Too Busy for Breakfast? Cherry Almond Granola Bars

There’s nothing better than a hearty bowl of oatmeal on a winter morning. But, sometimes our schedules just won’t allow it. That’s where these delicious chewy granola bars come in.

These filling bars are packed with hearty goodness, like buttery oats, almonds and dried fruit, and they don’t contain any of the preservatives found in store-bought varieties. And, while they're not cloyingly sweet like some granola bars, honey and a bit of brown sugar provides a nice balanced sweetness alongside unsweetened dried cherries.

We love this recipe since it's highly customizable. 

Love a little chocolate for breakfast?  Make peanut butter and dark chocolate chip granola bars with pecans.

Try peanut or cashew butter instead of almond butter. Sub out the flax seeds for sunflower seeds. Add raisins, dried pineapple, coconut... the sky is the limit. Just keep the proportion of dry to wet ingredients the same and you're all set.

Best of all, they come together quickly, so you can devote your time to other, more important tasks... like making your morning coffee. 

Cherry Almond Granola Bars

There are more great recipes where this one came from! We created this dish as part of our work with the Go Bold with Butter blog, where you'll find an amazing collection of delicious recipes using real butter.

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Spirited Spiced Pumpkin Oatmeal

Peef is generally in charge of breakfast at our house. He makes a pretty mean pancake, loves bacon, and knows his way around a pot of oatmeal. So, he can generally pull off a pretty good morning meal.

But, some mornings he pulls out all the stops. This past Saturday was one of those days.

I was sitting in the other room pulling together an article for OnMilwaukee.com and Paul was shuffling around in the kitchen.

I heard the clatter of a few dishes, the rubbery vaccuum sound of the refrigerator door, and the metallic tinging of spoon against stainless steel saucepan.

It wouldn't have been difficult to guess that he was making oatmeal. But, without a drop of milk in the house, I wasn't exactly sure how he was going about it.

Turns out he was getting creative with the quart of Sassy Cow Pumpkin Spice eggnog we bought at the co-op the other day (we have this inane compulsion with eggnog that means we buy it from the very first moment we see it available in the store until the mysterious moment in January when it disappears).

But, I didn't know that until he brought me a bowl of the most ultra-creamy deliciously spicy oatmeal I've ever eaten.  On top of everything, he'd finished it off with a glug of pumpkin spirits from our own local Great Lakes Distillery.

Some people drink bloody Marys in the morning... we just eat spiked oatmeal ;)

In case you can't find the Sassy Cow Pumpkin eggnog where you live, here's a version of the recipe using a bit of pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spices. And yes, it's just as good.

Spirited Spiced Pumpkin Oatmeal

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Browned Butter Oatmeal with Bananas

  At our house, weekday breakfast generally consists of a smoothie made from yogurt and fruit. We seldom have time to linger over our coffee, engage in polite conversation, or spend time cooking up morning treats.  So, we take our smoothies to go in stainless mugs.  And most of the time we pick up our coffee at the office.

But, things are different on the weekend.  At our humble abode, weekend mornings are slow and somewhat lazy.  They are days when we have time to enjoy long walks around the dewy neighborhood, piping hot cups of cabin coffee, fat newspapers, and deliciously indulgent breakfasts.  Sometimes that means sitting down to a full plate of eggs, sausages and toast. Other times, it means enjoying something as simple as a steeping hot bowl of deliciously filling oatmeal. 

This oatmeal is ideal for just that sort of weekend morning – when you have a bit of time to let the oatmeal cook while you spend your time putting on a pot of coffee and watching butter turn from a delicious golden to a nutty brown.  

You’ll love the way the sweetness of the bananas play off of the nutty oats and complement the deep caramel tones of browned butter and brown sugar.  It’s the sort of breakfast that brings together the heartiness of stick-to-your-ribs grains with a subtle sweetness that makes breakfast feel like a treat.  

And, on the weekend, what more can you really ask for?

Browned Butter Oatmeal with Bananas


You can find this recipe, along with plenty of other mouthwatering dishes, on GoBoldWithButter.com  Seriously -- you should check it out.  So. Much. Good. Food. 

©BURP! Where Food Happens

Spiced Apple Oatmeal: Autumn in a Dish

I'm sitting inside, snuggled on the couch with a cup of Rishi peach oolong tea (which is delicious, in case you were wondering).  And I've just finished one of my favorite autumnal breakfasts, a steaming hot bowl of spiced apple oatmeal.

It's a simple porridge. But, it's warm and hearty and redolent with all the flavors that exemplify the beginnings of autumn.  Spicy ginger and warming cinnamon. A splash of vanilla and a quick grate of nutmeg.  And a pinch of salt to bring everything together. On top of everything, oatmeal is seriously good for you.  But, that's neither here nor there.  It's delicious.  And, on a brisk morning like today, there's really nothing better than a steaming bowl of oatmeal.  Especially when Peef is the one in the kitchen, cooking it up.

But, there are a few tricks to making that perfect bowl of oatmeal. Here's what we like to do.

1. It helps to start with a good quality whole grain oatmeal (not instant or quick-cooking).  Personally, I love both the texture of steel cut oats and the creamy texture you get from rolled oats.  So, I like to use a mixture of the two. 
2. Use milk for cooking the oatmeal.  This gives your breakfast more protein, as well as a richer flavor and a super creamy texture.  For two servings, we like to use 1 cup of whole milk and 1/2 cup of water.
3. Add fruit!  In this case, we added crisp apples.  But, just about any fruit will work.  Try dried fruits like raisins, cranberries, cherries, or pineapple.  Or add fresh fruit like peaches or blueberries toward the end of cooking.
4. If you'd like a little textural crunch, try adding a handful of chopped nuts. Walnuts are a particular nutritional powerhouse, but almonds offer additional calcium and an amazing sweet  nuttiness.   A dollop of peanut or almond butter is also delicious.
5. You can microwave your oatmeal... but trust me when I say that it's really better when cooked the old-fashioned way, right on the stovetop.  To cut down on the cooking time, soak the oats in water overnight by bringing the water to a boil, turning off the heat, and adding the oats. Cover the pot and let sit over night. The next morning, reheat the oatmeal  on low heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally.

 And there you have it:  the perfect bowl of oatmeal. Not too watery, not too thick... and it will make your entire house smell like you've been baking an apple pie.


Peef's Spiced Apple Oatmeal


©BURP! Where Food Happens

Fight Back Fridays: Double Ginger Granola Repast

In celebration of Fight Back Fridays (a great event sponsored by Food Renegade), I wanted to repost one of my recent favorites: Double Ginger Granola.

Not only is this hippie food AWESOME for you, but it's a fine example of how making your own breakfast cereal can save you money and contribute to your good health!
Granola is awesome because you can customize the flavors to your own liking. Add as much fruit as you like. Like nuts? Add those. Wanna change it up a bit? Throw in some carob chips! Or cocoa nibs!

This particular granola is a celebration of all things ginger -- with a few cranberries and some cocoa nibs thrown in for good measure. Read the full post, which contains all sorts of fun facts, here: Granola. Real food for real people :)

I'm sneaking this post in at the last minute (past the deadline, really) because I believe in this event. It gets great people together for a great cause -- to spread the word about real food!

If you haven't already, I'd like to invite YOU to participate in Fight Back Fridays -- a celebration of real food. It’s your standard blog carnival, but it’s all about being Food Renegades. Who are the Food Renegades? Well, they’re the adventurous ones — the people who opt out of the industrialized food system, distrust standard nutritional advice, and embrace Real Food.
Read the Guidelines HERE.


©BURP! Where Food Happens

Spiced Cranberry Oatmeal with Cocoa Nibs

There's nothing better on a cold winter morning than a hearty bowl of steaming hot oatmeal to fill up your empty belly. But, really. Plain old oatmeal just gets boring after a while. So, we like to mix it up a bit.

Usually, it's just a matter of adding a bit of dried fruit and maybe a pinch of cinnamon. But, this time, we pulled out the big guns.

Remember the mornings when your mom mixed a little special something into your morning bowl of hot cereal? In my case, the favorite was Malt-O-Meal with a dash of cocoa powder... mmm, that chocolate goodness. Perfect way to fool me into thinking she was feeding me dessert for breakfast.

Well, this oatmeal is a little bit like that. We added a stick of cinnamon, a few cardamom pods, some dried cranberries, and a nice handful of cocoa nibs.

Yeah -- cocoa nibs. One of my favorite new toys.
They're only slightly less addictive than crack. They up the chocolate quotient in chocolate chip cookies... and provide a pleasant crunch in that unsuspecting handful of healthy homemade granola. And, in this case, they ramp oatmeal way up to VIC status (that's Very Important Cereal, if you must know).

Creamy & spicy...
Tart, yet sweet...
With a hint of chocolate.

This oatmeal is definitely the adult version of the classic. I recommend giving it a try.

Spiced Cranberry Oatmeal with Cocoa Nibs

Oh -- and if you're intrigued, but you can't seem to find cocoa nibs in your area, they're available for ordering online through one of my favorite sources for high quality spices, The Spice House. And, if you happen to be into trivia, Patty Erd, one of the co-owners of the Spice House, just so happens to be the daughter of spice Mogul, Mr. Penzey himself, who sold the family business to her before he retired. So, she knows a little bit about the spice business.


©BURP! Where Food Happens