Wholesome, easy, inexpensive, delicious and stick-to-your-ribs (thankfully not your thighs), this Autumn Oatmeal is my favorite chilly-dreary-day breakfast. Okay, I can't exactly say this is an earth shattering recipe, BUT I've had several requests for it recently, so I thought I'd share with you gorgeous people.
Ingredients:
1/2 c. Plain Quick Oats
1 c. Water (you can use milk if you prefer)
1/2 Apple, chopped into small cubes
1 - 1.5 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/4 c. Raisins
1/4 c. Dried Cranberries
1/4 c. Slivered Almonds or chopped pecans (optional)
Brown Sugar (optional)
Deliciosuity in the Making:
1. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine oats, 1/4 of the apple, and pumpkin pie spice. Stir til combined. Add water and stir.
2. **Cover with a paper towel, and heat in the microwave 1.5 - 2 minutes.
3. Remove with care, the bowl will be very hot.
4. Stir in the remaining apple, raisins, cranberries and nuts. Add brown sugar if desired (I prefer it without).
That's pretty much it! Add a glass of cold skim milk (or white water, as my husband likes to call it) and, in less than five minutes, you have a filling, well-rounded breakfast that's high in fiber and nutrients and low in processed sugar.
**Note: To reduce the calories by half, forget to cover the bowl while it's heating in the microwave. Like magic, half of the calories (and by calories, of course, I mean oatmeal) has now cemented itself to your turntable. Now you can burn up the rest of the calories by spending an hour scrubbing the inside of your microwave. Not that I've done this before...
