Popular Porridges
Tag Archives: peanut butter
PB&J Oatmeal Parfait
As you saw last week, Claudia (aka the Breakfast Drama Queen) and I are doing a little experiment. She agreed to take one of my oatmeal recipes to inspire a non-oatmeal recipe, and I would take one of her non-oatmeal recipes to inspire an oatmeal recipe.
Here is my creation! It was inspired by Claudia’s PB&J smoothies, which does not actually contain jelly, but instead, has raspberries in the “jelly” layer. Claudia often creates multiple flavors for her smoothies and layers them together, so in honor of her, I did the same with my oatmeal.
Chocolate Banana Muffins with Peanut Butter [Guest Post]
Hello, oatmeal devotees! I’m Claudia from The Breakfast Drama Queen and I’m delighted to share a recipe with you. No, it’s not oatmeal – bear with me here, people – but it does contain oats. And peanut butter!
So, why am I here? Well, imagine this: The Oatmeal Artist contacts you with an exciting idea. She’ll take one of your recipes and turn it into oatmeal. Then you’ll take one her oatmeal recipes, and turn it into a different breakfast food. Was I about to say no to that?
Fudgy Banana Steel-Cut Oatmeal with Peanut Butter
So you love my Fudgy Banana & Peanut Butter Oatmeal, eh?
Well, what if you want to make a steel-cut version?
…Or what if you want to feed a friend (or a “friend” 😉 ). Or maybe a whole crowd. Or yourself…for a week!
Here you go. The ingredients are shown for two servings, but it will work perfectly to double everything for four servings. Yay!
PB2 Oatcakes + 3 Easy PB2 Hacks
The affection I have for PB2 is real. I feel like I owe it something.
For many years, my life was a cycle of toomuchpeanutbutterinonesitting –> stomachachefordays –> that’sitI’mquittingpeanutbutterforever –> omgImissitsomuch –> Icanhavejustalittlebit –> nopeIwannaeatthewholejar –> repeat.
I tried many tricks to overcome this addiction. I would make CCK’s banana butter, or Happy Herbivore’s nutty spread, or Oh She Glows’ ABU (made with peanut butter), but ultimately, all of those tricks required me to buy peanut butter. None of the recipes require you to use a full jar of peanut butter at once, which meant I would have a half a jar of undiluted peanut butter calling my name.
The thing about PB2 is that the fat is taken out. Most people would say–and I would agree–that it is flawed thinking that PB2 is “healthier” because the fat is taken out. However, the fat in peanut butter is what makes it so good. So addicting. So easy to enjoy by the spoonful (after spoonful after spoonful after spoonful) until the jar is empty and you feel sick. The high concentration of fat caught me in The Pleasure Trap, and I couldn’t escape it. I had daily stomach aches from my inability to put down the spoon. Although I make light of my peanut butter addiction on this blog, in reality it brought me much grief and pain on a daily basis.
Not only does PB2 allow me to enjoy peanut butter flavor without igniting my pleasure-seeking desires, but I have to actually make it each time I want it. When I put PB2 in my oatmeal, I have to physically mix up a serving of it. I can’t just go back for another spoonful. I have to make more. It’s not that hard, and I’ve done it before, but there’s a huge difference between opening up the jar for another (and another, and another, and another, and another) spoonful of peanut butter, and stirring up one more serving of PB2 and realizing you don’t actually want/need any more than that.
Because I’m sure people will comment on it, I want to clarify that removing peanut butter from my diet required me to add fat and calories to other parts of my day. Although my peanut butter has been replaced with PB2, I still top my oatmeal with tons of nuts (now more than I used to). I still eat a ton of avocado. Et cetera.
Please do not use PB2 as a low-fat or low-calorie substitute if you have a healthy relationship with peanut butter. I didn’t; that’s why I needed a change. Eating food in its natural form is always the best option. (But I recommend trying PB2 either way since you can use it for cool tricks like on popcorn or in place of flour when baking.)
As a full-fledged PB2 lover, here are three hacks I’ve learned:
- Add extra liquid to make a PB2 sauce. It’s perfect for pancakes. Sometimes I even mix in maple syrup for a PB2 version of my Maple-Nut Sauce.
- Add a drop of almond extract for “AB2.” While we wait for the almond version of PB2, this is the best we can do. Is it a spot-on replica of almond butter? Obviously not. However, since I can’t be trusted with a jar of almond butter (Exhibit A), I found this pretty darn satisfying. Note that I said a drop. It does not take much.
- Mix in coconut butter. I found out–after purchasing a jar–that I do not enjoy store-bought coconut butter. It’s very greasy and unpleasant–more like oil instead of butter. Thus, I keep my jar of coconut butter in the fridge, where it hardens. When I make my PB2, I scrape out about a 1/8 tsp of coconut butter and mix it into my PB2. The result is fabulous–not only do you get a bit of the fat back, but you get some lovely coconut flavor, too. 🙂
Anyway. THESE PANCAKES. 🙂
PB2 Oatcakes
What you'll need:
- 1/4 cup milk of choice
- 1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice
- 1/2 cup rolled or quick oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
- 1/4 cup PB2
- 1/2 cup's worth of zucchini, preferably peeled
- 2 tsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- rounded 1/2 tsp baking powder
- pinch of salt
How to make it:
- Combine milk and vinegar in a small bowl or cup and let sit for ten minutes.
- Put all pancake ingredients (including milk-vinegar mixture) in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add extra liquid if necessary (just a tsp or so at a time). It should have the consistency of paint. 🙂
- Heat a griddle pan over medium low heat.
- When griddle pan is ready, spray with nonstick cooking spray (it only needs a little bit!), and use a large spoon or a small scoop to pour pancakes onto the griddle. I made small pancakes, so I used a large soup spoon, and it worked perfectly. Generally, don't go any bigger than 1/4 a cup, but I find that too big still.
- When bubbles have formed at the top of the pancake, flip over and cook for another minute. Repeat until all the batter has been used!
- Serve with syrup (I recommend fruity syrups) or fresh fruit. I used strawberry syrup and pomegranate arils.
Blueberry PB2 Overnight Oatmeal
When it comes to peanut butter and PB2, there are two camps: those of us who like to stir it into our oatmeal, and those of us who like to keep it in a glob at the top of our oatmeal. I happen to belong to the latter group.
However, I know not everyone does. I have often told myself that I need to include recipes for the Stirrers, but I always resisted. Today is the big day that I put others’ needs before my own. 😀
Using PB2 is an easy way to add peanut butter flavor to your entire porridge. And since it’s less decadent that actual peanut butter, you could always add a glob of PB2 at the top, too. Which is exactly what I did. ^_^ #notsorry
Banana PB and J Oatcakes
File this one under “things I should have made two years ago.”
I knew I wanted to make oatcakes for my last recipe of 2014, but I wasn’t sure which one. I have plenty of ideas for oatcake recipes, but none of them could be made at my parents’ house (missing some ingredients). Plus, I wanted banana. And peanut butter.
I actually had to go back and check my recipe list to make sure that I had never made this before. Seriously, how did I not make this earlier?
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POSTED IN: bananas, jams and jellies, not porridge, pancakes and waffles, PB and J, peanut butter, toppings
POSTED IN: bananas, jams and jellies, not porridge, pancakes and waffles, PB and J, peanut butter, toppings
Mango and Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal
It’s Christmas Eve! I debated about whether or not I should post a new recipe today, considering it’s a holiday, but then I thought back to all the days in the past couple of months when I skipped posting a new recipe. That bothered me, so I thought I’d make it up to you with a recipe today.
You might not be able to make it today or tomorrow, but maybe this weekend?
I love how simple this recipe is! Mango (as well as pineapple) work so beautifully in oatmeal because they pack such a flavor punch. The other fruits need extracts and spices to pump them up, but mango can hold its own. It also happens to be one of my favorite fruits!
Banana PB&J Oatmeal
Well, this is awkward. Did you know this is the recipe I make more than any others? The other day, I was gearing up to make it (like always), and then I remembered that I didn’t have any attractive pictures of it. I decided that I would change that. I snapped the pictures, edited them, and searched for the blog post to change them.
The thing is, that post didn’t really exist. For its entire life, Banana PB&J Oatmeal has lived simply on a list of variations of Peanut Butter Oatmeal. How could I have subjected it to such a life?!
Instead of adding the pictures to that post, I decided to call it up on stage and give it the spotlight it deserves. This way, I will be able to link to the recipe every time I talk about it. Yippee!
Banana PB&J Oatmeal
What you'll need:
- 1 cup milk of choice, or water
- 1/2 cup rolled oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
- 1 ripe or overripe banana
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- pinch of salt
- 1-2 tbsp of peanut butter*
- 1 tbsp jam*
How to make it:
- Bring milk (I use an equal mixture of almond milk and water) to a boil, add oats, and reduce heat to medium. (If you’d like to add flax or chia seeds, do so now. I recommend flax.)
- Mash up banana and add to the oatmeal. Stir.
- Once more of the liquid has dissolved, add vanilla extract, a tiny pinch of salt, and cinnamon. Stir.
- When you’re pleased with the consistency of the oatmeal, transfer to a bowl. Swirl or stir in jam (I like to leave in globs or strips of jam instead of stirring it in completely). Top with peanut butter.
- Add another splash of your milk of choice and any other additional toppings (shredded coconut, nuts, etc.).
Just an FYI:
*I often use PB2. *I prefer grape, but any flavor will work.
How to Use PB2 + Applesauce PB2 Overnight Oatmeal
I recently asked you all how you like to use PB2 in your oatmeal. Not surprisingly, many of you have similar ideas as mine! I’ll share some of your ideas, and I’ll end with a new recipe using PB2 at the end.
Churro Baked Oatmeal with Dark Chocolate Center
Dear school lunches,
I have a problem with you. You force dairy product on your students. You teach students that vegetables are gray and soggy. You act like pizza once a week is a normal way of life. You condone Pop Tarts as a suitable breakfast.
But occasionally, you have your perks. If it weren’t for you, I never would have had a churro. Of course, I later learned that those soggy cold churros you gave us were not even remotely close to the pure pleasure of an authentic, crisp churro, but exposure is everything. (more…)
