thank YOU for hanging in there. Are you hanging in there? I sure hope so. Like I said before, transitioning to a new job, is well, a transition to me. I went from having almost infinite "free" time to trying to figure out a new pace of waking up early, getting home late, and trying to squeeze in grocery shopping and cooking meals somewhere in between. I'm getting better, much better, and it's only been a few weeks.
Not that I expect to be cooking "post-worthy" meals quite as much as perhaps I was before, I still hope to be making and posting things that excite you, and well, excite me too.
Who knows, this could be a great opportunity to see what else I can and may want to do with this blog...
Well, one thing that is important to me that doesn't come up quite as often as it should on here is staying healthy. Sure, I love a big ole huge slice of cake and I can't seem to help myself anytime a plate of cookies are around (hellooo sweet tooth), and guess what (well, you know), I cook/bake with butter... and sugar!
To me, staying healthy is about consuming food (real food), just in small proportions. This is better said by Michael Pollan, who I've quoted on here before, "Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly Plants". Those words are currently scribbled across a little chalk board in my kitchen. I agree with that 100%.
But sometimes I wonder, and I asked you guys on twitter, do I still need supplements? Am I getting enough Vitamin D? What about Omega-3's? Am I eating enough vegetables? Does it really make a difference if you take those Vitamins or not? These questions I'm not so sure about still... if you have more thoughts, I'd love to know... i.e. comments, please! :)
Ok, while I'm thinking about that and talking a little, ever so little, about health, I wanted to give you my favorite healthy muffin recipe passed onto me from my mother, I'm sure when she was in her Francophile phase, and reading about how to stay slim like a French woman.
These muffins, have ZERO sugar in them, so they aren't the muffin you make for a special brunch, in my opinion. They are the muffins you make for everyday, think bowl of oatmeal. They are tasty (yes, they are!), especially with a little of this jam, and pretty darn guilt free if you ask me. I've added some roasted flax seeds to the mix for a little boost of those Omega-3's and because I like the flavor, but you can leave that out if you want. These muffins also freeze extremely well, so I basically immediately put half of the cooled muffins into a freezer bag and in the freezer and when I need one, pop them in the oven until they are hot.... perfect & perfectly healthy!
oatmeal muffins
adapted from Anne Barone (& my mom)
4 cups low-fat or non-fat buttermilk or sour milk
4 cups rolled oats, quick or old-fashioned
4 eggs (or 4 egg whites)
1/3 cup cooking oil
4 cups unbleached white flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 Tbsp roasted flax seeds, optional
Put four cups of buttermilk in a large (4 quart capacity) mixing bowl. Stir in the rolled oats. If using regular or old-fashioned (not quick) oats, allow the oats to absorb the milk for 15 minutes. Beat 4 eggs into oat and milk mixture. Stir in the oil. Put the unbleached flour on top of the oat mixture. Sift on the baking soda. Stir soda lightly into flour. Stir in the salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet only until well-moistened. Do not beat.
Spoon the batter into the 24 muffin cups. Bake 20-25 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Or until the muffins are golden on top. Remove from muffins from the tins and cool on a wire rack.
These oatmeal muffins freeze well. When completely cool, place muffins in a zip plastic bag, seal well. Store in the freezer of your refrigerator. To reheat 1 muffin, take the muffin from the freezer. Place on a paper towel and heat in the microwave for 1 minute on high. To reheat in a convention oven, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the frozen muffin on a metal pan. Heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until hot in the interior.
6 comments:
I love these! I haven't had them in a long time, wish I had one this morning. xoxoxox
vitamins just make for expensive pee! :-)
I'm still here! Thank you for your response to my comment the other day btw :). And I totally understand about your schedule. I don't think I could have maintained a blog in my 'past life.' I literally had zero work/life balance though, so maybe if I worked on that aspect...
As for the vitamins- I'm still trying to figure it out. I asked my doctor, and even she said to go to a vitamin store (one near us) and they will answer my questions! We have been eating extremely healthy... lots of vegetables, fruit, protein, fiber, and it feels really good. So, I plan to go to the vitamin store and I hope I can get some answers there!
Muffins look gorgeous. I am so old school, never take anything extra but I'm sure I need to. My friend in London gave me a whole bunch of supplements called Imedeen for skin - 90 day plan. So if they work I'll be convinced. I just think i need to drink more water..
I totally believe the same thing. Real ingredients are so much better for you (and yes, that includes butter and sugar) than laboratory based foods. Michael Pollan can pretty much do no wrong in our household. :) My husband is a family practice doc and tells people that if they eat a mostly balanced diet full of "real" food with lots of colors, that is enough. The only supplement I take is vitamin D. Not enough sun up here year round!
Thanks for the recipe!
Katie
these muffins look gorgeous! thank you for sharing them with us:)
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