oatmeal

Rolled oats from the bins at Whole Foods.

Here's the thing about oatmeal. You got yer regular oatmeal that's a grain kind of like wheat 'cept differ'nt. To eat it, it must be boiled for a long time to soften it up. As straight up grain, it's called groats. To make it cook faster, processors chop it up into rough tiny bits. This is called steel cut oats. To make it cook even faster, they steam the grains and smash them. These are called rolled oats. To make them cook even faster than that they chop them into bits, partially cook them and smash them. This are called instant oatmeal.

Quaker oats is rolled oats. That is, they've been steamed and smashed. They microwave nicely in 4.5 minutes. They're also available in bulk in the bins at Whole Foods for a lot less than you pay for them pre-packaged at the grocery. They're great in bread, scones, cookies, soup, etc. They're really good for you too. Oats are the one grain recommended by Weight Watchers that can be eaten with abandon on their reduction program. (as opposed to WW maintenance program). Oats lower cholesterol and they're loaded with soluble fiber. And I need all the soluble fiber I can get. I ate a bunch of those marshmallows I made. Big mistake. I knew better, but I ate them anyway. Man, I'm glad I got that out of my system. And by "my system," I mean "my" "system."

Oats are a Scottish thing, due to the short growing season of the Highlands. This causes some ridicule by the British who scoff oats are fed to horses. Don't let this bother you, most Europeans consider corn to be fodder for animals too. Ha ha ha ha ha. They don't know what they're missing.

* pecans
* almonds
* raisins
* dehydrated apricots
* all the above heated separately for a minute in the microwave

* pinch of salt
* tablespoon brown sugar
* milk