Every morning around 6am my alarm clock goes off. It starts quietly and gets progressively louder and more annoying if I try to fall back to sleep. I’m usually in the middle of some random dream and I think about it for a few minutes as I try to will myself back to sleep.
If my alarm clock fails to rise me, it has no choice but to resort to other methods: walking up the length of my body, kneading my stomach and chest with sharp nails (ow!), purring – inflected as if it’s a question, and shooting laser beams through my eyelids to will them open. No matter what, do not open your eyes. I repeat: Do not make eye contact with the alarm clock!!!
If you do, it’s over.
Meet my alarm clock – highly reliable with a 0.000001% fail rate.
[This is Sketchie’s “I’m HUNGRY and haven’t had breakfast yet AND I happen to hate you right now” face. I snapped this while we were away over the long weekend. Sketchie was particularly unhappy that we slept til about 7:30 that morning!! gasp]
After 5 or 10 minutes of playing dead, I give in and stumble downstairs ever so slowly as Sketchie rubs his head along the staircase railing. He has now morphed back into Happy Cat and he’s prancing along to his feeding spot.
After I feed him, he ditches me and goes back to sleep (how nice), leaving me alone until Eric gets up.
I notice the morning feels a bit chillier than usual and make my first batch of hot oatmeal in a long time. The weather is dreary and creamy peanut butter oats sound like the perfect solution!
To add a fun twist to this bowl, I partially caramelized a ripe banana in the pot before cooking the oats with a tiny bit of non-dairy butter. This was just to intensify the flavours a bit more. Then I swirled in half the peanut butter and cooked the oatmeal as normal for about 8-10 minutes.
The result is a creamy bowl of oats lightly sweetened with banana and highlighted with cinnamon, nutmeg, and a pinch of salt. It smells heavenly! On top, I added more peanut butter, a good dose of cinnamon, nuts, and a drizzle of pure maple syrup. It was just about perfect.
1 year ago: Roasted Tomato Basil Pesto
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Early Morning Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal
Yield
1 serving
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Ingredients
- 1 large very ripe banana, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp non-dairy butter or coconut oil
- 1/2 tbsp natural peanut butter
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2-1 tsp chia seed (or ground flax)
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8-1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For toppings
- heaping 1/2 tbsp peanut butter
- nuts
- cinnamon
- pure maple syrup
Directions
- In a medium-sized pot over medium heat, cook the banana and non-dairy butter or oil for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Stir in 1/2 tbsp peanut butter, and add the oats, chia, milk, spices, and a pinch of salt. Whisk well until combined.
- Bring to a low boil and then reduce heat to a simmer, stirring often for 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
- Scoop into a bowl and top with peanut butter, nuts, cinnamon, and maple syrup.
I can’t talk about Sketchie waking me up in the morning without sharing this classic Simon’s Cat video!
Your oatmeal looks perfect! I’ve been eating a lot of cold overnight oats lately, and I think it’s about time to bring back the hot oatmeal! The caramelized banana idea is brilliant! Also, that picture of Sketchie is adorable – the look on his face is priceless!
I just tried this oatmeal, and I love it! The caramelized banana adds just the right amount of sweetness. I can definitely see myself making this over and over again. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Delicious! PB and banana oatmeal is my breakfast almost every morning.
Yummy! Banana peanut butter oatmeal is one of my favorites!
This makes me want to drive to the store for bananas immediately. :) Can’t wait to try it!
I couldn’t stop looking at these photo’s. they look so unbelievably tasty!
Thanks so much for sharing these tips and your recipe x
haha yep, my cat knows food o’clock well. It sucks when we change the clocks and her internal clock stays the same.
Oh wow this looks completely delicious….This is definitely going to be my Saturday breakfast treat!
This sounds absolutely dreamy. I love the banana pb flavor combo.
This looks so delicious! Unfortunately, it’s still way too hot down here in Florida for hot oats, so it looks like I’ll be eating overnight oats for the next month or two.
Also, you’re lucky your alarm clock lets you sleep in until 6 am! Mine wakes me up at 5am if he’s feeling generous. Apparently he needs me to go show him that he does, indeed, have food in his bowl instead of going to check by himself. Silly kitty. I just wish I could stay up and do something productive instead of going back to sleep until 6:30 when my other alarm clocks (my kids) wake me up.
My cat is terrible for this. It’s worse in the summer when it’s light so early. To him daylight = time to get up even if it is 4am! I’ve started feeding him at night so that he isn’t hungry in the morning. Seems to be working so far.
You are a mind reader indeed! I almost never buy bananas, but I treated myself to bananas this week. I want to go to bed now (it’s only 4:35 pm) so that morning comes faster for me to try this recipe!
Peanut butter and banana is my favorite combination for oatmeal. Heck, it’s my favorite combination for just about anything.
All of your posts make me hungry…this one did not fail…maybe breakfast for supper???
My cat also likes to be an alarm clock. The rule in our house now is the last person to go to bed has to feed the cat. That way we might get an extra hour of sleep ;) Hope this helps…
haha love the “i hate you” face. My dog gets up in the morning and rests her chin on the bed. Without even being awake I can feel those eyes staring at me too. Usually it’s not for food tho and just some cuddles. Who can say no to cuddles??? Of course I cave and invite her up on the bed.
I had a craving for oatmeal for the first time in months the other day. The mornings here in Vancouver are getting chillier too. We’ve had some unexpected hot weather during the days lately so I’m saving my oatmeal mornings till later this month. Do you ever feel like oatmeal is too “heavy” in the mornings? I’ve found sometimes it’s gloopy and weighs me down instead of giving me energy. I like the overnight oats with the mashed banana – feels lighter.
-Michelle {LiveLoudly}
This looks so fabulous! Awesome idea!
My cat does the same exact thing, every single morning!!! Definitely don’t need an alarm clock when he’s around :)
This recipe looks amazing! I may have to make it tomorrow morning!
I love love LOVE nut butter in oatmeal. That’s my go-to breakfast in the colder months. I usually do 1 tablespoon of almond butter and a drizzle of agave, but this sounds fantastic. I’ve never thought of caramelizing a banana for oatmeal!
Oh wow, that post made me laugh.
When I first read, this I genuinely thought you were talking about a regular alarm clock, but then I read ‘purring’ and I took a second guess!
Ohh, that porridge/oatmeal sounds divine…mmm
I’ll use almond butter instead and I do want to try and perfect caramelised bananas!
thanks for this recipe, yum
This sounds soooo delicious! Unfortunately, it’s still hot in Italy, so I will still stick to cold oats. Can’t wait till the weather is a bit more chilly, I love autumn.
I need a Sketchie too! Morning is a struggle with a mobile alarm, all those snooze options… *sigh*
Peanut butter and banana makes an amazing sandwich (my favourite in fact!) definitely need to try this though, I think I will for breakfast tomorrow as I have everything I need already :D Love the extra cat details too :)