In A Rut

my eats have been un-exciting recently. do you find that you go through phases of creativity where you are always trying new things and then phases of the-same-old-same-old? sometimes all i want to do is cook. but other times (like now) after i am finished cooking for my clients during the day, i don't even want to set foot in the kitchen at night. i need to get out of my rut.

this morning, because it was chilly and rainy, i made some oatmeal. it was so good and really hit the spot.
oatmeal ingredients:
1/4 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup milk
1/2 really ripe banana, mashed
1 tsp almond paste

toppings:
barney butter
chocolate granola

have your tried MaraNatha dark chocolate almond spread?? this is good stuff. it reminds me of nutella (quite possibly my all time favorite spread - seriously, if i am ever stranded on a deserted island, i want several jars of this with me) but with almonds instead of hazelnuts. the warmth of the oatmeal melts the almond butter and dark chocolate almond butter. one word - yum!

for lunch, i was craving pizza for some crazy reason. i whipped up a quick one on a whole wheat tortilla. i slathered on some pizza sauce (look for a jar without added sugar), shredded mozzarella cheese, broccoli, and parmesan cheese.

while that baked, i munched on some cheesy kale chips and tossed together a strawberry spinach salad.

i could eat strawberry spinach salad everyday! you can make it a bunch of different ways but today it was topped with feta and drizzled with balsamic viniagrette. what better way to get a fruit serving and a veggie serving in one dish?

ok, i'm off to get myself out of this cooking rut. it's time to organize my recipes and pick out some i have been meaning to make but haven't gotten around to. prepare yourselves . . .