Vegan Chocolate Chip Oat Pancakes

   This past weekend I discovered a new tasty treat at Central Market: Banyan Vegan Tofu Fried Rice that is also wheat and gluten free. I've tried my fair share of healthy {gluten free, dairy free, and vegan} products that tasted plain to down right disgusting, but this was delicious! One package is enough for 2 meals, one of which I cheated and added leftover chicken, but it was tasty both ways. One really good thing about these is that the packages can be frozen to be enjoyed without having to wait until the next trip to C.M.

 Random Note:I think this sweater from Urban Outfitters is really cute!

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Banana Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies {Healthy}

   I made spaghetti squash for the first time Friday night and it was a hit! It's so easy because all you have to do is pop it in the oven for 1 hour before shredding it into "pasta" so we will be eating it more often. We participated in Bountiful Baskets this past weekend and ended up getting some squash (acorn and carnival) so I'm thinking about making a soup or even try making squash risotto which might help me use some my overflowing plants of rosemary that I actually have kept alive for a few weeks!{I kill plants & fish. I can hand raise kittens that are 48 hours old, but I've killed every plant and fish I have ever had, well actually my last few goldfish fish turned into cannibals. Oops}.

   Late Saturday night, I made another batch of my Sunday Morning Muffins for my mom's class at church for Sunday. I've made these muffins several times, but this was the only time every muffin came out looking like the the one below without the cream cheese oozing out. Instead of making the streusel topping, I just divided a small packet (the little restaurant size packets) between the 12 muffins for a little crunch. 

  I can across this cookie recipe a while back on foodgawker when I had a few ripe bananas, but I didn't want to make another banana bread recipe {seeing as I have 5 quick bread/muffins recipes using bananas} and I have made this recipe twice since. These cookies have no flour, no sugar, no oil if you use applesauce like I did, and vegan (depending on what type of chocolate you use). And unlike most cookie recipes where you end up with a few dozen cookies in your kitchen this only makes 18 small, 2-bite cookies. 

Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread

These last few days have been busy.

 I visited the dentist, taught myself to knit, my mom and I took my car in to get checked, we tried a bowl of Mexican gumbo at Qdoba Mexican Grill which was delicious (It's like a burrito bowl + tortilla soup), I bought Oddball a cute lion costume which he thinks is a new chew toy, took Oddball, Marley, & Dusty to get some shots, did a little shopping, had some extended family come over who were visiting from out of town, went out to dinner with the whole family, and then I had another physical therapy session which has been helping my lupus.

  I had a few golden, spotted bananas left on the counter and I was wondering what to make with them. I found a lot of new recipes like banana oat cookies that are dairy, gluten, and oil free, but the recipe only said 2 bananas, but didn't tell the measurements. Normally that would be okay since the bananas we usually get are average size, but the leftover bananas we had  were really big so I didn't want to mess up a recipe by adding too little or too much banana and having a ruined creation. So I went with a newer banana bread recipe that I found on foodgawker that measured the mashed bananas.

Honey Walnut Banana Bread

Last Wednesday I went to my first physical therapy appointment which mainly consisted of  trying to pin point where the problem was (without knowing the MRI results), discovering that my right leg which is where i'm having pain in is weaker than my left, and learning new stretches that help strengthen my core without straining my back or leg. I also learned that if you have back problems, that you shouldn't lean forward which  can aggravate the problem area, but to bend down. I never realized how much I lean forward until someone told me not to.

 Charlie and Gus Gus visited the vet on Friday to get fixed. I was a ball of nerves while they were gone since this was the first time they would be with other people besides us. It seems like just yesterday they were 2 tiny balls of orange that could fit in my palm and needed to be fed every few hours. Charlie got her belly shaved and she was the only cat that I recall in all of our years of owning cats to be aggressive and testy after getting fixed. I finally took pity Gus Gus since he was at the receiving end of her wrath and I took Charlie into my bedroom for some quiet time where she turned into a purring, cuddle bug.

Almond Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins (Paleo)

   I have another paleo recipe to share with ya'll. I actually made these Tuesday night since we had a big bunch of bananas that were ripe and it would be the last time I wouldn't be able to eat the rest for about 1 week. Wednesday I has another dentist appointment to fill some cavities that were caused by the amount of medications I take and I ended up being there for 3 hour since my dentist is also the only "main" dentist in the office so she goes between patients. Last time I got work done, I couldn't eat solid food for about a week and now that I have a temporary crown I may go longer since I don't want to mess anything up.

Double Chocolate Cakies & Finishing Senior Year.

   I have been wanting to make this and this recipe for a while now, but it always got put off until today. The recipe is for double chocolate cakies by multiply delicious which is a blog that I have bookmarked several recipes since finding out about the paleo diet. This recipe is...gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, paleo, and it satisfies your chocolate craving (without the guilt). A cakie is like a cookie-sized cake without the icing.

   I had to make a little adjustment to the recipe, but they came out great. The recipe made 10 cakies, but the last one was bigger since it had enough batter for 1 1/4 cakies which I added a few more chocolate chips and some shredded coconut.

Peggy's Famous Coconut Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (GF)

 Somehow we ended up with 2 bunches of bananas, one of which was getting a heavy collection of black spots. I decided that I would bake something. I thought about baking these, or this, but I went with a recipe that I pinned a little while ago that is gluten free from Pinterest.

 When I read off the title of  this bread, my dad replied by saying he didn't think he would like it, but after having a few bites, he said it was good while he reached for another piece. My uncle and grandpa were over helping my dad cut up some dead trees and after they had came in and grabbed their pieces there was only  about 1/3 a loaf left which I wrapped up and hid so there would be some left for later.

Banana Pancakes

 Ya.
 So I only posted once last week and that was because I was busy and not feeling so great.

 I finally got down to 2.5 mg of Predinose, but my body didn't agree with that so now I am back up to 5mg for a while. I also had a doctor's visit since we thought I was getting strep since my throat and ears were painful, but the weird thing was that I could barely eat, talk, and laugh on the right side of my face, but the left felt perfectly fine.
Weird, I know.

 Anyway, my throat is better and I decided that I needed to catch up on posting. I have been thinking about banana pancakes for a while since we have not be eating the banana really fast so they end up getting get too ripe and because I already have like 4 or so banana-based bread/muffin recipes on here already. Around here, pancakes are kind of a rare breakfast unless you count my dad's "hobo pancakes" which is just biscuits split open and smothered in syrup. We only eat it maybe once a month or so; and I only eat my pancakes- the one's at Ihop and such always taste "off" to me and seem to soggy when you add syrup. Uck! My dad is usually happy with plain pancakes, while I like to add pecans or top it off with sliced strawberries that I mix with sugar so the juices come out.
 Also as soon as I thought about making banana pancakes, I though about Jack Johnson's song, Banana Pancakes.