Well, we all call it oatmeal on this side of the world but I like alliteration!
This oatmeal really is packed though…packed with vitamins.
You get vitamin A from the pumpkin, vitamin B from the oats and wheat germ and vitamin D from the milk. And I get lots of *vitamin happy* from the chocolate chips :).
I’ve been seeing a gazillion pumpkin recipes in the blogosphere this fall and I’ve tried my hand at a couple (see my Better-than-Starbucks’ Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins).
I love pumpkin but I don’t need to have it on everything. So I waited for quite a while before changing my breakfast bowl of delicious oats to pumpkin oats. But then I tried it, on a sunny but cool October morning, and I thought: what was I waiting for??
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This oatmeal is delicious. The spices are comforting and warm, the pumpkin gives that hint of flavour without overpowering and you get a nice beta-carotene hit to start your day. And the chocolate chips on top make the whole thing feel so decadent that you probably will go the whole day without needing a sweet treat because you got it already (okay, that’s wishful thinking, but you know…)!
I will not be so quick to pass over pumpkin treats in the future…but I do have to keep some recipes tucked up my sleeve for next fall!
Packed Pumpkin Porridge (serves 1)
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup organic whole oats
1/2 cup milk (you can use almond, rice or soy milk if you’re vegan)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup pureed pumpkin
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp wheat germ
1 tbsp 70% or darker chocolate chips (optional)
1 tbsp walnuts (optional – not pictured)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Add oats, water and milk to a small saucepan and slowly heat.
Confession: I get very impatient with my oatmeal so I bring it to a boil over a high heat (stir constantly otherwise you’ll ruin your saucepan!) and then take it off the heat completely to cool and thicken. But ideally you should slowly heat the oats and liquids until they thicken.
2. Stir in spices and pumpkin.
3. Pour into a bowl and top with wheat germ and optional toppings, such as my go-tos: chocolate chips and walnuts. Enjoy!
Copyright to The Guiltless Life
Nutritional information includes walnuts and chocolate chips. Take off 100 calories if you’re not using.
Nutritional information courtesy of caloriecount.about.com
NOTE:
- One quick note about the enormously popular LARABAR giveaway going on right now. I’ve seen a bunch of people Like and write on The Guiltless Life Facebook page – yay! – and tweet about the giveaway and follow me on Twitter – thank you! And if you subscribed, thanks for that too! But please remember that unless you leave a comment on the giveaway post saying you did these things, I won’t know to enter you for the giveaway, so please make sure you do that last step!
Thanks everyone!
The Guiltless Life 
Happy Tuesday!
I love pumpkin oats! I always forget to add some chocolate chips for more yum on top!
Im glad the larabar contest is doing good!!!
xoxo
Hi love! Good news: it’s already Wednesday! Hehe, I feel tired enough to believe it’s Tuesday though too :). Thanks so much for your kind words! The LARABAR contest is definitely busy, it’s a popular snack clearly! xx
I miss oats since going gluten free – I wonder if I can make this using quinoa instead…
I bet you can, but I also heard that Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods are stocking gluten-free oats now 🙂 🙂
It’s funny you say that because in Australia no oats are considered gluten free (and legally you cannot have gluten free oats) so I never ate them… however I did eat them once in the US and didn’t feel that great so am avoiding them still..
That’s interesting; different countries have so many different regulations! I don’t know enough about it as I don’t follow a gluten-free diet, but regarding your question about quinoa: I would boil 1/2 cup quinoa in 1/2 cup some kind of milk and 1/2 cup water + spices I mention in the recipe. Rinse the quinoa well before cooking to avoid any bitterness. Let it cook away (depending on how thick you like your porridge you can thin it out with more water – I like mine thick!) till fluffy. Then just reduce heat to low and stir in pumpkin for a minute or two. Let me know how it tastes!
Oh yummy. This looks fabulous! What a great oatmeal idea.
Have a great Tuesday! 🙂
Thanks Annie, I loved your pumpkin juice post – how creative!
I don’t think pumpkin can ever get old! I made a version of Pumpkin Cream Cheese muffins too – after I posted it I decided to layer the cream cheese and muffin mix so there was a delicious glob on the inside too, one word: amazing!
It never gets old! Yes, lately I confess I have been doubling the amount of the cream cheese mixture I make and I’m putting way more in the middle of each muffin – so good! 🙂
This looks so delicious! I love adding chocolate chips to my oats 🙂
It is the only way for me to eat them :)!
Thanks for the reminder, I forgot to comment on the blog. Looks great I am excited to keep updated, it will inspire me to update my blog more often: adrieneunderhill.blogspot.com/
Thanks! You’re referring to the LARABAR giveaway post right? I’ll log this comment as an entry, no worries :).
This looks amazing! I think I have all the ingredients to make it too!
Yay! Let me know how you like it :).
yeah, I came here for the recipe, I couldn’t resist
Haha I’m so glad! Enjoy them!