There’s a chill in the air.
Actually, that’s a lie because it’s quite warm outside as I write this post. I’m in a tank top and shorts right now! Hardly Fall temperatures, but then again it’s still summer for another week.
However, tomorrow morning is supposed to be a classic Fall morning- crisp, 8C, sunny, and full with promise. The promise of hot oatmeal. Cinnamon. Maybe stinky fuzzy slippers. That’s a perfect Fall morning to me.
I’ve been on a huge hot oatmeal kick these days. The other morning, I was busy working on a mushroom recipe challenge and Eric graciously offered to make me some oatmeal for breakfast. In other words, I begged him until he finally gave in. I love when men just offer to make things out of the blue like that, don’t you? ;)
I may have uttered the words, “I’m going to waste away to nothing” in a moment of desperation.
“Ok, but don’t blame me if it doesn’t taste good…” he said, slinking off to the kitchen with my Apple Pie Oatmeal recipe clutched in his hand. It wasn’t looking good.
And you know what?
The oatmeal didn’t taste good either.
It tasted like the best damn bowl of oatmeal I’ve ever had!!
Why does it always taste better when someone else makes it? Seriously, I need to know. He also sprinkled it with crunchy Sucanat which was genius. Or maybe he sprinkled it with pixy love dust! Needless to say, I gushed so much about this bowl of oatmeal Eric had a grin on his face the entire morning. He has now conquered his oatmeal-making fears. It was a win-win all around.
In honour of chilly mornings, here are my 5 favourite hot oatmeal recipes of all time. (in this case, “all-time” isn’t that long considering I used to hate hot oatmeal until 2010, but let’s just go with it.)
5) Comforting Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal
This pumpkin oatmeal is like a warm hug on a cold morning. Or maybe I’m just lonely. Infused with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and vanilla extract, it’s like eating a slice of warm pumpkin pie in oatmeal form. I love topping it with a teaspoon of Earth Balance, pecans, and a drizzle of almond milk.
4) Sweet Potato Oatmeal Breakfast Casserole
Last Winter, I was craving my favourite sweet potato casserole in a major way. The only snag? It was 7:15am. I looked at the sweet potato, it looked at me…I looked at it again. And I turned that craving into a delicious weekend breakfast.
A sneaky way to get a serving of vegetables in your morning oatmeal. You can’t taste the zucchini, but it does a lovely job of bulking up this voluminous bowl of oatmeal.
Even better when someone else makes it for you! It’s ok to beg sometimes.
and my favourite bowl of hot oatmeal goes to…
This one is for all the carrot cake fans out there! Creamy, crunchy, chewy, and sweet, this recipe packs in a full cup of carrots and a handful of healthy ingredients that will keep you feeling full for hours. It is quite a large portion, so I place the leftovers into the fridge and enjoy it as a snack the next day (it’s good cold too!).
Strapped for time?
For an ‘instant’ bowl of hot oatmeal, just mix up a batch of Vegan Overnight Oats before bed and place it in the fridge. In the morning, heat it in the microwave for 60-90 seconds, add your toppings/sweetener, and go! No stove-top cooking required.
The overnight soaking softens and thickens the oats, similar to cooking, meaning that you don’t need to stir over a stove-top for 10 minutes. The consistency won’t be as creamy as it would be cooked on a stove-top, but it’s still a good substitute in a pinch. If you don’t want to use the microwave, you can just reheat it for a couple minutes on the stove-top too.
And if it’s still too warm where you are to enjoy a hot bowl of oats, you can try one of my 12 Vegan Overnight Oats recipes which are great on warmer mornings.
What are your favourite things to mix into oatmeal? What flavour of oatmeal should I make next?
All these oatmeal recipes just look amazing! I want to try your apple pie oatmeal. I stocked up on apples yesterday and I think apple pie oatmeal would be the perfect way to use them! Here in Minnesota we are having chilly mornings, perfect for oatmeal! I made a batch over baked oatmeal which I have been enjoying on these chilly mornings!
I’ve recently made a chocolate banana oatmeal flavor, using banana as the base instead of water or milk. I used cocoa powder and some vanilla extract and it was ah-mazing.
that sounds great!
My favorite meal of the day and when theres awesome recipes like yours it’s like dessert too!
Yes Banana Banana Banana! If they are still yellow then I slice it in but I prefer them over ripe and I just mush it all up! I top it with nutmeg and some maple syrup. I dont know why the nutmeg works I was just craving it on top one morning and now I cant stop!!!
Sabs.
Pumpkin oatmeal is my favorite! I like overnight oats better than cooked oats though so maybe I should expand my repertoire by trying some of your hot oatmeal recipes- that carrot cake one looks divine!
I prefer overnight oats too for some reason! I find those 5 hot oats I can get excited about though!
Mmmm those apple pie oats are literally calling out to me!! It won’t get cold here for another couple of months but I am already eagerly anticipating cozying up with my morning bowl of hot oats! :) YUM!
I think I’ve had ever possible oatmeal combination. It’s my favorite meal. Lately I’ve been loving dark chocolate oatmeal and raspberries and cream. The “cream” is mixing some yogurt in at the end. It’s to die for.
That sounds like a killer combo :) mmm. Maybe coconut milk or cream would work too.
I’ve been enjoying your VOO and these hot oatmeal recipes will be awesome now that the seasons are changing. Some ideas for new oatmeal that you might want to try (‘cuz you’re a culinary genius): blueberry pie, coffee cake, or a banana nut bread!
Love those ideas…especially coffee cake! lol
Angela, I’ve been looking for new ideas for my oatmeal, I’m so glad I stopped by. Somehow I knew you would have just the thing!
Thanks :-)
Heh, I’ve been burned out on oats for awhile, but this is making my tummy grumble.
Since you like basing oatmeal off pies, here’s another few you might want to consider playing with some day:
– Rhubarb pie (sweet and tart, nom!)
– Boston Cream Pie
– An oatmeal version of that amaaaaazing pumpkin pie brownie thing you made. I made the pie for Thanksgiving and everyone loved it. Would love to get a glimpse of it at breakfast without all the “desserty” effects.
Soooo creative, I love your ideas!
I can’t wait to try the Apple Pie Oatmeal! My sister and I were actually talking about oatmeal last night.. how it’s getting cooler out and that I can’t wait to start eating it again. I don’t know what but the thought of eating a bowl of oatmeal in the summer time makes my stomach turn.
One of these mornings (maybe even tomorrow), I’ll be cracking open a can of pumpkin for pumpkin pie oats! Autumn is here! :D
And that spoon is absolutely beautiful, by the by! <3
What about a key lime oatmeal? I LOVEEEEE key lime pie…if only it were HEALTHY! Wink wink, nudge nudge!:)
I love key lime, but I never would have thought to make it into a bowl of oats! Now I’m thinking tropical like pineapple & lime…coconut milk? That would be good I bet.
YUM!!! That sounds delicious!!!!
Omigosh, I read the zucchini bread recipe and just had to rush out this morning to get the ingredients! Wow – sooooo good! I had to omit some things to meet my caloric needs (brown sugar, milk, and butter) but it was still delicious. Green is not a color I generally see in my oatmeal, but I think it’s about to become a regular occurrence ;)
heh glad you liked it!
I love the zucchini bread oatmeal – what a great way to get in more veggies – having that tomorrow for sure!
I can’t wait to make apple pie oatmeal :) it looks so delicious! You should try to make a Elvis inspired batch of oats with banana and peanut butter!
I am going to agree, all 5 of them can’t be beat! Oatmeal on Steroids right!
New flavor…”White chocolate?”
:) :) :)
That is so sweet your hubby made oats for you! EVERYTHING tastes better when someone else makes it. And does the dishes afterwards.
So far I have tried your apple pie oats (a staple in my house, it even got my 3 year old and 5 year old to eat oats!), pumpkin pie, and carrot cake. They are all divine. I work nights and it is very tempting to come home in the mornings and pig out on junk food. But I make overnight oats before I go to work at night and come home to a delicious bowl of oats! I rarely have coconut milk handy, is there a good substitute for it in the carrot cake oats?
You can really use any non-dairy milk that you like (if that’s what you use). It will still turn out, but maybe not as creamy as the coconut milk version. You may have to reduce the liquid amount too.
Glad the oatmeal recipes are enjoyed!
Great! My son is in high school now and he has to wake up pretty early to get out the door on time. This often results in him eating school breakfasts unbeknownst to me. ugh. He’s not an oatmeal eater but with these recipes I think I can make him a believer. :-) We will go with the overnight oats so that they’re prepared beforehand for him to heat up in the morning. Thanks!
Just this morning I was looking for hot oatmeal ideas for breakfast! What perfect timing. I can’t wait to try the apple pie oatmeal! Thank you!