Bars.

I haven’t been making vegan muffins lately, have you missed them? Me neither. Oh, I like them just fine but I have a bad habit of eating breakfast in my car and muffins tend to crumble all over the place, even the…moist…ones (oh how I hate that word). And they take two hands to eat. Too much trouble, says I. Well, for the moment anyway. I am sure I will go back to them at some point. But not now, no sir. Because I discovered the vegan energy bar mix…and quickly dismissed it for being too expensive. Don’t get me wrong, they were really good, but I couldn’t find them in the grocery stores and once you add shipping from the manufacturer…wayyyy too expensive. Ah well.

But wait…I can cook. I know how. I know what goes in…food. I know ingredients and stuff! And all the ingredients are listed on the box, so all I need to do is figure out proportions, right? So what’s in these things? Rice Syrup Solids, Oat Bran), Vital Wheat Gluten, Fructose, Non-GMO Soy Protein Isolate…oh.

Ok, so I thought about it and though about it and it was really easier than I thought. Once I started flinging things into the bowl it all started to make sense. And it was easy. Really easy. And good. And, as far as I can tell, good for you. Here’s what you do:

Mix together in a large bowl:

1c. whole wheat pastry flour
1c. rolled oats
½ c. soy flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons whole flax seeds

add:

1c. fat free soymilk
¼ c. canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

mix until blended and add in
nuts, dried fruit or chocolate chips…I’d say to taste but then it would just be all chocolate chips and nothing else, wouldn’t it? Let’s say start with a ¼ c of each and see what you think.

Bake in a lightly oiled 8x8, 9x9, or, if you are like me, some weird sized pan from Ikea, I think it’s about 7x9. Small enough to fit in the toaster oven, at 350° for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned and springy to the touch.

Let cool before cutting into 8 pieces and wrapping indivudally and storing in the fridge. I wrap mine in wax paper and then put them all into a plastic bag and that seems to keep them nice and fresh.

I am not a nutritionist but I think we can safely say that these have a reasonable amount of fiber and some protein. The fruits and chocolate add some antioxidants and are yummy so, you know, it’s a decent meal. It’s got all the important food groups, fiber, protein and yum.

I have made these twice now and the first time I used 2 eggs instead of canola oil. It worked but I was really surprised when I used the canola oil because they came out much fluffier with a more tender crumb.

The only caveat with these is kind of…well it’s fine, it doesn’t hurt you or anything but whole flax seeds don’t really digest in your system. The ones that get chewed will fill you with lovely omega 3s but the ones that stay whole will pass right through you…so don’t think that it was a clot or something…it’s just the flax. Sorry, I know, I know…I just wish someone had given me that kind of warning the first time I ate fresh beets. So, I thought I’d let you know.

Daily.

Tired, tired, tired. I don’t what is going on in here but man I am tired! Sleeping has gotten difficult due to…whatever and I just can’t seem to catch up. But I figured a tired mind turns out some weird stuff so I thought I’d see what dropped out of my brain today…

Well, first I would like to share my three favorite breakfasts with you. Why, you ask? Because I already told you, I AM TIRED and my brain is funny. And this morning I had one of my favorites and I thought it was funny (remember…tired) and the other day I was reading a blog that listed the some of the blogger’s breakfasts and…whatever…here…

My standby breakfast is Nature’s Path Flax Plus organic cereal with fresh blueberries and soy milk. I can hear you sobbing right now but seriously, this stuff is good. It doesn’t taste like cardboard and unlike certain other healthy cereals it doesn’t contain anything referred to as “twigs” (I’m looking at you, Kashi!). Although, to be honest, I had never noticed that my Kashi contained twigs until my mother pointed out and told me that it was just too…healthy tasting for her. When I don’t have blueberries, I sometimes add raisins or I just buy the raisin bran version. And it was actually Donovan’s Mama that got me eating this cereal, even though she wouldn’t eat it herself. Added bonus, well…sort of a bonus…um…let’s just say, I may not be normal but I am totally regular. Sorry, couldn’t help myself there. Also, Nature’s Path makes what we call in our house “Hippie Pop Tarts”. I will on occasion buy their toaster pastries and I really like them. So much so that now when faced with an actual Pop Tart…not interested. And I see they also have some kind of Pumpkin Raisin Flax Crunch thing going on…gotta find that. Wait…what? Fig and Flax waffles? Dude. Oh and if you totally have a pie fix but you think you are all kinds of healthy and don’t want to make a pie but also cannot imagine doing the McDonald’s drive thu kind of pie, this same company makes something called Pie-Oh-my! I think the name says it all.

You thought I had lost my train of thought here, didn’t you? You thought that I forgot that I was naming my three favorite breakfasts and had just gone on a rant about hippie food, Didn’t you? Nope, I remember. Second favorite breakfast is whole-wheat couscous made with soymilk and mixed with dried fruits, nuts and cinnamon. It’s great hot and it’s good cold and I can make a big container and it will last a few days. It’s a nice alternative to oatmeal, which I like but will rarely make, and you can do just about anything you want to it. If you stick with the whole-wheat couscous you are getting some fiber. And with the soymilk and nuts you’ve got your protein. It’s very filling and comforting and OH SO EASY!

Third favorite is what I had for breakfast this morning. Well, sort of. What I had this morning was a toasted English muffin, covered with I.M. Healthy brand CHOCOLATE soy nut butter and topped with blueberries. And it was good, but what I really like is when have some fresh from the farmer’s market whole-wheat pita. The kind that doesn’t even have a pocket. That’s good stuff.

Finally, my fourth favorite breakfast is one I only get when I am on vacation despite the fact that I actually OWN the necessary tools to make MICKEY WAFFLES. Somehow they just taste better in Disneyworld. And in just a few weeks, I will be indulging in them daily. Maybe by then I will be less tired….maybe not.

So, why blog about breakfast? Well, it is the most important meal of the day. But mostly because I am still tired and it entertained me.

Honestly, breakfast has always been a difficult meal for me. I don’t like mornings much and eating in the morning just isn’t my thing. So when I dedicated myself to a regular breakfast, I knew it would be a struggle. Turns out, if you like what you are eating, it’s a lot easier. Some of that came to me when I discovered that soymilk didn’t upset my stomach. (Before that I was eating my granola covered in grapefruit juice, which makes most people cringe when I mention it). And I understood it even better when I found a cereal that I actually LIKED that wasn’t full of junk. Even more when I found things I could eat in the car that wouldn’t cause accidents. Once I figured all that out, everything else became a lot easier. Hunh, it only took me…almost forty years. So, I’m a slow learner.