Whether you’re a die hard oatmeal eater or you only choose oatmeal when feeling particularly guilty about last night’s bacon egg and cheese, these oatmeal upgrades will without a doubt improve your mornings. And what’s more awesome is that almost all of these ingredients can be found right in the dining hall.
Chocolate Overload Oatmeal
Photo by Kristina Kim
This oatmeal is the ticket to satisfying anyone’s sweet tooth. Microwave your oats in chocolate soy milk, add on your favorite toppings from the ice cream bar and dig in. Because, hey, regardless of what you add to it, oatmeal is still a heart-healthy, fiber-filled breakfast food, right?
Banana Bread Oatmeal
Photo by Kristina Kim
Banana lovers beware: this stuff is addicting. Microwave sliced banana with your oats and milk instead of adding it on top afterwards — doing so adds banana flavor to the whole bowl and actually does make it taste like banana bread (I’m not lying, I swear).
Top it with walnuts, brown sugar, and more banana slices if you just can’t get enough — nothing wrong with keeping those potassium levels high.
Craving some real banana bread now? Find out how to make microwave banana bread.
PB&J Oatmeal
Photo by Kristina Kim
If you can’t quite wait until lunchtime for your daily PB&J fix, then this is the oatmeal for you. Toss peanut butter, vanilla soymilk and some oats in a bowl and stick them in the microwave. Add a healthy spoonful of peanut butter (I recommend crunchy for some texture) and jelly, and your breakfast will be the envy of fourth graders everywhere.
Can’t get enough PB&J? Check out how to give your favorite sandwich a makeover.
Caramel Apple Oatmeal
Photo by Kristina Kim
This oatmeal gets you all things you love about caramel apples without all the negatives (a face covered in caramel, the lame part of the apple once you’ve eaten all the caramel, etc…). To make this delicious combo, cut up an apple into chunks and microwave it with oats and vanilla soy milk.
Put some butter and brown sugar in a mug and microwave it until it turns nice and gooey and smells like heaven (about 20-30 seconds). Drizzle that over your oatmeal and enjoy your mess-free caramel apple.
California Savory Oatmeal
Photo by Kristina Kim
Yes, this is only called California oatmeal because it has avocado in it. So sue me. Anyways, this is the oatmeal option for those poor souls who can’t quite stomach sweets early in the morning. I used the pre-made oatmeal for this one (milk might have been a bit much with the savory ingredients, and also maybe I was feeling a little lazy at this point).
Toss on a hard boiled egg, slice up an avocado, and top with your choice of hot sauce. You could add another texture by adding bacon or sausage (maybe even potato chips?!) because who says oatmeal is boring?