nut butter

Another Wintry Weekend In the CLE

/ Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 8 Comments

Is anyone else sick of this winter? It has been cold and icy and snowy here for weeks and I’m so ready for warm weather and sunshine and a clear sidewalk to walk and run on!

Okay – enough complaining I suppose. Because despite the weather, it was still a good weekend spent with B and FW. I was sick most of the weekend, so it was pretty laid back and low key.

We of course had to start the weekend by celebrating National Pizza Day with my favorite pizza- Marottas!

Saturday, B made FW and I some pancakes to kick off breakfast. Fun fact- I never used to like pancakes or sweet stuff for breakfast- I was much more of a savory breakfast food lover – until pregnancy.

We spent some time later that afternoon at the West Side Market; we used to shop there all the time when we lived downtown, but now we only make it there maybe once every other month or so.

And of course we had to visit Rising Star for some coffee and chocolate milk (tea for me from Cleveland Tea Revival).

After the Market it was time to hit up the Great Big Home and Garden Show! I had won tickets in an online giveaway from Cleveland Magazine and it was a great way for us to get in some running around time and get Francis moving even with the cold weather.

Saturday night, B made us dinner – spaghetti, meatballs and homemade sauce.

Sunday morning we decided it was warm enough and finally not snowing/icing/raining/sleeting/etc. to go for a walk, so we walked to brunch!

FW got tired of walking, so B carried him. He then fell asleep in the carrier

We split some eggs and a  lemon crepe. FW was suspicious of the crepe until I told him it was like a  cookie 🙂

Sunday afternoon after our walk was pretty lazy. I got in some rest, some baking and some peanut butter making.

I realize I can’t remember the last time I bought any nut butter at the store! I got my Vitamix about a year ago and it has been the only way we’ve been doing peanut or almond butter. I LOVE having it and need to use it more!

Sunday night included dinner with B’s family and that was about it. We watched the Olympics with them for a little bit – it was the first time I’ve watched any of the events! I need to start getting into them.

Some questions for you:

  • Are you watching the Olympics?
  • What type of nut butter(s) do you like?

I’m linking up with the weekly wraps!

Nut butters and more: What I Ate on Sunday

/ Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 12 Comments

Alright we’re halfway through the workweek! Well, somewhat. I’m actually working this Saturday and presenting at a conference so I guess it’s not my halfway point quite yet – but almost there!

Here is a look at what I ate on Sunday. It wasn’t really a typical Sunday (B and I usually have family dinner with his family), but still so delicious!

The day started with a short run with B. It was warmer than I expected and when we got home I wasn’t that hungry but seriously craving some fruit. So I made myself a mini fruit salad. Fruit= one of my pregnancy cravings.

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As well as nut butter. We had plans for most of the day, so I had a spoonful of peanut butter to keep me satisfied before our day.20160221_130417

B and I hit up a local tea shop and I grabbed some tea and honey. No pic of the tea, sadly.

Then, B and I went for a walk (again – enjoying some great seasonably warm weather!) and hit up Whole Foods for some supplies for dinner. At whole foods I noshed on some of their cheese samples (no pic again, I know…) BUT by the time we got home it was 3:30 and I was starving. Which meant it was time for an apple and some more nut butter.

 

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For dinner, B and I made homemade whole grain pasta. B made the sauce-  it was a spicy olive, onion, buttery garlicky lemony sauce. SO good. While we were waiting for the pasta, we snacked on some cheese and bread.

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And here was dinner! I hadn’t had any veggies yet, so I made us small salads to go with the pasta dish.

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For dessert, we had some chocolate. I’ve been enjoying these chocolates from Valentine’s Day and am in love with the hazelnut ones.

 

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That was my Sunday! I went to bed with a full and happy belly 🙂

 

Some questions for you:

  • What candy (if any) did you get for Valentine’s Day?
  • How many nut butters do you have at home? I need to know if I’m the only one with an assortment. I currently have 4 varieties of peanut butter, plus almond butter and sunflower seed butter 🙂

Meatless Monday: Easy (and adaptable) Overnight Oats

/ Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 7 Comments

It has been a while since I’ve written a Meatless Monday post – and I don’t know why! I’ve had a few meatfree meals lately, but I haven’t taken the time to truly capture them and write down a recipe and then post them.

So, today’s meatless post is a meal you can enjoy for breakfast. Overnight oats! I make these sometimes when I’m craving something other than my typical egg white and spinach and veggies for breakfast and have been asked how I make them. The answer? It’s always different. There are so many ways to make them. It depends on what ingredients I have. So here you go – a standard overnight oats recipe for you to enjoy and it’s adaptable so you can add or remove the toppings as you please!

Easy Overnight Oats - icrashedtheweb

Here’s what you need:

  • ½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
  • ⅓ cup yogurt (for this recipe, I used  plain Greek yogurt)
  • ½ cup milk (unsweetened vanilla almond milk is my favorite, but I didn’t have any on hand so I used regular milk)
  • 1-2 teaspoons your favorite nut butter (I love almond, peanut and sun butter!)
  • 1-2 teaspoons Chia seeds
  • 1-2 teaspoons honey
  • To top your oats (wait until you’re ready to eat to add these): fruit (I like 1/2 banana, blueberries, nuts and more nut butter)
overnight oats ingredients

basic overnight oats ingredients

 

Here’s what you do:
  1. Combine oats, yogurt, milk, nut butter, chia seeds and honey in a 10-12 ounce jar. Stir with a spoon or shake until everything is pretty combined.
  2. Let sit in fridge overnight or at least 7-8 hours. When ready do serve, add toppings! I love adding some freshly sliced banana, blueberries, a few nuts and even more nut butter.
  3. Enjoy a hearty and delicious breakfast. Or snack. Or dessert. I’m not judging!

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Isn’t that easy? Some modifications I’ve enjoyed include:

  • Adding more milk and less yogurt for a less tangy and less thick oatmeal.
  • Adding some diced banana to the oats in the overnight version and peanut butter. Then topping with more banana and more peanut butter for a peanut butter and banana oats.
  • Adding PB2 or another powdered peanut butter before mixing for a more peanut buttery flavor.
  • Adding dried fruit or coconut to the top when it’s ready to serve
  • Adding flax seed (1-2 teaspoons) for some extra fiber/grit/texture.
  • Topping my oats with more oats (meaning: homemade granola) or a few mini chocolate chips if you’re feeling ambitious.

That’s one of the things I love about overnight oats – in addition to being super easy and not at all time consuming, the possibilities really are endless!

Some questions for you:

  • Do you like overnight oats? What’s your favorite combination?
  • What’s your go-to breakfast?

Disclosure: While I was not compensated for this post, some of the product (nut butter, oats) was  provided to me by Swanson Health. My views and comments are solely my own and do not represent those of Swanson. AND I’ll likely be doing a giveaway so you can get some goodies too, soon 🙂

For more Meatless Monday posts, check out some of my past recipes or visit the linkup below! I’m linking up with Sarah and Confessions of a Mother Runner .