Oat bran WOW & popular yoga & books

02.11.09

I am so sad… that it took me this long to try oat bran! Heather is always raving about it, and we seem to like the same things, so I knew I had to try it.  She even wrote a very informative post on oat bran vs. oatmeal today (oat bran wins!).

Oat bran meal #1:

3-oat-bran-and-salad

  • 3/4 cup oat bran, cinnamon – this time I didn’t use much water and it was very chewy – LOVE!
  • big salad of romaine with jicama, apple, sprouts, green beans (dressing was shoyu, olive oil, and a splash of POM juice.  Shoyu is a slightly sweet soy sauce that’s common in macrobiotic diets.)

How many meals have I wasted on inferior grains?  The smooth yet chewy texture is so appealing to me.  I had it with 2 of my meals today.  A note – I’ve been doing something a little different with my eating recently – I have 4 slightly smaller meals and a few small snacks.  It’s working really well.  I’m able to do this because I’m not working, so I should take advantage of it now.

Oat bran meal #2:

4-oat-bran-and-apple

  • 3/4 cup oat bran, cinnamon, drizzled with brown rice syrup – this time I used more water and it was creamier but still chewy – LOVE again!
  • organic pink lady apple with Maranatha almond butter

Who else was impressed to see YOGA on The Biggest Loser last night?  Bob Harper never ceases to amaze me.  He taught the contestants power yoga routines and had them sweating.  I loved the contestants’ reflections on the session – they said it grounded them, and gave them strength to be calm in stressful situations (like the weigh-ins).  I think it would be awesome if yoga became more popular – maybe our country could get a bit more peaceful.

I also got a package today (not secret cupid yet) from Leng @ A Fat Cat Who Created A Vegetarian.  I won her contest a few days ago and she sent me some lovely goodies:

1-lengs-contest

  • 2 jars of coconut milk
  • chili sauce
  • agar agar flakes
  • Chinese 5-spice powder
  • star anise!

I cannot wait to use these things.  I’ve been meaning to buy Agar Agar flakes forever, and I was about to get them this week but my package came instead!  Leng sent me a recipe for coconut jelly which sounded great.

I am off to read a new book from the library with a mug of peppermint tea – The Food Revolution by John Robbins (of the Baskin-Robbins family).  It’s recommended reading for my macrobiotic experiment.  Have you read any good food/health/cook books recently?  Or other great books? (I’m always looking for recommendations.)

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 11th, 2009 at 7:43 pm and is filed under asian, contest, dinner, fruit, japanese, lunch, macrobiotic, nut butter, oatmeal, salad, snack, vegan, vegetarian, yoga. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

34 Responses to “Oat bran WOW & popular yoga & books”

  1. Victoria says on February 11th, 2009 at 7:45 pm :

    Great guest post on Tina’s blog! My husband is serious ADDICTED to that chili sauce. He basically uses it like ketchup: eggs, potatoes, burgers, pretty much everything gets a huge scoop of chili sauce before he eats it.

  2. Meg says on February 11th, 2009 at 8:15 pm :

    I love oat bran. It has such an awesome texture.

    Congrats on the winnings!

  3. sue says on February 11th, 2009 at 8:40 pm :

    great guest post today- and those are some fun goodies you got in the mail!

  4. Jules (the sister) says on February 11th, 2009 at 8:45 pm :

    John Robbins wrote a book I read about two weeks ago, May All Be Fed. It’s about being vegan. You should read that one too :)

  5. Mara @ What's For Dinner? says on February 11th, 2009 at 9:42 pm :

    Hmm, those are ingredients I don’t see every day!

  6. Heather McD (Heather Eats Almond Butter) says on February 11th, 2009 at 9:58 pm :

    So glad you’re loving the oat bran (thanks for the shout out), and I love that you eat it with different meals throughout the day. Why I think I have to cut myself off after breakfast is beyond me.

    I love coconut milk, and I’ve always wanted to agar agar flakes as well. Can’t wait to see what you concoct with them.

    Sounds like you’re really liking your macrobiotic experiment…it’s weird not seeing bowls of yogurt in your posts. :)

    Have a good night Maggie.

  7. annie says on February 11th, 2009 at 10:05 pm :

    i LOVE that wooden spoon you’re using!

  8. Katie says on February 11th, 2009 at 10:32 pm :

    I loved your post on Tina’s blog! Due to a beginner’s injury, I’m just starting to run again and your tips were REALLY helpful. I’m trying to be super cautious so I don’t hurt myself again!

    Can’t wait to see what you do with that coconut milk!

  9. HangryPants says on February 11th, 2009 at 11:47 pm :

    Wow. I guess oat bran really is that good. I need to try it right away.

    I was watching that part of the BL last night and felt so happy for the contestants and it made me love Bob just a little more.

  10. Sarah (lovINmytummy) says on February 12th, 2009 at 12:06 am :

    I think Bob is trying to promote his new yoga DVD. I keep waiting for it to show up on Exercise TV, but no such luck yet.

  11. Pearl says on February 12th, 2009 at 1:10 am :

    i love that hot sauce that you have! i put it on everything :)

  12. Lara says on February 12th, 2009 at 2:54 am :

    You are doing a great job of making macrobiotic food look delicious! I’ll have to give oat bran a try.

  13. coco says on February 12th, 2009 at 4:23 am :

    love oat bran, they’re so creamy! You used 3/4 cup? that makes a huge bowl!
    I’ve reading a lot about chinese medicine, how food is considered, and how they help/affect our health. I wish I could share with you those book, unfortunately they’re in chinese.

  14. Allison says on February 12th, 2009 at 5:53 am :

    Hey Maggie,
    I was just curious (this is so random!) if you know how many page views you get a day. Your blog seems so popular, and so I was just wondering :) . I have a blogspot blog and was wondering if maybe I should switch to wordpress, so I’m doing some investigating. Thanks girl!

  15. VeggieGirl says on February 12th, 2009 at 6:10 am :

    This is a dumb question, but is oat bran gluten-free??

  16. Shelby says on February 12th, 2009 at 6:49 am :

    Oat bran is delicious! I love how creamy it gets…so yummy.

    Heck yes for yoga!

    Ooo and coconut jelly sounds so intriguing.

  17. Courtney (The Hungry Yogini) says on February 12th, 2009 at 7:28 am :

    I love the book Yogi in the Kitchen. It has lots of yum, healthy, Ayurvedic meals. It’s a blend of a few different healthy lifestyles…I think mediteranean is in there too. It’s good!

  18. Sharon says on February 12th, 2009 at 7:58 am :

    Wow, oat bran looks great!
    And Leng is just amazing, isn’t she!

  19. Sarah (Tales of Expansion) says on February 12th, 2009 at 7:58 am :

    i love oat bran too!
    man, you’re going to have so much fun with the stuff that came in that package!

  20. K says on February 12th, 2009 at 9:16 am :

    I tried oat bran preblog but I soooooo did not do it right and it tasted awful! Yours sounds yummy though :)

  21. Danielle says on February 12th, 2009 at 9:27 am :

    Oh gosh, I’ve got to go out and try some oat bran! :)

    I finished reading, The Other Boleyn Girl, and loved it. It may not be the most intellectual or challenging read but it definitely sucks you in, I highly recommend it!

  22. Julie says on February 12th, 2009 at 9:28 am :

    I was so excited to see your guest post on Tina’s blog! I’ve just really gotten into running and I would love to run a half marathon or 10K by this summer. Any good advice on training for that? Thanks :)

  23. Marissa says on February 12th, 2009 at 10:09 am :

    I’ve had that chili sauce before! It’s good on snap peas – ok, well, actually it’s good on everything!

  24. gina (fitnessista) says on February 12th, 2009 at 11:44 am :

    what an awesome package of goodies!
    i love 5 spice powder and just bought some agar flakes and have yet to use them
    i hope you’re having a wonderful day!

  25. Dori says on February 12th, 2009 at 12:54 pm :

    My mom’s maiden name was Robbins and she used to have a friend in elementary school whose last name was Baskin… so you can just imagine what they told people :)

  26. Michelle says on February 12th, 2009 at 2:05 pm :

    what a fabulously short but sweet review of both. :) Stilllll not ready to take the plunge yet for me. hahaha and YAY for all those Asian cooking cooks! Star Anise is sooo yummy in braised foods. :P Yum yum!

  27. Julie says on February 12th, 2009 at 2:16 pm :

    Hey girl thanks so much for the email :) That was so sweet! Definitely take your advice. Love your blog and especially the name! Have a good one

  28. Beadie @ What I Ate Yesterday says on February 12th, 2009 at 4:33 pm :

    Thank you so much for the secret cupid gifts! I got them just now!

  29. Clean Veggie says on February 12th, 2009 at 6:44 pm :

    what is the difference between oatmeal and oatbran?
    looks delicious :)

  30. Sagan says on February 12th, 2009 at 9:40 pm :

    Interesting, I’ve only ever used oat bran in things like muffins etc, never on its own- I’ll have to give it a try!

    Also if you check out the book and product reviews section on my blog I’ve got some good health books to recommend :)

  31. She Says: EZ Elegance | Hangry Pants says on February 13th, 2009 at 10:32 am :

    [...] had brownies for breakfast, but I had a brownie and Oat Bran. Thanks to Heather and Maggie, I knew I needed to try it asap. I made mine with banana and [...]

  32. Peggy (Mom) says on February 13th, 2009 at 12:53 pm :

    That is too funny! Oat bran was one of your first foods. I used to sweeten it with ground up raisins…. you don’t remember?! LOL

  33. Say Yes to Salad » Lentils with cilantro & an interview says on February 19th, 2009 at 8:21 am :

    [...] teaspoons (at least!) Asian 5-spice powder (I used the one I got in my present from Leng; so [...]

  34. Yoga detox, oat bran, and macrobiotics — Say Yes to Salad says on October 11th, 2009 at 7:48 pm :

    [...] mom informs me that I have had oat bran before – it was one of my first foods as a baby!  She would sweeten [...]

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