Apple Pie Steel Cut Oatmeal in the Crock Pot

I love making steel cut oatmeal but it takes so long to cook on top of the stove and I never have that much time in the morning.  I decided to try it out in the crock pot. It is so nice to throw everything in the crock pot, wake up, get ready, and eat a warm breakfast!

Here is my Apple Pie Steel Cut Oatmeal recipe!

Ingredients:
2 apples - peeled, seeded, and chopped
(I used 1 honeycrisp and 1 Gala apple)
1 cup steel cut oats
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp ground flax seed


Directions:
Line crock pot with a liner.
(^^This step is optional but I like to use the liners so that there isn't a huge mess to clean up afterwards!)
Put all ingredients into the crock pot. 
Set crock pot on LOW and cook for approximately 7 hours.
Scoop about 3/4 cup of oatmeal into a bowl.
Add walnuts, honey, maple syrup, brown sugar, or your favorite toppings!
Save leftovers in the fridge and enjoy again tomorrow.

What is your favorite oatmeal recipe?
What else do you like to make in the crock pot?

Candy Corn Wine Bottle Craft

Have empty wine bottles laying around? Try this little craft! 

No empty bottles? Get to drinking!

 

Candy Corn Wine Bottle Craft 

 

 

Supplies needed:

• wine bottles
• orange, yellow, and white tissue paper
• spray paint
• Mod Podge (glossy)
• small paintbrush
• cardboard (for work surface) 
• ribbon 

Drink wine. Rinse bottles with warm water and soap. Remove labels. Dry.

Put the bottles on top of cardboard in an open area. Cover bottles completely with spray paint. Let dry.

While the spray paint is drying, cut your tissue paper into squares. The squares do not have to be perfect and can be different sizes.  Make sure that you have enough squares to cover and overlap on all of the bottles.

"Paint" the entire bottle with Mod Podge. Stick the pieces of tissue onto the Mod Podge.  You can overlap pieces of tissue. Try to flatten them onto the bottle as much as possible. Cover the entire bottle with tissue paper squares.

Once the bottle is covered with tissue paper, you will paint over top of the tissue with another layer of Mod Podge. Cover the entire bottle. **Be careful when you are doing this step because the orange tissue paper will stain the yellow and white. You might want to rinse your paintbrush and just do one color at a time.**

Let the bottle dry. 

Add ribbon around the neck of the bottle. 

Arrange the bottles onto a tray for a cute, Fall decoration!

What is your favorite thing about Fall?

Want to use a different style of tissue paper for a "year-round" decoration?  Check out my other wine bottle craft:

http://caralyoung.blogspot.com/2012/06/wine-bottle-craft.html

 

Pumpkin Pie Play-Dough

Pumpkin Pie Play-Dough
(no cooking involved)

Ingredients:
4 cups flour
1 cup salt
4 tbsp oil
1 1/2 cups water
2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
red and yellow food coloring

Mix flour, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl.

Mix oil and food coloring together before adding to dry mixture.
I started out with 6 drops of red and 15 drops of yellow food coloring and just added more as needed.

Add oil, food coloring, and water to the bowl and stir.

Add extra cinnamon and pumpkin spice spice until you have reached your desired scent.

Mix until pliable. Keep in a container or a ziplock bag.

Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients:

• 3 ripe bananas (mashed)
• 1 cup almond milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 3 cups Old Fashion or Rolled Oats
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp chocolate chips 

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 375 degrees
-Mix all ingredients except the chocolate chips together, and let sit while you prepare the muffin pans.
-Spray a muffin pan with non-stick spray.
-Stir the chocolate chips into the oatmeal batter.
-Divide batter into muffin pan.
-Bake 20-30 minutes, you’ll see the edges just starting to brown and they will be firm to the touch.
-The muffins may stick when hot but are removed easily when cooled for a bit.

YUM!

Late Night Snacking

Late at night is the hardest time of day for me. I keep wanting to eat after I already had a huge, healthy dinner! I think I just get bored and start thinking about what I can eat. Probably a sign that I should be drinking more water!

So just in case you're feeling the way I am right now... DON'T DO IT! KITCHEN IS CLOSED!
Don't sabotage your results with late night snacking. 

Here are some ideas that might help:
-Drink water
-Chew gum
-Brush your teeth
-Log all of your meals using LoseIt! or MyFitnessPal

Whatever it takes to get you through those cravings. If you are really hungry, make sure you indulge in a healthy snack option:

-fresh fruit
-edamame
-veggies and hummus
-Shakeology. 

If that isn't satisfying, your mind is playing tricks on you. 

Stay strong! You'll thank yourself in the morning!

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Mmm... I love pancakes! This recipe is great if you are in the mood for a sweet treat.

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cooked sweet potatoes
1/3 cup egg beaters (or 2 eggs)
1/4 cup oat flour
1/8 tsp baking powder
1 tsp honey
cinnamon (as much as you like)

Directions:

I like to microwave my sweet potatoes in order to cook them quickly.  I wash & dry them, poke holes in them, microwave for about 5 minutes and then flip and microwave for 5 minutes on the other side.

While they are microwaving, blend 1/4 cup of oatmeal into oat flour.

Mix 1/4 cup oat flour with 1/3 cup egg beaters, 1/8 tsp baking powder, and 1 tsp honey.  Add in cinnamon. Mash in cooked sweet potatoes.

The batter will be thick. Scoop some onto a heated skillet. This recipe usually makes 4 pancakes. Cook until done to your liking on each side. Top with additional cinnamon and honey. 

Black Bean Brownies!

I love dessert and I love healthy recipes! Try this brownie recipe if you are in the mood for a fun and delicious treat!

--Black Bean Brownies--
Ingredients:
1 can black beans
1/4 cup agave nectar
2 ripe bananas (I had mine in the freezer and just defrosted them.)
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup oatmeal
sprinkles (optional)

Directions:
Add all ingredients to the blender except for the oatmeal and sprinkles.
Blend until well mixed.
Stir in oatmeal.
Pour into a greased baking dish.
Add sprinkles on top.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Enjoy!!