Non-Cook Oatmeal Step-by-Step

Once again, I'm going to rave about oatmeal and this non-cook version. Here's what you do:

1. The night before, put 1/2 oats and 1/2 milk (any type, I use soymilk) in a bowl and put in the fridge.
2. The next morning, add some frozen blueberries to your oats and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes.

3. Next, add a little agave syrup and cereal for crunch.

4. Add 1-2 tablespoons of almond butter for protein and a little milk on top to finish it off.

5. Enjoy the deliciousness.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

My husband's absolute favorite meal that I make is a slow-cooker pot roast. We don't eat red meat that often, but when we do, it's more often than not this recipe. Based upon what I've learned about the meat industry, I try to only consume meat that is hormone and antibiotic free, preferably organic.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast - Serves 4-6
3 lb. chuck roast
6-8 small potatoes
4 garlic cloves
1 can of whole tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
3-4 large carrots, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large skillet, brown the meat on all sides. Then, place meat in slow cooker and cover with the rest of the ingredients. Cook on high for 6 hours.

At some point, I want to try grass-fed meat. There are several local sources where I live. Has anyone tried this type of meat?

Errand Day

Today was a busy day! First, I finished a report for school and then skedaddled off to yoga. I'm convinced that the difference between hating yoga and actually kinda liking it is due to the instructor. The instructor that is teaching the Tuesday morning class at my gym right now is awesome. I can't explain exactly what makes her so great, but she is slightly irreverent and not at all "yoga-y" if you know what I mean. I think what I'm trying to say is that she doesn't take the yoga aspect too seriously. Instead, we get a great stretch with some strength-building and relaxation. The best part: I haven't gotten bored in her class so far.

After getting fully stretched, I went to the drugstore to pick up some prescriptions, got gas, went to lunch (see below), did some birthday present and baby shower shopping for a few friends, did some personal shopping (you know I did), went to the natural foods store, went to the farmstand and came home and collapsed. FYI: collapsed means laying on the couch for an hour and watching last night's episode of Kell on Earth. I am so addicted to that show!

Here's where I went to lunch, it's called Big Sky Cafe if you can't read the sign because of the pesky tree in front of it:

I started off with some Breakfast Blend tea (even though it was lunchtime):

I didn't order my favorite dish (pozole), but instead tried the Vegan Black Bean Burger. It was served with the salad of the day which was a Vietnamese Cole Slaw and was entirely tooooo spicy for me. The burger was good though. I had to order an extra side of the chipotle mayo.

After that, visited my local natural foods store for some basics:

Some guy saw me taking this picture and wanted to know all about my camera. The funny thing is that my camera is not special at all, it's a Canon Powershot something or other. The guy was so not hitting on me, he really wanted to know everything about my camera. Random.

This is most of what I got. I left out the bulk items (mostly grains) and some other stuff that got put into the fridge. I bought some coconut oil for the first time and plan to use it in place of olive oil when appropriate.

Any other yogis out there? How many times a week do you practice? On days that you do yoga, do you also do cardio?

Easy Crock Pot Chicken

I had some fun with my blog layout this weekend. I'm still considering changing to a Wordpress format, but I have to find someone to help me. I'm soooooo technically-incompetent. I DID, however, join Twitter this weekend. I put a link in the sidebar or you can look for me under my user name: LVHealthyLiving. I can't promise you'll find me tweeting anything interesting, just more random musings.

My cat "helped" me when I was working. When she wasn't lowering my blood pressure (hypothetically) by sitting on my lap and letting me pet her, she was rubbing her face on the edge of my screen and posing cutely for photos. I brought up my blog's home page when I took this photo. She's my little mascot:

I made my famous chicken in the crock pot yesterday. I say famous like it's something special. Really, you just throw an onion, red pepper, salsa, garlic and some spices in the pot and then put several browned chicken breasts on top. Then, cook it on high for 5-6 hours. It shreds easily and is very moist and tender.

I served it with some yogurt, steamed broccoli and cornbread. I made the cornbread using Bob's Red Mill medium grind cornmeal (the recipe is on the back of the package).

I don't recommend leaving out the 1/2 teaspoon of salt that is recommended. I did and the cornbread was pretty bland. Nothing a little honey wouldn't solve.

I had this meal again tonight for dinner. I'm starting to realize how much I love easy-to-prepare meals and leftovers. I love cooking but I just don't want to spend that much time in the kitchen.

Chanterelle Pizza

Doesn't chanterelle pizza sound very gourmet and fancy? It's not really. I've never used these mushrooms before, but they showed up at my local farm stand last week. They are kind of weird looking, but I was assured they would be delicious sauteed and baked on a pizza.

I didn't make a red sauce for the pizza because I thought the tomato flavor might overwhelm the mushrooms. So I rolled out the dough, sauteed some onions, garlic and mushrooms, and steamed some broccoli. Then, I just used fresh mozzarella cheese and piled it all on.

The results were pretty darn tasty. I split the pizza with my husband for dinner and made a small salad to go with it.

These chanterelles are probably about as fancy as I'll get. Don't expect any foie gras or escargot anytime soon!

Avocados

Aren't avocados the best? I never ate them when I was younger, I think it was that whole "fat is bad" campaign during the 80s and 90s. I was always told how fattening they are, as if that made them comparable to french fries or something.

Times have changed. Certainly, avocados do contain fat, but it's monounsaturated not saturated. In other words, avocados contain the good fat that we need for our bodies. 

There's a farmer in my area who sells the Zutano variety of avocados, they are green-skinned and very buttery. They're large but look how much space the pit took up!

My favorite variety, though, is probably the Fuerte. They are also green-skinned and buttery, but have a slightly better flavor than the Zutanos.

I had the same thing for lunch today that I had last night for dinner. I didn't eat the applesauce on my plate, I just wasn't hungry enough for it today.

As crazy as this sounds, I have been really careful about the added sugar in my diet lately and I have noticed that my sugar cravings have diminished over a period of about 5 days. I'm trying to keep my daily intake of added sugar under 6 teaspoons a day which is what the American Heart Association recommends. It's hard but can be done. Now if I can only stick to it...

Leftover Lentils and Brown Rice Mess

Tonight for dinner I wanted to use some leftover lentils and brown rice that had been in the fridge for a few days. Here's what I came up with.

Lentils and Brown Rice Mess - Serves 4-6
1-2 cups cooked lentils
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/4 cup toasted walnuts
3 chopped garlic cloves
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil

Combine all ingredients except lemon juice and olive oil in a food processor and mix until combined. Pour into a big bowl and add lemon juice and olive oil. Make into patties or just saute spoonfuls in a small skillet for 4-6 minutes.

I had planned to make burgers with this mixture, but I ran out of eggs and had no "glue." So my burgers turned into a bit of a mess:

I got one normal-looking burger:

I just sauteed the mess until it was browned. There's nothing that has to get cooked but it should be nice and warm before serving. Then, I piled it into a pita with some yogurt and served with a half an avocado on the side. Without the egg, this dish is great for vegans. Tucked into a pita or wrap, this mess is perfectly delicious.

What do you do with leftover lentils or brown rice?

When it Rains...

Yesterday afternoon I picked up the first of my grain CSA packages. I signed up for 3 months of locally-grown grains including 2.5 lbs. each of whole wheat flour and wheatberries.

I'll probably use the flour in a pizza ASAP, but I'm not sure how I'll use the wheatberries just yet. I'll let you know what I do with them.

Last night I made a recipe from my new cookbook purchase, Fresh Flavor Fast. This was the Spicy Black Bean Soup and it was pretty good, but not that spicy. First I combined vegetables, beans and water:

Then I blended it with my hand immersion blender, topped it with cooked bacon and some yogurt so it looked like this:

The bacon was nice but not necessary. I used the bacon grease to saute the veggies at the beginning, but next time I might make it vegetarian.

So I finally got over my cold of 2 weeks only to wake up with a migraine in the middle of the night. Darn. I wasn't feeling that hungry for lunch today so I made a simple salad of brown rice and lentils with a side of pita chips and kiwi. Light but very satisfying.

Fortunately, my headache has gone away so I'm able to write this post! I've suffered from migraines for many years now but I'm just starting to learn about their causes and how to manage them better. Turns out diet is a big component. And stress. Any advice from fellow migraine-sufferers?

Another Rainy Day

It's raining here on California's Central Coast again today. That's a good thing, though. I've noticed in this colder weather that I haven't been making salads for lunch as much. That makes sense. Who wants a cold salad when it's cold outside? Instead, I've been making more wraps and hot items.

Today I made a hummus wrap with roasted butternut squash. It was very filling. I couldn't eat the kiwi or finish the wrap.

Isn't this bowl cute? I got a set of them at Ikea:

It's been a full 2 weeks since I got sick with my cold, but I'm starting to feel back to normal now. I'm grateful that I enjoy good health most of the time; being sick is a real bummer.

Any good ideas out there for quick, hot lunch meals?

To Breakfast or Not?

Are you a breakfast eater? The reason I ask is because eating breakfast is associated with better weight control according to the National Weight Loss Registry: http://www.nwcr.ws/Research/default.htm

Lately I've been having my green smoothie one day and then oatmeal the next. See my no-cook oatmeal details in a previous post here: Oatmeal Recipe

Here's what my bowl looked like today:

I add some cereal on top for the crunch and sweetness. Also, I have 3-4 boxes of cereal that I'm trying to finish off. At some point, I may completely give up cereal for just oatmeal. I love the 1-2 tablespoons of almond butter, too. It gives it the protein and richness I need. Mmmmmmm!!!

Day in SB

I can't say enough how much I enjoy spending time in Santa Barbara. I did get married there, after all! It's such a wonderful place to visit, there is always something to do or see.

Today, the occasion to visit was the Santa Barbara Home & Garden Show. My husband and I have some friends who had a booth for their business. We went down for the day to support them and to have lunch and do some shopping.

The show wasn't all that exciting. I didn't take any photos. We got there early so there weren't that many other attendees. As a result, the vendors were very aggressive in trying to get our attention as we walked around. I even got an offer to model a hot tub in the nude. Wow.

So, after leaving our friends and the show, my husband and I went to the Sojourner Cafe for another fabulous lunch. Our first trip here was back in December: First Visit to Sojourner Cafe

Today I had the Chile Relleno Casserole (yum!):

And shared a piece of Chocolate Macaroon Torte (!!!):

And...I'm not finished...a Brownie Bite:

Love that place. Afterwards, we hit up Peet's Coffee & Tea on State Street for some, ahem, coffee and tea. I then hit up Anthropologie, Gap, Sephora and Lululemon. Good thing I only found a sports bra on sale so the damage wasn't too bad.

I think I FINALLY turned the corner on my cold although I can't say I'm back to normal. A few days off from the gym seems to have helped.

What did you do this weekend that was fun?

Friday Stuff

I started off today with my Green Machine Smoothie:

As someone who doesn't necessarily like vegetables, especially greens, it gives me great satisfaction to get a full serving at breakfast. I'm telling you, you cannot taste the greens in it.

Then, I went to a yoga class which was surprisingly nice. I'm not getting that much more flexible, but my focus seems to be getting better during class. The hour goes by pretty quickly. I also position myself so I can look out the window during class and I find it very relaxing. 

This afternoon I stopped by the farm stand to pick up some more tangerines, carrots and butternut squash. The tangerines right now are so sweet and make a great dessert since I'm trying to cut back on refined sugar for a few weeks. That being said, I have a trip planned to Santa Barbara on Sunday and I fully intend to have dessert at my new favorite vegetarian restaurant (they make amazing desserts).

Here's a photo I took at the farm stand of the clouds. We are supposed to get a lot of rain tonight!

Busy Bee

I have been a busy bee these past 2 days. My cold is still with me, unfortunately. I went to the gym yesterday and did 35 minutes on the elliptical machine and about 15 minutes of weights. This morning I just wasn't up to the gym so I went on a walk for about 45 minutes. I also did a ton of errands this afternoon. I bought myself a treat at Costco, the new Everyday Food book, called "Fresh Flavor Fast."

I can't wait to make some of the recipes from this book. All of the recipes have pictures which makes it that much more enticing.

It was an absolutely beautiful day today on the Central Coast of California, here's a photo I took while I was doing my errands:

The recent rains have turned our hills green. We have more rain coming tomorrow so I certainly enjoyed the sunshine today.

The Way Home

My husband, our two cats and I made the journey home yesterday. We beat a small rainstorm that is hitting the central coast today. We are supposed to get much more rain later this week. I caught some photos of the snow-capped mountains driving through Los Angeles yesterday. Aren't they pretty? Who said it doesn't snow in Southern California?

We got home around 2 p.m. and I had time to visit the local farm stand, Trader Joe's and the library. Alan had to stay home and wait for the cable guy to repair our cable box that died while we were gone. It's so nice to be home! Isn't one of the best parts of a vacation coming home?

When's your next vacation and where will you be going (or wish to go)?

Too Much Fun

I think I had too much fun this past weekend so I had a small relapse in my cold today. I was very tired and congested. Today is day 8 and, according to the Mayo Clinic website, most colds average about 10 days. I'll be sure to try and get good sleep tonight since I'm headed back to the coast tomorrow and it's a 300-mile drive. I'll split the driving with my husband but it's still a long trip.

I made a big, fresh salad for lunch today with sunflower seeds, tuna, dried cranberries and chopped red bell pepper. I don't think I dried the lettuce leaves enough so the dressing didn't stick very well and the salad was bland. Or, maybe my taste buds were depressed. The avocado tasted great though. It was a Fuerte type as opposed to the normal Haas you see in the stores. The flesh was buttery and delicious!

Finished off my lunch with a piece of See's candy. Mmmmm.

Had to post this picture of my cat Xena. She dragged her bed off the  ottoman and chose to sleep on it upside down.

See you from the coast!