? 4 Working moms who prepare wholesome meals-Need Ideas!

[Anonymous]

I am wondering about instant oatmeal. I get the "regular flavor" which is the no-sugar variety--no brown sugar/fruit flavor or anything. Is that no good as well? Thanks for this thread, it really has me thinking about what we are serving at our house. Time for an upgrade, methinks.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Steel cut oats do provide more fiber since they are less processed.

I realize that, but aren't non steel cut oats still a very high fiber food? (And I am not talking about "instant" oatmeal. Again traditional oatmeal--sorry I am not sure what term applies--is still very quick to make.)

I'm the PP quoted above and I realized I am wrong after doing a little more research. They both provide the same nutrition, but steel cut are just less processed than other rolled oats. I guess the main difference would be cooking time, texture, and taste.

1/4 cup of Quaker steel cut oats:
Calories – 150
Fat – 2.5g
Carbs – 27g
Fiber – 4g
Sugar – 1g
Protein – 5g

1/2 cup of Quaker old fashioned oats and quick oats:
Calories – 150
Fat – 3g
Carbs – 27g
Fiber – 4g
Sugar – 1g
Protein – 5g

Steel cut has a lower GI, thus keeping insulin from spiking. Helps keep blood sugar in check and the tummy fuller longer.

I think this is helpful if you are trying to lose weight, but my preschooler gets a snack shortly after arriving anyway, and I also eat a banana and raw nuts by about 10:00 am (I'm a grazer and I am trying to lose weight. Actually I just gained 3 pounds hoping it would hlep me get pregnant again and now I am pregnant so in a weight gain mode). I'm all for less processed foods, I just try to fit it in, in ways that are most reasonable for our life. Otherwise, we really don't eat many processed foods. I don't make my own pasta either, and don't always make my own granola, but there are some good alternatives on the market that are less evil than the more processed options. Quick oats are one of those foods I'm willing to bend a bit on. But I will consider the PP's tip about soaking overnight.

You are absolutely correct and any sort of oatmeal (though NOT sugared instant) is part of a healthy life and a great breakfast.

However, I do firmly believe that we are shaping their tastes for the future. Though we do not have to worry about blood sugar and excess simple carbs when they are little, it sure will make their lives a heck of a lot easier if they have a wide range of tastes and are accustomed to eating whole foods from the start.

As someone who struggles with weight, it has been an enormous feat to change my old habits and shift to variety of slow, whole food.

Actually both steel cut oats and old fashioned oats have a GI less than 60 and are both considered to be low glycemic foods.
http://steelcutoats.org/steel-cut-oats/steel-cut-oats-and-the-glycemic-index

There is a lot of contradiction, regardless BOTH are great choices:

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400705/Why-Steel-Cut-Oatmeal.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am wondering about instant oatmeal. I get the "regular flavor" which is the no-sugar variety--no brown sugar/fruit flavor or anything. Is that no good as well? Thanks for this thread, it really has me thinking about what we are serving at our house. Time for an upgrade, methinks.

I would not get the instant - it's extra sugar even if you get that kind I THINK (haven't checked it out) and seems more processed. The thing with the old fashion quick oats, is it can be made just as instantly and it seems like a better choice.

You can measure it out the night before, and leave in microwave. You can even measure in the water you will need and leave out. In the morning, throw the water on the oats, stir, microwave for 1:30 or so, and blam, oatmeal that I think is a little healthier than instant. And just as easy to clean up.

Add frozen berries and it cools in a hurry. Great breakfast we do all the time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am wondering about instant oatmeal. I get the "regular flavor" which is the no-sugar variety--no brown sugar/fruit flavor or anything. Is that no good as well? Thanks for this thread, it really has me thinking about what we are serving at our house. Time for an upgrade, methinks.

I'm a huge steel cut oatmeal fan. I loathe the instant, can't eat it. The texture is like slop. Even the rolled oats go through me at a lightning speed and make me soooo hungry by mid morning. Here is how I do my steel cut oats, you should give it a try:

-Boil 3 cups of water, one slice of butter, and a couple turns of salt. Add 1 cup oats, cover and turn stove down to low.
-Shower for 15min and thow on robe.
-Run downstairs, there are 5min left on the oats. Add a few drops of vanilla extract, a handful of currants, fresh grouond nutmeg, and a few shakes of cinnamon. Cook for another 5min (total cook time 20min).
-Put into 3 bowls and cover 2 for the kids when they wake up.

-Before eating top with a little brown sugar, more cinnamon, and a tablespoon or so of whole milk.

Seriously this is DELICIOUS. You will never want instant again.

[Anonymous]

Steel cut oats cook great in a rice cooker. Same amount of water, regular rice setting. Ours has a timer, so we just set it up the night before and wake up to it done. Add whatever fruit is handy, some milk and honey, and good to go.

[Anonymous]

We have smoked salmon and whitefish salad in the breakfast rotation. Our 2 year old loves them. The whole family also enjoys smoked herring.

[Anonymous]

I make steelcut oatmeal in the crockpot and then offer 'toppings' the next morning.

[Anonymous]

good high fiber toast with peanut butter and small bowl cereal with fruit and ground flax seeds. takes 5 min. on the weekends i will cook a hot breakfast, but i don't worry about it during the week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am wondering about instant oatmeal. I get the "regular flavor" which is the no-sugar variety--no brown sugar/fruit flavor or anything. Is that no good as well? Thanks for this thread, it really has me thinking about what we are serving at our house. Time for an upgrade, methinks.

I would not get the instant - it's extra sugar even if you get that kind I THINK (haven't checked it out) and seems more processed. The thing with the old fashion quick oats, is it can be made just as instantly and it seems like a better choice.

You can measure it out the night before, and leave in microwave. You can even measure in the water you will need and leave out. In the morning, throw the water on the oats, stir, microwave for 1:30 or so, and blam, oatmeal that I think is a little healthier than instant. And just as easy to clean up.

Add frozen berries and it cools in a hurry. Great breakfast we do all the time.

plain instant (or quick cooking) is just regular rolled oats chopped up fine. there are no additives or sugar unless you buy the flavored crap in the envelopes.

[Anonymous]

Can anyone provide the recipe they like to use for oatmeal in the crockpot? And type of oatmeal that works best? I've tried it before but it didn't come out very well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
You are absolutely correct and any sort of oatmeal (though NOT sugared instant) is part of a healthy life and a great breakfast.

However, I do firmly believe that we are shaping their tastes for the future. Though we do not have to worry about blood sugar and excess simple carbs when they are little, it sure will make their lives a heck of a lot easier if they have a wide range of tastes and are accustomed to eating whole foods from the start.

As someone who struggles with weight, it has been an enormous feat to change my old habits and shift to variety of slow, whole food.

While I agree with you that we're setting habits for the future, I think that a child who grew up with rolled oats, prepared in a healthful way with fruit or other healthy seasonings, is going to have a lot less "changing" to do than most American children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Steel cut oats do provide more fiber since they are less processed.

I realize that, but aren't non steel cut oats still a very high fiber food? (And I am not talking about "instant" oatmeal. Again traditional oatmeal--sorry I am not sure what term applies--is still very quick to make.)

Yes, they are. The fiber content is about the same IIRC.

We make ours with milk instead of water, and microwave a cup of milk with a half-cup of quick-cooking oats (not instant) for three minutes. Add fruit, mix, and voila, done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I make steelcut oatmeal in the crockpot and then offer 'toppings' the next morning.

Can you please describe how you make steel cut oatmeal in the crockpot? I tried it once and it was a mess - crispy on the side, gloppy in the center.

[Anonymous]

Similar to some other suggestions, we rely a lot on scrambled egg muffins in our house.

On the weekend, we'll mix up a bunch of eggs and then throw in some sort of meat and veg. We, too, try to stay away from carbs in the morning. We store them in the fridge and take a couple out each day.

We eat a lot of Trader Joe's chicken sausages (I think the spicy Italian type? They are the only ones with no added sugar, nitrates/nitrites). Our son loves them.

& we do eat leftovers from dinner for breakfast fairly regularly too. Especially salmon - love having leftover salmon the next morning.

[Anonymous]

Here's the recipe we based our muffins on:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Scrambled-Egg-Muffins/Detail.aspx

We will throw in whatever we feel like, really, just use the recipe for guidance on temperature and cooking time.