Salted (or not) Caramel Apple Oatmeal

One week remains of my first year of teaching! Each year, as my life and career become increasingly more demanding, I worry about how my blog will fit into my schedule. This year, I consistently worked 70-80 hours a week, yet I somehow managed to squeeze in a few hours each weekend to manage this blog.

...So if you're wondering why I'm not so great at responding to blog comments anymore, that's why. I'm sorry! I read and appreciate all of them!

Despite my long hours of classroom prep, I remained loyal to this blog. I think that's quite telling. No matter how stressful my life was, I made this blog a priority. Why? I enjoy it. Yes, it's a LOT of (more) work, but it's also gratifying and therapeutic.

This recipe, like many others, has been stumping me for at least a year. How could I make a VEGAN caramel sauce? It's not that I didn't know how--there are tons of recipes out there. I just didn't feel like making it (see above re: 70-80 hours a week)!

Cue caramel-flavored agave! I found this on Amazon. To be honest, it tastes kind of maple-y, so if you want a true caramel experience, I would recommend a different brand...or making it yourself. ;)

That being said, it did taste different than maple syrup, and I felt like I was eating caramel apples. Naturally, I I added salt...because everything is better salted. Well, most things.

If you had some delicious, fresh caramel sauce, what kind of oatmeal would you make?

Salted (or not) Caramel Apple Oatmeal

by The Oatmeal Artist

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 8 min

6063905

Ingredients (serves 1)

• 1 cup milk of choice, or water
• 1/4 cup quick cooking steel-cut oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
• 1/2 (or all) an apple (I used Fuji)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• caramel sauce and coarse salt for topping

Instructions

1. Finely dice apple.
2. Add milk (I use 1/2 c almond milk and 1/2 c water) to a saucepan over medium heat and add diced apples. Bring it to a low boil and let the apples cook for a minute or two, and then add oats.
3. Reduce heat to medium low (it should be at a simmer).
4. Once more of the liquid has absorbed, add vanilla extract and salt. Stir.
5. When you're pleased with the consistency of the oatmeal, transfer to a bowl. Drizzle with caramel sauce, add a splash of your milk of choice, and sprinkle on a heavy pinch of coarse salt, if using.

Powered by Recipage

**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!