Black Forest Oatcakes...and my blog's 2nd birthday!

Two years. TWO YEARS! Considering I've been running this blog during the two most challenging years of my life (student teaching/senior year, my year of service in Newark, and my first year of teaching in NYC), it's a pretty big deal that I've managed to maintain this blog through it all. To celebrate, I made oatcakes:

But first, let me indulge in my nostalgia. Three fantastic things have happened since the Oatmeal Artist's first birthday.

1. I began my partnership with Country Choice Organic, which has completely changed my life. 
2. I began the Oatmeal Enthusiast series, which showed me that there are SO MANY PEOPLE that eat oatmeal every single morning, just like me.
3. The #oatmealartist hashtag began on Instagram, which always gives me a nice ego boost whenever I'm feeling down. As of right now, there's over 2,000 pictures on Instagram with the #oatmealartist tag. So cool!

Apple Beet Oatmeal

One of my favorite parts of meeting new people is how they influence my food preferences. Before I met my former roommate Christin, I never sauteed my vegetables (I always steamed or roasted). Before my current roommate Chilee, I avoided mushrooms at all costs. And of course, there was my former boyfriend from my junior year of college, who inadvertently converted me to a vegetarian (and eventually fully herbie).

Then, there's Allison. She's taught me you can never use enough cinnamon. She showed me (before going vegan) that "runny eggs" are nothing to be feared. She introduced me to dozens of foods I had ever tried before, like goat cheese and Indian food and RAMEN (the real stuff). Last but not least, with months of effort, she trained me to appreciate her favorite vegetable: beets.

I tried them once. I tried them twice. I tried them several times. Each time, I found them tolerable at best, but why did they taste like dirt? Why were they always cold and gelatinous?

But then this recipe happened. I had thought of the concept ages ago, but making it would force me to confront my wariness of beets. I'm pleased to report that I'm so glad I finally did it!