Raspberry, Date, Maple Syrup Hot Cereal

The rain finally stopped in Vancouver!! Thank the dear lord.  The sun has been shining since Monday and I’m nothing but smiles :)

This is what happens when I’m procrastinating studying for my psyc 391 midterm….a new breakfast creation. But OMG yum. I really liked how it made quite a bit too. I have plenty leftover for breakfast the following day. And maybe a spoonful or two or three in the afternoon before spin class (totally happened).  This morning when I had the leftovers, I just cut up more banana and heated the whole thing in the microwave before adding the yogurt. I ran out of raspberries through so it didn’t look anywhere close to as pretty :(

Makes 2 servings       Prep Time – 5 minutes       Cooking Time – 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice hot cereal (or can use regular oatmeal)
• 1/2 cup frozen mixed berries
• 1/2 banana, sliced
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 3 large spoonfuls of plain full-fat yogurt (I use Saugeen Country brand)
• Toppings – raspberries, 2 or 3 chopped dates, handful of quinoa granola, and sprinkle of cinnamon

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, throw in the mixed berries on low heat. Once thawed a bit (2-3min), stir in the almond milk, coconut oil and banana. Once the berries are almost completely thawed and warm, stir in the maple syrup, cinnamon, and hot cereal. Keep stirring until heated through.
2. Divide up the berry oatmeal mixture into two serving bowls. Spoon the yogurt into the side of the bowls. Top with raspberries, dates, quinoa granola, and cinnamon. YUM!

NOTE – don’t omit the coconut oil from the berry mixture…it adds a serious yummy flavour! If you’re dairy free…just add in some more almond milk (or milk of choice) at the end instead of the yogurt.

Leftovers – Asian Chicken Quinoa Stirfry

This is a great dinner (or lunch) that’s packed with protein for a night when you have some leftovers! I needed a quick, tasty lunch yesterday and had some edamame in the freezer that I wanted to use.  So this is what I came up with :) Its not the most glamourous recipe ever, but oh well! You can sub in whatever veggies you have lying around.

Prep Time: 5 minutes       Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

1. 1 cooked chicken breast, cut into bit size pieces
2. 1 egg
3. 1/3 cup cooked quinoa or brown rice noodles
4. 1/2 cup edamame, out of shell
5. 1 cup broccoli, steamed
6. Handful of spinach or kale
7. Tamari (to taste)
8. Green onions and sesame seeds, for garnish

Directions

1. In a pan on medium-low heat, throw in your chicken breast and drizzle on some tamari.  Stir it around for a few minutes.
2. Next, crack the egg in the pan and let it cook through while stirring constantly.  Once the egg is cooked you can add in the rest of your ingredients.  Add some more tamari and stir around until everything is heated up and spinach has wilted.
3. Serve up in a bowl with some sesame seeds and green onions on top :) EASY!

Granola

This granola is definitely a staple in my house.  I make a big batch so I always have it on hand for a quick and easy breakfast, or a late night snack :) Combine with yogurt or almond milk and your favourite fruit/berries for breakfast. For dessert, I like to mix up a little cup full of granola, raisins, dark chocolate chips, coconut flakes and cinnamon.  It tastes exactly like an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie :) YUM!

Ingredients

• 6 cups large flake rolled oats
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup flax seeds
• 1/2 cup almonds, chopped
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup coconut flakes (optional)
• 2-3 tbsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/3 cup honey or brown rice syrup
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine oats, seeds, nuts, coconut flakes, and cinnamon.
3. In another small bowl, melt the coconut oil, honey and vanilla in the microwave.  Pour over the oat mixture and stir until well combined.
4. Spread out the oats evenly in one layer on two baking sheets and press down firmly.  Bake for around 35-45 min or until golden brown.  Let cool and enjoy :)

DETOX DAY 1 – Classic Hummus

It’s DAY 1 of my 21 day detox! My lovely friend Amanda and I decided we were going a little crazy this summer already…oooops! So we’re trying to get back on track and away from the booze with Dr. Joshi’s Holistic Detox.  Amanda’s done it quite a few times before, but this is my first.  So we’ll see how it goes! The whole point of the detox is to create a slightly alkaline environment in the body by cutting out acid forming foods from your diet.  Seems simple enough! The diet is fairly close to my diet already so I’m not too concerned.  The only foods I’m going miss and have a tough time not eating are: fruit, berries, and coffee! It’s making me nervous just thinking about it…

So it’s the end of day 1 and I would KILL for a strawberry right now! I was doing a detox shop at Whole Foods earlier today and was practically drooling walking by all the juicy, delicious blueberries, strawberries and raspberries! I had to leave the produce section and take a break lol it got too much. I’m sure it will get much easier soon!

After my workout, I obviously couldn’t have one of my regular smoothies.  So this is what I put in my detox-friendly shake – rice milk, half a banana, ground flax seed, honey, hemp protein, lots of kale, chia seeds, sesame seeds, and tons of cinnamon! It was actually pretty good :)

So far, I haven’t found too many sauces or dressings that I can eat while on this detox.  But hummus is definitely one! I quickly made this homemade hummus today so I would have something to make my food somewhat exciting.  I’ll try a different hummus recipe next time, as this one was pretty plain. Good for now though. Here’s the recipe for my hummus.

CLASSIC HUMMUS

Ingredients

• 1 can chickpeas
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp tahini
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Parsley for garnish

Directions

• Drain the chickpeas, leaving half the liquid, and add to the food processor or blender.  Then add remaining ingredients, except for the parsley. Pulse mixture until well combined and a smooth texture.
• Scoop into a serving bowl and sprinkle some chopped parsley and paprika over top.