Fall Oatmeal
Posted: September 5, 2011 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: almond butter, apple, baby, cinnamon, flax, maple syrup, overnight oats, sleeping 20 Comments »I don’t mean to just keep posting about my breakfasts.
But it just seems like the easiest (only?) time of day I have to actually photograph and sit down with my food. Fortunately, I had the foresight last night to put together some overnight oats. My only regret is that I didn’t make 2x this amount.
- 1/2 cup oats
- 1 cup coconut milk (the boxed beverage, not canned)
- 1 T maple syrup
- 1 T ground flax
Then this morning I cut up an apple, sprinkled some cinnamon, dipped a spoon in almond butter and called it all breakfast. It was exceptional. And very fall-like.
Also, I skipped coffee this morning in hopes that I’ll be able to take a nap soon. Adrienne has completely forgotten how to sleep thought night. In fact, she’s forgotten how to sleep more than a three hours at a time. Teething, maybe? I need advice. Or an all-night babysitter.
***
Go Vote! (’ll only bug you about it everyday until September 9th)
Meeker likes tofu.
Posted: June 20, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, leftover lunches | Tags: almonds, apple, applesauce, flax, panini, tofu, veggie sandwich 27 Comments »(He’s going to kill me for that title)
It’s been raining all day here, so we’ve been pretty house bound (except for trip to the grocery store and a twenty minute reprieve from the rain, during which Adrienne and I went for a brisk walk).
Breakfast
Admittedly, an odd one.
We went to Meeker’s parents’ for dinner last night came home with a tub full of roasted veggies – best.leftovers.ever.
For breakfast, I sandwiched them in some bread, added some feta cheese and panini pressed them.
Lunch
Look familiar? Same veggies with mustard and bbq sauce on top.
Then I had one of my favorite snacks as of late…
Applesauce, oats, ground flax seed, chocolate chips and almonds – you’ve got to try this, it’s incredible. I think I’ve had four bowls like this in the last two days. And probably another one for dessert tonight.
Another snack later on…
Dinner
Ginger, red bell peppers, garlic, shallots
I (sort of) followed this recipe – cut way down on the butter (really 11 tablespoons??) and left out the black pepper because I don’t really like it. Both Meeker and I agreed it was the best tofu dish I’ve made – looks like Meeker likes tofu.
Thoughts on tofu?
Mellow Monday
Posted: May 23, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: almond butter, apple, banana bread, cookies, fruit, Monday, salad, sandwich 24 Comments »We had such a nice ease into the week today. It started and ended with nice long walks. The space between was filled with eating, napping, and watching a giant thunderstorm roll across the Rocky Mountains.
Have I mentioned that I love my new life?
Breakfast
toasted banana bread with almond butter and fruit
plus coffee – luckily, my 2nd hand coffee doesn’t seem to affect Adrienne too much, so I’m gonna keep on drinkin’ it.
Lunch
a little sandwich on a ww English muffin – turkey, cucumber, avocado, and mustard
plus two cowboy cookies that my mama brought us yesterday
Dinner
I was really craving salad for dinner, but we didn’t have any leafy greens, so I combined all the veggies I could find and put them on a plate, and covered it all in balsamic vinaigrette.
asparagus, cucumber, celery, and roasted potatoes
Dessert
a pinova apple
How was your Monday?
One Week
Posted: May 18, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: almond butter, apple, chia seeds, lasagna, oatmeal, one week old, rain, salad, trail mix 32 Comments »It’s been gloomy outside today…rain, rain, go away. Adrienne (and Mama) want to play.
So instead, we hung out inside doing things like laundry, singing, dancing, reading, and watching TV. We also had some family come over to play with (hold) Little A.
Breakfast
½ cup oats, 1 tbs. chia seeds, 1 cup water, ¼ cup vanilla soy milk, plus almond butter and…
My 3 secret ingredients
Lunch – light and snacky.
Dinner
Turkey lasagna and salad – same as yesterday – even better on day two.
In the baby world…
Adrienne is one week old today! It crazy to think that we’ve only known her for seven days – it seems like she’s been part of our family all along. So far, her interests include eating and sleeping – both which she did a lot of today.
Happy birthday, Sweet One!
Mrs. Baby
Posted: April 28, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: apple, cake, insomnia, juice, mango, oatmeal, roasted veggies, veggie wraps 24 Comments »Sleeeepy.
I woke up at 1:39am and couldn’t go back to sleep. I read part of this book. I cleaned the house. I played with the cat. I went to the gym.
After I got home, I managed to fall back asleep around 4:30, and slept like a rock until about 6:00.
Whereupon I drank some juice…
ate ½ of this bowl of oatmeal (it lost its appeal midway through)
and finished it all off with a few bites of cake.
Lunch
Two veggie wraps: spinach, cucumber, bean sprouts, spicy mustard
mangoes are hard to slice with a butter knife
Obligatory gala x2
Dinner
The roasted veg.
Zucchini and carrots were eaten plain. Sweet potatoes were dipped in spicy bbq sauce.
In the 3rd grade world…
I get called a lot of things throughout the day:
Mrs. Unger, Mom, Dad, Grandma, Mr. Mendez (the other 3rd grade teacher’s name).
I respond to them all.
But there was a new one today that made me laugh. A little girl walked up to me today, gave me a hug, and addressed me as Mrs. Baby…
Apparently, my kiddos are as preoccupied with Baby Cake’s approaching arrival as I am. Maybe it’s because my bulging belly squished her in the face when she attempted to wrap her arms around me for a hug.
…like a pig.
Posted: April 26, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: apple, bagel, cheese, cookie dough smoothie, fireflies, peanut butter, spinach, strawberries, tortilla 28 Comments »In writing class today, my 3rd graders learned about similes and metaphors. They wanted example after example of these concepts, and for some reason, all of my illustrations had to do with food. The simile that made them howl with laughter was the one that rang true for me today…
Mrs. Unger eats like a pig.
Pre-workout breakfast: juice and a slice of toast.
Post-workout breakfast:
I was a sleepy sloth this morning, so I decided to have some real coffee when I got to work. My first cup of caffeinated coffee in 10 months.
Mistake. This left me as jittery as a coke addict. I think I’ll have to ease myself back into caffeine after Baby Cakes arrives.
Mid-morning snack: apple and almonds
Lunch #1
apple + tortilla with peanut butter and spinach – don’t knock it until you try it.
Lunch #2
Spread on a toasted ww bagel
Plus some fruity goodness…
I just walked in the door from school, and so far I’ve hoovered a leftover spring roll, a bowl of grape nuts, and I’m sure there is more snacking to be done tonight. I’m still as hungry as a bear.
I’ve lost my will to cook, but definitely not my will to eat.
In the 3rd grade world…
Because my departure from school is impending, and I’ll most likely miss the spring concert, my kiddos begged the music teacher to accompany them as they sang their end of year song to me today.
So, they serenaded me with Fireflies – and I bawled like a baby.
Sure, it was probably hormone induced, but I was a wreck just thinking about leaving my little nine-year-old-nuggets for the year. Any day could be my last day… and that is kind of exciting, and kind of heartbreaking.
Nonnie Knows Best
Posted: March 28, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, dessert, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: apple, asparagus, bagel, brownie, buffalo brisket, cereal, clif bar, cucumber, cuties, nonnie, salad, spinach 27 Comments »I’ve got to figure out how to sleep at night. I had another 2:30am workout last night because I couldn’t sleep…blech. At least I got it out of the way, right?
(Any mamas out there have tips on sleeping through the night when you have a 5lb. squiggly basketball attached to your belly?)
Breakfast
Grape nuts, frosted mini wheats, banana, coconut milk
Lunch
Toasted bagel with cucumber, spinach, and mustard
Snack Drawer
I had never had that type of Clif Bar before – but it was yummy. The only Clif Bar I’ve met and didn’t like was blueberry. Ick.
Dinner
asparagus, buffalo brisket, and salad
I called my grandma last night and asked her how to make brisket. She told me to put it in a covered pan with liquid smoke and worcestershire sauce, and cook it at 225* for 8 hours. And when your 90 year old Nonnie tells you that’s how you cook brisket – you don’t question her.
It was perfect.
Dessert
cakey brownie and a dollop of cool whip
In the 3rd grade world…
This is actually from last Thursday (St. Patrick’s Day), but I felt so lousy last week, that I’m just NOW getting around to posting about what the LEPRECHAUNS did to our classroom!
Those sneaky little buggers. (Surprisingly, they only dumped out the really messy desks – imagine that??)
Luckily, they left a treat for those students who helped clean up…
8 year olds will do just about anything for a peppermint patty.
Squished
Posted: February 22, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners | Tags: apple, fajitas, Jamaican jerk seasoning, nut butter, veggies 33 Comments »I turned on the air conditioning in my car today. In February. I don’t even use my air conditioning in July.
Baby Cakes is making me hot, and, as someone who is freezing cold 90% of the time, I love it.
Breakfast
Pinova apple and my homemade nut butter
We had ½ cup(ish) each of cashews, walnuts, and almonds hiding in the back of the cabinet – so I threw them all in the food processor with some salt, turned it on for about 3 minutes, and voila – mixed nut butter. Deeelicious.
For lunch, I had leftover tortilla soup.
After school I had a doctor’s appointment, and I haven’t gained any weight in the last few weeks. While that’s okay with me, it’s apparently not good for Baby Cakes, so I resolved to eat all of my dinner tonight.
Not a problem with these Jamaican Jerk Fajitas. I had no idea what I was doing – I just wikipediea-ed “jerk seasoning” and then went wild.
The veggies: zucchini, two bell peppers (yellow/red), red onion, two rings of canned pineapple (okay, not a veggie) – all sliced
The “jerk” seasoning: allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, thyme, salt, pepper – I think it was about 1 tsp. of each
I sautéed it all with about a tablespoon of olive oil.
Just like the doctor prescribed, I ate the whole thing (granted, it was a taco-sized tortilla) – and it was seriously good.
Then I drank a sip of water. Then I burped – and I threw up. (Luckily, I was standing next to the sink.) I guess it was too much food for my squished stomach. Lesson learned. I’ll figure out a way to squeeze in those extra calories somehow.
In the 3rd grade world…
Another fantastically entertaining journal response.
This morning’s prompt was:
If you were given a plain white shirt to decorate however you wanted, what would it look like? Why?
I would make an awesome shirt. It would have the words NO GIRLS on the back. It would have a bomb. There would be flames on it. But before all that, I would get it to be black. Maybe I’ll put paint ball splatters. Then I’d put a face that’s flaming. It would be awesome. That’s the way I’d decorate it.
Your best guess…written by a boy or a girl??
Double Happy Day
Posted: January 31, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: apple, camera, portebello mushroom, protein shake, salad, snow day 35 Comments »
Guess who already has a snow day tomorrow? No, not Punky – she doesn’t go to school.
This 3rd grade teacher – who incidentally has a piece of mushroom in her teeth in this picture.
The other happy news?? I got a new camera today!! I’ve been saving up for months, and Meeker surprised me and ordered it last week. It came in the mail today. It was like Christmas when I came home from work…a snow day for tomorrow and a brand new camera to play with?! When I called my mama to tell her all the good news she exclaimed…oh double happy day!
So, most of the day I took pictures with my old camera, but dinner (and the 2 above photos) are from the new guy. I have SO much to learn about it, I can hardly wait.
Breakfast
Protein shake made with almond milk and chocolate protein powder + ½ a frozen banana. As an afterthought, I had a piece of millet bread with peanut butter and raisins as I was walking out the door.
Lunch
This salad delicious and was really only $3.99.
Plus a new (to me) kind of apple…
A pinova! It was delicious and crispy – almost like a sweeter gala. And yes, this picture was taken while my kiddos were in the room. It was about 2 degrees outside today, so we had indoor recess – which is when I ate my lunch.
Snack
Ezekiel sprouted grain wrap with peanut butter, cinnamon and raisins + another apple. I love these wraps – so grainy and good.
Dinner
Portebello mushroom burger – from the Engine 2 Website – my new favorite place for recipes. Meeker couldn’t believe he was eating a meatless dinner. Especially one that had the word “burger” in it.
But after a couple of bites, he said he really liked it, and if he had to go on a “vegetarian diet” – he would eat meals like this. I win.
And I was so excited about my new camera – I photographed and took a bite of my burger before I remembered to put the caramelized onions on top.
That’s better.
In the 3rd grade world…
Well, it doesn’t really get more exciting than snow days, however, this math project came pretty close.
She got an A+
Apple Wheat Scones
Posted: January 27, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast | Tags: apple, Babycakes, scones, vegan 26 Comments »Okay, this is kind of a fall recipe, but my obsession with apples is growing deeper and deeper, so I centered this (vegan) scone recipe around my favorite little gala.
Apple Wheat Scones
2 cups flour
2/3 cup wheat germ
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
a pinch of ground nutmeg
1/3 cup Earth Balance (or any butter substitute)
1 large Gala apple, peeled and chopped
½ cup vanilla soy milk
¼ cup agave
Topping:
2 tsp. wheat germ
2 tsp. sugar
¼ tsp. cinnamon
Combine the dry ingredients (flour, wheat germ, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, nutmeg) in one bowl. Combine the apple, milk, and agave in a smaller bowl. Then cut the earth balance into the flour mixture until crumbly. Add the milk mixture to the dry bowl and mix until just combined.
Turn dough onto a floured surface and pat into a disk – about ½ inch thick. Combine the topping ingredients and sprinkle over dough. Cut into eight wedges and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400* for 15 – 18 minutes. Remove and cool.
I’m currently at my last childbirth preparation class, and I can say – taking this class is one of the best things I’ve ever done. I went into it terrified of giving birth, and I can honestly say that just 12 hours of class has made me feel confident and so excited to bring little Baby Cakes into the world. Now I just have to wait about 3 more months…
In the 3rd grade world…
We are reading a story that takes place during the Great Depression, so I had my kiddos research 5 facts about that period of history this morning.
Two fashion forward boys came up with this little nugget…
