Morning Glory Oats

I love warm oatmeal for breakfast, and I also love Morning Glory muffins, those big ones you see in coffee shops and bakeries, just bursting with grated carrots, raisins and coconut, too. They remind me of carrot cake, but call it a muffin, and I’ll eat it for breakfast, thank you. I couldn’t believe my luck when I found this recipe that smooshes all of that together in one filling and nourishing dish. Warm creamy oatmeal crammed with all those yummy things I love in the muffin. WOW!

My new cookbook, Whole Grain Mornings, has this recipe. There are others I’m also craving, so be prepared for more goodness like what you see here….

It all starts with steel cut oats, followed by brown sugar, grated carrot, spices, raisins and coconut. The oats start with a combination of gently boiling milk and water. Add the oats! After that toss in the sugar, spices, carrots, and raisins.

The oats take about 25 minutes to cook and soften. At the same time the carrots become tender and everything blends together sending out an aroma that is cinnamon-y and dreamy. Creamy oats, that still have some “tooth” to them, soft, sweet carrots, and plump raisins; just about perfect, you’d think. But there’s more to come—add in the coconut flakes and orange zest. Don’t leave out the orange zest, it’s what seals the deal. Heaven!

I made this recipe on the weekend, when I had time for the cooking, and it makes a large enough quantity for four generous servings. What I love about it is that you can store the cooked oatmeal in the fridge and reheat it in the morning with a bit more milk to loosen it up. This is a breakfast you don’t have to feel guilty about eating because it is so nourishing and good for you.

MORNING GLORY OATS

Yield: serves 4 – 6

Ingredients:

3 cups /720 ml water**
1 cup/ 240 ml milk, plus more for serving **
1 cup/175 g steel-cut oats
1 cup/100 g grated carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
2/3 cup/90 g raisins
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3 Tbsp. light brown sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 cup/ 25 g unsweetened coconut flakes

** The important thing here is a total of 4 cups of liquid. It can be all water, or half water and half milk. I used almond milk when I made it, but I think coconut milk would be great also and further accent the coconut flavor. Be adventurous!

Directions:

In a saucepan bring the water and milk to a gentle boil. Stir in the oats, carrots, raisins, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt and return to a boil. Decrease the heat to low and partially cover. Cook the porridge until it begins to thicken, stirring once or twice, and the oats are soft yet chewy, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the coconut flakes and orange zest.

Coconut and orange zest added in to the cooked oats.

Cover and let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Serve warm with an extra bit of warmed milk if you would like.

Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container and they will keep for 5 days. Reheat by adding a few tablespoons of additional water or milk and warm on the stovetop or in the microwave, stirring well.