Popular Porridges
Tag Archives: bananas
Basic Banana Oatmeal (& Variations)
Here’s an easy one for you:
If you eat oatmeal regularly, this is simply a great one to have in your repertoire. It’s super easy, undeniably tasty, and can be made with minimal ingredients. In a desperate situation, you could prepare this with just three ingredients: water, oats, and bananas. That version might be slightly boring, but it would certainly get the job done.
TIP: Bananas
Bananas–despite being FAR from my favorite fruit–are one of my favorite ingredients when making oatmeal. It’s a natural sweetener, and it also can turn a wimpy bowl of plain oatmeal into a creamy, filling delight!
Here are five tips for using bananas.
1. Buy them in bulk and freeze them. My local supermarket puts out large bags of overripe bananas for $.99 about twice a week. I then slice them into a gallon-size Ziplock bag. When you’re ready to use it for oatmeal, place a small handful of slices in a bowl and microwave for about 30-45 seconds while you’re waiting for your milk/water to boil. Then, mash it up! (Additionally, you can use these for smoothies and banana soft serve!)
2. No (almond) milk? No problem! I hate oatmeal made in water, so if I’m out of almond/soy/coconut milk, I make sure to add bananas. It’s still not as good as oatmeal cooked in almond milk, but it definitely helps give the oatmeal a creamy, flavorful texture.
3. If your fresh bananas are not ripe enough yet, peel it and stick it in the microwave. This is known as CCK’s melted banana trick.
4. If you want to sweeten your oatmeal but you don’t want it to taste like bananas, you have to plan carefully. Notice how my banana-sweetened oatmeal recipes contain other strong flavors: Thin Mints Oatmeal uses chocolate and powerful peppermint extract, Almond Joy Oatmeal uses intense almond extract, and Lemon Poppy Seed Oatmeal uses a heavy dose of lemon juice. You can’t sweeten–for example– Coconut Cream Pie Oatmeal with banana and expect not to taste it. Using less banana (about half or just a third) will sometimes help keep the banana flavor at bay.
5. Bananas are incredibly filling. This makes it a great addition to a ordinarily measly bowl of porridge! However, I sometimes find a whole banana to be TOO much (I prefer having several small meals spaced out every few hours), so I frequently use half a banana (or even just a third!) to make it a little lighter. With the other half, I slice them into my freezer bag. 🙂
**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!
Banana Split Oatmeal
Yep. I’m insane. Or genius. Not sure which.
This porridge contains ALL the flavors of the classic banana split. However, unlike the typical massive dessert found in diners, THIS banana split is healthy AND vegan! Don’t act like you’re not impressed. 😉
Nutty ‘Nana Berry Oatmeal
I’ve been selfish with this one. Really selfish.
I’ve been making this for months. Really. Months. And it’s not that I was “perfecting the recipe” or anything like that. No, not at all. In reality, I just never had the opportunity to photograph it! I was either too lazy, it was raining, I didn’t have any good dishes to use for a picture, or I was in a hurry. (more…)
Banana-Berry and White Chocolate Oatmeal
Have you ever looked at the ingredients list for white chocolate?
Like most of my recipes, this particular one was sitting in my mind for a while. I didn’t want to actually buy white chocolate chips, though; it’s not an ingredient I would use a lot, and I knew my mom had a bag. Thus, my plan was to wait until I was visiting my parents to try this out. So that’s what I did. (more…)
Fudgy Banana and Peanut Butter Oatmeal
**This post has been updated since its original post in July 2012**
Which oatmeal do I run home to after a tough day at work? Which oatmeal is good enough to be my breakfast on my 23rd birthday? Which oatmeal do I turn to when my produce drawer is looking empty? Which oatmeal contains the best flavor trio (chocolate, banana, and peanut butter) EVER?
This recipe was originally included as an option in my Variations on Peanut Butter Oatmeal post, but a porridge this good deserves special treatment. We’re talking about my favorite recipe, you guys.
After all…it’s pretty much heaven in a bowl. Sweet and creamy bananas…salty peanut butter….fudgy chocolate…ahhhh. But it’s so simple, too! I always have cocoa powder. I always have peanut butter. I always have bananas. If I don’t have a fresh banana available, I have some frozen bananas sliced up in the freezer, waiting for me at my convenience. This recipe is as dependable and cheap as it is delicious. (more…)
Banana Cream Pie Overnight Oatmeal
Banana Cream Pie is one of my favorite desserts…but only when it’s made correctly (aka homemade). I hate when people just whip up Jell-O banana pudding and stick it on top of a store-bought crust, and then squirt some canned whipped cream on top. It’s absolutely insulting!
I’ve wanted to create a banana cream pie oatmeal for a while now, but I wasn’t quite sure how to go about it. Would it just be a regular banana oatmeal with extra vanilla extract? Would I top it with something (banana soft serve? coconut whipped cream? soy yogurt?) to resemble the “cream?”
But then I got THIS idea. And it’s PERFECT. Banana Cream Pie should be cold, anyway, NOT hot! Plus, I like to think of overnight refrigerator oatmeal more like “oatmeal pudding,” and pudding is exactly what I wanted this oatmeal to resemble!
(more…)
Loaded PB&J Oatmeal
Perhaps I’ve been so successful as a vegetarian because my favorite sandwich is PB&J. In fact, one of my favorite restaurants/coffee shops in town offers this divine, gourmet PB&J. It uses natural peanut butter, homemade mixed berry jam, sliced bananas, and homemade granola, all between locally made bakery bread…and then it’s grilled. (more…)
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POSTED IN: bananas, berries, jams and jellies, nuts, PB and J, peanut butter, strawberries
POSTED IN: bananas, berries, jams and jellies, nuts, PB and J, peanut butter, strawberries
Banana Bread Oatmeal
I realized the strangest thing this morning: I have never posted a recipe for banana bread oatmeal.
Which is absolutely bizarre if you consider a) how easy it is, b) how it was one of the first oatmeals I ever created, and c) that Quaker Instant Banana Bread Oatmeal packets were my very first experiences with porridge.
Triple Berry and Banana Oatmeal
It occurred to me last night after I posted my Fuzzy Navel Oatmeal recipe that I never actually told you guys about my summer job. Hmm…
I’m teaching at a college preparatory program for low-income and/or racial minority students. Many of them are ESL (English as a Second Language) students who have come to America from Africa (particularly Ethiopia and Eritrea). (more…)
