Hello from the land of pop, hot dish and bubblers

... otherwise known as the Midwest!

I'm Emma, and I didn't stray quite as far from home as these other two ladies, as I'm currently living it up in Minnesota.  I guess I'm the hippie/nerd of the group, getting way more excited than normal about biking to work in the dead of winter, cooking with weird foods like coconut oil and chia seeds (yes, the same ones that grow into chia pets), and discussions about sustainable agriculture.  Just like my friends, I absolutely loooooooove food -- eating it, making it, looking at pictures of it... I got a food processor for Christmas and just about died of happiness.

Cinnamon rolls from this recipe

I'm really interested in nutrition, and I love the challenge of coming up with healthy meals for one on a college student's tight budget of money and time.  Still, I have a major sweet tooth and I relish the days when I have time to make delicious sweet treats.

I work at a coffee shop that sometimes requires me to work reaalllly early in the morning -- so early there's no way I'm setting the alarm clock back an extra 15 minutes to make a pot of oatmeal-- but I don't like to miss out on making breakfast, my favorite meal of the day! 

Thankfully, I've come up with a few great breakfast recipes that are ready to eat in the morning before work!  They require a little bit of preparation beforehand, but making breakfast is the perfect homework break when you're already in the kitchen scrounging for study snacks at night.

Here are a couple of my favorite oatmeal breakfasts:

Overnight Oatmeal

1/3 cup rolled oats

1/3 cup milk (or nondairy milk)

1/3 cup yogurt (I use plain, but flavored would be yummy too!)

~1/8 tsp vanilla

pinch salt

Mix all ingredients together in an empty jar (I use my old peanut butter jars), cap the jar, and place in the fridge overnight.  In the morning, the oats will have soaked up the liquid and will be soft and delicious!

Slow-cooker Steel cut Oats
heaping 1/4 cup steel cut oats
1.5 cups water, milk, or nondairy milk
~1/8 tsp vanilla
pinch salt 

Mix all ingredients in a glass jar (again, empty peanut butter jars come in really handy!) and set in a slow-cooker without capping the jar.  Fill the slow-cooker with enough water that it comes to about halfway up the jar.  Set the slow-cooker on low heat, and go to sleep.  In the morning, the oats will be cooked and creamy!  

Both of these are basic recipes that you can play around with by mixing in different additions.  Some combinations I've come up with:

• mashed banana, cocoa powder, and a scoop of peanut butter
• raisins, walnuts, and a sprinkle of cinnamon
• canned pumpkin, dried cranberries, and a pinch each of ginger, cinnamon, and cloves
• raspberry jam and peanut butter
• shredded carrots, dried coconut, and a bit of maple syrup 
• peanut butter, dark chocolate chips, and crumbled pretzels
• ... the possibilities are endless!  Experiment with adding some ingredients at night, and others that you don't want to get soggy (like granola or pretzels) in the morning before you dig in.

Happy oatmeal-ing!