First up: here are two breakfasts. Cheesy grits topped with leftover chicken (1/4 cup grits, cooked in water; cheese added at the end). There was a little bit of avocado on there too (avocado came with the chicken salad that this is leftover from).

Oat bran cooked with protein powder, cinnamon, vanilla, and a dash of salt. Topped with sesame seeds and maple syrup.

Have you tried Averie’s raw vegan cookie dough balls yet? Okay, mine are not balls (the first batch was), nor do they have chocolate chips. They are so simple to make.

Averie-inspired Raw Vegan Cookie Dough Yum

Ingredients (1 serving)

• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• a little bit of water

Directions

Mix syrup and flour together. Add a few drops of water at a time until you get your desired consistency. I like mine a little bit too wet for balls (TWSS?).

Variations

• part wheat germ, part flour (my favorite)
• part wheat bran, part flour
• ground nuts for flour (Averie‘s original recipe)
• part oatmeal or oat bran, part flour
• grind oatmeal/oat bran in the blender and sub for flour

I also made bread the other day. I just took my Easy Peasy Pizza Dough recipe and subbed in a few things for the flour. Instead of 3.5 cups of flour, I used the dregs of a cornbread mix (maybe 1/4 cup – Jiffy brand), some Heart Smart Bisquick, and whole wheat flour. It came out well. It was a little dense, but yummy with soft butter.

I have 3 more pictures of healthy yums, but I’ll save them for when I’m on the road and lacking in delicious food.

I can’t wait to pick up Sophia tonight and go to the Foodbuzz Festival.

What are you doing this weekend? You know what I’m doing.

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• June 9, 2010 -- Papaya Salad Rocks My Socks

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This challenge might be hard for a few reasons – 1) Bobby and I are driving across the country next week; 2) the holidays and lots of decadent foods are coming up; 3) due to the move, I don’t know what my new routine will be (we’re moving to Manhattan btw). But I’m going to try. I’m synthesizing their goals and mine, and this is what I came up with. I’m going to try to do this for as long as I can. These aren’t arbitrary; these goals are what my ideal lifestyle would be so I want to keep up with them.

1. Go to bed early (by 11:30pm) and get 7-8 hours of sleep a night.
2. Cut out artificial sweeteners. I’ve been on a diet coke kick recently and it’s time to stop.
3. More veggies, less fruit.
4. More cooked foods, fewer raw.
5. Lots of water and tea.
6. Cook and plan more (or at least eat out at cheap-yet-healthy places).
7. Sit down for every meal.
8. Do something relaxing for 30 minutes every day (yoga, a bath, these exercises).
9. 30+ minutes of cardio each day (walking, running, yoga).
10. Give myself credit. Even if I don’t do all of these things perfectly, I’m going to give myself credit for the attempts and partial successes.

Because we’re moving, I’m trying to use up the groceries we have and I don’t plan on buying more. This week I’ll be eating out a lot but I’m not too worried about that; I love eating out and I can always find something healthy on the menu. The only thing that worries me about eating out is the money issue. I wish I was less frugal

The other issue I might have is that this weekend is the Foodbuzz Blogger Festival. I plan on eating well, but I doubt that I’m going to get much sleep because two of my favorite bloggers are coming to stay with me and we’re all going together. I am so excited to meet them.

Some of the yummy dishes I plan on making and eating during this November challenge are…

a healthy Thanksgiving meal, like last year’s

fresh delicious salads

lots of squash fries…

this fun Indian mushroom recipe

… and lots more. You should check out my recipes page for more inspiration. This bread recipe was one of the first things I ever posted (December 2007).

Anyway, back to the “back on track” plan. Today has been a good day so far. I did a yoga class this morning at my studio and I went to bed early last night (crashed on the couch at 9:30pm). I wanted to go to Sweet Tomatoes for dinner, but Bobby has band practice… so maybe not.

And now this post is getting epic. Happy November! Are you challenging yourself this month?

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• April 1, 2009 -- Cruise excursion – horses!
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• May 10, 2009 -- Happy Mother’s Day!

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This was one of the demo recipes that Jill and I saw on Monday. Jill made it that very night and raved about it so I knew I needed to make it to. I had this last night for dinner. Yum. I also had a crazy cool dessert but I will share that later. I’ll give you a hint – it has something to do with chocolate.

Goat Cheese Zucchini Onion Red Pepper Frittata

Ingredients

• 3 whole eggs
• oregano, salt & pepper, to taste
• 2-3 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 small zucchini, sliced thinly (I cut it in half and did half-moon shapes)
• 1/2 small red onion
• 1/2 medium red pepper, sliced up
• 1/4 cup goat cheese
• a few scallions, sliced

Directions

1. Beat the eggs together with the oregano, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a metal pan over high heat. Add the zucchini, onion, and red pepper. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium.
3. Add the eggs (do not mix it up). Cook it for another 3-4 minutes, or until the eggs start to firm up.
4. Turn the broiler on high. Sprinkle goat cheese and scallions on the frittata and put it under the broiler (in the pan – make sure you don’t use one with a plastic handle) for another 2-4 minutes, or until it starts to brown.
5. Serve plain, with a salad, or of course organic ketchup (click for my recipe).

I had half of this guy for part of my dinner and Bobby had the other half when he got home from band practice. Silly boy decides to tell me now that he doesn’t like goat cheese. What is up with that? I love goat cheese. You could have this for leftovers and I think it would also make a wonderful breakfast.

What is your favorite cheese? I think mine might be raw blue cheese, but this goat cheese is a close second.

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• June 14, 2010 -- Korean BBQ NYC… Seoul Garden.
• December 7, 2009 -- Blogger Love and Review: Peace Food Cafe (New York City)

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I say this about a lot of things, but you *must* make these. You will not be disappointed!

Goji Nut Biscotti

Ingredients (makes ~12 small biscotti)

• 1 cup oat bran
• 1/3 cup quick cooking oats (instant) (can sub with flour or oat bran)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 dashes of salt
• 1 teaspoon spice (cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice)
• 1 egg + 1 egg white
• 1/3 cup sweetener (I used Trader Joe’s stevia)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/3 cup goji berries
• 1/4 chopped nuts of choice (see notes below)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Soak the goji berries in hot water.
3. Mix together the oat bran, oats, baking soda, salt, and spices.
4. In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Beat this pretty well.
5. Slowly add the wet mixture into the dry mixture. Drain the berries and add them, and then add the nuts. The dough should be dry enough so that you can work with it. If it’s not, add a bit more oat bran (or don’t add all of the egg mixture).
6. Spray a cooking pan with non-stick spray and shape the dough into a long log shape, about 1/2 – 3/4 of an inch high. You can top with extra nuts or oats. Bake this for 20 minutes.
7. Remove the log from the oven and reduce heat to 300F. Cut the log into pieces and bake them on one side for 15 minutes. Take them out, turn them over, and bake them for another 15 minutes. If they are still not hard, turn them again and cook for 10 more minutes.
8. Enjoy dipped in coffee, tea, peanut butter, or plain.

For the nuts I used these things I found in the Asian grocery store called “olive kernels” (seen above). I recognize the flavor, but I have no idea what they really are, or if maybe they have another name. The nut is definitely used in a Christmas cookie that I have every year, but I cannot remember which cookie and I have been unable to find out anything online.

Help! Do you know what these nuts might be?

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• June 11, 2009 -- Another Green Start
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• June 29, 2009 -- A break from…
• May 25, 2008 -- Day 3 in Ithaca (Friday) – Dinner

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But back to yesterday. Not everything is pictured, so I hope I remembered to mention everything. Disclaimer: everything pictured was eaten; not everything eaten is pictured. I like to think that this day is a good example of intuitive, varied eating. Let me know what you think.

I started the morning off with fresh goji-nutty-biscotti (recipe to come) that I baked last night. They are semi-healthy, but not overly so. I had 5 of these guys dipped in some cookie tea and a little bit of chocolate peanut butter. A little while after I did some yoga on my own (30 minutes).

Bobby and I trekked out to Borders early in the afternoon; I snagged an unpictured apple with almond butter on the way out the door. We stopped in to the fruit stand next to Borders where I had a few nibbles of cookie samples. Peanut Butter was the best (duh). After Borders we made a grocery stop at Trader Joe’s where we got (unpictured) samples of the Organic Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Soup. In a 1 cup serving: 100 calories, 2 grams fat, 16 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 5 grams protein. They added creme fraiche and crispy bread; it was tasty.

Came home, made a lunchy snack. Arame (seaweed) from Heather, some sweet tomatoes, and leftover gingery chickpeas. Topped with Newman’s Own Lowfat Sesame Ginger dressing. Had 2 bowls of this. Lunch dessert: 2 tablespoons dark chocolate dreams peanut butter (unpictured).

We ended up buying that soup we sampled, so I heated that up for dinner along with salads. My salad was spinach, parmesan, pickles, olives, tomatoes, arame, sprouts, sunflower seeds, and the rest of the chickpeas. I topped my soup with kefir (my idea), sprouts (Bobby’s idea), and some Morningstar veggie bacon (my idea).

Dessert was faux cheesecake (cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, mashed banana) and 3 large handpicked apples spaced throughout the night… and the rest of those yummy tomatoes.

Do you like tomatoes? I love them in just about everything: unsweetened organic ketchup (Biz and Holly!), plain, stir-fried, in sandwiches, in salads, etc… Bobby likes tomatoes sometimes but he doesn’t like when they squirt in your mouth (that’s what she said) so he avoids the little bite-sized ones that I love.

Hey – Do you follow me on Twitter yet?

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• March 1, 2009 -- Yogurt Cake (Dolce di yogurt)

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Corn Bitelettes with a Hint of Orange

Ingredients (makes 27 bites)

• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 egg whites
• 3/4 cups orange juice
• 1/2 cup corn meal
• 1/2 cup wheat bran (or flour)
• 1/4 cup oat bran (or flour)
• 1.5 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425F.
2. Mix together the wet ingredients (olive oil, egg whites, OJ).  Mix together the dry ingredients (corn meal, wheat bran, oat bran, baking powder, salt).  Mix them together.  Add the corn! and mix well.
3. Drop tablespoons of batter into mini-muffin cups.
4. Bake for 18-19 minutes at 425F.

Enjoy! I wish I had thought to put cheese on them.  That would have been perfect.  These are delicious and corny and oh-so-yum.  I hope you try them   Since I forgot to put cheese on top, slathered on some fresh whipped butter.  It was great.

Like this post? Check out...

• May 2, 2010 -- Reviews Galore
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• January 20, 2009 -- Peanut butter scandal got you down?

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The inspiration comes from Meg’s blog – she recently posted this recipe for apple pie.  I made a smaller and slightly different version.

Macrobiotic Apple-Raspberry Pie (Unsweetened)

Ingredients – crust

• 1/2 cup oat bran (or whole wheat flour)
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 tablespoons cold water

Ingredients – filling

• 3 medium apples, sliced up
• 1 cup water
• dash of salt
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• a few raspberries
• 2 teaspoons corn starch

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.  Mix together the oat bran, flour, and salt.  Add the oil and lightly mix with a fork.  Add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, keeping the dough slightly crumbly.  Put it in the freezer for 5-10 minutes.
2. Spray a small pie dish with non-stick cooking spray (or olive oil).  Pour in about 3/4 of the crumbly dough and mush it down to make the crust.  Reserve the remaining dough.  Cook at 375F for 15 minutes.  After you take it out, turn the oven temperature down to 350F.
3. To make the filling, boil the water, apple slices, salt, and lemon juice for about 6-7 minutes or until the apples tart getting soft.  Drain the apples (save the water!) and set aside.  Return the water to medium heat.  Mash the raspberries and add them to the water.  Then slowly add the corn starch.  Continue to stir until the mixture starts to thicken (5-7 minutes probably).
4. Put the apples into the cooled pie crust (wait at least 5 minutes after taking it out of the oven).  Pour the thickened water mixture evenly over the top of the apples and crust.  Crumble the remaining dough (uncooked) over the apples and top with a few more raspberries.
5. Bake at 350F for 35 minutes.

I enjoyed mine topped with more raspberries and some fresh blueberries.  Bobby did the same.  The entire pie is almost gone and it only came out of the oven an hour ago!  Even though it has no added sweetener, the fruit has enough sweetness of its own – I really can’t describe how awesome this pie is.  You just have to make it.

I will do an actual update of the Whole Life Challenge tomorrow (it’s going well!)… I’m trying to make the most of the little free time that Bobby and I get to spend together.  Tonight’s plans – hot tub and hookah!  Feel free to comment on this post with your Whole Life Challenge updates and I’ll include them in my post tomorrow.

Make sure to check out Sophia’s blog for the next Blogger Secret Ingredient!  She’s giving away some adorable prizes

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• September 14, 2010 -- Eat Me, I’m Delicious (Healthy Coconut Pancakes Recipe)
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But yesterday I was feeling adventurous.  I have these instant oatmeal packets from Nature’s Path that are too sweet for me to use for breakfast… but they would be perfect for baking.  I’m not sure if instant oatmeal can be considered raw, but I came up with this…

Raw-ish Oatmeal Cookie Balls

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup instant oatmeal, flavored/sweetened (you could probably use plain, but add some sugar/agave/brown rice syrup and decrease the water accordingly; you could also add some cinnamon or other spices)
• 1.5 tablespoons water
• 1 medjool date (edited to add: you could probably use a tablespoon of raisins soaked in water OR 1-2 prunes)

Directions

1. Put 1/2 cup of the oats in a food processor.  Blend until it becomes fine – almost like flour, but with a few chunks left.
2. Add 1 tablespoon of the water.  Blend.  Rip up the date and add that. Blend, blend.
3. Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of water.  Blend some more.  It should turn into a big ball at this point.
4. Remove the ball of dough to a bowl.  Add 1-2 tablespoons of the remaining oats (1/4 cup) to the dough and mush them together until they are incorporated well.
5. You should have 2-3 tablespoons of oats left.  Blend them into a powder with the processor and mush that slowly to the ball of dough until it’s not sticky anymore.
6. Use a teaspoon measurer to portion out the dough, then roll them into balls.
7. Enjoy immediately or refrigerated.

My recipe made 18.5 1-teaspoon balls.  They have ~22 calories apiece.  The instant oats that I used have about 210 calories per 1/2 cup so that’s how I calculated it.

Bobby stayed home yesterday (it was really nice to spend a non-weekend day with him) and I made him try them as well.  I loved them; they taste like cookie dough to me.  He said they taste like a yummy granola in cookie dough form.  His description is clearly better.

Have you tried raw cooking/baking?  How did it turn out?  (Are these raw, by the way?  I can’t figure out if instant oats have been processed/cooked in some way…)

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Maggie’s Maple Yogurt Cake

Ingredients

• 2.75 cups oat bran
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 4 egg whites

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.
2. Mix together the dry ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients
3. Spray a pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Pour in the batter.
4. Bake for 35-40 minutes, let cool.  Slice in small squares and enjoy.

Dolce di yogurt (Italian version) = Yogurt Dessert

Ingredients

• 2 cups plain yogurt (500g di yogurt bianco)
• 3 eggs (uova)
• 5 tablespoons sugar (cucchiai di zucchero)
• 7/8 cup cooking oil (bicchiere pieno di olio di semi)
• 2.5 cups flour (300g di farina)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (bustina di lievito)
• lemon zest/lemon extract (aroma di limone, oppure buccia grattug giata di limone)

Directions

Mix the eggs with the sugar, add the other ingredients, and then mix them all together.  Pour into a buttered dish and cook in the oven for 40 minutes at 356F.  (Sbattere le uova con lo zucchero, aggiungere gli altri ingredienti e poi mescolare tutto.  Versare in una pentola imburrata e cuocere nel forno per 40 min a 180C.)

The cake that our host prepared for us was absolutely divine – so moist and perfect.  I hope you get a chance to try one of these versions.

I’m off to the farmers’ market now, and I will post pictures (as requested) later today.  Have a lovely Sunday!  Have you ever made a recipe that was written in another language?

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For breakfast I made oat bran, and I put in extra peanut butter so that I could taste it better this time.

• miso soup (water, 2 teaspoons miso, handful of seaweed)
• 3/4 cup oat bran, cinnamon, salt, almost 2 tablespoons peanut butter (the last of that jar)

I decided to try Angela’s tortilla recipe, and I made some wraps.  I used whole wheat flour and I ended up making 4 wraps instead of 8 – nice and thick that way!

I wanted a wrap with lunch, so I made a hummus and sprout sandwich.  I also had a big carrot with hummus and more miso soup.  This miso soup had some firm tofu in it, but it’s hiding under the seaweed (I put in more than I did at breakfast).

I’m feeling sick (I think I caught Bobby’s cold), so I treated myself to a vitamin-C-alicious lunch dessert – a huge orange and an oat bran scone (okay, the scone isn’t vitamin-C-filled, I just wanted it).

Dinner was a simple but delicious salad with another one of the whole wheat wraps.  Everyone eats their salads out of mixing bowls, right?

• salad = romaine, sprouts, green peas, Asian pear, jicama, celery, tofu, and veggie bacon bits
• dressing = silken tofu, sesame oil, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and brown rice syrup (I think that’s everything that I threw in there)

Dessert so far is some jicama with peanut butter.  I’ll have part of an Asian pear later, with a spoonful of peanut butter, and I might have my last oat bran scone as well.  Those were gone way too fast (there were 10 yesterday).  I ate a bunch last night, and Bobby helped.

Heather wrote about 7 things that she’s loving right now, and I’m going to do the same.

7 things that I truly love

1. Bobby dearest – he lights up my life.  I’m so thankful to have met him almost 3.5 years ago!



2. Yoga – keeps me grounded.  Simple as that.
3. Writing this blog – has been so rewarding.  Getting comments and emails and responding to readers makes me so happy.
4. Baking – now that I have free time (lack of job), I love spending time in my kitchen.  I missed it.



5. Freedom – that comes from leaving/losing my job.  This break was much needed, and I’m making the most out of it.  I’m freelancing, learning to teach yoga, cooking, and taking care of my sweetie.  I’m also realizing what my true interests are, and what steps I need to take next…
6. Future – the possibilities.  I can go back to school, I can get a new and different job, and I can explore.
7. Oat Bran! – my newfound breakfast favorite.  I had to go out and buy more today, because I am already out of the stuff I bought last week.

What is your most recent awesome food find?  Have a lovely night  I might do some yoga later to chillax…

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