Bananas

5 Ways to Do Oatmeal

7:00:00 AM



If you were to ask what my favorite breakfast was, or one that I eat almost every other day, the answer would be oatmeal. It's quick, and easy, and you can easily change it up whenever you'd like. If I need something to warm up my insides on a cool morning, oatmeal is my go-to. When I was little I used to ask for "oakmilk" and requested raisins to be put into it. Since then, I've learned to say oatmeal correctly, and switch up the ingredients to keep my breakfasts different and not so boring. 

Here are a few things to consider when you make your next bowl of oats and are stuck on how to switch it up:

1. Different fruits. 

This is easier now that the weather is warmer, usually in the cooler months I go for bananas and occasionally blueberries. Strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are coming into season and will be added into my bowls! 
Oatmeal


2. Crunchy Toppings. 

I love having a bit of crunch in my oats, usually a handful of raw almonds, cashews, or even some walnuts is great! 
Oatmilk


3. Power toppings

This comes in the form of chia seeds, hemp hearts, and cacao nibs. Personally I go for chia seeds as they're more available for me. 
Oatmeal

4. Nut butters

If you love nut butter like I do, then adding a little scoop of peanut butter, cashew butter or almond butter will conquer that craving right away in the morning. Sometimes, if I know I didn't get that much protein in the week, I will use powdered peanut butter. Just put it in before making the oats and stir it up to get the not-so-overwhelming and peanut-y taste!


5. Spices

I love adding cinnamon to top off my oatmeal. I read somewhere that cinnamon is really good for your metabolism, and it tastes great. 
Organic Oats


Oats are so great for you and I love a nice warm bowl. What are your favorite toppings? What is your favorite breakfast or your most common breakfast that you have?
Have a great week! x 
Kenzie

Baking

Spring Sweets

12:30:00 PM



I'm cutting back on eating so many sweets, I swear! While I've been away living at University, there are a few things that I've missed and that my sweet tooth misses as well. And that's homemade cookies. As soon as spring break rolled around, I knew I had to whip up a batch. 
Still trying to eat healthy while being home can be a challenge, finding a few alternatives to certain ingredients in a recipe can actually be quite easy!
I've made oatmeal cookies before (you can read that post right here), this was a bit different. 
These don't have flour or eggs! 
For this recipe you will need:
2/3 Cup (58 g) old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 banana
1 cup peanut butter 
6 Table spoons brown sugar
1/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/4 cup white chocolate chips

One thing that was special about this recipe that I tried, was that I actually made my own peanut butter using this recipe from Sallys Baking Addiction. It made it even healthier and it's very simple to make as well! Though it is a simple recipe, you certainly do not need to make these, and while Sally used honey roasted peanuts, I used just plain salted peanuts as I wanted to try it out for myself and did not have honey roasted in my cupboards!

To start making these, take a medium bowl and add in the oats, cinnamon, and baking soda. In a seperate bowl, mix in your peanut butter, banana, and brown sugar. It's okay if it's not creamy, as I didn't use an egg. While I was doing this I got quite nervous but it turns out well!

After mixing, add in the butterscotch and white chocolate chips!
Now chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes in your refrigerator and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit! (176 Celsius).
You'll now need two baking sheets, and if you don't like cleaning them after I would suggest using parchment paper. It comes in quite handy. And after your cookie dough is done chilling, you can scoop small balls onto the sheet, pressing down lightly to make sure they flatten. 

After this, my cookie dough balls were kind of greasy/oily looking and I blotted them with a napkin to take it off. I placed about 9 cookies on one try and 5 on the other. You can certainly spread these out more evenly than I did! 
Bake for about 9 to 10 minutes. I think mine were in for about 9. 

After baking, take them out and let them cool.
These cookies are delicious and I was pleasantly happy with the fact that I couldn't really tell I had even put banana into it. Thinking about it now, I don't think I can at all. 
 I think these are actually going quite fast at my house, which is always a good sign and I will probably make more! Especially if I can take them to my dorm room for a little snack at some point! 
I hope you enjoyed this recipe! I love baking and the fact that I can when I'm home, is great! 
Are you making any goodies lately? I feel like spring has brought the little baker inside of me! 
Hope you all have had great weeks! 
Thanks for reading! 
xx
Kenzie


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