Confession.
I have historically used food as a way to manage emotion. There, I said it. I'm sure there are others who could say the same. Food is a friend and people use it to cope with any number of things. We eat to feel better, pure and simple. This isn't healthy. Like alcohol, you can't eat your problems away. They'll still be there the next morning and so will your expanding waist line. After joining Weight Watchers I have had to face this in my own life. It's tough but self-reliance, not self-medicating is the best way to go.
You can't help but enjoy food just for the sake of enjoying it sometimes so here's one of my guilty pleasures.
Bowl O' Cookies
2 cups of sugar
1 stick of melted margarine
3 heaping T of cocoa
1/2 cup of milk
2 3/4 cup of QUICK oats
3/4 cup of Jif Extra Crunchy peanut butter. Creamy peanut butter should be outlawed.
1 t of vanilla
Like a science experiment, this recipe calls for exact measurements and precise timing, especially. This will take some practice. Don't cook them too long or they'll dry out. If you don't cook them enough, they'll be gritty.
1. Mix the sugar, melted margarine, cocoa, and milk in a large pot (the single handled kind, not the big kind with two handles.) One with tall sides is best.
2. Set your stove to medium and bring mixture to an even boil. Certain sections will start boiling before others, this isn't when you start number 3. You may want to stir it once to evenly distribute the heat. Also, you don't want it to boil too hard so leave it at medium and be patient.
3. Once the entire mixture is at a full boil, use a timer to count down 90 seconds.
4. At the 30 second mark, put in the vanilla.
5. Have your cocoa and peanut butter ready to go before the boiling starts.
6. Once the 90 seconds are up, take the pot off the heat. Quickly put in the oats and then the peanut butter. Stir, completely melting the peanut butter.
7. Pour the mixture into a cereal bowl, grab a spoon and a glass of milk and enjoy. Spoon the rest of the mixture onto wax paper and allow to cool.
