Recovery- 4 ingredient peanut butter granola

Recovering

Well, as many of you know I was just admitted and discharged from the hospital. Not exactly how one wants to spend their weekend, especially a busy wife/mom/nurse. I spent most of friday along with the morning and afternoon of Saturday in a hospital bed getting poked every 4 hours, hooked up to multiple monitors, nearly tanking due to pain and blood loss, and doctors ringing my ears about possible surgery and blood transfusions. However, I did not need surgery and I did not need any blood transfusions. How?

Because of your prayers.

I was sent home Saturday in extreme pain, and now on Tuesday my pain is mild. The dizziness has not subsided but hey, its one step at a time right? 

Thank you friends for your prayers and for taking care of me. A friend sat with me while my husband was out, other friends watched over our sweet girl, others called, texted, and made sure we had all we needed for me to feel better. My parents came to visit with me, and just sat with me for awhile. Not to mention by boss and office staff have made sure my work away from home was covered. I am loved. 

When surgeons contemplate surgery, they place you on an NPO status. Nothing by mouth. That means no water, no food… nothing. So, what does a normal human being think of during that time? Food. All things food. 

When your recovering, under higher circumstances, it is important to watch what is put in your body. When your in bed for almost 5 days straight, the muscle and glycogen stores in your body deplete, and the body becomes dehydrated. Outside of consuming massive amounts of water, my food intake has not been too pretty. Protein is difficult to consume on a sensitive stomach. Plus, who would rather eat cupcakes and ice cream? That would be me. 

In researching snack ideas, I wanted to share a new recipe. Easy on the stomach, protein friendly, and fairly light on the calories (just watch the honey).

4- Ingredient Peanut Butter Granola 

Ingredients:

5 cups old fashioned oats

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the over to 275 degrees. Place oats in a large bowl. Combine the honey and peanut butter in small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Heat in the microwave for about 45 seconds or until the peanut butter is lightly melted. Whisk peanut butter and honey together. Add vanilla and whisk until mixed.

Pour peanut butter mix over oats. Stir until well combined; this may take awhile. 

Pour mixture into baking sheet with raised edges. Bake for 20 minutes, stir, and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until granola is lightly crisp. You can store in airtight container for up to 2 weeks. 

Now if your like me, eating straight up granola may be kind of gross (however this is pretty good). I topped mine with almonds, bananas, and added some milk. 

It settled well on my stomach, and is very filling. Husband approved. 

If you give it a try, let me know how it goes! Feel free to share on pinterest, separate from the IV of course! 

In recovery,

Heather S