Despite their tiny size, chia seeds are one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. They’re loaded with fiber, protein, omega-3 fatty acids and various micro-nutrients. They can be used to make pudding, they can be added to drinks and smoothie, but for me the best use for them is for my oatmeal. This Banana & Chia Seed Oatmeal is a very simple and easy breakfast option, it is quite filling not to mention healthy.

A healthy and delicious breakfast cannot get easier than breakfast oatmeal. Simple and yet flexible enough to easily adjust to your toppings preference, not to mention it is really filling and packed with good health benefits.

I had been having a blasts making my breakfast oatmeal lately, and while I’m on it I thought why not share it in my blog. They are easy to prepare, fun to make with all the endless topping you can add to them and they are a healthy breakfast option. So when I woke up this lovely Saturday morning, instead of grabbing my usual cookie and sweet breakfast, I decided to give myself a healthy treat with this oatmeal breakfast. Oatmeal are so easy to make that they don’t even need a recipe and planning ahead. No grocery shopping needed, no extra long list of ingredients, and no lengthy step to follow.

Oatmeal are one of the easiest breakfast that you can make in just few minutes. The good thing about it is that it’s healthy and quite filling for something so simple. There are quite a lot of quick oatmeal in the market, from plain to flavored and there also rolled oats that requires cooking. Let’s talk a little but about oatmeal.

Types of Oatmeal

Steel Cut Oats (Irish Oats) – This type of oats has a finer texture but is chewier than traditional oats, they are digested more slowly and it makes you feel full easily. This type is perfect for breakfast cereals as they make you feel full longer.

Rolled Oats (Old Fashioned) – This type of oats are flat, thin and have bigger pieces than Steel Cut Oats. It cooks faster, about 10 minutes for 1/3 cup (depending on how chewy you like it). Although filling, it is not as filling as using Steel Cut Oats, but if your recipe requires minimal cooking time or you do not have much time on hand, this is the perfect type of oats to use. I find that this type is also the one perfect for baking cookies, bars, bread or pancakes.

Quick Oats – This type of oats have flat, light and even thinner pieces as compared to Rolled Oats. This cooks in about 1-2 minutes and are perfect for recipes that calls for a very minimal cooking time. Although it is also a good option for breakfast, it is not as filling as using Steel Cut Oats and Rolled Oats.

Instant Oats – This type of oatmeal has been pre-cooked and dried, because of this, it require no cooking time at all. You just need to add boiling water and let sit for few minutes to soften. This type of oatmeal doesn’t have chewiness and texture and can get mushy at times. This if perfect option when you are traveling and you need something on the go. Simply add hot water and you have an instant breakfast with you.

Flavor of the Month: Banana & Chia Seed Oatmeal

This month oatmeal flavor is Banana Chia Seed Oatmeal. I love banana on my oatmeal I find them the perfect toppings. They are soft and sweet and when combined with the texture from granola and raisins, they are just perfect together. But more than just banana, raisins and granola, chia seed is an important add-on to this oatmeal, which is another ingredient that I had been so fascinated lately. I did a little bit of research and I want to share what I found out about it. Read on.

What is Chai Seed? 

Chia seeds are tiny black seeds from the plant Salvia hispanica, which is related to the mint. Chia seeds were an important food for the Aztecs and Mayans back in the day. They prized them for their ability to provide sustainable energy. In fact, “chia” is the ancient Mayan word for “strength.” Despite their ancient history as a dietary staple, chia seeds became recognized as a modern-day super-food only recently. In the past few years, they have exploded in popularity and are now consumed by health conscious people all over the world. Don’t be fooled by the size — these tiny seeds pack a powerful nutritional punch.

Benefits of Chai Seed

• Chia Seeds Deliver a Massive Amount of Nutrients With Very Few Calories
• Chia Seeds Are Loaded With Antioxidants
• Almost All the Carbs in Them Are Fiber
• Chia Seeds Are High in Quality Protein
• The High Fiber and Protein Content in Chia Seeds May Help You Lose Weight
• Chia Seeds Are High in Omega-3 Fatty Acids
• Chia Seeds May Lower Your Risk of Heart Disease
• They’re High in Many Important Bone Nutrients
• Chia Seeds May Reduce Blood Sugar Levels
•  They May Reduce Chronic Inflammation
• Chia Seeds Are Easy to Incorporate Into Your Diet

Source: Healthline.com

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Rolled Oats
• 1 3/4 cup milk (Can be substituted with a mix of water and milk in any proportion)
• 2 – 3 tbsp Brown sugar (can be substituted with other sweeter of your choice)
• 4 tbsp Raisins
• 2 tsp Chia Seed
• 1 Banana – sliced
• 2 tbsp Granola – or any toppings you like to add (nuts, dried fruits, fresh fruits, coconut etc.)

Instructions:

Pour milk in a pan. Add rolled oats and simmer in medium heat for about 10 minutes. Make sure to stir from time to time to avoid sticking at the bottom and from forming a “film”  or “skin” on top. Add brown sugar, 3 tbsp raisins and 1 tsp chia seed. Cook for another 5 minutes. You can serve it as this stage but if you want a smoother creamier consistency, cover and cook in low heat for another 10 minutes. Taste and adjust sweetness as desired. The consistency of the oats will thicken as it cools, if you are serving it immediately, you can cook it a little bit longer to get a thick consistency. Cooking time is flexible, cook less or more time to adjust to the texture and consistency that you prefer.

Transfer in a bowl and arrange sliced banana on top. Sprinkle remaining raisins and chia seed, and add granola and other toppings of your choice. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

I am using quite a lot of liquid here because I like my Oatmeal consistency to be not too thick and also because I like to cook it longer than 15 minutes for a smoother creamier texture. Also, chia seed absorbs liquid and makes a jelly like consistency. If you like a thick oatmeal, use 1 1/4 cup of liquid but bear in mind that the oatmeal thickens as it cools. If you are making it ahead of time (overnight), I suggest use 1 3/4 cups of liquid so that it wouldn’t be too thick the following day.

Re-heating

One tip when reheating it, if the consistency gets too thick for you, add few spoonful of water or milk to thin out the consistency. The oatmeal with or  without chia seed will thickens as it cools, even more when refrigerated. So to bring it back to nice consistency, you need to add a little bit of liquid. For single serving, add 1-2 tbsp of liquid and stir then simply pop it in the microwave for 1 minute. Take it out and stir again, adding more liquid as  necessary to achieve the consistency that you like. Return to microwave for another minute. Remove and add toppings as desired. Easy breezy! Enjoy

Enjoy! If you make this, share and tag me in Instagram #SweetNSpicyLiving. I would like to see your creations too.

Featuted Posts:

• Single Serve Coconut Mango Oatmeal
• Single Serving Hot Chocolate Oatmeal
• Single Serving Banana & Chia Seed Oatmeal
• Single Serving Caramelized Banana Oatmeal
• Single Serving Blueberry Banana Oatmeal
• Single Serving Pear Almond Crumble Oatmeal

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This time around I am sharing with you the recent recipe that I updated, Strawberry Shortbread Cheese Tart. This is one of the first few recipes that I posted when I was just starting on my blog. Of course that time, I thought  the photos were amazing, but as I look back at it now, I have to say not really. I photo certainly do not gives justice to this recipe. So I thought a make over was needed, and what better timing than during the Summer season when fresh Strawberry are its best. This base of this tart used my Shortbread tart dough and the filling uses my homemade Strawberry Jam. It is super delicious, the sweet and tangy taste of cream cheese, plus the butter crust and homemade Strawberry jam is such a wonderful combination. Check it out. GET THE FULL RECIPE.

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