One-to-One Apple Oats
Half the usual water, so the oats hold their shape instead of going to paste.
- calories
- 680
- weight
- 5 oz
- cal / oz
- 136
- protein
- 14 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 4 min
- total time
- 6 min
- water
- 240 ml boiled
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Breakfast
- Canister stove
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Backpacking
- Thru-hike
- Bikepacking
- Car camping
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Old-fashioned rolled oats | 1 cup | not instant, not steel cut |
|---|---|---|
| Dried apple slices | 1/3 cup | broken into thumbnail pieces |
| Brown sugar | 1 tbsp | |
| Cinnamon | 1/2 tsp | |
| Salt | 1/4 tsp | |
| Sunflower seeds | 2 tbsp | roasted and salted is fine |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | dropper bottle |
Method
- Boil 240 ml of water. That is one cup, matched to the cup of oats.
- Dump in the oat mix and stir once. Kill the heat.
- Lid on, four minutes. The apple pieces rehydrate off the residual steam.
- Stir in the sunflower seeds and pour the oil over the top.
- If it looks dry, add hot water a splash at a time. Going the other way is harder.
The whole recipe rests on the water ratio. Standard oatmeal is two parts water to one part oats, which gives you a bowl of glue. One to one gives you oats that are cooked through but still separate, and it means carrying and boiling less water.
Dried apple is the trail version of a fresh sliced apple. It goes in dry with the oats and pulls water back out of the pot while everything sits, so it does double duty: it softens itself and it keeps the mix from getting soupy. The oil and seeds are the calories. Without them this is a light snack, not a morning that gets you over a pass.
Packing
Oats, apple, sugar, cinnamon, and salt go into one bag at home. Seeds ride separately so they stay crisp. Oil in a leakproof dropper.
Variations
- Swap dried apple for mango or cranberry when apples get sad in your pack.
- Instant coffee in the water makes it breakfast and caffeine in one pot.
- A scoop of pea protein powder stirred in after the heat is off pushes it past 25 g.
https://positivelyfrugal.com/cheap-breakfast-ideas