Making Yogurt Hannah-Friendly

So I went through this weird phase when I was little.

(Okay, I went through a lot of weird phases, but this one was probably particularly annoying to my parents.)

So Delicious yogurt, peanut butter, and Triscuit Thin Crisps

For a long time I wouldn’t, well couldn’t, eat yogurt out of one of the large containers. Don’t ask me how this happened or why my brain decided to outlaw the big (and cheaper) containers of yogurt, but it did.

Same yogurt, same brand, same amount, couldn’t do it. It HAD to be one of the small containers.

These days, I pretty much stick to my small containers because my local grocery store (and most others around here) only sell Hannah-friendly yogurt in small containers. I mainly eat So Delicious coconut milk yogurt. I didn’t think I’d like it because I absolutely cannot stand coconut, but my taste buds have gone through so many changes over the past couple of years that I’ve actually fallen in love with it.

I rarely even miss Greek Yogurt (my favorite).

There are three reasons I do not eat just yogurt.

1. Hannah-friendly yogurt is expensive.

2. Hannah-friendly yogurt comes in small containers and is at large risk of being eaten way too quickly.

3. Yogurt tends to have a lot of sugar, plus it's easily digestible. Two things that are not good for hypoglycemics.

So because of these reasons I like to make the most out of it when I get it.

First:

During my snooping around the Internet for various recipes and mixtures, I stumbled upon different parfaits. Thinking that a normal parfait just wouldn’t do, I mixed my own.

The ingredients: Your yogurt of choice (I tend to use mango or raspberry), peanut butter, and your favorite bowl. (In my opinion, a meal is never complete, without the perfect dish.)

Pour yogurt in bowl.

Add peanut butter.

Stir. Enjoy.

Second:

Yogurt and Cereal. (Plus any additives you like. Fruit, peanut butter, etc.)

For the most part, I do a combination of stuff. Yogurt, peanut butter, and cereal. What I’ve found this does, is make those little itty-bitty containers of yogurt, last so much longer. It’s also better for me because of the sugars in yogurt. With more stuff to digest my blood sugar doesn’t spike or drop as quickly as it would with just yogurt.

Yogurt, Cheerios, and peanut butter

Last night I made a dinner out of it. I started with mango yogurt and mixed in some PB2 (powdered peanut butter). If you try this, make sure to thoroughly mix it for two reasons. One, so that all the PB2 gets incorporated and you don’t have little clumps of it. Two, the longer this duo is stirred, the thicker it gets. PB2 is supposed to be combined with water to create a lower calorie peanut butter. But I read somewhere that it imparts great peanut flavor (that it does). Since when added to water it was supposed to thicken up, I figured it would act the same in yogurt (that it does). Next I added my homemade crunchy peanut butter. Then I topped it with some cereal. Last night’s choice was Honey Bunches of Oats Honey Roasted. Of course the last step is to stir it all up (without crushing the cereal of course).

What’s my favorite thing to do with yogurt though? My third option:

I’ll call it…Mock Greek Yogurt? Or insert whatever other witty title you can come with (I’m never good with the titles).

It starts out pretty much the same as the mixture above. However, for this, leave it in the fridge in an air tight container for as long as you possibly can. (I usually do overnight. But I put it in the afternoon before, and eat it for lunch the next day.)

Take your yogurt; mix in 2 tablespoons of PB2 (blend thoroughly). Drop a spoonful of peanut butter and stir that in. I prefer crunchy to give it some varying textures. Leave it in the fridge.

I haven’t had Greek yogurt in a while…But I can almost guarantee it’s almost the exact texture. It’s light, while still having some bulk to it.

(I’m actually starting to crave some right now…)

Maybe I'll create a new yogurt concoction tonight for dinner. 

I Like to Play with My Food

“I think I’ll have my aunt try it first, see if she pukes. If she doesn’t, then MAYBE I’ll try it.”

I know kids are picky about what they eat and what they find acceptable. But most boys will eat anything. So if you’re babysitting a kid and telling him about your oatmeal with peanut butter and that’s what he says, you know it’s bad.

When you say your making dinner and before your boyfriend even knows what you’re cooking, his first text back is “Ew lol,” you know it’s bad.

No, my food isn’t bad, but if those are the reactions I’m getting, then my food and I must have reached SOME new level of oddity. (Though, since I’ve joined Tumblr, I’ve encountered many creations like my own. Especially when it comes to oatmeal.)

Since my last post, I’ve tried a few new, interesting recipes. All of them my own except for one; it was a pretty basic (yet tasty) baked oatmeal.

Sunday night I got to make a food I’d been craving. Cabbage. Why I would be craving cabbage, not so sure, but I was, so just go with it.

I thought about a stir-fry. However, I eat a lot of stir-fries, so I wanted something new to try, something fresh for my palate. I decided to try a cabbage roll. Instead of baking though, I steamed mine. 

The rolls (yes, I had two) were stuffed with brown rice and veggies (orange bell pepper, onion, and some sliced cabbage). I flavored it with crunchy peanut butter, PB2 (powdered peanut butter), curry, cumin, cinnamon, and red pepper. After I “taste-tested” the filling, I wasn’t sure there’d be enough to stuff my rolls with.

Luckily, I had plenty.

I even had the leftover filling for dinner at work the following night.

The next food I tried this week isn’t really a new food, more like an old favorite remade. I had seen pictures of “peanut butter pinwheels” and “peanut butter sushi” and “peanut butter rolls” everywhere. The peanut butter lover in my stomach whispered to me on Monday to make some for lunch.

To do so, I flattened out two slices of my 100% whole wheat bread. On one, I spread Dark Chocolate Dreams from the Peanut Butter&Co. and on the other I spread my homemade peanut butter. Rolled them up and cut them up just like sushi. Tasty! Almost better than real sushi because I can actually take a bite of one of these pieces instead of having to shove the entire piece in my mouth at once.

Apparently I liked them more than I thought. Last night in my dream I was looking for something. When I checked a drawer, I found one piece of the Dark Chocolate Dreams sushi preserved in plastic wrap and I seemed to be overjoyed by finding this treasure.

On Wednesday I had oatmeal for dinner. To mix it up a bit, I made Ants On A Log Oatmeal. 

With the typical Old Fashioned Quaker Oats I threw in some chopped celery and raisins. For the peanut butter part I used Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter, also by the Peanut Butter&Co. To thicken it up I added in some PB2 as well. I must say, out of all my oatmeal dishes, this makes the top of the lists for sure!

Earlier this week I also decided to actually follow a recipe. It came from the site, TidyMom. Baked Peanut Butter Oatmeal.

My first baked oatmeal. And I fell in love. I mean, come on, it actually had peanut butter in the original recipe. How could I not love it? I think it could have used another minute or so in the oven, it still seemed pretty moist in the middle. Almost gooey, not complete uncooked gooey…But somewhere in between. Anybody know if that’s how it’s supposed to be?

Despite maybe being a bit undercooked, I still ended up eating about half of it for dinner the night I made it. It cooled by the time I ate for dinner (made it in the morning). So I reheated it in a pan and spread Cinnamon Raisin Swirl on top. Absolutely delicious!

Tidy Mom, thanks for the recipe!

None of my foods got comments of note this week. Except for one on a photo of my Ants On A Log Oatmeal, “Eww, that looks delicious!” I’m still not quite sure what it means. No matter what, I was entertained. And if the friend who wrote that reads this blog by chance, thanks for the comment and the resulting laugh!

With such good food experiments it makes me think of how school is coming up soon (the 23^rd). I’m praying that God will keep me calm enough to handle all I want to handle. Working out, writing, school. Especially since I may be switching to Kinesiology as a major. (I’m terrified, but it may be where my future is.)

I’ve got 6 days till my first day back at school. Till then, I plan to work out (which is steadily improving, might I add) and eat as much glorious creations as I can find.

This week I've also been enjoying many other treats:

PB and Toast. First time having crunchy peanut butter.
Don't know why I never indulged before.

An old love reunited. Honey Bunches of Oats - Honey Roasted.
Nothing too creative here, but it makes for an awesome dinner.

So Delicious Mango yogurt with PB2 and crunchy peanut butter.
Left in the fridge overnight, I swear it tastes exactly like Greek Yogurt.

100% Whole Wheat Tortilla Wrap with crunchy peanut butter.
Mmm...Peanut butter quesadilla's should be sold in restaurants.