Parfait Disaster

Last night I prepared a batch of overnight oats to make one of OSG's breakfast parfaits. In my excitement I may have misjudged my choice of complimenting ingredients. For those of you who have never seen these I will explain. The basic overnight oats consists of rolled oats, soy milk, chia seeds, a mashed banana and vanilla extract, soaked together in the fridge overnight. In the morning, after its thickened up, you can layer it with things such as banana soft serve, seed butter, granola, berries, etc. I used berries and soft serve, not thinking about how much raw fruit this was for first thing in the morning. I ate about 1/2 of it before thinking this is going to be bad.

 It may look tasty but don't be fooled!

About 1 minute before I was to walk out the door to catch my bus, I suddenly realized I was going to need to be crumbled up on the floor NOW.  After lets say 10mins laying on the bathroom floor trying to discern whether or not I was going to vomit, I stood up long enough to make some peppermint tea for the pain, then I was back on the floor.

Gently sipping on the tea, having a mental argument whether or not I would be able to get to work, the pain and nausea slowly subsided. Now an hour after I was supposed to leave for work I re-checked the buses and managed to force myself out the door. In the end I was very proud of myself for not letting a bad attack, especially first thing, hold me back. I got to work an hour late, and admittedly still felt crumby and foggy, but I made it through the day! YA me!! :)

**UPDATE: I tried making the overnight oats again and just sprinkling a bit of Holy Crap cereal and maple syrup on top. Still bad!!! Not as painful as with the overload of fruit, but still bad. Crossing this off the list. **

Yummy, not exactly breakfast bars

On the last day of my vacation (this past Sunday) I was looking for a breakfast recipe to try that was something I wouldn't normally make during the week. I found this recipe on www.vegweb.com for oatmeal breakfast bars. They are far too yummy for breakfast, they're more of a dessert or afternoon with coffee treat.

I may have had two today with my late morning coffee...

2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup raw sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

2 tbsp honey

1/2 cup softened vegan margarine

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix oatmeal, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, cranberries, sunflower seeds and honey. Add softened vegan margarine and mix thoroughly. 

 Place mixture in a 8" or 9" square pan and pat down firmly to flatten the surface.

Bake for about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely then cut into bars.

That's my favourite mug my friend Krista bought me in Disney World or Land...

It's huge, just how I like it

My Favourite Recipe

A few years ago Morgan signed us up for a cooking class with the city for my birthday. It was called An Evening With Chickpeas, and it was great! We learned about 5 recipes, and I use them all the time. My amazing hummus recipe... not really mine, it was from Rani our instructor. This spicy spinach chickpea dish is my favourite! I've adapted it a little bit, and it has become my go to dish for a potluck party. Then I was making it a couple days ago and couldn't believe I hadn't shared it with you yet!

As I've mentioned before, I love a cooking snack. I cubed a couple pieces of my gluten free bread, and mixed a bit of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, & oregano for dipping.

I wish I had a lighter coloured plate so you could see the oil & vinegar

This wine is my father in law's home brew. We got 12 bottles this past christmas, and that right there represents the second to last bottle :( 

1 can of chickpeas, drained & rinsed

1 pkg frozen spinach, defrosted & squeezed

1 med onion, chopped (I know I've been trying to cut down on the onion, but it's just so integral here)

2 cloves of garlic minced

1/2 a big can of crushed tomatoes (798 ml can, I usually eyeball this part, it was originally 1/4 cup, but it works out to just over 1 1/2 cups

1 tsp ground ginger

3/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp coriander, salt & garam masla*

1/4 tsp cayenne & tumeric

*You can find this in the import section of your grocery store OR make it yourself with a grinder.

3 tbsp coriander seeds

1 1/2 tbsp cumin seeds

1/2 tbsp whole black peppercorns 

1 whole black cardamom seeds or 4 green cardamom seeds

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (1 inch stick)

1/4 tsp dried ginger powder

Warm all ingredients except ginger & cinnamon in microwave for about 30 seconds. Put all ingredients into a grinder & grind to a fine powder. Store in an airtight container. I'm not gunna lie... I use the store bought stuff

1. Heat a little bit of oil in a big pan over medium high heat and saute the onions, garlic and cumin until the onions are golden

 

2. Add the ginger, coriander, cayenne, tumeric, & salt, continue sauteing for about 2 mins, then add the crushed tomatoes and cook for 2 more mins

3. Add the spinach, cook 5 mins

4. Add the chickpeas, cook 7 more mins. Turn down to minimum and simmer for a few minutes to lock in the flavour.

I usually eat this on its own, or with some naan bread or pitas. The original recipe, with way less crush tomato, was meant to be served in a wrap with lettuce and tomato. Hope you enjoy my favourite dish!