3 Ways to Make Not-So-Boring Oatmeal

Dietary: Gluten-Free, Vegetarian

Everyday Berry Oats 

Ingredients

• ½ cup oatmeal (if using steel cut oats, you’ll have to add more water and cook time)

• 1 tablespoon chia seeds

• 1 tablespoon flax seeds

• ½ tablespoon maple syrup or honey

• ½ cup of frozen berries of choice 

• 1 cup of water 

• Variations: cottage cheese, yogurt, milk, and/or a nut butter

Directions

1. Combine everything in a small pot except for the maple syrup/honey and place it on the stovetop on medium/high heat and leave it! You do not need to stir it - this is the part of the story where I go do my hair or makeup.

2. Once the oats have fluffed up and the water is gone (5-8 minutes), remove from heat, pour into a bowl, and drizzle your maple syrup or honey on top.

3. Stir in one of the bonus ingredients to add extra protein and creaminess.

Caramelized Banana-Nut Oats

Ingredients

• ½ cup oatmeal (if using steel cut oats, you’ll have to add more water and cook time)

• 1 cup of water

• 1 tablespoon butter

• 1 banana 

• Dash of cinnamon

• ½ tablespoon honey or maple syrup

• 1 tablespoon chopped nut of choice (walnuts and pecans are cheaper if you buy them pre-chopped because they often use pieces that can't be added to whole nut bags) 

• Optional: Milk

Directions

1. Combine your oats and water and cook on medium high heat on your stove top until the water is gone and then remove from heat.

2. While your oats cook, slice your banana into thick coins.

3. Melt the butter on your (cast iron) pan, then turn the heat up to medium/high and carefully lay each banana coin in a single layer on the pan, sprinkling the top with cinnamon 

4. Let the bananas brown and bubble for 3-5 minutes, then carefully flip them and let fry on the other side for the same length of time.

5. Layer your bowl: oats, caramelized bananas, nuts, honey/maple syrup, and an optional splash of milk for good measure. 

Super Savory Oats 

Ingredients

• ½ cup oatmeal (if using steel cut oats, you’ll have to add more water and cook time)

• 1 cup of water

• 1 egg

• 1 teaspoon of butter 

• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

• A pinch of salt 

Directions

1. Combine your oats and water and cook on medium-high heat on your stovetop until your oats fluff up and the water is gone, then remove from heat.

2. While your oats cook, carefully fry an egg on medium heat - I prefer it sunny side up for this dish because the yoke adds so much creaminess, but you can fry it to your preference. 

3. After the oats are cooked, transfer them to your bowl and stir in the butter. 

4. Layer your bowl: buttered oats, yeast, egg, salt - stir up and ENJOY!

The Story

Oatmeal is one of my favorite foods, like the weirdo I am. Up until I was a teenager, I would order oatmeal when we went out to eat for breakfast or brunch. I was a cheap date for my parents. This was partly because I loved dumping brown sugar and cream on my food without getting in trouble.

As I got older, I came to love the ease and simplicity of oats. Oats can adapt to any flavor you’re craving, and they are incredibly cheap. I ate Super Savory Oats almost every morning throughout undergrad. I had a roommate who asked me how I forced myself to be so healthy. This was a hilarious question to me because I just genuinely loved oatmeal smothered in egg yoke and yeast and, bonus, it was easy on my wallet.

Nowadays, I love them even more because of how happy they make my body. Oatmeal is a whole grain and packed with fiber—it’s the brown rice of the breakfast world—overlooked for how wonderful it is for our tummies and longevity. The majority of mornings, I make the Everyday Berry Oats. I can get almost a day’s worth of fiber in this one meal while also sneaking in a serving of Omega-3s and antioxidants.

Evan is a tried-and-true eggs-and-toast breakfast eater, but even he is easy to steer off course when I mention Caramelized Banana-Nut Oats.

This is my ode to oats and it won’t be the last. I hope these recipes inspire you to love oats more, again, or maybe for the first time.