Who doesn't like oats? The fibre-rich ingredient can be soaked overnight for a super convenient breakfast. But, don't relegate oats to just one meal a day. There are ways to switch things up with healthy granola bars, salads and a khichdi. These recipes will provide enough fodder to perk up rolled oats.
Oats palak khichdi
Recipe by chef Sanjyot Keer, Digital Content Creator and Founder of Your Food Lab
Prep time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
Serves: 6
Ingredients
2 bunches of fresh spinach
2-3 green chillies
A handful of fresh coriander
1 tbsp ghee
1 tsp cumin seeds
Three-fourth cup moong dal, washed
1 cup rolled oats
Salt to taste
Water as required
For tempering
1 tsp desi ghee
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp hing
1 medium-sized onion, chopped
1 tbsp garlic, chopped
1 tbsp ginger, chopped
One-fourth tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
2 medium-sized tomatoes, chopped
Salt to taste
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp garam masala
Method:
1. Boiling water for blanching the spinach. Blanch the spinach for two minutes and immediately transfer to ice cold water.
2. Transfer the blanched spinach to a grinding jar, add green chillies and handful of fresh coriander, grind to a fine puree.
3. Set a cooker on medium heat, add ghee and jeera, allow to splutter. Add moong dal and oats, mix well. Add salt and water, stir well, and make sure the water is 2 inches above the surface.
4. Pressure cook on medium heat for two whistles, switch off the flame and let the cooker depressurize naturally to open the lid. Give it a nice stir.
5. Set a wok on medium heat, add desi ghee, jeera and hing and sauté for few seconds. Add onions, garlic and ginger, cook until onions are translucent.
6. Mix in turmeric powder, red chilli powder and coriander powder. Add tomatoes and sauté for a few seconds.
7. Add the pureed spinach and salt, mix and cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the oats khichdi, mix well and cook for 3-4 minutes.
8. Add lemon juice, garam masala and mix well, your healthy oats khichdi is ready to be served, serve hot.
Oats and quinoa crumble
Recipe by Executive Pastry Chef Stephenson Simson, The Leela Ambience Gurugram.
Ingredients
For the dough
640 gms brown sugar
254 gms butter
3 eggs
25 gms baking powder
10 gms salt
545 gms oats
525 gms flour
For the crumble
400 gms brown sugar
400 gms melted butter
400 gms oats
400 gms raspberry, strawberry or apple cinnamon jam for filling.
Method
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
2. To make the dough: In a large bowl, mix the melted butter and sugar, add the eggs one after another. Mix till the batter becomes creamy. Add the dry ingredients—flour, oats, salt and baking powder. Keep aside.
3. To make the crumble: In a bowl, mix butter, brown sugar and oats with a spatula.
4. Final assembly: In a deep baking tray, put baking paper and spread the dough. Bake for 10 minutes at 170 c. Take the tray out of the oven and let it cool for a few minutes. Add the jam of your choice. Layer with the crumble and bake for 10 minutes. Garnish with powdered sugar.
Oats and quinoa garden salad
Recipe by chef Jerson Fernandes, Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach.
Ingredients
200 gms mix of quinoa and oats
75 ml olive oil
200 gms vegetable stock
150 ml orange juice
1 tbsp garlic, chopped
Juice of half a lemon
1 tbsp onions, chopped
1 tbsp parsley, chopped
Half tsp celery, chopped
Crushed black pepper to taste
Salt to taste
For walnut praline
10 walnuts
200 gms sugar
For vinaigrette dressing
50 ml vinegar
20 ml lemon juice
Salt to taste
Crushed black pepper to taste
For grilled vegetables
4 baby potatoes, halved
100 gms micro greens
4 cherry tomatoes
4 tbsp olive oil
1 green zucchini
1 yellow zucchini
1 carrot50 gms mango cubes (optional)
1 red radish
100 gms mango puree
200 gms mayonnaise
Method
1. For walnut praline: Caramelize sugar in a pan and coat the walnuts with it. Allow to cool in room temperature by placing them on a rack upside down for the excess caramel to drip. The last bits of the caramel should have a hair-like texture. Refrigerate till the caramel solidifies.
2. To cook the quinoa and oats: Heat olive oil in a pan. Roast quinoa and oats, add chopped garlic, onions, celery and sauté well. Add vegetable stock, orange juice, salt, pepper and simmer. Stir occasionally till the liquid evaporates and the quinoa is completely cooked with each grain separate from the other. Allow to cool.
3. At room temperature, add lemon juice, chopped parsley, crushed walnut praline and mix well. Keep aside.
4. Make vinaigrette dressing by mixing vinegar, salt, pepper and lime juice together.
5. For grilled vegetables: Wash, peel and slice carrots, green and yellow zucchini lengthwise. Grill on an olive oil greased pan seasoned with salt and pepper. Keep aside to cool. Follow the same steps to roast cherry tomatoes and grilled baby potatoes in olive oil, season with salt and pepper and keep aside. Wash and slice red radish with skin on and marinate with salt, pepper and olive oil, keep aside.
6. For the base sauce, mix mango puree with mayonnaise. Cube mango into micro cubes and keep aside.
7. Chill the salad for 10-15 minutes before serving for best results. Mix in the vinaigrette and enjoy.
High protein oats granola bar
Recipe by chef Avin Thaliath, pastry chef/co-founder and director of Lavonne Academy of Baking Science and Pastry arts
Ingredients
250 gm rolled oats, roasted
6 gm milk powder
5 gm whey protein
8 gm maple syrup
120 gm date paste
30 gms flakes powder
2 gm salt
2 gm cinnamon powder
10 gm almonds, sliced
1:1:1 ratio of flakes (Rice flakes, foxtail millet flakes, ragi flakes)
Method
1. Make the flakes powder: Roast all the flakes (rice, ragi and foxtail millets). Once roasted make a fine powder and keep it aside.
2. Roast rolled oats on low heat for about 5-10 mins.
3. Mix the dry ingredients—milk powder, rolled oats and flakes powder in a food processor and give it a nice churn. If you don't have a food processor, use a spatula.
3. Add maple syrup, date paste, salt, cinnamon powder, and sliced almonds.
4. After adding all the ingredients, mix well for dough-like consistency. If the dough is too thin add almond flour.
5. Roll the dough to a thickness of about half an inch, and length 3 inches (approx). Bake for five mins at 60 degrees celsius in a pre-heated oven.
6. Let it cool. Cut into bars and serve.
Also read | Why cast iron is better than teflon
