Pumpkin Spice Latte Overnight Oats

Another recipe for overnight oats!  I know it's a little early but this will be perfect for fall with the pumpkin.  Then, depending on if you wake up in the morning and it's a warmer day you can eat it immediately straight from the fridge cold, or if it is a chilly morning you can warm them in the microwave for a few minutes first.

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup gf rolled oats
• 1/3 cup coffee
• 2.5 tbsp almond milk
• 2 tbsp pumpkin puree
• 1/4 tsp ginger*
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon*
• 1/8 tsp cloves*
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg*
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp maple syrup, or to taste
• optional: 1 tsp chia seeds (I added this to make it thicker)

Directions:

1. Brew coffee. (I just made extra in the morning and set aside 1/3 cup for this recipe.)
2. Combine all ingredients in a mason jar or bowl and stir to combine.  Cover and put in the fridge overnight.
3. In the morning, eat cold or warm.

* Alternatively, you can use 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice.

The flavor of these oats were perfect in the morning.  This variation will be eaten a lot this fall!

Peach Hemp Smoothie

I love protein smoothies after working out.  I had recently frozen some peaches and knew they would be a perfect ingredient for a fruity smoothie.  Instead of adding my usual protein powder, I thought about switching it up and adding hemp seeds, which are very high in protein.  The combination was perfect and so delicious!  I really enjoyed this after my workout!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 frozen banana
• 1 frozen peach
• 1 tbsp hemp seeds
• 1/2 cup almond milk (I used Almond Coconut flavor)

Directions:

1. Thaw fruit so that it will easily blend in a blender (unless using a high speed blender). 
2. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy!

Tip: To have fruit thawed and ready to go right after a workout, I actually put the frozen banana in the fridge (they thaw really fast and I wanted it thawed and cold, but not brown and warm) and put the frozen peach on the counter to thaw before I went to work out.  When I got home the fruit was at a perfect state to be blended into my smoothie.

This was super quick to make after working out so that I was able to get all that nutrition right when my body needed it most!

Pumpkin Protein Muffin

I have been seeing a lot of microwaveable protein muffin recipes floating around.  They look so good as a way to start the morning since they are packed with protein and can be made so quickly.  Unfortunately, most of the protein muffin recipes I have seen include an egg.  I have tried so many times to replace the egg with a flax egg but I guess my wet to dry ingredient proportion was off because my protein muffins were not working out - they were too soupy.

I finally came across this one that didn't require an egg, but already included a flax egg in the directions, so I thought I would give it a try and I'm glad I did!  It was so easy, came out perfectly, it was filling, and delicious.  What a great healthy, breakfast!

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1 scoop protein powder (21 g) (I used brown rice protein powder)
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 flax egg

Directions:

1. In a microwave-safe bowl, ramekin, or mug combine protein powder, cinnamon, and baking soda and mix together.
2. Add in vanilla, pumpkin, and flax egg and mix until well incorporated.
3. Microwave for 3 minutes, watching carefully that it does not spill over. 
4. Let it cool for 1 minute.  Then, take a knife and loosen the muffin from the side of the bowl.  Flip it over onto a plate.  Top with maple syrup, nut butter, jam, yogurt, etc.

While your already measuring out the ingredients for one, you might as well make a few extra.  (That pumpkin will need to be used anyway :-p ) Plus, then you will have some ready to go breakfasts for days when you need to grab something quick.

These muffins can also make a great snack or dessert!

TVP Sloppy Joes

About a week ago I made these Chickenless Nuggets with Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) that someone gave me.  I noticed the sell by date was getting close so I googled some ideas on what I could do with the rest of the TVP and came across this recipe for sloppy joes.  OMG!  I have not had a sloppy joe in years, but this stuff tasted just like Manwich, only it was better because there is no meat.

This recipe was adapted from here.  I made a few changes based on the reviews of the recipe online.  Here is how I made my TVP Sloppy Joes:

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large green pepper, diced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups boiling water
• 2 cups tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 tbsp chili powder (add more for a spicier kick)
• a pinch of pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp tamari
• 1 tbsp mustard
• 1 tbsp raw sugar
• 1 1/2 cups dry TVP

Directions:

1. Saute the chopped onion and green pepper in olive oil over medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
2. Add all other ingredients and simmer together over medium low heat for 20 minutes.

Do not be overwhelmed by the ingredients.  It took me maybe 3 minutes to chop the onion and green pepper (I used a food processor) and another 5 minutes to saute them.  Then while that was sauteeing I measured everything else out.  Finally, I added everything in the pot and did some other things for 20 minutes. 

  Simmering in the pot!

This meal is very minimal prep work, very simple directions, very easy clean up, very tasty! It practically cooks itself!  Next time I make this, I'm doubling the recipe so there will be more leftovers!



I am roughly estimating that this makes about 8 servings.  One serving (without bread) is approximately 138 calories and 9.5g protein.

Blueberry Beet Overnight Oats

I bought some beets for this Beet Juice (which was very tasty btw) but the beets I bought came in a pack of 3 and I only needed 1/2 a beet for that juice.  The other 1/2 of that one beet went into a juice that didn't turn out right :( But I still had 2 whole beets left.  Instead of just boiling the beets and eating them plain or in a salad, I kept my eyes open as I read blogs and surfed the internet hoping to find a new recipe to try for anything that had beets.  Surprisingly I found one and it used beets for breakfast in oatmeal!  I never would have thought of that idea so I tried it out.

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup boiled beets
• 3/4 cup almond milk
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/4 cup gf rolled oats
• 1 handful blueberries
• sweetener of choice, to taste (I used agave)

Directions:

1. In a blender, puree beets and almond milk together until smooth.
2. Pour into a mason jar and mix in chia seeds, oats, and blueberries.
3. Put in the fridge overnight.  In the morning, add sweetener and if desired top with additional blueberries.

I was surprised at how sweet this tasted!  The beets and blueberries make a great combination.  And the best part of this breakfast was the color - it was so bright! (Which my camera did not do too well a job of capturing.)

Banana Date Protein Bars

It is the 4th week in Meatless Mondays from A to Z so today's recipe was inspired by Dates.  Oh, and it is also Banana Lover's Day!  When I came across this recipe that included dates and bananas, I knew it would be perfect for today!

The original recipe calls for 2 small bananas and 2/3 cup almond milk.  My bananas were big so I used 1 full banana and 1/2 of another.  I also reduced the almond milk to 1/3 because the batter was already very liquidy.

This recipe was adapated from Healthy Helpings.  Here's how I made my protein bars:

Ingredients:

• 12 dates
• 1/4 cup boiling water
• 1 1/2 small ripe banana
• 1/3 cup almond milk
• 2 tbsp dried fruit (I used a dried fruit mix)
• 3 scoops of protein powder (about 60 grams)
• 1 tsp baking soda (omit if making raw bars)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

1. Place the dates in a small bowl and cover with the boiling water.  Set aside to soak until they are soft.
2. Preheat the oven to 300F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Set aside.
3. Place the bananas, dates, and date soaking water in a food processor or blender.  Blend until a paste forms.
4. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the almond milk.  Stir until combined.
5. Add the remaining ingredients and mix until evenly combined being careful not to overmix the batter.
6. Spread the mixture along the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for about 40 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven, let the bars cool, and cut into individual servings.  (I cut mine into 9 squares).  Wrap each bar with suran wrap and store in the fridge.

I actually baked my bars for 45 minutes and the bars were still pretty soft.  After cooling the pan, I actually put the mixture in the freezer to freeze before cutting because they were so soft.  I think next time I make these I will omit the baking soda and just put them in the freezer until they harden before cutting and wrapping each bar.  I'm also storing these in the freezer so they will continue to hold together well and last longer.  When I want one I just take it out for about 5 minutes before eating!  I'm sure these also taste great warm.  If you store them in the fridge, you only have to heat them up for about 10 seconds before enjoying!

Side view!

Even though these bars didn't come out as expected, I really enjoyed them.  The flavors of the banana, dates, and cinnamon really stood out.  I love how these bars are packed with protein and naturally sweetened for a sweet and healthy treat!



 

Mashed Cauliflower

Here is a yummy way to get extra veggies!  Instead of mashed potatotes, it's mashed cauliflower. 

This recipe was adapted from Choosing Raw:

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower - washed, trimmed, and roughly chopped
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
• dash of black pepper
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 2 small cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp almond milk
• 3 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add prepared cauliflower and cook until tender.
2. Drain cooked cauliflower and transfer to a food processor and pulse until the cauliflower is broken down.
3. Add thyme, salt, black pepper, nutritional yeast, garlic, almond milk, and lemon juice and blend until smooth and creamy.  You can also add additional seasonings or adjust measurements to your taste.  Serve this side dish hot!

This mashed cauliflower is quick, easy, and very tasty!