carrot cake + yogurt tastings
February 12, 2010 I thought I would stick with my orange theme but today try out carrot cake oats! First I put 1 whole carrot in my mini food processor. I’ve had the mini for a few years and use it for small quick things like this or grinding nuts. I think they’re only about $30.
Carrot Cake Oats
- 1 carrot, pureed
- 1/3c oats
- 1c vanilla almond milk
- 1 small banana
- 1t chia seeds
- 1/2t cinnamon
- 2 egg whites
- shakes of nutmeg, allspice, ginger
- honey drizzle
- walnuts
I loved the touch of honey on top, which I normally don’t add. The texture was a tad off from the carrot but not too bad. The flavor was better than my orange monster from yesterday. Not sure I’ll try it again. I felt like I kept having to add more of the spices, and the whole banana instead of half, to make it taste better…maybe it’s just not meant to be! Or maybe 1/2 carrot would be better.
Did you really think I was going to miss out on a scoop of pnut butter?
Thick.
The dogs were being awfully cute today….They love my exercise + yoga mats. I use the thicker mat for whittle my middle for a little more cushion over the hard wood floor :)
2 peas in a pod…minus the whole broken nail club foot bandage thing…She gets it off tomorrow!
hehehe
Hi Beans!!
I mean…I just feel bad for her…so sad
Notice the blur of her tail. This dog is always vibrating with excitement. Even saying her name will wake her out of a dead sleep and the tail will start thumping. Does she not look HUGE here?? She was weighed at the vet and is 67. She’s almost 14 months so definitely about done growing. We thought she would be bigger but glad she isn’t. She’s quite the beast as it is!
Daaa da da daaaaaaa
I decided to conduct my own Greek Yogurt taste testing. LOL Ohhhh the things I think of when at the grocery store. Complete nerd alert!
Since Oikos only comes in 0% fat, I had to get the nonfat versions of all the others to be consistent. I was pretty excited about this. Have you guys tried all of these? I got all of the brands that were offered in the “plain” variety.
Packaging: Honestly…I really don’t like the packaging of any of these. Fage is a little too simple and the Oikos + Greek Gods are a little to Greek oriented. I mean, it’s yogurt…I don’t feel like I’m in Greece when I’m eating it. I’m undecided about the Voskos. The red is intense and do I really need to see a cup of the yogurt on the package of the yogurt I’m about to eat? Does my opinion really matter? Sorrrrrry….I like design packaging…
Lids: Ugh….snooooooze…come on yogurt companies
The testing!!!! I took notes, hehe. Okay, look at the dollops of yogurt. You can tell a lot just by that!
Voskos: 8oz serving size : 140 cals : 0g fiber : 8g sugar : 24g protein
- extremely creamy
- slight tang/sour flavor
- tasted the most like sour cream
Stonyfield Oikos: 5.3oz serving size : 80 cals : 0g fiber : 6g sugar : 15g protein
- thick!!! and creamy
- no tang or aftertaste
Greek Gods: 6oz serving size : 60 cals : 7g sugar : 2g fiber [inulin + pectin added] : 6g protein
- thin
- somewhat bland [even for plain]
- tasted the most like regular plain yogurt, not like greek
Fage: 6oz serving size : 90 cals : 7g sugar : 0g fiber : 15g protein
- the thickest!! look at that dollop!
- honestly, it tasted TERRible..like it was spoiled..the date was good but I hope I just got a bad batch or something because it tasted like FEET to me…
The winnnnerrrrr!!!!
Hands down, the Stonyfield Oikos. If you’re going to go plain + nonfat, out of these 4, pick SF!!!
Other thoughts: Maybe the other yogurts are better in their higher fat varieties. It’s amazing the Oikos is fat free. If Oikos had a 2% milkfat I would probably buy that. All of the other brands have a higher fat version, strange that SF does not. Also, it would be interesting to compare the flavored Greek yogurts. I actually HATE the Oikos Vanilla. I think it tastes terrible for some reason but like the other flavors. I really like some of the Voskos flavors too. Greek Gods was the only brand that added anything other than milk and live active cultures. It added inulin + pectin for fiber and thickening. GG’s yogurt was also somewhat unevenly matched because it only had 6g of protein which was WAY less than all of the others. Strange!
Now, what to do with the winning container!? I really need some pumpkin back in my life!! Here we go with the orange again :)
Awesome salad:
- organic baby greens
- asian pear [first time eating…like a cross between an apple + pear!]
- almonds/pumpkin seeds
- cucumber
- bread cubes
Homemade quick dressing applied right to the salad:
- olive oil mist from my Misto can!!
- 4% acidity balsamic
- apple cider vinegar
- a little s+p
When I don’t have fruit in the salad I also put garlic powder, oregano, and basil on top. Chris loooves this quick + easy dressing too!
Oh yeah and topped with some Bob’s Red Mill Coconut granola + almonds. YUM! Further observation on the coconut granola, by the way. When eaten alone, I realized it really has no coconut flavor at all. I love the crunchiness of it and that it’s not big clusters but the coconut flavor is lacking. Canola oil is on the ingredient list and I wish they would sub that out for coconut oil to kick up the flavor a bit. I still like it for it’s crunch + subtle sweetness though. I think the only “coconut” part is from the flaked coconut which I can’t really taste.
Aaaaand then!!! A package!!
But from who? It was like the 12 days of Christmas in February!
My lovely parents of course :) They always send something even for the little holidays. I loved the writing inside the box. Nice touch, mom.
Also, valentines day was Chris’s and my first official date. My parents have always liked helping us celebrate that day, too cute ;) So it’s not just for vday but the day that really started our life together! Ummm…7yrs ago!? Oh myyy! I just asked Chris “have we been together SEVEN years!???? ewwwwwwww hahaah” He said “weeeeeeeeeeeeeird”
Trader Joe’s Gummy Tummy Penguins!!?? I’ve never had these before and honestly could not help but rip open the bag right there.
OMGomg I was FA-reaaaking out when opening this!!! First, because literally TWO days ago I was looking thru the crate+barrel catalog and the TWO things that caught my eye were the “Breakfast” Mug + Saucer sets and the adorable ramekins. No joke. Way to go M+D!! My parents know I shouldn’t really be buying any fun things like this right now…either that or they’re getting sick of seeing the same dishware on the blog, lol. Either way, completely awesome! The orange breakfast mug was for Chris but the ramekins and “sweetie pie” plate are all miiiine, muuahahahah. Okay, sorry..I was SO excited. Just like my mom wrote on the box “weeeeeeeeeeeeee” :)
When I talked to her after opening it she said she thought the breakfast mug would be the perfect vessel for my oats! hehe
The dk. Chocolate pom seeds ROCK if you have a TJ’s nearby. They don’t burst with juice but are more of a chocolate covered dried pomegranate. I had never tried the mint UFO’s until today. One of my all time fav combos is mint + chocolate. These are good but the mint is actually suuuuper intense. Don’t worry, I’ll still eat them..ALL
These were tasty and their bellies are filled with goo…hehehe “real food goo” I’m sure.
I almost forgot about my tea tasting!!! Today was Tea Spots Green Roasted Mint.
Oh my YUM. This was delicious!! I loved the mintiness + earthy combo. Again, no need for sweetener or cream. Yay!
Whit had me drooling with her PB banana samich this morning, so I made a half bananer to munch on with my tea.
I asked Chris what he wanted for dinner. “PIZZA!” I can deal with that answer. I tried out the whole grain dough WF has for $3.99. It is quite the deal as the pizza dough is a full 16” when rolled out fully. I used less than 1/2 for both of us for din tonight.
My veggie pizza: Sauce + red pepper + sundried tomatoes + cremini mushrooms + mozzarella
The way to Chris’s heart: sauce + jalapenos + bacon + mozz :) I told him to stay out of the kitchen while I was making this. I didn’t want him to see my nerdiness in action. I used a pizza cutter for the shape. It was about 6-7” but looks tiny here!
400* for 15min
Allll miiiiine
The other mini pizza was for Chris too. It was from the scraps that I cut the heart out of.
LOVEly. He was pretty excited when he saw it and thought the heart was quite dorky + cute.
broken.hearted.
More salad. The dressing is addicting I tell ya!
~6” pizza – The dough was awesome. It got really crispy and had crunchy seeds in it too…mmmm
Last chance to tell me if you’re coming to the CO Blogger Meetup at my house in Denver this Saturday. I’ll be emailing everyone with my address tomorrow afternoon, so make sure to let me know by tomorrow AM. I’m getting excited and still trying to figure out what I’m making!!
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On another note, remember I said I had some possible job news? Well it is very part time, but I’m pretty excited about it! I will be doing some freelance FOOD writing for a company called, The Natural Food List. They are there to help organic/natural food companies market their products and offer coupons to US! Check out the site for more info. There will be a lot going on with the site in the next few weeks including many articles from myself and a group of other writers! The topics will be fun + fresh and also informative. I can’t wait to get started! When I have more info I’ll let you know. Until then, sign up for the coupon list and become a fan on Facebook + Twitter! It’s always so hard to find ORGANIC food coupons online…hopefully this will help! Again, “weeeeeeeeeeeeeee” :)
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Bed? Yesssssssss
Ashley
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I posted the follow-up to my original Vibram 5 Fingers post last night. Make sure to check it out!!
Family + Friends, Gift Ideas, Recipes, oatmeal, pizza, salad, yogurt
Reader Comments (29)
Seriously in love with the greek yogurts... I think when I go to the states in March I'm going to have to buy the stonyfield kind and bring it back (They don't sell it in New Brunswick, believe me I've looked!). Also that pizza looks amazing, I may have to whip one up tonight :) Yay for gummy candies, they will rule the world :)
Ashley, what do you do to Dakota??? Clearly her life is hard! ;) hahahaha - they are so funny together. I want another dog just so I can see them spoon.
Awesome review with the greek yogurts! So...I guess I should try Oikos? (I never have...food blogger blasphemy, I know.)
And I love EVERY SINGLE THING in your package from your parents! So cute! Really, are chocolate covered pomegranate seeds good? Because it sounds really nasty. Then again, chocolate covered gummy bears also sound nasty. And they're amazing.
Happy Friday! Longest comment ever! :)
Hi there!
Could I borrow your mom for a few months? Would love to receive fabulous care packages like that one! :)
Many, many things, but first: Those heart pizzas are the cutest ever. And you have the coolest mom. That is the BEST package. I adore those mugs.
Lastly:
I HAVE to find me those gummy tummy things. And when I do I will probably eat the whole bag in one setting.
Oikos is my fave too! :)
I love Oikos but I think Fage is great, too! Maybe it was a bad batch?! The Greek Gods one is confusing since I thought Greek yogurt was all about the pumped up protein? Anyway, thanks for the comparison and pretty dishes!
I love the gift from your parents!! Now that makes me want to spruce up my kitchen plates and cups ;)
Oikos is definitely my favorite greek yogurt. I've tried Voskos and Fage, they were okay like you decided. Sometimes I get the plain greek yogurt from Trader Joe's when I'm not near a store to buy Oikos and it is pretty good.
i laughed at the heart pizza...mostly because i can see me doing the same thing and Nate just rolling his eyes hahaha
Word of advice. You probably don't want another dog!!! :) I used to buy the regular yogurts [wallaby is THEE Best for regular] and then started buying 1/2 regular 1/2 greek and now I'm all greek baby, lol. I really like the pom seeds but some may not!? It's kind of like a tiny chocolate covered raisin but a little more tart. Have you ever had a chocolate covered grape!? Sounds weird...but REALLY good!!!! LOVE your comments!!!
She would love to adopt another child...if you like in Ohio!! She hates that I'm out in Colorado :)
Wait...that sounded weird...she has never adopted before...lol
Again...WHY did I not know about you when I lived in NC!? Can't wait to see gummy tummies on your blog ;)
Do you eat the Fage 0%? I am not exaggerating it literally tasted like BLUE CHEESE!
Yes TJ's is good!! We just don't have TJ's in CO :(
Cool comparison on the yogurts! I DEFINITELY think you got a bad batch of Fage. I love their 0% - my #2 greek yogurt. My #1 is Chobani :) Have you tried that one? Their flavors are good, and their plain is excellent as well. Try to find some if you can.
Thanks for the review on the yogurt! I love Oikos.
This is the longest and best post ever!
I love the carrot cake oats idea. I'd definitely try the full banana next time!
Your pizzas are gorgeous!!
Mmm...I like the idea of a tart chocolate covered raisin. I'll have to look for the pom seeds; I'm sold.
I've never even HEARD of a chocolate covered grapes! Where did you find them? Did you make them? That actually does sound kind of good.
Oikos is my favorite, too!!! And seriously, your dogs are adorable!
Hope you liked the carrot cake oats!!! Thaaaaanks!!!!
I definitely need to get some of the Plain Chobani to try...I've heard good things!
Weird...I tasted it again today and it was still terrible...suuuuper sour and just not right! I have tried 1 or 2 of the flavored Chobani but haven't found the plain yet...will definitely keep my eye out!
This is my first time at your blog and I am DAZZLED by how GORGEOUS your pictures are! I need those carrot cake oats in my life!
And it is kind of my dream to have a greek yogurt testing... I wish I had, like, a SPONSOR.
Oh my gosh, those carrot cake oats look YUMMY!! And your photos are just breathtakingly beautiful - seriously!
And I LOVE your Valentine package!! Those dishes are sooooooooooo adorable! Yay for fantabulous parents!! :-D
Cute tea time, too - love tea!
*smiles*
Michele
Love the yogurt tasting!! So glad SF won :)
Also love those colorful bowls you got!
I would buy Oikos if it had a higher fat version. I really want some fat for satiety in my Greek yogurt. :(
I do like fat in my yogurt too!! I'm shocked SF doesn't have a 2% version. I might try the 2% fage...which are you eating? I seem to find that it's either no fat or full fat and the full fat has like double the cals..not that I'm too concerned, but just for a small snack it starts to add up!
Very imformative yogurt tasting! My favorite is 2% chobani, but I'll take oikos if it's available.
Congrats on the job! how exciting!
Can't wait to find the Chobani..I have heard good things! But I like that SF is organic!