Lemon Poppyseed Steel Cut Oats
In the fall, we love pumpkin steel cut oats. In the spring, there’s the lemon poppyseed version to enjoy!
If you don’t have poppyseeds, or even if you do, I also suggest chia seeds. Chia seeds are simply amazing little packages of potent nutritional power. They pack loads of nutrients, fiber, and protein with very few calories. Seeds are a superfood that we should eat every day. Try to eat some flax seeds, hemp seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds, or sunflower seeds regularly. They are easy to mix into oatmeal, smoothies, or baked goods.
Steel cut oats take a little more time to cook than rolled oats. For this reason, I like to make a bigger batch and then re-heat leftovers the next day or two for a quick breakfast.
You can make this on the stove or in an Instant Pot.
Lemon Poppyseed Muffins without the muffin!
- 1 cup steel cut oats
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup milk of choice (I like almond or coconut)
- 1/4 cup sweetener of choice: honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar, date puree
- 2 lemons
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds or chia seeds
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Put oats, water and milk in a pot with 1/2 tsp salt. Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer. Let cook for about 15 minutes, stirring ocasionally until oats are soft.
While the oats are cooking, zest and juice the two lemons. Don't skip the zest, it adds the main lemon flavor. If you don't have a zester, just use a grater.
Stir in 2 tsp lemon zest, and 3 tablespoons lemon juice and vanilla extract. Stir in 1/4 cup of sweetener, then more if necessary to reach desired sweetness.
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Sprinkle with chia or poppyseeds, and serve with additional milk.
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To cook steel cut oats in your instant pot, combine oats, water, milk and 1/2 tsp salt in the pot. Set it on high pressure and cook for 5 minutes. Let it naturally release. I've also let it cook for 8 minutes and done quick release. Both ways work.
Stir in lemon juice, lemon zest, sweetener and sprinkle each serving with poppy or chia seeds.
I think almond extract with some chopped almonds on top would be delicious, too, for almond-poppyseed oats!
I made this this morning. The family all liked it! My first reaction when I read the recipe was that lemon and oatmeal are an odd combination. When I took the first few bites, I continued to think that. But once my palate grew accustomed, I decided I liked it. We put thawed blueberries on it, which was a perfect addition. The rest of the family didn’t hesitate to recommend it, and the pot was empty by the time breakfast was over!
This was amazing! My kids loved it and that is rare. The flavor with the zest was delicious! We will be making this often during the summer.