Oatmeal Complete

First off, apologies for the grainy, dark, generally lame photo on the right here. It was shot at night in my dimly lit kitchen, on my phone. So...yeah. I'll replace that with a better shot the next time I buy a box of Oatmeal Complete---probably next weekend.
Uninspiring photography aside, who loves a warm, hearty, thick bowl of not-too-sweet instant oatmeal on a weekday morning? I do! And so does my three-year-old son, Hunter, who occasionally throws back three bowls of oatmeal (one at breakfast, one for a snack, and one at lunch) in one day, which is fine by me. Oatmeal is healthful, what with all the soluble fiber and all, and it's filling and whole-grain.

Hunter, oatmeal enthusiast

Now THIS particular oatmeal right here, Joe's Oatmeal Complete, is different, special, and probably not for everyone. I've actually gone through times when I've eaten it every morning, day after day, for weeks on end, then suddenly thought, "Ugh. I need a break," and abruptly cut myself off for a few months. I believe this has something to do with the texture, which is slightly atypical for instant oatmeal. It's creamier, I think because of the powder of good-for-you additives that puffs out of the pouch when you dump the oatmeal into your bowl: namely soy protein isolate and flax meal. When this powder mixes with the boiling water, it amounts to an oatmeal texture that is creamier and smoother than other instant oatmeals'. And I believe those additives contribute to the ever-so-slightly different flavor. (I would describe this flavor as somewhat sweet and even milky.)
Most of the time, the things that make this oatmeal different are what draw me to the oatmeal and make me want to eat it---but I do get tired of it after awhile and will want to switch it up. (See soon-to-come post on Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal.)
All in all, though, Oatmeal Complete is a healthful, satisfying, just-barely-sweet alternative to the instant oatmeals sold in other grocery stores. (And my three-year-old loves it: SCORE!) I like to maintain a steady supply of it in my pantry.