“You’re once, twice, three times a layyyydddddddeeeeeeeee….”

Image Credit – east-side-patch.livejournal.com

I love reading blogs, whether they be healthy food, healthy lifestyle, yoga, cooking, baking, shopping or DIY, I love them all.  I enjoy reading how people create things, how they come up with these ideas and what the end result turns out to be.  Essentially, I love learning new things and reading blogs is one of the best ways for me to do so.  For example, I was fascinated by Kath’s Pumpkin Pie Cake (I demonstrated that here) ever since I read about it months and months ago and most recently, I’ve been consumed (some pun fun) by Tina’s 3-Minute Oatmeal Raisin Cookie.  Both of these recipes are so easy and seem so tasty that I had no choice but to give them a try.  Plus, they literally take minutes to assemble.  And the less time I have to wait and the faster I can eat means the sooner I’m a happier Healthy Chow.  That said, I kept these two recipes in the back of my mind (there’s actually an echo back there – hahahahaha!) and started doing some experimenting in the kitchen.

Image Credit – tumblr.com

My first foray into the world of microwaveable healthy sweet treats went pretty well.  I used a 1/2 cup of pumpkin, 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites, 1 TBSP of whole wheat flour, 1/2 TSP of baking powder, 1/2 TSP of cocoa powder, a sprinkle of cinnamon and a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice.  I plopped that all into a bowl I covered with cooking spray, mixed it all up and then microwaved on high for 2 1/2 minutes.  I topped it with some nonfat ricotta cheese and it tasted pretty good.  However, it seemed a bit ‘wet’ and didn’t have the cake-like consistency that I was looking for or for which I was craving.  Not bad, but not perfect either.

The next stab was kinda meh.  I decided I would use the same ingredients as in my first try, but added in some finely ground almonds (I chopped up 10 raw almonds in my food chopper until I got a finely ground consistency).  For whatever reason, the extra kick of almonds made this recipe taste weird.  Plus, it was a bit too pumpkin-y for my taste (le horror!) and still a bit too wet.  If at first you don’t succeed (and at second), try, try again!

Ding!  Ding!  Ding! The third time was a charm (or a lady)!  This time, my results were spot-on.  I achieved the consistency I was striving for, in addition to the flavor I was hoping to create.

Fee-Fi-Faux-Yum! Pumpkin Cake
Serves 1

• 1/4 cup of Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 1/4 cup of old-fashioned dry oatmeal, finely ground (I measured out a 1/4 cup of dry oats and then ground them in my food chopper – it might be a tad less than a 1/4 cup after it’s been ground )
• 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites
• 1 TBSP of whole wheat flour
• 1/2 TSP of baking powder
• 1/4 TSP of cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s brand)
• a generous sprinkling of cinnamon, plus more for garnish
• a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice
• cooking spray
• agave nectar or maple syrup (optional)

1) Coat the bottom and sides of a shallow bowl with cooking spray.

2) Mix together the pumpkin, the ground oatmeal, the egg whites, the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice in the coated bowl until well-blended.  Spread the mixture down evenly at the bottom of your bowl until you get something that resembles a pancake.

Dry oats

Presto!  Finely ground oats…

In the mix…

Ready for baking (or microwaving…)

3) Microwave on high for 2 1/2 minutes, covered with a paper towel.  Be careful when taking the bowl out of the microwave as it will be extremely hot!

Hot!

4) Allow the cake to cool for about a minute.  Remove to a plate or eat straight from the bowl.  Top with a drizzle of agave nectar or maple syrup.  Sprinkle with a bit of cinnamon and devour!

It’s like magic…!

Incredible!  It’s a good thing I have a bit of stamina or this little diddy may never have come to fruition.  While my first couple of tries at this were less than stellar, the final attempt was a huge success.  This tasted just like a piece of carrot cake, even though there wasn’t a speck of carrot in it.  Plus, the combination of the cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and the agave nectar made this healthy treat taste more ‘treat’ than ‘healthy’.  The addition of the ground oatmeal helped to give this dish the much needed fluff factor.  My other attempts fell sort of flat (more pun fun) because there wasn’t enough substance to the recipe.  Plus, I reduced the amount of pumpkin in order to make this more cake-like versus bread pudding-like.  There was just the right amount of sweetness and protein to make this dish both appetizing and filling.  This is definitely going in the rotation for both breakfast and dessert!

Can’t wait to dig in!

What a cake walk!

“Hello?…Is it me you’re looking for?” – yes, my Fe-Fi-Faux-Yum! Pumpkin Cake, you are what I’m looking for!

Is there any music you remember from your childhood that you now love?  My mom used to always play Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross, Barry White, etc. in the house and they have now become some of my favorites.  What are some of yours?

Namasté,
Nicole

If you’ve read my previous posts, you’ll know that I’ve been sampling POMx Iced Coffees and you’ll probably think that I’m getting obsessed with finding new ways to consume these little bevvies.  Hehe, I don’t have OCD or anything!  Well, I really don’t, but sometimes I wonder… Anyway, in my last post, I cooked with the iced coffees and put a new twist on some breakfast favorites.  While I was experimenting with my breakfast, I realized that I was missing something.  I had made oatmeal, pancakes, french toast and a frozen treat but I didn’t make the one thing that all you lovely bloggies seem to keep pumping out and tempting me with on your wonderful blogs.  Any guesses as to what it is?  And no, I didn’t make iced coffee covered tofu (although that does some quite interesting)!  I finally made my first batch of pumpkin muffins of the season!  But I decided that they weren’t going to be any ol’ pumpkin muffins.  Nope.  That’s not how Healthy Chow rolls…I gave my muffins a kick, or maybe I should say, a buzz!

Buzzy Spiced Banana Pumpkin Muffins
Adapted from Cooks.com
Makes 12 regular-sized muffins

For the muffins:

• 1 medium sized banana, ripened
• 1/2 cup of canned pumpkin (I used Libby’s brand)
• 1/2 cup of evaporated cane juice (I used Florida Crystals, feel free to use dry sweetener of your choice)
• 1/4 cup of POMx Chocolate flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 1 TSP of Greens Plus Omega³ Chia seeds, mixed with 2 oz. of water
• 1 cup of all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour
• 2 TSP of baking powder
• 1 TSP of pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 TSP of salt

For the topping:

• 1/3 cup of brown sugar
• 1/3 cup of dry oats
• 1 oz. of pecans, chopped (I used Green Valley Pecans)
• 1/2 TSP of pumpkin pie spice

1) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

2) Mash your banana by hand or mix in a blender until you get a 1/2 cup.

3) In a bowl, combine your mashed banana, pumpkin, evaporated cane juice, iced coffee, applesauce and chia seeds.  Mix until everything is well-blended.

4) In a separate bowl, combine your all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Mix until everything is well-blended.

5) Combine your wet ingredients with your dry ingredients. Again, mix until everything is well-blended.

6) Spoon the batter into greased muffin tins or liners (I used aluminum foil liners).  Make sure the batter is evenly distributed.

7) Top each muffin with 1 tablespoon of the spiced topping.

8 ) Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

9) Let muffins cool in tins on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

10) Remove muffins from tins and eat!

These muffins were surprisingly good! Sometimes, when I make ‘healthier’ substitutions in my cooking and baking, I tend to get worried that the flavor will be lost.  Not true in this recipe!  The muffins were moist from the banana, pumpkin purée and applesauce.  You couldn’t tell that there wasn’t a hint of butter or oil in these little guys.  Also, the chia seed replacement for the egg worked amazingly.  It’s great to know that you can have the taste and efficiency of an egg without the added cholesterol.  In addition, you can add some omega³’s and some soluble fiber to your breakfast.  The brown sugar in the topping mixed with the chopped pecans and pumpkin pie spice was what really made these muffins sing!  I loved how the brown sugar got caramelized in the oven and made this recipe perfectly sweet.  While the POMx Chocolate Iced Coffee flavoring wasn’t very apparent, it did add a subtly unique flavor.  Plus, who doesn’t like getting an added punch with their breakfast?

As you can see, there are a number of ways you can incorporate the POMx Iced Coffee into your cooking and baking.  And, did you know you can make cocktails with these iced coffees?  Just check out what the ever-so-creative Kerstin cleverly made! Insane!  At first I had no idea what I was going to do with all my free samples and now, I’m wishing I had more (Blue – hint, hint)!  The possibilities are endless! Just as the POM Wonderful company was able to turn regular iced coffee and pomegranate juice into something extraordinary, with a little creativity and thought, one can turn a simple baked good into something un-POM-mon.  Buh-duh-bump!

Did you get a jumpstart on your holiday shopping and take advantage of Black Friday?  Or, are you going to wait around like me and procrastinate?

***Today’s the last day to participate in my jewelry giveaway.  You have until 6pm ET tonight to enter!  The winner will be announced on Monday, November 30th.  Good luck!***

Namasté,
Nicole

***Have you entered my earring giveaway yet?…***

So if you read yesterday’s post, you’ll know that I was recently given samples of POMx™ Iced Coffee to taste and review.  While I really enjoyed the flavor of the iced coffees, I don’t think I’ll be rushing to replace my morning cup of black coffee with the POMx™ Iced Coffee anytime soon.  Sorry! They’re just a tad too sweet for me to have so early on in the day as my first consumption of caffeine.  Plus, I’m already sweet enough (*sarcasm*)!  So what did I do with the rest of my samples, you ask?  Did I throw them away?  Did I give them to someone else to finish (that would be a bit gross)?  Did I just drink them for the heck of it?  No.  No.  And no!  Since Healthy Chow isn’t one for wasting things, I decided to make good use of my free samples versus just letting them sit and and take up precious space in my fridge.

So, you wanna know what I made…?

Well, if I wasn’t going to be drinking these little ‘wonderfuls’ as part of my breakfast, I figured the next best thing was to cook with them!  Because I love the rich and decadent taste of each of the flavors, I imagined they would be the perfect component in my breakfast foods.  Now, I’m not right a lot of the times, but when I am, I hit the nail exactly on the head (she pats herself on the back)!

Are you ready to find out yet…?

Blueberry Cheesecake Oatmeal POM-erized
Serves 1

• 1/2 cup of dry oats (you can use quick oats or old-fashioned style)
• 1 cup of water
• 1/2 TSP of chia seeds (I used Greens Plus brand)
• 2 TBSP of nonfat cottage cheese
• 1 TBSP of POMx™ Vanilla flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/2 TBSP of chopped raw almonds
• small handful of blueberries, fresh or frozen

1) In a small pot, bring water to a rolling boil.  Once boiling, add the oats and chia seeds.  Stir to make sure the chia seeds are well-blended with the oats.  Reduce the heat to medium/medium-low and let cook for another 3 minutes.

2) Add your cottage cheese and iced coffee.  Stir.

3) Remove oatmeal from heat and pour into a bowl.  Top with blueberries and chopped almonds.

4) Eat with a spoon, but you won’t be able to stop thinking that this is a piece of blueberry cheesecake!

Yum-to-the-O!  This was incredible! The cottage cheese made the oatmeal fluffy (and cheesy) while the chia seeds added to the thickness.  The vanilla iced coffee sweetened this whole little number and the chewiness from the almonds made me think I was eating a graham cracker crust.  And of course, the blueberries accentuated the entire recipe.  If this breakfast was a whole cake, there wouldn’t be a slice left!

POM-errific Chocolate Banana French Toast
Serves 1

• 2 or 3 slices of bread (I used Trader Joe’s Sprouted Flourless Whole Wheat Berry Bread – 2 slices and 1 end)
• 1/4 cup of POMx™ Chocolate flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/3 cup of liquid egg whites
• few shakes of pumpkin pie spice
• few shakes of cinnamon
• few shakes of nutmeg
• pinch of brown sugar
• 1/2 of banana, sliced
• sprinkling of organic dried coconut (I used Woodstock Farms brand)
• sprinkling of cocoa powder

1) Mix the iced coffee, egg whites, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar in a shallow bowl.

2) Dip each slice of bread in the iced coffee/egg white mixture.  Let each piece absorb the mixture for about 1 minute.

3) Spray your frying pan or griddler (or in my kitchen, the C.G.) with cooking spray.  Turn your heat to medium.

4) Place your dipped slices of bread on the frying pan/griddler.  Heat each side for about 2-3 minutes or until the edges start turning that nice golden brown color.

5) Flip each piece of bread and cook for another couple of minutes.

6) Serve with sliced bananas, cocoa powder and dried coconut sprinkles.  Devour!

This french toast recipe was so tasty! There was just enough chocolate flavoring from the iced coffee to give this dish a unique flavor without it being overly sweet.  Coupled with the smashed banana slices (the banana was previously frozen) and the dried coconut, this french toast didn’t even need maple syrup.  I wish I had made more than the the 2.5 pieces I inhaled!

Oatmeal POM-tein Pancakes
Serves 1

• 1/3 cup of dry oats (you can use quick oats or old-fashioned style)
• 1/4 cup of POMx™ Vanilla flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites
• 1/2 TSP of baking soda
• few shakes of cinnamon
• few shakes of nutmeg
• 1/2 banana, sliced
• maple syrup or agave nectar

1) In a small bowl, mix together the oats, iced coffee, egg whites, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.

2) Pour the mixture into your blender.  Add your sliced banana.  Blend until you get the consistency of a thin batter.

3) Spray your frying pan or griddler (or C.G) with cooking spray.  Turn your heat to medium/medium-high.

4) Pour your batter onto your pan or griddler.  Let cook for 2-3 minutes.  Once the pancake can be moved without sticking, flip.  Cook the other side for another 2 minutes.

5) Serve with maple syrup or agave nectar.  Enjoy!

Ohemgee!  These protein-packed pancakes tasted more like banana bread than flapjacks.  They were so delicious and aromatic; I couldn’t believe this breakfast was actually healthy! The vanilla iced coffee and banana kept these pancakes moist and more than flavorful.  I’m glad no one was watching me eat these because I seriously was licking the plate clean.

POM-tastic Banana Coffee Soft Serve
Serves 1

• 1 frozen banana
• 2 TBSP of POMx Café au Lait flavored Iced Coffee

1) Place the  frozen banana and the iced coffee in your blender.  Blend until you get the consistency of soft serve.  You might need to stop the blender intermittently to scrape down the sides and then blend again.

2) Pour into a dish and savor your frosty treat!

Not only did I love this but Patrick seemed to be quite fond of it as well.  He kept asking me what was in his soft serve and couldn’t believe that it was just a frozen banana and a couple of splashes of iced coffee.  The coffee flavoring gave this frozen treat a more gourmet taste than the usual banana flavor.  While we ate this for dessert, it could definitely be a fun breakfast.  After all, it is just fruit and coffee!

When I first tried these iced coffee samples, my first reaction was that they were good.  They were a bit sweet for my liking, but they were definitely tasty.  However, after I began cooking with the iced coffees, I really fell in love.  I guess that goes to show that when life (or Blue) gives you slightly over sweet iced coffee, you need to make perfectly sweet breakfast!

Do you prefer cranberry sauce from the can (the kind where you can still see the indentations from the can) or do you prefer the homemade stuff?  Or are you like me and don’t like either?

***Don’t forget!  You still have until Friday, November 27th at 6pm ET to enter my jewelry giveaway.  After all, we could all use some sparkle in our lives…***

Namasté,
Nicole

I don’t know about you but when I’m at a coffee shop, local or franchise, and the aroma of the freshly brewed hits my nose, I immediately want a cup.  And as soon as I take my first sip, I have this undeniable desire for something sweet.  Perhaps it’s because I now drink my coffee black and I need that sugary taste to curb my craving? Maybe my stomach feels better when I eat something while drinking my black coffee?  Who knows?  Maybe I just like to eat? Yeah.  It’s definitely more than likely the latter answer.

But whether I’m at the coffee shop or I’m at home, the idea of sitting down with a big mug of joe is comforting to me.  And having a soft and chewy cookie, a buttery muffin or a thick and crumbly piece of coffee cake just accentuates that comfort.  However, I’m trying to cut down on my refined sugar and processed foods intake and that means those yummy baked goods I mentioned are not going to help my cause.  That said, I’ve decided to do some more baking.  With the remaining apples from that Sunday at Smolak Farms and my newest found love, the Omega³ Chia seeds, I decided to bake up something healthy and hearty that would not only give me the chance to do some more experimenting with the Chia seeds, but it would also give me something to dip into my coffee.

Image Credit – Susty.com

After perusing some recipe sites online and not being able to find something that met my standards (they are high, you know), I decided to make up my own recipe.  I know; hold onto your socks! I was a bit nervous since baking tends to need to be more exact than cooking.  But, with my apples being on their last leg and my longing to bake something with the Chia seeds, I knew it was go time.  Plus, if you don’t try, you can’t win, right? After much deliberating in the kitchen, I finally came up with a winner.

Hearty & Healthy Apple Oatmeal Bread with Raisins & Chia Seeds (aka Your Coffee’s Partner in Crime)
Makes 1 loaf, 10 servings

• 1 1/2 cups of oatmeal (old fashioned oats), uncooked
• 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 TSP of baking powder
• 1 1/2 TSP of cinnamon
• 1 TSP of pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 cup of agave nectar (I used Trader Joe’s brand)
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 2 egg whites (or 1/3 cup of egg whites)
• 1 TSP of Greens Plus Omega³ Chia seeds, mixed with 2 oz. of water
• 2 small-medium Granny Smith apples, unpeeled and diced (about 1 1/2 cups diced)
• 3 TBSP of raisins

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) Coat a 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with cooking spray.  Make sure to do a good job coating – get the corners and the entire sides of the pan.

3) In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients: oatmeal, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.  Set aside.

4) In another bowl, combine your wet ingredients: agave nectar, almond milk, applesauce, egg whites and Chia seeds mixed in water.  Beat this mixture with a fork until blended.

5) Add your wet ingredients to your dry ingredients and mix just until the dry ingredients are moistened.  Please note that your batter will not be smooth; resist the urge to over mix.

6) Gently fold in your apples and raisins.

7) Spoon your batter into the greased loaf pan.  Try to make the batter as level as possible to ensure even cooking.

8 ) Bake for 60-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.

9) Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes.  Once cooled, carefully remove the bread from the pan and let sit on a wire rack to cool for an additional 5-10 minutes.

This was scrumptious! Once out of the oven, it felt like it took forever to cool.  The smell of the baking apples, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and agave nectar filled my condo and made me feel like Susie Homemaker.  There is truly something satisfying about the scent of your own homemade baked goods.  And while the aroma of the bread was enough to put me on cloud nine, the taste was even better.  The bread was moist, thick, soft and chewy.  While it wasn’t overly sweet, it was enough to fix my sugar craving.  The natural sweetness from the apples and raisins gave the bread a wholesome flavor, something which paired quite nicely with the oatmeal.  Because I used egg whites and Chia seeds instead of whole eggs, and applesauce instead of oil, this bread was not greasy at all and yet, there wasn’t a hint of dryness.  I would say that this recipe was like having a bowl of oats in a bread/bar form.  It was great as is, but equally as wonderful with a light schmear of buttery spread, a dollop of Greek yogurt or a thin layer of fruit preserve.

And not only did I think this bread recipe was pretty darn good, but my sister and husband both agreed.  I shared a piece with Michelle this past Saturday morning at Panera Bread after our yoga class.  She noted that it was dense, but that she favored that texture for a breakfast food.  She, too, liked the fact that it wasn’t overly sweetened by sugar and enjoyed the big chunks of apple and raisin pieces.  But she didn’t notice the Chia seeds until I told her what I used to make the bread.  I told her the Chia seeds were high in soluble fiber and she was digging that.  Michelle <3’s her fiber, if you know what I mean! Patrick couldn’t believe that this bread was actually healthy.  He didn’t miss the butter, whole eggs or sugar.  He said, “whatever you put in it, you need to remember and write it down because you need to make this recipe again!  This is so good!“  And like my black coffee, my days are always better when they’re paired with something sweet.

Do you prefer baking or cooking?  What is your hot beverage of choice? Do you drink it because you ‘need’ the caffeine or do you just like the ritual of it?

Namasté,
Nicole