BREAKFAST: Oatmeal

I used to hate oatmeal. It was soupy and mushy and all those adjectives that make your nose wrinkle when you read them. When I ate my mom's oatmeal, it was usually completely sugar-less and bland. Hence, all those adjectives that make your nose wrinkle when you read them.

To combat the woe of the lackluster and tasteless oatmeal, here's a recipe I adapted from Pick Up Limes (the original is here). As an added bonus, there are no added sugars! Note: The original uses steel cut oats, and I only had rolled oats at home, so that's what I used. However, steel cuts are better because they have an extra layer of fiber on the outside.

Ingredients

• 1 cup rolled oats

• 1 cup water

• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

• 1 banana (either frozen or fresh), diced

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• 1/8 tsp pumpkin pie spice or all spice

• 1/8 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 tbsp chia seeds (or ground flax seeds)

Equipment

• Pot **Do not burn the pot. I burned the pot and was scolded :(**

Instructions

1. Add the oats, water, almond milk, cinnamon, and spices to a pot on high heat until it boils, which should take around five minutes. (Stir often! This is where I burned the pot.)

2. Reduce to medium heat and add the chia seeds, banana, and vanilla extract. Stir to combine. Cook until the bananas soften and all ingredients are incorporated. Note: the porridge will thicken as the chia seeds gel, so add more water or milk as you see fit.

3. Add toppings! Add whatever you want...nut butters/jams, fruit (dried, frozen, or fresh), nuts/seeds, yogurt, or chocolate.