It’s pumpkin season. And that demands PUMPKIN EVERYTHING, amirite? It’s also oatmeal season. So! Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal: my standard breakfast oatmeal pumpkin-ified. Because I wanted to give you some real food for real days, not a big layer cake or a pie recipe that only has any business being made 1 or 2 days out of the year. Nothing wrong with those—I love feast day food & have a couple of really luscious Thanksgiving recipes in the works! But I’m in a practical mood these days. Maybe it’s because I’m a mom now, and that’s how that (vegan, whole grain) cookie crumbles. Haha. So go build a fire, put on a cozy sweater and cable-knit socks, jump in a pile of burnished leaves, fill every corner of your home with decorative heirloom gourds, and put it all on Instagram. But eat this before you do. Cause it’s #fallyall, and that gives us all permission to get a little basic.
I make oatmeal a lot. Like, a LOT. Especially as the weather cools, it starts to take the place of my other stand by eats: yogurt + granola or avo toast + egg. Usually I make mine with homemade mylk (I like almond, hazelnut, and coconut the best), a little sea salt, a little maple syrup or honey, a pinch of whatever spice I’m feeling (usually nutmeg, maybe cinnamon too), maybe a dash of rose water or orange blossom water if I’m feeling fancy, and a swirl of jam (I like raspberry). For crunch I usually throw on a bit of homemade granola (oat on oat action) or some of my “crunchy morning magic” which is just a mix of bee pollen, cacao nibs, super seeds like chia & hemp, and a few chopped nuts like pistachio or hazelnut or whatever I had on hand. I keep the latter in a jar in my pantry, and it goes great in yogurt bowls, porridge, tops smoothies bowls, etc. When I’m in a savory mood I usually throw in some miso, a bit of lemon or ponzu, and top it with scallion, a soft boiled egg, a tiny drizzle of sesame oil, and some furikake or togarashi.
For this sweater weather pumpkin pie oatmeal, try making a puree from scratch at the beginning of the week and using it in this throughout. You can also throw the puree in pumpkin breads, pumpkin waffle and pancake mixes, and soups if you get sick of this. Which you won’t. You can mix up winter gourds like kabocha, sugar pie pumpkin (my fave), butternut, delicata, and even sweet potato (not a gourd, obvs, but it fits right in). So if you’re a CSA person, use whatever winter gourds & sweet roots come your way! To make a puree I just slice up all my gourds, throw ’em on a sheet tray with a little olive oil and sea salt, and roast them at 400°F/200°C/gas mark 6 until they’re mushy and fork tender, about 20 minutes. Scoop out all the flesh and store in the fridge. If you want it really smooth, I throw it in my Vitamix (a mere mortal blender will do, but this thing is a game changer) with just a splash of homemade coconut milk to smooth it out. I prefer a smooth puree. By all means, use a can if you’re short on time. I did for this recipe test. Just make sure you don’t accidentally get pie filling. There shouldn’t be anything other than “pumpkin” on the ingredient list and look for BPA free cans.
Some Porridge Pointers (a.k.a. How to Make Perfect Oatmeal!):
- Mix up your grains with things like quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, steel cut oats, what have you. Adjust cooking times as needed. Steel cut oats take forever, just sayin’.
- But I like oats. And keeping my pantry simple. So for me, it’s always quick cooking oats. Not instant oats. But not old fashioned rolled oats either. Quick cooking oats are just rolled oats that have been cut up a bit, which reduces their surface area which, you guessed it, reduces cook time. And I prefer the texture. If you prefer rolled oats, go for it! You might need to cook it a bit longer though.
- Mix up your liquids but don’t use water! Water is sad clown. Whole milk, goat milk, coconut mylk, almond mylk. It’s allllll good. I prefer homemade mylks but if I don’t have time to make them or didn’t think to (read: often), I look for a brand of either whole, local dairy milk or a non-dairy mylk with no weird ingredients (I always read the label). New Barn is an almond mylk I found at Whole Foods with no weird ingredients. You could even try a dashi, broth, or stock for a savory porridge!
- Use a 4: 1 liquid to oat ratio for the creamiest oats. Some people use less, but I think this is juuuust right. It will look like a lot of liquid. But them oats drink it right up.
- As to method: Boil the liquid, then whisk in the oats + seasonings. Reduce to a bare simmer. Cover. Cook 10 min. Stir. Cook another 5-10 minutes. Done. Stir in goodies.
- Don’t eat oatmeal out of a wide bowl. They’ll cool too fast and get all gummy and cold. Gross. A deep bowl or mug will keep the oats on the bottom warm as you work your way to them! My photo in said wide bowl is for styling purposes only.
- Season them! Whether you’re making savory oats or sweet oats, a pinch of salt is always a must. (This is directed at you, dear husband! : )
- Just kidding. He doesn’t read my blog! He lives with me so he gets to hear it all LIVE.
- Jam is the quickest, easiest snazzifier. I always keep one jar of jam in the fridge expressly for this purpose. Sometimes I’m in a blueberry mood, but mostly I’m in a raspberry mood. You do you.
- Add some crunch. I personally don’t need any crunch to love a creamy, comforting bowl of oatmeal, but whether it’s chopped fresh fruit or nuts, from an objective texture point the creaminess benefits from some crunch.
Ingredients
- 4 cups unsweetened almond or coconut mylk (can sub whole milk or mylk of your choice!)
- 1 cup quick cooking oats (can sub rolled oats but would need to increase cook time)
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
- 1/4 cup maple syrup or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder or 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
- pinch or two of clove powder
- 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 cup organic canned or homemade pumpkin puree (sweet potato and butternut squash work too!)
- spoonful of coconut oil or pat of butter
- dollop of yogurt / non dairy yogurt of choice
- drizzle of coconut mylk or milk of choice
- toasted pecans, hazelnuts, and/or walnuts
- toasted pepitas
- dried or fresh cranberries
- whipped coconut cream (yum!)
- brown sugar
- extra drizzle of maple syrup
Instructions
- Bring the milk or mylk to a boil on high heat.
- Whisk in the oats, spices, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt. Reduce heat to a bare simmer, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.
- Stir once to prevent sticking on the bottom, cover again, and cook an additional 5 minutes.
- Uncover, stir in the pumpkin puree, and cook an additional 5 minutes.
- Add your desired toppings. In these photos I topped it with a bit of coconut whipped cream, coconut mylk, coconut flakes, toasted pecans & pepitas, a tiny drizzle of maple syrup, dried rose petals (cause pretty), and brown sugar. It was A+!
Thank you for such an inspiring post! I make pumpkin oatmeal regularly but the way you talk about it and those dreamy photographs makes me so much more excited to indulge in a bowl for breakfast. And I agree, the Vitamix makes such a lovely smooth puree that is a great addition to prettyyyy much anything!
Cooking oatmeal for breakfast right now. But this recipe is O M G! Sounds so so so good. Definitely making this week.
even when it isn’t pumpkin pie oatmeal a bit of cocowhip on top is soooooo good!
I can’t stand porridge, so I stay away from it even though I do find myself drooling at images like these. But because I know it won’t sit well in my stomach, I know I couldn’t eat it. Especially in the mornings. But then I read pumpkin, and I am so pumpkin and squash addicted that my mouth keeps watering as I go back to stare at the pictures and I sooooo want to indulge on something like this… maybe I could get away with it for lunch?
https://bloglairdutemps.blogspot.pt/
haha….maybe try it for lunch! it might sit better with you with lots of toppings. that way there’s plenty of texture.
I’m just a little curious…why are you spelling milk differently?
because it isn’t really milk! I love the different spelling to denote that it’s coconut “milk” : )
Ooh, I like it too! Reminds me of “skyr” which I love to eat(: And skyr always leads me to a vision of skiing down snow covered mountains and rolling hills, because, voilà, funny mind association games that I don’t really understand.
I made this oatmeal for breakfast this morning and it’s basically fall in a lovely, warm bowl. Thanks for the inspiration (and the oatmeal advice)!
So happy to hear that!
This looks so good! I’ve got to try this with some Japanese sweet potatoes… I always have the problem of oatmeal stuck to the bottom of my pan if I’m not at the stove constantly stirring. I wonder if that’s because I’m boiling the liquid with the oats in it, making it clump up at the heat increases. Do you have that problem too with boiling the liquid first?
I find it sticks at first and then releases a bit. But I always have a little stuck…I just don’t worry about it and run some water in the pan to let it soak while I eat! I think a different pan might help but I don’t really care to buy a new pot haha
Amazing recipe! Merci beaucoup 🙂
Lovely recipe! I tried it on this rainy morning, and it was so comforting and delicious! I added Garam Masala and a hit of cayenne for some warmth. It went amazingly with the coconut whip.
Made this today! Loved it. I used canned pumpkin and just cooked it with some coconut oil and cinnamon before adding the milk and bringing to a boil. Made it taste more like fresh puree (which I need to make when I have a moment!).
Exactly my cup of tea ! Thank you !
so. fucking. decadent <3
i never cook my oats for this long but its definitely the move. and i had dried hibiscus on hand instead of rose… which gave it this quirky sweetness. i liked that suggestion.
Just tasting the first bites from the pot. Without any sweetener, it’s a bit salty and strangely… satisfying. But my family would not appreciate salty oats, so…
I used a half and half combo of unsweetened flax milk with pea protein and canned coconut milk because that’s what I had. Tastes lovely! I also used honey as the sweetener because my maple syrup supplier (aka my father-in-law) hasn’t sent our installment.
Thanks for the tasty recipe, it’ll go well with our rainy Sunday morning here in Baltimore!
I adore oatmeal and at one point in my life for many years I lived for it. 😉 But this….this photo just maaaaakes me crave it and salivate bad! It’s so textural and creamy, so elusively magical I think I might have a fat oatmeal bowl tonight.
Beautiful
I just did it — because I trusted you…I normally hate porridges but this one was pretty good! I like your taste in food so much that I thought of giving it a try. Was worth it. But I definitely needed the yoghurt, for the little sour kick in the sweets… thank you Beth.
Tried it, of course. The description and the photos made it hard not to. What a delight..every bit of fall was encompassed in a bowl! Even the leftovers were a treat the next day. Thank you!
Well I bet a breakfast like this is enough attractive to help me leave my bed every morning.
AMEN to the coconut mylk, 4 to 1 liquid to oats ratio for creaminess, and using a deep bowl! Pumpkin oatmeal has been on repeat for me the last few months, but I’ll definitely have to try some of your mix ins! Never thought of adding jam before. Now if only I could make mine look as pretty as yours…
Hello Hello
Do you by any chance have a recipe for a pumpkin pie that you could share? I have never made one – it isn’t popular in Australia. But my aunt, who lived in the USA for most of her life, used to make this every Christmas. Sadly my aunt passed away, (in fact my mother’s entire family are all gone now – so I want to do something special to help my mum not feel so alone). I thought if I could make a really good pumpkin pie, for a short while we might all feel like my aunt was with us, in spirit. Can you help me? I have no idea how to tell if a recipe is a good one.
I don’t have one yet! But i’m sure I will one day!