Are You an Oatmeal Purist? (frozen, cream, leftover, syrup)

[Bobilee]

A friend of mine only puts a little sugar in his oatmeal, no milk even. I however am an oatmeal radical. I use fresh fruit, frozen fruit, dried fruit like cherries, dates, apricots. I cut up candied ginger, with cinnamon and coconut, sometimes using vanilla or other flavorings. When I'm feeling really decadent I use half&half instead of milk. I would have to say that of all the combinations I've tried, fresh raspberries with a touch of vanilla is my favorite.

[doily]

My mom would make oatmeal using milk and so do I, so I don't know if that would be normal. I like to make mine on the stove top and just eat it plain. I've never put any fruit or anything in it though, I don't think it needs it,but my brother and sisters usually put sugar in it so to each their own. I do however like the flavors that Quaker Oatmeal comes in, especially the banana nut

[Ohiogirl81]

I like to put a quarter-cup or so of leftover winter squash, and some cinnamon and a bit of sugar. It's like having pumpkin pie for breakfast.

Other stuff I toss in, depending on my mood and in various combinations: dried fruit, maple syrup, fresh/frozen berries (blueberries are my favorite), vanilla, almonds or pecans.

[DontH8Me]

I don't mind the add-ins, but I try to keep sugar or syrup out of it if at all possible. I will cook the oats in either water, milk, or a combo of both. Sometimes stir in a bit of cream for richness if cooked in only water.

The one thing I will NOT do is eat or prepare instant oatmeal. You are not really getting the nutritional benefits of oatmeal if it has already been overprocessed and pre-cooked. I prefer the Irish steel-cut oats to the rolled ones - the steel-cut takes longer to cook, but once I tried it I was hooked.

[Denise in Fla]

I have to put something sweet in my oatmeal, whether it's sugar, syrup or fruit. I just had a thought, another use for Nutella!

[melveniaw9]

hello, i like oatmeal too. i like the instant kind, the kind you to cook it one yes, all the toppings are soooooooo very gooooooooood!!

[FightinPhils]

I don't put anything in my oatmeal, I just use water. I tend to stick to Maple and Brown Sugar oatmeal. I don't like the unflavored oatmeal.

[RoaminRed]

I like oatmeal a lot of different ways, as long as it's not instant and NOT from those little paper packets *shudder*. They're just flavored paste in an envelope as far as I'm concerned. Disgusting!

[movingtohouston]

I use water to cook, then add milk and a little bit of sugar. I loooove putting fruit like strawberries or raspberries or even bannanas in mine. As for cinnamon or brown sugar I don't really care for it.

[Bobilee]

I would imagine if you cooked oatmeal in milk it would taste very rich, I'll have to try that sometime. Sometimes I cook steel-cut groats, though I will set the pan up the night before with water on the groats, it cuts down the cooking time. For people who like plainer oatmeal I would suggest you try just a touch of vanilla in it.