Mighty Make-Aheads: Low-Fat Granola

My due date is here and I'm still waiting, though I would not describe it as patiently--occasionally with resigned acceptance and occasionally with tantrum throwing frustration. Regardless, I am waiting.
I've managed thus far to pass the time with cleaning projects, reading books on child care and development, and stocking my freezer with easy meals to heat up in the early, chaotic days of new parenthood. As of a few days ago, however, I've read all my books, deep-cleaned the house twice over and my freezer is full. Dear Lord, my freezer is full...
So, in addition to watching endless hours of Netflix, napping the days away, and attending to the ever-accumulating dust-bunnies under the bed (it happens so fast!) I've been thinking about non-perishable Mighty Make-Aheads.
Here's a recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson's book Feast for tasty low-fat granola. I've altered a few ingredients to my taste and convenience, but the real innovation, using applesauce to replace a significant amount of fat, is hers.

Low-Fat Granola

5 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups chopped pecans (or nut of your choice)
2 cup shredded coconut
3/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 300F.
Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper (or foil if you haven't any parchment.)
In a very large bowl, stir together oats, nuts, coconut, wheat germ, brown sugar, spices, and salt.
In a small saucepan, heat applesauce, maple syrup, honey and oil over medium heat, stirring until warm and well combined.
Pour the applesauce mixture over the oat mixture in the large bowl and stir well to coat.
Spread the granola evenly over the two baking sheets and bake 45-55 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes and rotating the position of the pans in the oven, until well toasted. Granola will crisp as it cools.

Store in an air tight container up to one month.

Powerhouse pancakes

These tasty little cakes combine pregnancy 'superfoods' oatmeal and cottage cheese in an easy to prepare, home cooked, comfort breakfast.

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup cottage cheese
3 egg whites
1 whole egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients in a blender until smooth.
In a preheated, greased skillet or griddle (over medium heat: hot but not smoking, a few droplets of water should 'dance' on the surface for several seconds before evaporating if the temperature is correct) pour batter into 3 inch cakes, making sure not to over-crowd.
When edges look dry, flip and brown the opposite side. Repeat with remaining batter.
Serves 2.

These aren't your fluffy, buttermilk style pancakes (they also aren't full of refined flour and sugar.) They have a pleasingly dense, somewhat chewy texture...think Asian style scallion pancakes.

I ate mine with maple syrup and raspberry jam for breakfast.  You could just as easily omit the vanilla and stir in some salt and black pepper, minced onion or sesame seeds for a savory snack dipped in soy sauce or sriracha (depending on how well you're tolerating any of the above items these days.)

Powerhouse pancakes freeze well, so you can make a whole mess of these whole grain, protein and calcium rich beauties ahead of time. Wrap the individual portions tightly in plastic wrap and you've got yourself a super quick and nutritious meal or snack ready to reheat in seconds.

The breakfast blues

I recently, out of nowhere, discovered that I hate eggs. I didn't hate eggs last week. I might not hate eggs in a month. But right now the look, the smell...just the thought of eggs sends me into full-on nose-scrunching queasiness. This is unfortunate, as eggs are protein dense and nutrient rich in addition to being a pretty darn easy breakfast. If you're pregnant and you don't have an aversion, they're pretty much a miracle food.

But back to me...I hate eggs. So what can I eat for breakfast that's wholesome, hearty, easy to prepare, and won't offend my delicate stomach?
Oatmeal.
Not the creepy pre-chewed kind with all kinds of additives that comes in the brown paper packets...real, whole grain Oatmeal. Depending on what you're craving, and what you can stomach, there are tons of great add-ins to make your whole grain breakfast, already chock-a-block with fiber, protein, and iron even better.

The basic recipe is per serving:
1/2 cup oats
1 cup water or milk
pinch of salt

Bring the water or milk to a boil (stirring and watching carefully if you're using milk, so as not to boil over or scorch the bottom.)
Throw in a pinch of salt (this may not seem important, and may even seem strange to you, but trust me...it makes a difference, and it's better this way.)
Stir in the oats and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes or until it's as thick as you like it.
Garnish and serve hot.

I like mine with milk, a little brown sugar and blueberries--which are fantastically rich in antioxidants. When I need something crunchy, (I'm sure I'm not the only one with a texture fetish) I throw in a handful of chopped toasted walnuts--high in Omega 3s. You can't go wrong adding any kind of fresh or dried fruit--bananas, strawberries, chopped apple, raisins, dried cranberries... you could even go nuts (pun intended) and sprinkle on some slivered toasted almonds or pecans.

There's a reason why Wilford Brimley was always talking about oatmeal and Diabetes. Since oatmeal is full of soluble fiber, it slows the absorption of glucose in the stomach, thereby reducing one's risk for developing Type 2 Diabetes--and more importantly for us Preggos, Gestational Diabetes. By the by, this benefit is not apparent in the instant variety, so go on and take ten minutes to make yourself a powerhouse breakfast.

One of these days, I'll be able to embrace the egg again, but until I'm ready to chance a whiff of the scrambled stuff, I'll be breakfasting ala Brimley.