Recipe for pumpkin spice oatmeal with raisins and pecans {vegan}

Have you ever thought about why you like some foods and not others? Or why you like a food in one form and not in another? I ponder these questions a lot, but still can't explain why I love raw carrots and fresh strawberries, but not cooked ones, or why I love oatmeal cookies, but not boiled oatmeal in a bowl. My husband Ted does love oatmeal, especially the coarse steel cut (a.k.a. Irish) oats when they're still a little bit crunchy, so this pumpkin spice oatmeal with raisins and pecans is for him, and for you. Steel cut oats are whole grain groats (the inner portion of the oat kernel) that have been cut into two or three pieces; because they are minimally processed, they take longer to cook than rolled oats, and have a wonderful chewy texture. Store leftover oatmeal in the refrigerator in breakfast-sized containers, and reheat in the microwave at home or at work later in the week.

Pumpkin spice oatmeal with raisins and pecans

From the pantry, you'll need: cinnamon, nutmeg, kosher salt, raisins, brown sugar.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

3 cups water
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 cup steel cut oats
1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 Tbsp light brown sugar
3 Tbsp golden raisins, for garnish
3 Tbsp chopped toasted pecans, for garnish

Directions

In a 3- or 4-quart straight-sided saucepan (I use a nonstick pan), bring the water and salt to a boil.

Stir in the oats, pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and brown sugar. Reduce heat to simmer, cover the pot, and cook, stirring occasionally to keep the oatmeal from sticking, for 25 minutes.

Garnish individual bowls with raisins and pecans, and serve hot.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

More recipes in The Perfect Pantry:
Nectarine and white peach crisp
Crispy oatmeal cookies
Granola cookies
Apple-pear-cranberry crisp

Other recipes that use these pantry ingredients:
Blueberry-coconut baked steel cut oatmeal, from Family Fresh Cooking
Banana muffin tops with steel-cut oatmeal, from The Kitchn
Gingerbread steel-cut oats, from Budget Bytes
Steel-cut oats with rhubarb and apple topping, from Two Peas & Their Pod
Pressure cooker steel cut oats, from Barbara Bakes

Pumpkin spice oatmeal with raisins and pecans

From the pantry, you'll need: cinnamon, nutmeg, kosher salt, raisins, brown sugar.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

3 cups water
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 cup steel cut oats
1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 Tbsp light brown sugar
3 Tbsp golden raisins, for garnish
3 Tbsp chopped toasted pecans, for garnish

Directions

In a 3- or 4-quart straight-sided saucepan (I use a nonstick pan), bring the water and salt to a boil.

Stir in the oats, pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and brown sugar. Reduce heat to simmer, cover the pot, and cook, stirring occasionally to keep the oatmeal from sticking, for 25 minutes.

Garnish individual bowls with raisins and pecans, and serve hot.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

More recipes in The Perfect Pantry:
Nectarine and white peach crisp
Crispy oatmeal cookies
Granola cookies
Apple-pear-cranberry crisp

Other recipes that use these pantry ingredients:
Blueberry-coconut baked steel cut oatmeal, from Family Fresh Cooking
Banana muffin tops with steel-cut oatmeal, from The Kitchn
Gingerbread steel-cut oats, from Budget Bytes
Steel-cut oats with rhubarb and apple topping, from Two Peas & Their Pod
Pressure cooker steel cut oats, from Barbara Bakes

Comments

My husband likes oatmeal, too, and fixes himself a bowl every weekday morning. I like it but I'm usually not hungry first thing and end up having a smoothie. So in our house a bowl of oatmeal is a treat for me and 'same old same old' for him.

A recipe like this, however, with some pumpkin (I have both roasted pumpkin and butternut puree in the freezer, I think either would do?) and spices would be a great weekend breakfast for us--it's different enough for him to appreciate, and I get to wake up a bit while it's cooking.

Thanks!

This must smell wonderful while it's cooking. I like to start the steel cut oats the night before, oats + water + salt -- bring to a boil and turn it off. In the morning it is 70% cooked, and the rest is done by the time you've made coffee. (My brother has been doing this for about 40 years! He's diversified now to adding nuts, fruit, milk...) (Yesterday I had mine with a cranberry sauce -- mmm!)

Pumpkin oatmeal is my favorite. I like to sweeten it with maple syrup and garnish with dried cranberries and pecans. Even my hubby, who doesn't care for pumpkin or oatmeal as much as I do, really enjoys it. I'm even known to eat it in the summer, provided I've stocked up on plenty of canned pumpkin!

It looks great, Lydia. You know I love pumpkin anything. ;-) Easy to make this oatmeal gluten free by using certified gluten free oats, too!

Shirley

Kirsten, you can definitely use that squash purée for this oatmeal. I'm sure you will like it; I'm not an oatmeal lover but I thought this was delicious.

Susan, I love the different methods for cooking steel cut oats, and I've been experimenting withnsome slow cooker variations too. Cranberry sauce --will have to try that.

Pattypro, stocking up on canned pumpkin and squash purée when it goes on sale in the market every fall is key. I usually buy at least 10 cans!

Shirley, thanks as always for adding this info for my gluten-free readers.

I absolutely love oatmeal in almost any form (if it isn't too sweet) but my husband and sons refuse to even taste it! Nuts! And how I love pumpkin. I'll bet your version is a cross between heavenlly oatmeal and pumpkin pie!

I do love oatmeal, but don't especially like oatmeal cookies. Go figure. This sounds extra good!

Jamie, my husband loves oatmeal with all sorts of sweetener in it, and maybe that's part of the reason I don't love oatmeal now. But I do love oatmeal cookies. With raisins. And chocolate chips!

Kalyn, go figure. I can't explain why our taste buds work the way they do.