A Little Breakfast Something

Hello again!

It's been a busy weekend (aren't they always?!)-- working and hanging out with friends and cleaning up my apartment in the tiny bits of time I'm actually in it!

I'm trying to take some of the uncertainty out of my mornings by planning my outfits at the beginning of the week, packing my lunches the night before (and making foods that I can take as leftovers a few days in row), and having nutritious and delicious breakfast foods on hand. So far I'm not doing very well in those areas haha. I did make mini baked oatmeals last night so I'm set for some delicious breakfast this week :)

I get home from my internship somewhere between 9:30 and 10 pm and by that point I'm usually ready to settle in and waste time on the internet. Or, if I do have motivation, (like tonight) I get on Pinterest to look up something that I'm going to make/do then half an hour later realize that was a mistake.

I do still have some motivation though so I'm here to post a Mug Monday recipe then I'll be planning some lunchtime meals because, as my boss pointed out to me today, EasyMac is not very good for you. (I think he was a little disappointed that I had EasyMac for lunch after he saw me eating homemade baked oatmeal for breakfast!)

Speaking of breakfast, this was the very first mug recipe that I made. I found it on Pinterest and was intrigued. Then I tried it and was hooked! The original recipe is from the blog Chocolate Covered Katie, where I have also found some great recipes for oatmeal-- but that's a story for another post.

This coffee cake recipe is delicious! And super easy and fast, what could be better?! It takes about 5 minutes total but can also be prepared ahead of time and be nuked in the morning, or whenever you're ready for it! (I found this recipe while still living at home and after I tried it I mixed up 3 for my family one night. I left the mugs on the counter for them to pop in the microwave in the morning before school and work, that way I was treating them to breakfast and I didn't have to wake up at 6am)

Coffee Cake in a Mug

3 Tablespoons flour                                                               Topping:

1/4 teaspoon baking powder                                              1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

2 shakes salt                                                                                1 1/4 teaspoon brown sugar

1 Tablespoon sugar                                                                  2 pecan halves, chopped (optional)

1 Tablespoon + 2  teaspoons water                                  *I keep a ziploc bag with a

2 teaspoons oil                                                                           cinnamon/brown sugar mixture 

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract                                                 so I have it ready whenever

Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add wet ingredients. Scoop 1/2 the batter into a greased, regular sized mug. Sprinkle half of the topping onto the batter. Add the remaining batter and top with the rest of the cinnamon and sugar. Microwave for 1 minute or so and enjoy! With coffee or tea or milk :)

Part of a healthy, balanced breakfast ;)

Jumping On The Bandwagon, Mug in Hand

Welcome to Coffee Mug Mondays! (name pending...)

Here's the thing, I LOVE this new craze of mug recipes! If you don't know what I'm talking about it's like this: you take a regular old coffee mug, add a few ingredients, throw it in the microwave for a few minutes and voila! Some awesome creation that, up until now, we've always needed an oven/stovetop/a lot more time to make! The recipes are usually single-serving and I have yet to find one I don't like.

Basically, mug recipes are perfect for this single girl with limited access to an oven and a schedule that usually results in arriving home real hungry. It also means I might need to buy more mugs...

I've decided to share the love, the love for these super simple, single-serving mug recipes. And because I love alliteration (words starting with the same letter or sound) and because I already shared my recipe for a chocolate chip cookie in a mug last Monday, I've decided that every Monday I'll share a proven-delicious mug recipe.

Today's recipe is one that I came up with on my own. Pasta has become a staple for me, being relatively cheap, versatile, and easily making enough for leftovers. I stocked up on some basic cooking/baking ingredients before moving to New York (meaning that my parents bought me a bunch of food so that I wouldn't starve right away) and then set to work figuring out how to combine them into palette pleasers.

This recipe is seriously one of my new favorites--it's so flavorful and I always have the ingredients on hand. Sometimes I'll add mozzarella cheese or tomatoes (as I did tonight) depending on what's in my fridge. Tonight was the first time I really tried cooking pasta in the microwave and it worked great! So much faster than over my little hot plate, and it was a lot easier to make the right amount.

Umm, Yum! Pasta

1 serving of your favorite pasta (I used 2/3 cup of rotini)

Enough water to cover the pasta (I used about a cup but it boiled over a lot)

A dash of salt

1/2 TBSP butter

1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

1 1/2 teaspoon parmesan cheese

1 Tablespoon fresh chopped tomato (optional)

Place the pasta, water, and salt in a mug and microwave for 4-5 minutes or until pasta is cooked through. Drain the pasta and add the butter. Stir to melt the butter and keep the pasta from sticking together. Add the remaining ingredients and enjoy!

Every bite is so flavorful~ it will be gone before you know it!

Hope you enjoy this pasta as much as I do! And check back next Monday for another delicious mug recipe!