Fruit Loops

Last week at my WeWa meeting we reviewed a list of in-season fruits and veg, and I've been hungry for pineapple ever since. SCORE! Today I picked one up at Apple Farm, my fruit and veg market, for $1.99. Big mistake. I should have bought at least 2, probably 3---considering that I had to stop and eat the very first piece I cut, before I could even continue. Sweet, juicy, perfectly ripe...in fact, perfect in every way. I quickly put the rest in the fridge for L and me to nibble on, hopefully for a few days, but I kept thinking how much someone with little fat 3-year-old fingers would love to have one of those rings for a snack. So, if you have some of those little fat fingers at your house (or even if you don't!) look for a fresh pineapple this week, and enjoy.

Since I used to avoid buying whole pineapples because I didn't know how to prepare them, I thought it might be good to throw a visual tutorial in here.

Thank you, Pampered Chef apple corer!

By the way, I have a big pineapple corer/slicer from The Pampered Chef, but I find it easier to just use my big Santoku Chef's Knife.

Make ahead, nutritious, low-fat...What more is there?

The night before:

Mix a cup of your favorite yogurt with a half-cup of old-fashioned oatmeal---uncooked. Cover and leave in fridge overnight.

In the morning:

Throw in a handful of your favorite fruit, and maybe even top with a Tablespoonful of crunchy granola.

If you're having or going to a brunch, mix up a bunch of it in your most beautiful trifle bowl. For a 4th of July brunch I put a few blueberries in the bottom of the bowl, used lowfat vanilla yogurt mixed with the oatmeal, sprinkled more blueberries in the middle and then added the rest of the yogurt-oatmeal mixture. I covered the top with strawberries in the very center and blueberries to cover the rest of the top. It was beautiful, red-white-and-blue, and everyone loved it. Too bad it was the day before I started my food blog, or I would have had a picture of it. So, you make it and send me a pic of yours, ok?

For my everyday recipe, I use nonfat plain Greek yogurt and sometimes add a tiny bit of vanilla extract. I'm lazy/late in the morning, so I often cut up half a banana and mix it in the night before. If Lucy hasn't eaten all the blueberries, I love just a sprinkle on top. Between the Greek yogurt and the oatmeal, it's 28g of protein before you ever walk out the door--keeps you nicely filled up until lunch. Sometimes I eat it at night for dessert or a snack. Reminds me of the yogurt parfaits we had in Santa Fe at the market cafe on the Plaza. Enjoy!