Vegan Spiced Strawberry Oatmeal

Vegan Spiced Strawberry Oatmeal

I'm a huge morning person, which for me includes eating a gigantic, filling breakfast. As I've begun my transition to ovo-vegetarian (a vegetarian who doesn't have milk), oatmeal has become my crutch. Not only is it healthy, convenient, easy and packed with protein (11 grams in each cup) - but it's also sweet, luxurious, and makes the transition that much more comfortable.

I discovered this awesome combination while scrounging for food in our under-stocked pantry. I was impressed enough to share it with you. When I find my camera I'll take some pictures. This recipe provides two servings of about 1 1/2 cups very thick cooked oatmeal.

You Will Need:

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup water
1 cup rice/almond milk (or more if you like thin oatmeal)
1 pinch of salt
2-4 tbsp pumpkin pie spice (to taste)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tbsp honey
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen strawberries (the riper the better; feel free to experiment with other berries)
1 tsp vanilla extract

The Oatmeal:

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan except rolled oats. Cook until boiling, stirring occasionally. When boiling add rolled oats, and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and serve warm or refrigerate for later.

Let me know what you think!

Easy Garlic Croutons

I love garlic. I also love butter. And french bread. So when all three are combined to become something else I love, croutons, it just about makes my day. These are great served over onion soup, salad, or just eaten plain. :)

You Will Need:

• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups stale french bread, cubed

In a pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic, saute until it starts to turn golden brown. Then, add bread cubes. Toss and saute until they start to golden, add salt, and continue to saute until lightly browned. Let cool, then serve, or store at room temperature.

6-Step Meditation

Photo Credit Voland Ratibor

Meditation is awesome. It can be long and luxurious, or short and incredibly helpful like a power-nap. It helps stress, depression, anxiety, and improves health and cognitive function (AKA brain power).

But meditation is really, really hard when you have no idea where to start. So, after a ton of research, Q&A, and the desire for a simple meditation walk-through for beginners I devised this 6-step meditation process.

I'm attempting to start a meditation habit, if you haven't noticed yet. I hope you'll join me.

1. Turn on some relaxing music. I use a thunderstorm CD, but this is different for every person. If music isn't your thing, find somewhere quiet.
2. Stretch. This will help relax your muscles. Focus completely on your stretching.
3. Relax and get comfortable. Lay down with your feet up for maximum relaxation, but if that isn't possible just get as comfortable as you can and then try and relax.
4. Close your eyes. Blocking out the visual stimulation will allow you to focus better on relaxing.
5. Take some deep breaths. This will help you calm down your heart, and boost your mood and improve your focus on the meditation. It also helps your muscles relax.
6. Clear your mind. This can be done two ways: focusing on one thing, like a mantra ('I am beautiful' is a good one), or by clearing out thoughts and letting your thoughts leave when they come (this is hard for some people, like me).

Next, just continue with the sixth step until you're done, out of time, or relaxed. Come out of the meditation slowly. Give yourself at least 5 minutes to come back to the world.

Then continue with your day, refreshed and reinvigorated.