Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Just a quick recap before I go to bed.

After my morning race and oat bran, CD and I took the pups for a walk around the neighborhood, and then came home to get ready for our annual Thanksgiving potluck. We weren’t going to be eating until 2, and so I had a protein smoothie around noon. I used to starve myself all day on Thanksgiving and Christmas and then stuff myself silly when it came time for the big holiday meal. That was dumb. Now I eat normally, and just treat the big meal as a late lunch.

The spread (part of it anyway)…

This does not include the salad or other veggies…or the entire dessert TABLE. I fixed a plate of salad, roasted Brussels sprouts, turkey, cornbread pudding, green bean casserole, and some stuffing. Rather than focus on the food, I focused on my friends and family instead.

Me & CD.

Me and my girls.

Me and my papa. Everyone thinks my dad looks like the Dos Equis Beer commercial guy. Stay thirsty my friends.

Yes, I never took my scarf off all day. Wear it constantly during the winter months.

I skipped the dessert table altogether, opting for more sausage cranberry stuffing instead. I love stuffing. Honestly, I don’t fear the holidays like so many others. I know that if I eat a typical breakfast + a snack that day, I won’t go crazy when it comes to the main meal. Of course I’m sure I took in more calories today than normal, but it will all balance out in the end. Again, it’s my time with others that matters most. Life is too short to worry about how much pumpkin pie (or stuffing) I might eat, right?

Hope everyone enjoyed their day as much as I did! We have so much to be thankful for, no? Good night.

Yes. I am in love with someone that love me too. And it is driving me crazy. Haha. It’s funny to have someone that I love – so much since I never fell in love this deep; from the bottom of my heart. As I said before, I do have a blog under Blogger. Unfortunately, it is hard for me to make post about love, especially my love story. I don’t know why. Maybe because most of my friends read that blog – including the person that I love.

For me, my love story is very personal and I don’t think that it is nice to tell it publicly. And I don’t think the person that I love would be pleasure to know that I shared our love story with people around the world.

Eh. What should I call him in this virtual medium? Of course I don’t want to directly expose his name – real name. Ah. Let’s think of something that I like the most and best fit in him. …… (Thinking!) …..

Okay. I prefer to call him ‘Oligo’ because I kinda like Oligo drink. It tastes real good. Ah. Talking about Oligo, have you ever eat the new oat crackers from Munchy’s? It is awesome! I love it very much! The tastes is heaven! =)

That’s all for today. For those who accidentally read my blog, thank you! I really appreciate your visits here. Hope you all enjoy reading! Till then!

P / S : Happy Eid Adha!

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These are really good substantial biscuits with big chunks of chocolate.  They are easy to make and quick to cook, so a batch can be made in half an hour.  I have invented this recipe to suit people who cannot tolerate flour in their diet, they do contain oats though so if these are a no-no too you could just up the amount of ground almonds that you use to 7 oz (200g) instead of the mixture of oats and almonds.  Doing this will mean that the cookies won’t have such a satisfying texture but I am sure they will be just as good.

I am always in search of the perfect chocolate biscuit recipe, some are just too sweet, but not these they are just lovely and chocolatey and crunchy.

Makes about 15 biscuits

4oz (110g) softened butter
40z (110g) dark soft brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
4oz (110g) ground almonds
3oz (75g) porridge oats
1 oz (25g) cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
4oz (110g) chopped chocolate (dark, milk or white or a mixture, whichever floats your boat)

Method
Preheat the oven to 180°c (gas mark 4, 350°f) and grease two baking sheets with a smear of butter.

Cream the softened butter and sugar together by beating either with an electric whisk or with a wooden spoon until the mixture is light and fluffy.  Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat again until well combined.  Add the ground almonds, porridge oats, cocoa and baking powder and mix well.  Add the chopped chocolate and stir until combined.

Drop spoonfuls of the mixture onto the greased baking sheets, leaving room between for the biscuits to spread.  Place the trays into the centre of the oven and bake for about 12-14 mins until the mixture looks set.  Leave the biscuits on the trays for 10 minutes and then place onto a cake rack and leave to cool.

Make a cup of tea, sit down and enjoy!

Get printable version

Today we celebrate World Bread Day, a global celebration of, well, BREAD. Bloggers  all over the world are baking bread and posting about it today. This is my second year participating. Last year I baked Anadama Bread (to see the round up of all the breads baked last year go HERE). I was a baby baker (I still am, but probably more of a toddler now).

This year the bread I baked–Stout, Oat & Honey Knots– is a truly global creation. The recipe comes from Dan Lepard, a British artisan professional bread baker. In order to bake this bread I had to convert oven temperatures from Celsius to Fahrenheit, figure out what a sachet of yeast is (It’s 7 grams), and remember that strong white flour means bread flour.

The knots are made with toasted oats & a bread flour/whole wheat flour mix. Instead of water, stout is used for hydration. I used Stockyard Oatmeal Stout from Trader Joes. Honey provides a bit of sweetness and butter a bit of richness. I really liked these rolls. The stout flavor was strong (which I liked) and paired really well with cheddar/sage scrambled eggs. The crumb was smooth and almost creamy.

The idea to bake this bread came from my blogging friend Nancy of The Dogs Eat the Crumbs and Corner Loaf . I baked the bread with Nancy (who lives across the country in Atlanta, GA) via Twitter. It was so fun. I often read about these bake-alongs on Twitter, but can’t participate because of work or other obligations. I look forward to doing it again soon!

You can find the recipe for the Stout, Oat and Honey Knots HERE.

~ Mary ~

Aren’t these cute – all wrapped up and the only place to go is in my mouth!  They look decadent don’t they?  I’m here to tell you it’s just a show!  These have virtually no fat and very low sugar and they’re PACKED with flavor.

Low fat + Low sugar = HIGH flavor!

It’s also time for Meeta’s Monthly Mingle.  This time it’s being hosted by My Diverse Kitchen and the theme is High Tea.  And since I’m a mid-west raised, corn-fed farm girl – the parameters are flexible to include what would you serve for a more elaborate afternoon get-together with tea or coffee.  I think these fit the bill and hope you’ll try them out.

Other muffins you might enjoy:

Blueberry Corn Muffin        Jeweled Muffin

Banana Oat Muffins

     3 Cups of batter – makes a dozen regular or 6 JUMBO

Preheat oven to 375

Spray muffin tin

In wet bowl:

Mash 3 way over ripe Bananas

- make sure they’re beyond soft and are black and super mushy – if you can’t get to your over-ripe bananas – put them in the freezer until you can.

when done mashing add:

     3/4 Cup Buttermilk

     2 Eggs

     2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil

In dry bowl combine;

     1 Cup Quick Cooking Oats

     1 1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour

     1/3 Cup Brown Sugar

     1/2 tsp Salt

     2 tsp Baking Soda

     1 tsp Chinese 5 Spice

     1 tsp Cardamom – see notes about spices in story

Combine both and stir to combine.

Fill muffin tins almost to top.

Optional to sprinkle nuts on top.

Bake until golden brown and springy about 25 minutes

First of all, thank you for your comment in my last post. I was expecting some negative comments about my raw experience, but even Gena left a sweet comment. I’m overwhelmed again by the kindness in this blog community!

Secondly, don’t forget this week’s BSI!!! Hurry up!!!

Where the title came from? Well… yesterday I stayed and worked at home all day with my PJs. I didn’t realize until before dinner when I was going to wash my face that I didn’t wash my face all day long!!! Yey~ It might sound gross, but sometimes I forget to wash face and brush hair if I don’t have to leave home. I even doubt the necessity on doing them.

Q1: Do you wash your face if you don’t go out?

One advantage of being parents-free is that I can focus on my work and eat whenever I feel like (not tied to a schedule or others hunger level). Not that I don’t want them around, just trying to see the bright side of everything, otherwise I’ll be sad all the time!

Q2: Are you a half full or half empty glass person?

Breakfast was pretty intense. I used this method but substitute hemp and flax by chia

Work work! A break at 11.30AM to make juice

Kale tastes bad in juices! From now on, I’ll put more emphasis on taste over nutritional values when I make juices, otherwise my appetite will abandon me forever.
Lunch was leftover quick veggie & beans curry over a bed of steamed spinach and topped with wheat berries

This fueled me well, maybe too well because I couldn’t get back to work until 2 hours later

Before dinner… I did 60 min yoga with Dave Farmer. Something weird happens lately and I haven’t figured out why? When I do yoga at home, I can do Tripod head stand, but when I go to my yoga studio, I never could. WHY?

Anyway, the yoga session was nice after a long of work to get warm and stretch.
Dinner: sauteed chinese mustard with garlic and sauteed tomatoes with mushroom and tofu, served with rice with seaweed.

After dinner, I enjoyed KABOCHA with a new book “Mindless Eating“. I listened to a podcast and found it very interesting, so I ordered the book. Behavioral economics is an area that I’m interested but never took any course, just have some idea about it. It’s fun to read how they design experiments to test people’s behavior. I’ll review the book when I finish.

Q3: What are you going to have for lunch? I have no clue yet

Today Im pretty much back on track. Exept the oat this morning and the teaspoons of  cacao right now. I had a lot of fruit and tonight I made my favourite salad:

Last week wasnt very nice. I had a fight at work which is still in my mind somehow. The last weeks Ive been friendly to this person although it seems that we will never get along well together. But somehow we have to and I was polite. But she wasnt. Not for the first time. Thats why I decided no longger doing her a favour or something like that. She will need me soon because of a press release and I will say NO. Usually Im not like that but I cant take this anymore.

So, back to nice things. I havent tried out my blender until now. But I love him already. Hes really packed with a set of cans I cann carry my smoothies with me. Thats really great.

My flat is tidy and cosy and I will now lay back and enjoy some Desperate Housewives.

At work people always pick some stuff from my meals which is very funny I think. And of course its just so delicious! And I had passionfruits on friday – yuuuuuuuummieeeeeeeeeeee – they are so d*mn good!

Know what I mean?

I call this one “noms”, because they are so addictive. It is amazing how good they taste with just 3 ingredients! These sweet bars are sugar free, low fat, low GI and perfect for breakfast on the go or when you have munchies.

All measurements are approximate, you just have to make sure the end mixture is not too moist, that’s all. You will need:

a cup of dark raisins
1 1/5 cup of rolled oats
2 heaped tbsp raw coconut oil

All organic

1. Put the kettle on, place the raisins in the bowl and cover them with hot water so they are just under it but not floating. Leave to stand for 10 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 180C
3. Drain raisins and place them in food processor together with the rest ingredients. Mix on medium or low speed so that the mixture is slightly coarse and not too smooth, yet sticky enough. If it’s too liquid – add more oats; if too dry – add more water from raisins.
4. Scrape the concoction into the square baking dish of your choice (I’ve used the Pyrex one), press and smooth the surface. You don’t need to butter the dish, coconut oil in the mixture will make it greasy enough.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden. Let it cool, then serve!

i noticed something today: the lighting in my house kinda stinks. if it isnt poor lighting, it is bad shadows. even though i started by 10am, i unfortunately did not finish baking until the sun had already set, so the possibility for natural lighting was out of the question; needless to say, i had to get a little creative with lamps and whatnot. hopefully one of these days i can afford some lighting and lenses to get some better pix up here!

in addition to the pie i made for art’s return i baked for my usual monday morning treats, though i decided to go overboard and make a few things to divide up between my cube and the dessert table for the welcome back/thank you. this was not the original intention of course… it seems lately i have been swayed from my original intention on just about everything i have made. i was looking through some of my recipe books and i saw two types of cinnamon cookies that i wanted to make and couldnt decide between them, so i figured i would make both… then i decided to make it a trio!

first up: cinnamon buttons. these are tiny bite sized cookies that are crunchy and delicious; a no-nonsense cinnamon chip cookie… nothing fancy just straight up cinnamon. i couldnt quite tell when they were “golden” so the cinnamon chips on the bottoms are a wee bit overcooked on a couple of them, but no bother, still tasty!

second batter: cinnamon roll cookies. i considered making cinnamon buns, but i decided i wanted to keep everything small this week so i went with these lil gems. the icing recipe that was listed with them was horrendous, so i went with the icing that goes on my cinnamon buns, which in retrospect is a bit heavier than i think they need, but still so good! a little decadence never hurt anyone– well, maybe it did, but not this time. now, this was not only the second cookie i made, but it was the second cookie i made today where the dough needed to be refrigerated. at one point this afternoon i had the dough for two types of cookies and the pie in my fridge… that is a lot of dough to be waiting on… so i threw the third concoction in the oven…

last but not least: cinnamon chocolate hazelnut oat bars. oddly, although this is the last item that i made, it was baked before just about everything else. i was going to make a third cookie or perhaps mini muffins, but since i had contemplated making berry oat bars for art, i was already thinking oats and proclaimed that there would be oats today, in some form or another!  i made oatmeal cookies recently, so bars it is! i had a little bit of a chocolate craving and i remembered the nutella that i had purchased extra of for something else a few months ago and starting thinking…. (yes, it is dangerous when i start thinking!)… unfortunately when i got to the cabinet i found that the best by date on the nutella had passed last month and i did not want to risk it. back out to stop n shop i went! i have gone to the grocery store at least once a day the past few days, including twice today, and i already know i will be going tomorrow once i decide to make for the potluck. it is to the point where the people working there recognize me… i may have a problem. a delicious, yet expensive, problem!

so there you have it… three cinnamon one-to-two-bite size treats, competing for your affection! if you are among those in my office who get to try them, please let me know what your  vote is for.

and i only got one small burn on my arm in the whole process– woohoo!

Recipes:

cinnamon coins (from cuisine at home – holiday cookies)

makes about 80 (1-inch) cookies; total time: 45 minutes + chilling

1 stick unsalted butter, softened (1/2 cup)

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp salt

minced zest of 1/2 a lemon

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup cinnamon chips, coarsely chopped

turbinado or course sugar

1. cream butter in a bowl with a mixer until smooth. add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. blend in the egg, cinnamon, vanilla, salt, and zest

2. fold in the flour and cinnamon chips until combined. divide dough in half. generously sprinkle work surface with turbinado or course white sugar

3. shape each half of dough into an 18-20 inch long rope and roll in sugar, adding more sugar as needed to prevent sticking. wrap ropes in plastic and chill until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight. the colder the dough is, the easier it will be to slice

4. preheat oven to 350. line two baking sheets with parchment paper. slice ropes into coins about 1/2 inch thick and arrange on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1-inch apart. bake 15 minutes, or until crisp and golden. let cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack

cinnamon roll cookies (also from cuisine at home- holiday cookies)

makes about 30 cookies; total time 1 hour + chilling

for the filling:

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 Tbsp ground cinnamon

for the dough:

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened (1 cup)

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

for the icing:

1 cup sifted powdered sugar

1/4 cup warm water

1/2 tsp powdered egg whites

1. combine granulated sugar and 2 Tbsp cinnamon for filling in a small bowl, set aside. stir flour, baking powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, and salt together for dough in a bowl; set aside

2. cream butter and brown sugar in a bowl with a mixer until smooth. add eggs and vanilla; mix until incorporated. with a mixer on low speed, add dry ingredients, blending just to incorporate; do not overmix

3. using your hands, pat dough into a 9×16-inch rectangle on parchment or wax paper. sprinkle half of the cinnamon sugar mixture over dough

4. roll dough into a log, beginning on the long side and using the paper to help you. dust outside of log with remaining cinnamon sugar mixture. wrap log in plastic and chill for at least three hours. preheat oven to 350; line two baking sheets with parchment paper

5. slice chilled dough into 1/2-inch thick slices and arrange on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. bake 10-12 minutes, or until golden. let cool on pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack. combine icing ingredients in a bowl (icing will be thin) drizzle icing over cooled cookies; let stand at room temperature until icing dries

It is Sunday.  The day I seem to want to relax and make muffins.  I do like making different muffins to try to find the best I can of recipes.  The husband loved the Morning Glory Muffins so much, I am making him a batch tonight to take tomorrow morning for his co-workers.  However, one hint, he wants the apples chopped and blended not grated.  He did not like the muffins with out the apple chunks, saying there were not as textureally pleasing.

So today I researched what I could and found this recipe with ingredients I contained in my pantry.  For some reason I think freezing almost too ripe bananas is a good thing.  Not wasting and such.  I guess in the back of my mind, I am thinking that I will need them when unexpected guests arrive.  Not having enough time to get ingredients from the grocery store, the guests would have inviting banana bread baked that morning.  This has never occurred! Ever!  But today was the first day I used a too ripe banana from my freezer.  I did change the recipe a bit from the original, but be honest people, when have you used a recipe exactly as is forever and ever?   The actual muffin is a pleasing texture with the smooth banana and the crunch oatmeal.  Let me know what you think.  (I divided the recipe to make the serving size only six.  There are only two of us, and we can not constantly be eating muffins.  My husband would go on strike!)

Banana Oat Muffins
Courtesy of Allrecipes.com

• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 mashed ripe bananas
• 1/4 and 1/8 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/6 cup applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup oats
• 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, optional
• 
  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease one 12 cup muffin pan.
In a large bowl, combine egg, banana, brown sugar, applesauce and vanilla. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
Gently stir flour mixture and oatmeal into banana mixture.  Fold in the optional walnuts.  Pour batter into prepared muffin cups.  Sprinkle the tops with the chocolate chips.
Bake in preheated oven or 15 to 20 minutes, or until light brown. Remove muffins from pan and place on a wire rack to let cool before serving.

Makes 6 muffins.

I’m pretty sure I made this for the very first time in Home Ec when I was in Year 8. Before I go on to lament on how Home Economics is seriously undervalued (actually, I won’t because we’d be here all day), I’d better give you the instructions in 10 words:

Heat butter. Add honey. Add sugar. Add oats. Stir. Bake.

Not enough? Ah well. I tried.

For about 10-12 slice-sized biscuits:

1. 3.5 cups of rolled oats
2. 125 g. of unsalted butter
3. 1/3 cup of sugar
4. 4 tbsp of honey

Preheat the oven to 150′C. Place the baking tray in the oven to warm.

Melt the butter on low heat. Add honey and stir until combined. Add sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add all of the oats and stir over low heat for a few minutes until well combined.

Cut a sheet of baking paper to the size of the baking tray. I useLyn’s baking tray which is about 18cm x 25cm. It’s perfect for making the quantity of flapjacks that this recipe produces. This is the reason  she is not getting her baking tray back in hurry.

Take a block of butter and run the butter on the warmed tray. This is the easiest way to grease the tray. I do the same with muffin tins and other baking containers. Add the oat mixture and press it down firmly. Bake for about 30-40 minutes.

Once done, leave to cool for about 10 minutes before slicing into biscuits.

Photo by Jamieleigh
Location: Orlando, FL
Eating said recipe: Galah “Bondi”

This morning I was bustling around trying to figure out what to make myself for breakfast… a fruit smoothie, oatmeal, just cereal… then I realized the birds would probably appreciate breakfast BEFORE I got mine. I decided on oatmeal for myself, and so I figured I’d make them some too. But then I thought about how I could make it healthier for them, maybe by adding veggies? I looked into the fridge and didn’t find much but green onions…

Then I saw it… some left over canned spinach! I grabbed it and mixed it into the hot bowl of old fashioned, slow cooking oatmeal I had going on the stove. As I stirred it in, it mixed really well. And canned spinach ALWAYS mixes well with other ingredients because it’s already so wet. I love using it for foods with the birds. And I always include it in birdy bread and/or muffins.

Photo by Jamieleigh
Location: Orlando, FL
Shown: Spinach Oatmeal

I mixed it in and let it cool, then offered it from the pot to my galah, Bondi. She would be the taste tester for the rest of the flock.

The verdict was in and she was LOVING this oatmeal with spinach. She didn’t try to avoid the spinach either, and couldn’t really. I watched her eat a while and she was getting lots of spinach in her bites of oatmeal. I was happy with the new recipe and divided it between my flock of 6 birds.

I realized that when I make things on a more daily basis that I can start using spinach in it ALL. For example, I only make oatmeal for my birds once a week or so but for daily foods like sweet potatoe and brown rice, I can literally just stir in the spinach for extra flavor and nutrition.

It’s my new favorite ingredient for my flock as I know they need their greens!