Cinnamon Roll Cravings

Yay for rain and snow...not so much for the cold weather that comes along with it! I have been freezing all day and was thinking about something yummy to make that would be something good to snuggle up in a blanket and read my favorite magazines and get a little interior inspiration! Of course, I'm still trying to keep my eating habits a little healthier so the cake they were giving out at church wasn't the best option...(the little taste I had was pretty tasty I must admit...chocolate ganache...mmmmm!) So I got home and cinnamon rolls started sounding pretty delicious! But I think we are aware at this point that they aren't exactly one of the main sections of the food pyramid--well I guess that depends on who you are (shout out to my family). ;) Here's what I came up with! Cinnamon Roll Granola. And I must say...this is some good stuff. And of course, super easy :) Eat it over yogurt, milk, plain, or any way you please! Now, I'm not here to say it's as beautiful of an experience as eating a cinnamon roll...but it's definitely a close second! I mean put some icing on top and you've got yourself an (almost) cinnamon roll! Or if you want to keep it healthy, drizzle some vanilla greek yogurt over it! 

If you make it, let me know how it turns out! Thanks for reading and happy Sunday! :) 

Cinnamon Roll Granola 

Oven Temp: 350º

Prep: 5 min. Bake time: 10 min. 

5 cups old-fashioned oats 

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 T cinnamon 

Optional: 1/2 cup raisins 

1/3 cup maple syrup

2 T coconut oil 

Splash of vanilla 

1. Mix dry ingredients together. 

2. Microwave maple syrup & coconut oil for 20 seconds; stir and then microwave for 15 additional seconds. 

3. Add splash of vanilla into liquid mixture.

4. Combine dry and wet ingredients. 

5. Spread out granola mixture onto a jelly roll pan (either line with parchment paper, silicone mat or spray) 

6. Bake for 5 min. Take out and mix up a little.

7. Bake for the remaining 5 minutes and remove from oven. Upon taking it out, put it all on a piece of wax paper and allow to cool. 

Smoothie Day is Everyday

As you can see by the title, today is all about my go to breakfast (lunch....and maybe dinner). There is rarely a day that goes by that the blender isn't used in our house lately. I taught my little brother how to use it so I'm not the only one on a smoothie kick. ;) I know it's easy to make a high calorie smoothie or to add things that make your "healthy" breakfast not so healthy and full of sugar. That being said, I'm no expert on that but the smoothies I've made lately have left me feeling energized and ready for whatever I have planned for the day! So that's got to be a good sign! And I actually look forward to breakfast which is important since I love food..;)

My favorite breakfast combo is one that involves (but of course, is not limited to): 

1. Smoothie as my base 

2. Granola 

3. Fresh fruit 

4. Toppings (coconut, nuts, etc.)
K so it's pretty much a parfait...details...

Oh and if you happened to miss the General Women's Conference last night, the perfect time to catch up is while enjoying your yummy smoothie! (Or I'm sure you would even enjoy it without a smoothie...it's just that good) :)

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do! 

Recipe

1 cup of Chobani Greek yogurt (I used pineapple)

1/2 cup frozen pineapple 

1/4 cup strawberries

1 cup papaya (split into two 1/2 cups) 

1 banana 

Empty cup of yogurt into the bottom of the blender. Add frozen pineapple and then add the rest. Blend until smooth. 

Fill your cup and add your toppings! Granola (remember this yummy recipe?), fresh fruit, coconut flakes, almonds, even chocolate chips if you've got a sweet tooth. :) 

Please share if you use this recipe or make creations of your own! :) And of course, breakfast is best enjoyed with a few fresh flowers near by ;) 

Thanks for reading! 

Coconut + Banana + Honey + Quinoa Parfait

One o'clock church is meant solely for sleeping in, catching up on some reading and of course, making a yummy breakfast!! This morning, I was for some reason feeling especially motivated to try making something up of my own rather than borrowing off of others blogs! Well...seeing as I'm still kind of new to this, it called for a little inspiration which I got from The Diva Dish blog! She made a yummy Apple Maple Cinnamon Quinoa Parfait which looked pretty delicious as well! I'll definitely be trying it out one of these days. But like I said...I was really determined to come up with something. So after staring at the pantry for a while and deciding what I could pull together...I came up with Coconut Banana Honey Quinoa Parfait! And it turned out great! And it's fairly simple to whip together and SO filling. Enjoy!

Coconut Banana Honey Quinoa Parfait 

Serves: 2 

Ingredients 

-1/2 cup quinoa 

-1 cup water 

-2 tablespoons of coconut oil 

-2 tablespoons of honey 

-Splash of vanilla 

-A few drops of almond extract 

-A medium sized ripe banana 

-Any type of greek yogurt (I used Chobani coconut flavor) 

Step 1: Make Quinoa 

• Bring 1/2 cup of quinoa and 1 cup of water to a boil 
• Turn heat to low, cover and let cook 15 minutes 
• Uncover, let sit for 5 minutes. 

Step 2: When there's about 8-10 minutes left of cooking for the quinoa, start on the bananas. Mix together 1 T. coconut oil and 1 T. of honey (heat for 15 seconds in the microwave) and then add a splash of vanilla and a few drops of almond extract.

Step 3: Slice bananas. Pour coconut oil/honey mixture into a frying pan and start heat on low. After it heats up a little, put the bananas in (if possible, try to have the bananas all spread out) 

Step 4: Sauté bananas until caramelized. Remove bananas from frying pan onto a plate and refrigerate while you prep the rest. 

Step 5: Add the remaining 1 T. coconut oil and 1 T. honey to quinoa and stir until the coconut oil and honey both are mixed in. 

Step 6: Layer the quinoa, yogurt and bananas and (optional) top with almonds, coconut flakes and anything else that you think might add a little goodness to it! :) 

Hope you like it! :) If you have any other questions on how I made it, just comment on the blog or send me a message. Thanks for stopping by! 

Your New Favorite Granola + 5 Ways to Use It

First official post on the blog! Woo! Okay so I've bene thinking about where I want to go with this whole food aspect of the blog. Let's put the facts out there:

• Most of the things I make are gluten-free and semi-dairy and sugar free...I mean...what's life without sugar. Am I right? (I generally don't use straight sugar, but I swear I use honey in just about every other thing I eat!)

• I try to make everything I eat clean. Not necessarily everything is going to be the healthiest thing ever but I just try to keep it clean. 
• Hopefully some of the things I post will be helpful to anyone reading the blog! 

• I love food/eating so I'll try posting my new recipes every week! 

Anyways, I'm super excited to start this up and thanks for stopping by! Now, enjoy one of my favorite go-to recipes and how you can use it. :) 

This granola. No words. I've struck gold stumbling upon this recipe!! I mean, as much as wish I was the one you could all thank for this but full credit for this tasty recipe goes to one of my favorite healthy food blogs: lovelylittlekitchen.com.
Okay so my family sometimes thinks I'm crazy for all this clean eating but not with this. They all love it! It's not everyday that I have my entire agree on a food that we all like, so I figured I may as well figure out multiple uses for it since it was becoming a staple in our family's week.
In this post, I'm going to share with you my favorite ways to incorporate this granola into some simple snacks and meals that are easy to throw together with ingredients you likely already have sitting right in your pantry. It adds the perfect crunch to all of your favorites! Enjoy!

                

[details: frozen raspberries//blue diamond almond-coconut milk (unsweetened)]

[details: fugi apple (or one of your choice)//skippy creamy peanut butter]

[details: blueberries//banana//spinach//flaxseed//blue diamond almond-coconut milk]

[details: kodiak cakes pancake mix//bananas//grade b maple syrup]

[details: spinach + oceanspray craisins + fugi apple slices]

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy your granola! :) And you can even make up your own creations with it too!