Oatmeal Risotto [Guest Post]

If you remember from Thursday's post, Haley and I had a chance encounter a few weeks ago, and we wanted to swap blogs and share our stories. Read Haley's side of the story below, and make sure to visit her blog and become a fan on Facebook! 

Hi! I'm Haley (from Cheap RecipeBlog) and I want to tell you a funny story about how I "met" Lauren.

A few weeks ago, I was visiting my parents in southwest Minnesota. One day, I trekked over to Brookings, South Dakota, to meet an old college friend for coffee. We were meeting at Cottonwood Coffee on main street. Here's a timeline of events:

9:15 a.m.: Feeling hungry for breakfast, I ordered a bowl of baked oatmeal.

9:20 a.m.: Once I started eating, I realized that this was no ordinary baked oatmeal. It was deliciously warm, hearty, very slightly sweet — and topped with steamed milk. It was absolutely delicious. One of the best and most unique bowls of oatmeal I’d ever eaten.

1:25 p.m.: Once I got home, I immediately Googled "baked oatmeal with steamed milk" to see what I could find.

1:27 p.m.: I clicked on Google's second result, after noticing a recipe for “flooded oatmeal” on a cleverly-named website called "The Oatmeal Artist"

1:30 p.m.: Once I got to the page, I immediately recognized the bowl in the top photo. It was the same oatmeal I had eaten this morning! I left the following comment:

4:30 p.m.: I checked back on The Oatmeal Artist to see if she had responded. This is what I found:

She had been there! The Oatmeal Artist! And she had seen me eating oatmeal. After a bit of correspondence, I realized that I had seen her as well. She was the girl across the room wearing a fabulous turquoise dress.

If this chance encounter doesn't seem crazily weird to you, hear me out: I live in St. Paul, Minnesota. I never (ever) eat breakfast on a weekday morning in Brookings, South Dakota. Lauren lives in New York City. Sure, we both have roots in rural Minnesota/South Dakota, but it's still mighty weird that our paths would cross in such a way.

Naturally, we couldn't just let this story go untold. Which is why we're teaming up and swapping guest blog posts!

About the Recipe

Coming up with a new oatmeal recipe to feature on Lauren's blog was - well - not an easy task. I mean, what hasn't this girl already covered? This is the most comprehensive oatmeal recipe site I’ve ever seen.

So I've done what any self-respecting oatmeal-lover-but-not-The-Oatmeal-Artist would do: Post someone else's recipe!

I recently bought a fabulous new cookbook: Try This At Home by Richard Blais of Top Chef fame. This cookbook is chock-full of seriously creative recipes like Vidalia onion rings with beer mustard, Greek yogurt with tandoori honey and freeze-dried fruit, and the recipe that I’m featuring today: Oatmeal risotto.

This is a very creamy, banana-sweetened oatmeal recipe that combines interesting if unusual flavors. Personally, I think I’ll leave off the Parmesan cheese the next time I make it, but do give it a try if you’re looking for something out-of-the-box.

Oatmeal Risotto

by Haley Nelson, adapted from Richard Blais (Try This at Home)

Prep Time: Overnight (soaking)

Cook Time: 25 minutes

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Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 cup steel-cut oats
• 3 cups water
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 ripe banana, mashed
• parmesan cheese shavings, as a topping

Instructions

1. Place oats and water in a medium bowl. Cover and allow to stand overnight at room temperature.
2. While the oatmeal is cooking, place raisins and vinegar in a small bowl to soak.
3. Pour oats and water into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add brown sugar and salt. Mix well. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for approximately 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Add mashed banana and mix well. Cook for 2 minutes or so. Remove from heat.

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**You can also find hundreds of other oatmeal recipes (as well as tons of other meatless recipes) on my Pinterest account!  You can also like The Oatmeal Artist on Facebook. Thanks!