Friday, March 27, 2009

Pan-Seared Oatmeal with Warm Fruit Compote and Cider Syrup

Here is a great breakfast recipe that can be made the night before and then rewarmed and thrown together in the morning. The star of the show is steel-cut oats.
You make a big batch of oatmeal and then put it in a dish and let it set overnight in the fridge. The next morning it is firm enough to cut into triangles and you pan-fry them in a tiny bit of butter and then add a wonderful syrup and a fruit compote.
I used a dried cranberry and apple mix for the dried fruit and that was my 2-year olds favorite part of this breakfast.
I made this on a weekend morning and it was a really great way to start the day.
It is also a nice twist on the normal bowl of oatmeal. My family really, really liked it and were fighting over the last plate.



Pan-Seared Oatmeal with Warm Fruit Compote and Cider Syrup adapted from Cooking Light
Syrup:
2 cups apple cider
Compote:
2 cups water
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (7-ounce) package dried mixed fruit bits (I used a dried cranberry and apple pieces mix)
Oatmeal:
3 cups water
1 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups steel-cut (Irish) oats
Cooking spray
1/4 cup butter, divided
To prepare syrup, bring cider to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until reduced to 1/3 cup (about 20 minutes); set aside.
To prepare compote, combine 2 cups water, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and dried fruit in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until thick.
To prepare oatmeal, combine 3 cups water, 1 cup milk, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; stir in oats. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until thick, stirring occasionally. Spoon oatmeal into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray; cool to room temperature.
Cover and chill at least 1 hour or until set. (I let my set overnight)
Using a sharp knife, cut oatmeal into 8 equal rectangles; cut each rectangle in half diagonally to form 16 triangles.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 8 oatmeal triangles; cook 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove from pan; keep warm.
Repeat procedure with remaining 2 tablespoons butter and oatmeal triangles.
Place 2 oatmeal triangles on each of 8 plates, and top each serving with 3 1/2 tablespoons fruit compote and about 2 teaspoons syrup.

Coming Tomorrow- Pork Strips with Peanut Sauce and Rice Noodles

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

oh no! the pictures looks so delish!

Marie Rayner said...

Great looking pictures as always Mary Ann. I used to do something like this for my kids all the time when they were growing up. They would never have eaten a bowl of oatmeal, but I found that if I made it the day before and packed it into a loaf pan, then the next morning I could slice it into slabs and then pan fry it. Served with a bit of pancake syrup they loved it! I love your fruity addition though. That sounds fantastic!

Barbara Bakes said...

What a great idea. I love that it's a Cooking Light recipe. I'm printing this one!

Sara said...

Great idea! The pictures looks delish...I want it for breakfast right now. :)

Maria said...

Love oats in the morning. Glad you can prepare this early too!

Steph said...

That's like having an oatmeal pancake! I think this might be the only way I could ever bring myself to eat oatmeal that isn't dry.

Cathy said...

What a great way to get your oats! I need to look for steel cut oats. This looks incredible -- love that fruit compote!

Anonymous said...

Wow, that's a great idea! Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

That's a great idea for oatmeal. The compote sounds yummy too.

Meghan said...

This oatmeal sounds great! I recently made a baked oatmeal from Cooking Light, and it was delicious. I would like to try the compote!

Not Another Omnivore said...

That's really interesting and delicious looking!

NAOmni

Leslie said...

This looks amazing! I can't wait to try it! It's not hard for me to let things dry out in the fridge over night...it happens more than I care to admit.

Laura said...

This was a fantastic recipe! made it a couple of days ago and I can't get enough of it! Thank you!!!