One of the first food preferences I discovered when I was in Renfrew's IOP program: I love oatmeal. There were calorically "safer" options that fit in my meal plan, but I learned to not care on most days.
When I left treatment, one of the food challenges I had to motivate myself post-recovery was "continue the quest for the best oatmeal combination."
Fast-forward to now. Quarantine confronted me with this quest:
Exhibit 1: Chocoberry Pitachio Zoats (8/10)
My first attempt cooking and eating zoats: pretty successful. I minced about a cup of zucchini, cooked it in a bit of water until soft (around 3-5 minutes on high heat?), then added 0.5C of oats. Conveniently, the creation is carefully hidden under the chocolate tahini (1T), cacao nibs (0.33T), pistachios (0.67T), and strawberries. It was a pretty solid and foolproof combo for zoats but not too adventurous.
Exhibit 2: Chocolate Zoats (7.5/10)
I actually enjoyed this one. A lot. The 2T of chocolate tahini and the 0.33T of cacao nibs just didn't make it chocolatey enough. Retrospectively, cooking the zoats with cacao powder would've been the way to go. Anyhow, I imagine this is what chocolate zucchini bread tastes like in a bowl. I guess I have more kitchen antics to complete.
Exhibit 3: Carrot cake oats (9.5/10)
This was almost perfect. I cooked 0.5C of julienned baby carrots with a bit of water. After five minutes, they were softened without losing too much texture. I then added 0.5C quick-cook oats and 2T of powdered peanut butter for extra protein. On top are 1T of maple almond butter, date paste (6 delget noor dates' worth), and 3T of pistachios. It was divine. The date paste tasted caramel-y. Medjool dates would've been ideal, but those were not the ones I had at hand.
"But why 9.5/10?" I'm glad you asked (okay, nobody asked. I'll quit my internal monologue).
The pistachios were good. But you know what would've really pulled this bowl from a 9.5 to a 10?
This is where I compromised with ED. Pistachios feel "safer" to eat than walnuts. As if knowing the caloric content of almost every nut is a personality trait, my brain clings to that information. Can I trash this knowledge? No. But I'd like to not let it be the sole indicator of which nut I choose to have on my oatmeal, y'know?
Exhibit 4: Plummy Porridge (6.5/10)
I had a "grown-up PB&J" concept in my head when making this. I cooked 2T of PB2 along with my zoats (1C minced zucchini + 0.5C old-fashioned oats). I debated ditching the peanut butter because of the PB2, but PB2 is not a replacement for the real deal.
(No, previous Madeline with her watered PB2 sandwiched between two rice cakes: that is not akin to a peanut butter sandwich on toast. Both are cool, especially rice cakes when you can't toast bread but want something crunchy. But this ain't it, chief.)
Anyhow, 3T of almonds, 1T of (actual!) peanut butter, and half a plum on top. this bowl had potential. I might be rating it a bit unfairly since it had more of a gel-like texture, which I don't prefer (I'm more of a drippy, juicy plum person). Still, I don't think plum's my favorite with oats. The oats were fine, but it's not something I was excited over or going to recreate in the foreseeable future.
Exhibit 5: Adulting PB&J zoats (8/10)
Attempt 2 at a more "mature" version of PB&J: visible fruit! I used the same PB2 zoats protocol as Exhibit 4 (1C minced zucchini, 0.5C old-fashioned oats, 2T PB2). This time, I topped it off with 2T of peanut butter, 1T of almonds, and strawberries. I can see myself assembling this topping combination with overnight oats, and I'll probably have some variation of this bowl again. It's a classic but not very adventurous.
Exhibit 6: Easter matcha zoats (9/10)
I love matcha. Greatly. I go through phases of starting my morning with matcha or coffee, depending on how soon I need to feel the caffeine kick in and how willing I am to face a caffeine crash. Right now, I'm leaning towards Team Matcha. I don't need to be hyperalert for a class that I conveniently woke up for just in time for me to sprint to campus, so I'd like to avoid the crash.
Anyhow, same ol' PB2 zoats from the previous few exhibits, except I sprinkled about 2t of matcha powder while cooking. I topped this bowl with 2T of peanut butter and three shimmery mini Cadbury eggs. It tasted great, but the chocolates bumped up the presentation and fun factor. The chocolate inside of the eggs was almost completely melted but held together by the candy coating. Combined with the peanut butter (which, obviously, combines well with chocolate) and matcha... fantastic.
If you genuinely thought this concluded my quest, you are horribly mistaken. I've tried and enjoyed toppings I wouldn't have touched with a ten-foot pole mere months ago. Still, I'm confined by the arbitrary rules that I imposed on myself through ED. Such restrictions cannot impede my progress in this quest or my recovery, so I suppose I shall return with another update one day.
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