It's Almost Pi Day!

I really am a math geek deep down. And I'm not gonna apologize for it. This year March 14th is extra special as it's 3-14-15!!! Seriously pie though. I made this pie...

German chocolate pecan pie. AND it's gluten free. AND no corn syrup. Whoop!
I slightly modified a recipe from Cooking For Isaiah by using Bob's Red Mill all purpose GF flour mix and I used butter instead of margarine or shortening. This was the easiest pie crust I've made in quite some time. All done in the food processor. I also skipped the refrigeration and rolling out step and just immediately pressed the dough into the pie pan. I'm a rebel that way. Then I followed the chilling and baking directions from there. I did notice that my pie took about 8 minutes longer to become fully baked and set in the center so watch your bake time.
Honestly though. Chocolate, pecans, coconut...heaven. This pie will be portioned up today. Some goes to a couple celiac friends and the rest into my freezer so I don't devour the entire thing.

Another little kitchen project was to create instant oatmeal packets. In my previous post I talked about making overnight oats which has changed my life! These have become a staple in my weekly meal prep now. Seriously...life changing! But some folks prefer to just add hot water and that means instant oatmeal packets. One of those people is a friend of mine from work. She has some really cute chickens and brings me their adorable blue eggs...

I love a good barter! So I've made her some instant oatmeal packets!

Pinterest to the rescue! I read a bunch of recipes and then created my own. Because, you know, that's how I roll! Here goes nothing. Feel free to create your own flavors.

Homemade Instant Oatmeal Packets

I did these as a kind of assembly line process so here's what goes into each bag:
1/2C instant oats
1T ground flax seed (or chia seeds or hemp seeds)
1tsp coconut sugar (you can use brown sugar or maple sugar or even stevia)
1/2 scoop vanilla flavored whey protein powder
2T powdered milk

Now from this point you can modify them for whatever flavor you like.
-powdered peanut butter
-cocoa powder
-cinnamon and raisins
-chopped nuts
-dried fruits

And, of course, once the hot water is added you can always add fresh fruit!

So that's it. Pretty simple, cost effective, and no weird ingredients or preservatives. Let me know what you come up with and how you like them!

That's it for today. Another 40+ degree day expected here in NE Ohio. I hate to look outside this time of year because everything is dirty and sloppy. Also, I've developed a cold in my eye...haven't had one of those since I was a kid. It looks super gross just FYI, so if you see me try not to stare!