Resolutions

Like just about every other snarky blogger, I am generally adverse to the concept of the new year’s resolution. If one feels a need to make changes, they should make them when the need for change arises. So, I guess the point of this is to tell you how superior I am to all you weaklings that made resolutions. I am absolutely perfect and there is nothing I need to change…

Um…yes. That’s it.

Really, I just want to do a little virtual jig and savor a moment of triumph. A few months back, I posted a vow to waste less food. The fact that I have actually managed to do this pleases me to no end. Sure, a few leftovers have been pitched, but I have gotten worlds better. Those half onions have been used, partially emptied cans of stock have been incorporated into recipes and improvised meals have been thrown together with various odds and ends. Hooray for small triumphs! I take them where I can.

This recipe is a perfect example of this vow in action. I had a few overly ripe bananas hanging around as well as a quart of milk in the fridge I knew I would never finish before it spoiled. Some searches yielded this banana bread oatmeal recipe, a much healthier and original option than the banana bread I was about to concede to making. The nuts in the recipe create a great texture and the milk adds nutrients and flavor that water, the usual liquid in oatmeal, cannot. I received some vanilla paste for Christmas I have been itching to use and this recipe called for it; something as simple and homey as oatmeal deserves such pure flavor.

And yes…that is a Le Creuset dutch oven that my oatmeal is cooking in. Aunt LifeSaver read about my desire for one and handed an extra off to me. (Yes, she had more than one…) Seriously people, this pot is just one reason out of 7,836 why she is the best.aunt.ever. I like to think this new addition to my kitchen is just a little bit of karmic payback for my changed ways.

Banana Bread Oatmeal

Adapted from Cooks Recipes

3 cups fat-free milk
3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I eyeballed–go for more if you are a cinnamon person)
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (eyeballed)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
2 medium-size ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped toasted pecans

In medium saucepan, bring milk, brown sugar, spices and salt to a gentle boil (watch carefully); stir in oats. Return to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Cook 1 minute for quick oats, 5 minutes for old fashioned oats, or until most of liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally.Remove oatmeal from heat. Stir in mashed bananas and pecans. Spoon oatmeal into six cereal bowls. Top with yogurt, sliced bananas and pecan halves, if desired.