Tropical Treat

Happy first Monday in May!

I don’t know about where you are, but it’s pretty grey and icky outside here.

I decided to make things a little more bright and fun inside by adding some tropical fruits to my breakfast.

In the bowl is some fresh pineapple, and underneath it is some fresh mango. Mangoes were 2 for $/1 at the store, not bad! The one I bought was perfectly ripe and sweet, but is basically a mush in the bowl.

 

What I should have taken a picture of was me eating the mango off of the pit. Or the strings of mango still stuck in my teeth.

 

For those of you that don’t eat mango, you should know that there is a pit in the center of the fruit that is almost the size of the fruit itself. The soft and sweet mango clings to the pit and it’s a bit tricky to shave it off (especially when the fruit is nice and ripe).

 

Alongside of my tropical fruit bowl was three egg whites and a piece of wheat toast.

 

The rest of my day will soon be planned out on my new May notepad. I bought a set that has one for every month.

I’m such a nerd.

 

Do you like tropical fruits? Which is your fav?

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Get your EBC’s!

No, I didn’t mess up the alphabet.

 

I’m talking about EBCs…Easy Breakfast Cups!

The other day while I was frying up some eggs and totally going to be late for school, I realized that something’s gotta give.

 

Either I need to swap the eggs for something else, or be able to do this faster. (Note that waking up earlier is not an option here)

 

So last night I came up with these little pre-made omelet cups that are delicious and quick on the go. Just reheat (or don’t) because they taste great at room temperature too.

 

Easy Breakfast Cups (makes 12 cups)

• 1 container egg beaters
• Any veggies you like (I used spinach, mushrooms, red pepper, and onion)
• Canadian Bacon (optional)
• Shredded Cheese (optional)
• Non stick cooking spray

Sautee up the veggies in some cooking spray.

Spray your muffin tin with cooking spray and add the veggies

Note: you can also use a mini muffin tin!

Add the Canadian bacon on top of the veggies

Pour the egg beaters on top of that- about 3/4 full

If you’re adding cheese- put it on top before baking. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until the egg is firm and the tops are getting a bit golden.

And there you have it! Fancy pants omelets even if you’re on-the-go!

 

Enjoy

 

What is your favorite grab and go breakfast?

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Oat Bran you stole my heart

Valentine’s Day is coming soon, and Joe is going to have some stiff competition.

 

 

If you’re a regular reader you probably know that I don’t go crazy for oatmeal. It shows up sometimes in a random breakfast, but usually I wish I made something else.

 

Oatbran is different though- the pieces are smaller and when you cook it in almond milk, it melts down and gets really creamy.

 

I also find it to be more filling. The high fiber (6 grams) and protein content (7 grams) could be responsible for that.

 

I’ve been making mine as follows:

• 1/3 cup dry oatbran
• 1 cup almond breeze

Put both ingredients in a saucepan and heat on medium until it bubbles. Turn to low and cook another 5 min. (There were no instructions on the bag, so I just tried this)

 

And here’s the kicker. I’ve been serving mine in a pool of peanut flour spread with jam on top.

Yep, that’s right, I make the peanut flour spread first, in the bowl (and add a little extra almond milk or water to thin it out). Then when the oatbran is done, I put it on top.

 

FYI, I think I might need to refer to this technique as the PFM. (Peanut Flour Moat).

If this doesn’t make you a morning person, I don’t know what will.

 

Have you tried oatbran before?

What have you been making for breakfast lately?

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The Great Indoors

Happy Saturday folks!

 

I’m spending mine inside getting some work done for school next week.  It’s nasty out (freezing rain, sleet, etc.) which is perfect weather for a day spent in PJ’s.

 

I started off the morning with some flavored brew

I’m normally a grind your own beans kinda gal, but I love me some DD French Vanilla. I couldn’t resist when I saw it on sale.

 

Coffee was followed by an awesome breakfast sandwich that was inspired by Tina’s new favorite lunch.

 

I topped an everything bagel thin with a garlic and herb laughing cow, an overeasy egg, tomato, and spinach.

This was seriously one of the best breakfast sandwiches I’ve ever had. The Garlic and Herb laughing cow MADE IT!

 

The rest of the morning (and now afternoon) is being dedicated to a project for my class. I’m constructing a game board that will be used for classroom management. For each 30 minutes on task, the class will move 1 square. Once they get to the end, they receive an afternoon "game day".

 

There are also "chance" squares which give them the opportunity to pick from smaller prizes. The roads are "fast tracks" that move them ahead on the board.

 

The bus is their game piece. I also made a big bus that has all of the kids pictures on it (in the windows on the bus)

My house is now a crafting mess

I love foam letters and sheets. That’s what I used for everything on the board.

After this, I am going to write up some lesson plans and I’m just taking it easy the rest of the day.

 

9 mile run on tomorrow’s agenda!

 

Do you enjoy doing crafts? If so, what kinds?

How are you spending your Saturday?

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Early Morning Chef

This morning I was up bright and early in hopes of a snow day.

 

No such luck.

 

Instead of pancakes and hot coffee on the couch, I decided to go with a quick shower and getting my lunch together.

 

Since we ate out a lot this weekend, we really don’t have any leftovers or lunch stuff for me to bring. I had to get a little creative.

 

I saw spaghetti squash.

I saw leftover mashed potatoes.

Could it work?

 

Yeah!

I first squeezed out the cooked spaghetti squash for any extra water. (Click here to learn how to cook one in the microwave easily.)

 

I mixed the squeezed squash with about 1/4 of a cup of leftover mashed potatoes, 1 egg, salt, pepper and a dash of garlic powder.

 

Sautéed on medium for about 5 min per side and voila!

 

Along side I packed a greek yogurt, an apple, a few leftover zucchini fries, a string cheese, and a banana.

 

For breakfast I broke into the stash.

Peanut Flour Spread on a bagel thin with some honey

Love starting the day with a little suga! And how cute is that bear?

Off to school in a few. I’m sure my students are just as bummed about spending the day inside instead of at home in the snow.

 

Oh well. At least I have some form of pancake to eat today.

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Catching Up and My Thoughts on Runner’s World

Happy Saturday!

 

I know I was MIA yesterday, the day was jam packed.  Full time teaching plus my responsibilities as a student myself can be hectic at times! But hey, it’s the weekend, so enough about that.

 

Meals Yesterday:

Breakfast was Peanut Flour Spread on a cinnamon raisin bagel thin and a banana (unpictured)

Lunch was ham & bean soup, (made using this) a slice of wheat beer bread made from the tastefully simple mix I got at the party, and an apple. I also snacked on some dry multigrain cheerios mixed with TJ’s fiber cereal, a fiberful fruit leather, and a string cheese.

Dinner was 3 slices of pizza along with a salad with oil and vinegar, and 2 beers. Oh yeah. Sometimes unwinding with food is just what I need.

This morning I started off the day with some chocolate peanut pancakes

a side of coffee and some Runner’s World for reading

So, as much as I consider myself a runner- I kind of find this magazine to be intimidating. Reading it is like talking to a really fast, really awesome runner who has all of the best gear, runs a race every weekend, and does all sorts of special workouts to maximize their running potential.

 

I actually read an article about some guys that went running in an ice storm. Really?

 

While I enjoy some of the articles in the magazine, I just don’t know if I’m ready for this.

 

Runners I’m interested in your thoughts on RW magazine- what do you think?

What are you guys up to today? I’m heading out for a run, doing some work, and that’s about it.

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Guilt Free Fun

The best thing about a snow day is that I feel no guilt for being inside doing nothing.

Usually when I take a day off of work for being sick or a personal day I feel some sense of responsibility for what is going on at work.

 

And often if I’m sick, the second I call off of work, I start to feel better and then feel bad that I didn’t suck it up and go in.

 

In my new career as a teacher (student teacher for now), the feeling is different. If it’s a snow day, there is no other choice I could have made but to stay home. Also, there is no "work" being done at the "office". It is closed. As a result, I can relax guilt-free

 

Another guilt free pleasure I indulged in today was Chocolate Peanut Butter Pancakes. Why didn’t I think of this before?

I followed my trusty Peanut Flour Pancakes recipe, and added a heaping tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder, and an extra splenda packet for sweetness.

 

On top I put a dollop of cool whip which I spread all over the pancakes and it made them taste pretty freakin amazing.

 

On the agenda today is some shoveling, a little tidying around the house, and maybe an outdoor run if I can find somewhere that is shoveled enough to do it.

 

Do you feel guilty when you take the day off of work?

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Exciting News!

Half marathon #2 here I come!

 

I’ve been thinking about this race a lot. There were some personal reasons why I wasn’t sure if I wanted to sign up, but the runner inside would not be ignored!

 

I am in good shape for training since I started a long run schedule last week when I was strong for over 6. I also am not going to put too much pressure on myself to break my PR, I just want to do the best I can.

 

Another cool thing is that the race is just a few weeks before my 30th bday. What a great way to celebrate!

My friend Katie who ran the Philly half with me is running the Suntrust full marathon. It’s her first marathon! I’m excited to be running with her on that day!

Hope you guys are excited as I am for another half marathon training journey!

 

In other news, I’m off for Day #2 of student teaching.  I’ve got my buffalo tofu salad wrap, a berry yogurt, carrot sticks, string cheese and clementines.

I loooove my built lunch bag!

See ya after school!

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All I want is pancakes

 

and perhaps another day to sleep in…

 

This is it folks! My last morning as a full time student blogger. After tomorrow I’ll be student teaching, waking up early, and working all day!

 

I’m excited for the change but it also might mean some changes on the blog.

 

Here are two I’m sure of:

• I’m not sure exactly what my blogging schedule will look like
• Food will be more of the "packable" variety

 

Anyhow, let’s focus on the present.

This morning, like many mornings lately, I was craving pancakes. I swear this was the best batch of Peanut Flour Pancakes I’ve made in a long time.

 

(Yes this plate is one serving of this recipe and yes this serving is still only 300 calories or so)

Have you made these yet?

I kept it simple with just some syrup.

Now I’m just sipping on some coffee and watching the quiet, cold, snowy outdoors.

Today’s agenda includes:

-A workout at the gym

-A few errands

-Orientation for student teaching

-Grocery Shopping

 

I need to start brainstorming some easy grab and go meals and snacks for school.  What kind of lunches and snacks do you bring to work/school?

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PB&J Oats and a Giveaway!

It’s never easy to get out of bed in the winter, but today felt especially hard.

 

That is until I brainstormed the idea of making peanut butter and jelly oats for breakfast.

 

Although I’m not a huge oatmeal fanatic, I do think they make a nice base for some delicious toppings, and they are pretty filling too.

 

This morning I heated up 1/2 cup of old fashioned oats, 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk, and 1/2 cup of water in the microwave.

 

When it was done I topped it with peanut flour spread and sf raspberry jelly.

I also wanted to let you guys know how I make my peanut flour spread since I realized it’s not on the recipe tab of the blog.

 

Peanut Flour Spread

30 g/ or 1/4 cup peanut flour

1/4-1/3 cup of milk (regular, soy, almond, or you can use water)

1-2 splendas

dash or two of salt

splash of vanilla extract (optional)

 

Now, on to an exciting giveaway!

 

Through My Blog Spark I was invited to participate in a giveaway from  Multigrain Cheerios. I’m a big fan of cheerios and love to eat them dry as a snack or on top of yogurt.

Multigrain Cheerios is partnering with The Biggest Loser and doing a Biggest Loser at Home program on their website. Once you buy a box of the cereal, you get an access code that you can use to access some tools such as a 7 day plan, motivation, and BMI calculator.

 

One lucky winner will receive a box of Multigrain Cheerios, a water bottle, cereal holder, and gym bag.

To enter just leave a response in the comments section telling me:

 

What tools would you be interested in using on the Multigran Cheerios Biggest Loser website?

A winner will be picked tomorrow night. Good luck!

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