do you ever go to bed with the absolutely best laid plans to start the morning off right, get up early, be creative, and attend to all the little things for yourself before you do so for the rest of the world? I do every night. But, plans don't always run smoothly & when you own a business and live next door to your parents, with major responsibilities to both, plans never work out.
Sometimes, though, after a bit of b*tching and moaning and idiocy, your morning returns to you, even though you never lost it. It's the little things that put the day back on track pretty well, too. Doodles and breakfast with French press coffee, the last of the summer peaches with some yogurt and homemade granola (which is infinitely easier than you think)...all make the day a bit better and help leave the idiocy behind.
Yesterday was really a fest of apple peeling and some quick-cooking applesauce. For cranky, half-wild apples that are (shockingly) organically growing in my backyard, they were reduced to a slightly chunky sauce in no time. I've got yesterday's picture of the apples just as they began to cook, but managed to cook off the liquid and have some delicious sauce without actually getting the camera out. whoops.
Similarly, last night's quick & lazy supper of a cheddar and onion omelet and mini bagel had only a crappy cameraphone/Twitter picture to it's name. However, it's the granola and watching The Sing-Off that made the night awesome.
Granola is amazing, but often too sweet for my taste. I prefer a nuttier semblance of wholesomeness. So, I stumbled across a recipe over at Smitten Kitchen for what looked like a yummy and healthy granola. Alas, I didn't want the extra sweetness of the coconut, nor did I have any of it or the pumpkin seeds (though they sound delicious). Also, I wanted a smaller batch for just one woman and her dog - no, no granola for Pepper, though.
Granola, highly personal:
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Mix well, spread out onto a cookie sheet (solid, absolutely not AirBake. We'll discuss the futility of owning AirBake later), and bake at 375 degrees for 15-30 minutes. Stir occasionally and watch carefully. Your nose will tell you when it's done with a delightful nutty, caramel aroma.
Then pour the oat mixture back into its mixing bowl, into which you have chopped dried fruit of the amount you like. I did about a cup, 1.5 cups of cherries, apricots, and dates for this amount of oat/almond mixture. Mix well and allow to cool.
To store: place in an airtight container and keep in the freezer.
It saved my morning today over some peaches and yogurt.
Finally, after my doodles and coffee, I managed to arrange an outfit that should make the day feel better. It's an odd sort of warm, sort of cool, humid day...rather unlike the past few days and requiring the constant addition and removal of layers. Not much is planned for today but running the store and sorting cooking for the rest of the family...maybe I'll finally delve into the new Vogue that came in the mail a few days ago.
Sometimes, though, after a bit of b*tching and moaning and idiocy, your morning returns to you, even though you never lost it. It's the little things that put the day back on track pretty well, too. Doodles and breakfast with French press coffee, the last of the summer peaches with some yogurt and homemade granola (which is infinitely easier than you think)...all make the day a bit better and help leave the idiocy behind.
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| don't you like a mood-board for the day's look? |
Similarly, last night's quick & lazy supper of a cheddar and onion omelet and mini bagel had only a crappy cameraphone/Twitter picture to it's name. However, it's the granola and watching The Sing-Off that made the night awesome.
Granola is amazing, but often too sweet for my taste. I prefer a nuttier semblance of wholesomeness. So, I stumbled across a recipe over at Smitten Kitchen for what looked like a yummy and healthy granola. Alas, I didn't want the extra sweetness of the coconut, nor did I have any of it or the pumpkin seeds (though they sound delicious). Also, I wanted a smaller batch for just one woman and her dog - no, no granola for Pepper, though.
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Mix well, spread out onto a cookie sheet (solid, absolutely not AirBake. We'll discuss the futility of owning AirBake later), and bake at 375 degrees for 15-30 minutes. Stir occasionally and watch carefully. Your nose will tell you when it's done with a delightful nutty, caramel aroma.
Then pour the oat mixture back into its mixing bowl, into which you have chopped dried fruit of the amount you like. I did about a cup, 1.5 cups of cherries, apricots, and dates for this amount of oat/almond mixture. Mix well and allow to cool.
To store: place in an airtight container and keep in the freezer.
It saved my morning today over some peaches and yogurt.
Finally, after my doodles and coffee, I managed to arrange an outfit that should make the day feel better. It's an odd sort of warm, sort of cool, humid day...rather unlike the past few days and requiring the constant addition and removal of layers. Not much is planned for today but running the store and sorting cooking for the rest of the family...maybe I'll finally delve into the new Vogue that came in the mail a few days ago.
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