Oatmeal Raisin Krunchers

Whew, what a busy weekend I had! It just flew by.

Some of the other military wives and I got together last night at Lips, a restaurant that features drag queen entertainment. My face hurt from laughing so much at the show.

Need I say more? It was hilarious!

After a long hike today with a girlfriend and the puppy and then running some errands, it was dinnertime. I was in one of those moods where I couldn’t decide what to eat, wasn’t starving, and just felt like picking on some things. I settled on a random dinner of hummus + celery, apple with sprinkled cinnamon, some Trader Joe’s English cheddar with caramelized onion cheese and a hunk of multigrain bread.

A few hours later, I wanted to eat something sweet. I decided to try out a recipe from Sun-Maid Raisins that I had ripped out of a magazine.

These oatmeal raisin bars are good as an after-dinner treat, or to stash in your bag for a snack in case you get hungry while you’re on the move.

Raisin Krunchers

Makes 8 bars 

1/4 cup peanut butter (Peter Pan reduced fat)

1/4 cup honey

4 TSP light brown sugar

1/2 TSP vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups toasted rice cereal (Rice Krispies)

1 cup old-fashioned oats, dry

1/2 cup raisins (Sun-Maid)

Line a square baking pan with foil (If you’re like me and don’t have one: I used a 13×9 pan and covered half of it with the mixture).

Place peanut butter, honey, and brown sugar in a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat for 2 minutes until bubbly & heated through.

Remove from microwave, then add in vanilla and stir until smooth.

Add cereal, oats and raisins. Stir lightly until mix is evenly combined. Press mixture firmly into pan.

Cool at room temperature or refrigerate. Cut into bars. A few of my bars got a bit crumbly and started to fall apart, but I think they’ll still be yummy!

Nutrition stats per bar: 175 calories, 4 g fat, 32 g carbs, 4 g protein

Food for thought: “Your body is a temple, but only if you treat it as one.”  -Astrid Alaud

May your week start off well!

Wholesome Eating When You’re On-the-Go

Happy Friday!

Earlier I read an issue of Fitness magazine with Brooke Burke on the cover. The article discussed her tips for staying fit. I don’t know about you, but when a 40-year old woman whose given birth to 4 children and looks like that is talking about what keeps her in shape, I make sure to read. Though she’s undoubtably genetically gifted, this chick seems like she is dedicated to staying in great shape. Her diet secret? She never skips a meal.

I strongly agree with Brooke on this one. Not only do I make sure to eat 3 meals a day, I typically have 2 snacks as well. Eating small meals frequently  prevents you from getting too famished and craving unhealthy foods. Skipping meals puts your body on a path towards fasting and signals the metabolism to slow. Um, no thank you!

I know that one of the reasons people say they skip meals is that they’re too busy to slow down and prepare something. But here’s the thing – eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday doesn’t have to equate to slaving in the kitchen, or hitting up your local fast-food restaurants on a daily basis either. Although I admit that working from home makes meals easier, I usually am too busy trying to check things off my to-do list to spend more than a few minutes throwing together breakfast or lunch. I got to thinking about what my go-to foods are when I need to grab something quick or eat on-the-move.

A favorite of mine is bars – protein bars, cereal bars, granola bars. I carry them in my purse at all times in case hunger strikes while I’m out and have no healthy food options available.  One look into my cabinet and I realized that I quite possibly am bar-obsessed.

Note to self: Do not buy any type of bars for at least a month.

Something else that I always seem to go for when I need a quick, nutritious meal or snack is yogurt. Full of probiotics, aka active good for you bacteria, yogurt is low-fat/fat free and contains a good amount of protein in it (especially Greek yogurt). I love to add fruit, nuts, and/or granola to jazz it up. Here are some yogurt combos I’ve eaten recently:

Vanilla Greek yogurt with fruit & nut granola and wheat germ

 

 

 

Vanilla yogurt with fresh kiwi and almond flaxseed granola

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Caramel Greek yogurt with chopped apple, sprinkled cinnamon, and honey apple butter

 

Chocolate yogurt topped with a chopped up banana cinnamon muffin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Speaking of healthy meals thrown together in a flash, my dinner tonight is a good example of this. I was hungry and wanted something to eat quick. I recently bought a can of Trader Joe’s organic vegetarian chili to try out and figured this was a good night to do so. I love that the list of ingredients is all foods that I know, with no foreign chemicals and things I can’t pronounce – always a positive sign!

I heated up a cup with a serving of reduced fat cheese, and had some whole wheat crackers and celery on the side for dipping.

I give this dinner a thumbs up as a fast and yummy, yet healthy meal.

Sure, wholesome eating might sometimes take a bit of effort and planning, but I believe it’s doable for even the busiest people out there if they make it a priority. After all, when there’s a will there’s a way.

What are your favorite foods to eat on-the-go?