Remember those chilly mornings when your mom would tear open a packet of instant oatmeal with apples and cinnamon flavoring, pour it into a bowl and add hot water? Or maybe she would stick it in the microwave?

Okay, I will admit, I really did like that when I was little. It was sweet, and it was warm on chilly mornings. (yes, even in Northwest Florida, it got cold for awhile in the winter!)

The other day, I was craving that warm, apple-cinnamony flavor. It is such a comforting food to eat. However, the version I made tasted much better than those little tear open packets.

As you probably know, when oats are stripped down enough to make them “instant,” a lot of texture, not to mention nutritional goodness, is stripped away. So now, I buy steel cut oats or old-fashioned oats. They are good, too.
There is something about steel cut oats that I really love; they have sort of a roundness, and when you bite into them, they almost seem to pop in your mouth a little bit. It’s hard to explain.

The only problem is they take longer to cook. Old-fashioned oats are much quicker, and still have great texture and more nutritional value. So give them a try! Everything doesn’t have to be super fast, right? Instant food, in general, is nowhere near as good for you.

Mama Steph’s simple Apple cinnamon oatmeal:
One cup of oatmeal that has been cooked according to package directions (make sure to sprinkle in salt when you’re cooking oats or they will be bland.)

Apple cinnamon topping:
One fresh apple, peeled and sliced into half inch slices
1-2 teaspoons butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Method:
In a small nonstick skillet, melt the butter over medium heat, and then add the apple slices.
Sprinkle the apple slices with the cinnamon and brown sugar, and stir occasionally as the oatmeal cooks, making sure to evenly coat all apple slices with cinnamon and sugar,
After a few minutes, the apples will soften and become nice and cinnamony brown in color.
When apples are tender, top a bowlful of the cooked oatmeal with the slices.

One large apple makes two servings

Enjoy!

Copyright 2014 Stephanie Hill Frazier. All rights reserved.