Spice Blend:
1 tsp. each dried rosemary, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, and cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/4 tsp. chipotle powder

Dressing:
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. dijon mustard
1/2 tbsp. lime juice
1/2 tbsp. tamari soy sauce

1 red pepper, diced
1/2 c. sliced cooked breakfast sausages (about 3)
1.5 c. cooked large flake oatmeal
1/2 c. finely grated cheese
4 eggs, beaten well

Preheat oven to 350*F.

Mix together spice blend, and set aside.
Beat dressing ingredients together, and blend with beaten eggs.

Mix together oatmeal, sausages, and red pepper. Add spice blend and egg mixture, and mix well to combine. Pour into casserole dish.

Sprinkle with cheese, cover and cook 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and eggs are cooked through. It will be solid enough to serve by the piece. Serves 4.
© 2016 The Meals Maven

I love oatmeal, just not plain porridge. I love dressing it up with nuts, raisins or apples, and spices. I love adding maple syrup and a bit of dark brown sugar to finish it off, with a bit of milk before serving to make it just a little creamy. Making a large batch of oatmeal ahead of time means I get to have 4 servings of oatmeal for the work price of 1! Which means mornings are more delicious and not quite as much work.

Oh, and if you want to know the difference between porridge and oatmeal, read this article here.

I worked my recipe out in My Fitness Pal, so I can include nutritional information for you today :)

1 1/3 c. large flake oats
3 c. water
3/4 c. pecan halves
3/4 c. thompson raisins (my favorite kind of raisin), other dried fruit, diced fresh applies, etc.
1.5 tsp ground saigon cinnamon
pinch of salt (about 1/4 tsp at the most)
1/8 c. medium maple syrup (4 tbsp)
~3 tbsp dark brown sugar (it works out to about 2 tsp/serving)

Make oatmeal, adding oats, pecans, fruit, cinnamon, and salt to the pot. You can follow package directions, or just throw it all together helter-skelter as I do- mix it all together, bring to a boil, stir, turn down to a simmer for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, remove from heat, stir some more. It might stick to the bottom of the pot, but that can be mixed in as well- unless it's burnt, and mine has never burned.

To prepare breakfast in advance, separate the contents of the pot into 4 generous single servings in 4 microwave-safe lidded containers- mason jars, containers, etc. Add 1 tbsp of maple syrup and about 2 tsp of brown sugar (or to taste- I have a bit of a sweet tooth) to each container, Let them cool a bit, pop them in the fridge, and enjoy them for the next few days, heating before serving. 

Nutritional Information based on recipe as above using Thompson raisins, per serving:


Calories: 440
Carbs 66
Protein 7
Fat 17
Fiber 6
Sodium 143

It looks like a lot of calories, but you definitely don't need a mid-morning snack- at least, I don't. The biggest calorie content comes from the nuts and raisins, but I consider those high nutrition sources of calories, so I don't balk at them. Here's some nutritional facts about raisins, and some for pecans.

If you want to remove some of the added sugar, the maple syrup has added about 40 cal. per serving, and the sugar about 34.

My thanks to longtime friend Gena for her idea in creating oven omelettes. I never would have considered it otherwise!
Mornings are hectic, as any parent with school-aged kids can attest. Most of the time I just figure out what to give the kids and drink a cup of coffee until eventually I find something to eat once everything has settled down. But not this school year! I'm taking breakfast back!

12 eggs
2 c. diced vegetables (I used 1 c. diced zucchini, 3/4 c. red pepper, and a handful of baby spinach)
3 sliced green onions
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp Epicure Selections Thai Seasoning (anything goes though! Whatever you have.)
12 cheese slices (I like medium cheddar, but anything works!)
12 ham slices (optional)
12 round buns (I used Bakestone Brothers multigrain thins)
mayonnaise (optional)
mustard (optional)

Preheat oven to 350*F. Mix all vegetables with olive oil and seasoning. Sprinkle vegetables in muffin tin (I used a muffin top tin) and bake about 10 minutes.
Remove from oven, and crack an egg into each muffin tin.
Bake for another 25 minutes or so.
If you were just making these to eat right away with fresh toast and fruit (mmmm) you could leave the yolks a bit runny. However, because I am planning on freezing these, I cooked until they were solid.

Once cooked, remove from oven, allow to set a few minutes, then use a spatula to remove from pan to cool on cooling rack (I like this one from Pampered Chef- small pieces don't fall through!).

To assemble, toast your thins, spread mayonnaise on one side and mustard on the other. Put ham on the mustard side, top with an egg, a slice of cheese, and then the top of the bun. Eat and enjoy. Or, when completely cool, wrap in plastic wrap and then foil, and freeze. To reheat, defrost in fridge overnight, remove plastic wrap and foil, wrap in paper towel, and microwave for about 15 seconds on one side, then flip and microwave on the other side for another 15 seconds or so.

I made 6 a month or so ago (see pictures below), and those didn't last too long. The second time I made them I upped the vegetables quotient and added baby spinach. Delicious!

Sitting beside my second son this morning, each of us snacking on fresh-from-the-oven hot and tasty muffins, I realized that everyone needs to try this recipe.
The recipe for these muffins is originally found in Muffins & More, by Jean Pare, titled simply Banana Bran Muffins. I've modified it, of course, to suit my family and my picky children. I hope you enjoy them.

1 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. All Bran Cereal (original)
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. cocoa

1/4 c. butter or margarine
1/3 c. brown sugar
2 beaten eggs
1/4 c. sour milk
2-3 pureed bananas (2 makes a little drier than 3)

1/2 c. chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients, and set aside.
Beat sugar with butter. Add beaten eggs, milk, and bananas. Mix well.
Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients, and gently mix until combined. Add and gently mix in chocolate chips. Spoon into a greased or lined muffin tin.
Bake at 400*F for 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool a few minutes before attempting to eat! Makes 12.

I originally stumbled across this recipe idea here. I tried it out exactly as written, and while it wasn't bad, it wasn't my favorite. It was also too much to eat in one serving. I'd like to work out single serving sized amounts so it can be a quick "grab and go", especially once school starts in the fall.
I know I wouldn't have been able to get my kids to taste it, the way it was made. So I thought I'd rework it and try my own thing, and hopefully get my kids to thinking they're actually eating chocolate pudding for breakfast. Is that wrong?

1/2 c. Chocolate Coconut Milk
1-2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp medium no. 1 maple syrup

First. measure the cocoa, chia seeds, and maple syrup in a jar with a tight lid. I made the first jar with 1 tbsp of cocoa, and the second with 2 tbsp. Next, mix the contents in the jar together until they are well combined, almost a thick paste. Then, add the coconut milk, and keep mixing. All the ingredients should be well mixed to avoid as many lumps as possible.

Put the lids on, stick in the fridge, and enjoy it tomorrow...hopefully. Everytime I walk into the kitchen I grab the jars and give them a shake. The chia tends to float and/or clump, so you want to make sure it's gelling up the right way.

An important thing to know about chia is just how much fibre you ingest when you eat a jar of this pudding- 11 grams! If you are eating this then you also need to be drinking a lot of water to help things...move...shall we say. Alright?

Verdict: The jar with 2 tbsp of cocoa was the one we tried this morning. My first son enjoyed the flavour, but not the texture. Later today, or maybe tomorrow, I'll try using my immersion blender right in the jar to smooth out the consistency. He said, "it tasted more like dark chocolate than chocolate pudding, but tasted good". So there's hope :)
As far as the serving size goes, it was a lot of pudding to eat. If I was to give this to the kids, I'd still divide the jar into 2 servings. It tasted amazing with my raspberries.
And now that I've found this fun way to make pudding, I'm going to try to make some variations, starting with vanilla-chai chia pudding. Doesn't that sound great? 
Let me know if you try this, and let me know what you think!

I think instant oatmeal is great. When we travel I like to bring it with me because it keeps so well and really only requires hot water to prepare, which is the easiest breakfast ever to make when you're in a hotel with a coffee maker. Or camping in the middle of nowhere with just a camp stove and a tent.
Imagine how thrilled I was to find this recipe. I've been searching for a while- and there are plenty out there. One of them uses coffee whitener instead of milk powder, so that one didn't make the cut. They're all basically slightly altered versions of each other, of which mine is as well. I altered the recipe I found to suit my tastes and the ingredients I had on hand today.

5 cups of oats. I used large flake.
1/3 c. dry milk powder
3 tbsp saigon cinnamon
1/2 c. chopped nuts- I used half pecans, half almonds
1/2 c. raisins- if we had more, I would have used 3/4 c.

+ 1 tbsp chia seeds per bag
+ 2 tsp brown sugar per bag
+ 5 whole almonds per bag

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together well. Make sure the raisins aren't sticking together, and that the cinnamon and milk powder are well integrated.

Using a measuring cup,, scoop out oat mixture by the half-cup into a snack-sized zipper bag. Add the chia seeds brown sugar, and almonds to each bag. Seal, 
To serve, boil water, mix in, and let sit a few minutes. This recipe is very strongly cinnamon flavoured- tasting it made my tongue tingle with pleasure. I chose to add the amount of sugar I did after tasting it, a little at a time until I found the right amount. Chia adds many benefits to your diet, and having a spoonful for breakfast is an excellent way to start your day off right. And almonds are not only tasty, but also very good for you.
I'm looking forward to making this often- changing it up according to what we've got on hand. I was able to get 13 bags of breakfast from this recipe, just enough to share with my husband when we're camping this summer.