Tag Archives: apples

Morning Glory Oatmeal

You guys, the worst thing ever happened. I came up with this amazing idea for a baked oatmeal, only to discover that somebody else beat me to it by a matter of days. Days!! Bummer. I literally said to my mother, “I have this idea for oatmeal using zucchini, carrots, and apple,” and two hours later, I stumbled on Oatgasm’s post on Foodgawker. I was distraught!

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On the other hand, I was able to use Oatgasm’s recipe to help create my own version, especially when it came to the spices. I’ve never personally experienced a Morning Glory Muffin, so I appreciated the assistance. However, I did do some tweaking to meet my preferences (like how I never have applesauce on hand). And, since Oatgasm mastered the baked version, I decided to bring you the stove-top version. Want it baked? Go to her. Want it on the stove? I gotcha covered.
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Fruit Salad Oatmeal

I must admit that I enjoy being a vegetarian. In the beginning, I struggled with feeling misplaced or left out, but once it fused into part of my identity, I embraced all of its challenges. Limited options on menus means I’ll be less overwhelmed (I’m very indecisive) and more likely to try something new (like eggplant!). Potlucks become a scavenger hunt and careful investigation to discover the meatless dishes on a long table of bacon and ground beef. Thanksgiving and Easter turn into challenging games I like to call “How to Make a Meal Out of Side Dishes.”

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Potlucks, especially in Small Town, South Dakota, generally offer less than three vegetarian options (one of which is a basket of dinner rolls). The scalloped potatoes will always include diced ham. The quiche will always have bacon.

But there will always be fruit. Sometimes these fruits are in their raw form: a giant bowl of cubed watermelon or clusters of purple grapes. Other times, they’re mixed together in one bowl: berries and melons and grapes! Sometimes, they’re mixed together in a tasting “dressing,” like honey mint or lemon poppy seed or coconut lime.

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Applesauce Oatmeal

Chances are, you’ve had applesauce oatmeal before. If you’re like me, you thought you were being super creative that first time you dumped some applesauce in your unflavored stove-top oatmeal. It was definitely one of the first flavors I tried. However, amid all the other flavors I was trying (lemon poppy seed, banana bread, carrot cake), applesauce oatmeal was quickly forgotten.

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Well, I’m bringing it back. Applesauce Oatmeal is incredibly versatile. It can be a recipe you turn to when you’re lacking almost everything else, and you throw some oatmeal together with three ingredients: oats, water or milk, and applesauce. (more…)


Salted Maple, Apple, and Pecan Oatmeal

I hope everyone had an excellent 4th of July. It’s definitely not my favorite holiday, but I had a pleasant camping trip with my parents. Yes, I’m back in the Midwest for a few weeks before starting another school year in Manhattan!

I know many of my readers are from outside the U.S. (hello!), but I hope your July 4th was nice, too. ^_^ If not, I have the perfect recipe to make your week better:

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Apples. Pecans. Maple syrup.

And it’s SALTED!

I originally came up with the idea for salted maple and pecan oatmeal, but at the last minute I decided to include apples, and I’m glad that I did. It added an extra sweetness and boost of nutrition.
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Apple Spice Oatcakes for One

One of my favorite parts of New York City is its glorious abundance of farmers markets. Access to local and fresh produce ranges from tiny little stands on the street to mega-markets like the Union Square Greenmarket. That’s where I found myself last weekend, just before the vendors started packing up and going home for the day.

Obviously I was smitten by the organic leafy greens and the fresh baked bread, but this market had so much more. There was hard cider. And wine. And vegan pies.

And my favorite: jams, jellies, and other jarred goods. I always seek these out at big farmers markets. I consider myself a collector of artisan fruit spreads. It fits nicely with my PB&J sandwich obsession (not to mention my oatmeal addiction…). Beth’s Farm Kitchen uses local ingredients to make some phenomenal jams, fruit butters, marmalades, chutneys, and pickled veggies. My purchase? No-sugar-added apple butter. And no, that does not mean they used Splenda, and no, that does not mean they sweetened it with “white grape juice concentrate.” It means they took a fruit. Added spices. Cooked it down to a butter. No sweeteners necessary.

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. . . So I made pancakes! Now, of course, any apple butter will do. In fact, if you do not have apple butter, you can use applesauce instead, and then spice the pancakes yourself. However, the apple butter creates a convenient recipe because the spices are already included in the product!

As you can see, I made tiny little silver dollar pancakes. How precious are they? I will stick to the silver dollar size from now on. It was much more fun to eat a tower of mini pancakes than a short stack of fat ones. 🙂
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Stewed Apple Oatmeal…and my blog’s 1st birthday!

Good morning, everybody! One year ago today, I announced on my other blog, Books and Broccoli that I had officially created a blog to host all my oatmeal recipes!

If you look at my recipe archive on this site, they actually go back to December of 2011. These are posts I created on “Books and Broccoli” and transferred over when I created the new site. However, the true birthday of “The Oatmeal Artist” happened on April 15th, 2012. My first post was my beloved Almond Joy Oatmeal, which didn’t get posted until the 21st because it was delayed due to my first kidney stone.

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For months, I was thrilled by mild success on Pinterest and Finding Vegan. Getting a comment a few times a month was so exciting! Today, a year later, I’m stunned by my blog’s audience. Each day, I average between 1,500 – 2,500 page views…even when there’s no new post that day! I have 1,700 followers on Pinterest who enthusiastically repin my recipes dozens of times every day. I get at least ten comments a week.

Of course, this is considered pathetic by some blog’s standards (I’m no Smitten Kitchen or Chocolate-Covered Katie), but it still saturates me with pride. It would not be a stretch to say this blog is one of my biggest accomplishments and favorite projects. What you guys need to understand is that I am a “starter.” I “start” projects, and then abandon them two weeks later. This blog continuously rewards me with satisfaction. Three things motivate me: my desire to eat oatmeal 24/7, my competitive nature (I will be the greatest oatmeal blogger OF ALL TIME!), and your wonderful comments! Compared to the aforementioned bloggers, 10 comments a week may be a small amount, but I treasure each of them as if they were each a $50 bill. The comments are easily my favorite part. Please, my lovely readers, keep commenting!

Well, readers, what’s next? I’m happy to let you know that I’m not running out of ideas yet. I still have “The List” on my iPod, and it gets longer every week. I have dozens of ideas for regular stove-top oatmeal, baked oatmeal, toppings for oatmeal, baked goods, overnight oatmeal, and savory oatmeal, and I even have a restaurant review coming your way soon! One year old, still going strong.
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Fruit & Maple Oatmeal

I had to do something very, very painful to create this recipe: go on the McDonald’s website. Of course, this was much less painful than actually going to their store and purchasing something, but the thought of giving more traffic to this company’s website pained me slightly.

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I understand there are people who are okay with McDonald’s (and fast food in general) in moderation. I am not opposed to all fast food by any means, but I loathe crappy chain fast food joints (McDonald’s, BK, Wendy’s, Taco Bell, etc.) and refuse to support them. I gave up McDonald’s first, and I haven’t been inside one since the summer of 2010.

As a result, I’ve never experienced their Fruit and Maple Oatmeal, and I have no intentions of ever doing so. However, it seemed like a good combination of flavors, and I figured there may be some people out there who would like a copycat recipe. It’s a little annoying because it requires both green and red apples, but you could ignore that and just use one kind of apple. Your secret is safe with me. 🙂
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Snickers Salad Oatmeal

If you do not reign from the Midwest region of the United States, you will be baffled by the name of this oatmeal. You will be even more confused as you look at the ingredients. Of course, the recipe for Snickers Salad has recently popped up around Pinterest, but for the most part, this piece of classic Midwestern cuisine is foreign to everyone in the remaining 45 states.

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Let me break this down for you: Snickers Salad consists of chopped apples, chopped Snickers bars, mini marshmallows, and Cool Whip. Yes, you read that correctly. Take a second; read it again. Yep.

That’s Snickers Salad.
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Apple Cider Reduction Sauce

Want to appear super impressive with little work? Top your oatmeal with THIS:

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I always thought that any recipe with the word “reduction” automatically sounds gourmet and fancy. I’ve never actually made any sort of reduction before, so that’s probably why I thought it was so complicated! As it turns out, this was one of the easiest (but time-consuming) things I’ve ever done.

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Cran-Apple Oatmeal

Growing up, my elementary school was across from my grandmother’s apartment. On days when it was too cold to walk home, I would go to her apartment until my mom could pick me up after work. She’d always make me a snack, but it’d be something simple like peanut butter spread on saltine crackers. It sounds dull, but I loved it.

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Along with the snack, she’d also have juice for me. I always thought her juice selections were strange and “grandma-ish,” like cranberry or cran-apple. For some reason, though, drinking it at my grandma’s house while I watched Arthur on PBS made it seem special, even if it wasn’t my favorite.
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