Recipes – Belinda N. Mays

Leftover Oatmeal Muffins

In 2015 my family and I took the pledge to do Meatless Mondays and challenged ourselves to eat more fruits and vegetables and less meat. When we first started I made oatmeal every Monday because I could not think of any other breakfast that didn’t include eggs. (We have since agreed that eggs are not considered meat in our household.)

We often had leftover oatmeal and I kept wondering what to do with it. I felt bad about throwing it in the trash, so I decided to reuse it and make what our family calls left over oatmeal muffins. We eat these for breakfast or in lieu of cornbread.

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup left over oatmeal

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup melted butter

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl. You can use a blender but my oatmeal usually has raisins in it and I like to keep them whole so I mix by hand.

Spray a muffin pan and spoon in batter by the tablespoon. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until muffins bounce back when you touch them. It makes one batch in a 12 muffin pan. I have replaced half the brown sugar and butter with a 1/2 cup of applesauce or a banana and that adds moisture and more fruit.

Healthy Pasta Primavera

My husband loves pasta! If he could he’d eat pasta for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Over the years I have tried various recipes in effort to find a healthy pasta dish that my husband would love that won’t send me into a diabetic coma. So with a few modifications to the traditional pasta primavera this is what I came up with. Try it and let me know what you think.

Ingredients

12 ounces whole wheat or rice angel hair pasta
1 small yellow squash sliced

1 small zucchini sliced

2 carrots chopped

1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 small onion sliced
1/2 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
15-20 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Italian Seasoning

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs.

Meanwhile, heat 1/4 the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until just golden, about 30 seconds. Add all the remaining vegetables, 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until the carrots soften, about 2 minutes.

Drain the pasta and pour the vegetable mixture over the pasta. Add parmesan cheese and more olive oil if desired.