Breakfast

Chocolate Almond Butter Granola

Chocolate almond butter granola with oats, nuts, and cacao. Sweetened with maple syrup and chocolate chunks. Chunky, chocolate-y, and perfect for topping!

There’s a running joke in my house that if something doesn’t have chocolate in it, it won’t get eaten.

Which is partially true.

The banana bread loaves that come out of the oven clustered with chocolate chunks definitely goes faster than those that don’t sport dark chocolate spots.

Then there’s my favorite store bought Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola which is absolutely delicious and *highly* addictive.

You’ve been warned.

Naturally I grab for the big granola hunks with the chocolate chips, first, because those are the best.

Wouldn’t you?

Well, last week, M peered into the resealable ‘nola bag and asked deadpan if I had eaten all of the chocolate out of the granola mix *again*.

Er, guilty.

Since then, we’ve established that said granola is mine to do as I please.

Which means eating all of the chocolate first, because there’s no wrong way to eat a bag of granola.

Can I get a witness?

Naturally I wanted to try to recreate a highly addictive granola of my own, but make it oil-free with as much dark chocolate as I want.

This Chocolate Almond Butter Granola is so good, I might even save a bit for you.

Let’s bake some homemade granola!

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Sweet Potato Spice Granola

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This post is brought to you by Safeway, but all words and eats are my own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that keep me hungry!

Sweet potato spice granola made oil-free with creamy almond butter and lightly sweetened with maple syrup. Gluten-free with a grain-free option!

Last weekend I embarked on an epic bike ride to the store on the purple bike I’ve had since I was 16.

Without many pandemic plans, we decided it would be quite an adventure to bike to pick up our essentials instead of driving.

It sounded easy enough; bike there and back with purchased items in tow.

So naturally, I shrugged off the idea of bringing water or snacks or anything sensible like that.

And then what started out as what Google maps projected to be a 29 minutes bike ride turned into a 2+ hour workout there and back.

I didn’t really realize this, guys, but there are virtually no bike paths on the route I took.

Instead, we were forced to navigate through neighborhoods, sidewalks, and the dreaded main road, where aggressive drivers honked and sped around us like our two wheels had personally offended them.

“This is the most action my bike has seen in over a decade,” I huffed and puffed, pedaling in the rear.

We rode over hard over grass, gravel, asphalt, and cement.

And then there was that lovely muddy patch that back-splashed all over my bare calves.

Sexy.

When we finally made it to the store for item pick up, I ended up dashing inside for a bottle of water and a power bar.

I wish I’d had a bag of homemade granola with me.

Like this Sweet Potato Spice Granola that’s simple and sweet, made gluten-free with hearty oats and nuts and naturally sweetened with maple syrup and sweet potato!

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Fig Newton Breakfast Bars

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

6-ingredient breakfast bars with hearty oats, plant-based protein and fresh figs! Gluten-free, oil-free, and naturally sweetened with dates and maple syrup.

Ever since I moved into my townhome as a renter, things have been, well, falling apart.

The first offender was the dishwasher, that, to be honest, never really cleaned dishes very well from the beginning.

Then there was the great dryer debacle of 2020 where, for the span of three months, I hung all of my clothing to dry on a flimsy hang dry rack.

Crunchy towels and jeans are not fun, friends.

The doorbell stopped working after about a month so I’ve grown accustomed to listen intently for persistent knocks.

I’ve also cohabited with a mouse, a swarm of ants, and a lot of web-making spiders.

I joked to my parents on the phone a few weeks back that the only thing that hasn’t gone wrong yet was the AC.

I spoke too soon.

This past Saturday morning I woke up to a stuffy hot home with temperatures on a steady upward incline.

My Nest thermostat didn’t respond to all of my prodding and pushing on the dial so I diagnosed the AC– *gasp*– BROKEN.

Luckily, we’ve had several days in the low 80’s and mid-70’s here in Virginia, making it possible for me to have the windows down and the ceiling fans on.

So the past few days I’ve been limiting my oven use to stay cool.

Luckily, I made Fig Newton Breakfast Bars when the AC was still kicking.

These 6-ingredient breakfast bars are dense, chewy, and naturally sweet with fresh figs and dried fruit!

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Paleo Chocolate Chip Waffles

By Flora & Vino 4 Comments

Paleo chocolate chip waffles made with almond flour, cacao powder, canned coconut milk, and dark chocolate chunks. Serve with maple syrup for breakfast!

I’ve always been what I like to call “sleep in defective”.

In high school I would wait impatiently on the weekends for my boyfriend and friends to wake up.

I was itching to text them before noon, knowing full well I wouldn’t receive a response until lunchtime or past.

As an adult, the early morning trend continued and serves me well to keep me in my professional workweek routine.

The consistency of the workweek cascades into the weekend so I pretty much always wake up at the same time.

Even when I’m (occasionally) out until the wee hours of the morning, I wake up before my iPhone reads 8:00 AM in glowing white light.

So imagine my surprise when this week I woke up one day at 9 AM!

Yes, I know, I was shocked, too, and did a double and triple take on the time.

Lately I’ve been leaning into stolen hours of sleep, lazy mornings, and sweet languid breakfasts.

I have the perfect sweet breakfast for you to make on a lazy morning.

These Paleo Chocolate Chip Waffles are made with almond flour, cacao powder, and plenty of dark chocolate chunks for a fun breakfast.

Whether you sleep in until noon or catch the sunrise, these waffles are easy to make to sweeten your AM!

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Cranberry Almond Breakfast Cookies

By Flora & Vino 5 Comments

Breakfast cookies made with oatmeal, SunButter, dried cranberries, and slivered almonds. Bake them in advance and grab for an easy nutritious breakfast!

It’s been stupid hot here in Virginia for the past few weeks.

Every day the forecast threatens 100 degrees with a chance of thunderstorms that fail to break the blanket of heat.

My daily power walks have become more of a mosey as I try to keep cool but still see the great outdoors.

So, how are you doing?

I know it’s been a while since I posted so I wanted to check in.

I’ve been OK.

Content on the blog has taken a bit of a backseat as I focus on new projects and big picture goals.

(More to come on this soon!)

And then there’s the ever present backdrop of life in a post-quarantine but not post-pandemic world.

Honestly, I have no idea how to navigate this new normal and not much desire to try.

So, instead, I stay home and make Cranberry Almond Breakfast Cookies.

Won’t you join me?

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Trail Mix Overnight Oats

By Flora & Vino 1 Comment

Meal prep trail mix overnight oats naturally sweetened with maple syrup and topped with dried fruit, nuts, and nut butter. Perfect for make ahead breakfast!

How was your fourth of July?

Did you see any fireworks?

I spent Independence Day from the comfort of my own home with good food and good company.

The only fireworks I saw this year were the sparklers that lit up the asphalt on my neighborhood streets.

Every time we heard a bang I ran to the window, craning my neck left to right for any trace of glowing sky.

You’d be proud to know that I took the entire weekend off work to really relax and commemorate the red, white, and blue.

It’s honestly been hard to get back into the swing of things this week after a long holiday weekend.

This past Monday I woke up and had to take a few hours to center myself back into the work and kitchen mindset.

Can’t I just eat leftover watermelon and plant-based burgers all week?

Well, maybe…

But one of the things that always makes me feel more grounded and prepared is make ahead breakfast.

These Trail Mix Overnight Oats are so easy to mix up and top with my favorite trail mix blend of organic nuts and seeds!

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Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Easy overnight oats with old-fashioned rolled oats, fresh mango, blueberries, and a spoonful of SunButter. Perfect for summer workweek meal prep!

Last week I hung a rectangular printed canvas sign on my wall.

“Never Stop Exploring”, it reads.

All I did was press a push pin into the wall and steady the sign on it until it balanced, but it felt like a bold move.

My first intentional piece of artwork in my home.

Huzzah!

It’s funny how long I’ve gone with bare walls devoid of decorating.

To be honest, I’ve never been very confident in my indoor decorating choices.

Like, do I need a color scheme, a theme, a purpose, or do I just start throwing stuff on the walls?

I joked with a friend (who is amazing at decorating her home, I might add), that I need a design consultation. STAT.

Anyway, sometimes I catch glances of my sign while I’m eating breakfast in the morning.

Never stop exploring.

Are you ready to go exploring some new overnights oats?

These Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats are so easy to mix up in jars in advance with oats, fresh mango, and blueberries!

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PB&J Baked Breakfast Bars

By Flora & Vino 8 Comments

Six ingredient peanut butter & jelly breakfast bars that are naturally oil-free, gluten-free, and sweetened with dates and maple syrup.

Show of hands: Who still eats Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches?

You are my kind of people.

I’ve been on a major PB&J kick lately and I’m not even trying to hide it.

Peanut butter and berry combos have been popping up all over my Instagram feed more often than it popped up in my brownbag lunch as a kid.

In my adult life, I like to think I’ve gotten a little more creative about how I consume the classic combo.

These PB&J Baked Breakfast Bars require only 6 ingredients to make the most delicious breakfast or snack that’s bursting with peanut butter and berries!

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SunButter Date Squares (Gluten-Free!)

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

5-ingredient SunButter Date Squares with sunflower seed butter, medjool dates, oats, and almond flour naturally sweetened with maple syrup.

I’ve been seeing flashes of black out of the corner of my eyes for the past few days.

I chalked it up to the glare in my glasses or a trick of the peripheral vision.

Last night as I was about to click off the lamp and head upstairs to bed, I saw the same flash of black with an accompanying tail scurry across my living room floor rug and behind the AC unit door.

The good news is that I’m not hallucinating after long days behind the camera and I don’t need to get my eyes checked.

The bad news is that it appears I have a mouse in the house.

Or a rat, to be honest, I didn’t get a good enough look to carefully categorize by species.

Having never cohabitated with anything bigger than a spider, you can imagine my shock to suddenly share my living room with a pet I didn’t purchase on all fours.

He’s probably scouring the house for any bits remaining from my recipe shoot yesterday with SunButter and dates.

While I’m dealing with rodents, you guys should probably make these SunButter Date Squares (Gluten-Free!).

They’re made with just 5-ingredients in 30 minutes for an easy vegan and gluten-free breakfast, snack, or dessert!

Was this a smooth enough transition to go from the great mouse detective to breakfast bars?!

Let’s find out.

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Apple Pecan Pie Oats with Sautéed Apples

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Apple pecan pie oatmeal bowls served with a sautéed apple pecan compote. Naturally sweetened with raisins, banana, and a touch of maple syrup.

I’ve been a bit nostalgic this past week, friends, remembering simpler times and the family reunions every summer growing up.

On my family’s annual trip to Indiana to visit extended family, we always stopped at Cracker Barrel before returning to the endless highway.

So I have one question for you.

Have you tried Cracker Barrel fried apples?

No?

Well, it’s one of the best sides on the menu.

Every member of my family ordered a side of fried apples with our entrees regardless of whether we stopped for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

These Apple Pecan Pie Oats with Sautéed Apples remind me of a much healthier spin off of that addictive southern comfort side.

And we could *all* use a little comfort food right now, right?

And, like at Cracker Barrel, at my house, you can “order” these apples to go all day long.

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Chocolate Almond Butter Granola

Sweet Potato Spice Granola

Fig Newton Breakfast Bars

Paleo Chocolate Chip Waffles

Cranberry Almond Breakfast Cookies

Trail Mix Overnight Oats

Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats

PB&J Baked Breakfast Bars

SunButter Date Squares (Gluten-Free!)

Apple Pecan Pie Oats with Sautéed Apples

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