Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal

You know what I like to do when work is shitty, my taxes aren't done, my living room needs vacuuming, and I have no clean laundry? Blog about Joe's Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal, that's what!
I so enjoy oatmeal (or "oapmeal," as Maya insists on calling it. Made from 100% whole-grain oaps!) Oapmeal is comforting, isn't it? But not bad comforting, like the Reese's peanut-butter chocolate egg I just scarfed down a moment ago. The nice thing about oapmeal is that not only does it feel cozy and satisfying on a chilly morning, it's also so jam-packed with nutrition, you feel downright virtuous for eating it. It's a win-win kind of food.
Really the only downside of oatmeal is the inconvenience of cooking it on a weekday morning. Oatmeal Complete is, of course, a super-quick, healthful, yummy solution to this problem. However, if the texture skeeves you out, or you're looking for a more-generous serving size, or steelcut oats are your preference, may I introduce you to Frozen Steelcut Oatmeal (flavored with brown sugar and maple syrup)?
This oatmeal is GOOD. My husband loves it, my good friend Carie loves it, Maya loves it...I don't know anyone who's tried it who didn't like it. It's the closest thing to homemade oatmeal you're going to get in a box.
The way this oatmeal works is that it is already cooked, then frozen into pucks and individually shrink-wrapped. You can't deny the fun factor here: Oatmeal pucks! My kids always want to touch the frozen pucks before I pop them into bowls and zap 'em in the microwave. (It's gotten me wondering, too, whether this could be done from scratch. Couldn't I cook up some steelcut oatmeal on a weekend, then freeze it in small Tupperware bowls for future weekday breakfasts...?)
Anyway, you take the puck out of its wrapper, drop it into a bowl, cook the thing in the microwave for a couple of minutes, remove it and stir, cook it another minute or so, and you're done: Very thick, very hearty, very delicious steelcut oatmeal with a mild sweetness that is just right.
Which do you prefer, btw: steelcut oats or rolled? I prefer rolled when I'm making granola, but I like either for oatmeal. I like that steelcut oatmeal makes you work a little bit---the grains are chewy; your jaw gets some exercise.
I should mention that we recently tried Fresh and Easy's version of this product, and it was disappointing. The pucks were tiny---maybe 2 ounces of oatmeal---and there were things on the ingredient list that didn't need to be there, like milk and butter. (If I want to add milk and/or butter, I'll do it myself!)
Sorry Fresh and Easy, the winner of this round is TJ's!

1 comment:

  1. I might have to try this one too! (TJ's should give you a kickback.) I'd like to start making my own steelcut oatmeal, but this would be a good gateway drug. According to Google, you can indeed freeze cooked oatmeal in individual portions. Or just make a big pot of oats on the weekend, put it in the fridge, and eat from it all week long. I love oatmeal.

    With butter, though? That's just weird.

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