Here's a great question from Emily. She wants a copycat recipe for Quaker's multigrain oatmeal packets.
Hi, I've got a weak spot for Quaker's Simple Harvest Maple Brown Sugar instant oatmeal packets, but they're so expensive! I'd like to make up a big batch of dry, instant oatmeal mix, so that I can just scoop a bit into a bowl in the mornings and pop it in the microwave. Do you or the readers have an idea of how to clone the fancy Quaker stuff in bulk, while cutting out the less-necessary ingredients to keep it economical?
Thanks!
Emily
Emily, instant oatmeal is pretty straightforward. We looked through a ton of recipes online for instant oatmeal; it's usually made from a mixture of whole rolled oats, powdered oats, and some salt, sugar, and powdered milk. Try mixing 1/4 cup rolled oats, 2 tablespoons powdered oats (crushed to a powder in a food processor or blender), a teaspoon of milk powder, 1/8 teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of sugar. Add a little brown sugar and cinnamon for flavor as well. Mix with 3/4 cup boiling water to make oatmeal.
You can see a good step by step and cost analysis of making your own instant oatmeal here:
• Making Your Own Homemade Oatmeal Packets: A Visual Guide and Cost Analysis
Now, the one catch is that the sort of oatmeal you like isn't just oatmeal: Quaker adds other whole grains to their Simple Harvest blend. They include flaxseeds, rolled wheat, barley, and other grains and flavors.
• Ingredient list for the Quaker Simple Harvest packets
But recreating this still isn't very difficult. Add a teaspoon of flaxseeds and a couple tablespoons of bulgur or rolled wheat to your packets. Drizzle in a little maple syrup too; it will dissolve when you add hot water. Add some crunchy pecans or walnuts and dried cranberries to mix it up.
Experiment with other whole grains and seeds, too! You can buy just a tablespoon or two of all these grains from the bulk bins at your local health food store or Whole Foods. So try different things; it will cost just pennies to buy small amounts of these grains.
For something different, try making steel cut oats at night and reheating a bowl each morning; they really hold their texture and flavor. We make up a big pot on Sunday night and eat them three days in a row.
Related: Breakfast for Lunch: Steel-Cut Oats with Dates, Coconut, Cinnamon and Pecans
(Image: Mornings Unlimited)
We used to buy instant oatmeal too, but now we just put 1/4 cup quick oats, 1/2 cup milk, and a tsp or so of sugar or maple syrup, in the microwave and nuke it for about 2 min. Easy enough and just as good.
view thevioletpear's profile
That teaspoon of flax seeds needs to be ground up before eating.
view miabica's profile
miabica, no necessarily. If you just want roughage and added texture they're fine unground. If you're eating them for the healthy fats then yes, you need to grind them first.
view Squirrely's profile
Cooked oatmeal also stores well in the fridge. We make an extra big batch every weekend and reheat it by the bowlful with a little milk on weekday mornings. That also allows us to have our favorite slow cooked, steel cut oats every day. It still seems like a treat!
view Niamh's profile
I'm a convert to the wonderfulness of Irish steel-cut oats, but they do take a long time to cook. Thankfully, they hold very well in the fridge. I make a big batch over the weekend, and have four breakfasts' worth of oatmeal ready and waiting for a zap in the microwave.
view Cosmic Jester's profile
I saw this product at the 99 cent only store (the chain) in silverlake, ca yesterday.
view Natural Surroundings's profile
holly crap, this is genius!
view jenniejenjen's profile
and uhm...any ideas for the apples and cinnamon flavor? other than dehydrating apples myself, I mean. :)
view jenniejenjen's profile
Am I the only one whose premade steel-cut oatmeal turns into a gelatinous mass in the fridge? I have to cut it into chunks with a knife after microwaving it.
view jeffzelli's profile
jeffzelli - I've had the same problem, which is why I don't bother making steel cut oats.
Is this doable without salt?
view Plaid Ninja's profile
I just started doing the whole overnight crockpot steel cut oatmeal thing a month or so ago and I honestly don't know what took me so long. I love having oatmeal ready after a quick zap in the microwave. We've gotten creative by adding different dried fruits, flax, wheat germ, brown sugar, etc. and it's a delicous, inexpensive and healthy way to start the day. Tip: buy the oats in bulk from your local supermarket. You shouldn't need to go to Whole Foods or another specialty health food store as most grocery stores with a good selection of bulk bins will have steel cut oats available that way vs. buying it by the tin.
view rosebud's profile
jeffzelli and Plaid Ninja - try making your oatmeal a bit more soupy and it won't end up so chunky leftover. And make sure you aren't just swapping steel cut for rolled oats in a recipe, you want to cut the amount in half if you're converting a rolled oats recipe to steel cut. The ratio should be at least 4:1 liquids to oats.
Try this in your crock pot:
1 cup steel cut oats (brown with 1 T butter in a skillet, if you like - for a nuttier flavor), 3 cups boiling water, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup buttermilk, 1 T brown sugar, 1 t cinnamon. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. 4 servings.
view cara_mia's profile
Thanks for the info! I'll try making it a bit soupier. I usually do, since that's how I prefer it.
Still, I think what I really need is a way to make a single container vat of instant oats that I can grab from in the morning. I think what I'm going to do is grind a big canister of oats with a vanilla bean and cinnamon, with some sugar of some kind, and store that in a container that I can measure out from in the morning.
When I was a kid my grandmother would make oatmeal from finely ground oats, with vanilla and cinnamon. It was very smooth and OMG it was goooooood.
view Plaid Ninja's profile
Thanks so much for all these great suggestions, everyone! You all more than answered my question.
view EmilyW's profile
I clicked on "How to make instant oatmeal" because I thought it was a joke, like how to boil water. I don't know why you would bother with instant, when regular rolled oats (granted, not as good as steel-cut) take less than 5 minutes in the microwave.
I use a soup plate, not a cereal bowl (less likely to boil over), and put in some rolled oats (a 42 oz. container of ShopRite's brand is only $1.89 or so). I add skim milk (no water), and nuke on high for 2 minutes. I give it a stir, add more milk if it's getting very thick, and nuke it on low for another 2 or 3 minutes. While the oatmeal is cooking, I peel and slice a kiwi in the winter, or a peach or nectarine in the summer, or berries when I get them, and add the fruit when it's ready. I don't like sweet stuff, but you could add whatever you like. This is so easy, I can't imagine settling for instant.
view ellenwillmott's profile