Vegetarian Gluten-free (if using gluten-free oatmeal) Quick
I pretend to be a cereal eater. I buy cereals, most of which go to waste before they are eaten. Since the milk texture in my cereal really bothers me, I eat dry cereal. That can get really boring quick. My husband and sons love cereal with milk. So I’m the odd man out in my family.
However, I enjoy eating granola in Greek yogurt. The pieces of granola don’t get soggy like they do in milk. So making homemade granola can be cost-efficient. Homemade granola can also be adapted to my taste and preference. I also know what exactly is in it, so there are no mystery ingredients. Plus, it’s delicious!
So when this recipe crossed my inbox, my curiosity peaked. So I got the few ingredients I needed to make the granola. I made it on a Sunday morning before church. I took some with me to eat during refreshment, so I wouldn’t eat any of the not-so-good goodies. When I shared some of it with my fellow churchgoers, they were impressed with the taste. As was I.
The granola combines the flavors of fall. Cinnamon and nutmeg tickle your taste buds. Apples scream fall! There are also a few surprises hidden in the granola.
Vegetarian Gluten-free (if using gluten-free oatmeal) Quick Meal Planning
In August of 2010, I posted an entry for Instant Oatmeal Mix. As we are experiencing another cold snap, oatmeal is a good way to warm up on a bitterly cold morning.
I was pursuing Yummy Life’s instant oatmeal packets’ blog entry and found some good ideas for different types of instant oatmeal. Instant oatmeal mixes are better than the Quaker or off-brand instant oatmeal packets. You control the ingredients. Plus, it doesn’t have preservatives.
Using some of the ideas from Yummy Life and what I had around the house, I came up with divine apple cinnamon instant oatmeal.
Apple Cinnamon Instant Oatmeal
Stars of the recipe:
2-1/4 c. Instant or Quick Oatmeal
1/3 c. powdered milk
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
2 to 3 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 c. dried apples
1/3 c. chopped nuts (I used cashews.)
2 -3 Tbsp Chia seeds
2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. Vanilla powder (optional)
Steps:
Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl.
Store in an airtight container.
When ready to make oatmeal, mix 1/2 c. of the oatmeal with 3/4 c. water. (Make sure the bowl is big enough because the oatmeal expands in the microwave.)
Heat in the microwave for 90 seconds.
Or:
Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl.
Store in an airtight container.
Mix 1/3 c. oatmeal, 1/2 c. water, and 1/4 c. Greek yogurt in a Mason jar or similar jar.
Make sure the lid is on tight, and shake up the mixture.
Place in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Enjoy straight out of the fridge, or allow it to warm up to room temperature before eating!
Originally published: 12/17/2013 Updated: 12/19/2022
Gluten-free (if using gluten-free certified oats) Meal planning Quick
One of my favorite candy bars is Almond Joy. This is a good thing on Halloween because the boys won’t touch them with a 10-foot pole or if the Imaginative One is being his snarky self, a 9 and 3/4-inch pole. I get their Almond Joy candy bars on Halloween. The combination of chocolate and coconut is pure heaven!! 😃
My other favorite treat is granola, either plain or with plain Greek yogurt. So the combination of the taste of Almond Joy candy bars with yogurt is the best flavor, at least it is to me.
Original post: May 9, 2016 Updated: December 17, 2022
Vegetarian, Quick, Kid Friendly, Freezer friendly
This is my second time participating in the Secret Recipe Club. I got moved to Group B when Group D was disbanded. This month I was assigned to Why I Am Not Skinny. Maxine is originally from South Africa but is currently living in Brussels.
I looked in her recipe index and found several recipes I wanted to try. I finally decided on the 12-minute scones. I waited until yesterday to make the recipe. Life is currently crazy around here. Actually, work is a crazy part of my life. I administered tests during most of April, which sometimes left me exhausted. Then last week, I attended a field trip all five days to a place called Starbase. That experience left me absolutely exhausted at the end of the day. I had decided on two recipes but needed the energy to make one. Ask Hubby – I have not wanted to cook dinner when I get home at night, which is unusual for me.
Corn Fritters – We have a local sweet corn festival at the beginning of the school year. One of the vendors sells chicken dinners with corn fritters. Hubby loves corn fritters.
Easy Fried Rice – This is another recipe Hubby would have enjoyed. The Wee One might have enjoyed it also since he is like his dad because he loves rice.
Sweet and Sour Chicken – I know I have a sweet and sour chicken recipe on I’m Hungry. This recipe is different than my recipe. Again Hubby would have enjoyed this recipe.
As I said, I settled on the 12-minute scones. I have several favorite coffee shops. One of them sells chocolate chunk scones that are a harder consistency. I love them. For a while, I’ve wanted to make my own scones but haven’t made them. The 12-minute scones were a lot softer than the ones I get at Boston Stoker, the coffee shop. I loved the texture.
Maxine’s recipe did not have any add-ins. I adapted the recipe to include Craisins and some cinnamon. Hubby decided to buy a huge bag of Craisins at Sam’s, so I’ve been using them whenever possible.
Today I’m back with my Top Ten List. I know it’s been about a year since I posted one.
Today I’m going to share my Top Ten Breakfast Foods
Hopefully this list will help you when you are trying to decide what to eat for breakfast.
1. Yogurt Parfait – Greek Yogurt, sometimes honey, granola, fruit
Yogurt Parfait ready to be eaten
2. Green Smoothie – Juice (oj), spinach, and frozen fruit – That is all that is needed to make a green smoothie.
3. Granola
4. Chocolate Croissant – Especially when I’m at Disney. For some reason, I love them there.
5. Eggs – Scrambled or Fried – If I have fried eggs, I like to eat butter toast with it.
6. Cottage Cheese with canned peaches – Yum!
7. Granola bar with string cheese and fruit – Usually a quick breakfast on the go! Kashi bars or some of the granola bars from Aldi are usually my go to for the granola bars.
8. Lara bar with string cheese and fruit – A variation of #7.
9. Hard boiled eggs with string cheese and fruit – I like Trader Joe’s Everything But the Bagel seasoning on my hard-boiled eggs.
This could also be called “Clean Out My Fridge Frittata.” We had a potluck breakfast at church on Easter morning. I woke up that morning trying to decide what I wanted to bring to church. Nothing like waiting until the last moment.
I thought about how I had spinach in the fridge. It was at that moment I decided to make a frittata. The rest of the ingredients were in my fridge or pantry so it was easy to put together.
You ca certainly add more ingredients to the fritatta instead of just spinach, mushroom, and onion. It would be delicious with cubed zucchini (add with the rest of the veggies), cubed bell peppers (add with the rest of the veggies), and olives (add with the Feta cheese).
Last week was crazy. I only worked twice during the week. We had below freezing temps. Extremely below freezing temps. The wind chill on a couple of the days registered -20 or so below.
I love the flavors of fall – cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves. All of those flavors make my taste buds sing.
Hubby laughs at me buying all of the pumpkin flavored goodies.
When I got up on Saturday, I was craving pumpkin muffins. Since I’m eating gluten free, I can’t just go to Panera and get myself a muffin.
So it’s up to me to bake my own muffins.
I googled gluten free pumpkin muffins and found this recipe.
I adapted the recipe by using regular milk with apple cider vinegar to get the lift she discussed in the recipe. She also suggested adding chocolate chips which I did. Yum!
Since I added the chocolate chips, I was able to get 10 muffins out of the batter instead of the 9.
I enjoyed my muffin with butter and a mug of pumpkin spice coffee. Delicious!
Believe in the Magic Traci Diary 