Savory oatmeal with fried eggs

I have always hated oatmeal. Don't most people? In the past I have taught myself to like certain foods because of their nutritional values. Skim milk...tomatoes...salad. But oatmeal...no matter how hard I tried to like it, I just couldn't. Even when I tried steel-cut oats, even when I mixed in cinnamon and honey, even when I put peanut butter and chocolate chips in it - I still felt like I had to force it down my throat.

But now...I have found an oatmeal I like.

The other day I saw a post (I can't remember where now) about savory oatmeal, with olive oil and herbs mixed in. Intriguing! I'd never heard of such a thing. Not the saccharine-sweet, brown sugar, milky cream oatmeal, but SAVORY! I finally tried it for myself last week and I was pleasantly surprised. A few nights later, as I was drifting off to sleep, I found myself CRAVING this oatmeal and scheming how I would make it again. I would spread the oatmeal out on a plate, then top it off with fried eggs.

And that's exactly what I did.

And it was good!

As far as how I made it: I used Quaker Instant oats and prepared one serving (half cup of dry oats) according to the package directions. It's better not to get it too soupy, so don't add too much water. A medium thickness makes it seem almost like risotto, which is perfect. Once it's hot, add in 1/2 TB of extra virgin olive oil, and salt and cracked black pepper to taste. (I love a lot of pepper). That's it! I haven't tried it with herbs yet but I'm sure it'd work great.

Blueberry crumb cake

To Die For Blueberry Muffins from Allrecipes


Sorry guys, don't feel like being descriptive today. I haven't been much into cooking lately. I think I need a little break from all the foodie stuff. Anyone else ever feel that way?

To keep it simple, this recipe is absolutely divine. I used brown sugar for the topping instead of white, and I doubled the recipe and baked it in a large pan instead of making muffins. Definitely recommend it. It's very sweet but very good.

Greek hummus wraps

Hummus Salad Wraps from Mediterrasian.com

Greek Pita Pockets from Mediterrasian.com


According to the family, this is the most filling vegetarian recipe we've ever had. It's a combination of the above recipes.

Hummus spread on whole-wheat flat bread, then covered in feta cheese, red onions, black olives, lettuce, tomato, grated carrots, and best of all.....Frank's Red Hot sauce.

It's a very refreshing meal, but filling at the same time. Plus it's really beautiful and colorful, and everyone can customize their sandwich with their favorite toppings. Definitely recommend this. :)

The hummus was homemade, created with chickpeas, olive oil, walnuts, red pepper flakes and some more of Frank's Red Hot. (I can't get enough of that stuff!)

Italian fried eggs on garlic bread

Fried Egg with Tomato & Mozzarella from Ginger Rose

I first made a version of this after I saw Giada DeLaurentiis make it on her show. When I saw Ginger's post, I knew it was time to make it again.

I love the combination of eggs and tomato sauce! I often make egg pizzas in the morning or actually...any time of the day. This version served on top of french bread is delicious and savory...definitely a satisfying and easy meal!

Greek yogurt with toasted pecans and honey

I am in love with Greek yogurt. My mom bought a big container at Whole Foods last week and I've been eating it every chance I get. Actually...I just had some with blueberries. Yum!

But the best way to eat Greek yogurt is with toasted nuts. I'm sure any nut would work, but the pecans are really delicious. Just spread the nuts out on a baking pan and stick it under the broiler for a few minutes. Mix it with a tablespoon of honey, and you really feel like you're eating a big bowl of ice cream. Plus, it's packed with protein and much more satisfying than ice cream!

I mean, just look at the picture, it speaks for itself. MMMM!

Oven-fried green beans

Oven-Fried Green Beans

1/2 tsp salt
About a LB of fresh green beans
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of cayenne (optional)
2 tsp. vegetable oil
2 eggs

Wash and trim green beans and cut into halves. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Add oil and use your fingers to work the oil into the breadcrumb mixture. Transfer to a large plate or shallow bowl. Set aside. Whisk eggs to break them up completely. When you lift the whisk up it should be as lifting it out of water. Preheat oven to 425. Liberally oil a large baking sheet (or use nonstick). Thoroughly dry green bean sticks. Keeping one hand dry and one hand wet, dip a green bean in the eggs, lift it out and shake off any excess egg, put green bean in bread crumbs mixture and coat completely, lift out and shake off any excess bread crumbs, transfer stick to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining sticks. Bake, turning once, until browned, crispy, and tender to the bite, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Dipping Sauce: Mix light sour cream with chipotle seasoning and a small amount of horseradish.

Easy onion flatbread

Flatbread with Onion & Rosemary (Lazy Version)
Adapted from a recipe in Vegetarian Bible

There are a lot of flatbread recipes in the Vegetarian Bible, and they all look yummmmmmy. But most of them require you make your own dough. Well I'm too lazy for that.

Here is my version of one of the recipes, made from a can of Pillsbury pizza dough. This is unbelievably good! And ridiculously easy. Definitely making this again soon. Enjoy.

1 can refrigerated pizza dough
1 TB rosemary
2 TB extra virgin olive oil
1 red or yellow onion, finely sliced and separated into rings
1 tsp coarse sea salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Oil a cookie sheet. Open the canned dough and spread it on the sheet in a rough oval shape. Make holes about 2 inches apart on the surface of the dough with the handle of a wooden spoon. Spread the onion rings over the dough, then drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle over the salt. Bake the dough about 15-20 minutes (check the directions on the dough packaging). Five minutes before the end of the cooking time, garnish with the rosemary. Transfer to a cooling rack; serve warm.