Good, Better, Best Breakfast

Q: i eat instant oatmeal, of the natural variety, nature's path or something,
at work every day for breakfast or lunch. 2 packets, maple and brown sugar.

is that bad?

Sarah

A: It's not bad. But you could be doing so much better. wanna do better? If so,
keep reading.

Picture a helpless but vital oat plant. Chop it up (steel cut oats), roll it, smash it, cut it up (rolled oats or slow oats), cut it up again (quick oats) and cut it up again (instant oats). Instant oats are the result of a big machine chewing up your breakfast for you and spitting it out so that you can then hydrate it with water. That's why at this point it looks a lot like vomit.

Slow oats have so much more going for them. I highly recommend you try
these. This may be difficult in your work environs because you need
more time. Ideally, you cook slow oats on a stove top for a few
minutes, add some soy milk for creaminess, maybe throw in some raisins
and cinnamon. Vanilla soy makes it sweeter. But if you need it really
sweet, try adding real maple syrup or agave nectar.

Up for a bigger challenge? Try steel cut oats. Add flax meal. Add
walnuts. Apples. Make it a party.

Now, even though you are supposed to cook these on a stove, I have to
admit, I pour boiling hot water into mine at work, cover the bowl with
a plate and wait a few. It's not going to be total mush like fast
oats ('cause there is lots of unmasticated fiber!!!), so it may take getting used to. But this is a
much more wholesome thing to be eating for breakfast with only a tad
more effort that eventually becomes second nature.

Yes, I keep all these crazy things in my desk drawer or work fridge: soy
milk, flax meal, raisins, cinnamon, and steel cut oats.

Comments

[David]

Dear Susan,

What are Omega-9s? Are they important? Are they in Granola?

[Lisa]

I eat the same thing every morning: slow oats plus flax meal and raisins with a ton of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger. I pour a little water in and put it in the microwave for 1 minute, then add a little vanilla soymilk. Delish! But the best part is, I mix up 5 servings ahead of time on Sunday evening every week and put that in a container in the fridge at work, so making my breakfast is almost as fast as opening an envelope!