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I dislike breakfast food. If I had a choice between a cheesy omelet with all possible stuffings and a hearty soup for breakfast, I’d choose the soups. But if there’s one food I’ll always choose something else over, it would be hot oatmeal. There’s nothing I dislike more than hot, goopy, glue-like oatmeal first thing in the morning, as far as food is concerned. But wouldn’t you know it, oatmeal is also probably one of the most filling, easiest and probably the healthiest thing you can eat in the morning.

I’m not in the habit of eating regular breakfasts. But for the sake of my health, I’ve gotten into the habit of making a ridiculously easy breakfast which has – gasp – oats as its main ingredient. Cold oatmeal, or summer porridge, is an easy, no-cook and (depending on how you store it) convenient breakfast that takes almost no time to make. I followed this recipe at first, but eventually found that you don’t actually need to measure everything out. I call my method the “fill and shake”. I’ve included my recipe below, with alternatives you can try.

Ingredients (everything to taste):

• Rolled oats (not the steel cut kind!)
• Chia Seeds (or other grains/seeds. I think cooked barley is delicious)
• Some kind of dairy (milk, soy milk, almond milk. etc.)
• Fruit. Any fruit.
• Some kind of sweetener, like honey (I use a dash of juice instead)

Equipment

• Something with a tight lid. The recipe I found suggested using mason jars with tighter lids. Makes it easier to grab and go if you’re in a hurry.
• A spoon (Optional)

Instructions:

1. Pour oats into container. Fill about 1/3 to 1/2 of the container, depending on how thick you want your oatmeal.
2. Add two teaspoons of chia seeds. If you don’t have teaspoons, take out spoons work just as well.
3. Add fruit.
4. Add diary and sweetener.
5. Close lid and shake.