Savory Oatmeal

At 7:30 PM, two hours into a bouldering session at the gym, pretty much anything sounds delicious. Like oatmeal. I’ve never liked oatmeal. Oatmeal cookies are great and baked oatmeal is amazing, but sloppy gluey oatmeal in a bowl? Ugh. Yet last week, there we were: It was 7:30 and we were still at the gym, starting to feel our stomachs rumble. And somehow, we started talking about oatmeal -- savory oatmeal. And it sounded good. Better than good, it sounded amazing. 

This was the dream-state I was in when I first started thinking about this recipe.

Obviously the dream stuck, Because the next day, at 7AM, I was making savory oatmeal. At 8AM my bowl was clean. I had never eaten a bowl of oatmeal so good. It wasn't until 8:03 that I realized I was running really late for a meeting. Not just a meeting, a breakfast meeting. 😯

I hurried out the door and made it to the meeting on time (ok, five minutes late) but I was full. So, I didn't get to eat out for breakfast that day (breakfast is one of my favorite meals to eat out for!) But you know what? That bowl of oats was worth it. 

What’s in the bowl:

• A savory blend of oats, fresh thyme, butter, and even a bit of nutritional yeast (you can skip the nutritional yeast if you can’t find it in stores, but I love the cheesy flavor it adds).

• Sautéd veggies. This recipes calls for leeks and kale, but use what’s in season: roasted red peppers and bacon bits topped with fresh avocado? In! Grilled zucchini with onions? Yes!

• Fried egg. Yes, with an extra gooey yolk, because I love that. Cook to your preferences.

• Cheese! Goat cheese, but really, any time of cheese is fine.

This recipe is easy to mix up with different veggies and different types of cheese. And I’ve discovered the real secret to why this is so good, which is that I love eggs and cheese and butter. Yes, I admit it. This bowl would be just as good to me if it was served over warm quinoa instead of oatmeal. So, if you, like me, don’t really love oatmeal you might want to try quinoa in this recipe instead. Or, if you've always be on the edge with oatmeal, give this a shot -- it's something different and just might win you over. Just don't make it the same morning as a breakfast meeting, because it will keep you full! 

Savory Oatmeal

Published May 29, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

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Serves: 2   |    Total Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the oatmeal:
• 1-1/2 cup water
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon nutritional yeast
• 1 pat butter

For the toppings:
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 leek, sliced into half-circles
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup kale, roughly chopped
• 2 fried eggs
• 1/4 cup goat cheese crumbles
• Additional salt & pepper for serving, and/or hot sauce

Directions:

1. Start the oatmeal: Heat the water in a sauce pan until it simmers. Add the oats, salt, pepper, nutritional yeast, and thyme and cook uncovered for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the pat of butter, and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring in the butter. Remove springs of thyme and discard. Turn off the heat.
2. While the oats are cooking, heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil in a skillet. When the oil glistens, sauté the leeks and garlic until soft & fragrant. Add the kale, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until bright green.
3. Using a wooden spatula, push the greens to the side of the skillet, making room for the eggs. Heat the last remaining tablespoon of coconut oil in the pan, and when it’s hot, crack both eggs into the pan. Cook to desired doneness — leaving the yolk runny if you prefer (the runny yolk and oatmeal are a great combo!) or cooking until the yolk is hard.
4. Assemble: divide the oatmeal between two bowls. Top bowls equally with kale mixture, and add a fried egg to each. Sprinkle half of the cheese over each bowl. Add additional salt & pepper to taste. Serve with hot sauce if desired.

Spring Sauté with New Potatoes, Peas, Leeks & Artichokes

It's May 24th, which means we are literally right on the heels of the new GDPR regulation. As a one-woman show cooking and shooting in my very own Colorado kitchen, it's hard to believe that something like GDPR -- a regulation from the EU - would impact me. But, so many of my lovely readers live in the EU, and I wanted to ensure that everything was buttoned up so that you can still come get recipes.

So how does this even impact a little old blogger? That's a fair question. In order to know which recipes are most loved, and which are flops, I use tools like Google Analytics to see which recipes are most popular and why. I also use advertising to help keep the blog running. So, no matter where you live, you'll notice a few changes around here. First, you'll want to consent to the use of cookies and pixels (if you haven't already) for the best website experience. A little pop up should show right when you first visit Foraged Dish on a new computer, where you can give permission. Like for most bloggers (and websites!) this will help my site load faster for you, help me evaluate which types of recipes to make, and more. If you have any questions or concerns, I'm an open book. But also, please feel free to check out my privacy policy here. Also, if you subscribe to Foraged Dish via email, you can always update your settings! Just use the link in the email footer. 

This stuff might be a bit "boring" but it's important to me that you know you can safely visit Foraged Dish. 

Alright. Now that we have that covered, let's talk about this spring skillet. Because it's a must make for this month!!

Really, any excuse to eat artichokes is valid in my book, at any time of year. In the winter and early spring, this means making do with canned or marinated artichokes. I say "making do" because the alternative is fresh, but marinated artichokes aren’t necessary lesser than their fresh counterpart. Just different.

So while artichokes aren't ready to be harvested yet, the canned variety still feels perfect in this moment. Leeks, with a mellow onion flavor, get caramelized in the bottom of the pan until they're sweet. Young potatoes and peas add a light starchiness to this dish -- making it satisfying on soggy spring days (it has been raining here all week) or warm ones.

Hope you enjoy! 

Spring Sauté with New Potatoes, Peas, Leeks & Artichokes

Published May 24, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

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Serves: 4   |    Total Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon butter or coconut oil
• 1 leek, roots and dark green pieces removed, and washed well
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup diced young potatoes
• 1 cup fresh or frozen english peas
• 1 cup canned artichoke hearts, halved or quartered, drained
• Salt & ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat butter/oil in a medium sized skillet over medium heat.
2. Slice leek into thin rounds, and add to pan. Sauté until leeks are softened.
3. Add minced garlic, diced potatoes, and peas to the pan, and cover. Cook, stirring every 3-4 minutes, until potatoes are softened through.
4. Add artichoke hearts and cook for 2 minutes more, until artichokes are warmed through. Season to taste with salt & pepper and serve hot.

Potato Galette with Lox (AKA Giant Latke)

It's hard not to immediately fall in love with a dish that is crispy, fried potatoes topped with crème fraiche and lox. Virtually impossible, really. But with a fancy name like "Potato Galette" it would be easy to be scared off by this one, because it sounds hard to make. Which is why, after explaining this dish to several people as "a giant latke," I thought it should be included in the title. 

The word galette cues visions of beautifully free-form pies in my mind's eye, but according to wiki it's a lot less specific than that. Galettes are various types of flat round or freeform crusty cakes, and this crispy potato cake a perfect fit to that description. 

Call it whatever you want. In my book, crispy potatoes = winning, and lox for breakfast (or brinner) = winning, no matter what name you give it. 

I admit, the first time I made a potato galette I was nervous it wouldn't flip out of the pan. For one, I was making it for a party -- a potato themed party, thanks for asking - and didn't want to screw it up. But also, I used a cast iron pan while most recipes recommend a non-stick. I don't own any non-stick pans though (probably hard to believe when you see how full our cupboards are), so I made do with what I had. 

On that note, no matter the pan you use, please don't hold back on the oil/butter here, even though I know it's tempting. It's what makes the potatoes crispy, and will allow you to flip the galette out the pan in one fell swoop. 

Potato Galette with Lox

Published May 15, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

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Serves: 6-8   |    Total Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the Lamb:
• 2 Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1/4 cup avocado oil or melted butter, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 4 ounces lox
• 1/4 cup creme fraiche, sour cream or plain greek yogurt
• Optional, for serving: minced chives, capers

Directions:

1. Wash potatoes, and peel. Then, shred (I use a food processor (affiliate link!) for this step).
2. Heat 3 tablespoons oil or butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat until oil glistens. Tilt the skillet back and forth to cover the entire bottom.
3. When the oil is hot, sprinkle have of the shredded potato into the pan. It should sizzle a little bit as it hits — if it does not, the oil is not hot enough yet. Ensure the potato is in an even layer, and sprinkle with half of the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Using a metal spatula, press the potatoes down. Then, continue with the second half of the shredded potatoes, sprinkling them in an even layer. Top with remaining salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Again, press down with the spatula. Now, drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter or oil around the edge of the pan to help ensure it flips out easily.
4. Cover pan with lid and turn heat down to medium-low. Cook for 10-13 minutes. Potatoes should be cooked through, and browning on the bottom. Now, use the metal spatula to loosen the potato galette from the pan, working your way around the edge and under the galette. Once the galette is loose, get a plate, and flip the galette over onto the plate so that it sites browned-side-up on the plate.
5. To serve: slice into wedges, and top with a dollop of crème fraiche, minced chives, a slice of lox, and a few capers. Enjoy!