Quick and healthy pancakes

I’ve been doing a bit more experimenting in the kitchen lately.  Mostly easy side dishes and things that require little prep work and minimal attention while cooking.

As all you fellow working moms know, once you get home at the “end” of the day, it’s like you step into an alternate reality, and in that alternate reality, the day has just begun!  But, you’re still running on energy left over from the first reality…
(Not to say that stay-at-home moms don’t get exhausted – I know you do, too! I’m just sharing from my current position.)

Anyway, back to my main thought.  Easy, quick food.  Well, if you like bananas, this is a winner!  I saw this idea floating around the web for a little while, but did not give it a try until recently.  Ready for the ingredient list?  It’s a doozey!

1 large, ripe banana

1 egg

That’s it.  Two ingredients. And it makes about 4 medium pancakes. Now, you can always add extras like I did.  Like chocolate chips, or strawberries, blueberries, or nuts… you get he picture.  I did blueberries and chocolate chips.

Anyway, you basically just mix up the banana and egg really well. I mashed the banana and then used a whisk to combine it with the egg. Then proceed to cook like any other pancake!  (Just in case you’ve never made pancakes: Pour some batter onto a medium-hot skillet, and when little bubbles start to pop on the top of the pancake, flip it over and cook for just a little while longer so both sides are a nice, golden-brown.)

I was expecting something heavy and not-pancake-y in the least, but these actually were not too different in texture from a normal pancake.  They are definitely more moist, and obviously, taste of banana, which is different.   But not bad, if you like banana!

And they look absolutely delicious, don’t you agree?

I highly reccomend having a side of bacon or sausage with these, so it counter-balances the sweetness of the pancakes.

If you try it, please let me know what your opinion is!

Baked oatmeal (new recipe!)

Ladies and Gents, I am alive! Hassled, a bit stressed, sleep-deprived, and just plain exhausted. Even bordering on delirious perhaps, but definitely alive!
And to prove it, I am going to share a new baked oatmeal recipe that I found and love! I found it on Pinterest, of course (After all, where else would someone like me find these things nowadays!). The original link is here:

http://alwaysamrsforeverakidd.blogspot.com/2012/01/gluten-free-baked-oatmeal-casserole.html

But, as usual, I did a little bit of tweaking… not a lot, but enough that I thought I would share my own version:

3 cups old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup almond slices
1 cup strawberries (cut into small pieces)
1/4 cup mini dark chocolate chips
2-1/4 cups milk
1 large egg
1/3 cup applesauce (I used unsweetened, but you could use sweetened if you like)
1-1/4 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 banana, cut into 1/2-inch slices

I combined the oats, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, chocolate chips, and half of the almonds and strawberries in a medium bowl. I mixed well using a spatula, and then divided the mixture between two smaller, glass casserole dishes. I wanted to freeze half of it, or I would have done one, 9×12 dish. (Remember to use butter or non-stick spray on the dish first!)

Then, I used the same bowl to combine the milk, egg, applesauce, and vanilla. I whisked it together well, and ended up with a bit of foam on top… not sure if that was good or bad, but it ended up tasting ok in the end, so maybe it doesn’t matter either way?
I poured the liquid mixture over the oats, and then arranged the banana and remaining almonds and strawberries on top. I baked it at 375 for about 45-50 minutes. (Until the oats were golden-brown on top and no longer gooey.)

It was delicious!

I’m thinking I’d like to make this for dessert one time and serve warm with vanilla ice cream!

Priorities

Such a grown-up word. Priorities. As you can see, my priorities the past few months have not centered around blogging!  Not because I don’t want to – oh, believe me, that is not the case!  I simply have decided that this blog will not come before my true priorities.  And so, it has had to take a back burner so to speak.  ”Real” life is more important!

I must say, though, that these past few months may not have been the most productive in creative type activities, but I have been doing a lot of reading and research on lots of different things – both crafty/creative stuff and otherwise.  I feel like my brain is on over-load, trying to keep up with all the ideas swirling around in there!  I’ve got several projects in mind that I am hoping to tackle soon.  Now, “soon” is a very fluid concept right now… for all I know, that could mean two weeks or six months!  Ha!

One of those projects will be window treatments for our living room.  I’ve had the same thing up for several years… since before I was married actually.  Yeah, I’m feeling something different is in order.

I’m also hoping to do some major purging in our guest room and closet.  It has turned into a catch-all, and is driving me crazy!  It is going to be quite a project, and I’m not sure exactly where to start, but something has to be done!

So, there you have it.  I’m absent, but still alive and kicking! Hope you all have had a lovely summer and beginning of fall. I am SO ready for fall to get here. But Florida doesn’t really believe in fall… or at least doesn’t give it a shot until about mid November. Bah, humbug!  For those of you who live in areas with actual seasons, please enjoy autumn for me!

California rolls

When it comes to sushi’s extended family, California Rolls are my comfort zone. The real stuff – the stuff with raw fish – is way, way off the beaten bath of my comfort zone.  I’ll eat lots of things, but raw meat of any kind is just disgusting!   OK, so now that you know how I feel about raw meat, we can move on.

Sometimes I pick up a pack of California Rolls at Publix. J and I both like them, but a few weeks ago it dawned on me that I could totally make them myself!  I had half of the ingredients in the house anyway, so why not?!  It was sort of an impulsive decision, but I’m glad I went for it. Here is what you’ll need:

Sticky rice (suhi rice is the best for this)

Rice vinegar

Nori (dried seaweed sheets)

Ingredients for the center (crab, sesame seeds, avocado, cream cheese, cucumber, etc.  Basically whatever you prefer)

Small bowl of water

Sharp knife (to cut the roll)

Rolling mat (optional, but it sure makes it easier!)

The process is actually a lot easier than I expected.  It is important to let the rice cool completely before doing anything with it.  I have a Japanese rice cooker, but you can just make the rice in a pot.  I used sushi rice, but it might work ok with another kind of rice as long as it’s really sticky.  I would advise you to consult an expert, though.  Do not rely on my un-founded suggestion!

 

Once it is cool, you cut in the rice vinegar with a spatula.  By cutting it in, you avoid mashing the rice. (I made my own rice vinegar by just adding a pinch of sugar to Apple Cider Vinegar. Might not be exactly the same, but it is close enough for our non-foodie taste buds.)

[Note: When it comes to rolling the sushi, I have a little bamboo mat thingy that works wonderfully.  My Japanese friend gave me mine, but I think you can find them in some grocery stores.  I slide it inside a large zip-lock bag before using it.  It makes clean-up so much easier!]

Spread the rice in a thin layer on the rough side of the nori (seaweed).  It will take a little work because the rice is all sticky, but try not to squash your rice into mush.  You can make it thick if you prefer it that way, but the thicker the layer, the fatter the roll will be and the harder (potentially) it can be to cut.  Leave about an inch of plain nori at the “top”.

Now, you add whatever ingredients you prefer across the “bottom”.  In this case I just used imitation crab, avocado, and sesame seeds.  I like them with a little bit of thinly sliced cucumber, but I discovered my cucumber wasn’t very good when I made this batch of sushi, so I left it out.  Cream cheese is also a nice filler if you like it.

Once you have all your ingredients lined up at the bottom end of the nori, start rolling it tightly from the bottom end toward the top.  Take your time, and make sure it sticks together well or you’ll end up with a mess!

Once you have rolled it all the way to the end of the rice, dip your finger in a bit of water and run your finger across the nori.  This will make it sticky and allow you to “seal” the roll.

All set!  Now, just cut it up into sections and let it chill in the fridge for a few hours!

One tip for cutting: get your knife wet at least once every two cuts.  It will keep the knife from sticking to the rice and smooshing your nice little roll.

If you’re making them to eat later, a nice way to package it is to line a container with lettuce leaves and place the rolls in there.  Not only does it look nice, but it also keeps the rolls from sticking to the container.

Final product (for now)

Happy Friday!  I am so thankful for the weekend!

I haven’t showed off the last few things I did in little A’s room.  I didn’t get a chance to finish it all before he made his grand entrance, and since then, blog time has not exactly been plentiful.  For very good, wonderful reasons!

This is the wall above his crib.  You can read how I did the letters here.

The walls I covered in fabric since we aren’t supposed to paint. You can read about that process here.

And then there is the crib.  Here I showed you how I touched up some scratches on it.

We were storing a bookshelf for a friend, and at the last minute they decided they didn’t want it any more.  So, even though there isn’t a lot of room for it, it had to live somewhere. I decided to use it as a place to display pictures, store books, and toys, etc.  At the top I have some figurines.

Don’t you love how we stuck to a specific theme?  Ha!  The room is sort of half Toy Story, half Super-Heroes, with just a splash off StarWars thrown in here and there.  Definitely all BOY!  And I love it!

At the bottom of the bookcase are some cloth bins to use as toy storage.  I found the bins at the dollar store, belive it or not!

They are definitely not the highest quality, but they work just fine, and they were the prefect size!

I made the curtains and valance.  I showed you how that came about here and here.

Sorry for the bad picture…

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These are the walls above the changing table and the rocker.

I used wall decals (from Target) and frames (from Family Dollar) to put together the Toy Story frames.  I removed the backing to the frames as well as the glass, and then spray painted the frames navy blue.  (The cheap, Walmart brand spray paint) Then I stuck the decals onto the glass and that was that!

Aaaand, here is the lovely changing table. Thrilling, I know.  But, I wanted to show the baskets I found – perfect fit and great for the diapers and all that extra stuff .

Also, that white pad on top of the table is actually supposed to go in the crib to keep the sheets from getting all drooly, but I use it on here.  So much easier to pull that off and wash it than change the actual pad cover.  :)  Plus, I can stick it in any load of laundry without worrying about the terry cloth stuff getting fuzz on the rest of the load. It dries faster too.

I had a heavy glass jar that I’m using to store the ever-elusive pacifiers.  It seems to be helping so far at least!

This lamp was from Target (a baby shower registry gift – yay!) and so is the clock.  J actually found the clock and I was thrilled with it! Isn’t it the cutest? Oh, and those white stars on the lamp are glow-in-the-dark.  Sweet!

The best thing about this room was the fact that I spent very little money on it.  All of the furniture was either given to us or we already had, and most of the rest was either a shower gift or bought with gift cards!  Whoop-whoop!

So, there you have it, the finished (for now) room.  You know how it goes.  I think I’m done until some random, “brilliant” idea enters my head and off I go again!

At least now I have other concerns that keep me from spending too much time tearing apart the house. 

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Baked oatmeal

I’ve had quite a few people ask me for the recipe for the baked oatmeal I mentioned in my post about make-ahead breakfasts. I found a recipe online someplace, (Pinterest, maybe?  I really don’t know.) and tweaked it to suit my tastes. It’s pretty easy, and one batch makes roughly 16-18 “muffins” (depending on how much you like to fill each cup). I like that it makes so much since I can make one batch and it will last me about two weeks even though I normally eat at least two at a time.

2 eggs

1-1/2 cups applesauce

1 mashed banana

5 cups old fashioned oats

2-3/4 cups milk

1/4 cup oat bran

3 teaspoons sugar

1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp salt

Plus any add-ins/toppings of your choice (a few ideas: chocolate chips, raisins, chopped apples, blueberries, nuts, granola)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl mix together the eggs, applesauce, banana, vanilla, and sugar.

Next, add the oats, salt, baking powder, cinnamon and oat bran. Mix everything together really well; lastly, add the milk and combine.

You can use cupcake liners or spray the muffin tin with cooking spray.  I use cooking spray if I am going to freeze them – saves a little mess and frustration when you thaw/reheat them.

Now, I like to make several different “flavors” at once, so, before pouring the oat mixture into the muffin tin, I scoop out some into a smaller bowl and mix it with one of my add-ins.   Then I pour that smaller bowl of mixture evenly into 5-6 of the muffin cups.  I repeat the process with a different add-in until I use up all the batter.  Keep in mind that if you add something like nuts or granola, you may want to sprinkle them on the top instead of mixing it into the oatmeal.  Totally up to you.  So far my favorite add-ins have been blueberries and chocolate chips.  Although, I do like to make some with just a little brown sugar sprinkled on the top.  Mmmm…

They all smell delicious by the way.

My least favorite were the strawberry ones.  But only because the strawberries don’t hold up well after baking, freezing, and re-heating.  They look funky too.  But, they taste ok, so if you’re set strawberry, go for it!

Once they’re done and have cooled to room temperature, I wrap each individual muffin with plastic wrap, (foil would work too, but I find it rather bulky) I use a sharpie to mark the plastic wrap so I know which flavor it is. I just use the first letter of the add-in. For example: R – raisins / B – blueberries / S – strawberry / C – choc chip. You get the idea.   Then place them all in a large zip-lock bag in the freezer.

Enjoy!  And if you come up with any brilliant ideas for add-ins, please let me know!

Breakfast on the go

Anyone else out there seem to be always in a rush in the morning?  What is it about mornings anyway?  The work day may drag, but that bit of morning you have at home before the work day begins just flies by like a… well, like something really fast.

Ahh… life as a stay-at-home mother is my dream!  A dream I have thoroughly enjoyed the past 8 weeks while on maternity leave.  I mean, how can you not love moments like this?

But as with so many good things, that is coming to a soon end.  Back to work I go.  And I’m determined to be happy and make the most of it!

In my efforts to prepare myself, I have been trying to get a little more organized and streamlined in my get-up-and-go process.  There are several different ways I am working on this, and I’ll probably share a few more of them with you in future posts; but, today I wanted to share my efforts in make-ahead breakfast foods. Three of them to be precise.

Most of the time we are cereal and milk breakfast people.  Not because I don’t like a full breakfast.  Believe me, I would love to have a three course meal at breakfast most days.  I wake up hungry and cereal leaves me empty by about 8:30am.  But cooking a big breakfast every morning is not realistic (at least not in this house) when you are going to head right out the door to work at 7am and leave the sink full of dishes.  The hubs, however, wouldn’t mind dining on cereal and milk four or five times a week! So, I deal, Hubs is happy, and we both make it out the door on time (most of the time).

Now that we have a little guy added to the mix of the morning routine, breakfast is even more of a hurried event for me.  So, I came up with a few ideas, and have begun to implement them.  Hopefully all these ideas will actually do their job of making my morning a little less hectic. The funny thing is, all three of them center around the use of muffin pans… minus the muffins.

Idea #1: Breakfast casserole.

I just make the breakfast casserole like normal, but instead of making it in a large dish and cutting it into individual pieces, I divide the mixture evenly into a muffin pan!  There ya go – individual portions of breakfast casserole right out of the oven!

Idea #2: Egg, cheese, and sausage sandwiches.

Again, pretty basic.  I cooked up sausage patties in a skillet, toasted english muffins, and baked scrambled eggs in a muffin pan. (A fast and easy way to cook multiples and make them that perfect round shape.) Wrap in foil, freeze, and ta-da!  McMuffins a-la-home ready to eat without going through the drive-through!  (And most likely a bit healthier version.)  I add the cheese after I warm them up, but I’m sure you could freeze the cheese along with the rest of the sandwich.

Idea #3: Baked oatmeal!  (I gotta admit – these play with my brain a little.  No matter what, my brain thinks these are muffins and when I take the first bite it takes it a second to recover and realize why they taste like oatmeal!)

Now, this one is a bit more involved because the recipe calls for more ingredients than just oatmeal and milk… but it’s not complicated in the least, and I think they’re delicious!  Again, I divided up the mixture into the muffin pan, baked them, and once they were cool, I wrapped them up and froze them. A fairly healthy breakfast I would say, right?

So, there you go!  Three simple breakfast ideas that can be made ahead, frozen, and then reheated individually!  I’ve found that using the muffin pan method, you can easily make a variety of “flavors” at once.  For example, you’re not locked in to 2 dozen raisin oatmeal portions.  I made four different kinds by dividing up the mixture into four containers, added strawberries to one, chocolate chips to one, raisins to one, and the last one I decided to leave plain but once I poured it into the pan I sprinkled the tops with brown sugar. You can sort of see the different ones in this picture…

You could do the same with the casserole idea.  Give yourself some variety by making some with bacon, others with sausage or cheddar cheese.  I’m sure there are a ton of other casseroles that would work.  The ideas are limited only by your palate!

I think I’m going to get one of those jumbo size muffin pans to make larger portions… for the times when  an “individual portion” just won’t cut it.

So, how about you?  What little tricks do you use that help you get out the door on time in the morning?  (Getting up at 3am doesn’t count!)  I’d love to hear them.  I’m going to need all the help I can get!