Tips to Add Excitement to Your Morning Oatmeal

Wednesday is National Oatmeal Day! Plan to kick off the day with a large bowl of oatmeal to celebrate!  As the weather gets colder, the days get shorter, and the mornings get more brisk, this is the perfect time of year to start incorporating hot cereals like oatmeal into your daily routine.  The advantages of eating oatmeal are endless.  Aside from being a quick, easy and heart-warming breakfast of choice, it has a wide array of added health benefits.

Oatmeal is a whole grain. This means that when oatmeal is processed, the nutritious bran and germ of the grain are not stripped away. You get the entire nourishing grain which means oatmeal is full of fiber and antioxidants. The fiber found in oatmeal is known as beta-glucan, which will help keep you satisfied until lunch time and reduce food cravings as it helps reduce spikes in blood sugar. Beta-glucan is also known to reduce cholesterol.  Antioxidants come into play by reducing inflammation that can lead to obesity, cancer and heart disease.

It is important to note that many prepackaged oatmeal products have added sugar in order to add flavor.  Avoid these types and stick with plain rolled or steel cut oats. After all, you can spice up your oatmeal on your own! Here are some ideas to add excitement to your morning oatmeal:

• Add bananas and almonds or berries and raisins to your bowl of oatmeal
• Mix 1 teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa powder into the oatmeal at the halfway cooking point. Then finish cooking for a delicious way to satisfy your sweet tooth without adding sugar.
• Add diced apple, cinnamon and chopped walnuts to your oatmeal to make your own Apple Cinnamon Walnut Oatmeal.

The possibilities and combinations are endless, so have fun experimenting as we enter the colder months and welcome a warm breakfast.

Want to get more creative?  There are many recipes that involve the use of oatmeal. Here are some ideas:

• Oatmeal Banana Bread
• Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (a personal favorite of mine)
• Add oatmeal into your turkey mixture instead of bread crumbs when making a turkey loaf, turkey meatballs or turkey burgers.

There are many ways to get fancy with using oats, besides a morning bowl of oatmeal. Explore your options, try new recipes and let me know how it goes in the comments section below.

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