Taste: Oatmeal with Poached Berries

Oatmeal with Poached Berries.

Happy Monday! I've got the best breakfast recipe for you. And it's surprisingly good for you, too, although it taste like the delectable nectar of the gods. If you wake up craving something sweet and fruity, this is an excellent healthy go-to that will leave you feeling pumped and full of energy all day!

Note: This recipe was inspired by this recipe by Giada from her book, Giada's Feel Good Food. However, I swapped the bulgur for oatmeal because A) Bulgur sounds weird and B) Since I am not a prairie girl with barrels of bulgur lying around, I decided to go with something I actually know how to cook: oatmeal. Not a mistake, people. Not a mistake.

Ingredients:

- 2 cups water

- 1 cup old-fashioned oatmeal

- 1 cup organic whole, hulled strawberries

- 1 cup organic mixed berries (I love raspberries, blueberries and blackberries)

- 1/4 cup orange juice

- 1 tbsp. agave

- 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice

Method:

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 2 cups of water (with a healthy dose of salt) to a boil over medium heat.

2. Add the 1 cup of oats, stirring frequently, for about 6-7 minutes. Most of the water should become absorbed and the consistency of the oatmeal should turn creamy.

3. Once the oatmeal is cooked evenly through, set aside and place a lid on the saucepan to keep heat in.

4. In another medium saucepan, combine the strawberries, mixed berries, orange juice and agave. Over medium-high heat, bring the mixture to a boil.

5. Once mixture is boiling, lower the heat until the mixture simmers and cook until fruit is soft, about 10 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat.

6. To dish up, serve the poached fruit on top of the oatmeal and serve immediately. Crazy wonderful taste delight is in your future.

Seriously, this breakfast will be on your mind for the rest of the week. I dare you to make it, because if you do I bet you'll make it twice!

Bon Appetit!

TASTE: The Perfect Pie Crust

Perfect Pie Crust.

I just had to share this before we are all in the swing of holiday baking later this week. I made a pie crust last week (to make with this quiche) and I couldn't believe how incredibly easy it was. Why haven't I been doing this all my life? Please, this year, promise me that you will resist the temptation to pick up a few pre-packaged crusts from the frozen food section.

Tools:

- Food Processor (mine is a 3-cup and can totally manage this recipe)

- Rolling pin

- Clean counter-top surface or wooden cutting board

Ingredients:

- 2 1/2 cups flour (plus extra for rolling)

- 1 cup (2 sticks) of very cold butter (almost frozen, seriously)

- 1 tsp. salt

- 1 tsp. sugar

- 6-8 tbps. ice water

Method:

Note: This recipe makes a bottom and top crust combination. If you only need a bottom crust and are leaving your pie/quiche, etc. open on top, you can cut this recipe in half or freeze your dough.

1. Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a food processor and pulse to mix the ingredients.

2. Chop up the really cold/frozen butter into, roughly, 1-tbsp. sections.

3. This is the fun part! Add the butter to the food processor and pulse about 8 times. This part always fascinates me, because it completely transforms the consistency! Keep pulsing until the mixture is coarse and the butter is scattered throughout.

4. Begin adding 1 tbsp. of ice water at a time, pulsing the mixture, then adding another tbsp. Keep doing this until the mixture begins to form a crumbly dough. A good test: if you you pinch some of the dough, it should stick together. If it doesn't, add a bit more water and pulse. You don't want to add too much water because it will make the dough tough to work with.

5. Remove dough from the processor and transfer to your clean surface (preferably a pastry board like this or this, but we can't all be so lucky, huh?)

6. Begin by mashing the dough up a bit. This is not only a therapeutic moment, but it actually helps the dough layers flatten (resulting in a flaky crust, mmm!)

7. Roll the dough with your hands until it forms a round mound. Using a large knife, cut the dough in half. Now you have two parts, one for the top crust and one for the bottom. Wrap each mound in plastic and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Note: If you only need one crust for your recipe, you can refrigerate the second mound of dough for up to 2 days. Or you can freeze it for up to a month.

8. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes (this allows it to soften a bit.) Flour your rolling pin and pastry board or clean surface and begin rolling the dough out. You want to roll the dough out to a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. If the dough is sticking a bit, just keep adding flour to the surface.

9. Carefully lift the rolled dough and place in a 9-inch pie pan. Using your fingers, gently press the dough into the pan. Trim the edges with kitchen shears. I like to use the excess dough to make designs on the crust with these cookie cutters. So festive.

10. Add pie filling.

11. Repeat step 9 with the second mound of dough. Leave a little extra dough around the edge of the top layer and press into the bottom layer around the edges. You can use your fingers or a fork. Make 4 2-inch cuts in the top layer of dough to allow steam to escape while the pie cooks.

Voila! Ready for baking!

I guarantee that you will be so pleased with the ease and TASTE of this dough that you will never go back to the store-bought stuff again! And your family will get a big kick out of your homemade handiwork (they don't have to know how easy and fun it is; that will just be our little secret!)

TASTE: Coconut Mango Baked Oatmeal

Happy Monday, friends! It's about time for a new recipe. This one came to me, sort of in a dream, and the dream spectacularly came to life. Mad props to my Dream Project partner-in-crime Carrie, who first introduced me to the notion of baked oatmeal. It's a great go-to recipe I often make when guests come to town or for a weekend brunch with friends. It's also great to make on a Sunday night to have throughout the week for a nutritious snack. P.S. I get a little carried away with the toppings (but you can, too!)

Ingredients:

- 3 cups Rolled Oats

- 2 Eggs

- 1/4 cup Agave

- 1/2 cup shredded Coconut

- 1/4 cup Butter, melted

- 1 Mango, pitted and chopped*

- 1 cup Almond Milk

- 1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon

- 1/2 tsp. Salt

Method:

1) Pit and chop an entire mango. Combine in a bowl with the coconut. Set aside.

2) In a large bowl, combine the oats, salt and cinnamon. In another bowl, whisk the eggs and combine with the almond milk, agave and melted butter. Stir into oat mixture until blended.

3) Spoon into a greased 9-in. square baking pan. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until set. Yields 9 servings.

Note *

You can add (almost) any kind of fruit into this baked oatmeal treat. Apples and blueberries are lovely for a fall-theme main dish. Strawberries and oranges are a summery way to celebrate the oatmeal indulgence. Most recently, I added a mix of chopped mango and papaya (with a smattering of nutmeg) and I think it was the most delicious ever. So get creative! Fruit are your friends.

Brunch it up! And maybe add a mimosa.

TASTE: A Sweet Springtime Snack

Happy Monday, Friends!

I have news for you. I have finally discovered the perfect snack. Or breakfast. Or anything. It's just the tastiest treat. (Okay, I didn't discover it, but I discovered it for myself, you know what I mean.) It's even better than dessert at Max Brenner's, no joke. I've been treating myself to this since I started loading up on extra berries at the Haymarket. Having an abundance of berries around the house makes me feel like the Queen of England. This snack is truly magnificent. Live it up and treat yourself.

This is how I build it (in the order of layers, from bottom to top):

- Greek yogurt (I like Fage, but I don't discriminate)

- Granola

- Strawberries

- Sliced almonds

- Blueberries

- Walnuts

- Shredded Coconut

- Drizzle with Honey*

*The honey I use is from the fabulous honey store that I'm madly in love with. I find excuses to walk through this little boutique, Follow the Honey, far more often than I ever actually need to. They have honey on tap. They have beeswax candles. They have honeycomb jewelry. I can't get enough. Just like this tasty parfait.

I hope this special snack will brighten your Monday and make you feel like the sweetness of springtime is just around the corner :-)

Bon Appetit!

TASTE: Bacon-Nutmeg Quiche

Yum yum yum.

Happy Saturday! I hope you're enjoying this lovely weekend. Brunch is a weekend staple, so I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes. No matter what season, quiche is always an appropriate go-to. I got this particular recipe from my dazzling mother. Once you get the hang of quiche, you can pretty much whip anything together with eggs and a pie crust and it will turn out hot and delicious. Mmm I love brunch. Especially when my mom makes it. I sit at her kitchen bar and drink coffee and she scolds me for putting my feet up on the counter. It's a marvelous tradition.

Ingredients:

- A 9-inch unbaked pie crust

- 1 tsp. unsalted butter or olive oil

- 1 small yellow onion, chopped

- 2 cups shredded swiss cheese

- 6 slices lean bacon, cooked, crumbled

- 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

- 3 large eggs

- 1 cup low-fat milk

- 1/4 tsp. salt, to taste

- 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.

2. In a 6-inch non-stick skillet melt the butter (or olive oil) over moderately high heat. Add onion* and saute for 5 minutes or until soft, then transfer to a medium bowl.

3. Toss onion with cheese, bacon and flour. Spread this mixture in pie crust.

4. In the medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, salt and nutmeg.

5. Pour mixture over the cheese, bacon and flour in the pie crust.

6. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes or until center is set.

*Sometimes I add mushrooms and green pepper. The more veggies, the more fun!

Bon Appetit! My husband tends to scarf this down within a day. Hopefully you will be equally as endeared to the tastiness of it. Let me know how yours turns out! Happy brunching!