Thinking Out Loud- The randomness of the week!

Hello, hello there friends, how are we all today?
 (I always feel a little strange asking how everyone feels from behind a computer screen, but I just imagine everyone reading that and unconsciously answering the question with how they're feeling... because that's what I do... and that makes me feel better! ;)

And if you thought that was a random intro, just wait until we get into this weeks Thinking Out Loud Thursday, hosted by the awesome Amanda, from Running with Spoons, who week-in week-out continues to supply us with a healthy dose of random and inspire us to do the same!!

So without further ado- a look into the week that was and all the things that made me think... out loud!

1. Do you remember this post I did a little while back where I talked about how awesome these odd-bunch veggies are that my grocery store is now selling for cheaper prices just because they look a little funny?

 And how they didn't even look all that different to the regular produce? Well I got another bag of those odd-bunch carrots and was a lot more pleased and the crazy shaped carrots in my bag!
For example, this guy:

Thank you for making my dinner more enjoyable :)

It's hiding in there somewhere!!

2. On the topic of dinners (yes, we were on that topic, see dinner picture above :) Segue master!) I just want to mention this one... because it was epic:

Pasta, roasted eggplant + zucchini + mushrooms + capsicum rubbed with garlic, spinach, corn and a chunky tomato pasta sauce.

However it's not the tastiness of this dish that I want to discuss (but just know that it was awesome!) it's the pasta. See I bought a bag of this high protein lower carb pasta (not in the intentions of lowering carb intake, purely for the fact that one serve boasts over 10g of fiber!) and was cooking it up like regular pasta. After about 8 mins (the usual time for my pasta) I tested a piece and it was pretty solid. I let it simmer for another 5 mins, tested again.. still pretty hard!  Another 5 mins- sort of getting there. I went to the packet, looked at the cooking instructions and saw that this pasta requires 18-20mins cooking. Right. Well, the pasta was a little later than the other components, but that's fine :)

3. If you need extra convincing that my carb intake is still in full swing, then check out this epic lunch:

Cold roasted potatoes and sweet potatoes with spinach, cherry tomatoes, capsicum and a torn-up curry veggie patty. This was so, so good and seriously filled me up! Wasn't hungry for ages after this container of yum!

And of course... nothing beats cold roasted potatoes. Nothing.

4. One thing that doesn't fill me up- normal salads:

Carrot, cucumber, beetroot, bean sprouts, spinach, capsicum, tomato and chickpeas

No matter how much salad I make, I'm still hungry a couple hours later. I was still really craving all the fresh veggies though, so this lunch was also delightful!

5.  Whilst cross country practice is still in full swing, I not only have to pack delightful lunches (see above) but also portable breakfasts and my breakfast of choice for the first few weeks seemed to be choc protein overnight oats- super simple, tasty and filling!

However it wasn't long before I got sick of them. Then I made some truffles- in the freezer overnight and then defrosted in my bag while I trained. Also- so delicious and filling!

To change things up yet again I thought I would make some baked granola bars and they turned out great!! I was so set to post a little recap/ recipe of them however when I was scrolling through my photos, this was the only photo I managed to take:

Yep, I know you're salivating over that alfoil!
So instead here's my pre-cross country training breakfast:

Chopped up banana stirred with greek yoghurt... just what I need for a grueling workout!! (beach running wrecks me!)

6. On the cross country note- I'll have a recap of the big race today soon- I am pretty stoked! (no I didn't win!! ;)

I feel like this post is getting lengthier than planned so I'm going to end the random here. If you still want more, head on over to Spoons to see what everyone else is Thinking about!Bye friends!! :D

WIAW #55- Hectic day eats!

Hello there, lovely lovelies!
Yep, as usual, IT'S WEDNESDAY ALREADY!?! Is the thought coursing through my brain currently and as usual after re-checking my computer calender I am assured once again that it is in fact Wednesday! Time flies when you're having fun studying like a looney!

Any who, this post isn't about studying (we can't have too much fun here, guys!) this post is about food! Glorious food! In the style of a day of eating... in other words WIAW!! As usual, thanks a whole bunch of grapes to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for creating and hosting this link-up party. Now, FOOD!

Today's WIAW is a snapshot into what I ate Tuesday- a very, very, VERY busy day!!

Breakfast:
As exciting as becoming champion girl for cross country was... the cold, sometimes wet early morning trainings aren't always that flash. So why do I still enjoy them so much? :) I had to be up and out of bed at around 6 where I had my pre-training snack:

 Banana +

 Nut butter =

 Best sandwich ever!

Definitely got me roaring through training (from 7:00am- 8:00am)
After training I had to rush to an early class (Tuesday's are the only day of the week where I have to start at 8:00am- we have this thing called period 0, so we can have 2 hours of cooking in Food Science class) So I scoffed my brekky on the way to my class room- which was some choc protein overnight oats- no pic, sorry! :)

Snack: 11:00am
After running around like a mad thing I was finally able to have recess:

Frozen peas in a pot!

Lunch: 1:40pm
Then, can you believe it, I also had PE on that day! More running!! So by 1:40pm I was ready for lunch- I've never loved the sound of our school bell so much.

 A quinoa salad with coconut oil roasted sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts and eggplant along with some spinach:

 NOM! This was eating pretty fast!

Snack: 4:00pm
I was not surprised at all when I returned home from my hectic day STARVING! So I chopped up an apple and some rockmelon (best rockmelon I've ever had!) and poured myself a mug of soy milk:

And then I drove (yep, still driving- haven't ruined any cars yet!) with my mum to my flute lesson and promptly returned home to my beautiful pile of homework :)

Dinner: 6:45pm
And of course I was starving again by the time dinner rolled around, so this dinner was a mix and match of everything I felt like!!

 A piece of rye bread, toasted and spread with hommus, topped with 2 poached eggs:

Some no-added salt baked beans stirred into some sauteed onions, capsicum, garlic, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and tomato paste:

 And some mashed avocado topped with organic blue maize tortilla chips:

 Kinda weird, but totally hit the spot!
I was still hungry of course and had a scoop of greek yoghurt and some walnuts as well straight afterwards :D

That's what I ate!
Yeh, it was hectic but I still ate some awesome stuff and I think it's days like this that make me truly appreciate extra time for myself!

Your turn:
What do you eat when life gets hectic?
Best sandwich ever? Sometimes I can't get enough of PB and apple sandwiches either!
Ever jazz up a simple tin of baked beans? Usually I just throw in some frozen peas and corn... this day I was really craving sauteed onions for some reason.. the sweetness maybe?


Have an absolutely fabulous day and eat something incredibly delicious!! Bye friends :D

The never-ending oat combos!

Hi friends!
Here's a question for you:
Firstly, I'm going to make a generalisation (*gasp*) about the majority of my readers being either blog writers themselves, healthy living blog writers, avid blog readers and probably avid healthy living blog readers. If not- you have surprised me- well done ;)

I'm also going to make the generalisation that the majority of you have or even regularly cook oats and share my love for them (if not, that's cool, I'm sure there's another healthy living blogger stereotype you fit :)

Anywho, my question!
Before you guys found your love of creating delicious bowls of oats with all kinds of add-ins and flavours, did you ever think oatmeal was just plain boring old sachets of mush that you had to either cover in sugar or honey? I know I did.

I had no idea about rolled oats and steel cut oats and oat bran and cooking them on a stove tops and adding berries/ bananas/ apples/ pumpkin/ chocolate/ vanilla etc. I would simply pour in a measly serving size sachet (yes! Alliteration :)) add some milk, cook it in the microwave (more often than not causing a messy microwave explosion) and top with honey.

Then I began reading blogs.
The world changed forever!
At first it was adding a sliced banana to the oats after cooking.
Then it was mashing a banana in a bowl and microwaving it after I microwaved the oats and then mixing them together.
Then microwaving together.
Then- magic! Stove top oats and all the never-ending possibilities!

Some early oat bowls:

Yep.

I was scrolling through my pictures from the previous week and was astounded at the vast array of flavours in my oats I enjoy over a week- how the times have changed!

First of all I made some overnight pumpkin oats in an almost-empty-jar of mixed nut butter- which was awesome! (with a side of berry fro-yo - forzen berries + greek yoghurt, whazzed)

Into the jar went 1/2 cup rolled oats + 1/2 cup steamed, mashed and cooled pumpkin + 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon + dash of nut meg + sprinkle of chia seeds + 1 cup almond milk, all stirred up together and left in the fridge overnight:

Up next I was feeling something warmer, comforting and CHOCOLATE!

Enter chocolate protein steel cut oats!

Into a saucepan went 1/2-3/4 cup steel cut oats + 1 scoop choc protein powder (I use this one) + a few big dashes of cinnamon + 1 sliced banana + 1 cup almond milk + 1 cup water- heated on medium heat for 20 mins and let to sit for another 10 mins to cool.

With some cashew butter hidden on the bottom, half the oats poured in, a little more PB in the middle, rest of the oats and topped with a tad more peanut butter- so good!

Then I was feeling something a little fresher, a little fruity, a little tangy!

Some mixed berry cheesecake oats!

This was 1 cup rolled oats + 1 sliced banana + 1 handful mixed frozen berries + 1 cup almond milk + 1/2 cup water, heated on medium heat for around 10 mins until all the liquid was absorbed and then let sit to cool for another 10 mins before stirring in a couple of scoops of greek yoghurt.

Into a bowl (you know there was some extra nut butter hidden throughout it) and topped with some mixed nut butter

That was just from one week of breakfasts!

I love experimenting with my oats and the possibilities really are never-ending (I haven't quite become brave enough to try savoury oats, or to add egg whites to my oats- apparently it makes the texture better) and I can't wait to experiment further and enjoy some awesome bowls (or mugs, or cups) of oats!

Your turn:
Did you ever have quick oat sachets?
What did your first bowls of oats look like? Mine were not photo-worthy that's for sure!

Current favourite flavour combo in your oats?

That's it from me today folks! Anyone else got a sudden hankering for oats? Just me? Ahh well there's a cure for that one! ;) Have a fabulous day and I'll be back tomorrow! Bye friends! :D

Preparation made easy!

Hidy-ho folks!
How's the week been treating you so far?
Mines been pretty decent. Decent food (we all know that's a lie- AWESOME food!) Decent school days, decent amount of homework, decent amount of time to relax...
Ok- they're all lies! I'm not saying school is bad, I'm saying the amount of work we tackle each day is almost comical. Almost. And the level of homework can only be described as horrendous and what even is relaxation? It's probably hanging out somewhere with the life that left me after starting year 11. Sigh.
One would think with all that complaining, I have no time to even butter a piece of bread let alone cook my breakfasts, lunches and dinners, right?

Wrong.

Food is one area in my life that I take very seriously, because I know how I can feel if I let my nutrition slip. Not good. So even though it takes a little extra effort and time- I do it. Planning ahead is my saviour, so here are a few of my sneaky tricks:

Egg bakes:

An egg bake is so easy to whip up and make ahead. It lasts well and tatses even better cold the next day anyway!
My typical recipe goes a little something like this:
2 eggs
1 heaped cup veggies (chopped capsicum, mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant, corn, peas, kale, onion- whatever I have on hand really)
1/4 cup almond milk
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon garlic
optional- spices (I alternate between mexican spices and simply paprika, or cumin, stuff like that)

Whisked altogether and then poured into two ramekins to bake in the oven (180 degrees celsius) for 30 mins- until set.

Hello lunch!

Seeing as you already have the oven on, you may as well prepare something for brekky the following day, too!
Baked oatmeal is my friend!

So simple to make and perfect for a make-in-advance meal!
I simply place my ingredients for making oatmeal (this was choc oatmeal)
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 teapsoon chia seeds
1 scoop choc protein powder
1 teaspoon raw cacao powder
1 thinly sliced banana
a few big dashes of cinnamon
1 cup almond milk
into a saucepan on medium heat, stirring continuously until most of the liquid has been absorbed and then pouring into a greased ramekin/ mini loaf pan and baking for 45 mins at 180 degrees celsius until firm. Remove from ramekin, leave to cool completely and then place in container in the fridge until required.
Required:

I heated my chocolatey bake up in the microwave for 30 seconds with some peanut butter... :)

Done and done:

Roasted veggies are always a really awesome way to prep ahead and ensure a tasty lunch the following day:

Super-simple, yet again, chopped potato, white sweet potato, baby carrots, beetroot, parsnip and pumpkin drizzled in oil and roasted at 180 degrees celsius for 45mins-1 hour.

Whacked into a container with some spinach and garlic tofu- job done!!
Lastly, another make-ahead brekky that just tastes so good!
Make ahead truffles:

Sorry about the side ways pic... tilt your head to the left and it should be fine!

These particular truffles were fudgey, banana-y, almond butter-y balls of epic-ness. yep.
Throw into a bowl:
1/2 cup muesli
1 teaspoon chia seeds
1/2 mashed banana (freeze other half)

Melt together in microwave for 20 seconds, then add to bowl:

1-2 tablespoons almond butter (I did closer to two ;)
2 tablespoons milk (I used almond milk)

Wet your hands, roll-y roll and place in a container for the freezer:

When ready to eat, remove from freezer for 20-30 mins and then enjoy!

I had mine after a long run with some banana fro-yo (1/2 the leftover frozen banana+ 3 big scoops greek yoghurt) and it hit. the. spot!

:)

That is how I manage to get through each day ensuring my meals are filled with all the essential vitamins, minerals and nutrients my hectic lifestyle requires! Also, I wouldn't be happy with a Vegemite sandwich for lunch and a bowl of cereal for brekky.... that's another reason I have to prep in advance! Standards people!

What about you?
Do you ever have to prep in advance?
Awesome things that last overnight/ longer?
Fan of baked oatmeal? It took me a while to get on the baked oatmeal train... but now I love it!


That's it from me today folks (gotta run! As usual!) so I hope I have gifted you with some inspiration if you're ever in a time pickle and want need something tasty. Have a fabulous day! Bye! :D