Carrot Cranberry Oatmeal

Where, oh where, have all my carrot recipes been? Despite my deep love for carrots (and zucchini!) in oatmeal, my blog has been lacking in those recipes lately. Why? No grater. :(

Well, problem solved: I finally own a grater. Expect carrot and zucchini recipes in the future. :)

I recently realized I have some cranberry goodies left from the holiday season. My roommate had a bag of fresh cranberries (which she said I was welcome to), and I had half a jar of Trader Joe's cranberry sauce. Perfect!

Cranberry Baked Oatmeal

A couple weeks ago, I introduced my Cranberry Brownie Baked Oatmeal. Of course, that was delicious (CHOCOLATE); however, this time I wanted to try something more wholesome, and something that would let the cranberries have their moment.

The recipe calls for a half cup of cranberries, but I used even more. I measured with my hands and added one large handful and another smaller handful. I wanted the cranberries to stuff every bite of this oatmeal!

P.S. YES, that's real snow! Several inches pummeled us over the weekend. This was the first few minutes of the snowfall, before it became downright miserable. Doesn't it make a lovely picture?

Cranberry Baked Oatmeal

by The Oatmeal Artist

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 25 min

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Ingredients (serves 1)

• 1/2 cup rolled oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of allspice (optional, could replace with nutmeg)
• pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup milk of choice
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp maple syrup (I used only 1/2 a tsp)
• 1/2 cup fresh cranberries (or more)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and spray a single-serving ramekin with non-stick spray.
2. In a large bowl, add milk, vanilla extract, and maple syrup.
3. In another bowl, combine dry ingredients: oats, cinnamon, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, and salt. Once mixed, add to wet ingredients and stir until combined.
4. Stir in fresh cranberries.
5. Transfer to the ramekin and bake for 22-25 minutes.

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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!

Cranberry Pear Oatmeal

For all the pear lovers out there, you'll appreciate this recipe. As you all know, pears are one of my least favorite fruits. Thanks to the cranberries, I was able to enjoy this oatmeal anyway. I noticed from Foodgawker that pears and cranberries are a common food combination, but I had never experienced it before, and I found the flavor duo to be quite unique and fun.

It's amazing how my opinion of cranberries has changed in the past month and a half. When I first bought the jar of cranberry sauce early in November to use as a topping for fall-themed recipes, I was pretty indifferent to it. It was significantly better than the cranberry sauce I've had in the past, but still nothing special.

Then I bought the fresh cranberries for a few recipe ideas that never actually ended up happening until this week, but I've been using them for other purposes (sauteed with brussels sprouts!), and I'm slowly falling in love.  

Cranberry Brownie Baked Oatmeal

I need to go back to all my chocolate baked oatmeals and redo them. I need to fix them knowing what I know now. I must improve them...ASAP...because I now know the secret to a banana-less, applesauce-less baked oatmeal.

It's avocado. AVOCADO! Duh! Why didn't I think of that earlier? Avocado is used all the time as a replacement for butter and eggs in vegan baking. Ugh! I could have saved myself from so many unnecessary banana flavors.

This trick worked like a charm for this recipe. I was too lazy to drag out my food processor, so I just mashed the heck out of this avocado and mixed it by hand with the other ingredients. Before adding the oats and cranberries, I tasted the chocolate-avocado mixture...and it's like PUDDING. It reminded me of the dairy-free pudding I often make when I have avocado to use up...but without the banana!

10 Oatmeal Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers

I know I haven't posted a new recipe since Tuesday, but I decided it was vital for me to spend this week relaxing and exploring the city with my sister, who is visiting from Minnesota. Instead of posting a new porridge today, I created a round-up of all the recipes you could make using some of your potential leftovers from Thanksgiving (which, by the way, is my FAVORITE holiday...even as a herbivore!).

I have so much to be thankful for...seemingly more so than previous years! I'm thankful to have "made it" in this city. I'm thankful to finally be a teacher. I'm thankful for plant-based options popping up more and more at restaurants around the city. I'm thankful for peanut butter on a genuine NY bagel. I'm thankful for this blog and the joy it brings me every week, as well as the love and support given to me by Country Choice Organic. I'm thankful for sauteed kale (because JEE-ZUSS it's so good). I'm thankful for warm fleece jackets, hot tea, electric blankets, and space heaters. I'm thankful for my family, friends, and everyone who reads my blog (YOU)!

Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers

Thanksgiving PB and J Oatmeal (with Pecan Butter and Cranberry Sauce)

You may have thought that I had already used every possible PB&J combo. Well, you were wrong. I got fancy.

What is Thanksgiving PB&J? Thanksgiving PB&J uses pecan butter instead of peanut butter. Thanksgiving PB&J uses cranberry sauce instead of grape/strawberry jelly. Thanksgiving PB&J will blow yo' mindz.

Thanksgiving Stuffing Baked Oatmeal

You know I've never been much into holiday-themed recipes, but I've been alllllll about these Thanksgiving recipes lately: Pumpkin Pie, Apple & Chestnut, and all of those sweet potato recipes. I have more coming up next week, too! It's probably because Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Food, food, food...but no commercialism!

This obsession has grown recently due to the fact that I won't be able to enjoy much Thanksgiving food this year. As a vegetarian, I could still enjoy all my favorites: corn, squash, potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin pie, etc. Now, however, I have to accept that fact that all of these items are generally loaded in butter. Le sigh. As a result, I've turned to oatmeal to satisfy any Thanksgiving cravings (although I may actually make some herbie-friendly Thanksgiving foods on my own).