There is no better way to start the morning than with a bowl of homemade oatmeal. It’s full of fiber for a healthy heart and carbs for a jump start on the day. After discovering how full of unnatural ingredients the instant packets that I sent to work with Dave were, I decided to start whipping up my own all-natural and whole oats.

Begin by filling an air tight container 1/2 full of steel ground oats- not the instant kind (in the processing they remove a lot of the healthy fiber)

Next add about 1/2 as much non-fat dried milk -so, if you’ve got 4 cups oats, add 2 of milk

Crush a handful or two of pecans onto the mix

Add another handful or two of dried cranberries (I use Nutty Guys)

A scoop or two of brown sugar is generally enough -taste it at the end and add more to suit your taste

Finally, sprinkle about 2 Tablespoons of cinnamon and nutmeg on top

Mix the dry ingredients thoroughly, and you’re done!

I leave our oatmeal in an glass apothecary jar from Smith’s Marketplace ($10) with a metal scoop from Gygi’s ($2.00). Each morning I just add 2 scoops to a plastic-lidded container and once at work Dave can add a little water, microwave for a minute, and have a fresh, whole, natural breakfast.