Truthfully, I have wanted to make this recipe ever since I made my Strawberry Basil Oatmeal three years ago!! To celebrate the third birthday of that beautiful porridge (July 15, 2013), it seemed fitting to publish its peachy cousin. I think basil pairs well with most fruits, but strawberry and peach are probably my favorite candidates. If you’ve yet to try herbs in non-savory recipes, you are missing out on a whole category of DELICIOUS.
What you’ll need:
- 3/4 cup milk of choice, water, or peach juice (I used the Ceres brand)*
- 1/4 cup quick cook steel cut oats*
- 1 ripe yellow peach, pitted and diced (peeling optional)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- splash of lemon juice
- 2-5 fresh basil leaves
- pinch of salt
How to make it:
- Bring milk (I use 1/2 c peach juice and 1/4 c almond milk) to a boil, add oats, and reduce heat to medium. (If you’d like to add flax or chia seeds, do so now.)
- Add most of your diced peach to the oatmeal and reserve a few pieces for topping. Stir occasionally.
- Using the chiffonade method, cut your basil into ribbons.
- Once more of the liquid has absorbed in the oatmeal, add vanilla extract, lemon juice, a third of your basil ribbons, and salt. Stir.
- When you’re pleased with the consistency of the oatmeal, transfer to a bowl. Add a splash of your milk of choice, remaining diced peach, remaining basil ribbons, and any other additional toppings (nuts, balsamic reduction, coconut, yogurt, coconut whipped cream, etc.).
Just an FYI:
*You can make this with rolled or quick oats by increasing the liquid to 1 cup and the oats to 1/2 cup.
I think I have solved the mystery of how to keep a basil plant alive!
I tried watering more and watering less. I tried direct sunlight and indirect sunlight. I tried keeping it in the pot it came in and I tried repotting it in something bigger. No matter what, I slaughtered plant after plant within two weeks of buying it. I could actually fill a graveyard with all the basil plants I have killed–and not because I wasn’t trying!
But I may have figured it out: pruning. You have to prune that sucker. And that means cutting off every leaf when it is ready (they shouldn’t all be ready at the exact same time; leave some “younger” ones behind to encourage photosynthesis). If you leave a leaf on too long, it withers and drags the whole stem with it. Pretty soon, you have a basil plant full of drooping stems and withered leaves.
Prune away, friends. Store the leaves in a baggy or container in the fridge until you’re ready to use them. Don’t leave them on the plant.
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