Healthy Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Cookies

The best parts of the holidays are the treats we get to eat!  In order to avoid the guilt and bad feelings about eating all that sugar, Foodie Studie is exploring alternative ingredients to make the best holiday recipes a little healthier, so we can feel good and still eat that great comfort food! 

Here is the first attempt and resulting recipe:

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
8 tbsp applesauce
7 packets of truvia (for a sweeter version add more truvia)
2 tbsp local honey
1 large egg
1 tspn pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup chopped walnut
1/3 cup dried cranberries

To Make
1. combine the first five dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix
2. combine the applesauce and Truvia in a separate bowl, mix
3. add the egg and vanilla, beating with a fork until blended
4. add the wet ingredients to the dry
5. add the walnuts and cranberries
6. spoon the dough onto a nonstick cookie sheet (or one that has been sprayed with oil)
7. bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown
8. enjoy with friends and family!

Thursday: Energy

Thursday was devoted to recognizing and limiting my energy consumption. 

I took note of all the things in my daily regimen that use energy.
This included: Lights, electric oven, microwave, hair straightener/curler, phone, ipod dock for music, dishwasher, clothes washer, heater, laptop.

Many things on this list are necessary components of my day, such as using lights at night time or cooking on the stove.  But just by making this list I became more aware of the energy that I do use, which made me more likely to limit it.  So when I did use the lights in a room, I used the bare minimum and made sure they were turned off when I left the room.  I did not leave my laptop on throughout the night, and when I was not in a room I turned off my music.

I even turned out the lights at nighttime and read by candlelight which provided a romantic touch to what would have been an ordinary evening.

Here are some cool ideas from others-

Make your southern comfort sweet tea in the sun instead of on the stove.

Skip the elevator, take the stairs!

Instead of watching a movie with friends, play a board game

Turn off the A/C

Open the windows for natural light!

Hang dry your clothes

Share all your ideas or current energy saving practices on here!

Tuesday - Wednesday: Transportation & Food

Tuesday: Transportation.

This was a day to make note of how much I rely on my vehicle for transportation.  Coincidentally, my Toyota Corolla is in the mechanic's shop, so I was forced to stay true to the challenge.  I bought a road bike even though my town is not bicycle-friendly.  There were many times throughout the day that I wanted to get in my car and leave the house for things like reading at the Hastings Hardback Cafe, visiting a friend who lives miles away, or going to the grocery store.  Unfortunately, I did not find a pressing reason to make me brave the cold weather and traffic on my bicycle that day.

I plan to use my bicycle more often, however, as soon as possible.  I bought her off a friend, she is an 80's-something model road bike.

Isn't she beautiful?

Wednesday: Food 

I ordered from my local community market, it is an online farmers market, a nice modern, convenient FM that allows me to order in advance and pick up my goods on Thursdays.  On the menu this week: butternut squash, sweet potatoes and bloomsdale spinach.  Yummmmm!

Do any of you frequent a local farmers market or have thoughts about alternative transportation?  Post them here!

No Impact Experiment * Monday- Trash

I am Beginning the No Impact Experiment! 

Each day of the week I will add another element of conservation to my daily regimen.  Monday began with reducing the amount of waste I produce.

To meet this challenge, I saved all of the trash I accumulated for the day.  This included plastic bags that food came wrapped in, such as the carrot and egg noodle bags shown here, a netted bag that carried an onion, a Styrofoam container that held raw chicken, a large wire twist tie, a Kashi granola bar wrapper and foil.

 I also saved the food waste I accumulated such as egg shells, plantain peels, celery stalks and onion peels.

After going through all the trash, I asked myself, "how could I reduce this waste?"

Here is what I came up with:

1. Save the plastic bags from the carrots, noodles, and onion, and reuse them in place of regular zip-lock bags.  Possibly for sandwiches, fresh produce at the grocery store, or anything I might need to keep dry. This is great because it saves me money on bags while being good for the environment!

2. Wash and reuse the foil and large twist tie.  Once again, saving me dough!

3. Put the food waste that is able to be composted into the community garden compost pile.  Community gardens have been around for a while but have been gathering even more participants lately.  Check your community for a garden plot you could send your food scraps to!  The nutrients in the food help make great soil for growing yummy veggies.

By reusing what I could and composting the food waste, I reduced my trash to merely a Styrofoam container and a granola bar wrapper- much better!

At the end of the day I was surprised how much trash I produced that could be reused!  Although this is a good practice in reduction of waste, there still lies a problem in the accumulation of these types of things.  For example, after saving reusable trash for months, you may have a kitchen drawer that won't close because it is overflowing with plastic bags, twist ties, and napkins.
So, to avoid clutter, it is best to make a conscious effort to avoid waste altogether.  For example, when buying produce at the grocery store, bring your own shopping bags and containers for fresh produce.  Buy food and goods that comes with less packaging.  But when it is unavoidable, don't be afraid to reuse!  It will save you time, money, and guilt.

Day 1 Complete!

**If anyone has done or is doing the No Impact Challenge, I would love to hear your experiences. Post them as comments here! 

No Impact Project

Hello Foodie Studies!

I came across a great blog today, No Impact Man.  Colin Beauvan teaches through his personal experience how we can live happier lives by reducing our impact on the planet.

His blog features the No Impact Experiment, a challenge to try living one week without impact.  The idea is to incorporate a new element each day, with the next adding to the previous.  So Sunday begins with no trash, Tuesday adds low energy transportation, Wednesday is local and seasonal food.  

I have decided to take the challenge and I will be posting updates on here as I go.
Follow me, take the challenge yourself, and share what you learned about yourself and your world!

Jenn

The Beauty of Hodge-Podge

You look into your fridge and see a bag of celery, crispy baby carrots, maybe a few other random vegetables a few days from going bad, and leftover chicken you bought fresh roasted from the grocery store.  

It has been a long day and your not really in the mood to cook anything extravagant.
But you are also starving, on the brink of breakdown- and the cookies mom forced on you are calling your name.

What to do?

This is where the beauty of hodge podge will reveal itself to you.

When you don't know what to make, throw everything you have into a skillet and cook it.  This is basically an anything stir-fry, and it is the method of cooking I use the most.


** Important to note, it does not have to be smothered in oriental sauce to be delicious.

Simply use your favorite seasonings, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and the vegetables will bring their own flavor to the table as well, doing most of the hard work for you.  When all else fails, this will save you the inconvenience of thought, and its a fairly quick way to whip up something nutritious.

Plus, when you make a lot, you can save the leftovers and mix them with other dishes throughout the week!

Hodge Podge Away!

Journey Through the Desert

Class * Coffee * Class * Lunch * Class * Organization meeting * Social Mixer * Dinner * Intramural game  

As college students, our lives can be busy on a good day, hectic on a bad one.  With all of the new and exciting activities (and freedom) in life, one is likely to get a bit distracted with the shininess of it all and forgo healthy practices and choices in an effort to simply survive the craze.

This is exactly what happened my freshman year at a small university in Arkansas.  Grappling for convenience, I submitted myself to the culture of the college.  My eyes glazed over at the buffet-style dining hall that offered my favorite treats on the regular: cheese fries and pizza.  I stuck to my schooling and studied late into the night, often passing on the opportunity to exercise, but certainly not the opportunity for a party.  It was not until years later that I understood the cost this lifestyle had on me and my learning.

I now think of my time in college as a journey through a food desert. Of course I never starved in college, but my access to healthy, fresh, whole food was certainly limited.  Those of you going to college soon, or already there, may find yourselves in similar situations.  The good news is that even in areas where the food culture may not match up to your standards of healthy food, one can fabricate ones own food culture and make choices that will produce a myriad of benefits!

Here are a few of my suggestions, drawn from personal experience:

- Don't eat the mystery meat!

- Smuggle fresh fruit out of the cafeteria in your backpack- you have already paid for it after all.

- Always keep a whole snack on hand (ie. trail mix, apple, jerky) This can prevent over stuffing at lunch time due to extreme hunger.

- The blueberry muffins at the breakfast buffet may have antioxidants, but they also have a sizable amount of sugar and fat, go for the hard boiled egg instead.

- Stay away from soda!

Don't treat your body like a trash can, and it will serve you well in your busy adventure ahead.
Happy Eating!

* What suggestions/ideas do you have?