PB-Banana Oatmeal

I've become a bit of a convert to the famous PB-banana mixture. And you know what? I  l-o-v-e  it. If you haven't tried it, don't bash it just yet! I thought it sounded kinda gross too, but I was wrong. PB-banana foods have become a staple in my diet (PB-banana wraps, PB-Banana Protein Bars, and PB-banana oatmeal, to name a few). Quite recently, I've been making oatmeal to warm myself up on these chilly Mexico City mornings! What, you thought all of Mexico was hot? NOPE. Because of our elevation, Mexico City mornings are just as cool as Iowa October mornings. So here is my quick, simple, little warmer-upper:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup oats

1 ripe, mashed banana

Almond milk (I didn't measure, but I guess I used no more than 1/3 cup)

1 tbsp creamy natural peanut butter

Honey, to taste (or agave, for strict vegans)

Cinnamon, to taste

Directions:

The method itself is just as sinfully simple as the ingredients. Toss everything into your breakfast bowl, minus the cinnamon, and mix it together as well as you can (the sticky peanut butter won't want to mix perfectly). Pop it in the microwave for 1 minute to 90 seconds, depending on microwave power. Remove from the microwave and mix it again (now it should mix much better). Sprinkle cinnamon on top and enjoy!

UPDATE + Mexican Rice

WHOA. And I'm back. After a 7-month hiatus from food-blogging, it may be something I want to start doing again! (Time permitting).

Essentially, the short explanation for my disappearance from this blog is that 1) I live in Mexico City now; 2) I keep really busy with work and travelling (as can be seen at my other blog, Aventuras en D.F. ); 3) I have a tiny kitchen and the stove doesn't even have temperature labels; and 4) I have fallen off the vegan train. Oops! You see, living in Mexico, being vegan is much more difficult than it is in the states, for numerous reasons. However, the big reason for me was that pretty much all Mexican food includes cheese, sour cream, and/or milk. Aaand, vegan substitutions are non-existent around here. If I lived in Mexico, and never ate Mexican food, I would feel like I'm missing out on a big part of the culture here! So, I've added dairy back in to my diet. (Organic and family-farm raised, whenever possible, of course). To tell you my really dirty secret, I've even added shrimp back in to my diet. Forgive me, die-hard vegans.

SO...What does this mean for the blog? Really, nothing. If I have cheese in a recipe, it can just as easily be substituted with vegan cheese. Same thing goes for milk / almond milk, cream / coconut cream, sour cream / tofu sour cream, etc.. So, without further ado, let me give you a fully-vegan recipe that I made for lunch today: Mexican Rice. (How fitting).

Ingredients:

1 cup rice

2 cups veggie broth

1/3 cup tomato paste

1 tsp-tbsp (depending on how much you want) garlic powder

1/2 tsp cumin

~1/3 medium onion (you can use more if you wish, but I don't recommend using the whole thing)

1 cup peas (I used frozen)

Olive oil

Directions:

Heat a large frying pan over a medium-high flame, and generously coat the pan with olive oil. Toss in the rice, and mix with a spatula until all the rice is coated in oil. Sprinkle the cumin and garlic salt over the rice, and mix again. Allow the rice to toast until golden (being careful not to burn!). In the meantime, roughly chop your 1/3 onion, and mix that in as well. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes.

Now, mix the veggie broth and tomato paste into the pan as well. Crank the flame up to high heat and allow to boil out. For me, this couldn't have taken more than 15 minutes, just be sure to stir/fluff the rice every couple minutes. When the soupy-ness goes away, you'll be left with a reddish-orange rice. Reduce the heat back to medium-low and toss in the cup of green peas. Stir-fry for another 3-5 minutes, or until the peas are soft. (Or in my case, unfrozen). Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Enjoy!!