It was Wednesday or Thursday morning last week and I really just wanted chocolate for breakfast.
You know those days slash times of the month.
Miraculously there weren’t any ready to grab bars, candy, or semi-sweet chocolate chips.
So I made the responsible choice to have oatmeal.
Oatmeal doesn’t have to mean rigid, restrictive, or boring.
I couldn’t have demonstrated un-boring any better if I tried.
Almond Joy oatmeal.
Disclosure, I never liked Almond Joy candy bars growing up and had serious resentment issues towards the sadists that passed them out at Halloween. Who does that?? It wasn’t until I was in my early 20s that I could admit to liking coconut flavored things. I’ve made up for lost time since then.
This beautiful bowl of oatmeal is cooked with unsweetened shredded coconut and a smidge of sunflower seeds then topped with sliced almonds, banana, and a drizzle of chocolate syrup.
A lovely thing I’ve been mulling on lately is that fiber helps slow the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream. So while chocolate for breakfast maybe isn’t an everyday thing (or is it?) you certainly don’t need to have any second thoughts about having a little with your oatmeal, which is completely whole-grain and full of fiber. As well as protein.
It all makes sense if you think about how nature packages food. All fruits have fiber and just the right amount to balance the sugar they wield.
Sustained energy without the crash.
Almond Joy Oatmeal
Nutritional Information || Calories: 493 • Fat: 15 g • Fiber: 10 g (42%) • Protein: 12 g (24%) • Iron: 20% • Calcium: 6% • Potassium: 13% • Vitamin E: 20% • B6: 23% • B1: 9% • B2: 10% • Folate: 9%
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut
- 2 teaspoons sunflower seeds
- 1 tablespoon sliced almonds
- 1 small banana, sliced
- 1/2 tablespoon organic chocolate syrup
Instructions
- Place oats, water, coconut, and sunflower seeds in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil on medium heat. Cook for another 3-5 minutes until oats are fluffed. Add additional water if needed, 1-2 tablespoons at a time.
- Remove from heat and garnish with banana, sliced almonds, and chocolate syrup.
Health Heroes
- Breakfast that contains almost half of your recommended daily fiber intake [super hero status]
- A solid dose of B vitamins thanks to variety from the oats, almonds, sunflower seeds and coconut
- Packed with iron, about 20% of your recommended daily intake
- Happy factor, a breakfast that tastes great (hello chocolate!) is just as important to our sustained health as the nutrients within it
Let us know in the comments, what other candy bar oatmeal would you like to see? xo
The oatmeal looks delicious, esp. the chocolate! Yikes, who would have thought so many calories though! I am planning on doing overnight oats, and am looking for “hotel” recipes. Hopefully, a microwave and refrig. will be available when I spend a month or so helping my mom sick in the hospital. Any ideas, Michelle?
Hi Gail! 🙂 Regarding the calories, I’m just not a calorie counter/restrictor though I understand folks want to be conscious so I include those details. I kind of look at it like 3 meals times 500 = 1500 calories for a day. This was filling so I never needed a snack or anything. I will also go a little heavy on healthy fats if I’ve gone for a great bike ride/run or my time of the month. Fats from whole foods though dense are great for the skin, hair, and nails. My long windedness aside 😉 to cut down on some of the calories you could do it 2 ways. 1. Reduce the oatmeal/water by half or 2. Eliminate the sunflower seeds, and cut back on the almonds and coconut by half. The density of the calories is coming from the coconut, almonds, and sunflower seeds. I’ll try to do a post soon on hotel tips so stay tuned. 🙂 I will say that small plastic totes of lettuce/baby kale fit in those fridges perfectly! Also, if you batch cooked some rice or bought the microwave rice – those would be good staple options. Canned beans too. Sorry for the long response. 🙂
Long response is good! I should eat more calories like that earlier in the day, though I am still always astonished at how many calories there are in everything. I wanted the whole dish with fewer calories, hehe. They are all healthy ingredients, so no problem.
I will be flying 4.5 hours, so can’t take anything very perishable. Thanks for you ideas.
I’ll have to admit to not being here for awhile-hardly recognize you in new glamour shots! I always think of you in front of that walk sign.