Crunchy Steel-Cut Oatmeal

There are some recipes out there for cooking steel cut oats, but I haven't found any that suit me. So I made my own! The work is minimal (of course), and the end result isn't too gooey. It still has the shape of the oats and a bit of crunch. I don't know about you, but if I want a gooey lump of pudding-like oatmeal, I'll make the one-minute kind. I'm not going to bother with steel-cut.


Crunchy Steel-Cut Oatmeal

1 cup steel-cut oats
2 cups water
1 cup almond milk (or some other milk)

Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees. Combine steel-cut oats, water, and almond milk in an oven-safe container. I generally use a glass loaf pan. Cook oats for an hour or more, depending on desired consistency (the longer you cook it, the thicker it becomes). Top oatmeal with whatever kind of milk you'd like. I use almond milk. Sometimes I add chia seeds because they blend well with the oatmeal and add extra nutrition. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for a few days.

My Favorite Black Bean Burgers

Black bean burgers. How I love thee. I've never have store-bought (they're super expensive, and I am suspicious of the ingredients), only homemade. And baby, they are good. I've decided to share the recipe with you. Because I only use bread crumbs to thicken the burgers, they are easiest to work with when frozen, or at least refrigerated.

My Favorite Black Bean Burgers

adapted from vegetarian.about.com

1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained

1 medium onion, diced

2 slices of bread, crumbled

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. onion powder

dash of cinnamon

Other seasonings: cumin,  paprika, salt, pepper

oil for frying

Saute onion with olive oil for 3-5 minutes until soft. Mash beans with a fork (if you have a death-wish), or  puree in food processor (I use my Ninja Chopper, which I love; Ninja Master Prep Pro (Google Affiliate Ad)). Combine beans, onions and seasonings (I add about three dashes each of cumin and paprika) in a large bowl. Mix well. Add bread crumbs until the mixture is fairly thick.You may have to add more bread, depending on the size of the slices used.

Refrigerate mixture for at least an hour. Form bean mixture into patties, approximately ½ inch thick, and fry patties in a small amount of oil until slightly firm. Make veggie burgers and enjoy! If you are making these for only one or two people, you can freeze the patties between wax paper in ziploc bags. Otherwise, you can store the mixture in the fridge for a few days.