Oatmeal in the Morning!

Master and I have decided that we are not getting any younger, and that we must get better.  Therefore as a step in thew right direction we have decided to employ a regular breakfast.  Gone are the days of skipping breakfast or substituting some sugary, fatty snack of empty calories and void of any real nutrition.  Swap in good choices like oatmeal, eggs or pancakes.

Oatmeal has never been my favorite.  I grew up with stiff porridge in a pot that one scooped out as glob and mashed it with white sugar and thinned out with whole farm milk.  I disliked it. . hated it even!  But that was all there was.  Now I needed to take another look.  I tried the commercially packaged products and was disgusted by all the preservatives and sodium.  I wanted to find better.

My teeth are not what they once were. . . the years have worn them down and they are more prone to breaking and chipping than ever.  The carrots and almonds I once popped into my mouth without thought now have become a careful navigation to make sure that the objects pass successfully into the esophagus without parts of tooth embedded.

So now I am working on ways to enjoy the taste and benefits of almonds and nuts, without the need to endanger my smile.  I grind them in  a food processor until they are a meal texture.  They could continue to grind until the oils are drawn out and it would become an almond paste. I stop the almonds just before that and add other softer nuts, like walnuts, pecans, and cashews with brown sugar and cinnamon.  I churn up a big batch and store extra in the freezer and of course I keep what we use in the fridge.

If you wish to try here is the "non-exact" methodology!

Sweet Cinnamon Nut Mix

1 lb package raw Almonds
Process until a fine meal
add 1/4 lb of pecans, or walnuts (or a bit of both)
a cup of pecans, or peanuts.
1,1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 Tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 cup cold milled flax
Process until completely mixed.

Store in containers suitable for fridge and freezer.

To Use

scoop 1/3 cup oatmeal into a cereal bowl
add 2 heaping spoons of nut mix, or to taste
add soy milk Plain or vanilla
cook in microwave 2.30 to 3 minutes on high. . .you want to watch this as when it begins to cook it expands! all over the microwave.  All microwaves are a bit different so you may need a longer/shorter cook time.

When the dish begins to rise leave it until it just wants to come up over and rescue it.  Stir it up and let it cool a little, it will thicken, and enjoy.  You can adjust how thick it becomes with added soy milk.

We are on a path and open to new ideas and will be posting on more and diverse ways to improve our health.  We welcome additional comments and suggestions, and will embark on a series of this topic.

regards,
Serafina