I haven’t been craving hot oats as much this past week. The recent hot weather has brought on a whole new “cold cereal” kind of feeling.
- 1-1/2 c. kashi heart to heart
- 6-oz. plain yogurt mixed with 1 chopped Braeburn apple
- scoop of Teddy peanut butter
Cold and oh-so-refreshing for a warm summer morning. 😀
I went out for a quick 3-mile morning walk before the heat of the day had a chance to come out. When I came home I was still dripping with sweat. In heat like this, everything feels like a major workout. 😉
Morning Snack: handful of almonds and an ice cold orange
I can still remember that very first time that I ate tempeh. It was more of an experiment than an actual, “I’m going to like this” sort of thing. Lo and behold, however, I fell in love. 😉
Tempeh is very, very different than tofu or other soy products. It has a nice firm—meaty almost!—texture to it. And it really does take on whatever flavor you want it to have. For lunch, I simply sprayed a cooking pan with spray, heated the pan, threw in 1/4 a block of tempeh, and let it sizzle and fry. Then I added 1/2 tsp low-sodium soy sauce to each side. This causes the pan to spazz a little, but it also causes the tempeh to take on a whole new level. I opted to add pepper jack cheese, alfalfa sprouts and tomato to my whole wheat roll-up. But for the optimum sandwich, try this tempeh with avocado and pineapple slices. I kid you not. It’s wonderful. 😀
On the side I baked a huge batch of kale chips with ketchup. I have a massive bunch of organic kale sitting in the fridge and I’ve been desparately trying to finish it up this week. 😉
+ some after lunch sweetness
Some more Thursday refrigerator clean-out duty took place when I scraped out the last of my Friendship Whipped Cottage Cheese and topped it with sunflower seeds and chopped dates. It made for a fun little afternoon snack!
Let’s move on to the boston baked beans, shall we?
Boston Baked Beans–memere’s recipe, taken from AJRHODES3 on Allrecipe
(p.s. I tweaked the recipe by taking out the bacon and taking out some brown sugar)
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2 c. navy beans
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1-2 onions, finely diced
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3 T. molasses
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2 tsp salt
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1/4 tsp ground black pepper
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1/4 tsp dry mustard
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1/2 c. ketchup
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1 T. Worcestershire sauce
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2 T. packed brown sugar
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Soak beans overnight in cold water. Simmer beans in same water until tender, approximately 1 to 2 hrs. Drain and reserve liquid. (keep in mind that you don’t want the beans sooo tender that they’re falling apart on you…they should be a little firm)
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Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
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Arrange the beans in a 2 quart bean pot or casserole dish and top with onions.
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In a saucepan, combine rest of ingredients. Bring mixture to a bowl and pour over beans. Pour in just enough of reserved bean water to cover the beans. Stir gently with rubber spatula and cover dish with lid or aluminum foil.
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Bake for 3 to 4 hrs in preheated oven. Stir at least every hour.
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ENJOY! 😀
A photo journey…
Cooked beans layered with onions.
Sauce mixture being brought to a boil.
Sauce mixture being doused on top of the beans and onions.
Just enough cooking water being poured on top to cover the beans before being placed in the oven.
Beans being enjoyed. 
You could also serve them with cornbread and a side salad, Al Fresco chicken sausages and a side salad, or just eat them like that with a slice of really good dipping bread. Some people enjoy boston baked beans with a sharp cheddar cheese as well.
Love, love, love this bean recipe and I highly recommend it. It’s super easy despite how long it takes. You just need to make sure that you’re home for the day so that you can stir it at every hour. But it’s a lot of hands-off preparation. 😀
On the side I had a large salad topped with the last of the sauteed bell peppers and vidalia onions, and drizzled with one of my favorite poppyseed dressings.
Well, I have a super busy day planned for today so I had better get started!
Question: How do you like to eat your baked beans? I like eating mine over sweet potatoes or served with a hunk of whole grain bread for dipping and a large salad. Mmm…
Running To Slow Things Down 