USO36
03-12-2007, 11:33 AM
The Perfect Oatmeal (AKA The Perfect Breakaway Breakfast)
I know we're all starved for time in the morning before work -- these minutes are precious indeed -- so it's easy to see why "instant" oatmeals are so popular: Just mix a packet with boiling water, wolf it down, and off you go.
But the truth is that REAL oatmeal tastes so much better. Enough to sacrifice the extra five minutes it takes to prepare? For me, the no-brainer answer is yes. I don't want some industrial manufacturer to tweak the taste of my first meal of the day with way too much sugar and whatever additives they use to make it taste fakey-god.
You don't need a recipe for real oatmeal (by which I mean rolled oats, preferably organic, purchased in the bulk section of your local grocery store) if you can remember the number 1:
1 part oats, 1 part milk, and 1 part water.
One cup of each makes enough oatmeal for four people, so use ½ cup oatmeal, ½ cup milk, and ½ cup water if it's just two of you.
Bring it to a gentle boil. While it's heating up, toss in:
heaping tablespoon (or more) crystallized ginger, diced
small splash vanilla
healthy pinch of cinnamon
small splash maple syrup
a few raisins if you like them
Simmer this mixture for about five minutes, or until most of the liquid disappears.
I like to put two heavy bowls in a gently heated oven for a few minutes while the oatmeal cooks, so that the bowls are toasty-hot when they're filled and brought to the table.
I top the oatmeal with some persimmons when they're in season, but the standard fruit topping is cut-up organic bananas. Apples are good, too. Dust the bowls with one more pinch of cinnamon, pour yourself a cup of strong coffee (though just as often I like strong black tea with milk), and you're ready to face just about anything.
I think it's worth the extra labor, though it hardly feels like labor to me when you're sitting down with the paper 10 minutes after starting
I know we're all starved for time in the morning before work -- these minutes are precious indeed -- so it's easy to see why "instant" oatmeals are so popular: Just mix a packet with boiling water, wolf it down, and off you go.
But the truth is that REAL oatmeal tastes so much better. Enough to sacrifice the extra five minutes it takes to prepare? For me, the no-brainer answer is yes. I don't want some industrial manufacturer to tweak the taste of my first meal of the day with way too much sugar and whatever additives they use to make it taste fakey-god.
You don't need a recipe for real oatmeal (by which I mean rolled oats, preferably organic, purchased in the bulk section of your local grocery store) if you can remember the number 1:
1 part oats, 1 part milk, and 1 part water.
One cup of each makes enough oatmeal for four people, so use ½ cup oatmeal, ½ cup milk, and ½ cup water if it's just two of you.
Bring it to a gentle boil. While it's heating up, toss in:
heaping tablespoon (or more) crystallized ginger, diced
small splash vanilla
healthy pinch of cinnamon
small splash maple syrup
a few raisins if you like them
Simmer this mixture for about five minutes, or until most of the liquid disappears.
I like to put two heavy bowls in a gently heated oven for a few minutes while the oatmeal cooks, so that the bowls are toasty-hot when they're filled and brought to the table.
I top the oatmeal with some persimmons when they're in season, but the standard fruit topping is cut-up organic bananas. Apples are good, too. Dust the bowls with one more pinch of cinnamon, pour yourself a cup of strong coffee (though just as often I like strong black tea with milk), and you're ready to face just about anything.
I think it's worth the extra labor, though it hardly feels like labor to me when you're sitting down with the paper 10 minutes after starting