Quinoa. Wait....for BREAKFAST!?!?

I LOVE oatmeal and I'm pretty stoked that it's getting cold enough to make it!  There's nothing better on a cold morning than a  big old bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar and a little milk, maybe some blueberries or bananas.....anyways, enough about oatmeal.  Oatmeal is SO last year.  Whats hot now!?  Whole grains for breakfast!  I've been experimenting with farro, quinoa, even bulgar and I've come up with some awesome healthy breakfast solutions. 

Breakfast Quinoa

5 c almond milk, 2 c quinoa, 1 c dried coconut flakes, 1 T cinnamon.

Pour quinoa, coconut flakes and cinnamon into large saucepan, cover with Almond milk.  Stir well to combine.  The cinnamon might be a little clumpy, I used a whisk to break it down.  Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, then lower the temperature and cover.  I kept occasionally stirring it to make sure the bottom didn't burn.  Quinoa will be done when most of the liquid is absorbed. 

I ate a bowl hot and it was delicious.  I ate a bowl cold the next morning and it was delicious.  There's really no going wrong with this one!!!!!  Next time I'm adding blueberries.  Happy Breakfast everyone! 

Homemade dog biscuits

Did you guys know that, not only are they expensive, but that there are over TWENTY FIVE ingredients in Milkbones, and that one of them is BEEF FAT!?  Um, ew gross, although that does explain a lot about my dog's breath.  High on my list of things to do lately has been to make my little puppy some homemade dog treats that are healthy AND inexpensive.  After doing some research, I came up with a recipe that was easy AND I had all the ingredients already. 

Austin's Homemade Dog Biscuits

1 1/2 c oatmeal
2 c flour (I used white because it was what I had, next time I would use whole wheat)
3 small apples, finely shredded
1 large carrot, finely shredded
1/4 c crunchy peanut butter
2 T honey
1/4 c Hot water

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix oatmeal and four in a small bowl.  Shred carrots and apples into bowl of kitchen aid mixer, add honey and peanut butter and mix.  Add flour in small batches (who am I kidding, I threw it all in at the same time....) alternating with water to get a slightly sticky ball of dough.  If it's too sticky and you can't work with it, add a little bit more flour.  I pulled small pieces off of the dough to make little balls, you can roll it and cut it out in the shape of dog biscuits or whatever shape you want.  Bake for 30 minutes, transfer to rack for cooling. 

Austin LOVES these treats and they were so easy to make, not to mention it made a TON of treats.  Next time I am thinking about making them with sweet potatoes, or even Carob, which is a chocolate substitute that is safe for dogs. 

An introduction.

Whats up world! A little about me….I am a professionally trained chef, avid writer, extreme funnist, and I’m ALWAYS looking for ways to cut corners and be creative! Pinterest has been a great site for me, although I am not really one to follow a recipe (that’s where that creative nature comes in…..). I usually like to read a few ways to do something and then go about it my own way. Here, I will log my successes AND my failures (because after all, failures are often HILARIOUS!), and maybe save a few bucks!