Yesterday I made a really big pot of Irish steel cut oatmeal. The long sloooow cooking stuff, not the instant cook for 3-5 minutes kind that is good for oatmeal cookies. Though they are really great oatmeal cookies.
So you bring some water to a rapid boil and then you stir in the oats. These oats look nothing like the ones with the old dude in a hat on the package. They are not flat and pasty white. The steel cut oats are a more of a golden brown colour and they look more like some kind of bird seed. Once you have added the oats you stir alot until the liquid becomes milky and the oats have started to swell. Everything becomes really thick and then you reduce the heat and simmer it for 30 minutes, stirring occassionally. Once they were almost done I added a pinch of kosher salt, a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar, some cinnamon, raisins and little bit of maple syrup. I don’t like my oatmeal too sweet so you should be tasting while doing this. I wanted to add apples, but ours were going soft.
This oatmeal is the best I have ever had. It’s almost like a risotto, the grains of oatmeal are all still individual, but it has this creamy consistancy just like . . . a risotto. I have all kinds of ideas of different oatmeals, you could go tropical, add mangoes and bananas, or all berries, almonds, walnuts and more maple syrup. And probably what will be considered the craziest idea, make a really savoury oatmeal, some sausage, bit of onion maybe.
Because I made such a big pot, I had a lot of left overs. So I have brought some with me and I am eating it at my desk. I popped it in the microwave and it’s still really good. It is less creamy than it was yesterday, but once again my risotto comparison holds, if you have ever microwaved left over risotto, it is never as smooth and creamy as when it is served fresh.
So it looks like I have solved my breakfast at work problem. I will just make up a really big batch of oatmeal every few days. And if you have never tried the steel cut oatmeal I highly reccommend it!
I am on a real yogurt kick these days. I have been making smoothies and my own fruit yogurt and yogurt cheese . This is waaaaay better than cream cheese if you ask me. I have been using a plain 3% mf yogurt, no sugar, no artifical preservatives or flavours, and has a really great tangy flavour and smooth consistancy.
Smoothies are a great substitute for a milkshake or even a cure for a small ice cream craving. 
Here is one I made for breakfast on the weekend:
One banana – should be quite ripe
1/2 cup of plain yogurt
1/2 cup of 2% milk
1/2 cup of frozen mango chunks
1 tablespoon of honey
Pour everything in a blender and blend. You may find that you have to stop and give it a stir to get everything mixed up. You can adjust any of the above to your tastes. As a variation I made one where I added a teaspoon of almond butter and a splash of vanilla extract. Really tasty!
Tonight I went to the Burger Shoppe on Queen Street East. I have been on the lookout for a really good burger in Toronto as I posted on my blog here, so a friend suggested we go and check out the Burger Shoppe.
It is just a little joint, four tables for two and a few stools along the windows. The burger toppings range from the your typical lettuce, tomato and onion to goat cheese, grilled pineapple rings, blue cheese and caramelized onions. I tried the goat cheese burger and the poutine. The burgers are served on soft egg buns, and mine was cooked excellently. Just the slightest hint of pink the burger was juicy and that great beefy taste that you usually only get from a freshly homemade patty. The grass fed fresh beef makes a difference. I would have prefered a little more goat cheese. The poutine was good. The cheese curds melty and gooey, the fries still crispy and the gravy is a rich brown colour that brings to mind Sunday roast beef dinners. My friend had the sweet potato fries and these are a personal favourite of mine. I have made fries with sweet potatoes for a while now and I love seeing them pop up on menus.
Burger Shoppe is a casual place to get a really good hamburger, the prices seem to be about the same for the higher end burger joints in the city. The two of us had a burger, order of fries and a bottled water each, and with taxes the bill was $28. It’s more expensive than the golden arches, but you really do get what you paid for. I will go back to the Burger Shoppe for sure, and I will try out the Ossington location as well.
