The chickpeas look a little like hazelnuts, so I figured they must make a good snack when roasted and coated in salt! This led to cooking up some Oven-Roasted Spiced Chickpeas.

This is a very tasty way to eat these legumes. It’s also a great way to get carbs, protein, and fiber without eating grains, if you so choose.

Ingredients

• 16oz bag of chickpeas (such as Arrowhead Mills)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• Spices, such as:
  • Sea salt
  • Curry powder
  • Turmeric
  • Garlic powder
  • Onion powder
  • Chipotle pepper
  • Cayenne pepper
  • Cumin

Instructions

This is extremely easy. If you can operate an oven, you can do this.

Step 1: Soak and Boil.

Start by soaking your chickpeas overnight. Then when you are ready to cook, boil the chickpeas for approximately 10 minutes. (If you didn’t soak them overnight, you’d probably have to boil them for an hour!)

Drain and let dry. (Because you don’t want dripping wet chickpeas going in your oil and spice mixture later.)

Step 2: Preheat oven.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Step 3: Oil and spices.

Stir together the oil and spices in large bowl. Pour in chickpeas and toss until they are evenly coated with the spice mixture.

(For the spices, I usually just improvise and give the chickpeas a coating of whatever I have on the table!)

Step 4: Place on tray.

Spread chickpeas evenly on a baking tray.

Step 5: Bake.

Place the tray in the oven to bake at 350 degrees for approximately one hour. Stir or shake occasionally (every 15-20 minutes.)

*Other recipes call for baking at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes, but I like to get them extra crispy without burning them, so I use the lower temperature and longer cooking time. It seems to work better for me.

Step 6: Let cool.

Remove the tray from the oven and let your chickpeas sit out on a cooling rack. Don’t burn your mouth trying to eat them immediately!

Step 7: Enjoy.

Once cooled to a moderate temperature, sit the chickpeas out in a bowl on the table. They are gone in a day or two (sometimes an hour or two) so I never end up storing them.

What do you think of chickpeas? What are your favorite spices for them?

I’ve always said oatmeal is the perfect breakfast for a long day. Well, this deluxe oatmeal is perfect for a long, long day! In Joe’s words, “Eat this the night before an Ironman competition or the Tour de France.”

Here ya go:

The Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill Steel Cut Oats
• 1/3 cup Now Foods Unflavored Whey Protein Isolate
• 2 Tbsp Bob’s Red Mill Organic Ground Flaxseed Meal
• 1 cup Mott’s Healthy Harvest Granny Smith applesauce
• 2 Tbsp 100% Pure Maple Syrup (such as Coombs Family Farms)
• 1 Tbsp Beit Yitzhak Fig Spread (No Sugar Added)
• 1 cup Rice Dream Classic Original Rice Milk
• 1/2 cup Libby’s Pure Pumpkin
• 1/4 of Granny Smith Apple (chopped into cubes)
• 1/2 of Anjou Pear (chopped into cubes)
• 10 almonds, chopped
• 5 toasted walnut halves, chopped (half an oz serving)
• 1/2 tsp McCormick’s Vanilla Extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves

(Feel free to substitute different brands of products depending on what you can find locally, and as usual, I encourage you to experiment with this recipe to make it perfect for your needs and taste buds!)

The Directions

Joe didn’t submit any directions, so here is how I would do it:

1. Decide how you are going to cook up the steel cut oats. (For this example, let’s say you’re going to use the stove top.)

2. Measure out all your ingredients, making sure everything is chopped and sliced and ready to go.

3. Now put the oats, milk, apples, and pears into a large pot and stir it up.

4. Start cooking on high heat to bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

5. After 10 minutes, stir in all the other ingredients (the pumpkin, apple sauce, etc.)

6. Continue cooking on low for about 10 more minutes.

7. Whenever the oats are ready, remove from heat and allow to cool.

8. Eat!

Nutrition Facts

If you follow Joe’s detailed recipe, these are the calculated nutrition facts.

Calories: 1,038
Total Fat: 26.9g
  Saturated: 2.7g
  Polyunsaturated: 10.1g
  Monounsaturated: 6.5g
Carbohydrates: 170.1g
Dietary Fiber: 24.6g
Protein: 47.1g

If you try this recipe, please post your review in the comments!

So I combined the two into a tasty treat! I call it the Peanut Butter Apple Pita.

Ingredients:

• Pita bread
• Apple
• Natural peanut butter

Preparation instructions:

Have your every own peanut butter apple pita in four easy steps.

1. Split open the pita.

What I do is first slice it in half with a butter knife. Then toast it for a short time, until it separates. Then pull it apart so you have two “pockets.”

It’s really hard to “open” the pita when it’s soft, but after a little toasting, it loosens up. That’s why I do the toasting.

2. Spread peanut butter.

Use the butter knife to spread natural peanut butter inside the two pockets. Creamy is easier to spread.

3. Add apple slices.

Peel your apple and cut into thin slices.

Lay the thin apple slices on top of the peanut butter.

(You can even sprinkle just a light coat of cinnamon on top of the apple slices, if desired.)

4. Eat.

Now you can eat your pita pockets!

After explaining the differences between rolled oats and steel cut oats a couple years ago, it was plain as day which was more popular! Tons of comments poured in in favor of steel cut oats!

Nearly everyone loved the taste and texture, but there was this one little drawback – steel cut oats take longer to cook than rolled oats. And if purchased in bulk (the cheapest way to buy steel cut oats,) you don’t get cooking instructions!

Therefore, I have prepared these instructions on how to cook steel cut oats! Continue reading to discover the most popular preparation methods…

Cooking on the Stove

This is your standard method of preparing steel cut oats, but it’s also the most time consuming.

• Start by bringing 4 cups water to a boil.
• Then add in 1 cup oats, plus a pinch of salt. Mix well.
• Once water returns to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cover, but leave the lid tilted.
• To ensure the traditional rich nutty flavor, avoid overcooking.

That does it.

You can also experiment to find your preferred style. For example, you might use a ratio of 3 cups water to 1 cup oats. Or maybe you prefer using 2 cups water and 2 cups milk to 1 cup oats.

Nuking In the Microwave

If you don’t want to mess with the stove just to make a bowl of oatmeal for yourself, you can use the microwave instead.

• Mix 1/2 cup of steel cut oats with 2 cups of water in an 8 cup bowl (the size of the bowl is important as it must be large enough to allow the oats to bubble up without spilling over).
• Microwave covered (I use a paper plate) for 5 minutes on high.
• Stir. Finish cooking for another 5 minutes.
• Enjoy.

Alternatively, use 1/4 cup steel cut oats and 1 cup water, if you only have a smaller bowl, or want a smaller breakfast. If you do this, you can reduce cooking times to 2:30 segments, rather than 5:00.

*Since microwaves vary in size and power, cooking times may need to be adjusted for different models.

Soak Overnight, Then Cook (On Stove)

This is the second method of cooking steel cut oats on the stove. You can soak your steel cut oats the night before and leave it on the stove overnight, for less prep time in the morning.

• As before, use 4 cups water and 1 cup oats. First bring the water to a boil, then add oats.
• Stir until it boils again then cover.
• Turn off heat.
• Let sit overnight.
• When you do it this way, the oats should be ready in the morning as-is or with just 5 minutes cooking time, rather than 30.

The oats can sit out on the stove overnight without going bad. Just keep them covered.

Tip: Toast Oats On Stove Before Cooking

My favorite way to fix steel cuts oats overnight is to toast them in a teaspoon of butter or coconut oil, then add the water and bring to a boil.

In a large saucepot, melt the butter or oil and add the oats. Stir for 2 minutes to toast. Then you can continue with adding the water, etc.

Toasting before boiling brings out even more of that toasty, nutty flavor.

Cooking In a Slow Cooker (or Crock Pot)

Steel cut oats can be made in a slow cooker on low overnight and ready for breakfast!

• Be sure to spray the slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray first.
• Add your 4 cups water and 1 cup oats.
• Just put it on the “keep warm” setting and the oats cook overnight.

Note: If you have a crock pot with just “low” and “high” settings, use low, and watch them. You probably can’t cook overnight on low, it’s still too hot!

Like microwaves, each slow cooker may cook differently. So test it out during the day to get the timing right, before leaving them to cook overnight when you’re not watching them!!

Don’t forget to flavor your oatmeal!

Click here for my suggestions on additional ingredients to flavor your oats.

When doing steel cut oats, you would typically add the extras after they are cooked or close to the end of the cooking cycle. Dried fruit and such does not need a lot of cooking time like the oats themselves!

Just choose the option that is the most convenient for you. They all work, and if you make a good size batch on the weekend, it will probably feed you all week. Then all you have to do is reheat the oats in the microwave for a bit each morning.

Enjoy your oats!

Photo credit: belizardi

I eat every type of natural peanut butter I can find, but not only do I like to try new brands, I like to make my own natural peanut butter at home!

There’s no better way to ensure quality, healthfulness, and freshness than by making it yourself. And best of all, it’s very simple.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Raw peanuts
• An oven
• A blender

1. Spread raw peanuts on baking tray.

2. Place in oven, pre-heated to 350 degrees.

3. Roast for 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on them, since you don’t want them to burn.

4. Allow to cool.

5. Put roasted peanuts in blender or food processor.

6. Blend until smooth and creamy. Probably 3-5 minutes.

Note: Be patient. It takes a long time to blend them into actual peanut butter. At first, the PB will look dry. Blend it a while longer and then the natural oils start to come out and you’ll have creamy PB.

7. Eat.

My typical smoothie goes together like this…

Ingredients

1-2 cups Milk
1 Banana (chopped and frozen)
2-3 Eggs (organic)
1/2 cup Plain Yogurt
1 Tbsp Flax Seed (powder)
Dash of Vanilla (optional)
Dash of Orange juice (optional)

Preparation

First, I put everything but the milk in the blender. I don’t actually measure anything, but the proportions I listed are about right. (You can adjust as necessary.)

Then I pour in enough milk for the smoothie to blend. More milk gives you a thin smoothie, less milk gives you a thick smoothie.

Blend till you achieve the desired thickness. Add more milk if necessary.

Drink!

Notes on the ingredients:

Milk – I usually use 1% milk, but you can use skim or whole milk if desired. Ideally you can get raw milk from a local farmer.

Banana – I like to eat bananas when they are yellow with maybe a few tiny brown spots. When they get brown, I cut them up and place them in the freezer, which I then use for these smoothies. This is great for post-workout smoothies because you want higher-glycemic carbs, and bananas (especially once they turn brown) are full of high-glycemic sugar.

Eggs – Yes, I use raw eggs. That’s because I get them either from my own chickens or a local farm. And I use the whole egg, because the yolk contains many, many nutrients.

But beware, this could be dangerous! There is a risk of salmonella! Try this at your own risk! (If you can’t get fresh, local eggs, you could try something like Egg Beaters instead, but that’s pasteurized and processed, so I’m not a big fan.)

Yogurt – Make sure you get plain yogurt. This is the stuff that is not flavored nor sweetened. I get the Stonyfield Farms brand. (Most yogurt, even a vanilla flavor, contains way too much added sugar.)

Flax seed – Flax is a tasty way to get some Omega-3 fatty acids. I grind up flax seeds in the blender and then dump some in my smoothies, oatmeal, etc.

Vanilla – Used very sparingly, this can sweeten up the smoothie if you went overboard on the plain yogurt (which is a tad sour.)

Orange Juice – I really like adding a dash of OJ to my banana smoothies. Maybe just one or two tablespoons. It adds a neat flavor without taking away from the banana. (Less is more, in this case.)

Yearning for a Fall treat that’s fun to eat? Then let me recommend chestnuts.

Chestnuts fall off trees just like walnuts, almonds, and apples, but they seem much less common. They taste so good though, it’s worth going out of your way to find them!

If you have never had chestnuts, they’re kind of hard to describe. They’re much softer and contain more water than a walnut or almond, and they’re actually starchy, like bread.

And they have a flavor all their own!

Health benefits of chestnuts:

Don’t ask me how they do it, but chestnuts contain a wide variety of nutrients!

First, like many nuts, they are packed with protein, low in fat, and contain no cholesterol.

Second, they are very high in fiber, and very high in potassium.

They also contain good amounts of iron, zinc, and calcium.

And a serving of chestnuts even contains as much Vitamin C as a lemon!

(Plus a wide range of other nutrients in smaller quantities.)

How to prepare chestnuts:

Chestnuts aren’t hard to prepare, but there is more to it than just shelling them…

Step 1: Grab some chestnuts.

Grab some chestnuts and a microwave-safe plate.

Step 2: Slice the shell.

Start by cutting slits into each chestnut with a sharp knife. (Be careful!)

These slits prevent the chestnuts from exploding in the microwave as well as make them easier to peel later on. What I do is put one slit on each side, near the tip of the nut. If the nut is real big, I’ll put a couple extra slits in there.

Step 3: Cook.

I typically cook chestnuts in the microwave because it’s fast and requires little preparation.

Just cover the plate and place in the microwave for 2-3 minutes. (This time will depend on the microwave, so start out at about two minutes and then cook longer if necessary.

Step 4: Let them cool.

Remove the chestnuts from the microwave and let them cool. They’ll be super hot, so wait a minute before peeling them!

Step 5: Peel the shell.

Once the chestnuts have cooled off enough that you can touch them (they should still be warm,) you can peel them.

Simply grab the shell with your fingertips and peel it off, starting at the slits. If it was cut and cooked well, the shell should peel right off.

Then you’re left with a plump yellow nut that will taste delicious!

(Just watch out for black rotten sections and worms that may have been in there too!)

Roasting over an open fire?

If you want to get fancy, you could put your chestnuts in a pan and roast them over an open fire.

If no open flame is available, you could bake them in the oven, or even boil them on top of the stove.

If you are baking them, bake on a pan for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. (After putting the slits in them, of course.)

Once you take them out, lay them on a pan with a damp towel over them for 10 minutes. That will moisturize the shell so it peels off nicely.

The other option, which will be quicker than roasting or baking, is to boil them.

In this case, slit the chestnuts and drop them into a shallow pan of hot simmering water (boiling hot water would be overkill) for 1-2 minutes.

Remove them, and once you can touch them, peel them.

However you do it, chestnuts are great!

I love oatmeal. I cook it myself almost every single day. (The pre-made packets are alright, but they usually contain too much extra sugar.)

Nevertheless, oatmeal is a great breakfast. It’s full of healthy, hearty grains, and fills you up – it “sticks to your gut” as they say. In other words, it keeps you feeling satisfied for hours.

I typically go with a cinnamon raisin flavor. I enjoy it, and it never gets old. Roughly speaking, here are the ingredients:

• Large bowl
• 1 1/2 cups Rolled Oats
• 2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Organic Cane Sugar (optional, to taste)
• 1/2 cup Raisins
• 1 1/2 cups Milk

And here is how to put it all together:

Step 1: Rolled Oats

Dump about 1 1/2 cups of rolled oats into your large bowl. I usually use the quick oats (which are ground a bit more and make for easier cooking,) but some people swear by steel cut oats. Use whatever you prefer.

Step 2: Cinnamon

Now pour in the cinnamon! Cinnamon is extremely healthy, so I just dump it on. I’d say I use about 2 tsp, although you only need about 1/4 tsp to get great health benefits.

Step 3: Sugar

I usually do my oatmeal without any sugar, but every so often I treat myself and put a little bit of organic cane sugar in, too. 1 tsp is usually plenty, even for a big bowl.

Step 4: Stir

Now that all the dry ingredients are in, stir them up with your spoon.

Step 5: Raisins

Add in 1/2 cup raisins. (This is where the real sweetness comes from.)

Step 6: Stir again

Now stir the raisins in so all the ingredients are mixed nicely.

Step 7: Milk

Add milk. I add enough to cover the oatmeal and saturate it. In a big bowl like this, that is about 1 1/2 cups. (With more milk, the oatmeal will be thin and soupy. With less milk, the oatmeal is thick and sticky.)

You can use skim or 1% milk; both are good for creating a creamy texture. You could also use water, but I hate oatmeal made with water, since it tends to be thin, clumpy, and flavorless.

Step 8: Microwave

Now put the bowl in the microwave to cook. I usually put the bowl in for a minute, then take it out and stir it, and then microwave again for about 35 seconds. This keeps it from clumping up.

Cooking time will vary by microwave and by size of bowl. (My huge serving size requires extra cooking time!)

Step 9: Eat

Sit back, relax, and enjoy eating your bowl of oatmeal!

* My bowl of oatmeal is pretty darn big. If for some reason you’d rather not have a 1,000 calorie bowl of oatmeal, you can scale back the portion sizes as you prefer. But I usually eat at least 3,000 calories per day, so my breakfast is usually this size.

You have to toast the banana! A warm banana on warm bread, plus melting peanut butter, is great. So let’s put an end to warm bread and peanut butter plus cold, raw bananas!

You will need:

• 2 slices whole wheat bread
• 1 medium banana
• 1 or 2 Tbsp natural peanut butter

And then follow these instructions:

1. Grab two slices of bread.

Take your two slices of 100% whole wheat bread and lay them out side by side. One will be for the banana, one for the peanut butter.

2. Slice the banana.

Slice the banana into little circles (like you are putting it in a bowl of cereal.) Then spread the slices out on one slice of bread. Cover the entire slice of bread, using half-slices of banana to fill in the gaps.

3. Toast everything.

Put the bread and banana in the toaster oven. (Be careful when putting the banana slice in; you have to support the weight of the banana or the bread will flop over.)

Toast as desired, or until bread is golden brown. (Afterwards, remove bread from toaster.)

4. Spread peanut butter.

Spread peanut butter over the plain piece of toast.

5. Put it all together.

Put the peanut butter slice on top of banana slice. Cut in half and serve.

Mmm mmm, it’s all warm and gooey! Now isn’t that the best peanut butter and banana sandwich?

Without further ado, here is our recipe for a maple walnut flavor protein bar:

Ingredients:

• 4 1/2 cups Oat Flour (How to make your own oat flour.)
• 1 cup Honey
• 1 cup Plain Yogurt
• 3 scoops Protein Powder (1 scoop is 28g)
• 2 tbsp Maple Flavor
• 1/4 cup Organic Cane Sugar (optional)
• 1 cup Ground Flax Seed (Gold or Brown)
• 1 cup Chopped Walnuts or Pecans

1. Warm the Honey and Maple Flavor.

Warm Honey and Maple Flavor together, either on stove or in microwave. (Now is the time to add the sugar if desired.)

2. Stir in Yogurt.

Add the yogurt to the mix and stir it in.

3. Mix in dry ingredients.

Add Oat Flour, Flax Seed, Protein Powder, and walnuts. Stir.

If the mix seems too wet and sticky, add more Oat Flour.

4. Prep the pan.

Spray a 13″ x 9″ baking pan with non-stick spray. Then sprinkle on a little Oat Flour.

5. Pour mix in pan.

Drop the mix into pan and spread out the best you can. It should be stiff.

6. Smooth out the mix.

Finish pressing flat and smooth with wax paper sprayed with non stick spray. You can sprinkle some Oat Flour on the top also.

(The oat flour on the top and bottom of the bars will prevent them from sticking to your fingers.)

The easiest way to smooth this out is to spray your hands with non-stick spray and then press it down; the wax paper method is used if you don’t want to get your hands messy, or if you don’t want your greasy bike mechanic hands to contaminate the food.

Pressing down with your hand will give you a smoother top, though.

7. Cool bars.

Place pan in freezer for at least 3 to 4 hours before cutting. You can leave it overnight, but you may have to let it sit a while before cutting if it gets too cold.

8. Cut bars.

Cut the bars to whatever size you prefer using a butter knife. You could do bars or bite-size chunks. I like the bites. (Speaking of bites, these tasted quite a bit like the maple walnut flavor of Simbree Energy Bites, but these were more moist/wet.)

The finished product:

Mmm mmm, they’re really good! Let’s eat!