A kind of breakfast recipe

I was hesitating to put this recipe here since it really has nothing to do with Japan. But whatever, I eat it in Japan, therefore it's relevant.

I wake up super crazy early for my job (5:30 people!). So I'm not really much in the mood for doing anything, the easier breakfast the better. I came up with this recipe off of several different ones that I'm sure some of you have come across.

It's super flexible, so have fun with it!

Ok, so basically it's oatmeal, but I don't cook it. Now, I think oatmeal is not a raw food (correct me if I'm wrong, so even though I don't cook it, it's not raw). Anyway, the basic idea is to soak oatmeal for at least an hour or two possibly over night. Then rinse it and drain it for about 10 minutes. Then add any fruits, nuts, or dried fruits you want. It's good with a nice crispy green apple. But apples and fruit in general is super expensive here and I'm also lazy to chop stuff. So I kind of ran with that basic idea...

I start soaking my oatmeal while making dinner. That way if I'm not to tired I can prepare this whole thing the night before, otherwise I just let it soak overnight. I soak it with a few dried fruits, especially ones that might benefit from plumping back up like blueberries and cranberries. Then I rinse and soak it, the same as above. Then I add it to my food processor with a couple bananas and sometimes a tablespoon or so of peanut butter and process. I like to leave mine a little chunky. Then I pour it into a container. Add nuts or other fruits or dried fruits and mix. I often add sunflower seeds and walnuts. This keeps in the fridge for about 3 days! So there you go, I have three days breakfasts made in less than 10 minutes. Then in the morning I just scoop out as much as I want and since it's been pretty cold, I stick it in the microwave for just a little bit (40 seconds). The bananas make it sweet enough that I don't need to add any sugars. And I get in a couple fruit servings as well as some good Omega 3s. Also, it keeps me full throughout most of my morning.

There are some many other ways you could make this, like adding a fruit jelly or flax seeds. I also had some left last Friday, so for dessert I added 1 Tablespoon of cocoa powder and about 2 Tablespoons of maple syrup and instantly had a 'healthy' dessert!

Alright, I'll try to post something more relevant to Japan next time.

--Pamela