What's cookin'?

I love to cook. I have always loved being in the kitchen, first as a child where it was the center of the family; later, I enjoyed creating my own recipes and recreating meals I had enjoyed in restaurants. Growing up in the '60s and '70s in an Italian family, macaroni was dinner at least twice a week. We also learned to love Jiffy-Pop, Cheez-Whiz and other assorted "healthy" fare. Vegetables were never center stage, and salad was often just iceberg, cukes and tomatoes. Weight was never a problem for me either, but as the years go by,I find that the old metabolism isn't what it used to be. In my twenties, I could skip a few Twinkies and lose 5 pounds to get into that cute outfit for a weekend date. Now, in my very, very, VERY late 20's, losing 5 pounds takes nothing short of a miracle! I used my love of cooking and interest in healthy eating to cultivate a repertoire of healthy and delicious new recipes, as well as healthier dishes inspired by old favorites. My project last summer was to research and develop ways to increase my collection of vegetable recipes. Not vegetarian, but vegetable-centered, I have tried to use spices, herbs, and various cultural styles to keep dinner interesting, exciting and worth going back for seconds. I am not a nutritionist, but I have done a good amount of reading, and think I have a handle on what's good for me and what should be avoided. Welcome to my first blog. Feel free to try any recipes that interest you, and share your own! Together we can answer the question....What's healthy for dinner?!!

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Baked Oatmeal

So just because I am stuck in the house in the middle of a hurricane doesn't mean I am not going to blog.  What else is there to do but eat, drink and watch movies?

Starting with breakfast....I found a recipe for Baked Oatmeal online and tweaked it a bit.  Sometimes it is hard to get a bowl of oatmeal down, especially when rushing to get out of the house in the morning.  This one is easy to make, has lots of healthy stuff in it, and can be eaten with one hand while driving!

Mix together 1 1/2 cups quick oats, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 tbsp ground flax seeds and salt.  I also added in raisins, chopped walnuts, cocoa powder and a good sprinkling of cinnamon.  In another bowl  beat one egg, 1/4 cup honey, 3/4 cup milk, some vanilla and 1 tbsp melted butter (I actually used refined coconut oil instead, but I have been reading a lot about it and am trying to incorporate it into my diet.  More about that later....). Mix the wet ingredients into the dry, and pour into a baking dish.  Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Cool and cut into squares.

This is really very tasty, as well as versatile.  You can skip the cocoa, raisins and nuts, add chocolate chips, coconut or peanut butter, and serve with fruit and syrup on top.  I sliced some bananas and drizzled a little (real) maple syrup on top.  I plan to make another batch and see how they freeze, for those "grab and go" situations when there is no time to make something healthy.
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