Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

My weekday breakfasts consist of the exact same thing, every day. I'm a big smoothie lover, and smoothies fit perfectly into my morning schedule because a) I'm usually not hungry at 6:00 a.m. (or even 7:30 when I'm leaving for work), b) the smoothies I make are really healthy and I intend to share them on here at some point, and c) I already get up early enough. Ain't nobody got the energy to get up an extra 20 minutes to eat breakfast before the leave for work. Although, I suppose that if I confiscated my laptop in the mornings, I wouldn't need to get up earlier. But that's an entirely different issue I'm not ready to broach yet.

So, when the weekends come around, I'm usually looking for something that is filling (as I end up eating even later), nutritious, and let's face it, a bit carb-y. And I like to make something that lasts for a couple days. So oatmeal is often a go-to for me! And this oatmeal is really fulfilling. It has multiple grains that give it a nice chewy, not mushy texture, delicious caramelized apples, warm spices, and to-die-for maple syrup. This is the real stuff folks. None of that imposter corn syrup stuff. Not even real maple syrup from the sugar bush. This is maple syrup made from MY bush, right here on my property. I can't take credit for cooking it all up; that was my parent's doing last year, but I do hold a certain amount of pride knowing the syrup was tapped from our trees. And it has a delicious smoky flavour. Not to make you jealous or anything... but you should be jealous.

Yield: 2-3 servings
Ingredients:
3 cups water
1 cup milk
1/2 cup steel cut oats
3 tablespoons quinoa, rinsed
1/3-1/2 cup large flake oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of all-spice and nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons brown sugar
2-4 tablespoons maple syrup (depending on your taste)
1/3 cup raisins
1 teaspoon vanilla

1 large apple
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
pinch of cinnamon

Directions:
Combine water and milk in a medium sized saucepan and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add in the steel cut oats and rinsed quinoa, and continue to simmer for approximately 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, peel and dice apple to desired size. Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat and add in the apple. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon over top, and slowly cook the apples until they begin to become translucent and soft. The sugar will also start to caramelize on the outside of the apples.

Once the oats and quinoa have cooked for 20 minutes, stir in the large flake oats. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes. The mixture will begin to thicken up. Stir in the cinnamon, all spice and nutmeg, salt, brown sugar, maple syrup and raisins. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes, or until the liquid is almost completely gone and the oats are soft (*note, sometimes the oats take longer to cook or depending on your own taste, you might like them firmer or harder. If you need to cook them longer, simply add in a little more water and continue to cook). Once the oatmeal is done to your desired firmness/softness, stir in the vanilla and the caramelized apple pieces.

Serve while hot and enjoy! If you have leftovers that you are heating up the next day, add in a little milk prior to heating to help loosen the oats and restore some of the moisture.

Source: Sweet Treats & Healthy Eats Original. Pin It