Healthy Mocha Oatmeal(and the Versatile Blogger Award!)

I’m always coming up with new ideas for oatmeal.  Of course there’s nothing wrong with the original oatmeal with milk and a little brown sugar, but I like to be creative with my breakfast and usually I don’t want a sugar topped breakfast to start my day.  I’ll be posting more oatmeal ideas in the future too.  I just tried this the other morning and I will be making it again for sure.  The kids couldn’t stay away either 🙂

[print_this]Quick and Healthy Mocha Oatmeal

Serves one, but can be scaled up easily

• 1 serving of your favorite kind of oats, cooked
• 1 banana
• 1/4-1/3 C frozen or fresh strawberries
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder(or slightly less depending on how sweet your banana is)
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• a small splash of vanilla
• 2 tbsp+ your favorite milk(I use almond)

What I usually do at some point is cook up a big pot of oats. I love steel cut oats, but they take a fairly long time to cook, and I am not a morning person usually.  So I cook a big pot and then put it in the fridge for the following mornings.  I believe it works out to about 1/4 cup of dry steel cut oats that I use in the morning if you want to make it all in the morning before assembling the rest of the ingredients. Or you can use one serving of regular old fashioned rolled oats or whatever kind you like best.

I put the banana in the bowl and mash it up well.  This time I reserved a couple slices for the top, you can do that if you like.  It looks nice, why not? 😀  To the well mashed banana I add the cocoa, coffee, vanilla and milk and mix it well.  Then you can either mix in the hot oatmeal(if you’ve just cooked it) or mix in the cold oatmeal that’s been refrigerated.  You can put it in a pot and heat it on the stove for a couple minutes or you can put it in the microwave for a minute or two.  Serve with strawberries on top.  We used frozen which was really nice with the hot oatmeal, but it really doesn’t matter.[/print_this]

Now to show you why I’ve kept my regular post fairly short… The lovely Lauren over at Peanut Butter and Ginger awarded me with the Versatile Blogger Award!  How exciting!  I’m so honored, thank you Lauren!  Be sure to check out her blog, she has so many delicious ideas!

Here are the rules of accepting and passing on the Versatile Blogger award:

• Thank the person who awarded you and link back to them in your post.
• Tell 7 random facts about yourself.
• Pass the award on to 15 new found bloggers.
• Contact each blogger you want to pass the award on to and let them know you’ve done so.
• Let the giver of the award know you accept it…or not!

So here are my 7 random facts:

1. I’m an only child.  This might be(only a part of) why I love my inlaws so much.  My husband is one of 5 so… siblings!! Yay!

2. I don’t like pickles.  Pickle lovers, don’t hate me!  I love anything else pickled, beets, carrots, those little white onions… But actual regular pickles… Yuck!

3. I’ve always had long hair.  Well, I did cut it short once or twice when I was pregnant with my daughter, but it was still long enough to tie up.  I love my hair long, I’ll never cut it off again.  It may be curly and wild, but I love it.

4. I’m not quite 5’2″.  People make fun of my shortness… But again, it’s something I love about myself.  I have no desire to be taller.

5. I hate math.  It is just not my thing.  At all.

6. I love rain.  There’s something super cozy about being inside on a really rainy day.  Or maybe I love it so much because I grew up in Vancouver.  Isn’t that like, the rain capital of the world?  Ok, maybe just Canada 🙂

7. I have no allergies.  I can’t think of a single thing that makes me sneeze, itch or break out into a rash.  I’m super fortunate that way.

I’m adding a number 8… I’m really shy(or used to be – I’m trying not to be!) It was so difficult to think of 7 random facts, haha.  Probably much harder than it needed to be.

And now to pass it on… well actually a lot of bloggers that I’d like to nominate have already done it so I’ll just pass it on to anyone that reads my blog(is that cheating?  Or being lazy… maybe).  If you haven’t gotten this award, or done this before, I nominate you!  I’d love to come read your 7 facts on your blog so if you do this, leave me a link so I can come learn about you 😀