Crockpot Steel Cut Oats w/Peaches & Blueberries
Last night I decided it’s been too long since I’ve made up a big batch of Crock Pot Steel Cut Oats. Steel Cut Oats are My FAVORITE type of oat because they are completely unrefined and they have such a chewy texture that almost “pops” in your mouth. I am pretty sure once you try REAL Steel Cut Oats (NOT the Quick Cooking Kind), it will be hard for you to go back to regular oatmeal. This recipe is so easy and you wake to a big pot of Steel Cut Oats.
CROCKPOT STEEL CUT OATS WITH PEACHES & BLUEBERRIES
INGREDIENTS:
3 C Steel Cut Oats (I used Trader Joe’s)
1/4 C Ground Flax Seeds
8 C water
2 Cinnamon Sticks
1 Tbsp Pure Vanilla Extract (I used Bourbon Vanilla 
)
Pinch of Salt, optional
1 lb frozen peaches
1-2 c frozen blueberries
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Spray your crock pot with nonstick spray or use a crock pot liner. DO NOT SKIP this step you will be scrubbing for days.
2. Combine all the ingredients in your crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours.
3. Remove cinnamon sticks. Serve with your favorite toppings. I LOVE making this into a dessert and using brown sugar, whipped butter and coconut.
Makes 10 cups, 4 points per cup.
Nutritional information per serving (I think this estimate is high ~ calculated at sparksrecipes.com):
Calories 216.8, Total Fat 4.6 g, Saturated Fat 0.1 g, Polyunsaturated Fat 0.8 g, Monounsaturated Fat 0.2 g, Cholesterol 0.0 mg, Sodium 51.9 mg, Potassium 97.0 mg, Total Carbohydrate 39.4 g, Dietary Fiber 6.8 g, Sugars 9.7 g, Protein 6.9 g
I didn’t really do any step by steps for this recipe. I fill my crock pot to the brim and all the fruit rises at it cooks over night.
Once you mix it all up, it looks like delicious oats with firm fruit. It freezes AWESOME too, just be sure to portion into 1 cup containers. A little water might be needed when heating.
I made a BIG 6 point bowl of comfort ~ topped with 1/2 Tbsp Whipped Butter, 1 Tbsp Brown Sugar and a sprinkle of unsweetened organic coconut.
MELTED brown sugar + whipped butter = CARAMEL ~ this tastes just like PEACH COBBLER in every bite if you don’t mix it up!
Mid morning I snacked on a LF Cabot Cheese and small Banana (2 pts)
Last night I was sort of on a roll with preparing foods for the week. I whipped up a Batch of Harvest Grain Salad. I had a 1/2 cup (4 pt) serving over mixed greens with mini peppers, an 1/8 of Avocado (1 pt) and Beniisimo Blueberry Balsamic Vinegar.
Flavored Balsamic Vinegars are my FAVORITE salad topper because they add pretty much zero calories and TONS of flavor.
Since I am debating if I have a cold or not, I added a cup of Muir Glen Organic Chicken Noodle Soup for good measure (2 pts).
And a perfectly hard boiled egg ~ 2 points of Protein
My AWESOME co-worker brought me my FAVORITE ChocoLOVE bar today so I knew that my afternoon snack was ALL ABOUT CHOCOLOVE!
Several of you have ask if their chocolate is really THAT good or why I LOVE it. To me, it’s awesome because they include FULL SIZED ALMONDS plus just hints of sea salt with a super creamy, smooth dark chocolate. I had 6 squares for 3 points (160 calories) which is totally worth it!
By the time I got home, I was pretty much feeling like I have a cold. I decided I NEEDED some spicy soup to scare my cold away. Awhile back, I saw that Biz made THIS VEGETABLE PHO soup and I have been wanting to make it ~ PHO is one of my FAVORITE soups around! I wanted her entire meal actually but I was too lazy to make it all so I put a spin on it!
I started off combining the broth, ginger, jalapeño, pepper corn and cinnamon chips. I was hesitant to add the cinnamon but it honestly added an AMAZING new level of flavor.
While my broth boiled, I chopped up some veggies I had on hand ~ cabbage, carrots, green onion and cilantro.
I pulled out some of the TJ’s MINI Chicken Cilantro Won Tons that I used when I made my Chicken Cilantro Potsticker Veggie Soup.
I removed everything in the chicken broth and added the cabbage and carrots. I cooked them for 5 minutes, then added 12 mini wontons plus the jalepeno slices, oyster sauce and sriracha. I let it cook for 2 minutes.
Tadahhhh! 4 points of deliciousness!
But, you know I couldn’t leave it alone ~ I doused it with more Sriracha! Super HOT ~ hopefully I “singed” my cold away!
I think I could eat a million of these mini won tons ~ so good!
See, I actually did buy the won ton/pot sticker wrappers to make her Thai Basil Won Ton Cups too, but my cold wouldn’t let me 
So, I ended up just baking 5 of them at 350 for 8 minutes. They are pretty tasty and would be awesome topped with some parmesan and black pepper. (2 pts)
I washed it all down with some Sobe Forti-FIGHT!
Plus, broke out my Greenergy to take along with my vitamins.
FUN STUFF TODAY!!!
* I WON!! Biz held a giveaway to celebrate her birthday last week and I was the LUCKY winner today ~ woohoo! Check out what I won – SO EXCITED! Thanks BIZ!
* Tomorrow (03/23) Is FREE Pastry Day @Starbucks ~ Get a FREE pastry w/any drink order PRINT YOUR COUPON and tell me what you got!
* Not that this is related to anything in particular, but, this cool chart for Food Storage came in my Eat Clean Diet Newsletter ~ thought I’d share.
My book and BED are calling my NAME ~ I hope this COLD goes AWAY soon!
Night all!
“International Eats”
Happy Monday All! Today is an AWESOME day because it’s The Scandalous Bachelor Finale, it’s sunny outside and I had some AMAZING eats. I cooked up TWO new “international” recipes this weekend ~ Chinese & Mexican Food ~ Both turned out to be PHENOMENAL…but more on that in a bit.
I happened to come across these Candied Pecan’s at Trader Joe’s this weekend. I have totally been wanting to try them ever since.
What better way to sample these nuts than to whip up a batch of Caramel Pecan Banana Oats! 5 points for this entire bowl of goodness.
1/3 c Quaker Old Fashioned Oatmeal
1/2 Tbsp Ground Flax Seed
2/3 c water
BIG Dashes of Cinnamon
All cooked for 1 1/2 minutes in the microwave.
3/4 of a small banana mixed in and 1/4 for topping
1/2 Tbsp Whipped Butter melted
1 tsp brown sugar
4 CANDIED Pecans broken into pieces
I just LOVE the combination of the salty whipped butter with the melted brown sugar caramel and these little candied pecan treats. The pecans are perfectly salty, sweet and not over sugared ~ YUM. I made sure I got a little treat with each bite.
I really should’ve had some protein with my oats because I was STARVING an hour later. I managed to hold out for 3 hours until I had my mid morning snack of TJ’s Organic Vanilla Yogurt with a nectarine (3 pts). I am really digging this yogurt ~ honestly the flavor is like that of FROYO!
My lunch today was inspired by the latest issue of Cooking Light Magazine. II LOVE digging into this magazine as soon as it arrives. The first thing I check out is the recipes (of course!) then, I move on to the articles.
I have to say there are some great articles in this months issue!
1. The 25 Most Common Cooking Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them) (p. 108) – Cooking Light offers tips on how to avoid the 25 most common cooking mistakes, so you can breeze through every culinary adventure without fear. Common mistakes include overcrowding the sauté pan, turning food too often, slicing meat with the grain rather than against it, not tasting as you go, and more.
Yup, I’ll be the first to admit, I make a few of them
2. The Healthy Cook’s 3-Step Pantry Planner (p. 48-49) – There is a pull-out guide that offers tips on keeping a well maintained pantry, stocked with healthy must-haves. Tips include knowing what you have, upgrading your ingredients, and building a collection of essential spices. Now, I just need someone to come makeover my pantry for me 
3. Guilt-Free Pizza in 20 Minutes (p. 102) – Making pizza nutritious is all about proportion and smart topping trade-offs. Cooking Light offers recipes and tips on making a healthy, nutritious pie, ready in about 20 minutes. PIZZA 101 Homemade vs store bought ~ LOVE it!
4. And for all those GIVING UP MEAT FOR LENT ~
Start with… a Can of Chickpeas (p. 95) – This versatile legume finds a home in many cuisines, from Spanish tapas to Moroccan tagines, and many dishes in between. Cooking Light offers four great chickpea combinations to satisfy any craving. I LOVE Chickpeas!
************************************************************************************************
Ok ~ I’ll stop there ~ let’s just say it’s a good issue I may have actually drooled on my magazine when I came across Ellie Krieger’s Spicy Chicken Fried Rice with Peanuts. I couldn’t find the recipe on myrecipes.com, but, you can find it HERE. I followed the recipe for the most part with the exception of subbing TJ’s Broccoli Slaw for the water chestnuts plus Sriracha.
I LOVE any recipe that lets me use my All-Clad Wok, however, any large stainless steel pan works, like the on you can find in my OPEN SKY SHOP!. I am a FIRM believer in using high quality stainless steel (think surgical) steel pans because you do not end up with anything you don’t want in your food (like Teflon pieces or Cast Iron Metal).
HIGH QUALITY is definitely a must if you buy any stainless steel pan because it cannot be easily scratched which means things do not stick. If they do, you can simply boil a little water and use a spatula to remove it. I LOVE ALL CLAD for this reason!
I had a NICE 1 1/4 cup serving for 7 POINTS topped with more Sriracha ~ I LOVED the spicy addition. This recipe is really delish even if it’s not really like Chinese Food Fried Rice. Everything just works together.
I made up a Spicy Peanut Slaw to go with it using Trader Joe’s Broccoli Slaw with 1 Tbsp TJ’s Low-Fat Spicy Peanut Sauce.
I was starving all day, but, my lunch finally did the job along with a few Pop Chips in the afternoon at holding me over until I could get home to the dinner I put in the Crock Pot this morning.
SLOW COOKER TURKEY BURRITO BAKE!!!
This has layers and layers of flavors….Ground Turkey, Enchilada Sauce, Salsa, Fire Roasted Red Tomato, Veggies, Tortillas, Rice, Beans, CHEESE! It’s as good as it sounds!
I served mine over romaine lettuce and made a turkey enchilada burrito salad topped with avocado, tomatoes and green onions.
This might just be my FAVORITE new recipe….I will be posting it tomorrow for you all!
For now, I am off to finish watching THE SCANDALOUS BACHELOR FINALE!!! Are you all excited about who he picked or not???
GET READY FOR A BIG OPEN SKY GIVEAWAY COMING UP ON WEDNESDAY ~ I will be offering you all another discount with a personalized gift for each person who buys and 3 LUCKY people will win a prize too!
Night all!
I want this lunch again!
Happy Friday Eve all!!! I cannot wait for the weekend and my long run with my sis! I am working on focusing on more FILLING FOODS (CORE FOODS) which basically means, clean foods, that are not processed and will help fill you up ~ like lean proteins, veggies, fruits, low fat dairy,whole grains, etc to see if this will help me eat less. I think if I put a bunch of the good stuff in, then, I won’t have as much room for the not so good stuff.
I read somewhere in an article that each person eats the same amount of volume every day regardless of what you eat. So, if you fill your tummy with volumous veggies and such, then, you will be filling up that space with less calories.
Anyway…that’s my ramble and my goal for this week. Feel free to share your FAVORITE ideas as I am always open to looking for new ways to fill up
A perfectly hard boiled egg ~ 2 points of Protein
Then, I moved onto dessert! I completely LOVED this bowl of oats!
1/3 c Quaker Old Fashioned Oatmeal
1/2 Tbsp ground Organic Flax Seeds
BIG dashes of ground cinnamon
2/3 c water
1 NECTARINE, chopped
All cooked in the microwave for 2 minutes. Then, I added the BEST TOPPERS
1 1/2 tsp whipped butter, crumbled
1 tsp brown sugar
Sprinkle of unsweetened organic coconut
I let everything get all melty ~ The brown sugar created a FANTASTIC caramel sauce that was contrasted with the salty butter.
I made sure to get everything in each bite. Can you believe this entire bowl is only 3.5 points?!
I had REALLY DIRTY thoughts this morning when I pondered my mid morning snack! Awww, common, not like that ~ get your mind out of the gutter ~ I had a 3 point DIRTY LATTE (grqande, nf, decaf, 2 pumps mocha).
I LOVE getting out at lunch time for my runs because it can really make any grumpy day better. I went a total of 3.83 miles, walking the last portion ~ 1/2 mile. I am glad I pushed through it because I really wanted to stop after 2 miles….but, I wasn’t going to let my brain win.
When I got back, I whipped up one of the TASTIEST QUIKC LUNCHES I’ve had in a long time. It started off with this Trader Jose’s (LOVE TJ’s creativity LOL) Vegetarian Chili.
4 points for 1/2 a can.
REAL ingredients ~ win, win!
I started off with a layer of leftover SMASHED SWEET POTATOES ~ 2/3 cup for 2 pts.
Then, I added in the layers of goodness.
1/2 can TJ’s Vegetarian Chili (although homemade would’ve rocked!!)
1 Tbsp diced red onion
2 Tbsp low fat finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 roma tomato, chopped
1/4 AVOCADO, chopped
BIG SHAKES OF SRIRACHA HOT SAUCE!!!
OMG ~ Words cannot even describe how good this was. The entire dish was 9 points and worth everyone!!! The BEST part if you are doing the Simply Filling Method/CORE ~ it’s CORE (if you use FF cheese of course).
I had 1 cup of grapes for dessert (1 pt).
YUM, YUM, YUM ~ I totally want to do it all over again ~ I WISH I had more sweet potato now!
I gave myself TWO GOLD STARS today for passing up on the birthday cake celebration. Instead, I opted for 2 points worth of cashews because you know it’s totally the same thing as cake .
On my way home, I stopped at Target and picked up some of these Kashi TLC Mediterranean Bruschetta Crackers that one of my readers recommended.
2 crackers are 1 point or you get 4 for 2 points.
Not too bad considering how HUGE they are, huh? I had two to test them out. I like them – they are sorta sweet, salty and you can totally taste the sesame seeds with the sun dried tomato basil. I bet they would be FANTASTIC with tuna and or as mini sandwiches using laughing cow, ham and pickles.
One of my FAVORITE ways to get in my 2 teaspoons of healthy oil on the WW program is by making HASHBROWNS. Have you all ever tried this? I cheat by taking the frozen Ore Ida Potatoes (LOVE the ones with peppers & onions already).
2/3 c = 1 point!!!
I added 2 tsp of oil per serving (I was making 4 servings so 1 1/2 Tbsps) plus 1 small chopped onion and 1 small chopped bell pepper.
Top with your potatoes and “fry” them until they are browned over medium heat, about 10 minutes flipping a few times through. Be sure to use a nonstick pan or they get “stuck” and mushy. I LOVE topping them with garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper as they cook.
I had a 1 cup serving for 3 points.
Crispy and totally like the kind you would get in a restaurant, but, healthier since you controlled how much oil was used. AWESOME!
While the taters cooked, I grilled up some LEAN pork chops with Annie’s Sweet & Spicy BBQ Sauce (honestly the only flavor I like). 2.5 ounces ~ 2.5 points!
Plus a cup of Swiss Chard that was topped with garlic salt and pepper.
My 30 minute delicious meal that had The Husband Mmmm and oohhhh the whole time !
BAY AREA BLOGGERS OR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO MEET!!!
TJ and I were thinking of hosting a Blogger Meet up ~ What do you all think? Email me at danicasdaily at gmail dot com if you wanna be in on the action ~ FUN!!!
Stay tuned tomorrow for a FUN FRIDAY GIVEAWAY ~ INVOLVING TARGET!!!
I am off to read my Amazing Adventures of Diet Girl Book ~ Nite all!
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