Apple Cinnamon Peanut Butter Oatmeal

Oatmeal has a reputation for leaving people hungry by ten, and the reason is usually what was left out of it. Oats on their own are carbohydrate and fiber. The peanut butter stirred in at the end adds fat and protein, and that combination is what slows digestion enough to carry a morning. It also costs almost nothing: a tablespoon of store-brand peanut butter runs a few cents.

The apple goes into the pot rather than on top. Cooking it in the oats softens the fruit and releases its sugar into the whole bowl, which means less added sweetener is needed. Any apple works. A bruised one from the discount bin works especially well, because the soft spots disappear once diced.

Rolled oats are what this is built for. Instant oats are already cooked and turn to paste in the pan, and steel-cut oats need closer to half an hour. A canister of store-brand rolled oats runs about two dollars and holds roughly thirteen servings, which puts the oats themselves at around fifteen cents a bowl.

Apple Cinnamon Peanut Butter Oatmeal

Rolled oats simmered with diced apple and cinnamon, finished with a spoonful of peanut butter that turns a plain bowl into breakfast that holds until lunch — under a dollar a serving.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 1 serving

Ingredients

  

• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup milk or water
• 1 small apple cored and diced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar or maple syrup optional

Instructions

 

• Combine the oats, milk, diced apple, cinnamon and salt in a small saucepan.
• Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring once or twice so the oats do not catch on the bottom.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the oats are creamy and the apple pieces are tender enough to break with a spoon.
• Take the pan off the heat and stir in the peanut butter. It will melt into the oats in about thirty seconds.
• Taste before sweetening. A cooked apple does most of that work already. Add the brown sugar or maple syrup only if it needs it.
• Thin with a splash of milk if the oatmeal has tightened up, and serve hot.

Notes

Buy oats in the largest container the store sells rather than in single-serve packets. The per-serving difference is several times over, and rolled oats keep for months in a sealed container.

Use whatever apple is cheapest that week. Firmer varieties hold their shape and softer ones melt into the oats. Both are good, just different.

Water works in place of milk. The oatmeal will be less rich, and the peanut butter covers most of the gap.

To make it ahead: cook a quadrupled batch, refrigerate in single portions, and reheat with a splash of milk. It keeps for four days.

Old-fashioned rolled oats are the right cut. Instant oats turn to paste in ten minutes and steel-cut need closer to thirty.

Keyword apple cinnamon, breakfast, budget-friendly, oatmeal