Now Trending... Overnight Oats!

  Happy Labor Day weekend everyone!  Hope everyone is having a wonderful and safe holiday.  This weekend has been turning into less of a restful and more of a super productive weekend... BUT being organized sometimes helps me get MORE rest so I suppose it will be good for me anyway. :)

  This weekend I have been doing some MAJOR packing and organizing of my life and our big move coming up quickly!  I cannot believe we only have 3 weeks until we settle on our new home and MOVE.  (Ok I admit, I was about to write 4 weeks and then checked my calendar for accuracy and had a little panic attack when I realized I was one week off!)  3 weeks??  Holy muffins that's close!

  Anyway, in an effort to continue blogging but also packing (which means less crafting... *sniffle*) I figured I would share something that my dear friend Melissa introduced to me the other day when we were getting our hair cut... OVERNIGHT OATS!!!

  As a Pinterest junkie I am kind of ashamed that I did not jump on this bandwagon earlier but hubby and I went to the grocery store today and I can now announce that I am READY.  For those of you who don't know about this wonderful phenomenon, allow me to elaborate....   Overnight oats is oatmeal made the night before and placed in your fridge for easy access in the morning when you are running (late) out the door for work.  Most recipes call for not only rolled oats but also chia seeds, Greek yogurt, and a fun little flavoring to mix things up and keep you fuller for longer.  Personally I cannot make plain oatmeal in the morning because I am guaranteed to be starving by 10am.  (Yes, even if I finish my oatmeal at 9:59, ha).  With the extra ingredients like yogurt and chia seeds I'm hoping I can at least last until lunch!

  Since I was trying something new I figured what other ingredient would be perfect than Nutella!  I used to have this stuff when I was a kid... I remember everyone in school being jealous that I had a "chocolate sandwich" for lunch.  The combination of chocolate and hazelnuts have a long history in our family but a very short lifespan in our home.

  Anyway, my first attempt at overnight oats was a delicious success!  I combined rolled oats, chia seeds, plain almond milk and 1 Tablespoon of Nutella, shook it like crazy (in a mason jar.... OF COURSE) and placed in my fridge overnight.  This morning, I added just a tiny bit more almond milk since Nutella in the fridge gets a little stiff and VIOLA!  Chocolatey hazelnutty goodness.

   Ok, the owl timer was in no way involved in the overnight oats process but he was a gift from my sister (we love all things cute and adorable)... and adds some color to the photo!

  I have to admit, I was a little hungry afterwards so I ate a banana with my meal as well to help fill me up.  I'm thinking that once I start adding the yogurt and perhaps some flax seed it will bulk up the "full-ness" factor.  I've already pinned a ton of other recipes... I'm thinking of adding banana and peanut butter to my next one!  See my Pinterest site for other ideas... under my "Healthy Bites" board.

  Since I am still new to this whole regularly blogging thing I'm still trying to figure out how to actually post a recipe in a format that I like.  If anyone wants the exact amounts I used and doesn't want to look the recipe up on my Pinterest board let me know in the comments section below.

  Well, I'm off to do a little more packing and organizing!  Have a great rest of your holiday weekend!

 

Ode to the Greatest Meal of the Day

We've all heard the saying... "breakfast is the most important meal of the day."  It is also my absolute favorite meal- yum.  A day without a good breakfast is not a good day at all.  (And a good breakfast without coffee is sad... which reminds me I need to turn on the Keurig!)

So, as I am sitting in our new apartment sipping my low calorie orange juice and eating my home made breakfast sandwich I am writing this entry about some amazing looking ideas to spice up breakfast and make it even more exciting.  (Ok, so I definitely ate all my breakfast already... next to an insufficient breakfast the worst thing is a COLD good breakfast... so I'm actually sitting next to my empty plate writing this entry.)

Those of you who know me personally know that I am not the world's greatest cook.  It's not that I cook bad things.... I actually don't cook much at all!  My now husband LOVES to cook and I love eating what he cooks so it usually works out well for me.  :)

Husband's fatal flaw is that he is, in his own words, "not a breakfast guy."  *sigh*  He will go to a diner and order a sandwich for brunch.  (My belief is that if a place serves breakfast food 24/7, you get breakfast food.) :)

Husband's redeeming quality is the fact that although he does not eat eggs/breakfast food... he still will make it for me in limited amounts.  It was through him that I made my first incredible breakfast discovery.... chives in eggs.  YUM.  Have you ever tried it?  Brings your eggs (or egg whites) to a whole new level.

After this discovery I went searching on the internet for other ideas to elevate my breakfast experience... I've found a lot of great ideas from various blogs and my new favorite cookbook, "America's Test Kitchen" (also introduced to me by my hubby).

The first amazing breakfast idea is from a blog called Eat Yourself Skinny.  The girl who writes it has some great recipes and also puts a healthy spin on many of them.  You can find the specific link to the recipe here.  How adorable are these??  (I'm also a sucker for well presented food.)  I especially love this idea because you can expand to other meals of the day... how about a snack of egg or chicken salad in a tomato?  YUMMY.

This next recipe is far from healthy, however, I love the concept of a make ahead breakfast.  One of the suggestions out there for those of us with ridiculously busy schedules is to take a Sunday and cook a bunch of food that can be stored and reheated through the week in order to save cooking time on the week days.  Many people do this for dinner but can you imagine starting your day off with a piece of this incredibly tasty baked french toast casserole recipe from America's Test Kitchen?

(I can... mmmm)  It's also perfect if you are having a large amount of people over for the weekend.  I couldn't find the exact test kitchen recipe online but the picture above and this recipe are from a blog called "CUL-I-NAR-I-CA-TION."  Let me know if you make this recipe sometime.... or perhaps invite me over for a bite. :)

Speaking of To-Go breakfast... I also love looking for variations on the breakfast bar.  Don't get me wrong, I will eat a peanut butter crunch cliff bar and a banana for breakfast if need be, but there is something about taking a little piece of homemade goodness with me to start my day that makes me just a little happier inside.  For this, I go to the blog of one of my sorority sisters, Anne, who is currently finishing up her schooling to become a registered dietician.  Her website, fannetastic food is so much fun to read... even those of you who don't know her can probably get a sense of what a positive and energetic personality she has!  This Almond Butter Banana Bar recipe is one I have been dying to try for quite some time... and hopefully by next weekend things will have officially settled down and I'll have the chance to do just that!

(The best part about Anne's blog is that she loves photography as well... 

so her food pictures are even more tasty looking!)

Well I suppose that wrap things up for me for now... I'd love to know what everyone's favorite breakfast meals are (during the week or weekend!)... thanks for allowing me to share my most treasured meal of the day!!  Have a great rest of your weekend everyone!

Love always,

Michelle