Nikki’s Oatmeal Routine
Oats are so healthy and oh so yummy. We eat them nearly every day in our family. We have many allergy sensitivities and oatmeal allows us to avoid dairy and eggs without missing any of our tasty yumminess! I must be honest in saying I don’t love cleaning an oatmeal pan. That being said, I like to not cook oatmeal everyday. The thought of fewer dishes makes me all smiley. So let’s dig in to a healthy tasty breakfast routine.
Update: I follow THM (Trim Healthy Mama) and now Oatmeal is an “E” meal for me. As a result, I no longer put maple syrup or honey on my oatmeal. I prefer to make Savory Oatmeal Skillet (found in the book) or top my oatmeal with Greek Yogurt, diced apple and stevia. However, this recipe is more about my method for cooking which I still do! This allows my kids to eat it (fully loaded!) and I just store in 1 cup portions for easy breakfast (or lunch) for me!
First you need my top-secret recipe:
Perfectly Creamy Oatmeal {Recipe}
3 cups old-fashioned oats (not instant or quick!)
5 cups water (mix in any ratio of water and milk or all milk if you so desire)
1 Tablespoons coconut oil (this amount is fine for this size recipe)
Handful of raisins (omit if THM)
Dash of salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
Throw everything in the pot, all at the same time. Set it on medium for about 10 minutes. Leave the lid off. It isn’t a science, it is an art! Depending on how hot your stove gets, you may need to start on medium/high and turn it to low after the first 5 minutes. Stir occasionally! Top with greek yogurt, diced fruit and stevia!
Makes 6 servings
How easy is that? You can see from the pic that I make it “fully loaded” for my kids 🙂
Now here is how I apply this (a week in the life of my breakfast, if you will):
Monday: I make my big batch of oatmeal and serve myself and the girls. The girls eat between 1 to 1 1/2 cups of oatmeal each (for as little as they are, they really pack it away). I eat a cup. This leaves about 3 cups for leftovers. I package them in individual 1 cup portions in reusable containers (this is my favorite set that has just the right sizes). I set those aside for Anthony’s breakfast-to-go for the next 3 mornings.
Tuesday: Repeat routine from yesterday. This time, I put the leftovers in one big container (from the same set of Tupperware). This will be our breakfast tomorrow.
Wednesday: No cooking breakfast today. Leftovers!
Thursday: Make big batch of oatmeal, like Monday and Tuesday. Pack one 1 cup serving for Anthony’s breakfast on Friday. Pack the rest in a larger container for the girls to share (maybe there is enough for me, or if not I can wing it tomorrow).
Friday: No cooking since I have leftovers.
Weekend: I like to cook breakfast “fresh” for the family. I either cook oatmeal or do bacon, eggs, pancakes, etc. But I only have to cook 3 out of 5 days of the week and we have healthy, fresh, stick-with-you breakfasts each day of the week!
What is your favorite healthy breakfast food?
This post is linked to Frugal Tip Tuesdays, Time Warp Wife, Works for Me, Healthy 2Day Wednesdays, Pennywise Platter, Simple Lives Thursday, Homemakers Challenge, Your Green Resource, Full Plate Thursday, Thrive @ Home and Trim Healthy Tuesdays.
Mmm, we LOVE oatmeal around here! I’m checking out that recipe!
Enjoy! We eat it most every single day!
I make oatmeal in my rice cooker. So easy! I put 2 parts water/milk to 1 part oats and sprinkle a little cinnamon. Turn it on, and it switches to warm when it’s finished, ready and waiting for us. I add the dried fruit and such afterwards, which is great because every one here likes something different. 🙂
Cool Rachel! I do that with Steel oats. I just like not having to wash the rice cooker 🙂
I do something very similar, but we eat oatmeal every other day because Claire seems to get sick of it. She isn’t much of a breakfast eater…. Still trying to figure out why. lol Thanks for linking up with Thrive @ Home!
I loooove oatmeal. But what I don’t love is reheated oatmeal. How do you reheat it on the days when it’s not made fresh? All we have at work is a toaster (useless) and a microwave, which makes the oatmeal rubbery instead of… well… oatmeal texture. Just curious if you have any secrets to share!
Hi Nikki,
I just love oatmeal, it is one of my favorites in the Winter and your recipe is awesome. I will have to give it a try, it is almost Oatmeal time. Hope you are having a great weekend and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Great idea to make it stretch! The fewer times I have to cook and scrub pots, the better. 🙂
This looks so good!Love all your ideas.Thanks