I have a rather regimented breakfast schedule. Half the year I have yogurt with granola, the other half I have oatmeal with walnuts.

Well, I'm reading the Omnivore's Dilemna and I want to switch from those convenient little processed oatmeal packets to "whole" oatmeal. However I eat it at work so I need to be able to make a batch once a week and then easily reheat it in the office microwave.

Any advice on choosing whole oats and preparing them for a yummy reheatable breakfast?

I have to admit I love a sweet oatmeal so recipes with brown sugar are most welcome. In fact it should also have real butter because my goal in eating breakfast is to not need a mid-mornign snack.

I absolutely LOVE oatmeal and I prefer the steel cut oats that come in the tin can from Ireland...are they called McCann's? Well...whatever...there is a brand called Mother's that is excellent, too. MOther's also has some old fashioned oat flakes too, that are longer cooking than those pkgs that taste like paste to me.


They do take some time to make but i have discovered the best method that shortens the cooking time completely.

Following the instructions, prep the oats the night before. I always make a few servings so that i can reheat them in the microwave quickly.

I simply boil the water, add the oats, let them cook a bit and then just cover them and turn off the heat.

I have trained myself off the sweet cereal route and I toss in a small handful of dried cranberries or cherries or something. For me this adds enough sweetness.

How delish would it be to add some chopped nuts too?

In the morning, the oats have steeped and absorbed the water and you are ready to reheat your portion.

I don't like them mushy so for me this works perfectly...in fact, i did it today!

Pat

That "Omnivore's Dilemna" does make you start thinking doesn't it?

I really like McCann's Irish Steel Cut Oats. I use the recipe right on the can, but I have never tried making it ahead and reheating. Give it a try and see if it holds up flavor and texture-wise. You could add some brown sugar when you reheat it... and butter, too. I like to add some maple syrup and I usually add some raisins or currents.

oops, was posting at the same time as Pat... so there you go, they can be made ahead!

-Krista

Ms Vegas asked about pinhead oatmeal a while back. There's a link in the thread to a good blog entry on Slashfood talking about cooking steel cut oatmeal. Read the comments because there are a couple of overnight and slow cooker version.

Those are the directions written on the Mc'Cann can.

Why bother with a slow cooker? They are done in the morning anyway if you let them sit in the boiling water on the range all night.

Simple.

Pat

Oatmeal porridge...
My grandmother's way is my way.
I buy Quaker brand quick-cooking oatmeal, not the regular or the instant stuff. Regular takes too long...like 15 minutes...and instants is...well, instant...it's mushy to me.

I put some water or milk or soymilk in a small pot, a shake or two of salt and a handful of quick-cooking Quaker oatmeal. I sprinkle in some raisins, cranberries, sliced almonds or pecans and add a shake of cinnamon. Then, bring it to a boil, turn the heat down to simmer, and by the time I've set the breakfast table, made my morning tea and packed a little lunch for work, my oatmeal would be ready to eat! You will need to stir it once or twice so it doesn't stick to the pot.

If you want butter, add it.
If you love chocolate chips, add them just before dishing up the porridge.
If you love a vanilla taste, add that as well.
Coconut, walnuts, grated lemon/lime/orange zest...anything you like!

As for exact measurements? I dunno. Let's try this:
1 cup water/milk/soymilk
2 shakes of salt, or more to taste
1/2 cup oatmeal (more or less)
1 shake of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla to be added at the end

I think that making it with soymilk or milk makes it way more nutritious than making it with water. It also is more creamy when milk or soymilk is used.

Here's the Quaker Oatmeal site's suggested toppings for oatmeal.
Here's their website for you!

Here's a really cool site for spurtles!

“Trying a case the second time is like eating yesterday morning's oatmeal.” ~ Lloyd Paul Stryker
Brenda

I'm with the steel cut group here. Every stage of processing foods reduces the nutritional value.

Whole Foods has a good organic oatmeal in their bulk foods section.

Increase the health benefit of your morning oatmeal by adding a tablespoon of two of ground flax seed.

Sheena, I really LIKE the taste of flax seeds. I add them to other stuff but didn't think of adding them to oatmeal. Thanks.

I also buy the gound flax seeds to sprinkle on stuff.

Pat

I use the Quacker's old-fashioned oats for my oatmeal, but I don't cook it very long. I put the oats in right away with the water and salt and as soon as it is all absorbed (maybe4 or 5 min), it's good enough for me. I don't like the packets and I think this is has a chewier texture than the quick-cooking oats (IMO).

I know you can nuke Quaker's (but I cook it on the stove) so an option is to put the oats and salt in a microwaveable bowl and then nuke it at work. Can you nuke the steel-cut oats so she can make it easier at work?

Sandra

Ground flax seed warning!
Ground flax seed is best sprinkled on top of the oatmeal, as it has a thickening property and if it is cooked in the porridge or ends up in the milk that you pour over the porridge before eating it, the ground flaxseed can make the porridge or milk a little or a lot gelatinous! YUKYUKYUK! (in my experience, anyway...)

Actually, I make a little well in the top of the oatmeal in the bowl, add 2 heaping teaspoons of ground flaxseed into the little depression and then go from there.That keeps the ground seed from coming into contact with the milk a little bit, and I avoid that slippery mixture of milk and ground seed that creeps me out! See what little idiosyncrasies we all have, when pressed to explain?

I totally agree with you, Sheena...the more processing steps there are in making the oatmeal, the less nutrition there is left in the end product. If you have a good organic shop or health food grocer, they'll likely have the bulk organic oatmeal, that's only been flattened once!

"I love oatmeal with, like, fruit in it, berries or bananas, you have to get creative with it!" ~ Heidi Klum
Brenda

quote:

ground flaxseed can make the porridge or milk a little or a lot gelatinous!

This hasn't been our experience. We actually cook the flax seed with the oats rather than sprinkling it on to the finished oats, so perhaps we are compensating with more liquid.

It may also depend on the oatmeal you use.

Dana you will just have to experiment a little! Just remember that oatmeal certainly reduces your cholesterol levels, and flax seeds are like little scrubbers for your arteries - it is all good!

Sheena, it's the ground flaxseed meal that has the thickening agent...it can be an egg replacer in baking, it's so glutinous! The whole flax seeds don't do that, but the ground meal sure does, sometimes! I made the mistake of mixing ground flaxseed into my dry cereal...corn flake-type stuff...and the milk in the bowl turned weird because of the ground flax meal...not a lot, but enough to make it kinda creepy for me to eat.

My naturopathic doctor told me to stay a country mile away from psyllium husks as fibre, because they are too harsh for my tender gut. She was the one who put me onto ground flaxseed instead of other types of fibre, as she said it is kinder to the gut and has a higher level of nutrition than psyllium husk and some other kinds of fibre.

She also said that ground flaxseed, as opposed to whole flaxseed (unground), is a better source of fibre because it will really sweep out the little nooks and crannies of your gut very well, while whole flax seed sort of rock 'n rolls straight thru' ya, if you know what I mean?

I learned sooo much from her...she took my complete eating habit and dissected it, showing me what was working and what was not! Here's her website. She is on a short vacation right now, but she will not mind you contacting her, I'm sure! A great friend, and a wonderful doctor...she and my other darling doctor are the ones weho saved my life a few years ago, when I was so sick, and no one knew what what was going on with my health...or lack of health, is more like it!

Boy, I've gone on quite a tangent here, huh? Ya never know where my fertile mind will take us all, on any given day!

“The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not.” ~ Mark Twain
Brenda

Yummmy...oatmeal sounds great to me as welll. I often have it for dinner in the winter. I like the Old Fashioned Quaker Oats kind. I don't cook as long as it states..I like mine chewy and kind of dry with brown sugar. T-Mac it is also great reheated in the microwave later.

quote:

She also said that ground flaxseed, as opposed to whole flaxseed (unground), is a better source of fibre

Yes, I agree with her. Ground flax seed is a better choice for everyone. The whole seed is difficult to digest, therefore you do not get the full benefit.

We eat Oatmeal most days in the winter - for lunch! I buy organic rolled oats at Whole Foods, cook for 30 minutes with raisens, eat with sliced banana and maple syrup - no milk.

You can also buy whole oats (looks like rice) and do longer cooking - we used to do that, but now take the easier way of starting with the rolled oats.

Here is a "no-cook" recipe that I've been making for years - it's delicious and so easy. I usually eat it cold but you could heat it in the microwave.

Muesli

2 cups oatmeal
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup raisins or other dried fruit
1/2 cup orange juice
1/3 cup wheatgerm, bran or nuts
1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
1/4 salt

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate overnight.

Note: sometimes, when I'm really lazy, I just soak my oatmeal overnight in the fridge in some vanilla soymilk, take it to work and eat it.

Love oatmeal.

Want to add about the flaxseeds--ground is best, but ground them right before you use them as they "go bad" or lose nutritional value quickly. It is not advisable to buy gound and keep in the fridge. Grind in a mini food processor or something and use immediately. This flaxseed is also good for people with cancer.

I thought of this thread when i visited this page on breakfast]

Pat

The perfect flax seed grinder is a $18 Braun coffee mill, only used for flax seed. Excellent product...I've had this one for several years.

Here's a good info site about flax seeds.

"“I went to a cafe that advertised breakfast anytime, so I ordered French Toast during the Rennaisance.” ~ Stephen Wright
Brenda

I didn't get around to buying and making whole oatmeal this weekend so I did the next closest and bought the McCann's packets instead of the Quaker packets. Baby steps ---

I always make my whole organic rolled oats oatmeal (from Whole Foods bulk section) in the microwave. You need a deep bowl so that it doesn’t overflow. Here is what I do for 1 serving:

1) Put 1/4 cup oats and about 1/2 cup water in the bowl, along with a bit of salt. There should be just enough water to cover the oats with a little liquid on top. Cover loosely and microwave at half power for 3 minutes.

2) Check, stir, and add a little more water if it seems too thick. At this point you can also add dried or fresh fruit. I like to put in some frozen organic blueberries. I find that with fruit I don’t need any sugar.

3) Microwave at 1/2 power for about 2 minutes more.

4) This is the time to sprinkle on some ground flaxseed if you want it. I grind it and keep it in the freezer. I have read that some of the health benefits of flaxseed are destroyed by heating, so I don’t think it’s a good idea to cook it with the oatmeal. You can also sprinkle on a few chopped nuts for more protein.

Note: If you are making two bowls at once, follow the same instructions, but heat at full, not half power.

- Roz

OK, so this doesn't really answer your question, but it may interest you anyway.

I make a mixed grain -- for lack of a better name -- base recipe, in a very large batch. I freeze it in 1/2 cup 'pucks'. Then I pull the number of pucks I need out of the freezer for whatever I need them for. They lend themselves to both savory and sweet dishes.

They are great in soup.
You can saute veggies, mushrooms, etc. and mix together to make a hearty risotto type dish.

AND for breakfast, I just microwave one 'puck' and top with with brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts, or fresh berries, and a little soy milk.

1 Cup Brown Rice
1/2 Cup steel cut oats
1/2 Cup whole Flax Seed
1/2 Cup Wheat Berry
1/2 Cup Kamut
1/2 Cup Quinoa (be sure to rinse well)
1/2 Cup Spelt
8 cups water

Combine in large sauce pan, bring to boil, turn down to simmer, cook until done, stir occasionally to keep from sticking.

Cool slightly, then pack into a 1/2 cup measuring cup to make individual portions. Freeze them on a cookie sheet. When they are solid, put in plastic freezer bags.