Steel Cut Oatmeal, Two Ways

There's nothing like a warm bowl of oatmeal to greet you in the morning! Growing up, I loved the little bags of instant oatmeal that came pre-flavoured with maple and brown sugar. I'd go through phases where I liked my oatmeal thick and lumpy, almost dry; and others where I'd eat it almost like soup, sloppy and full of milk. Those bags of instant oatmeal are at one end of the "oatmeal spectrum" while at the other end, you'll find steel cut oats. Steel cut oats go through very little processing compared to the quick oats you find in the instant oatmeal packages. When cooked, they are naturally creamy and chewy, an absolutely scrumptious way to start your day! They really fill you up and keep you going until lunch too!

The only downside I've found to cooking steel cut oats is the cooking time...they take about 30 minutes to cook on the stove-top; and cooking in the microwave can be tricky as they tend to boil over and make a big mess. I've found two no-fuss ways to enjoy this grain that I know you'll love; one is super fast, the other, super slow...both are very easy and low maintenance though!

I like to top my oatmeal with some non-dairy milk, crushed walnuts and real maple syrup...also try fresh or frozen berries, any nuts, raisins, coconut, brown sugar, etc...

Super Slow Steel Cut Oats (in the slow cooker)

Serves 4

Cooking your oats in a slow cooker overnight is a great way to enjoy warm and creamy oatmeal first thing in the morning! Just turn on the cooker right before bedtime, and in the morning you'll have the sweet smell of cinnamon calling you from the kitchen; just scoop, add toppings, and enjoy! So easy!

Ingredients
1 cup steel cut oats
4 cups water
1/4 cup non-dairy milk, or more water
pinch salt
pinch cinnamon or nutmeg (or both)

Directions
Spray slow cooker with non-stick spray. Add all ingredients and turn slow cooker on low before bed...at breakfast, enjoy!

Super Quick Steel Cut Oats

Serves 1

These oats are blended to a flour-like consistency, so they cook really quickly (about 5 minutes)! The result is a smooth, almost cream-of-wheat type consistency. I like to blend a few cups worth and store the flour in an airtight container for a quick breakfast in the morning! Note: the recipe below is for one serving, just remember it's a 1/4 cup oat flour to 1 cup water, so you can make as many servings as you like!

Recipe from Dreena's Vegan Recipes

Ingredients
1/4 cup pre-blended steel cut oats
1 cup water
2 tbsp - 1/4 cup non-dairy milk, or more water
pinch salt
pinch cinnamon or nutmeg (or both

Directions
In a blender, blend a few cups of steel cut oats until they reach a grainy flour-like consistency. Store extra flour in an airtight container.

In a saucepan, combine 1/4 cup oats, 1 cup water, salt, and cinnamon over medium heat. Whisk almost continuously, while mixture starts to come to a low boil. Reduce heat to medium-low as it is thickening and starting to bubble. Once thickened, whisk in a couple tablespoons to 1/4 cup non-dairy milk - until it reaches your desired consistency.

Serve oatmeal immediately, topping with another drizzle of non-dairy milk (as oatmeal will thicken more as it sits).


As a final note, here are some of the many health benefits to adding oatmeal to your diet:

Soluble Fiber: One of the best benefits of oatmeal is that it lowers cholesterol by removing LDL (bad cholesterol) while maintaining HDL (good cholesterol)

Insoluble fiber: Absorbs water which helps to speed the transit of food through the bowels; helping reduce the risk of some bowel related cancers (i.e. colon cancer)

Beta Glucan: A bio-defense modifier which means it will boost your immune system

Vitamins and Minerals: Including Iron, Zinc, Selenium, and Vitamin E

Phytochemicals: Plant chemicals that have shown promise in fighting and preventing cancer. For example, the phytoestrogens (lignans) found in oats help to fight hormone related diseases like breast, ovarian, and prostate cancer.
Source

Happy breakfast!

Blueberry Banana Pancakes

When Jeff and I bought our first home, we had these romantic visions of lazy Saturday mornings at the dining room table, still cozy in our PJs, reading the newspaper for hours, passing the Arts and Lifestyle sections back and forth, all while sipping hot coffee from a seemingly endless pot. Alas, we've been living in our home for over two years and this fantasy has yet to be realized...Oh well, it's still nice to dream right??

Although we're still waiting for our hours-long coffee and newspaper fest to materialize, we have been successful in establishing one cherished Saturday morning tradition - Pancakes!! And I highly recommend you try it. These pancakes are really easy to whip up and always turn out fantastic - not too dense or too light - all without the need for dairy or eggs!

Not only do they taste great, but they are healthy too! Well, healthier than the average anyway... They're made with whole wheat flour (I've actually tried them with everyday white flour and they turned out a bit rubbery - so try them with whole wheat if you can), they have a whole banana and lots of blueberries! Plus, I suggest adding some chopped walnuts, pecans, or almonds for extra health benefits (and great added texture)!

Makes 4 medium sized pancakes

Ingredients
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans or almonds) (optional)
1 ripe banana
1 - 1 1/4 cups non-dairy milk (soy, almond, rice, etc)
1 tbsp sweetener such as maple syrup or sugar (optional)
About 1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
About 1/4 cup vegetable oil for frying
Lots of real maple syrup!!

Directions
Put a serving dish in the oven and preheat to 210 degrees.

Mix flour, baking powder and nuts in a bowl and set aside. In another bowl, mash banana with a fork or masher until most of the lumps are gone. Add 1 cup non-dairy milk and sweetener to the banana and mix well. Add the wet mixture to the dry and gently mix until just wet (don't beat this mixture or the batter will be rubbery). If you notice the batter is too thick, add up to 1/4 cup more non-dairy milk until you reach the desired consistency.

Preheat your frying pan at about medium-high heat with a tablespoon of oil. When hot (tip: a drop of water should sizzle), drop 1/3 cup of batter into the pan then immediately drop the blueberries into the batter (add as little or as many as you want) - gently press them down into the batter while the pancake cooks. When the batter starts bubbling on the sides and in the middle you're ready to flip! Cook the other side for another 3 or 4 minutes to ensure the batter cooks around the blueberries.

Once cooked through, transfer cooked pancake to the oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining batter.


My humble tips for great pancakes:

1) Use a small frying pan if you have one (e.g. 9 inch). This will keep all the oil inside the area where the pancake cooks - ensuring maximum outer crispiness and less waste!

2) Drop any fruit pieces to the pancake batter AFTER you've poured it into the pan - otherwise you'll get lots of color from the fruit bleeding into the batter (not a bad thing, but just the way I like it).

3) Use a measured amount of batter for each pancake for a uniform stack - and less fighting over who gets the largest pancake!

4) Make sure your heat is just right - I keep adjusting the heat throughout the cooking process, the first pancake is cooked at the highest heat (about medium high) and I keep inching it down from there - by the time I get to my fourth one, the heat is usually set at medium low.

5) Resist the urge to keep checking if the underside is cooked - give the pancake time to cook through a bit and get nice a crispy on the outside. Wait until you see bubbles all the way through the batter, then flip!

6) Whenever you have a ripe banana lying around but don't necessarily want to cook with it right away, just freeze it! When you're ready to use it, defrost for about 45 seconds, cut off the top and squeeze the banana out of it's peel - super easy!

Well, that's it for this week - geez, who knew simple pancakes could result in such a lengthy post! Have a great weekend!

This recipe was adapted from How it all Vegan by Tanya Barnard and Sarah Kramer