Baked Oatmeal Recipe

I have been a homebody all day. I haven’t left the house and it has felt good to stay home to watch CBS Sunday Morning, read the Sunday newspaper, do laundry, wash dishes and bake.

I made pancakes for Craig and I this morning. I topped mine with Best Life spread and lite maple syrup.

For lunch, I had 3.5 inches of a Cousin’s ham and cheese sub. I was really hungry around 11:30, so I scarfed that and the rest of the Optimal Results Protein bar. I also celebrated Halloween with a Reese’s PB cup.  After they are all gone, I won’t be buying those for a while, probably not until next Halloween!

Then, I got in the baking/cooking mood. At first, I wanted to make South Indian Pumpkin soup. Then I quickly realized that I would want to eat a bowl of the soup if I cooked that. I didn’t want to be full before we were heading out to eat tonight at 6, so I made the Baked Oatmeal Recipe my co-worker gave me on Friday.

It turned out yummy, so I’ll share the recipe. Just to warn you, it’s not very sweet, but could easily be modified with ingredients you like.

Baked Oatmeal

Mix in a bowl:

• 2 1/2 c oatmeal (not instant, can use Irish)
• 3/4 c wheat germ (if you don’t use wheat germ, use 3+ c oatmeal)–this is what I did because I didn’t have wheat germ in the house
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 c no sugar-added applesauce (or diced fresh apple)–I used a fresh apple, again, because I didn’t have applesauce in the house
• 6 egg whites (or 3 eggs)
• 1 c skim milk
• (optional: 1/4 c dark brown sugar)–I did this to sweeten it a bit

Pour in a 10 x 10″ shallow casserole dish, sprayed with cooking oil. Bake at 325 degrees uncovered 25-30 minutes, until the edges and tops brown lightly.

Cool, slice in 9 pieces, then freeze in baggies. Microwave or thaw overnight.

* I added cinnamon and ground flaxseed to my mix.

My co-worker recommended eating it as is or topping with 1 tbsp almond butter or topping with 1/2 cube of lowfat cheese and microwave for a few seconds to melt the cheese.

I figure this will be a nice snack to eat at work or before working out. Enjoy!

Off to do some ironing and put laundry away! Have a good rest of your Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween everyone! We’re just hanging around the house today and then Craig is taking me somewhere for dinner. It’s a surprise, so I have no clue where we’re going.

Enter Anne’s Mighty Leaf Tea Giveaway–she’ll pick a winner on Tuesday morning, so enter soon!:

http://www.fannetasticfood.com/2010/10/29/mighty-leaf-tea-mug-giveaway/

I’ll be back later tonight to recap my day.

 

 

Fun at the zoo

Well, I didn’t post yesterday because I felt icky after work and was wiped out. I fell asleep on the couch for most of the night. Craig is sick with something and we were both just homebodies last night.

Yesterday’s food:
Breakfast

Lunch–red peppers, broccoli, Brown cow raspberry yogurt, gala apple and a ham sandwich with cheese. The apple was actually a late afternoon snack.

Aaah, dairy yogurt was so tasty compared to the soy yogurt from Thursday.

Dinner didn’t exist. I literally turned to comfort foods such as ice cream with a brownie instead of real food. Blame it on a bad day at work. I also was not that hungry after I had that apple as a snack around 3:30.

This morning, I slept in (well sort of, the cats woke me up at 5:20, 6:10, 6:20, then 7) and I slept until 8:30 after being woken up so many times by the naughty cats. I skipped yoga because I would have had to rush to get there.

Instead, I had breakfast–coffee with peaches n’ creme oatmeal:

And that fuel was what I needed for a tough workout at the gym. I warmed up on the rowing machine and then did intervals on the treadmill for a half hour. I walked inclines and then ran in between. Those runs really got my sweaty, but it felt good to run and my body felt strong. I also did weights and some of the ab exercises we do in Boot Camp class.

I had some Powerade and protein when I got home from the gym.

The Optimal Protein Diet bar is one that my co-worker gave me to try. I loved it! I only ate half and saved the rest for tomorrow, as it was pretty dense and I also needed to have a real lunch yet. It’s coated in chocolate and the bar itself is not gross tasting like some protein bars tend to be. I will be buying some of these–they have 20 grams of protein and are low in calories compared to other bars.

I got ready for the day and had lunch. My usual–whole wheat tortilla with pinto beans, cheese, tomatoes, Arizona dreaming spice and Frank’s Red Hot.

An apple was my dessert and a Reese’s PB cup.

Then it was time to go to the zoo with my friend and her daughter. It was trick or treat weekend there, so it was pretty crowded and the kids were all dressed up in costumes. My friend’s daughter dressed up as Pooh.

We saw lots of cool animals. These lions surprised zoo visitors by mating in front of everyone!

And some cute Halloween decorations throughout the zoo grounds.

We did lots of walking, so I feel like I got another round of exercise in.

When I got home, I ran back out to get Craig and I Cousin’s Subs. I was pretty hungry, so I inhaled my ham and cheese sub. Craig had more of an appetite today than the last 24 hours or so, but he didn’t eat all of his sub. Poor guy!

Then there was some neighborhood action in the form of a car on fire down the block! Not fun to watch! We think it was parked on top of a leaf pile and started on fire because of that. I didn’t realize that could happen, but learned a lesson from seeing this scary sight.

Well, I am winding down by having a pumpkin beer and snuggling underneath a blanket with Karma the kitty next to me. Time for bed soon! Good night and Happy Halloween tomorrow!

Soy yogurt=never again

One more work day and then it’s the weekend!

Breakfast was greek and non-fat organic yogurt with honey, chia seeds, almonds and some honey nut cream cheese.

Snack at work was more coffee and more almonds.

Lunch was the rest of the European baguette with ham, cheese, mayo and Frank’s red hot sauce. I also had baby carrots. The final thing I ate was soy yogurt from Stonyfield. I had a coupon for a discount off of three soy yogurts, so I figured I would try it. I ate the whole container, but the only way to describe the strong soy flavor was nasty! It’s just my opinion, but I have tasted other soy things that have the same flavor and it was so gross. I had to get that taste out of my mouth right away after I finished it. Yuck! I feel bad for people who are lactose intolerant. I’ll take dairy yogurt any day.

Dinner was a veggie masala burger on an arnold’s thin. I also had a glass of chocolate milk and a dessert of a brownie with Hagen Daz Peanut Brittle ice cream on top. Mmm, yummy!

Then it was my regular Thursday yoga class. I enjoyed it, as always. Nice and relaxing.

On that note, I’ll keep this post short so I can relax some more. Night!

Peppers for immunity

It was just a pretty normal Wednesday for me today. I can’t believe it’s already Thursday tomorrow!

Breakfast was Kashi Autumn Wheat cereal with skim milk and a coffee.

My snack was about 8 almonds and a chai tea, which was from a packet, so it was kind of too sugary for me.

Lunch was basically what I had for dinner last night, minus the tomatoes. That Swiss Rye cheese made the sub taste so good! I also had a Brown Cow Maple Yogurt, which is ultra creamy and dessert like. I know the nutritional label doesn’t display the best stats, such as that it’s higher in calories coming in at 170, but it’s such a nice treat to have a creamy yogurt once in a while.

Last night, I chopped up some green and red peppers and put together a little container of hummus to dip them in. That made grabbing my lunch and getting ready to go this morning so easy! I just had to make my sandwich, which is less complicated than chopping veggies. The peppers really filled me up! While at the gym tonight, I read that red peppers are better for immunity boosting than an orange. They contain more Vitamin C. I feel like I may be getting a cold, so I needed the pepper to help fight off anything that may be coming on in my body.

I left work a little early to go to the eye doc to check on my trial contacts. All clear with the new pair and I ordered a few boxes. Love getting that kind of stuff over with.

Dinner was just an egg sandwich with Swiss Rye cheese on a whole wheat English Muffin. I wasn’t that hungry before hitting the gym. I think lunch filled me up today.

At the Y, I did about 30 minutes on the elliptical and then 6 minutes on the rowing machine. I also lifted arm weights, but no legs. I figured my legs could still use some rest from the pain they have been through this week. I wanted to stay there longer to do more, but then again my workout ended at 7:30 and that was just too late. I need to get up earlier tomorrow and didn’t want to be lying in bed tonight all wired!

Once home, I followed the advice of my co-worker’s personal trainer. My co-worker and I discuss healthy food and habits. She’s 60 something and in great shape and eats so healthy. Today, she gave me a post-it note with the following post-workout snacks recommended by her trainer.

• soy nuts & fruit
• hard-boiled egg whites (3-4)
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese or yogurt
• apple wedges with almond butter
• 2″ square-baked oatmeal (my co-worker is going to give me the recipe for this and I’ll share it with you too)

I had one of her recommended snacks after my workout tonight.

Almond butter and an apple. This was delicious!

I can’t believe it’s already 9:20, I better get off of here and get ready for bed!

Wicked and wild wind

Driving to the grocery store tonight, I heard Coldplay’s Viva La Vida and this line was perfect for today: “it was a wicked and wild wind.” Whoa, today we are the windy city! What a crazy storm with high winds and rains.

Breakfast was the rest of the pumpkin oatmeal that I couldn’t finish for breakfast yesterday. I added a big chunk of greek yogurt for some protein and sweetened up a little more than yesterday’s bowl with some maple syrup.

Lunch was a whole wheat tortilla with pinto beans, shredded cheese and topped with Frank’s Red Hot sauce (I swear, I never get sick of this meal). I also had an apple and a Strawberry Chobani yogurt. Oh yeah and a Reese’s PB cup, which I learned scores a 3 according to the Nuval system on Trading Up Downtown today. Oh well, good thing I only eat them during Halloween time!

Dinner was fresh European baguette with deli ham, cucumbers, tomato, Swiss rye cheese, mayo, Frank’s Red Hot sauce, and oregano. Red grapes were my dessert. Oh and maybe another Reese’s PB cup. 🙂

Mmm…European baguettes bring me back to eating in Europe. Love them!

Mini sub and red grapes

Before dinner, I relaxed, put my feet up on the couch and looked through my new Fitness magazine.

Off to watch The Biggest Loser and rest some more. My legs aren’t as sore as they were yesterday, but I think I have a good night’s sleep and Burt’s Bees Muscle Mend to thank for that.

Speaking of The Biggest Loser, I was reading this FitSugar article featuring Jillian Michael’s Fitness Ultimatums while blow drying my hair this morning. Thought you would enjoy!

No pain, no gain

The perfect title for today is “no pain, no gain.” It isn’t creative, but describes exactly how I am feeling due to Body Pump yesterday! I think the squats and lunges made my thighs and quads hurt the most. I hurt all day long. Thinking about it, I don’t believe we stretched our legs after class. I will have to do that on my own from now on, because the abs and tiny bit of arm stretching won’t cut it.

Our Indian dinner was yummy yesterday. My pictures are horrible, but I will share anyway. The lighting in the restaurant was not conducive to no flash photography!

 

I had two pieces of naan and two helpings of rice and paneer tikka masala. Craig got chicken tikka masala. We also had a Mango Lassi and a Mango milkshake. We had never tried the milkshake before and it was a little lighter than the lassi. I think we both concluded that we like the lassi more. I was so full at the end and bloated. It was well worth it for yummy food that I am not sure I could duplicate in my own kitchen. Plus, I had leftovers for lunch today!

I snacked on some Halloween candy while I watched The Amazing Race.

Mmm...candy!

I made overnight oats for breakfast this morning. I mixed canned pumpkin, non-fat organic TJ’s yogurt, skim milk, chia seeds, flax seeds (for the overnight portion). This morning, I added dried currants, almonds, topped with a bit of greek yogurt and honey. I warmed it up in the microwave, since I seem to like that better than cold oats, especially as the temperatures outside drop and I am seeking warmer, comforting breakfasts.

Overnight oats and coffee

Lunch was Indian leftovers with red grapes and a Reese’s peanut butter cup.

I also snacked on some almonds, candy corn and had a green earl grey tea to wake me up a little in the afternoon. Monday afternoon sleepiness hit me at about 3 p.m. and I remember that happening last Monday too. I need more sleep on Sunday night!

I napped after work and then forced myself to eat early, even though I wasn’t that hungry. I had to get some food in me well before heading to boot camp.

Pinto beans with whole wheat tortilla, shredded cheese and Frank's Red Hot

Boot camp tonight was tough at first with my painful legs. Luckily, we didn’t do many leg exercises. We did chest presses on the swiss ball, jumped rope, ran the basketball court, scooters (for abs), balancing on the bosu and passing the weighted medicine ball to each other, scoops with resistance bands and things in between and at the end. The end was lots of arms with resistance bands. I bet I will be walking like a freak tomorrow with sore arms and legs!

It’s 8:40 and I need to get off of this computer and do something else. I also want to get to bed a little earlier tonight so I don’t feel so sleepy tomorrow.

First Body Pump Class Recap

I did the usual Sunday routine this morning–watched TV, looked through the ads, and ate breakfast–coffee and an egg sandwich with cheddar cheese on a whole wheat english muffin.

We only watched half of the movie last night, so we finished the rest this morning. I liked the movie a lot, but Craig was confused since he hadn’t read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. We watched it with the English dubbing and it wasn’t too annoying that the actors’ lips were not moving with the English words. We both couldn’t figure out why Hollywood has to release their own version, but we know it should be a big money maker.

Then, I did something new and outside of my normal Sunday routine-I went to my first ever Body Pump class this morning!

After class, my muscles were pumped!

I got to the YMCA a little early and told the teacher it was my first class. She told me to start with light weights (2.5 lbs. on each side of the barbell) and asked if I lifted weights currently, so after saying yes, 3-4 times a week, she told me I’d be fine. I am really glad I chose the lighter weights, but could have gone a little heavier for some of the exercises. For the squats, I took her advice and did a told of 7.5 lbs. on each side of the barbell. I really wish I would have known that the link above, the Les Mills site, has an introduction to Body Pump video. Oh well! I will watch it for some extra tips to use next time I go to class.

For my station, I just copied what other people had at their area–a step, an exercise mat, a towel and some hand weights. Most people had the exercise mat on top of their step and I assumed we would be laying down on the step to lift, which was the correct assumption.

Body Pump is a lot of fun and I think it’s a nice weight lifting class to attend if you get sick of the weight machines at the gym. We did squats, bicep curls, chest presses, triceps, abs, lunges, etc. Since I didn’t know the routine very well, I found it easiest to copy the girl two in front of me and mock her moves. After class, I thanked the teacher and told her I did that. She said that it takes 8-10 classes of Les Mills type of classes to get everything down pat. That seems like a lot, but I guess it sort of makes sense. Next time, I just know I want to be facing the mirror so I can see how my poses look. I’ll definitely try it again! I just hope my body doesn’t hurt for Boot Camp tomorrow. And, on November 3rd, I want to go to the Body Pump/Body Flow combination class. Should be fun!

This afternoon, Craig and I worked on some blog stuff (looking at SEO optimization) and now I have some more ways for people to find information on my blog. I am still clueless about a lot though, such as how to shorten my overall page so people don’t have to scroll all the way down and how I will ever customize my own header (Photoshop would work, but I don’t have it).

Tonight, we’re going to have dinner at the Indian restaurant and run a few errands. I need to get to the grocery store yet and I really don’t feel like going. It feels good to be home and relaxing. I don’t want the weekend to be over! 😦

Back later with a recap of the Indian Restaurant and probably complaints of a full (yet satisfied) belly.

Yoga, cleaning and a relaxing evening

I am finally sitting after having run around all day. I swear that my hour long yoga class this morning gave me tons of energy for the day.

Please excuse my lack of makeup 😉

Before yoga, I had my necessary cup of coffee and a light breakfast of a Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Muffin. I never feel good with a full tummy during yoga class.

I went to yoga at the Y from 8:45-9:45 and it was great. I love when teachers change up their poses in yoga classes so it’s not so predictable. We did lots of different poses today and I felt strong. During my practice, I was thinking about how much more strength I feel like I have gained in general over the last month of consistent gym attendance. I still have my weak side and I like when yoga teachers like the one I had today let class attendees know that it’s ok to feel weak on one side and acknowledge it. Maybe one day I won’t be weak on my right side.

After yoga, I showered, did more laundry and then felt pretty weak. I get shaky if I don’t eat enough after exercising. So, I ate and ate until my stomach was satisfied. I focused on protein with a glass of chocolate milk, Chobani yogurt and a Peanut Butter Cookie Larabar. I was craving that ripe banana and Nutella before I went to yoga class, but I knew it would upset my tummy.

I got ready for the day and did a few things around the house. I also made it to the mall, as I had tons of coupons for stores, but only came away with a free Aveda shower gel that smells like lovely jasmine and rose. You get a custom blend product free for your birthday and my mom gave me her coupon. It was pretty funny because the girl who helped me kept calling me Mary, my mom’s name, throughout my consultation with her. I didn’t have the heart to admit it was my mom’s coupon and my name wasn’t Mary.

I didn’t stay at the mall for long. It was a rainy day here and the malls were packed as if it was Christmas time. I just want to do all of my Christmas shopping online!

Once home, I cleaned for a solid two hours. I did dishes, put away laundry, did more laundry, vacuumed, cleaned the oven top and put things away in general. I worked up quite the appetite, so I snacked on cheddar cheese, licorice and chips and salsa. I guess the theme of my meals today has been snacks! I didn’t have lunch because that 11 a.m. post yoga snacking session was all I needed. By cleaning non-stop, I accomplished my goal–not to have to do most of those tasks on Sunday so I could relax (except for ironing).

Craig installed a new sensor light today at the back of our house, so he was pretty tired from having some issues with our 1960’s electrical job. We decided to hit the local Subway for dinner to use a buy one get one free footlong coupon. I got ham and provolone on 9 grain honey oat with spinach, tomatoes, green peppers, pickles, black olives, lite mayo and oregano.

I ate half and then a few bites of the other half. I’ll have a nice sandwich to look forward to for lunch or dinner tomorrow. We want to get to our favorite Indian restaurant for Tikka Masala, Naan and Mango Lassis.

I won’t recap all of yesterday–I was too busy to blog. After work, I hit the gym and then we went out to eat at Qdoba and craved Kopps custard, so we shared a vanilla cup. We went to a really good lecture later at night and didn’t get home until 9:15 and I was beat!

Kopps has two flavors of the day and besides Turtle Sundae, they had an interesting flavor…Maple Syrup and Pancakes.

On that note, I am off to make room in my tummy for some chocolate monster ice cream and jet off to Sweden, via movie that is. 😉 I picked up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo movie at the library on Friday and we’re going to transport ourselves to Sweden for the next two and a half hours. I’ll let you know how it is tomorrow. I won’t be quite as busy as I was today. I just want to read the paper, watch CBS Sunday Morning, go to my first Body Pump class and then out to eat yummy Indian food.

Naughty kitties

We woke up this morning to hear a cat pawing at our door and meowing incessantly. Karma was ready for “food food” (they know the word for food) and wanted us up! My husband found this funny site about cats and while reading it on my lunch break today, I was cracking up. The last scene definitely could be Craig and Karma. I swear Craig wrote this cartoon about Karma, it’s so dead on. Check out more cartoons at this link: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/kitty_pet

Despite getting woken up a little earlier than normal, I wasn’t too tired once I was at work and I had a really good day.

Breakfast was a quick bowl of oats—instant strawberries n’ crème warmed up with skim milk and topped with a dollop of Nutella. Why did my husband pick out these instant oatmeal packets? They take me away from cooking oats on the stove, which is much healthier and less sweet.

Lunch (no picture, I think my camera makes too much noise in my office and I didn’t want to creep out my co-workers):

I got a grilled ham and cheddar sandwich from my work café. The chef started getting out white bread and I said “I know I am being picky, but do you have any wheat bread?” It was no problem at all for him and I made a trade-up with a more nutritious bread. Oh and I had a dill pickle. Can’t forget that! I also had a Peach Chobani and to satisfy my sweet tooth, a piece of English Toffee milk chocolate from Moser Roth (Aldi brand).

After lunch, it was flu shot time. If I didn’t get a flu shot, I think I would be really sick this winter. I used to get the flu every year and some years, it was just awful. I think my medical condition makes me more susceptible to getting it. It wasn’t all that bad, but the pain in my arm set in mid-afternoon and I knew I wouldn’t be able to go to yoga class tonight.

I opted for non-arm moving exercises at the gym. I biked for 22 minutes while reading Fitness magazine. Then I did the elliptical machine for 15 minutes. I chose the machine that didn’t require me to move my arms. I like moving my arms, so it was hard to get used to that style of machine, but it did make me feel like I was working my leg muscles more! I was bummed that my sore arm made me miss yoga, but I decided I’ll go on Saturday morning for the really tough class and that will make up for it.

I was hungry for veggies when I got home from the gym. I made a pretty big salad full of lots of green items-spinach, broccoli, green peppers, cucumbers. I also added feta, a few tomatoes from our garden and coated it with TJ’s Greek Style Feta Salad Dressing. I paired it with chocolate milk for muscle recovery. My husband had a free lunch at work today and he brought home a cornbread muffin for me. I had half of that too. I haven’t had cornbread in ages and it tasted so good! I will have to make it more often.

We made our favorite Trader Joe’s pizza-Four Formaggi. I had two slices and will have the other two leftover for lunch tomorrow.

I got an early start on my evening by hitting the gym right after work, so now I should go read some blogs and relax some more. The naughty cat Karma is curled up next to me, warming me up. He is fast asleep and probably dreaming of chasing mice…or of the cornbread scraps I fed him that ended up on his nose (so cute).

TGIF tomorrow! We’re going to a Dharma talk after work and maybe out to eat for Indian food (YUM)!