Pumpkin Breakfast Cookies

I think I'm just as seasonally confused as mother nature seems to be. I swear the calendar says it is spring, but there was still snow on the ground a few days ago. And regardless that it is officially spring, I'm in a fall state of mind. Go figure. I think I'll blame mother nature for this one.

Strawberry Apple Baked Oatmeal

Saturday mornings are made for sleeping in, recovering from the week and/or Friday night, and full-fledged relaxing. So why the heck is my to-do list well on its way of being completed? It's not even noon yet! Please tell me what is wrong with me. Especially after such a hectic week, the only thing my body wants to do it relax, but my mind won't let me. This.is.not.okay.

Breakfast Rice Pudding

It has been about a week since I last blogged. For the few of you who might be wondering if I'm surviving this detox, I am. I'm alive and well and detoxing away! I am in the second half of my detox, which means the end is in sight. And surprisingly, or not, I'm not counting down the days. This detox really hasn't been all that bad...except for one minor issue: I've been forced to break my routine of eating oatmeal every morning. I know, I have this weird obsession with oatmeal. I eat it at least five days a week and never seem to get sick of it. Even in the summer, I make oatmeal. Nothin' like a bowl of oatmeal and some fresh fruit to start your day on the right foot. But because I had to cut gluten and most oats are processed with the same machines and in the same factories as gluten products, technically oats are not gluten-free (unless otherwise specified). So, what's a girl to do if she can't have her beloved bowl of oatmeal? Try this Breakfast Rice Pudding, obviously.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Do you have a favorite muffin recipe? Blueberry, bran, honey wheat, chocolate chip, cinnamon swirl...the list goes on. I used to think I was a blueberry muffin girl through and through, but I'm slowly beginning to realize that my favorite muffin changes about as often as the weeks change. Right now my favorite are definitely these Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins.

Brown Butter Oatmeal Scotchies Muffins

Browning butter is very much the "in" thing for bloggers and foodies to do. Everywhere I look, I'm seeing blog posts and recipes that call for brown butter. It's hard to argue why it is such a popular ingredient because it makes cookies/cake/muffins/treats taste ten times better than regular butter does. Since I do consider myself a foodie, I figure it's only appropriate for me to jump on the bandwagon; what better way to start than with these muffins?

Easy Lightened Up Coffee Cake

I think my body is still recovering from the sugar high that I experienced during the holidays. It's the only reason I can think of as to why I am constantly craving sweets. Now I have always had a sweet tooth, but lately it has been out of control. In attempts to force myself to cut back on sugar consumption, I have purposefully not bought any sugary snacks and have tried to refrain from baking lots of sweets. So what do I do instead? Grab a bag of plain chocolate chips and munch on those. Sweet tooth, you win once again.

Skinny Pumpkin and Cream Muffins

Most of you are probably still sick of pumpkin from the overload of recipes that you saw and made for Thanksgiving. I, on the other hand, am still craving the stuff. When I find something I like, I stick with it. Notice that about my oatmeal obsession? Yes, I am a creature of habit.

Blueberry Orange Muffins

I'm a huge snacker. I'd like to say that it's because I'm healthy and listen to the advice of nutritionists who say it's better to eat throughout the day and to have lots of snacks instead of actual meals, but in reality I just like to eat. And so does my body. If I don't get food every three to four hours, I get hangry (hungry and very angry). So, for everyone's sake, I always have food on me and snack a lot.

Apple Cream Cheese Muffins

It's been a while since I've made a skinny sweets recipe. I blame the upcoming holidays and the array of glorious dessert recipes that I could make. Oh Thanksgiving and Christmas, my taste buds love you but my waistline hates you.

Cinnamon Roll Oatmeal

Since starting this blog, I've received many compliments on my oatmeal recipes. A lot of people are amazed at how I can make plain Jane, ho hum oats look tasty and delicious. I've been experimenting with different oatmeal recipes for years, so I'm always a bit shocked to hear this reaction and wonder if people actually settle for eating oatmeal with no pizazz day after day. How dreadful. While I hope that is not the case, I've made it my mission to show readers that oatmeal has a ton of potential and can be so much more than plain and boring!

Quick Pumpkin Oats

Happy fall y'all! Now that mornings are starting to get cooler, I have the perfect excuse to indulge in my daily oatmeal. (Not that hot temperatures or odd looks from coworkers ever stopped me from making oatmeal in the dead of summer.) Since I eat oatmeal on a daily basis, I'm always experimenting with different ingredients to add; and so far, I have yet to get tired of oatmeal and still have so many ideas of how to prepare it and what combinations of ingredients to try.

Very Berry Fluffy Pancakes

Happy Saturday everyone! I dunno about y'all, but I think Saturday mornings are pretty much the best. To me, Saturday mornings are all about sleeping in, staying in your pjs longer than usual, not having to rush out the door to get to work or school, and taking a little extra time to make a yummy breakfast. 

Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

For someone who gets cranky when I'm hungry (also known as hangry), snacks are one thing you can always find in my purse. Foods that are quick to make and easy to pack are essential for people who get hangry easily. On a recent road trip I made to Connecticut to visit family, I needed a quick and easy snack to bring. I thought granola bars would be a nice recipe to try-they are healthy, quick to make, easy to pack, and are packed with oats that'll keep you full for hours. The only downfall to granola bars is that some varieties are rather bland. However, when I saw that Sally posted a granola bar recipe on her blog, I knew she wouldn't steer me wrong. 

Healthy Strawberry Muffins

I sure do love strawberries. I always go back and forth between choosing blueberries or strawberries as my favorite fruit. I think I'll go with strawberries for now, but that'll probably change next week. ANYWAY....my love for strawberries comes in all forms. One form that I have not tried is a strawberry muffin. This seems silly since I bake muffins all of the time. Why it never crossed my mind to add strawberries instead of blueberries, who knows. But once I saw the idea on Sally's blog, I was sold.

Oatmeal Raisin Breakfast Cookie

Happy Labor Day everyone! If your long weekend has been anything like mine, it has been a mix of relaxing and stressful. I took a little road trip up to the Connecticut shore to visit some family. While the beach was gorgeous, the weather was perfect, and seeing my family is always a pleasure, the traffic insisted on putting a damper on the weekend. New York City and Connecticut traffic, I loathe you.

Apple Pie Oatmeal

So, who's excited for fall? This girl definitely is! Hockey season, fall foliage, holidays, and pumpkin flavored everything. I've been pinning pumpkin recipes like it's my job. In fact, I just stumbled across a Pumpkin Snickerdoodle recipe. How amazing do those look?! I'm forcing myself to wait until September 22 (the first day of autumn this year) before I make anything pumpkin. So until then, I'll indulge in other fall-esque foods, like this Apple Pie Oatmeal.

Peach Pie Oatmeal

Being sick is no fun, especially in the summertime. I guess going to two concerts in one weekend will do that to you. Since I haven't been feeling that well and it's been cloudy and rainy outside, all I have wanted to do is curl up in my bed, watch movies all day, and eat comfort food. Since I can't indulge in the first two, I figure I can at least treat myself to some comfort food.

Ultimate Oatmeal for Oatmeal Lovers

If you love oatmeal as much as I do, you'll be obsessed with this creation. This recipe takes the same amount of oats called for in a regular serving, but makes nearly double the amount of oatmeal. Oatmeal lovers get that much more yummy goodness. Yes!

Popeye Smoothie

Just like oatmeal, smoothies are a food obsession of mine. I make one almost every day (usually my favorite Strawberry Banana Smoothie). Smoothies are amazing because they are super easy to make and you can add as many different ingredients or combinations of ingredients as you want. But even with my love for smoothies, I am not a huge fan of the green smoothie idea. Who the heck wants to drink something that color?? Plus, the idea of adding spinach to my smoothie makes me all but gag. I do not want to eat a salad with my smoothie, thank you very much.

Dessert Overnight Oats

Anddd my oatmeal obsession continues (refer to this post to read more about it). Before I talk about this recipe, let me start off by saying that one of my new favorite blogs is Peanut Butter Fingers. This blog has a lot of great recipes and ideas for working out and staying motivated. While I was browsing the recipe section on this blog, I came across Uber Chocolaty Overnight Oats. I've been reading a lot about overnight oats on Pinterest, but haven't tried a recipe yet. Seeing a chocolate overnight oats recipe changed my mind.