Homemade Oatmeal Packets
Our family really loves oatmeal and we eat it a lot. It's easy, quick, tasty, and really good for you - what's not to love? Once every week or two we even have an oatmeal for supper with a variety of toppings and add-ins. Some of our favorites include granola bar oatmeal and pumpkin oatmeal.
When I worked at the grocery store before Olivia was born I often wanted a hot meal before work in the winter but didn't want to get up very early or have to think too clearly first thing, haha. Glenn eats breakfast during his morning work meeting and wanted something different from toast or cereal. One night I had a brilliant moment (well, I think it was brilliant) and decided to make my own oatmeal packets. Granted it doesn't take that long to make oatmeal, especially in the microwave, but I really like the convience of this. Oatmeal packets you can buy are convenient too, but it's much less expensive to make your own. Oatmeal is super cheap and also goes on sale reasonably often. Plus this way you can put exactly what you want in them and you don't end up with any weird fillers or whatever.
It doesn't take long to put them together if you get everything ready and do it assembly-line-style. I only made four packets today because I ran out of some ingredients but if you have everything you want you can make a lot of packets really quickly. I used to make enough for a week for Glenn and I both on Sunday evenings. It works best to add one ingredient to all the bags before moving on to the next ingredient. If you can get a helper to hold the bags open for you (like a doting husband or a kid old enough to know not to dump everything on the floor) it goes even quicker.
Here's what I put in my packets today:
1/2 cup quick cooking Irish oats
dried cranberries
chopped walnuts
spoonful of brown sugar
cinnamon
nutmeg
When I'm ready to eat I just dump the packet into a bowl, add 1 cup of water, and put it in the microwave for 2 minutes. You may have to change the time and the amount of water depending on what kind of oats you use and how thick you like your oatmeal. You can also use hot water from a coffee pot if you don't have a microwave available.
For Glenn I usually use old fashioned oats and raisins with some kind of nut and a combination of spices. He likes more cinnamon and nutmeg than I do so I'm happy to oblige. I love using different kinds of dried fruit and nuts to vary them so I don't get tired of eating the same thing over and over. Dried cherries are probably my favorite and are really good with almonds. When I make these for home I like to leave out the brown sugar and either use honey or real maple syrup for sweetness and flavor once the oatmeal is made.
So there you go. Very easy to put together and convenient to have on hand. And if you use oats that haven't been contaminated it's gluten free as well!
When I worked at the grocery store before Olivia was born I often wanted a hot meal before work in the winter but didn't want to get up very early or have to think too clearly first thing, haha. Glenn eats breakfast during his morning work meeting and wanted something different from toast or cereal. One night I had a brilliant moment (well, I think it was brilliant) and decided to make my own oatmeal packets. Granted it doesn't take that long to make oatmeal, especially in the microwave, but I really like the convience of this. Oatmeal packets you can buy are convenient too, but it's much less expensive to make your own. Oatmeal is super cheap and also goes on sale reasonably often. Plus this way you can put exactly what you want in them and you don't end up with any weird fillers or whatever.
It doesn't take long to put them together if you get everything ready and do it assembly-line-style. I only made four packets today because I ran out of some ingredients but if you have everything you want you can make a lot of packets really quickly. I used to make enough for a week for Glenn and I both on Sunday evenings. It works best to add one ingredient to all the bags before moving on to the next ingredient. If you can get a helper to hold the bags open for you (like a doting husband or a kid old enough to know not to dump everything on the floor) it goes even quicker.
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| Four packets ready to go! Look at all those cranberries and nuts - Mmmmmmm! |
Here's what I put in my packets today:
1/2 cup quick cooking Irish oats
dried cranberries
chopped walnuts
spoonful of brown sugar
cinnamon
nutmeg
When I'm ready to eat I just dump the packet into a bowl, add 1 cup of water, and put it in the microwave for 2 minutes. You may have to change the time and the amount of water depending on what kind of oats you use and how thick you like your oatmeal. You can also use hot water from a coffee pot if you don't have a microwave available.
For Glenn I usually use old fashioned oats and raisins with some kind of nut and a combination of spices. He likes more cinnamon and nutmeg than I do so I'm happy to oblige. I love using different kinds of dried fruit and nuts to vary them so I don't get tired of eating the same thing over and over. Dried cherries are probably my favorite and are really good with almonds. When I make these for home I like to leave out the brown sugar and either use honey or real maple syrup for sweetness and flavor once the oatmeal is made.
So there you go. Very easy to put together and convenient to have on hand. And if you use oats that haven't been contaminated it's gluten free as well!
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