little cayenne pepper! I ate it alone but I think the spices would balance nicely topped over some brown rice, quinoa or any other grain of your choice.  Bulgar or barley are always great, too!

Now onto a pumpkin related recipe...


It started with some freshly brewed french press coffee...


While I waited for it to steep I made...drum roll...PUMPKIN SPICE creamer!!!!!!!!! Crazy, right? Who would have known!

Pumpkin Spice Creamer

1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup half and half
2-3 tbsp canned pumpkin
1/2 - 1 tsp pumpkin spice
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla
sweetener (maple syrup, stevia, brown sugar, sugar, maple flakes, agave etc)

Directions:

1) Add milk, cream, canned pumpkin, pumpkin spice and cinnamon to a frying pan over medium heat.
2) Whisk all ingredients together (as they warm up they will blend nicely)
3) After it has steamed for a bit and is nice and warm, taste and add sweetener to your liking.  
4) Allow to cool, transfer to a glass jar and refrigerate
5) The next day the pumpkin will be at the bottom on the jar so you can shake it up and then strain the pumpkin out before you add it to your coffee!

Last night, my friend Bri came over for a hang out.  Her and I have been good friends since high school but haven't spent a lot of time together in the past few years so it is great to have her back again :)  We went for a nice hilly walk around Thetis Lake, came home and had some Butternut Squash and Parsnip Soup and salad for dinner.

This is Bri, isn't she a cutie patootie? 

Soup topped with a dollop of greek yogurt and garnished with some chopped green onion! Delish!

Dinner tonight actually turned out extremely well!  Again, another recipe followed to a tee.  This doesn't happen very often because I normally like to change things a bit to suit our taste buds but the last few I have made have worked out perfectly! I also like to experiment with my own recipes most of the time, but when you come across some amazing recipes you can't wait to try, why not, right?


I made a fabulous pasta with sautéed zucchini, cherry tomatoes and a creamy lemon yogurt sauce.  It is a Jillian Michael's recipe, which I found here.  


It turned out pretty tasty if I do say so myself and it took about 20 minutes from start to finish to put together.  Score!

Okay, I am not off to enjoy another cup of tea before settling in for the night.  I am off for a lovely run around Elk Lake in the morning and then a stroll along the water with a pumpkin spice latte in hand, with one of my faves!  I also get to meet my grade 4 class for the first time tomorrow.  Super excited/nervous! Wish me luck :)

Sweet dreams...

xo


Can I please live here?? It's so adorable...