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Wednesday, May 7, 2014

How-To: Growing Oat Bran Bowl. You'll be full for hours!


I'm usually an oatmeal girl for breakfast, but this past week I discovered a trick that turns 1/3 cup of oat bran into a massive bowl of deliciousness. I'm currently at my parents house in Virginia and they live close to a Trader Joe's. I must really like Trader Joe's because I somehow ended up going the first three days in a row we were here.

The second day I was there, I was buying my groceries and in true, friendly Trader Joe's fashion, the cashier struck up a conversation with me and asked me if I had ever eaten oat bran. She then went on to tell me that if I added double the liquid that is recommended on the packaging, my oat bran will keep growing and growing and will become an amazing, stick-to-your-bones bowl of oats. Of course I had to try it first thing when I got home. Sure enough 1/3 cup of this stuff makes a huge bowl! So if you're looking for a breakfast that will keep you full for hours, try this out!


I figured I'd share the recipe with you considering it's what I ate this Wednesday morning.

For breakfast this morning I made my oat bran with chia seeds, mixed in some cinnamon and topped it with almond butter. Delicious!


Growing Oat Bran Bowl

Ingredients:
  • 1/3 cup oat bran
  • 2 cups water (or liquid of choice)
  • Optional add-ins: chia seeds, whipped banana, flax seed, etc.
  • Optional toppings: Cinnamon, nut butter, granola, etc.
Directions:
  1. In a medium-sized sauce pan over medium-high heat, stir together the 1/3 cup oat bran and 2 cups water.
  2. Let the oat bran cook while stirring often until the mixture starts to thicken. When you first start cooking the oat bran you probably won't be able to see it because of the large amount of water, but as it thickens the oat bran will begin bubbling to the top.
  3. Reduce the heat to medium once the oat bran starts to thicken and add in your mix-ins if using. 
  4. Continue to stir frequently until all the water is absorbed and you have a large pot of oat bran.
  5. Pour into a bowl, stir in some cinnamon and top with your favorite toppings!
Step-by step pictures:


Start with 1/3 cup of oat bran.


Combine 1/3 cup oat bran with 2 cups liquid in a medium-sized sauce pan.

Heat the oat bran over medium-high heat while stirring occasionally.

Once the oat bran begins to thicken, add in your mix-ins and reduce the heat to medium.

Keep stirring until the water is all absorbed.

Pour your oat bran into a bowl and top with your favorite toppings!


What breakfast keeps you full the longest?

Check out Jenn's Blog Peas and Crayons for other recipe ideas!

Eat Consciously,

Faith



4 comments:

  1. Yes to oat bran! Everybody is all about the oatmeal but oat bran beats it. It's probably my favourite grain ever and I've been eating it every day for years. Stirring in caramelized banana makes it extra fluffy and sweet.
    On a non-food sidenote it makes me happy to see some wire whisk action because I recently posted about them on my blog and nobody else seemed to use them. Aren't they key to perfect oats??

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    1. Caramelized banana + oat bran! Sounds awesome. I'll have to try it. And yes, wire whisks are awesome and let me whipping in my bananas perfectly:) I'm so glad I finally found out about oat bran!

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  2. I love making voluminous oats! I usually just increase the water to 2 or 2 1/2 cups (for two servings) because I'm in a rush, but it's so fun to see how much you can make :) Chia seeds are great for thickening it up too-- for me they are not optional. Lol. I've never tried oat bran because we can't find it around us, but I'll have to look into it because I usually make my parents some fancy bowls of oatmeal over the weekend when I'm home.

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    Replies
    1. I agree on the chia seeds! They make everything better:) And i love that you make fancy bowls of oatmeal. It's such a simple ingredients, but you can really spice it up so easily!

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Thanks for commenting! I always love hearing from my readers!