I’ve spent my life eating normal, rolled oats as porridge and I’ve never been much of a fan. The texture is too blaaahhh and always makes me feel nauseous so I can’t finish the bowl. I inevitably end up hungry and grumpy – nooot good. The steel-cut-oat world had somehow eluded me until my mum found them here in the UK with the name ‘pinhead oats’. They do take a bit more time to cook (20 minutes vs. 5 minutes) but that is fine by me. Cooked steel cut oats are worlds away from their mushy, flat ‘rolled oat’ cousins. I like that they stay a bit al dente and that the longer cooking time means I can add other grains! I stirred in a few tablespoons of quinoa here but I imagine that short grain brown rice, amaranth or millet would probably be ace too.
Anyway here’s an autumnal twist, with a spiced, creamy purée to sweeten the deal. There’s quinoa in it but feel free to leave it out if you want.
Notes:
– to roast a squash: cut a small butternut squash half lengthways. Scoop the seeds out of the bulbous base and discard them. Place the squash halves, cut side up, on a baking tray and roast in an oven preheated to 350 F (180 C) for 30-40 minutes, until fork tender.
– if you don’t have pumpkin pie spice mix use ‘mixed spice’ (if you’re in the UK) or mix up a batch of your own pumpkin pie spice mix: 1/2 tsp ground cloves, 1/2 tsp ground allspice, 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg, 1 tbsp ground ginger, 3 tbsp ground cinnamon. Store in a lidded jar, using as needed.
– if you don’t have a blender: use maple syrup instead of the date. Mash the puree ingredients together using a potato masher until smooth.
Ingredients
For the Pumpkin Spice Purée:
- 1/4 of a small butternut squash , , roasted (see notes)
- 1/2 to 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice mix , , depending on taste (see notes)
- pinch of salt
- 1 medjool date , , pitted OR 2 tsp maple syrup
For the oats:
- 1/3 cup steel cut , ('pinhead') oats
- 1 1/4 cups cold water
- 2 tbsp quinoa
- 1 earl grey tea bag
- pinch of salt
- splash of milk , (any kind), for looser oatmeal
- sprinkle of pecans & pumpkin seeds
Instructions
- Scoop the flesh from the roasted squash into a blender or food processor along with the pumpkin spice mix, salt and date. Blend until smooth (or use a jug & an immersion blender) (if you don't have a blender or immersion blender, see notes).
For the oatmeal:
- Place the oats, water and tea bag in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and turn down to a simmer - leave for 5 minutes then stir in the quinoa. Simmer for a further 15 minutes stirring occasionally. It should be soft and creamy but still retain some bite. Remove and discard the tea bag, stir in the salt and a splash of milk, if desired.
- To serve, pour the cooked grains into a bowl and top with a dollop of the pumpkin spice purée, crushed pecans and pumpkin seeds.
In Italy we don’t have steel cut oats -_-
Ps : your bowl is beautiful!
Yes! Steel cut are the best…and I agree with the blah feeling x
I love the idea of mixing the quinoa and the steel cut oats. I’ve been on a major porridge kick lately with the weather beginning to cool. It’s so satisfying and tastes so rich, while still being healthy. Will have to give this one a try.
Hi Izy! I’m toasting some buckwheat for mine this week. You know how much I like a pop of crunchy!
Quinoatmeal is my favorite food– and my favorite word. Love the idea of infusing it with earl gray! I make oatmeal every morning, definitely going to try it this way tomorrow! xo
This sounds so yummy!
xo, Liz
http://lipstickandconfetti.com
I feel ya, the one I least like I quick oats, they just become complete mush! I do love steel-cut, quinoa, and buckwheat as well, as it retains even more the al-dente texture!
You should give rolled spelt a try, and maybe even mixed with rolled rye and rolled oats. To make it not mushy, melt some butter or coconut oil and toast the oats until fragrant, about 5 minutes, then add the boiling water, give it a quick stir, and cover. Let it sit on barely a simmer until all the water is absorbed. This makes the rolled oats/spelt/rye retain their shape and gives them an incredible taste and bite. So so good! I do this for my savoury porridge and it’s absolute heaven! Here’s the recipe X if you want to try. X
This is exactly the kind of makeover I needed for my breakfast!
Uhh, those leftover steel-cut oats which I brought back from London will be put to a very good use soon 😉 not that I would mind to keep eating them with my usual maple+banana combo.. Would love to have some quinoa though but this is hard to find for a fair price in my small uni town.. Lots of love!
What I like about steel-cut oats is that I can make a batch and eat it for a couple of days, if I do that with rolled oats they just become gross. I love the flavours in this bowl, it’s perfect for the dark, cold mornings.
Ohhh, I love everything with pumpkin and this recipe sounds just like heaven. What a treat!
Sending you my best regards from Switzerland, Franzi
This sounds like everything I’ve ever dreamed of in porridge! Major porridge, squash and Earl Grey fiend over here
My childhood hot cereal nemesis was cream of wheat, but thoughts, I wonder, if I try making it with Earl Grey?