Princess Diana oats, cottage cheese pancakes, that big red thing, and more!
Ready for a big helping of miscellany? Let's go!
I tried the Princess Diana overnight oats
I thought they were pretty good, but a little more sour than I'd prefer (I didn't add any sweetener other than the OJ).
I think the Greek yogurt I had on hand was fairly sour, and it might be better with a milder yogurt, such as my homemade yogurt. So I think I will try it that way next time.
Annnnd you know I'll update you. 😉
(Ahahaha, also, I just realized I didn't add in the grated apple. Whoops! I should try it that way too because that would definitely up the sweetness factor.)
The blender oatmeal pancake verdict
I tried the cottage cheese oatmeal blender pancakes too!
They were super easy to make, and a pretty tasty way to get 30 grams of protein. WAYYYYY better than those Kodiak mix pancakes that I despised.
And no protein powder is involved! Glory be.
I did add a little bit of brown sugar to my batter because my regular whole wheat pancake recipe has brown sugar.
I used my Vitamix, of course. My jar has a narrow base so it works fine for even small batches like this.
And of course, I made mine with blueberries.
I like pouring my pancake batter into a measuring cup because then it's so easy to pour into the skillet.
The original recipe called for old-fashioned oats, but I used some quick oats that I'd bought on a scratch-and-dent shelf at Safeway.
I figured this change was no big deal because they're just getting blended up anyway, and it did seem to work fine.
Anyway, if you dislike the texture of cottage cheese but are trying to get some in your diet, give these pancakes a try.
Several readers also tried them (some even on the day I posted about the recipe!) and they gave a thumbs up to the recipe too.
I did do four workouts last week
In my Labor Day post, I told you I was gonna try the overnight oats, try the cottage cheese pancakes, and I also mentioned I hoped to get 3-4 workouts in. And I did...one at home, three at the gym.
Yay me!
I have masculine hands, I guess
I saw a social media post where someone was asking a dermatologist how to fix her non-feminine hands:
And this made me laugh because I am actually kind of delighted by my veiny hands. I think that once you've had a job where you have to do blood draws, you have a fresh appreciation for visible veins.
I see nothing to fix here.
Also: veins are common to all human beings. They are not gendered, and I see no reason for women to think they need to add some skincare to hide their hand veins.
It's ok to be veiny. 😉
The Zuppa Toscana recipe I use
There are a million versions of this out there on the internet, and a reader was wondering which one I use.
I use this one from The Chunky Chef and I follow it pretty closely except I use way more kale than she calls for. It cooks down nicely, so the "couple of handfuls" she calls for have never seemed like quite enough to me.
Also, I use my homemade broth, and I usually use Yukon gold potatoes instead of the russets she calls for.
This soup is great leftover, and works perfectly for a packed lunch for me.
What's that big red thing?
I included a picture of my broccoli in Friday's post, and I meant to add a link explaining what the big red thing was.
Several of you commented/emailed to ask about it, so...it's called a Frywall.
It sits inside your 12-inch frying pan to keep grease from spattering all over, and it works so much better than those flat metal mesh splatter guards. Plus, you can stir your food with the Frywall in place.
I wrote a whole post about the Frywall (plus another silicone unitasker I love): click here to read that and also watch the little YouTube video I made.
(Although please have mercy on my sketchy YouTube skills. I am better at typing than I am at making videos!)
I have the 12-inch one, which fits...12-inch skillets. (Duh.)
It won't work on smaller skillets, but there are smaller Frywalls available as well. I almost never use anything other than a 12-inch skillet, so this single Frywall has been fine for me.
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Annnnd that's the end of today's edition of miscellany. 🙂
Call me old fashioned but this whole protien powder/added protein to everything trend I just am not interested in. I guess I know I get enough actual regular protein normally so I don't quite get it, but to each it's own I guess.
I think your hands look femine & normal. If not then I fall into that same category because my hands have clearly shown veins on both of them. I do need to add a skincare routine though because my hands are dry looking. Maybe switching my kitchen soap dispenser to all natural liquid dish soap was not the best idea. OR maybe I should wash my hands in bathroom sink more instead of kitchen sink (which has been happening more often as of lately). I'm a soap & warm/hot water hand washer compared to hand sanitizer (which has it's place, especially in public spaces like medical places) & it's definitely that time of year (for me) for extra handwashing.
Looking forward to a warm up this week (back to normal 75*-80*) as (currently) this morning is 37* & I had to turn on furnace because last 2 days only 60 & no sun/cloudy to warm up house. Rescue dogs (& myself) were chilled at 64* inside (but in my defense I'm also try to get better from walking phenomena).
Have a good day. 😉
@Regina, My hands would get extremely dry, cracked, and itchy in the fall and winter and I would scratch them raw. A dermatologist recommended the following: Get yourself a tub of Aquaphor ointment and some cheap cotton gardening gloves. At night before bed apply a layer of the ointment and then the gloves and sleep with them on. During the day rub tiny dabs of the ointment into your hands when you can, especially after washing them. A little goes a long, long way. This process saved my hands and stopped the cracks and itchies.
They also make Aquaphor in stick form which is easy to apply on the go. I keep one in my purse and in my desks at the office and at home. You can use it on lips and elsewhere too. (No, I don't work for them, it's just a fabulous product!)
https://www.aquaphorus.com/products/aquaphor-repairing-ointment/aquaphor-healing-balm-stick-065oz
@AnnieH, my hands used to get extremely dry (year round) and crack and bleed even in summer months! Did I mention we live in humid Florida? I finally had enough and started eliminating harsh ingredients in soaps and it’s made a world of difference! The soap I found A La Maison keeps them from getting dry now. I haven’t had painful, bleeding hands for a couple years now! I find it on Amazon and in some tj maxx stores.
I like adding protein powder to smoothies and my porridge in the morning. I put skyr yoghurt in both, which has a lot of protein as well. I find it tricky to hit my protein goals!
As someone whose livelihood is hand-dependent, I think that so long as one's hands are functional, you've nothing to fret over. I confess to being a total princess about my hands--I wear gloves for dishes, yard work, and house projects, and keep my natural nails well-manicured--but that's because they live a hard life of DOING, and I want to show them my appreciation. So long as my hands still work, they can get as veiny as they want. 🙂
@N, To my mind, if you are worried about having masculine hands, you must be one of the most fortunate people on the planet because it means you don't have anything real to worry about, like living in the Ukraine or having a catastrophic illness or an ill newborn. I'm with you, as long as the hands work they can get a veiny as they want.
I have no desire to try the Overnight Oats- I cannot get behind the cold oatmeal trend-lol BUT I have pinned the cottage cheese pancakes to make for my college athlete who is forever trying to up her protein intake naturally, also she LOVES cottage cheese! So this sounds like a winner! Thanks for being the guinea pig tester!
@jes, I always preferred my oatmeal hot but I saw a recipe for a mango coconut overnight oats and I'm considering those because it sounds more like a healthy dessert!
@jes, I often warm up overnight oats. In fact, I just had overnight oats for my lunch and they were warm and creamy after a minute in the microwave!
this is really off topic but the times mini puzzle is no longer free and i wonder if you paid for it. my son noah and i love it so i gave myself a birthday present early.
@Anita Isaac, we were also sad that the mini is no longer free.
@Anita Isaac,
I was so upset by this and so were many others. There was a whole Reddit thread on this topic. I have tried several of the other free mini-crosswords out there, but none is as good as the NYT. However, I won't subscribe for just a single game.
@Bee, it is on sale for $18 a year and my son and i play connections and the crossword. i was very upset when we tried to play and couldn't.
@Bee, I so enjoyed the mini! I’m an ex-subscriber, I gave it up to save money and I was always surprised they left this part free. Disappointed to lose my morning challenge but not enough to subscribe..
@Anita Isaac, my sister gave me a free trial of the New York Times which includes all the puzzles plus the articles. I've been so busy I haven't tried the puzzles yet - thanks for the reminder. I don't know how long the trial subscription lasts.
@Bee, I was sad about the mini and letter boxed also. But I recently found a new free word puzzle that I really like. Try Wordshake. Not a crossword but fun.
@Anita Isaac, check with your library. Mine gives me free access to the NYT!
@Doris Palmer, thanks. i doubt that nypl will do that but i will check.
@Ava, i tired it. very good and free. my 14 yr old son noah and i now play it.
thanks for telling us about it.
@Doris Palmer, so my library does offer it. too late cause i paid for it but next year. so good to know. thank you.
Still trying to figure out how a dermatologist is going to help with "veiny hands". Veins aren't skin, they're part of the circulatory system, right? You could pamper your skin all you like but I doubt it's going to plump up enough to hide the veins the Good Lord gave you.
The only protein powder I use is a collagen supplement that's supposed to help with costochondritis. Sometimes I put it in my tea, sometimes in oatmeal. I wish, with all my heart, that I could eat cottage cheese! I love it so much.
A good friend recommended the book "When Crickets Cry" by Charles Martin, and when I first started it I thought it was going to be a sad book about a loner connecting with a lonely child, but it turned out to be a pretty interesting book about a heart transplant situation, with plenty of anatomical and medical discussion to keep me interested. We're studying blood and the heart this week in A&P so it was a good supplemental read. 😉
The moon was so bright this morning at 5:50 am, shining through the windows, that I think Clark thought it was morning and decided he was going to give me all the nose boops and kitten kisses to get me out of bed. His new feeding regime is working splendidly; we split his morning feed into First and Second Breakfast and so I made the executive decision to give him First Breakfast and he was delighted. We also split his dinner feed into Supper and Bedtime Snack, so he now has a little "security kibble" in his bowl at night and is less frantic in the morning. Also he doesn't hork his food down as much! We just had to treat him like a hobbit.
@Karen A.,
Charles Martin is from North Florida where I live. He is an amazing writer, and many of the places that he writes about are known to me. The subjects that he chooses to write about can be difficult. He has written in depth about human trafficking, but these books are not for the faint of heart.
@Bee, I agree about his writing; I am not prone to crying when I read, but that book hit me hard! I will probably re-read it, though.
@Karen A., When Crickets Cry was on the Airbnb bookshelf on our last vacation and I read almost all of it while we were there. I had to get the book from Libby to finish it! It was a really good read. One of the few where the anguish didn't feel contrived or overblown.
@Karen A., I'll have to try "When Crickets Cry" because I've really enjoyed a number of Charles Martin's books - including the ones about trafficking that Bee mentioned. If you like audiobooks, that series has a great narrator.
@Karen A., Thanks for the book recommendation. I've really enjoyed Charles Martin's books in the last year, but I haven't read this one yet.
Does this work for a cast iron skillet? It seems a bit pricey.
Thanks for explaining the Frywall - I feel like this would make a great Christmas list item! I can never think of something I'd like/need around the holidays - my brain becomes way too jam packed with everything else that needs to be done. Hope you have a wonderful day!
There's always something for women to be insecure about. And conveniently of course, a product to "fix" it 😉
@Andrea G / Midwest Andrea, It took me many years to get to the point where I don't care what other people think of me and I no longer dress to suit anyone's gaze but my own. After enduring physical disabilities due to injury over the past few years I am just grateful I have hands that still work.
I want to try the cottage cheese pancakes. They sound delicious. I often make a huge batch of waffles and freeze them. Then I can just pop them in the toaster for breakfast.
A few weeks ago, I made blueberry waffles using an almond flour waffle mix. I am gluten-free and usually use the Trader Joe's GF waffle mix. However, there was a cash-back offer for an almond flour mix on iBotta, so I thought I would give this mix a try.
I followed the directions exactly, mixed the batter, added the blueberries, poured the batter into the waffle iron. A few minutes later, there was batter oozing out of the waffle iron on to the countertop, down the cabinets, and onto the floor. It made such a big mess that I ended up throwing away my waffle iron. I could not get it clean. I used bleach to remove the blueberry stains.
I am not sure what happened, perhaps the juice of the blueberries mixed into the batter made it too watery. All in all, it was a magnificently messy frugal fail, but I did get $1.50 back from iBotta!
Happy Monday! May the week ahead be a good one.
@Bee, so sorry to hear about the waffle fiasco!
Re: veins: Hah. Folks who are worried about the veins in their hands ought to see my legs. I'm thinking of changing my name to Spiderwoman. 😛
@A. Marie, LOL! I once wore white stockings and someone commented, "I just love your patterned tights, where did you get them?"
@L, Spiderwomen of the World, unite!
The pancake recipe sounds interesting. I usually only eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday though. It might be a while before I try them.
Veiny hands are masculine? Since when? I have small wimpy hands but they are veiny so where would that put me? What a silly complaint she has. Does she plan on vein removal or something?
Miscellany: Yogurt… I put plain yogurt with some frozen bananas and strawberries in the blender and added a bit of vanilla and honey to make a delicious shake. It was a nice dessert and was easier than making banana “ice cream”.
I tried the Princess Diana overnight oats and also don't care for the orange juice. I love having pre-made overnight oats in the refrigerator so I don't have to put any thought into planning breakfast.
Feminine hands - REALLY? Sometimes I hate the internet.
I will try those cottage cheese/oatmeal pancakes, maybe as a sheet pan version. They sound good.
I think masculine hands means more than having veins. There was a Seinfeld episode about this when Jerry dated a woman he liked but was turned off by her masculine hands. In the episode, they obviously used a man’s hands to play the part —- the hands reached out to touch Jerry’s face. . I’d never seen a woman with what I would call masculine hands. My old boss and I were both fans of the show. At one point, we had a meeting with a woman we’d never met. When we left a meeting, both of us had noticed her very masculine hands commented and remembered the Seinfeld episode. So veiny hands aren’t necessarily masculine.
Since I had some cottage cheese to use, I tried the pancakes for breakfast. My verdict: I think they're fine as long as you don't expect pancakes, better to think of them as their own thing. For me that's good as I don't like pancakes. I also think they're better savory than sweet.
Here's another cottage cheese recipe. I don't know the source so I can't give credit where credit is due. This makes something like an eggy pancake but thinner. Sadly it doesn't roll well so it's not great for pinwheels.
3/4c cottage cheese
1 egg
Salt
Flavorings to taste
Blend all.
Pour into well-greased flat pan* **
Bake at 400f till done, about 12-15 min for large pan, 15-18 for small
* a 9" square pan will yield a thick sheet, the batter doesn't fill a 9x13" pan but you can spread it thinner
** really really well-greased, even if you use parchment paper or silicone sheet.
@WilliamB, this must taste like my cottage cheese scrambled eggs. I just sub cottage cheese for milk. They are super fluffy and oh so good.
Kristen, or any other Zuppa Toscana aficionados, could you substitute anything than kale? Would spinach work or would any other green for that matter?
@Jennifer, wondered the same so I googled “zuppa toscana chard” and was rewarded with a few recipes, but I have not yet tried them…
@Jennifer, I substitute spinach for kale all the time in cooked recipes. I have it in the house much more frequently and often need to use it up.
Veiny hands:Also comes from playing the piano,I see veiny hands as musical and feminine, although you are right: there is no gender to veins for heaven’s sakes !!!!!! .(I play the piano too!!)
SOUP: LOVE that Tuscan soup,I make it the same way as you do..my husband loves it soo much. I always have the ingredients on hand,too.
MONDAY MONDAY: even though I am retired I love that “monday feeling’ a brand new day a brand new week, a fresh start.. I have always been a morning person!
I do not like the texture of cottage cheese, but I did buy some to try in an egg bites recipe to increase the protein content. My BFF assures me that I won't be able to detect it in the final product. I'll have to try the cottage cheese pancakes.
I do not own a blender but I do have a food processor. Do you think I could use that for the pancakes?
@Jan, It’s unlikely to work well. The cottage cheese needs to be pureed and gets quite liquidy, two things that food processors aren’t good at. If you have a hand mixer or an immersion blender, you could try that, using one beater only in a container that’s tall and thin and ideally just a little bigger than the beater. Or you could try forcing the cottage cheese thru a mesh strainer. If you’re very determined, strain it, put the dry curds in a mortar and grind it with a pestle.
@WilliamB, thank you.
My son is now addicted to these pancakes! He was poo-pooing them because of the cottage cheese and oatmeal and then he had a few and loved them. So, I'll soon be making my THIRD batch!
Never even thought about veiny hands but I've got them as well, and a good thing it is too because I have lousy veins (shallow I guess) in the crook of my arm where they like to draw blood or put a IV in. I upfront warn all medical professionals "hey I have lousy veins and the best place to use is the back of my hands"
Regardimg the internet and its attempts to make us all feel bad about our anatomy perhaps I’m the only one who immediately heard the Carly Simon song, and I changed the words: “hands have VEINs, don’t think this stinkin’ meme is about you”
Um, that red flower is awesome! The blossoms look like brains.
Oops, that was yesterday's post!
As an old lady with thin skin, you can see the veins in my hands. But they are flat. Very hard to draw blood from flat veins. I have to skip two meds and drink lots of water if I want them to actually succeed in drawing blood.
I tried the Frywall and a couple of things I’ll say: 1) it’s a little bit of a pain to clean because it’s so big. Sometimes I snaked it around in the dishwasher and other times I hand washed it but after a while it got that weird oil + silicone + heat texture. which leads to point 2) for a more powerful gas stove (we have a Wolf), it eventually melted which doesn’t feel so good when it’s so close to what we eat. I wanted to like it and it had its merits but not the slam dunk I was hoping for.
All this lovely talk of delicious cottage cheese! Sadly, I am lactose-intolerant and cottage cheese strongly disagrees with me, although I just love it.
Today I made a pot roast for my husband and berry baked oatmeal and lentil-tomato soup for myself. Shopped at Aldi and stuck to my list except for buying some extra butter and a carton of sparkling apple cider, a yummy seasonal item. My husband glued together the handle/leg piece on our electric griddle after I accidentally dropped it yesterday. I used a popsicle stick and some package tape to cushion the back of the door handle on our dishwasher, which has a sharp edge that bites into our fingers. Much better!
I was inspired by your Zuppa Toscana and made a pot using puréed cauliflower instead of potatoes. I added navy beans as well. It was very good and we all enjoyed it. It did require some cornstarch to kind of marry everything together. I also did not use any cream because my big kid can’t have dairy, so if you were to add cream, then you might not need the cornstarch.
I don’t have the best veins anywhere, but as I’ve aged, they have gotten more pronounced on my hands. While in pre-op preparing for a left shoulder replacement, the person in charge of putting an IV in started perusing my veins. She started tapping on my left hand and examining my left arm, which is my best go-to spot! However, I reminded her that it was the surgery arm and probably not the best option! She immediately moved to my right hand. I strongly suggested she leave my right hand alone or I wasn’t going to be able to take care of very personal tasks while still in the hospital. She sighed a big sigh and eventually found a spot on my right arm that would work. Nothing like a bit of self-advocacy! (I know you would never do this, Kristen!!!)
I'm watching my carbs, so I use radishes instead of potatoes in my zuppa toscana recipe. Radishes are lower carb and calories, some higher nutrients, and lower glycemic index. I cut them up into uniform pieces, toss them in a little olive oil and then bake them until they have some brownish bits (425˚F for about 20-25 minutes roughly). This makes them have a nutty/savory, super delicious flavor and I seriously couldn't tell the difference in the soup. If anything I felt like they made the soup better than with potatoes. I use the baking method for a roasted radish/asparagus salad too and splash some balsamic vinegar for a great side dish.
I too have a Frywall that my mother in law gave me for Christmas a couple years ago. I love it so much that I gave it as a gift for a favorite things exchange. Happy to see it out in the world somewhere!
L.O.L.
My daughter was an EMT,she will tell strangers they've got great veins.
Haha yes exactly!!!
Kristen, I read your original post on the Frywall and while I am not a big fan of lots of “gadgets” in the kitchen, this seemed to be very useful.
So I actually purchased both sizes and use them SO much and absolutely LOVE them!
Super easy to use and just toss in the dishwasher to clean.
Thank you for sharing that recommendation!
By that yardstick, my husband must have feminine hands. His veins are not close to the surface anywhere on his body. He always has difficulty with blood draws. Even worse, he was recently hospitalized with pneumonia. The hospital wouldn't let me stay the night, so I went home. When I came back the next morning, he had three IV starts! One in the hand, one near his elbow, and one mid-arm on the other side. At some point a new medicine was administered via the forearm start. As I watched it, the needle slipped out of the vein, and the fluids weren't getting where they were supposed to go. (Sorry, I'm a layperson, IDK all the medical terms). It made me very grateful for all my veins that are easy to spot and easy to stick. He's better now, thank goodness.
P.S. I noted the red "wall" and recognized it, because I remembered the original post. Yay for a few working brain cells!