A Breakfast for Champions

While creating my new Recipes tab, I realized I was severely lacking in the breakfast department.  It's not that I don't eat breakfast, it's just that I don't usually leave myself time for creativity.  Creative breakfasts occur only on the weekends or for dinner.

My last breakfast for dinner, with Hay Maple Syrup. Yum!

I have realized that if I really fill up on breakfast, I tend to require far less food throughout the day, so I'm making an effort lately to give myself a better food foundation, but again, convenience usually trumps creativity, and I have another english muffin covered in peanut butter :(

Then last week my cousin Angela gave me a bag of steel cut oats to try.  Steel cut oats are very similar to regular oatmeal, but whole and less processed.  This means they take your body longer to digest, therefore, keeping you fuller longer (and you know, less processing generally means healthier anyway).

Uncooked steel cut oats.  They're round, not flakes (flakes are the result of processing).

I go through oatmeal phases, but I really enjoyed the steel cut oats!  Because they are whole grain, they have a little more texture than regular oatmeal (a little chewier, less mushy) and slightly heartier in flavor.  I just mixed in a little milk and honey to mine, and it was really tasty, and kept me full for a long time.

My steel cut oats with milk, honey, and a few date pieces.

And now the clincher:  I kept my leftovers in the fridge, reheated them in the microwave with honey a couple of days later, and they were just as yummy as the first day I made them.  Convenience!!!!  Now I have no excuse.

You can get steel cut oats at the co-op.  They take about a half an hour to cook... keep an eye on them and extra water handy.  The ratio of oats to water seems to be somewhere around 1:4, but mine kept sticking to the pot (I think I had the heat too high).  Here's a recipe from Alton Brown that you may find useful: Steel Cut Oatmeal.

I'm so over English muffins.