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.
What you'll need:
- 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
How to make it:
- Place oats and water in a medium bowl. Cover and allow to stand overnight at room temperature.
- While the oatmeal is cooking, place raisins and vinegar in a small bowl to soak.
- 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.
- Add mashed banana and mix well. Cook for 2 minutes or so. Remove from heat.
Just an FYI:
Adapted from Richard Blais (Try This at Home)
