I Must Confess

I must confess...

that I partaked in the worst bowl of oatmeal I've ever had.

Don't be fooled by it's appearance. This was horrendous. After going with plan old fashioned oats or steel cut oats, the pre-packaged Quaker already sweetened stuff smells delicious but tastes horrid. Even the peanut butter couldn't save it. And no the peanut butter never did melt. At all.

I must confess...

That I have filled numerous camera cards with pictures of these girls. Lily is love. I also must confess that 2 dogs is a massive difference from 1 dog. A difference I do not wish to partake in for lengthy periods of time despite the cuteness.

I must confess..

That I purchased and attempted to eat beautiful looking but horribly expensive and horrible tasting grocery store salads.
All of my favorite dressing in the world couldn't save this beast.

I must confess...

That numerous spoons of glorious peanut butter were had. While away I didn't have access to my stash but for some reason really enjoyed the Kraft Creamy Peanut Butter of my childhood.

I must confess...

That I made homemade granola for the bf and while I really should read directions completely instead of just reading the ingredient list and jumping in ( read : add raisins AFTER baking ) he loved this and said it reminded him of oatmeal raisin cookie granola style.





I must confess...

It's been far too long since my last post. But puppy trumps blog :)

I am getting the hang out of managing my time and a puppy so I am hopeful I will not have to confess to crappy blogging again :)

Do you have any confessions?

-A

Apple Cinnamon Bread and PB Love

Hola : )

I am happy to say I have finished everything I need to get done for the week ahead ! Well I am still doing laundry but aren't I always.

Last night I got snack -y and dinner wasn't for a couple hours . So I decided to be silly.

Organic PB with 2 Cream Crackers.

I love these crackers. Of course they are made by PC but they are almost identical to ones I get from the British Import Shop. Cheaper too!

I didn't think too poorly of the peanut butter either. I caressed it with my cheek .

Please to be ignoring my lazy mode look.

This morning I had planned on brunch or lunch with bf but he had to go out for a bit , so I made something to tide me over .

A gigantic soft tortilla. Folded in half with some swiss slices inside. Popped into the toaster oven until it gets spots!

Looooove Swiss Cheese and so happen I have found blocks of it now for a reasonable price. I was buying 6-7 thin slices for around 6 bucks before. The brick is 4 dollars and a much better deal!

To celebrate being done with school obligations at a reasonable time for once, I baked!

I took my apple cinnamon muffin recipe , tweaked it a bit ( of course ) and turned it into a loaf. I've done this before ( untweaked recipe though ) and it turned out awesome.

I loved it with almond butter the last time I made it.

Heres the recipe :

Apple Cinnamon Bread or Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour ( I used the PC Organic stuff)

3/4 cup white sugar ( I used 1/2 cup of brown )

1 egg

2/3 cup of milk ( I used 2 %)

1/2 cup of butter melted ( I used evo)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon ( i just sprinkle a ton in )

1 cup of chopped apple , peeled ( I used 2 large -ish organic pink lady apples)

Mix together brown sugar, apple, and butter.

Add egg.

Add remaining dry ingredients and stir until moistened.

Spread into a greased or sprayed loaf pan or muffin pan .

Cook at 375 for 20-30 minutes. ( the time varies depending on how much apples you use).

Let cool for 40 minutes. ENJOY!

Well , that's all I've got for now. Hope your weekend was awesome :)

-A

Peanut Butter Kissed French Onion Soup

Happy Valentine's Day everyone.

Today's been a pretty low key day. I slept in and had an A-MAZING breakfast of berry pancakes and bacon, gave the bf a haircut , did a tonne of laundry and went grocery shopping.

I also made these guys.

3/4 cup PC Organic Unbleached White Flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup ( Kauline , I got this from Erma ;) )

1/2 cup natural organic peanut butter

1 organic brown extra large egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

pinch of salt

hersheys Kisses ( Sidenote : but has anyone else noticed or tried the "new" hershey kisses? They are supposedly smoother and creamier and while they're fine and such I prefer the old ones that were rough and matte and just smelled awesome)

Combine sugar, maple syrup and peanut butter. Add egg and vanilla. Add remaining ingredients. Roll into balls and flatten with fork . Cook at 350 for 8 minutes. Remove from cookie tray immediatly and press an unwrapped hershey kiss into each cookie.

Hmm. What can I make with these ingredients?

FRENCH ONION SOUP!

I am not a fan personally. BUt I love making it. It's actually one of the first things I learned how to cook. Well, aside from crumpets or noodles.
In my grade ten food class, this was our groups project . My bf loves it so I make it often.


Since you've got your bread already,your cheese already shredded and your broth going . Slice some onions. I like to just chop off a hunk of an onion and then slice them in the longest thinnest way possible for that chunk.

Then with a hot pan with melted butter product of some sort, throw your onions in . Spice as you like.

In your cute but far too small onion soup bowl, put some cheese in the bottom , then bread, then distribute the onions.

Then take your broth that is simmering away and pour it over top. Don't fill to the top because it will bubble over like crazy.
Put in a 400 oven for 12 minutes. Serve with some crusty bread. Beware this is very very hot when it comes out and shouldn't be eaten for at least 20 minutes. You should also be sure to put this on a plate because you ll burn the hell out of your table if you don't :)

Hope your remaining weekend is awesome :)

-A

Breakfast-y or Lunch-y

I felt like this on Sunday at the cottage.
I really wish I could have been like Harken and just taken a nap until next week .

Unfortunately before I could even leave the cottage , I had to deal with this mess.

Yup. That's all me . Mostly clothes and random things tossed on the bed . I was barely there two days and you should be grateful I didn't show you the floor.

I didn't like the look or sound of the rain this morning so I extended my weekend. This was my brunch/accompanionment to Bravo's Wind At My Back. Sadly , I love that show.

In the bowl :
-Bob's Red Mill Organic Oldfashioned rolled oats ( i think) ( a bit more than 1/4 cup)
-half a banana
-tbsp of Maranatha's Almond Butter
-tsp of Organic Honey hiding beneath the bananas.
:)


This was the first thing I ate today and I had it at 12 ish . I can honestly say that it kept me full until around 4:30 when I had the other half of the banana on an unpicture slice of really soft italian bread with a bit of natural peanut butter.
I think it was a peanut butter and banana day at our house because the bf ate two sandwiches for his lunch consisting of them because there were no leftovers as I didnt cook sunday dinner last night :(

What's your favorite breakfast/lunch/brunch whatever you want to calll it food ? Do you prefer more lunch-y stuff or breakfast-y ?

Not Too Busy

In my absence I 've been doing a lot of studying and typing . Fortunately I still had time for the important things, like some more bathroom photography.

I am working on perfecting both the creepy hand AND odd eyes. Not working hard enough that I didn't have time for salad concoctions.

Baby Spinach , Spinach Blend, Homestyle Croutons, Brococli Slaw , Bacon Bits, Shredded Cheddar and Mozz Blend and half of a crumbled Turkey Burger.

Oatmeal messes were also had. Not for breakfast but as a lunch-ish accompanionment to homework and Bravo's afternoon TV line up. Love me some , Law and Order and Without a Trace.

When oatmeal or a salad doesn't work , a banana sliced up so it doesnt resemble a male body part , dipped in glorious peanut butter always works.

New bars may also do the trick . The Rebar was basiclly compressed veggies and fruit but yummifed AND vegan.

Apparently I haven't been too busy though because I managed to find time to finally purchase and frame two of my favorite photos ever.

My lovely bf and my other love , miss Kate Moss.

And of course the icecream aisle is so close to the picture frame aisle that I had to make a purchase. Apparently a million flavors is just a bunch of chocolate covered nuts and toffee, peanut butter cups smooshed all together in a chocolate vanilla swirled icecream. Delicious but misleading.

So happy the "work" week has ended because I'm off to the cottage for the weekend :)

-A

Vegan-ish Cookies and Sick Inspired Soup

Normally, Fridays are by far my favorite day of the week. It means a break. Relief! This particular Friday was particulary good because I had an exam and it meant the end of a subject at school.

I slept horribly Thursday night because the bf caught a cold and kept me up with his coughing and stuffiness.

When the alarm went off at 6:30 i slept straight through until 7:17 :O

My exam was at 8!

I ended up getting up , washing face and brushing teeth. Throwing my hair back into a very messy pony tail and and grabbing random clothing items while calling a cab , since I would miss my bus

I arrived at school ten minutes before 8 and they didnt start the exame until 8;10 . grr. I made it though.

THis kinda set the mood for the rest of the day though. By 10 i had written my exam and visited the grocery store for milk ( for tea for bf) , coffee ( sbux french ) and hot chocolate ( Tim Hortons) . By this time the sick bf had also started on his idea of an early weekend. Well, a sick one.

He had texted me that he was on his way home early because he just felt so crappy.

It started snowing while I waited for the bus to come home. I beat the bf home by a few minutes:) And after changing into some comfy clothes, I made us a couple of sandwiches. Unpictured because, well it's me.

His : toasted italian bread w/ mayo , sliced fresh cheddar and turkey

Mine : un-toasted italian bread w/ r.f mayo and turkey

Our afternoon/day/weekend.


Loooooooove leftover turkey on sandwiches. Thankfully there's probably enough left for a sandwich or two tomorrow.

Dinner ended up being a catered affair.

Well, an ordered affair.

The bf napped the afternoon away and by late evening felt well enough to order us some dinner from a nearby pizza place.

what he ordered:

a medium Canadian pizza

a medium double cheeese and bacon pizza

wings w/ sauce on the side

garlic bread w/ cheese

He also ordered creamy garlic dipping sauce. my fav! But they forget it even though we paid for it :/

While waiting for our food to be delivered I took a glance at my course outline aka work load for next week's course. This one is a one week course which usually means a lot of work since I have to read a whole text book and usually do assigments all while studying for an exam on the subject Friday.

But in this case, all of the marks are based on the exam , attendance and completeing the review questions for the chapters. I can do that! Much easier!

When the pizza arrived, I devoured 2 big slices of the bacon and double cheese. My pizza.

The cheese at this place is a-mazing. Fresh mozzeralla . None of this mozz blend , pizza blend nonsense.

I ended up getitng bored later on and wanted a peanut butter oatmeal kinda cookie. I googled around and meshed together an oatmeal recipe with a vegan one. I came up with this :

Accidental vegan-ish cookies

1 cup oats ( i used Bob's Organic Old Fashioned Rolled Oats)

1/2 cup flour ( i used PC organics white flour , allpurpose)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup ( i used some local stuff i got from a family member's sugar shack)

1/2 cup becel oil

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

1 pinch of salt

Mix together becel , sugar , peanut butter.

Add vanilla and maple syrup

Combine flour , oats, salt and baking soda.

Slowly incorporate into becel mixture.

Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake at 375 for 12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet or they will shatter into a million pieces. Transfer to plate and let sit for awhile. store in airtight container.

VERDICT:

They were delicious but defintely not the kind of cookie you can eat straight off the cookie sheet, warm or hot. They will crumble. They have to set for a bit I guess because of the ingredients used. I'd love to try a version with almond butter.

Saturday brought more couch sitting as the bf still wasnt feeling very well and it was frigid outside. We managed to go to the Bank before it closed in the am , the liquor store ( for provisions) , the drug store ( cold pills and diet coke) and the butcher and make it back home where we've been ever since ( its now sunday as i write this ) .

The bf's idea of provisions.


Saturday's eats were nothing to write home about either. I did drink an awful lot of diet coke and peppermint tea though .

Dinner was some scallopped potatoes made with golden fingerling potatoes, 8 year old cheddar , onions and real butter. Very yummy and very rich . Tonnes of leftovers too . I made the bf some tri tip steaks and I gorged myself on a leftover salad and some roasted chicken breast.

Sunday , this morning , brought coffee made by the bf while I slowly got out of bed.

Very slowly.

Now I'M sick. Ugh.

No cooking going on for today . Well , not really. I made an omlette w/ cheese for breakfast and had it wiht some coffee. A couple of hours later i made a blender concoction .

In the blender:
Orange Juice

mixed berries

frozen banana

I of course made way too much and after pouring two tall glasses for me and the bf, we were left with this :

I took a bag of frozen chicken soup out of the freezer earlier because I predicted I wouldn't be feeling any better or want to cook dinner. It sucks because I love cooking Sunday dinners, but whatever .

I defrosted the frozen soup in a pot and added:

4 cups of broth

1/2 an onion

2 ribs of celery

1 clove of garlic

fresh thyme

a chopped up chicken breast

Food becoming soup.

I'll probably cook some egg noodles too because the bf demands them :)

Here's to a low key -rest-of Sunday .

-A

Peanut Butter Cookies, Altered

My bf is obsessed with my peanut butter cookies. I have made a million cookie recipes but this is the one he requests EVERY week .After making a vegan almond butter cookie recipe at Christmas ( it was A-MAZING!) I thought I would try to "lighten" this recipe up without it being noticeable. I 'll post both the original recipe and the altered.

Please to be ignoring that beautiful wallpaper. THankfully its only on the wall that is mostly hidden by my fridge /stove/cupboards.




Peanut Butter Cookies Original Recipe

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or marargine
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
You can of course add peanuts or chocolate chips if you want.

Cream together sugars , butter and peanut butter. Add egg and vanilla.
Combine flour, salt, baking soda .
Slowly stir into creamed sugar mixture.
When combined , add chocolate chips and such .
Roll into small balls and place an inch or so apart. Flatten with a wet fork.
Cook at 375 for 8 minutes or until edges are golden and top looks almost cooked. Remove from pan immediately and let cool.

Altered recipe

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup becel light
1/2 cup kraft natural peanut butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt

Same method as before but cream the maple syrup along with the sugars and butters.


-A

Hunger Strikes and Repurposing

Hey :)

Yesterday turned out to be a really relaxing Sunday and because I'm on break from classes, Monday turned out to be too.

Yey for lazy days spent doing laundry , cleaning and watching a marathon of Intervention on A&E. I could watch that channel all day everyday .

I had planned to leave the warmth of the apartment today to get my hair cut and roots dyed but when I called to make an appointment , I was told my lady wouldn't be in tomorrow . So I'll get it done tomorrow at 12pm. I can't say that I wasn't pleased even though I did want to get it out of the way .

Yesterday's eats involved a crock pot creation that turned out to be a ridiculous shade of orange. It was delicious but hideous and messy . It consisted of some chicken breasts, low fat cheddar soup, onions, celery and garlic . I cooked it on low all day .

The chicken turned out moist and so tender it fell apart. I was lazy so I just served it with rice and some steamed broccoli and asparagus. I sprinkled some fresh Canadian Cheddar cheese that the bf had picked up at the cheese factory on his way home. It's made daily!

I don't mind it melted on veggies but it's pretty squeaky and I prefer and older one.

I also had an english muffin that was delicious but didn't hold me over because I waited to eat breakfast too long.

Source

I had a craving for this guy though , so I threw 1/3 cup in the microwave with water.

Source

I really wanted something similar to banana bread . I would have made muffins or banana bread but I had no eggs. I did however have tonnes of frozen bananas in the freezer because I am always throwing over ripe ones in the freezer for baking .

I sliced up probably 1/4 of a frozen banana and put it in with the oats while they went in the microwave.

source

I topped it with a tbsp or so of Kraft All Natural Peanut Butter. This picture is small but the taste was soo good. Almost as creamy Kraft's regular Creamy Peanut Butter. Love that stuff and wouldn't bake with anything else. I was defintely full after this . It took me right until dinner's crock pot creation.

Today dinner is in the oven bubbling and browning away. I used some of the Spinach Tomato Sauce from yesterday and made a lasagna of sorts, replacing the lasagna noodles with spiral pasta. It smells delicious although I unfortunately don't know how to cook for 2 people and now have a large lasagna pan full of it !

I'm off to take part in my favorite night of TV watching .

Big Bang Theroy

How I Met Your Mother

and Two and A Half Men

and of course to taste test my work .

What's your favorite go to pasta dish ? What do you find yourself throwing together quickly time after time when hunger strikes?

-A