Recipe- Pumpkin Baked French Toast

I know you're beginning to notice a new trend...a trend where I am pretty much only posting recipes anymore. It's because they're GOOD! And perhaps I'm too busy or too lazy to write you out a real blog post...
Today I bring you what I practically lived off of last week. I had it for breakfast every day and if I could I ate it at lunch or dinner also. I really REALLY loved it and it is probably best that it is gone now. Today I bring you pumpkin baked French toast!

Pumpkin Baked French Toast

Ingredients
3 1/2 C cubed bread of choice
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or a little extra cinnamon)
3 T sugar or sweetener of choice
1 1/4 C milk
1 Cup yogurt (the original recipe called for tofu or yogurt but I'll die before I use tofu and obviously I live by greek yogurt so...)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
Directions
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except bread and stir well. Grease an 8X8 baking pan and pour  the cubed bread into the pan. Cover evenly with wet mixture and then cover the entire dish with a lid or saran rap and refrigerator overnight. The next morning, preheat oven to 400 F and bake 30-35 min. Top with maple syrup or eat plain (it is actually very delicious plain). I enjoyed it both hot and cold.
NOTE: You may need to adjust milk and bread proportions depending on the type of bread you use.
Recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie.

I know you all are worried about seeing my cup of coffee in the picture but we've had this conversation before. I like coffee AND tea. Actually I've really gotten into a tea drinking mood recently so you may see some more tea inspired blog posts around here soon.
Have a great day and don't forget to like my blog on Facebook! :)

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

Recipe- Refrigerator Oatmeal

Today I am sharing with you my new favorite food! Refrigerator oatmeal! It's healthy, it's got greek yogurt in it (which is always a plus in my book), and there are so many different flavors you can make. I found these recipes from The Yummy Life. In this blog post I am only including the flavors I've tried but there are many more on the website. Also, all of the original recipes called for chia seeds but as that is not something in my normal collection of ingredients I just skipped them. Because chia seeds do absorb some of the liquid you might want to cut down on the milk.

Mocha Refrigerator Oats

1/3 Cup uncooked old fashioned oats

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup plain greek yogurt

2 tsps honey or other sweetener

1 tsp cocoa powder

1/2 tsp espresso powder (I used cappuccino powder as that is what I had on hand)

Raspberry Vanilla Refrigerator Oats

1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned oats

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
2 tsps honey or other sweetener

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup raspberries sliced in half. 

Pumpkin Pie Refrigerator Oats

1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned oats

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup plain greek yogurt

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

2 tsps maple syrup or other sweetener

1/4 cup pumpkin puree

Banana Chocolate Refrigerator Oats

1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned oats

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup plain greek yogurt

1 T cocoa powder

1 tsp honey or other sweetener

1/2 banana 

Banana Peanut Butter Refrigerator Oats

1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned oats

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup plain greek yogurt

1 T peanut butter (or substitute PB2)

1 tsp honey or other sweetener

1/2 banana

Directions for all

Mix all ingredients together and place covered in the refrigerator overnight. Take out the next morning and enjoy cold or if you so desire heat up for a minute (I've never tried them heated). Can keep up to three days in refrigerator or a month in the freezer. 

ENJOY!!!

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

My Favorite Greek Yogurt Recipes

I am obsessed, I repeat OBSESSED, with greek yogurt. Ever since I started trying to lose weight I started eating greek yogurt. It's amazing. Then I learned about using it as a substitute in recipes for the oil/fat. Amazing! So here are some of my favorite recipes using greek yogurt... and the recipe folder is always growing. 

Greek Yogurt Pancakes

Recipe makes one serving

-6 oz  Greek yogurt (I normally use plain but have used flavored in a pinch)

- 1 egg 


- 1/2 cup flour

- 1 tsp baking soda 


- 1 tsp vanilla extract 


- few dashes of salt 


- 1 tsp sugar or other sweetener (I normally don't use sweetener)

-1/4 cup milk (if too thick)

Mix ingredients together and fry delicious pancakes. OR Join me in microwaving pancakes.... another new OBSESSION!!! Just butter a plate and then pour batter on it (about half will cover a plate) and then microwave for a couple minutes. Obviously won't be crispy like a normal pancake but besides that much the same. There is no pan clean up, and no waiting for the stupid pancake to cook on both sides. It's amazing, trust me. I have pancakes most every day now.

Greek Yogurt Egg Salad

Recipe makes 2 servings.

You'll need: 

2 large eggs, hard boiled, chopped fine 

1/4 cup plain nonfat greek yogurt 

1 dill pickle spear, chopped fine 

1 tsp yellow mustard 

Salt, pepper, paprika, or other sesonings to taste 

Stir together all ingredients in a bowl until well mixed. Serve on bread, in a pita, or a wrap. 

Yogurt Biscuits

2 1/4 cups commercial or homemade self-rising flour, divided 

****For those who don’t have self rising flour… i.e. me- Self-Rising Flour (Per 1 cup flour- ½ tsp salt, 1 ½ tsp baking powder)*****

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup plain yogurt, divided

Butter, softened or melted, for finishing

****I added in milk because it was too thick, which I think was due to my using GREEK YOGURT*****

Directions

Preheat oven to 450˚

Combine 2 cups flour and salt. Set aside remaining 1/4 cup.

Add yogurt and knead into a dough. If to dry here is wear you would add milk... if too wet, add some flour.

On a floured surface pat out dough into a 1/2-1 inch thick round and then cut out biscuits. 

Place in buttered pan and bake for 10-14 minutes. 

Note- These are surprisingly delicious and you could scarcely tell they weren't the traditional biscuit.

Chicken Pasta Salad

Serves 6

8 oz whole wheat penne pasta

2 (6 oz) boneless skinless chicken breast (doubled)

1 cup halved seedless red grapes

¼ cup walnut pieces

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

½ cup chopped celery

½ cup low fat plain greek yogurt

½ teaspoon cracked black pepper

⅛ tsp sea salt

Directions

Boil a large pot of water, adding a drizzle of olive oil to prevent the pasta from sticking. Add the pasta to the boiling water, stirring once, and cook 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente. Strain the pasta.

While the pasta is cooking, trim the fat off the chicken, if any, and cut it into small cubes. Fill a separate, medium pot with water, and bring it to a boil over high heat. Add the chicken cubes (water should cover them), and boil for five to six minutes.

Drain both the pasta and the chicken. In a large bowl combine the pasta and the chicken with the remaiing ingredients, and mix well. Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes before serving. 

                        

Skinny Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

I've already posted this recipe before here. I love these so much. :)

So those are some of my favorites. I have so many more Greek yogurt recipes that I can't wait to try. Are any of y'all obsessed with Greek yogurt too? Any favorite flavors or delicious recipes? Comment below! :)

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.

"Healthy" Brownies

With trying to lose weight, I have been always on the lookout for some healthier recipes. One of these I will share today. Skinny Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies. These are excellent! They have a fudgy kind of texture, which is oh so good! The secret ingredient in these is greek yogurt. Greek yogurt has actually been in a lot of "healthier" recipes I have been trying out recently. This also has oatmeal in it instead of flour. So theoretically if you used gluten free oats, these brownies could be gluten free. They are pretty healthy but let me warn you, health can only go so far if you just keep eating them, and eating them, and eating them... they're that good. So here is the recipe!

Healthy Brownies

Makes 12 (I got 16) brownies. 

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter 
• 6 oz. low fat vanilla greek yogurt (could use fat free)
• 1/4 cup skim milk (or almond milk)
• 1 large egg (or 2 egg whites)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup sugar (author of recipe says Splenda or other artificial sweeteners work as well)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 8×8 (I used 9X9) inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Place all of the ingredients except for the peanut butter into a blender or food processor. (Yes, a blender!) For easier blending, place the liquid ingredients into the blender first. Blend until mix is smooth and oats are ground up. You will have to stop the blender and scrape down the sides a few times.
3. Pour batter into prepared baking dish. Batter will be thin. Microwave peanut butter for about 30 seconds. Drop melted peanut butter by spoonfuls onto the batter, swirling gently with a knife to create a marbled effect. (Try not to overmix!)
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan (It took me longer to bake them). Brownies will be extra fudgy, so be sure to wait until COMPLETELY cooled - I stuck mine in the refrigerator for 2 hours, which allowed them to be cut very easily. Cut into 12 squares and enjoy!

Recipe taken from Sally's Baking Addiction.

Lois Johnson, avid writer, tea drinker, and reader but first and foremost, avid Christian.