2010 August — Cooking During Stolen Moments

One of the very, very few negatives of our new house is that we live too close to the new school to be on the bus route. Unfortunately, we’re also just a little bit too far away for the kids to walk to school, at least until the younger ones are a little bit older. So, that means I’ll be driving them to school every morning. That scares me!

First of all, even after a year of public schooling, I’m still fighting with myself to get out of the homeschool morning routine that meant easy mornings with big breakfasts. We’ve quickly fallen back into that beloved routine this summer.

Secondly, within a few weeks of school starting, we’re going to have a newborn in the house. A newborn who will also need to be bundled and loaded into the car along with the rest of us to drive the three oldest kids to school. So…we’ll all have to get dressed, brushed, cleaned and fed with clock work precision while every ounce of my being is begging to sit with a cup of coffee and sleepy-headed children lingering over breakfast. If I’m honest, just the thought of this entire process is terrifying!

I’m already trying to plan out lots of super quick breakfasts that can be made ahead of time. I have quite a few in my arsenal already, but as far as I’m concerned, there can never be too many options! When I came across this idea in an old family church cookbook, I couldn’t wait to try it out. A little tweaking and it was perfect!

What I love most about this Tropical Oatmeal Yogurt is that it lasts in the fridge for about 3-4 days, so it’s perfect to have on hand and just dish out for everyone. It’s as easy as pouring a bowl of cold cereal. But it is so much healthier! Plus, I normally don’t enjoy oatmeal like the rest of the family does, but this is one bowl of oatmeal I can actually sit down and eat happily.

Tropical Oatmeal Yogurt

1 32 oz. container plain yogurt
2 c. oats, old-fashioned or quick cooking
1 20 oz. can pineapple tidbits or chunks
3 T. honey
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1/4 c. shredded coconut
1/4 c. chopped pecans

1. Pour all ingredients into a large bowl and stir until completely combined. Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. To serve, scoop into a bowl and garnish with fresh fruit of choice. Or, layer with fresh fruit in parfait glasses.

We love this as is, but I think you could definitely play around with the method to suit your tastes. Don’t like coconut or pecans? Just leave them out! Add some brown sugar. Toast the oats before combining all the ingredients. So many options!

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Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace

Remember last month when I shared my Milano Moment? As much as I love my Milanos and I love stealing a few moments for myself during the day, I do have one problem with this habit. Those Milanos are addictive! I could easily sit down and polish off a bag without even realizing it. That’s why I have to make sure I grab just my alloted number and tuck the bag away back in it’s dark and hidden corner.

Judging from the way others indulge in their Milano Moments, I’d say this is a fairly common problem. Apparently we all love our Milanos! Unfortunately for me, I’m finding the new Strawberry Milanos even harder to resist than any of the other flavors. I blame it on the pregnancy and this baby, who obviously has a thing for strawberries and chocolate!

So I’ve decided that it would be a good idea for me to mix things up a bit with my Strawberry Milano indulgences, at least for the duration of this pregnancy where my will-power is clearly out of my own hands. While I could eat my way through a bag of Milanos without realizing it, I definitely could not devour a batch of cupcakes at once. In fact, one cupcake is usually the most I can stand at one sitting. And since my Milano Moments are supposed to be about simple indulgences and not over-indulgences, I decided mini-cupcakes would be the perfect treat!

These cupcakes are so good. They retain all the original flavors, and even the melty, crunchiness of a Milano cookie. Yet because of the frosting, they are just sweet enough that stopping at one (or maybe two every so often) is easy. The cupcake batter is a very simple one because I didn’t want anything too rich or sweet that would detract from the flavor of the Strawberry Milanos.

Strawberry Milano Cupcakes

1/4 c. butter
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1/2 c. milk
1/4 t. almond extract
1 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
12 Strawberry Milano cookies
1/4 c. butter
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. cocoa powder
2 T. strawberry jam
1 – 2 T. milk

1. In a mixing bowl, beat together 1/4 c. butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg, milk and almond extract and continuing beating until well combined, about 2 minutes.

2. Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl and beat on low speed or mix by hand just until completely incorporated.

3. Place the Strawberry Milano cookies in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin. By hand, fold 3/4 of the crushed cookies into the cupcake batter and reserve the remaining cookie crumbs for garnishing.

4. Fill greased or lined muffin tins 3/4 full. (This will make about 20-24 mini cupcakes or 8-12 regular sized cupcakes, depending on the size of your muffin tins.) Bake at 350 degrees for 10 – 12 minutes for mini-cupcakes or 12-18 minutes for regular sized. Check with a toothpick to test for doneness. Cool on a wire rack.

5. While the cupcakes cool, beat together 1/4 c. butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder and strawberry jam until smooth. Add just as much milk as needed to reach desired frosting consistency. Frost cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with remainingcrushed Milano crumbs.

Two added bonuses to indulging in my Milano Moment with these cupcakes are 1) it’s a great way to really stretch a bag of Milanos, and 2) there’s enough to share with the family, if I REALLY want to!

Stop by Balancing Beauty and Bedlam for more Tasty Tuesday.