Oatmeal with a tropical twist

I am being true to my word and have been eating oatmeal at least once a week now for the past month. I am truly enjoying this, really! By changing the flavor combinations, it just never gets boring. However, I’m about to start experimenting not only with flavors but also with combining / using different grains in the upcoming weeks. Not that I’m already fed up with oatmeal, it’s just that I come across so many exciting ideas while reading other people’s blogs, some of them I just can’t wait to try. There are so many different grains out there that I have never really made myself before, such as millet, amaranth and buckwheat, for instance. Plus, I love making new discoveries and experiences. But in order to do that, I will have to stock up on some grains first, for I don’t have all that many on hand.

Today, all that was available in the cupboard was my good old faithful Old Fashioned Oats. A quick look in the fridge and I knew which direction I would be taking today. I just didn’t have that many options, to be honest. All I had left in the fruit drawer were pears (those could’ve really worked, but…), apples (been there, done that), grapes (didn’t feel that) and strawberries. “Hmmmm, strawberries… wish I had mangoes to go with that… I wonder if…” I opened the freezer and, oh heaven, there it was, a beautiful, colorful bag of frozen mangoes. BINGO! There was my combo of the day.

While the oatmeal was cooking,  I  proceeded to cut the strawberries into little cubes, put those in a bowl, tossed in a handful of frozen mango cubes, then went back to the fridge to take out the soy milk and plain yogurt I would be needing later, when I spotted it. Right there, sitting in a bowl, all lonely and waiting to be eaten, about a ¼ of a cup of leftover pineapple, all diced up and ready to go. How perfect! Looks like this tropical combo was just meant to be. I only wish I’d had some coconut left in the cupboard, but no luck… I reverted to using pecans instead. Not quite the taste I was shooting for, but still, it was a winning combination. From now on, I will make sure I always have shredded coconut in the cupboard. Just in case an opportunity like this one presents itself again!