What things do you add to your oatmeal to make it interesting?
I love oatmeal and I eat it almost every morning, but I usually just add some local maple syrup. I'd love to hear about some of your weird but terrific oatmeal concoctions so that I can mix it up a bit!
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mattstolz
Oct 3, 2011 09:24 AM
I suggest checking this site out for good ideas!
http://www.katheats.com/kaths-tribute...
seriously so many ideas there.
as for me, i am a fitness nut and bodybuilder, and eat oats 2-3x a day. I always cook mine and stir in some of my favorite protein powders for really easy and delicious flavoring (also changes the texture to smoother and thicker most the time!
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re: beccydinosaur
mattstolz
Oct 3, 2011 07:28 PM
some of my favorite combos:
dark cocoa/instant coffee grounds/chocolate protein
chocolate protein/peanut butter
good scoop pumpkin/cinnamon/pumpkin pie spice/vanilla protein
diced banana/chocolate (or vanilla) protein/peanut butter
diced strawberry/chocolate (or vanilla protein)
chocolate protein/cinnamon/cayenne pepper
chocolate/cayenne/shaved coconut/peanut butter
i also like savory oats A LOT! theres been a chow link hangin around on the side of the page lately with some good ideas. but i like cooking them in pasta sauce, curries, salsa, mole.... with pretty much any protein!
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I start with some boiling water, then add the rolled oats and a little salt and cook that for a few minutes until it's a little thicker than I want it, then add some half and half and then half a well mashed banana and some brown sugar. The banana and half and half make it nice and creamy.
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PotatoHouse
Sep 30, 2011 05:44 PM
Butter, sugar, egg, flour, chocolate chips, and sliced Spanish Almonds. drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheet and bake at 350F for 10-12 minutes. Eat with a glass of cold milk....
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BananaBirkLarsen
Sep 30, 2011 05:22 PM
I cook it with dried cranberries and a thin piece of orange peel. After it's cooked I add walnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, a drizzle of maple syrup and a splash of milk.
Also heavenly with dark brown sugar and a spoonful of yogurt on top.
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re: patricium
On the way home, I remembered more things (Oatmeal is a winter-only thing for me.)
I toast the steel cut oats, so right at the end, just before adding the water, I add some spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or allspice, so they become fragrant. If you're adding a sweetener like brown sugar, adding it at the beginning of cooking lends additional caramel notes.
I make a slightly different batch every week - Orange zest & dried cranberries, or peanut butter and raisins, or candied ginger and almonds.
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I recently added the gelatin from baking country style pork ribs. I let it setup first and skimmed the fat off first. Also I added some peas, carrots, and onions. It was a bit different, but I thought it was pretty good. I am thinking about doing it again. Granted it was more of a savory dish, and when the oatmeal thickened up it was very rich, but it was a good breakfast.
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1. sweet corn and cumin
2. spinach and oregano
3. some of my favorite jam (am using rose hip jam, ginger jam or strawberry/rhubarb jam now)
4. I made a corned beef, then used some of the broth (did not cook cabbage or potatoes with the beef this time) and some of the meat, finely diced
5. mushrooms (I bought a smoked duck breast and rendered the fat to saute the mushrooms in, but you can use bacon fat instead) -
eclecticsynergy
Apr 11, 2011 12:14 AM
Steel cut oats. TOASTED, then cooked. Awesome with any addition you might choose.
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I love oatmeal and normally have it with some combination of banana, walnuts, peanut butter, apples, coconut oil, strawberries, cinnamon and brown sugar.
Today I tried savory oatmeal cooked slowly in homemade chicken broth, 2 dashes of soy sauce and 1 chopped scallion. After it was cooked, I folded in a diced 1/2 avocado. Delicious!
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Richard 16
Jul 29, 2007 03:02 PM
You can treat it like polenta. (Although I have never used tomato sauce. Doesn't sound good...) Since steel cut oats take so long to cook (try it in a slow cooker ala Alton Brown) make extra and refrigerate part of it. Cut and fry in really good butter and add S & P. (I suppose you could do a sweet version.)
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amyzan
Jul 28, 2007 08:34 AM
In the summer, I parboil and then steam it for fluffy individual flakes that don't hold a lot of heat. Parboil 2 minutes, steam for 5-10 depending on how thickly it's rolled. Interesting variation if you eat a lot of oatmeal, no matter the temperature outside.
I prefer steel cut oats in colder weather.
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For years I've been using a recipe of Michael Romano from Union Square Cafe. He says he makes a batch every day and it is all he eats between tasting things. Steel cut oats cooked in apple cider with some brown sugar. I add walnuts, apricots, raisins, an apple cut up. We eat it all fall and through the winter. It's very satisfying.
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re: Doreen
Funny you should say that. I bought a "chef for a day" package at a charity event a few years ago. When I went to do my day of work (which was great fun and quite enlightening) I was noticed that the head chef ate a HUGE bowl of oatmeal right before service (while the staff meal was being served). Must be a chef thing?
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re: Doreen
firecooked
Jul 28, 2007 05:30 PM
Yum, Steel Cut Oats are a great treat (and very different) from regular rolled oats, any way you prepare them.
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firecooked
Jul 27, 2007 08:58 PM
Its way too hot to eat hot oatmeal in PHX in the summer, so I make Museli... the only hard part is remembering to throw it together the night before:
1 ½ cups old fashioned oats
¼ cup raisins or dry cranberries or other dried fruit of choice
¼ cup walnuts (chopped) or almond slivers
2 cups unsweetened soy milk (or any milk of choice, including part yogurt or juice)
1 tablespoon Apricot or Peach jam
1 teaspoon honey (or to taste)1 small apple (grated) or other fresh fruit
Mix everything except for fresh fruit together, cover and refrigerate overnight. If it seems a bit thick in the morning, add some more milk or some plain yogurt. Stir in grated apple just before serving, or serve with other fresh fruit (berries, banana’s, apricots…)
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yomyb
Jul 27, 2007 04:26 PM
Cooking it with milk, not water, is essential to me, then my favorite toppings are brown sugar, cinnamon, walnuts and cranberries. You can also add a dash of evaporated or condensed milk to make it a little sinful. ;-).
Not as healthy as oatmeal, but a Puerto Rican tradition that is delicious is boiling ginger and a stick of cinnamon in some water, then mixing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with one cold cup of milk and heating this up while slowly adding some of the tea/flavored water. This becomes the most delicious thickened milk/hot cereal ever ;-). This with some Puerto Rican bread with butter and a cafe con leche...ahhh heaven.
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ArikaDawn
Jul 27, 2007 03:38 PM
I am not sure if this counts as more of an oatmeal or an apple dish, but last night when I wanted something sweet it fit the bit.
In a bowl I combined about 1/4c. oatmeal, quite a bit of cinnamon, approx 1/2tbsp.butter(actually, I Can't Beleive It's Not Butter, but I always hesitate to admit such theings on these boards, haha), and 1 apple cut up into bite size pieces skin and all. I mixed it all together and realized there was nothing to sweeten it except for the apple and also it was a bit dry. For some reason it occurred to me to squeeze the juice of a clementine over the top of it all to moisten and sweeten. I then transferred it all to a foil bowl and baked at 350 for about 30 minutes. It was sooo good! Completely unlike any sort of apple crumble because the oatmeal didn't crisp as it was mixed all throughout, not just on top. The citrus was such a wonderful complement to all of the flavors, and healthwise, it is actually quite wholesome. This is definitely something I will be making again for breakfast with perhaps double the oatmeal and the juice of two clementines. It basically ends up being the most delicious apple cinnamon oatmeal ever with a little citus kick. -
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Emme
Jul 25, 2007 05:53 PM
Calories aside, butter and brown sugar. Or sugar and cinnamon.
Carmelized chopped persimmons.
Sweet potato or butternut squash puree and cinnamon (or sage for savory)... can also add chopped pecans or walnuts.
Butter, maple syrup, and brown sugar when I'm being really bad.
Oats + egg whites + cinnamon + vanilla + sweetener = pancakes
Also good is oatmeal parfait... layer oatmeal, vanilla yogurt, and berries... for healthy fats, add sliced almonds.
My ex loved bing cherries, brown sugar, cinammon, hazelnuts, and hazelnut oil.
Crystallized ginger and pistachios with a swirl of molasses.
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re: Emme
HungryRubia
Jul 26, 2007 06:08 AM
I like to add brown sugar or maple syrup and walnuts and cinnamon. Sometimes fried cherries are tasty too.
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An old folk remedy for rheumatoid arthritis, which I have been dealing with for a few years, calls for nine golden raisins soaked in gin. (Do a search and you will see the testamonials.) I add them to my organic oatmeal, along with fresh fruit, knowing the amount of gin is really pedestrian, and they sure are good.
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Wow I want oatmeal now.
My old standbye is to cut up a green apple and add it to the water while I am waiting for it to boil. Then I throw in the oatmeal, maybe some raisins, and let it cook. Right before I take it out of the pan, I add peanut butter. It is so good.
On the weekends for a treat, sometimes I throw in chocolate chips and peanut butter, maybe with a little banana. Also very good.
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JungMann
Jul 25, 2007 08:12 AM
My friend makes a hearty and savory oatmeal cooking his pinhead oats to a creamy consistency in chicken broth and bacon fat. He then adds chopped bacon, parmesan and/or gruyere and seasoned salt. It is certainly a very satisfying way to begin your morning.
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Inspired by a recent thread, I've recently started having a simple savory oatmeal--scallions (go in the water with the oatmeal) and lots of parmesan cheese. When I'm cooking steel cuts, chopped apples that go in with the oatmeals, toasted walnuts when served.
Here are some other recent oatmeal threads:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/322089
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/332675
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/340248And the thread on adding kabocha that really helped me branch out on my oatmeal and corn mush:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/338710 -
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chef chicklet
Jul 25, 2007 07:34 AM
for a sweet version, always golden raisins and dried cherries with a tiny dash of cinnamon.
savory I only add sea salt, and made always with water only for both, no milk.Going to try the egg stirred in for the savory, that actually sounds really good!
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I've been adding an egg - just stir it in. Someone posted the idea here a while ago in one of the many steel cut oatmeal threads.
Like the other suggestions above, I all flax, dried (and sometimes fresh) fruits, nuts, spices, a dash of cream or rice milk. Once, in a mood, I added homemade honey ice cream ... now that was decadent, but I think it went beyond breakfast? As for fruits, huckleberry is my favorite.
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coney with everything
Jul 25, 2007 07:00 AM
Trader Joe's salty sweet and nutty granola as a topping, and REAL CREAM (just a wee bit)
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mmm...I eat it everyday too. Fave additions (AFTER cooked) are a bit of peanut butter, walnuts, dried cranberries and flax meal. I often add chocolate whey protein powder too, esp. if i'm working out that day. However the oatmeal needs to be warm, not hot, b/f making that addition in order to mix well.
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In the fall I add a tablespoon of canned pumpkin, a tablespoon of pecans, a sprinkle of clove, cinnamon, and ginger--and a little honey or stevia for some sweetness.
I sometimes add honey and pb or hiney and sunflower seed butter from TJs--yum.
I also love cooking it for a minute and then stirring in an egg and cooking it for another 30 seconds. This makes the oatmeal so creamy---I LOVE it. I got that recommendation of chowhound last fall. I then add cinnamon or whatever else.
I also like coconut oil in my oatmeal.
Sometimes I throw in ground flax seeds if I have them.
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