Freezer Oatmeal
Cold fall and winter mornings are made for oatmeal! …But breakfast is usually “help yourself” during the week at my house now that the kids are older, so I had to get creative. TRUST ME: they don’t need to be practicing their oatmeal cooking skills on the stovetop while I’m in the shower!
SO CHECK THIS OUT: I made a big batch of oatmeal then portioned and froze it in muffin tins. Once frozen, I popped out the oatmeal “cups” to store in a bag in the freezer. The kids can place 1 or 2 in a microwave-safe bowl to heat and then add their favorite toppings. Seriously, super-simple, quick, safe, and a lot healthier than most instant packages!
Are you an oatmeal-for-breakfast kind of person? If so, you HAVE to try these! Let me know what you think by sharing your final product on social media! Be sure to tag me : Instagram @realfoodreallife_rd / Facebook @Real Food. Real Life. - Carolyn Williams, PHD, RD.
Freezer Oatmeal
makes 18 muffin cups (approximately 4-8 servings when heated)
You’ll love the convenience of these pre-made freezer oatmeal cups. Just pull them out of the freezer, warm them up and add your favorite toppings for a perfect nutritious breakfast ready in no time at all!
INGREDIENTS
3 cups steel-cut oats
6 cups water or unsweetened vanilla almond milk (*See note below)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ to ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 to 4 tablespoons brown sugar or maple syrup
Cooking spray
METHOD
Bring water and/or almond milk to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in oats, and return to light boil. Cover, and reduce heat to low to medium-low heat. Cook 15 to 20 minutes, depending on desired texture of oats, stirring occasionally during cooking and adding ¼ to ½ cup of additional liquid as needed. Remove oatmeal from heat; stir in cinnamon and brown sugar. Let cool slightly.
Coat 18 muffin tin cups with cooking spray. Spoon ¼ cup into each greased muffin tin, leveling tops with knife. Freeze muffin tins with oatmeal at least 6 hours or overnight. Remove muffin tins from freezer; let sit 5 minutes. Remove frozen oatmeal cups, using the tip of a knife to loosen edges if needed. Place oatmeal cups in a large freezer-safe ziptop plastic bag or other freezer-safe container. Freeze until ready to use.
When ready to use, place 2 to 3 frozen muffin cups in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave 1½ to 2 minutes, stirring halfway through heating, adding 1 to 2 tablespoons of water or milk to loosen oatmeal as needed. Top with desired oatmeal toppings such as dried or fresh fruit, chopped nuts, almond or nut butter, or butter and additional brown sugar.
*NOTE: I used 3 cups of water and 3 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
NUTRITION
PER FROZEN OATMEAL MUFFIN “CUP”: 120 Cal | 2g Fat | 4g Pro | 24g Carb, 3g Fiber, 2g Sugar (2g Added Sugar)
NOTES FOR SUCCESS
Any type of oats can be used; adjust amount of liquid and cooking time based on specific packaging directions.
The goal is to end up with approximately 4½ cups cooked oatmeal for 18 muffin cups or approximately ¼ cup cooked oatmeal per muffin cup. For 12 muffin cups, you will need 3 cups cooked oatmeal or 24 muffin cups, you will need 6 cups cooked oatmeal.
Two frozen cups when reheated are typically a good serving size for younger kids. Older kids and adults may want to heat three to four frozen cups.
