On my sixth day of the 21 Day Fix, I decided to revisit a super simple oatmeal recipe that Autumn presents in the Extreme nutrition guide. Something that I tell people a lot and frequently have to remind myself is that we rarely need as much as we think we do. I'm talking about portions. Our eyes are bigger than our stomachs (metaphorically, kids, don't get all bio on me *thatmeansyouOscar*), so we often give ourselves too much and thus, eat too much.
So easy for you, I kindly borrowed the recipe from Autumn's nutrition book to give it to you here. I just made it about the minutes ago and am ready to nom up the morning with this quick, simple recipe. It'll help those of you who like oatmeal - or who want to like oatmeal 'cause, you know, all the hip kids are eating it - save money and sugar on buying that nasty processed stuff at the stores. I'm not looking at the book right now, but I've done this enough to go by memory. Enjoy my fabulous commentary.
You'll need:
- 1/4 cup of steel cut oats (I used old fashioned, same difference. It just describes the way they're rolled and cut)
- 1 cup of water
- 1 pinch of salt (Himalayan recommended)
- 1 teaspoon of all natural peanut butter (no sugar recommended, buuuuut I didn't have any so)
- 1 cup of sliced strawberries
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk (optional)
You'll need to do:
1. Place your cup of water and pinch of salt into a small pot or sauce pan. Put it on medium-high heat. Once it boils, set your heat for low.
What does a pinch of salt mean? It's not the amount you throw over your shoulder to ward off back Ju-ju. It's just enough that if you pinched a small layer of skin. you'd leave some residue. I promise, you do not want to be heavy handed on the salt. Bad experience my first time. Yuck.
2. Add the 1/4 cup of oats. Stir frequently for 15-20 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Take off the heat and let sit for 5 minutes.
Autumn recommends frequently but if you're on the lowest heat setting, "occasionally" is an easy substitute there. I was sorting paper clips (your judgment is unnecessary) and just using my ear to listen to when I needed to stir. Also, I frequently find myself just waiting for most of the water to absorb.
3. Add a teaspoon of PB and mix it well. If the mixture turns out too thick, add the almond milk.
It really doesn't turn out too thick, so I think this is unnecessary. But if you're more of a cereal junky, maybe it's a good option.
4. Add your strawberries. Done! Eat.
Now this is Fix approved. So this serves as ONE TEASPOON, ONE YELLOW, and ONE PURPLE container. The strawberry is enough to give you the sweetness you lack from the unsweetened PB. It's also enough to fill you up. I personally didn't want all of the strawberries in my oatmeal so I kept them in my purple container.
Bam! Simple, no artificial sugar, you're golden. Let me know how you liked it or what you changed!
