Blackberry oatmeal recipe – Not an ordinary oatmeal

Oats for breakfast are classic. Not only are they very healthy, but they can also be used in numerous ways. You can make overnight oats, granola with oats, breakfast smoothie or oatmeal. 

Unlike the first three mentioned meals that are cold, oatmeal is always hot because it is actually cooked oats with milk. I cannot imagine winter mornings without a bowl of hot oatmeal. What’s the best about oatmeal is that you can change the toppings and flavors every time. 

How to cook oatmeal 

The texture and taste of oatmeal depends on the type and quality of oats you use. Rolled oats require less cooking time than steel cut oats. Also, organic oats taste better than non organic. In the end, that’s just a matter of personal taste. 

For this oatmeal recipe I use organic rolled oats that are tiny so they don’t require much liquid and cooking time. I put one cup of milk for two handfuls of oats. When I make oatmeal with steel cut oats, I add one and a half cups of milk for two handfuls of oats. 

Steel cut oats need more time to cook. If you use steel cut oats for this recipe, you will need about 20 minutes to cook oatmeal whereas it takes no more than 10 minutes to cook oatmeal with rolled oats. 

What milk to use for oatmeal? 

Another great thing about oatmeal is that you can use different types of milk and thus have different flavors of oatmeal. That also means you can use lactose free milk or plant-based milk. 

When the cooking time is longer, I sometimes add water as well. When I cook with regular milk, I also tend to fill the cup of milk with some water. 

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Blackberry oatmeal recipe – Your new favorite oatmeal 

Every oatmeal recipe calls for dry or fresh fruit, some nuts like almonds, walnuts, then a sweetener like honey or maple syrup and possibly flaxseed or pumpkin seed. This blackberry oatmeal doesn’t require any sweeteners because blackberries are sweet. However, if the blackberries you use are sour, you can add some honey later. 

In a saucepan, add a cup of milk and two handfuls of organic quick oats. Cook at medium heat for a few minutes then add blackberries when the milk gets warm. Stir well for 5 minutes or so. 

The oatmeal should be thick and homogeneous. If you can still see the shape of the oats, add more liquid and continue cooking for a few minutes.  When the oatmeal is cooked, add chopped or whole almonds and a pinch of cinnamon and stir well. Cinnamon is optional and of course, you can change almonds with other nuts.

Toppings make this kind of recipe very flexible. In addition to blackberries, I just add a tablespoon of ground flaxseed and a few almonds. Cinnamon, yes, sometimes. 

Of course, other fruits call for other combinations. We can create dozens of oatmeal recipes but this blackberry oatmeal is out of the ordinary.