No-bake Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats Recipes!

It's Christmas soon! I bet you have your dinner planned, but what about breakfast? Most of us tend to indulge over the holidays so why not start out your morning with something healthy, that's also quick and easy to make.

I'm sure you've heard of overnight oats but have you ever made them? I've got two healthy no-bake oatmeal recipes for you to try, both raw vegan and vegan – all made from fresh, whole foods. Plus I have a bonus holiday smoothie recipe for you too!

Overnight oats are simply raw oats soaked overnight that soften as they absorb the liquid you put them in. You can make them in one of my favorite things…mason jars! What’s great is that there is no cooking involved and you can prepare it before you go to bed so it’s ready first thing in the morning.

Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats (vegan, gluten free)

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 tbsp chia seeds
1/3 cup dry steel cut or rolled oats (certified GF oats if you’re a gluten-free)
3/4 cup almond milk
2 tbsp date syrup or pure maple syrup

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp vanilla powder

2 tbsp dried mulberries

½ apple (chopped)

Mix all ingredients, except mulberries and apples, in a sealed container like a mason jar. Allow it to sit for at least 20 minutes at room temperature, then refrigerate overnight until ready to eat at breakfast, or for 2 hours minimum. Add mulberries and chopped apple in the morning, and more almond milk and date syrup if desired.  Breakfast is served!

*Date Syrup is made using medjool dates and water. Dates are my favorite sugar substitute as they are a whole food fruit and not processed in any way.

How to make date syrup: Soak 1 cup of pitted medjool dates in 2 cups of warm water.  Soak for 20-30 minutes and blend both dates and the soak water in a blender on high until smooth. Refrigerate after use. 

For the raw vegan version of this keep reading...

I am obsessed with this next breakfast cereal recipe. I make it all the time in the winter months with the seasonal fruits. It’s my fruit-filled version of overnight oatmeal, gluten-free, grain-free and made entirely from fruit! The only difference is you don’t have to let it sit overnight. You can eat it right away!

Apple Cinnamon Fruit Oatmeal

Serves 1

Ingredients:

4-5 bananas, ripe and spotted

1 apple (chopped)

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla powder

2 chopped dates (pitted)

2 Tbsp dried mulberries

Blend your ripe and spotted bananas in a blender with the cinnamon and vanilla on low until pudding-like. Add 1 chopped apple, 2 chopped dates and dried mulberries to the blender and pulse blend a couple of times to mix together. Pour mixture into a bowl and let sit for 5 minutes as the mullberries absorb some of the moisture and soften. Top with more dried mulberries and date syrup. Serve and enjoy!

The last recipe I want to share is one of my favorite holiday smoothie recipes! But first I want to share about my new recipe ebook - Holiday Drinks!  

These recipes are sure to get you in the holiday spirit. Whether your in the mood for a juice cocktail, a holiday smoothie or a hot drink to sip on with friends, you'll find something that satisfies your holiday craving. Not only will you enjoy all 20 of these recipes, you will be helping animals in need of a home this Christmas. The Moose Jaw Humane Society has been working really hard to find all their animals at the shelter a home this year. They are always in need of donations, so from now until Jan 1st, this book is available by donation with all the proceeds going to the shelter. Together we can give back! Find out how to donate below...

Here's a free recipe from the ebook to entice you:

Gingerbread Smoothie 

Ingredients: 

4 bananas, ripe and spotted

1 frozen banana

2 tbsp carob, raw cacao or organic cocoa powder

1/2 thumb of ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup of water

Blend all ingredients together in a high speed blender until smooth. Enjoy!
*you can substitute ginger powder for fresh ginger if you don't have a high speed blender. 

For more recipes like this, check out my 

Holiday Drinks eBook!

Happiest Healthiest Holidays to you and your loved ones! 

xoxo

Naturally Ashley 

Drink Tea for Your Chakras!

I recently discovered the most amazing collection of teas via Instagram – Buddha Tea Chakra Teas. They have a tea for each chakra! I have been enjoying a box of Crown Chakra Tea and am now excited to try them all. I love that you can enjoy the delicious flavors and aromas and align with your chakras at the same time. All of the teas are made from 100% organic herbs with no artificial ingredients. Plus they are herbal (no caffeine), gluten free and use unbleached tea bags.

These teas would go perfect with your morning meditation and yoga practice, or if you want to wind down and relax in the evening. They would also be a great addition to our upcoming Rainbow Island Cleanse – a raw fruity detox program cleansing mind, body and chakras in the new year. If you want to find more clarity, balance and peace in your daily lives, you would benefit greatly from this cleanse. Though meditation, affirmations, yoga, balanced living and colorful, vibrant fruits we can keep our mind, body and chakras healthy. These teas would be a great addition to the cleanse as they are made from herbs specifically selected for their ability to open and strengthen their respective chakras.

The Crown Chakra tea that I have been sipping on has only three simple ingredients, four if you include the infusion of amethyst. It includes lavender, rose petals and nutmeg – a divine combination. I find it very relaxing and calming – great for meditation. 

My favorite part is that each tea has been infused with the essence of crystals. Each tea has a specific crystal for their chakra energies. The Crown Chakra Tea has been infused with amethyst, a beautiful purple crystal, to enhance the already calming and balancing nature of the tea. I also really enjoy the inspiring quotes on the tea bags. I love love love everything about this tea! 

If you are interested in trying the Chakra Teas you can find them at http://www.buddhateas.com.

If you are interested in the Rainbow Island Cleanse you can find more info at: http://www.naturallyashley.com/#!cleanse/c1537

Check out my upcoming Raw Food n Yoga Adventure Retreat in Costa Rica with Chris Kendall! http://www.naturallyashley.com/#!costa-rica-retreat-/c1xe8

Happiest Healthiest Holidays to you and your loved ones! xoxo

Lots of Love and Fresh Squeezed Hugs

xo

Ashley Clark

Holistic Health Coach

Naturally Ashley Nutrition

Ashley Clark is a Holistic Health Coach, Artist, Photographer and the owner/operator of Naturally Ashley Nutrition. This prairie girl from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan loves to nourish her body with positive thoughts and ripe seasonal fruits. She is happiest being creative and loves to share healthy recipes, taking lots of photos of her colorful, fruity creations. Ashley wants to share everything she knows about holistic living to inspire and support others on their journey to create happy, healthy lifestyles, naturally.

Ashley received holistic health coach training from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She began her health journey after being diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2007, trying many different diets to find out what works best for her. Ashley has been following a low-fat, raw vegan diet since May 2012, inspired by Dr. Doug Graham’s book The 80-10-10 Diet. She has overcome several health issues including Candida, gall bladder inflammation, chronic UTI’s, chronic hives, allergies and sinus problems, and now has more energy, a clearer mind and feels more vibrant than ever!

Connect with Ashley:

www.naturallyashley.com

Email: naturallyashleynutrition@gmail.com

Follow Naturally Ashley for lots of recipes, tips and inspiration!

Instagram - @missnaturallyashley

Twitter - @MissNaturalAsh

YouTube - NaturallyAshleyNASH

Facebook- Naturally Ashley Nutrition

Healthy Buddy the Elf Spaghetti

Buddy the Elf Spaghetti. A Holiday Recipe

If you love sugary sweets and the classic holiday movie Elf – this post is for you!! I just love Christmas movies and Elf is one of my all time favorites. The star of the show, Buddy the Elf makes me smile and laugh with his endearing shenanigans. I watch it every year, at least twice, and afterwards I’m always wondering what his famous breakfast spaghetti noodles would taste like… 

Buddy loves his sweets. In the movie he makes breakfast which consists of a heaping plate of spaghetti topped with smarties, sprinkles, marshmallows, chocolate fudge pop tarts, chocolate syrup and maple syrup. 

According to Buddy, elves have four main food groups, candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup. Elves love sugar and so do I, but I like healthier sources of sugar like fruit! 

I was inspired to replicate this holiday breakfast for all the Elf-lovers out there, in a nutritious and fruity way, replacing the noodles with spiraled zucchini. And for the toppings I used pomegranate seeds for candy, mulberries for marshmallows, my healthy brownie bites for chocolate pop tarts and I made a sweet caramel date syrup. The mint ‘sprinkles’ on top are the final touch. They add a Christmassy taste to the dish. Nothing will get you in the holiday spirit like this super sweet noodley treat! You can make it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner or eat while you watch the movie itself.

Caution: The sweetness in this recipe may cause smiles.

I just like to smile, smiling’s my favorite!

*This recipe is nut-free, raw, vegan, low-fat, gluten-free and dairy-free.

Buddy the Elf Spaghetti Recipe:

Serves 2-4

To make the zucchini noodles you will need:

·      3 medium zucchinis (straight ones work best!)

·      a spiralizer or a julienne peeler (amazon.ca)

·      a vegetable peeler

Directions for a spiralizer:

1.    Peel the zucchini using a vegetable peeler.  I like my zucchini room temp so I soak them in some hot water first.

2.    Cut off the top end of the zucchini.

3.    Insert the smallest blade that makes noodles.

4.    Place the center of the zucchini on the blade first, lining up the middle with the hole

5.    Slide the crank and spikey prongs towards the other end of the zucchini and stick into the center

6.    Crank your spiralizer with the handle and enjoy watching the noodles appear before your eyes! 

*If you do not have a spiralizer you can use a simple julienne peeler, an inexpensive tool similar to a vegetable peeler that makes straight noodles.

Directions:

1.    Peel 2 zucchini with the vegetable peeler.

2.    Use the julienne peeler to make strips from top to bottom.

3.    Peel all sides until you hit the seeds in the middle.

*You could also try this recipe with brown rice spaghetti, but the zucchini helps cut the sweetness of the rest of the ingredients and tastes better in my opinion!

Sweet n Fruity Toppings:

The seeds from 1 pomegranate

1 batch of my brownie bites (made into mini-bites)

¼ cup of mulberries

2 tbsp fresh chopped mint

Caramel Date Syrup

Brownie Bites

The brownie bites are in my recipe book Healthy Childhood Favorites, but I’m feeling generous this holiday season so I’m going to share this easy and yummy recipe with everyone! 

Ingredients:

•       ½ cup dried mulberries

•       10 medjool dates, pitted

•       3 tbsp carob powder (or raw cacao/organic cocoa)

•       ½ teaspoon vanilla powder

Directions:

1.    In a food processor, process the mulberries until it’s a coarse flour. Add the carob powder, and vanilla and process until combined.

2.    Add the dates a few at a time and pulse until a ball forms.

3.    Roll into small, bite sized balls with your hands and refrigerate 1 hour before serving!

4.    Save any extras for snacks later. They taste great frozen and store best in the fridge.

To make the caramel syrup:

1.    Soak 1 cup of pitted dates in water- about 10 medjools, (Try to find barhi dates if you can, they taste just like caramels)

2.    Soak for 1 hour and discard the water.

3.    Make sure there are no pits and place in the blender.

4.    Boil 3 ½ cups of water and pour 3 cups into the blender with the dates.

5.    Blend with 1 tsp of vanilla powder until syrupy smooth.

6.    Add the other ½ cup water if too thick

7.    Pour hot syrup on top of noodles when ready to eat. I usually save this for the last step because I like it hot!

    

    Assemble your noodles:

·      Divide the noodles into 2-4 plates. 
·      Add as many brownie bites as you like

·      Divide the pomegranate and mulberries amongst the plates

·      Pour date-syrup generously on top Garnish with fresh mint sprinkles!

Enjoy your Buddy the Elf Noodles with a fork and spoon like traditional spaghetti or eat it with your hands like Buddy does! It’s ok, I said so!

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did. Happy Healthy Holidays to you and your loved ones! xoxo

Lots of Love and Fresh Squeezed Hugs

xo

Ashley Clark

Holistic Health Coach

Naturally Ashley Nutrition

Ashley Clark is a Holistic Health Coach, Artist, Photographer and the owner/operator of Naturally Ashley Nutrition. This prairie girl from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan loves to nourish her body with positive thoughts and ripe seasonal fruits. She is happiest being creative and loves to share healthy recipes, taking lots of photos of her colorful, fruity creations. Ashley wants to share everything she knows about holistic living to inspire and support others on their journey to create happy, healthy lifestyles, naturally.

Ashley received holistic health coach training from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She began her health journey after being diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2007, trying many different diets to find out what works best for her. Ashley has been following a low-fat, raw vegan diet since May 2012, inspired by Dr. Doug Graham’s book The 80-10-10 Diet. She has overcome several health issues including Candida, gall bladder inflammation, chronic UTI’s, chronic hives, allergies and sinus problems, and now has more energy, a clearer mind and feels more vibrant than ever!

Connect with Ashley:

www.naturallyashley.com

Email: naturallyashleynutrition@gmail.com

Follow Naturally Ashley for lots of recipes, tips and inspiration!

Instagram - @missnaturallyashley

Twitter - @MissNaturalAsh

YouTube - NaturallyAshleyNASH

Facebook- Naturally Ashley Nutrition

My Sweetie Loves them too!