Oats with Apricots and Pecans

Organic Golden Flax Oats with Dried Apricots and Pecans

Here are links to my previous Oatmeal Posts:
Pumpkin Spice Oats
Banana Blackberry and Flax Seed Oats
Oatmeal Rasin Cookie Oats

And a list of why I like Oats:

According to the American Cancer Society:

1. Insoluble fiber's cancer-fighting properties are due to the fact that it attacks certain bile acids, reducing their toxicity.
2. Soluble fiber may reduce LDL cholesterol without lowering HDL cholesterol. LDL is bad; HDL is good. (and incidentally I have high LDL cholesterol)
3. Soluble fiber slows down the digestion of starch. This may be beneficial to diabetics because, when you slow down the digestion of starch, you avoid the sharp rises in your blood sugar level that usually occur following a meal.
4. It has been found that those who eat more oats are less likely to develop heart disease, a disease that is currently widespread in the United States.
5. The phytochemicals in oat may also have cancer-fighting properties.
6. Oats are a good source of many nutrients including vitamin E, zinc, selenium, copper, iron, manganese and magnesium. Oats are also a good source of protein.

And from my personal opinion:

7. Oats keep me full until lunch time, thus preventing snacking.
8. Oats keep me warm inside when it's freakin' cold in Utah.
9. There are no limits of the varieties that you can create.
10. They're cheap and right now so am I!

For a full list of VintageMixer recipes click here.

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Sun and Moon Cafe, Salt Lake City UT

If you live in Salt Lake and have never tried the Sun and Moon Cafe, let me just tell you that you have been missing out! When Josh and I visited here this weekend the only thing we kept saying was, Why are we just now trying this place out?! Live jazz music 3+ nights a week, excellent and reasonable priced menu, large wine and beer list, and homemade cheesecake! Owner, Carl, just lives right next door and has a colorful history in the food business and a passion for blues and jazz music. You'll probably meet him if you dine here. His love for good food is carried out in every selection on the menu from the Pulled Pork on a baked country roll to the Flat Iron Steak Sandwich. I tried the Blackened Chicken Sandwich with cilantro-lime aioli, avocado, and tomato with a side house salad. The house salad was anything but plain with mixed field greens, sweet Asian vinaigrette, Gorgonzola, and sweet & spicy walnuts. You can go wrong and most menu items are under $10.00. They also serve a full breakfast: Pancakes, French Toast, Eggs Benedict and more!! And with Ruth's Diner closed for construction you have the perfect opportunity to try something new up the Canyon. The drive is beautiful and historic- Emigration Canyon is the path the Utah Pioneers took as they entered Zion. Some who knew better must have stopped along the way and set up their homes because there are a lot of old homes along the drive that look as though they may have been here since the Pioneers. Also, did you know that Emigration Canyon ALMOST became home to a "Summer Whitehouse" Presidential retreat? That an electric railroad ran the whole length of the canyon? That it was home to one of the largest breweries west of the Mississippi? That it was at least partly responsible for the demise of the Donner-Reed Party? Anyways, Back to The Sun and Moon Cafe, they have live Jazz and Blues bands playing Thursday through Saturday nights currently and most nights during the warmer months. Many national bands play here on their way to the West Coast and enjoy this smaller venue. This week John Lee Hooker Jr. is playing this week and the band just happened to be hanging out at the bar when we were dining. Apparently, it’s more than just a venue for them. They were all enjoying their favorite selections off the menu and chatting with the owner and patrons. I kept having Wizard of Oz moments...Are we in Salt Lake still?? Sun and Moon also has wine tastings and pairings. Truly, truly a hidden gem of Salt Lake.


Click here for a list of all VintageMixer Reviews

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2 Slices of Wedding Cake

A little confession- I had two slices of wedding cake! No regrets, it was the best I've had (minus my own of course- Spice Cake), this was a rich moist Amaretto White Cake with Butter Cream Icing!! Are you hungry yet?? And if that wasn't enough here are a few other confessions of my week in Dallas: La Madeleine's Tomato Basil Soup and Caesar Salad, Blackened Catfish from Razzoo's Cajun Cafe, Enchiladas from Blue Mesa, delicious sub sandwiches from New York Subs with the Olivers, and Greek Salad and German Chocolates from a cute little European cafe called Neuhaus Cafe . All were excellent choices if you're ever in the Dallas area. Neuhaus Cafe was especially fun- my friend Halie took me there and we sat for a few hours at chatted over key lime pie, and chocolates. We even had the pleasure of meeting the owner- a foodie from South Africa (shout out to the Seevinck's- Halen you would have loved this place!!) They also served chocolate liquor drinks, but seeing as we were there around noon we decided to skip on those. I'm sure I'll be back in Dallas at some point to enjoy a few things we missed out on.

So, after enjoying lots of great food in Dallas last week, this week I've been trying to cut back a little. I especially enjoyed an HungryGirl email I received earlier this week that included tips on lighter substitutions for cakes and other delicious foods. Here is what "HungryGirl" had to say:

Swapping out fattening ingredients for ones that are low in fat and calories is pretty much my life, and it's easy once you get the hang of it. Let's start with oil. You can easily just use applesauce in place of oil in cake or muffin recipes. If a recipe calls for 1 cup of oil, use 1 cup of applesauce instead. It's an exact exchange. Easy. Next up -- egg whites for whole eggs. Use two egg whites for every egg a recipe calls for. And if you buy liquid egg whites or Egg Beaters, use 1/4 cup for every egg called for. As for pumpkin, what we usually do here at the HG HQ is mix a 15-oz. can of pure pumpkin with a box of cake mix, and then bake it in a muffin p an at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. We don't add anything else at all to the batter. No water, no eggs -- nothing. The result is a bunch of brownie-like treats. But when it comes to those other low-fat swaps, don't alter the cooking times and temperatures -- and be careful not to overcook whatever you're making, 'cuz low-fat recipes tend to dry out when they're cooked too long. BTW, if you want to figure out the nutritionals for baked goods made with these items, just start with the total stats for the cake mix only. Then add the stats for whatever you're using (applesauce, egg whites, etc.). Divide by the number of servings, and there you have it!

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Wedding Photos

Here are a few photos from the wedding weekend in Texas for all of you out there who enjoy wedding decor and photography.

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Valentine Wedding and Oats On The Go!

Last week I was helping helping my friend Kristin get ready for her Valentines Day Wedding in Dallas TX! Above are a few shots from the wedding weekend. It was a beautiful Texas wedding in a chapel and the reception was at a golf club in a small community in the Dallas subburbs. Her colors were champagne and eggplant purple. It was a crazy fun weekend full of laughs and crying and lots of preparation.

Here are some oats that I ate along the way:



Pumkin' Spice Oats To Go

INGREDIENTS
1 package of Nature's Path Instant Oatmeal with Flax
1/2 bar Pumpkin Spice Kashi granola bar (brocken up)
1/2 cup water

DIRECTIONS
Add 1/2 cup of water to Oat packet adn microwave for 75 seconds. Add 1/2 of granola bar. Add skim milk if you like your oats with milk. Enjoy!

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Oats of the week

As some of you may know, I have been addicted to Oatmeal this winter. As a habitual cereal eater it was a difficult transition but the combination of freezing temperatures and lack of time to eat cold cereal at home lead me to trying oats on the go. I simple make a mug full of Oatmeal; I've tried several different types, and then dart out the door to start my 40 min commute up the hill to Deer Valley Resort. Now its become a pleasure that I don't like to miss out on. Its so nice to have my music or talk radio and a cup full hot oats. I've samples Steal Cut Oats (love em'- they're much more chewy than quick oats but take a while to cook), Organic Irish Quick Oats (also much more substantial than your normal quick oats and fast and easy to heat up), and Original Oats (quick or regular- I might be becoming choosy with my oats because I can hardly eat the normal stuff now). I've made several versions with different ingredients- Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Oatmeal, Ginger Snap Oats, Blueberry Banana Oats, Blueberry Vanilla Oats, Cinnamon Spice Oats, Coconut Granola Oats, and this week...Blackberry Flax Seed Oats. One thing about oatmeal- its very economical given the current situation we're in. Oats are cheap and they keep you full longer than most breakfast choices! When people are trying to save money, they often cut costs by buying more cheap eats (processed junk food and dollar-menu fast food) and less of the healthy, more costly stuff (fresh fruit, fresh veggies, and whole grains). Here's a great way to save some dollars and still eat well; here's a great article about food costs leading to obesity. There is also a new trend of Oatmeal in many fast food chains like Jamba Juice, Starbucks and other breakfast joints. Many people are sharing their oat recipes on the web and I will continue to share mine with you as well. Enjoy!


Banana-Blackberry and Flax Seed Oats
1 serving

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup Irish quick oats
1 3/4 cup water
3 TB light vanilla soy milk
1 tsp flax seeds (find in bulk grain section of grocery stores)
1/4 banana (quartered and sliced)
5 blackberries
1 TB honey

DIRECTIONS
In a microwave safe mug mix 1/2 Cup of Oats with 1 and 3/4 cups of water. Heat on high in microwave for 1.5 minutes. Add flax seeds, banana, blackberries, and honey- stir. Add vanilla soy milk and microwave 30 more seconds or until desired hotness.

Other Foodie News:
Value Meals at Starbucks?

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Comforts

Lately, I've been really craving comfort foods. I don't usually crave specific foods; I'm not picky at all really; I don't even crave chocolate. BUT lately I just want Mac N'Cheese, Tomato Soup, Bread, Spaghetti, Brownies...everything that warms your soul and stomach at the same time. Maybe its all the Food magazine covers of specialty Macaroni & Cheese lately that wooed me. The latest cover of Real Simple featured Cauliflower Mac N'Cheese. Josh and I both love cauliflower (I thank God often that I married a man, a MAN, who loves vegetables!) so we cooked up the recipe making a few alterations and then proceeded to devour it! Here's the recipe for Macaroni and Cheese with Cauliflower on Real Simple. The only changes we made were that we only used 1 cup of sour cream, skim milk instead of 1%, red onion instead of yellow, fresh wheat bread from a local bakery, and a bit more cheese. We used my new french oven from Williams Sonoma.
Another recent splurge- Gourmandise! If you haven't been there yet you must go because you'll quickly get tired of me talking about it on my blog. Its a local bakery that has endless pastries not to mention great breakfast, lunch and dinner. I went to breakfast there with a girl friend after antique shopping on 3rd and 3rd and decided to take home a generous portion of Croissant Bread Pudding to share with Josh. I figure that calories are always best when shared! Here's a shot of our special treat on a new plate I acquired at Christmas from a clearance at Anthropologie. They are currently sold out of these plates but here are similar ones in orange.

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Vintage Bowls

These are some fun bowls that I inherited from my mom. I love them. You can do anything with them- microwave, bake, etc- they are virtually indestructible. They are Pyrex and you can still find them in many antique stores. I've spotted several at places like Retro Rose, Moriarty's, and Emily Janes- (all antique stores in Salt Lake), but I'm sure you can find them in most antique stores around the country. Some places are prices than others. Originally they were sold in sets of three with matching patterns and colors.

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