Oatmeal - It's Whats for Breakfast

Oats do a body good. They lower cholesterol, might lower blood pressure, and contribute to an avoidance of heart attacks. All good things. They’re also tasty!

So I’ve noticed something interesting with regards to one of my favorite go-to breakfasts. Instant rolled oats keep me full for… well, they don’t. As soon as I’m done eating them I could pretty much eat breakfast all over again right away. I think this is because the amount of pre-processing they go through causes them to be very easy and quick to digest. Also I’m prone to buying the fruit and cream pre-sweetened variety and, speaking as an avowed sugar addict, they’re really too sweet. I don’t want so much sugar first thing in the morning, I want a lightly sweet savory combo.

So this week I made up a batch of slow cooking steel cut (also called Irish) oats. Quaker makes an instant variety of steel cut oats, but again – it’s jam packed with sugar. I’m talking about the kind that comes plain in a tub and contains pretty much nothing but the oats themselves.

They take about a half hour to cook, and you have to baby sit them, stirring every couple of minutes and watching to make sure they don’t boil over. However, they’re worth the effort. They’re hearty, only as sweet as I want them to be, they take a long time to eat, and they keep me satisfied and full until lunch. They’re also more calories, but I’ve been thinking my sub-200 calorie breakfasts aren’t a very good idea anyway. My bowl of steel cut oats is closer to 300 calories, but that’s still a low total calorie content for a meal. I think both the effort involved and extra hundred calories are well worth not feeling desperate for a snack at around 11AM.

Carolyn’s Steely Morning Oats:

·         1 cup steel cut (Irish) oats

·         2 cups milk (I use 2%)

·         2 cups water

·         A pinch of salt

Bring the oats, water, milk, and salt to a boil (watch it because it will boil over FAST) then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring frequently, for 30 minutes.

Flavor Additives (use in any combo you like – I like one sweetening additive and one nutty/fruity/peanut buttery one in my batches):

·         2 tbsp. brown or white sugar (the white goes better with PB2)

·         2 tbsp. maple syrup

·         2 tbsp. PB2 (regular or chocolate variety)

·         2 tbsp. nut butter or Nutella

·         2-3 tbsp. crushed nuts

·         2-3 tbsp. dried fruits

·         2-3 tbsp. shaved coconut

·         2-3 tbsp. chocolate chips

Makes four servings which can be easily stored in the fridge and re-heated in the microwave throughout the week.

Enjoy!