February 18, 2010 (Updated February 13, 2023)

Oats to Warm a Cold House

by Anne Mauney, MPH, RD

24 comments

Gooooooooooooooooooood morning!

Thanks for all your sweet comments about my UNC—Chapel Hill acceptance! I’m so excited and I really appreciate everyone’s support 🙂 I’ll keep you updated as I hear from other schools and make my decision… gah!!

Anyway, I thought I’d mix it up and do a breakfast post today, since I know you’re all just dying to see my breakfasts. 😉

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Kinda looks like vom, but it sure didn’t taste like it. Not that I regularly eat vom or anything. … Anyway…

Oatmeal. Yay! I’ve been trying to mix up my breakfasts more because breakfast is the one meal that I can get in a rut and eat the same. thing. every. single. day. Usually cereal (Kashi Heart to Heart mixed with Kashi Honey Sunshine, drowned in skim milk and topped with banana and berries) is the main culprit. I just love cereal… what can I say 🙂

So today I made a new favorite combination — Blueberry Banana Chia Cottage Cheese Oats! That’s a mouthful. Literally.

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Basically, it was a base of my Perfect [Microwaved] Banana Oatmeal, which I then topped with fresh blueberries, 1/3 C of 1% cottage cheese, and 1 Tbsp of chia seeds. Have you tried these yet? They are fun and a nutritional powerhouse. 🙂

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And then I mixed it all up 🙂

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Mmmm… I’d forgotten how much I like cottage cheese in oats. It goes SO well with the sweet banana and blueberries!

This was also nice and warm, which is good because my heat is broken. 🙁 It started getting really cold over the weekend when the girls were here visiting, and finally Monday I realized… duh… the heat is broken. They came and fixed it yesterday morning, but apparently the outside pump is covered in ice and needs to defrost, which takes forever?? Bust. Needless to say, after I got home from work and ate dinner, the rest of the night was spent hiding under my covers in sweatpants, a long sleeved shirt, a sweatshirt, and wool socks, while watching trashy MTV shows on my (warm) laptop 🙂 Sometimes you just need a night off!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m off to the gym (it’s treadmill time… stupid snow) and then I’ll be home studying for the rest of the afternoon — we have our first Anatomy & Physiology lab test today. Yikes!

Have a good one 🙂

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What’s your favorite breakfast? Do you get in a rut or do you try to mix it up?

Breakfast + Brunch
- anne

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24 comments
  • Abby
    Ahh! I hate having no heat!! When our heat went out during the huge snow storm the other week, I foudn the nearest dog-friendly hotel with power and braved the horrible roads. THere was NO WAY I was staying home!
    Oh man... I totally wish I could do that, ha! I'm hoping it will start to feel warmer today!??!? -Anne
    Reply
  • Jamie
    Oye! Sorry about the heat! I hate being cold because I never want to get out of bed or the shower or actually DO anything! Hope things get fixed today and I liked the breakfast post ;)
    Reply
  • Jacquie
    While I love mixing up breakfast, I'm also a creature of habit so I have to admit that I eat the same thing a lot! I hope your heat starts to get warmer. Please call me this weekend if you want to come over and escape the cold. I have plenty of room :)
    Reply
  • Morgan @ Life After Bagels
    ohhhhhhhh my house is always cold all winter. I usually drink tea all day long and have to wear sweaters and hats and scarves. My landlord sucks but that's a long story. My favourite breakfast is waffles with almond butter and jelly, but oatmeal is up on the list too.
    Reply
  • Kady @ Livin, Lovin, Learnin
    I've never tried cottage cheese in my oats - I definitely will now! I also need to try chia seeds, everyone's been raving about them. I am usually stuck in a breakfast rut. I feel like I just don't feel as well during the morning if I don't have oatmeal, peanut butter, and banana. It's a rut that I actually like to be stuck in!
    Haha yeah I always have to have banana in some form :) Even if I mix up the other ingredients (pancakes, cereal, oatmeal, whatever)... banana always has to be involved ;) -Anne
    Reply
  • Niki
    So sad about your heat! I hope it warms up quickly!! I definitely get stuck in Oatmeal ruts! I just can't get enough of banana oats! But my blog tends to help me get out of the rut because it's so boring to post the same bowl of oats every morning! Haha. I've never tried cottage cheese in my oats, love stirring in some Greek yogurt, so I guess I will be trying this out soon!! Try it!! I love Greek yogurt in oats, too, but cottage cheese this gives it a really fun texture and flavor since it's not tart like yogurt :)
    Reply
  • Lu
    Good luck on your test. I'll be adding cottage cheese to my oats very soon. They look really good. I hope your heat gets fixed soon. That is a total bummer.
    Reply
  • Jesse
    Hey stranger, Question for ya. I just ran out of flax seeds and I need a replacement... chia seeds? What do they taste like?? Better, worse, different than flax? Can I get some of your insight, I've been seeing them all over lately, but after the whole Tim Tams discussion, I definitely trust your taste buds... -Jesse
    Hey girl! Definitely try the chia seeds!! I honestly don't really notice them having much taste at all - it's more a texture thing. It's weird because they are tiny and kind of gel-like on the outside and then the inside is hard like a seed. So you'll notice the texture more than the taste... give them a try! p.s. Tim Tams for life!! ;) -Anne
    Reply
  • Ali (food, fitness, fashion)
    I sometimes get into an oatmeal rut in the winter since it is cold and I love oats so much!!! I need to try cottage cheese in my oats soon!
    Reply
  • PippaPatchwork
    Oh my gosh, I get into SUCH breakfast ruts and eat literally the same thing: oatmeal with cinnamon and raisins, greek yogurt, and a banana. In a way, I like the comfort of always having the same morning meal to look forward to, but I should probably start mixing it up--your blubeberry and cheese combo looks awesome. For a while I was having Cream of Wheat instead of oatmeal but I discovered that it's not a whole grain or all the good for you (though it does have a ton of iron) which is such a bummer. I miss it, but it's still a weekend treat :)
    Give it a try!! I love cinnamon/raisins/yogurt/banana too so I think you'll enjoy this combo :) In the winter I use frozen blueberries a lot and that works just as well! I actually never got into Cream of Wheat - I like the chew of oats or the crunch of cereal better :) -Anne
    Reply
  • Heather (Heather's Dish)
    i'm a huge fan of savory breakfasts, but i can't really ever control myself with them, so i stick with other faves like oats or smoothies. i really enjoy the breakfast cookie on CnC, and any of Kath's oat combos are good! I need to try the cottage cheese oats though...sounds kinda weird, but everyone seems to love them!
    Reply
  • Melissa
    My favorite is english muffin with peanut butter and banana!! It has texture and it's healthy! PS Congrats on your acceptance Anne - LOVE the blog! Melissa :)
    Reply
  • Melissa
    Hey Anne!! Congrats on the acceptance. I love breakfast but like you I can get in a rut so every day I switch it up. My favorite is english muffin with peanut butter and bananas! Yum - love the texture and it's healthy! My other favorite is tons of fruits with granola and yogurts (switching up the fruits and yogurt flavors helps!) Great Blog :)
    Reply
  • Jessica
    Fav. breakfast = veggie omelets! YUM. But mostly just in breakfast ruts of cereal, you know how I feel about oatmeal and adding cottage cheese would just be the icing on my texture nightmares :) lol
    Reply
  • Lisa (bakebikeblog)
    What a great looking breakfast :) I am usually so boring - and have the same thing each day. I really need to jazz it up a little :)
    Reply
  • Evan Thomas
    Rut? Mr. Oats and yogurt every morning? Never :-D Actually, this morning I changed it up; I had 2 yogurts instead!
    Lol! Nice work. ;) -Anne
    Reply
  • Leena
    i love warm oat in the morning! there's just something so comforting about them, especially in the cold winter! i've never had cottage cheese in mine though, but it's something i think i'll have to try! i do get stuck in an oatmeal rut sometimes... so my other go to breakfast is a yogurt mess! i love my greek yogurt!
    Reply
  • hemp jogger
    Do I ever get in a rut. My fave breakfast is oatmeal, and I've eaten it everyday for like 3 yrs! Oats with banana or oats with pumpkin, both covered in PB or AB. I need staying power and these do the trick, always!
    Reply
  • Lauren @ A Fit Foodie
    I do have to admit, I'm a cereal girl! There's just something about cereal that is so good! I tried oats but I hated them. Maybe I'm totally cooking or doing something bad wrong to mess them up! Errr.
    I just love the CRUNCH of cereal :) Plus I'm usually thirsty when I wake up so I like tons of milk in it! But there's definitely something comforting about a warm bowl of oats. Try my recipe, maybe you'll like it :) -Anne
    Reply
  • Jessica @ The Process of Healing
    I'm in a total breakfast rut...but I love it. The rut would be oat bran with blueberries, banana, lots of cinnamon, and almond butter. Just can't beat it :) I love chia seeds.. just bought some and I'm crazy about them!! Sorry about the heat!! Mine was broken the other day... SUCKS!!
    Reply
  • amanda
    Hmmm I never thought about cottage cheese and oats....might be a new thing for me to try out. Anyway my favorite breakfast right now is a vitatop. I normally have 2 mini breakfasts due to working out earlier. My second breakfast is normally a huge portabella mushroom cap with laughing cow cheese spread inside of it (minus the stem)
    Interesting idea with the mushroom cap! I never really crave savory breakfasts but I bet I would love that as a snack... must try :) -Anne
    Reply
  • Hillary [Nutrition Nut on the Run]
    My favorite [weekday] brex is OATMEAL by far! Yours do not look like vom at all. I don't know about the cottage cheese, but I def want to give chia a chance =]
    Reply
  • Theodora @ losingweightinthecity.com
    My favorite breakfast is more like an addiction -- spinach, egg and feta wraps from Starbucks with a banana on the side. And coffee, obvi.
    Oooo I LOVE those wraps they have!!! So good. :) -Anne
    Reply