Satiating Coconut Brownie Oatmeal

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you might know that I have been on plenty of elimination diets and made other dietary changes in the last decade due to gut and sinus issues. As anyone ever trying to combat health issues through dieting finds, is that there are almost as many variations of diets presented as solutions to any type of alignment as there are people in the world.

Yes, really.

And so, I’ve kind of landed on a diet for myself that is borrowing this and that from a handful of dietary practices. Healing the gut lining is a long process. After all, it took a lifetime getting into this mess in the first place. But, I’m slowly finding food and lifestyle choices that work for me. Except for the times where I just binge out on an entire bag of dates, which my gut and throat will have me pay for later, or I just can’t help myself and order take-away pizza …

Oatmeal is one of the foods I should find myself obstaining from. There’s just something about the complex carbs in the oats that disagrees with my gut. Which is hard, to be honest, as I crave the comforts of a good oatmeal as much as any ol’ oatmeal lover. And, one of my functional physicians once had me on oatmeal as a breakfast staple for quite a long time. Meaning, oatmeal and I go waaaay back.

I have, however, been on an oatmeal bender lately, mostly because I was tired of fish with veggies. Also, I had a box of oats just sitting in my pantry, so I convinced myself that from an economical and zero-waste point of view finishing this box of oats was a very good idea. It was a large box, though. As such, the oatmeal bonanza has been going on for a good couple of weeks now.

Knowing full well that my stomach sometimes bloats up like a balloon after oatmeal consumption and that I often find myself hungry not too long after, I needed to come up with some ideas to make my oatmeal more gut friendly and also more satiating.

I know there’s a saying in some nutrition circles saying that complex carbs should be accompanied with enough fats and protein. I took this into consideration, and so I have made a beaten, organic egg a part of my oatmeal. In addition, because a gut that reacts to oats probably should eat less oats to begin with, I started substituting half my oats with almond flour.

Almond flour is the perfect fat and protein packed ingredient which makes my bowl of oatmeal much more nutritious. I wasn’t sure if the eggs and the almonds would give me enough fats, and so after cooking I’ve begun to add a dollop of coconut oil on top of my oatmeal. This just makes for a creamy and buttery flavor and texture that’s almost otherworldly. But don’t take my word for it, – try it for yourself.

Yes, you probably haven’t forgotten that the title says “Coconut Brownie Oatmeal”. Most days, I’ve been making my oatmeal with 1/2 dl rolled oats and 1/2 dl almond flour, 1 dl oat milk and 1 dl water. While cooking, I add a pinch of salt, a teaspoon raw honey, Ceylon cinnamon, vanilla powder and cardamom. I like to throw in some chia seeds too, for good measures. Once thickened, I remove it from the stove, stirr in my beaten egg (be quick to avoid egg scrambles in your oatmeal) and put it back on the stove to thicken some more.

The oatmeal could very well be done now, and tastes heavenly with nothing more added. These last couple of days, however, I thought: Why not add some raw cocoa powder to the mix? I know chocolate oatmeal is a thing and I thought I should try it out. So, I did, and: wow! The subtle chocolate flavor together with the hint of coconut from the coconut oil? Definitely doing that again! And, I figured I couldn’t keep this badass oatmeal recipe to myself, because it’s just THAT good.

If you’re fan of oatmeal toppings, I bet this brownie oatmeal could work with most toppings such as nuts, sliced banana, cocoa nibs, berries. Yesterday, I tried it with crushed raspberries and will be sure to do that again. And if you skip the cocoa, apple sauce is a great topping for a apple pie oatmeal!

You want to know the best part? I don’t find myself bloated after eating this modified oatmeal, and I stay full until dinner!

Here’s the recipe again, in a more orderly manner:

Satiating Coconut Brownie Oatmeal

1/2 dl rolled oats
1/2 dl almond flour
1 tbsp chia seeds (optional)
1 dl milk of choice (I use oat milk)
1 dl water
1 pinch of salt
1 ts raw honey
1 pinch ceylon cinnamon, cardamom, vanilla powder (optional)
1 organic egg
1 tbsp raw cocoa powder
1-2 tbsp coconut oil

Topping:
Add toppings to your own liking. Nuts, grated coconut, sliced bananas, berries or cocoa nibs, for instance.

You can also skip the cocoa powder and add apple sauce as a topping for a apple pie oatmeal. Then it won’t be a brownie oatmeal anymore, obviously. But still super moreish and comforting.

Procedure:
Add oats, almond flour, milk of choice, water and spices to a casserole and bring to a boil. Stirr until desired thickness. Move casserole away from stove and add the beaten egg. Remember to stirr the egg in quickly to avoid egg scrambles in your oatmeal. Put back on stove and let it cook to desired thickness. Add honey and cocoa powder and stirr well. Pour into bowl, add coconut oil (you can stirr it in or leave it as is) and toppings of choice.

Bon apetité! ♥︎