Foods ‘N Things

This post is very random. I took photos of a lot of different things over the last few days that don’t really go together in any way, so here ya go.

I made breakfast cookies on Sunday.

I actually thought about this recipe when I was lying in bed Sunday morning, just before waking it. It actually forced me to get out of bed, because I wanted to get crackin’.

Peanut Butter + Banana Breakfast cookies (makes 2 large cookies)

1/2 c oats (I used Country Choice Organic, multigrain)

1/4 c peanut flour

1 T vanilla protein powder (I used MRM Rich Vanilla Whey)

1 T chopped peanuts

1/2 T chia seeds

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 packet Xylitol plus (or other sweetener)

1/8 tsp salt

1/2 medium banana, mashed

1/4 c liquid egg whites

1 tsp coconut oil

Pre-heat oven to 350˚. Mix the dry ingredients (including the chopped peanuts) in a medium-sized bowl. In a small bowl, combine the mashed banana, egg whites and coconut oil. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and stir well. Divide batter into two equal piles and place on a cookie sheet. Flatten out batter with the back of a large spoon. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

Each cookie has approximately 225 calories, 4 g fat, 26 g carbs, 4 g fiber and 16 g protein! One cookie certainly isn’t enough to fill me as a meal, but it was good for some pre-hiking fuel on Sunday morning. I would probably pair it with some Greek yogurt and fruit if I was to eat one for breakfast.

Another sweet treat that I’ve been loving lately is my low-carb cinnamon cocoa flax muffins. I’ve tried to deny it and get over it, but I just need something sweet after dinner. Rather than load up on sugar and carbs, I came up with this little microwave muffin to tame my sweet tooth. This recipe was inspired by HEAB’s flourless muffin.

I serve it with a little bit of Greek yogurt with unsweetened cocoa powder and a few drops of liquid stevia, and a chopped up strawberry.

Cinnamon Cocoa-Flax Microwave Muffin

1 T unsweetened cocoa powder

1 T coconut flour

1 T ground flax seed

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 T liquid egg whites

2 T almond milk

1 T pumpkin puree (could use applesauce instead)

1 packet Xylitol Plus (or sweetener of choice)

dash of salt

Combine all dry ingredients in a small bowl or ramekin and mix well. Add in the rest of the ingredients and stir until well incorporated. Microwave for 3 minutes. (Muffin will slide right out of the bowl!)

This muffin has 95 calories, 6.5 g fat (from flax mostly!), 12 g carbs, 8 g fiber and a whopping 10 g protein!

**

When I was at the mega Whole Foods in Rockville on Saturday, I spent quite a bit of time wandering through the massive bulk foods section. They have everything there- legumes, nuts, grains, granola, dried fruits, mushrooms, and about 20 kinds of sea salt! I got some truffle salt – but only about 1 ounce, because it was $80/lb! Another thing that I spotted was these little guys, who have quickly become my new favorite thing:

Pigeon peas! Honestly, I’ve never really seen a recipe with pigeon peas or heard people talk about them much- I’ve only ever really seen them on Top Chef. 🙂 I cooked some up to go with dinner on Saturday night, and liked them so much that I had them again on Sunday! I just kind of cooked them and hoped for the best. And these things suck  up water like crazy! For 1/4 cup of water, I probably added about 2 or 3 cups of water total when they were boiling (I don’t know exactly how much, because I kept having to add more water). Check out how much they bulk up in size!

They have a nutty flavor… and almost a fennel-like aftertaste. I love the texture and pretty much everything else about them! They’re also high in protein and fiber. 🙂

On Sunday, I boiled some pigeon peas and added in some roasted maitake mushrooms and red onion with some Bragg’s. Oh, man. Yum.

Also for dinner that night- another go-to favorite in our house: Whole Foods in-house made chicken sausage.

The Tandoori Mango Chicken Sausage was a new-to-me flavor and I was excited to try it out! I’ve gotten the garlic-basil-tomato kind before, and it’s really good. Greg grilled up one of each kind so that we could have a little bit of both. They’re not so pretty when they’re raw…

That’s much better.

I sliced mine up on top of a mixed greens salad, along with a little bit of chopped up sweet potato.

Mmmm… the mango sausage was definitely a winner! I’ll be getting that one again, and making more of a traditional Indian dish next time.

**

Three things that were great about yesterday (which was my last day of spring break):

– Appreciating the tulips in my front yard. I wish they would stay around all year!

– Greg ran out to the store to get a few things and came back with a lovely bouquet of flowers. Just because. Totally made my day! 🙂

– Taking Lance for a walk in the middle of the day. And taking a picture of him on top of the ‘big hill,’ like we always do.

This week (and every week until summer, really!) is going to be very busy, and my free time to walk the dogs will be very limited. I definitely make sure to enjoy each and every moment when I can!

Are there random things that you’re lovin’ and want to share?

 

 

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