this + that + then some

I woke up this morning to remember….I’m completely OUT of my beloved Scottish Oats and rolled oats.  Sad.morning.

However, I still have a few scoops of my Irish Steel Cut oats.  About a 1 1/2 months ago I was professing my love for these steel cut oats but they got the shaft once I realized the goodness that are Scottish Oats. 

Irish steel cut take awhile to cook, around 20min, so I kept busy EATING while they were cooking. 

I present you with my Breakfast Appetizer.  I had to do a taste test for you guys!! 

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Trial 1cocoa-coco pnat butter

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Trial 2cocoa-coco pnat butter

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Results?  Hands down Trial 1.  The main reason being that the coconut comes out more in Trial 1.  But, to be fair, with Trial 2, I ran out of coconut butter and would have added a little more if I had it.  Trial 2 kept it’s liquid state, unlike Trial 1, which was most likely due to more coconut butter [which hardens at room temp] and cocoa powder, which helped stiffen it.

I would also try making peanut butter with plain peanut and not pre-roasted.  I felt like that flavor was a little overpowering.

Chomp!

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And then my lovely oats were done.  I do still love Steel Cut Oats.  They have a nice nutty flavor and I like the crunch.  It was a good change of pace and they were perfectly topped.

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Pecan butter AND maple cinnamon almond butter with a little glob of mixed berry jam.  AND a hunk of real deal granola from Whole Foods.

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Also with a little Oat Milk drizzled on top, which is another new love.  I love adding a little milk on top of the oats. 

Have you ever had oat milk??  It’s delicious and literally tastes like liquefied oats.  It packs more protein than almond milk, coming in at 4g per serving but does have more calories [120 instead of Almond’s 40-60ish per cup].  It’s thicker than almond milk though.  I would compare it more with hemp milk.  If you’re not too keen on the taste of hemp milk, I would definitely recommend trying out Oat Milk. Yum!  I buy Pacific brand.

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Bike socks are SO comfortable.  Seriously.  I love bright obnoxious colors for workout gear, hehe.  Reioutlet.com rocks.  SUCH great finds.

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Oh, so I was preparing for a 30 mile ride with the huz.  The furthest I’ve gone up to this point was about 22 miles.  We were actually going along a bike path [Cherry Creek bike path] instead of looping around at the park.  The weather looked somewhat unpredictable but I almost always put sun screen on in case.

I just got this sunscreen on major sale at WF the other day.  I really like it so far!  I always carry my cell phone when riding, even if Chris + I are together.  And obviously the camera.  It’s in sad sad shape!

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And then it started hailing….so we waited about 45min.

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Bright and sunny, once again.  My new jacket, also obnoxiously BRIGHT, but I love it :)  I got that at reioutlet for like $25 a discount.  The original price was $80!  It fits perfectly and is super comfortable.  I have only bought a few articles of clothing for biking and everything I’ve gotten has been hugely discounted. 

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Interesting sculpture??  We stopped half way at mile 15 to have a snack.  Chris ate Clif Shot Bloks.

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And I ate this.  It was devoured in about 2 seconds flat.  The rain delayed our ride and put it right in the middle of when I would normally eat lunch.  Holy hungry.

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More storms were coming so we FLEW home and only hit about 3 miles of rain.  There was crazy wind pushing against us for the first 5 miles.  After that, I could literally feel the energy boost from the Larabar and I was cruising!  [around 17-19mph for a good 8 miles] 

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Quick stretch! My hamstrings are HORRible.  They always have been, even when I played sports in high school.  I stretch a lot [when warmed up or at the end of a workout, only!] but nothing seems to help.  Even though I can touch my forehead to my shins, they are still extremely tight.  Any ideas??  Must get back to doing Hip Opening Yoga Flow from yogadownload.

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THIRTY miles done.  Sweaty + happy.  FEED ME.

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Busted.  This is so not allowed.

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Only this sad depressed dog is occasionally allowed on the couch.  [Kenna is still learning boundaries and tends to be more dominant so we try to not give in and let her up on our level.]

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However, ONCE in awhile she worms her way up.  Ugh.  She’s really cute.  She looks like a little puppy here..don’t let her fool you.  She’s a 70lb beast.

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Where was I? Oh yes, food..mmmmm

Replenishing Strawberry Banana Hemp Shake

  • 1c strawberries
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/4c Living Harvest Vanilla Spice hemp protein
  • 4 ice cubes
  • splash of POM juice
  • ~1c plain coconut milk

Creamy.  Fruity.  Hempy.  Delicious. 

I was literally STUFFED after eating this.  I remember from doing my 1/2 marathon training last year, that after my long runs I would be starving right after but get full really fast.  I knew I needed to eat more but finished this and let my stomach settle before putting more food into it.  No need to make myself sick. 

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I waited about an hour before my stomach said “FEED ME.” 

A pile of frozen organic stir fry veggies + 1 portabella + sprouted grain tortilla. 

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With a little soy sauce, ume plum vinegar, and brown rice vinegar.  Delicious and again I was completely stuffed.

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Kombucha fail.  It exploded all over my pretty towel!  I didn’t shake it or anything.  You have to be careful with these!!

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This flavor was delicious but not on my towel.  Lame.

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THANK you for the amazing comments you have all been leaving for the giveaway.  I’ve read them all and feel even more inspired now to keep doing what I’m doing.  Thanks for sharing all of your personal stories.  It’s fun getting to know all of my readers a little better!  I honestly wish I could send you all a little piece of my crazy kitchen happenings.  Good luck to you all!

How did I find food blogs??  Well, I had started my ota.bar blog to document the process I was going through with my granola bar business.  It was really for my family + friends to stay up to date one what I was doing with.  I also used it to update info on what I would be selling at the farmers market and any new flavors I was making.  I had NO idea the food blog world existed.

I started my ota.bar blog last April and then my husband found Kath’s blog in August last summer.  Kind of funny, I know, but he saw Kath on Current TV.  They play all different types [news, current events, opinion pieces, interviews, etc.] of clips that people submit.  Anyway, he caught her 5min clip on Current TV and was like “Oh! I saw this girl on TV that has a food blog.  She takes pictures of her food and talks about healthy eating and REAL food, and it seemed like something you would like.”  I checked out Kath’s blog RIGHT away and then realized she lived in the same city that I lived in.  We got to become friends in the short time I had left in Charlotte and she has definitely been an inspiration in my life, along with many other great blogs out there! 

So, my husband introduced me to food blogs :)  Thanks huz.  It’s your fault I’m on the computer for hours each day reading + writing about food, hehe.

body.tired.bed.

<3 <3

Check out this new header I designed for Heather of Then Heather Said!!!  She wanted something clean/simple and wanted text to be used as graphic.  She ended up wanting 6 of the same header in all different colors and she set them on a loop.  Very cool! 

If anyone is interested in a header redesign, email me at: edibleperspective AT gmail DOT com – I can give you all details from there!

ALSO.  Watch for Angela’s Shop 4 A Cause charity drive on May 26th.  I’m donating a blog header redesign to the highest bidder!!  I know there will be so many amazing things up for bid, so make sure to check it out! 

Okay. I’m done. Promise.