Hello friends! It’s been a while since I’ve posted, but almost a month off of blogging has given me a bit of perspective about what I want to be writing about on here. While I love posting outfit photos, I really want to dive into the other parts of my life – from post grad budgeting to cooking to real New York life!

First up I wanted to highlight a couple healthy changes I’ve been trying to make this month. I’ve been trying to get back into a healthier routine and these swaps have mad have been easy ways to get back on track.

1. Drinking my coffee black

I live for my iced coffees on the way to work, but when you add milk and sugar to your coffee the calories add up quickly. If you’re like me, and actually love the taste of good coffee, try getting rid of all the extras and just drinking your coffee black. You won’t believe how just this simple switch can start your morning off in a healthier way.

2. Replacing sweet breakfast cravings with healthier options

I have the worst sweet tooth – the WORST. While I usually eat pretty healthy during the week, on the weekend it can become a full on sweets fest of brunches with pancakes, sugary drinks, etc. I’ve been trying to get away from the brunching every weekend mentality and instead make breakfast at home. Usually I’ll go with an omelette, but some mornings you just really need something a bit sweet. Instead of going all out with french toast or pancakes, an easy switch is baked oatmeal. This weekend I made this Blueberry Banana Baked Oatmeal with a few of my own ingredient switches (see below for the full recipe!). It satisfied all those sweet tooth cravings without going overboard and actually fills you up!

3. Switching out rice and bread for sweet potatoes

Along with my sweet tooth, I could also eat pasta and bread forever. I already love switching out zucchini noodles for pasta, but lately I’ve been really into using sweet potatoes as my meal base instead of rice or bread. My favorite meals have been sweet potato pizzas and kale salad with sweet potato fries.This switch is still super filling but without all the heavy carbs.

Blueberry Banana Baked Oatmeal

I am truly obsessed with this recipe and you can see the full original recipe here. I made a few edits based on what I had available in my kitchen, which you can definitely do too. The best part of this recipe is you can basically make it however you like by switching out the types of fruits and sweeteners.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups blueberries
• 2 ripe bananas (sliced)
• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup milk (use any dairy or non-dairy milk you like!)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375º F
2. After greasing your 8×8 baking dish, line the bottom with slices of bananas and about half of your blueberries. Sprinkle with brown sugar and pop in the oven while it’s preheating for about 10 minutes.
3. Combine all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl (oats, rest of brown sugar, cinnamon, and baking powder).
4. Combine the wet ingredients in a separate bowl (milk, egg, vanilla). Whisk until egg is mixed with other ingredients.
5. Take your dish out of the oven and evenly spread dry ingredient mix over the fruit. Then pour wet mixture on top and make sure everything is evenly spread in the dish.
6. Finally, add the rest of the blueberries on the top and pop the mixture back in the oven for 30 minutes.
7. Serve the warm oatmeal either as is or with a dollop of greek yogurt on top!

While I know it seems like a lot of ingredients at first it’s honestly a foolproof recipe. Plus, since it is healthier you won’t feel guilty packing up the leftovers for your weekday breakfasts!