[This post is sponsored by my wonderful friends over at Bob’s Red Mill! We’re using their Gluten Free Thick Rolled Oats for this recipe!]
I promise I’m not going crazy.
Yes, this oatmeal is green. But I can guarantee you that it tastes 1000% better than it looks. For realzies.
It’s that time of year where smoothie recipes popping up everywhere (in fact, I just did a roundup of some of my favorite smoothie recipes!) And I think it’s safe to say that green smoothies (otherwise known as “Green Monsters”) are a kick-butt way of gobbling up as many nutrients as possible in the wee hours of the morn’.
However, I don’t know about you, but when it’s 20 degrees F outside, the last thing I want to suck down is a cold smoothie. I want to be bundled up in a blanket, sipping a nice hot cup of green tea, and drowning my frigidness in a big bowl of piping-hot oatmeal. There ain’t no time to be shivering after downing my breakfast; I want a big bowl of comfort and I want it now.
Hence the green oatmeal.
You can still have a super-nutritious start to your day with this Green Monster Oatmeal! Not only is it packed with ingredients from your favorite green smoothie, but it’s also sweet, perfectly chewy, and totally comforting. Talk about the perfect new year breakfast!
Let’s get down to the ingredients, shall we? We’ll definitely need some oats. And I’m going to let you in on a little secret: don’t waste your time with any other oats because Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Thick Rolled Oats are just about the best you could possibly find. They’re ULTRA thick, seriously dreamy, and make for the perfect bowl of oats. They seriously take the traditional boring bowl of oats to a whole.other.level. I love them so much, I’m munching on them right this very second. Seriously, find yourself a bag ASAP!
Next, some greenage. Frozen spinach was my green-o-choice, because I knew that it would keep its color much better than the fresh stuff. We grabbed a bag from Trader Joe’s for next to nothing, and we’ll throw it into smoothies, soups, and now, this oatmeal. OH! And just to ease your mind about chewing on giant hunks of spinach in your oatmeal (blech), we’re using my handy-dandy How to Make Homemade Juice Without A Juicer trick to extract some bright-green spinach juice for this recipe!
And now, the toppings. This oatmeal gets its sweetness from half of a mashed banana that’s cooked along with the green oatty goodness. I also ended up topping my bowl with the other half of the banana (sliced) for some additional sweetness. I also threw some beautiful frozen berries on top because I miss summer and I love them. And for some added protein, I sprinkled on some hemp hearts. But the toppings are totaaaaally up to you. If you’re a fan of nut butter, by all means throw some on! If you’re a fan of ch-ch-ch-chia seeds, dooooo itttt! The world is your oyster smoothie oat bowl!
I know green oatmeal is a bit unconventional, but I promise after just one bite, you’re going to be addicted. It’ll leave you feeling ready to take on these bitter cold temperatures and New Years Resolutions, all while tasting really freakin’ delicious. Don’t judge a bowl of oats by its color; you need this Green Monster Oatmeal in your weekly breakfast lineup ?.
OOH! And if you try this or any of my other Oat Week recipes, be sure to tag your photos with #fooduzzi and #oatweek! Team #greenoatbowl FTW.
PrintGreen Monster Oatmeal
- Yield: 1 bowl
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup chopped frozen spinach
- 1 cup water
- salt
- 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Thick Rolled Oats
- 1 banana, half mashed/half sliced
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- splash pure vanilla extract
- Toppings: sliced banana, frozen berries, nut butter, hemp/chia/flax seeds
Instructions
- Add spinach and 1/2 cup water to a blender and blend until smooth. Stain mixture with a fine-mesh sieve over a 1 cup measuring cup. Push the spinach pulp against the sieve, making sure that all of the juice has drained into the cup below. Fill the rest of the measuring cup up with water, and discard the spinach pulp.
- Add spinach water and a pinch of salt to a small pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, add oats and the mashed banana, and reduce the heat to medium-low. Add cinnamon, and stir to combine*. Cook, stirring occasionally, until desired texture is reached. Remove from heat, add vanilla, and stir to combine.
- Scoop oatmeal into a bowl and top with desired toppings (I chose banana, frozen berries, and hemp seeds!). Devour and feel amazing <3
Notes
*Adding cinnamon will turn your green oats a brownish-green color. It’s crazy delicious, but just not that appetizing looking. Feel free to sprinkle it on top if you so desire!
A very special thank you goes to Bob’s Red Mill for sponsoring this post and for supplying me with some of their delicious products that I love for this recipe! All opinions are my own.
Affiliate links were used in this blog post. “Affiliate” is just a fancy way of saying that I get some money if you click on and purchase the products that are linked! The money I earn will go directly back into Fooduzzi, so I’d really appreciate you helping me “feed” my blogging efforts!!
This is such a great way to add greens to your diet, especially in this post-holiday “I need to get healthy and I need to eat more greens” season! It looks really delicious, and the photos are so clean and beautiful.
I can’t wait to try it!
What do you do with the leftover spinach pulp? I’d hate to throw it away… would you put it in smoothies? Or in stir-fries? Or would it be okay to not even strain the spinach blend and just add it to the oatmeal to create a thick, VERY green oatmeal? Thanks!
Totally agreed! I love getting my greens in as early as I can :)
As for the leftover spinach pulp, I’m sure you could skip the straining; however, I’d be nervous that your final oatmeal would be a little grainy. Bleh haha Personally, I’d re-freeze the pulp and use it for smoothies!
So creative adding spinach to your oatmeal! I love this Alexa :)
Thanks so much, Ashley! I’m definitely doing it from now on – it’s such an easy way to sneak in some greens! :)
this is the EPITOME of health in a bowl. Although i love that you actually made it super yummy too. spinach in oatmeal is a new one for me, but i’m not one to step down from trying new things ;)
I absolutely agree, Beverley! Definitely give the whole spinach oatmeal a try – you won’t even know it’s there!
I just found your blog today, and I am already obsessed! Keep the wonderful posts coming :)
Your comment made my day, Maddie :) Thank you so much for your kind words!
Loving that there is REAL spinach making these oats green – what a fantastic way to start the day!! I’ve been putting hemp hearts on everything lately – such a fun way to finish the bowl!
Thanks so much, Sam! I agree – I LOVE hemp seeds! Such a great source of plant-based protein :)