Return of the Great Pumpkin

I recently defrosted some more of my homemade pumpkin puree, which was the featured star in this morning’s breakfast. 

The Great Pumpkin Overnight Oats

Mixed the night before:

-          1/4 C old-fashioned oats

-          1/2 C kefir

-          1 tsp  chia seeds

-          1/2 tsp ground flax

-          Dash of pumpkin spice powder

-          (forgot to add banana!!)

In the morning:

-          Spoonful of Barney Butter Smooth Almond Butter

-          Spoonful of TJ’s Pumpkin Butter (best pumpkin butter ever!!!)

-          Sprinkle of unsweetened shredded coconut

Served with a side of yesterday’s batch of coconut chocolate chip oatmeal scone with a spread of Seggiano smooth dark chocolate hazelnut

And pumpkin spice coffee

I absolutely <3 pumpkin and will be super bummed when I officially run out. There is just something about its natural sweet flavor that appeals to my taste buds. That and every time I eat pumpkin, I think of Linus from the Peanuts and how he always gives up trick-or-treating in hopes of meeting the Great Pumpkin. His dedication to the Great Pumpkin never fails to bring a smile to my face.

Coconut Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Scones

I think I went a bit overboard with the chocolate raspberry coffee yesterday because I had a very difficult time sleeping last night. It took me around 1.5 hours to fall asleep and then I kept on tossing and turning from 2:30 – 5:00 am when I finally gave up on any hope of being able to sleep. In times like these, I usually pitter patter to the kitchen and bake. So, off to the kitchen I went.

I have recently been working on a scone recipe and have been making a few tweaks here and there to healthify it without making it taste like cardboard. I absolutely love scones but the ones sold at cafes and restaurants are more like full-fat than low-fat. This is a bit devastating for me because that means I can’t have them as much as I’d like to. So, I decided that I would try to make a healthy, low-fat scone that would allow me to eat it on a regular basis without expanding my waist line. I knew from the start that this would be a difficult task because the fatty ingredients are what make pastries and desserts so tasty. On top of that, there is the stigma that healthy pastries are not worth eating because they often turn out disgusting. However, these obstacles fueled my desire to find a way to eat a tasty scone without all the guilt. After a few revisions, I think I have managed to come up with a healthy and cardboard-less scone recipe. They are a bit denser than a normal scone due to the lack of white flour, but nevertheless, I am quite satisfied with the results.

Coconut Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Scones

Ingredients

·         3/4 C whole wheat flour

·         3/4 C oat flour*

·         3/4 C rolled oats

·         1/4 C white sugar

·         3 tbsp ground chia seeds**

·         2 tsp baking powder

·         1/2 tsp salt

·         1 Tbsp cinnamon sugar

·         6 Tbsp coconut butter, cold temperature

·         2 large eggs, room temperature

·         2 tsp vanilla bean paste

·         1/2 cup low fat buttermilk, room temperature

·         3/4 C chocolate chips

* If you don’t have oat flour, just blend raw oats in a food processor or magic bullet until it reaches a flour texture

** If you don’t have ground chia seeds, just blend whole chia seeds in a magic bullet or coffee grinder until the seeds turn into a powder form.  

Before

After

Directions

·         Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

·         In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla bean paste, and low fat buttermilk. Set aside 2 tablespoons for brushing the tops of each scone.

·         In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients and whisk until thoroughly mixed.

·         Cut coconut butter into chunks and add into the dry ingredients. Mix the butter into the dry ingredients until a course, grainy texture is formed. Add wet ingredients and stir until a dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips.

·         Transfer dough onto a chopping board or smooth surface that has been generously covered with flour. Mold the dough into a circular shape and 1 inch in height.

·         Coat a 2 in round cookie cutter with flour to cut dough into individual scones. Shape the remaining dough into a circular form and continue cutting with the cookie cutter.

·         Brush the top of each scone with the remaining egg mixture and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and unsweetened shredded coconut.

·         Lay scones on a cookie sheet and leave a 2 inch space between each scone.

·         Bake for about 15 minutes until the scones reach a golden brown color.  Serve fresh out of the oven.

 

Top with jam, butter, or a spread of your choice if desired. =)

Chocolate Raspberry Coffee

Over the weekend, I went on a trip to Target, which is always dangerous for me. They always have such great sales and I have such little will power. Every time I go there I always end up buying stuff I don’t really need. Bad!!!! My very unnecessary purchase from this trip is a bag of Gevalia chocolate raspberry coffee. The last thing I need is more coffee because I have like 5 bags in my pantry but I just can’t say no to anything chocolate or coffee related, especially when it’s on clearance. I mean, chocolate raspberry flavored coffee?? The name literally beckons.

Even though, I already have 2 opened bags of ground coffee, I was forced to try this flavor this morning. The bag was on the counter staring at me and saying, “try me!! Try meeeee!!!” So, I did what I was told and promptly scooped a few tablespoons into the coffee maker. And as if drinking a few mugs of this delicious coffee isn’t enough, I just had to put it in my oatmeal as well.  

Enter chocolate raspberry coffee oatmeal

Topped with a few Nestle chocolate chips 

Served with my third mug of chocolate raspberry coffee

I’m thinking that this flavor would work perfectly in scones, muffins, or cookies…must get working on a recipe with it.

Chocolate Avocado Protein Shake

Last week, avocados were on sale at Ralphs 2 for $1, so I bought a ton. The only problem is that they ripen quicker than I can eat them. I was about to make some guac until I came across a chocolate avocado pudding recipe on Choosing Raw. I like chocolate and avocado but it has never crossed my mind to combine those two ingredients. I was curious how the two would taste together but I was also a bit terrified. It seemed a bit too adventurous for me. However, since I currently have a surplus of very ripe avocados, I decided that worst case scenario, I would be stuck with something inedible to eat. However, instead of making chocolate avocado pudding, I would make a chocolate avocado protein shake.

Chocolate Avocado Protein Shake
Inspired by Choosing Raw

1/2 avocado

2 dates

2 tbsp chocolate protein powder

1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste

1/4 cup nonfat greek yogurt

1 cup milk

Chop avocado and dates into chunks. Combine all ingredients into a blender or magic bullet and blend until desired consistency is reached.

Perfectly creamy and fluffy

Chocolate milk straw is optional but recommended =)

The chocolate avocado protein shake exceeded my expectations. It was sweet, chocolaty, and very creamy. The avocado taste was present but minimal. If anything, it added to the creamy texture. In addition, I find that it makes for a perfect post-workout beverage. Sometimes, after spending time at the gym, I’m not hungry enough to eat a full meal or I’m just not in the mood. But I know I need to eat something to re-fuel. In the past, I would just snack on something but from now on I will definitely be making this delicious concoction.

Chocolate Au Lait Oatmeal

Today has been super non-stop busy. So much so, that I finally have time to catch up on my blog reading and writing today’s post. Eek!

Ok, so this morning, I went back to my usual bowl of oats and baked chocolate au lait oatmeal at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.

1/3 cup old fashioned oats

1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp Godiva chocolate au lait cocoa powder
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tsp chia seeds

While all the ingredients were getting to know each other in the oven, I put together a side of fruit to go along with my oats.

And brewed some coffee.

And decided which book to read during this morning’s breakfast.

It was all made for a very lovely breakfast.

But the day is drawing to an end. And I must go to the market to re-stock on chocolate (I’m running very low!) and perhaps pick up a bottle of Adult Chocolate Milk that everyone has been ranting and raving about. =)

**Picture courtesy of Adult Chocolate Milk's website

Break from the Fast

For the most part, my breakfasts normally consist of oatmeal, parfaits, or cereal. But when I woke up this morning, I was craving for something sweet and savory. So, I decided to take a break from the fast and make something different.

 

 

The other day, Sprouts was having a major sale on everything in their frozen section where everything was marked down by 20% off. I took advantage of this opportunity by purchasing some items that I've always wanted to try but never have due to the high prices. One item in particular that I was curious to try is Kashi's 7 grain waffles. For me, Kashi's products can be somewhat of a hit or a miss because not all of their products are healthy even though they market it as such. Nutrition-wise, this waffle is a hit. Each serving consists of 150 calories, 7g of dietary fiber, 3g of sugar, and 4g of protein. In addition, the waffles are primarily made up of natural ingredients (whole wheat flower, oats, barley, buckwheat..).

Since I just wasn't feeling my usual breakfast selections, I decided that now would be a perfect time to test these waffles out and serve it as the sweet side of my craving.

I warmed up 1 waffle in the oven at 400 degrees for 5 minutes per the directions on the box. When it was done, I jazzed it up with sliced bananas, a dollop of creamy Barney Butter, Great Harvest Cville Cluster granola, chia seeds, and cacao nibs.

The verdict? Delicious! Before I tasted it, I was praying it wouldn't taste like cardboard but it definitely exceeded by expectations. It's sweet, crunchy, and not at all cardboard-y!

The savory side of my breakfast was half an avocado with an egg inside topped with 2 slices of jalapeno, salt, pepper, and Japanese rice seasoning. I baked this in the oven at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. The egg had that perfect eggs over medium texture which I love.

Overall, this was a great breakfast. It's healthy, hearty, and satisfied both of my cravings. I'll definitely be making this again in the future. =)

Thin Mint Cookie Oatmeal

I love Girl Scout cookies and I think that my ultimate fave is the Thin Mints with Samoas coming in at a very close second. I like the thin mints for its crunchy texture, chocolate-y goodness, and the mint because it acts as a palate cleanser (kinda like toothpaste? I’m weird, I know.) And so continuing with my very necessary theme of turning desserts into breakfast, I decided to make Thin Mint Cookie Oatmeal. This is definitely not your normal oatmeal and would make a perfect warm, sunny day oatmeal. Unless you’re weird like me and eat cold oatmeal on a cold day because you give in to that theory that cold + cold = warm. You know, how eating/drinking something cold on a cold day will somehow make you warm inside? Anyway, I digress. Let’s get back to breakfast shall we?

Thin Mint Cookie Oatmeal

1/3 cup old fashioned oatmeal

1/3 cup nonfat greek yogurt (or any yogurt)

2/3 cup milk (or 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup milk)

2  teaspoon cacao powder (or unsweetened cocoa powder)

1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

1.5 teaspoon chia seeds

*Toppings:

Granola

Nut butter

Wild flower

*Optional but highly recommended, especially the flower for ambiance. =)

 

The night before, combine the oatmeal, yogurt, milk/water, cacao powder, peppermint extract and chia seeds into a jar or bowl. Give it a good ol’ stir before sealing or covering it up and storing it in the fridge overnight. In the morning, stir the oatmeal again and add toppings of your choice or eat by itself. Serve with a cup of joe or glass of milk. Enjoy!

** Add or reduce the amount of cacao powder and peppermint extract depending on your palate. Also, the addition of chia seeds isn’t necessary but helps thicken the oatmeal. If you don’t have chia seeds, maybe try using more yogurt and a little less liquid. Either way, I’m sure it will be tasty. =)