Mason Jar Oatmeal - It's What's For Breakfast! 6 pts+

Ever been on Pinterest?  I think I'm addicted.  It's full of all sorts of diverse things, including recipes.  I keep seeing pictures of pack and go meals in all sizes and shapes of mason jars, and since I have a fair number of jars, I am intrigued.  I know that storing my food in glass is better for me than storing it in plastic, but I don't see much value in putting all my ziplock and rubbermaid containers into the local landfill, either.  So, I'm using the plastic stuff for non-food items and for things that don't get microwaved.  I'm  gradually thinning the plastic stash out.

If you're like me, you instinctively grab every last second of sleep that you can in the morning, so packing a big breakfast, snack and lunch every day is simply not going to happen unless it is prepared ahead of time, and all you have to do is to pop the containers into your lunch bag with a refreezable cold pack and GO!  I never have breakfast at home on work day mornings, not only because I don't really have enough time to eat leisurely, but also because if I wolf something down that early, I feel kind of sick until the afternoon.  I really need a few hours of being awake before eating breakfast, though coffee is a MUST, but by 10 am, I'm starving, so if I don't pack my breakfast, I hit that darn vending machine with disastrous results.  It's way too expensive in every possible way to do that often.

I've been on Weight Watchers for about six or seven months and have lost 33 lbs.  It used to be 35 lbs, but I've been on a plateau for about seven weeks, and the last few weeks, my weight has crept up a pound or two.  I am determined to plan ahead this week so that I won't hit the dastardly vending machine in the break room, so I put together a breakfast for every day this week - my favorite - OATMEAL!


MASON JAR BERRY OATMEAL - 6 points+

for each 2 cup mason jar:
1/2 cup regular, uncooked, plain oatmeal
1 cup plain unsweetened almond milk
1/8 tsp powdered stevia
1/2 cup berries

Put the dry oatmeal into the jar, sprinkle the sweetener over, add the fruit on top, pour milk over all.  Screw on the top and refrigerate till you are ready to eat.   It will last for a week in the fridge, easily. It's good cold, room temperature, or heated up in the microwave at work for a couple of minutes.   Easy Peasy.

I used up some frozen blueberries that I had, and filled the rest of the jars with a mix of fresh and frozen strawberries, but you can vary it up anyway that you want: add cinnamon or other spices, change up the fruit, the liquid, the sweetener.  The possibilities are ENDLESS!

Making five cheap and healthy breakfasts took me about five minutes.  No joke.

Happy breakfasting!