Mixed Berry Smoothie

I am what some people might call a 'morning person'. I swear I never thought I would ever say that about myself, but after seeing people like the husband, who basically wage an internal war every morning just to get out of bed, I feel like I can safely call myself a 'morning person'. I mean, lets be honest, I wouldn't go as far as actually getting up and going for a run or anything. That would be a 'VERY morning person'. I can just get up and go about my cooking or whatever else without having a why-does-life-do-this-to-me look on my face and that sure does make me a 'morning person'.

Being up and about early gives me a major appetite and I just have to eat breakfast everyday. Now this can get quite annoying just because there isn't always enough time to make yourself a happy-healthy breakfast every single morning -  key word being 'healthy' which kind of rules out upma, dosa etc.

This morning I decided to make myself the healthiest, easiest, most refreshing breakfast and it just gave me a great start for my day. Best part - it was ready in a quick minute.

All you need is your choice of fruit. I used mixed frozen berries (blueberry, raspberry and blackberry). I got these in a huge baggie at the supermarket. You can of course use fresh berries but I just find this more economical. If you are buying frozen ones, make sure there is no added sugar or that it isn't soaked in sugar syrup. The ingredients on the bag should just say fruit. No preservatives even (hopefully).

What makes this really healthy for me is that is that I don't have to add any additional sugar to this smoothie. The sweetness from the fruit is usually good enough for me. You can also add 1/2 an apple or 1/2 a banana if you like, for some added sweetness.This also gives me a good dose of protein with the Greek yogurt so yay!

Mixed Berry Smoothie

Ingredients:
1 cup frozen mixed berries
1 cup 1% or skimmed milk
1 tbsp plain non-fat Greek yogurt
1 blackberry - chopped (optional)

This recipe serves 1

1. Heat the cup of frozen berries in the microwave for about 30s just to thaw it slightly
2. Combine the berries, milk and yogurt in a blender. Blend until smooth and and thick. Adjust the consistency as needed with a bit of water.
3. Top up with the chopped blackberry if you like.

Skillet Frittata / Spanish Omelette

Ever since I've started watching Parks and Recreation, the dormant Ron Swanson in me wants to eat breakfast food all day.

I recently decided to take up that fantasy and make myself the most delicious dinner-worthy omelette. This would be no 2-minute dish. Seasoning would not be a measly salt-and-pepper. There would be no cracking-the-egg-over-the-pan. Not on my watch

After a lot of research, I decided to make my own version of a Spanish Omelette, slightly modifying the traditional version to suit my palette (i.e no gross raw tomatoes please). Not to mention, this has got to be one of the healthiest meals I have ever made myself!!

First, fry up some onions and garlic on a skillet with some olive oil. 

Add your veggies and cook until it is well done. Arrange them in an evenly-spread layer.

Pour the seasoned and beaten eggs over the veggie mixture. 

Cover with a glass lid and let it sit on very low heat so that the top portion of the eggs are cooked. When it is almost done, top with shredded cheese and cook for a little longer until the cheese melts. 

Use a spatula to gently detach the eggs from the skillet and slide it onto a plate, again - very gently. this dish is quite delicate and tears easy.

Ingredients:

3 Medium Size Eggs

1 small Onion

3 pods of Garlic

1/2 red/yellow pepper

1 Jalapeno

Spinach leaves ~1/2 cup

1/4 cup  any shredded cheese

Splash of Milk

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp red pepper flakes

Pinch of turmeric -- optional

Salt and Ground Pepper to taste

Olive Oil as needed

On the side: any sliced fruit - Apples, Pears, Kiwis, Watermelon, Peaches.. all good!

1. Finely chop the onion, garlic pods jalapenos, red pepper, spinach into small pieces. Heat up some olive oil in a skillet and fry the onions and garlic, until the onions are transparent. Add a bit of salt to these to keep the onions moist. After about 3 minutes toss in the red peppers, jalapenos and the spinach to the skillet. Turn the heat low and stir occasionally while the veggies just cook for about 5 minutes. 
2. While these are cooking away, break open the 3 eggs in a large bowl. You can probably use just one yolk and discard the other 2 if you wish. Beat the eggs just a bit until the yolk mixes in. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, red pepper flakes, turmeric and beat a bit more. Adjust the salt as needed since we have already added some salt to the veggies. Pour in the splash of milk, half the cheese the and beat until everything is well mixed and looks a bit frothy.
3. Keep an eye on your veggies. When they look like they are cooked, pour the egg batter into the skillet and just roll the batter around the pan so that all the veggies are covered. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the omelette. Turn up the heat just enough to cook the eggs. Take a glass lid and cover the skillet so that the top of the omelette cooks as well.  The glass lid just helps you see how things are coming along.  Again, please keep an eye on the heat so that the bottom of the omelette doesn't burn. 
4. Use a spatula to gently lift the edges of the omelette to see how far its cooked. Once the top of the eggs look like they are cooked through, gently run a spatula around the edges and center of the omelette to just unhinge it from the pan, taking a LOT of care to not tear it in places. Again, very gently slide it onto a large plate. Tuck in and enjoy with  a fruit or some tea!