Easy sausage and spinach quiche

I love me some quiche. Something about cheesy eggs with a flaky crust just does it for me. And it’s super easy to make. I was feeling a little under the weather today, but wanted something warm and comforting for dinner, so I spent 10 minutes in the kitchen preparing this and man am I glad I did! Not sure if this is weird, but I always make quiche for dinner, not breakfast. Anyone else?…Bueller?…Bueller? (80s movie reference for those of you that don’t know.)

I used a frozen pie crust and just started layering in the goodies. First went the sausage – one Aidell’s Italian Style chicken sausage.

Next I added frozen chopped spinach, thawed.

I topped it with mozzarella and cheddar. (You can never have too much cheese in my book.)

Then I whisked together 3 eggs, 1 cup of milk, salt, and pepper, and poured the mixture into the pie crust.

After 35-45 minutes at 375 degrees…

..mmmm, ohhh yeahhhh. And I totally forgot to take a picture of a nice cheesy slice because I gobbled it down as soon as it hit the plate…and then went back for seconds. The sausage in this was so flavorful and added a nice kick.

I’ll be living off of this for the next day or two since, like some other baked dishes – including homemade mac and cheese – I think quiche is even better reheated.

What are your favorite quiche fillings? Are there any meals you like better the next day?

Pumpkin oatmeal muffins with cinnamon walnut streusel

I know this recipe involves the exact same ingredients as my breakfast post, but I’ve been wanting to bake something with pumpkin and today just was the day to to do it. I followed Julie’s recipe for the muffins, except I used unsweetened almond milk instead of regular milk.

Just mix the dry ingredients with the wet ones…
 

…to make a lovely, orange, lumpy butter.

I decided I wanted to pretty my muffins up a little by adding a topping, so I went with a cinnamon walnut streusel. I cut up 2 Tbs of cold butter into little pieces, added in 2 Tbs of brown sugar  and 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, crumbled it all together with my fingers, and put it on top of the muffins.

Oh. My. Gosh…the smell that took over my apartment while these were baking was amazzzzing. And they tasted just as good! The pumpkin puree keeps them super moist, and the streusel reminded me of my mom’s homemade coffee cake! It was such a great addition to the muffins.

A pumpkiny kind of morning

I woke up chilly this morning, which usually means breakfast is a warm, creamy, flavorful bowl of oats! And, because it’s fall, of course pumpkin had to be involved.

In the mix:
– 1/2 cup water
– 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
– 1/2 cup rolled oats
– 1/2 of an overripe frozen banana (add this in when you add the oats in, and they literally MELT into the oatmeal!)
– 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
– 1/3-ish cup of pumpkin puree
– 1 spoonful of Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter (for sweetness!)
– generous shakes of pumpkin pie spice

Mmmm, that bowl warmed me right up!

Overnight oats

I had yoga this morning, which usually means I roll out of bed, go straight to class, and am starving by the time I get home. So last night, I thought ahead and made some overnight oats! If you’ve never had overnight oats, let me enlighten you…

Start with a cup of yogurt. Typically I go with greek yogurt. But for overnight oats, the thinner consistency of regular yogurt works better in my opinion.

Mix the yogurt with uncooked rolled oats. I used about 1/3 cup. Stir the oats in so they’re all coated with yogurt, cover it, and let it sit in the fridge overnight.

By morning you will have a creamy, chewy bowl of amazingness.

Then, just add your toppings of choice – I rolled with raspberries and slivered almonds for some crunch.

If you like yogurt and oats you will love this! The combo of the two also keeps me full for hours. Try it and let me know what you think!

The perfect hearty breakfast

Today was one of those days where I just woke up starving! So I went with one of my favorite satisfying breakfasts – oats! Now don’t stop reading because you think oats are boring. Just take a look at Kath’s Tribute to Oatmeal page and I promise you will change your mind.

I use old-fashioned rolled oats.

Let 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of unsweetened almond milk come to a boil, add in 1/2 cup of oats, reduce to a simmer, and let it cook for 5 minutes. That’s it!

I also typically mix in some protein powder about 2-3 minutes into the cooking time, so there’s still some liquid to absorb it. I know it’s best to get protein from whole food sources, but since I don’t eat a ton of meat I mix this stuff into oats, smoothies, and some baking projects.

Just like with yogurt, the mix-in options for oats are endless. Today I rolled with strawberries, 1/2 a banana, and some shredded coconut.

Topped with piping hot oats, it was refreshing, sweet, and delicious! This will hold me over for several hours too – gotta love high fiber content!

Do you eat oats often? What are your favorite mix-ins? 

Breakfast for dinner

Dinner tonight was simple and quick – breakfast for dinner! I had an egg, turkey bacon, and cheddar sandwich on a toasted whole wheat english muffin. (Sorry again for the blurry pic.)

Check out my cute egg pan. It makes perfect-sized eggs for sandwiches!

The sandwich was accompanied by some pineapple that we picked up from the North Hollywood farmer’s market this morning. To me, there isn’t much better than fresh-cut pineapple!

Also from the farmer’s market, I picked up this beautiful pashmina for only $10!! (Please excuse my wet hair and flourescent pajama shorts.)

I love the colors in this so much. How cute would it be as a scarf with jeans and black tee? Scarves are such easy accent pieces for an outfit.

Do you do breakfast for dinner often?
Are you a regular farmer’s market patron?
We’re lucky that, here in Los Angeles, a lot of local farmer’s markets are open year-round. We’ve only been a few times but I think we might start going more often!

Yogurt love

Yogurt bowls are some of my go-to breakfasts. They’re filling, healthy, and there are endless possibilities for mix-ins! Todays bowl was a cup of nonfat plain Greek yogurt, banana, raspberries, cinnamon, a drizzle of agave nectar for sweetness, and a small spoon of peanut butter. Heaven in a bowl!

(Sorry the pic is a little blurry – I have to figure out the best settings/lighting to use for blog pics.)

Some of my other favorite yogurt bowl mix-ins:

• granola or other high-fiber cereal
• rolled oats
• pumpkin
• basically any type of fruit- berries and bananas most frequently
• cocoa powder
• pumpkin pie spice

As far as yogurt goes, I almost always go Greek. I typically just get plain nonfat so I get the most natural flavors out of the mix-ins. But sometimes I’ll roll with non/low-fat pineapple, vanilla, raspberry, or pomegranate. And now that berry season is over 😦 I might start getting more flavors to make up for not having as much fresh fruit on hand.

What’s your favorite type of yogurt? Do you eat it plain or add mix-ins?