vegan – Plated With Pride.

Campfire or no, you too can make this scrumptious oatmeal that I took on last weekend’s camping trip right in your own kitchen. This recipe takes only a few more minutes than making one of those over-priced, over-processed instant package thingies and (shocker) this oatmeal will actually be hearty enough to keep you full all morning long.

I mean seriously, who are they trying to fool with those dehydrated apple slices? GIMME A BREAK WITH THAT NOISE. The first ingredient in the name of this recipe is APPLE and I promise you, the apples are the real star of the show here. We’re going to start off the process by doing something to the apples that we don’t usually do when making oatmeal… we’re gonna caramelize those sweet little autumnal joy bombs.

Caramelizing apples over campfire — Boiling water while we caramelize our apples is the secret to cooking the oatmeal quickly, without over cooking.

Once your pot is heated to medium on the stove (or the fire!), in goes the butter (Don’t worry, coconut oil will work great too, if you’re the non-dairy type), followed by the apples and the cinnamon. Allow those to brown slightly before finally adding sugar.

After adding the sugar, stir to incorporate until it is evenly distributed and begins to dissolve. When the sugar starts to bubble ever so slightly, it’s time to add half of our raisins, along with the boiling water. Why half? I like to let some of the raisins break apart to add extra sweetness and flavor to the liquid. Then, later on, we’ll add the other half, for a change in texture!

Apples cooking in liquid over fire. — That thar is some steamy, tasty oatmeal stock!

Now we’re just going to let the apple and half of the raisins stew in this sexy liquid for a sec, until the apples are semi-soft and the raisins begin to disintegrate, about 3-5 minutes.

Finally we’ll add the oatmeal in little by little, along with the other half of the raisins. Don’t be afraid to adjust the amount of liquid as you go. Honestly, the hardest part about this recipe is adapting it to your personal taste, which isn’t really that hard at all! Just add a little more water if it looks too thick, or allow to cook down slightly if it’s too thin for you. Same goes for sweetness. Add sugar or subtract, based on your preference.

Which ever way you like it, you’re about to be a happy, full morning person.*

*Absolutely unauthorized to make such a claim. Have not now, nor will I ever be a morning person, but the oatmeal helps.

apple, cinnamon, raisin, oatmeal, breakfast, camping, dutch oven, camping gear, campfire cooking — Sure, you could eat this in a bowl, but then where would your sense of adventure be?

Apple Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal Recipe (serves 4)

Ingredients:

1 medium apple, skin on, cored and diced

1/3 cup raisins

1.5 cups quick cooking oats

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter (or coconut oil, for my vegan friends!)

1/4 cup brown sugar (more or less to taste)

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

pinch of salt

3.5 cups boiling water

Bring 3.5 cups water to boil in a kettle or covered pot.
Heat dutch oven over medium high heat and add butter.
Toss apples, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt into the melted butter and allow to brown slightly, 3-5 minutes.
When apples have browned, add sugar to pot. Stir frequently to prevent scorching, until mixture is dissolved and just begins to bubble.
Add boiling water to the pot, along with remainder of raisins. Allow to simmer for another 3-5 minutes.
Add oats a little at a time and cook until oats just absorb the liquid, or until desired consistency is achieved.
Adjust sweetness to your taste and enjoy!

carabiner, camping utensils, gay, cookout, tools — Bonus gay points for enjoying your oatmeal with camping utensils that attach via *carabiner*!

Har har har. It’s a terrible joke, but like I said yesterday, if I had a chance to cook something ultra-healthy for a fat dude like our commander in chief (It’s Ok to Call Him Fat, he is.) who loves a fast food hamburger, I’d definitely make him eat a fat chick-pea burger!

Not only are these babies vegan, they’re also gluten free, but you would never know it! This hearty burger gets its smoky, tangy flavor from vegan Worcestershire (I use Kroger brand! I KNOW, right?!) , Apple cider vinegar, Louisiana hot sauce, and Liquid Smoke, along with a hefty spice injection of paprika and ground chipotle pepper.

food prep for veggie burgers, chickpeas, oats, spices, flax eggs — Is this artsier and fartsier than it needs to be with all that late afternoon sunlight in my kitchen? Sure, but who doesn’t need more arts and more farts?!

Oh yeah, and beyond the obvious health benefits of swapping your ground chuck for chickpeas, oatmeal, flaxseed and veggies, this is a SUPER CHEAP pantry recipe to throw together. These nutritional powerhouses ring up at only about $.50 a piece, so making these will really make you feel good about yourself in more ways than one!

The real genius of this recipe (if I do say so myself) is the use of quick oats and flax eggs to act as vegan, gluten free binders! If you’ve never worked with flax eggs, don’t sweat. Here’s how I break it down:

1 Tablespoon of milled flaxseed+2 Tablespoons of water+5 minutes to set= 1 flax egg

But don’t worry, if you’re all like, “eww gross/what the heck is that/do I really have to buy a special ingredient??,” you can just use a regular old egg, if you’re not vegan, that is!

quick oats, meal prep, food photography, chickpea burgers — I’m feelin’ my oats here, y’all.

Once your prep is out of the way, sauté your veg with a few little sprigs of fresh thyme. If your herb garden is already done for the season, feel free to substitute with 1/4 tsp of the dried stuff! Start with just your onions and sauté with thyme and kosher salt until translucent. Then, add your peppers until soft, followed by garlic for one hot minute, watching carefully to avoid burning!

Vegetable sauté, fresh thyme, cast iron skillet, 5'oclock somewhere — Go ahead, pour yourself a drink. It’s 5:19 somewhere…

Remove fresh thyme sprigs from the pan and then dump this gorgeous veg into a mixing bowl, along with your chickpeas, spices, flax egg, and liquid ingredients. Mash it up until a loose batter forms.

Chick peas, spices, chick pea burger, flax egg, meal prep — PEOPLE OF THE WORLD!
(If you don’t know what the next line is, I’m not sure you can get with my friends)

And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for, let’s add those oats and mash the whole thing until it resembles the WEIRDEST cookie dough known to man.

veggie burger dough, chickpeas, oats, veggies — Oh great, now I’m hungry for REAL cookies…

Now (and this is where that beverage is gonna come in handy), pop the bowl in the fridge for about 30 minutes, until the oats have fully absorbed all of the flavors and the dough has stiffened enough to form into four FAT patties.

homemade veggie burger patties, oats, chickpeas, meal prep — Yep, still want cookies.

Place cookies, er, I mean, patties onto parchment paper or silicone pad on a large baking sheet and bake at 400 deg for 35 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Remove from oven and build your burger how you like it. I chose bbq sauce and cheddar cheese with a sliver of romaine on my famous homemade brioche buns, but you do you boo!

Did you make this and LOVE it? Let me know! Hit me up on IG @Plated_With_Pride !

THE FAT CHICK-PEA BURGER RECIPE!

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 medium onion, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

1 flax egg (1 tbsp milled flaxseed+2 tbsp water), or 1 egg

½ cup quick cooking oats

2 cloves garlic, minced

2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme (or ¼ tsp dried)

1 tbsp vegan worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp Louisiana hot sauce

½ tsp liquid smoke

1 tsp paprika

¼ tsp ground black pepper

¼ tsp kosher salt

⅛ tsp ground chipotle pepper (optional)

3 tablespoons canola oil, divided

Combine flaxseed and water to create flax eggs, set aside.
Heat skillet to medium, sauté onions and thyme with kosher salt until translucent.
Add bell peppers and cook until soft.
Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Remove thyme from pan and combine vegetables in large mixing bowl with flax eggs, chick peas, spices, and wet ingredients, mash until a loose batter forms.
Continuing mashing and add oats until thoroughly combined.
Place mixing bowl in refrigerator to set for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 deg
Form dough into 4 large patties
Bake for 35 minutes, flipping halfway
Remove from oven, allow to cool slightly, and enjoy the burger of your own creation!

Tag: vegan

Apple Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal

The Fat Chick-Pea Burger