German Chocolate Oats

I honestly don’t find anything more comforting than a big bowl of oats for breakfast.  I started my fitness journey eating variations of oatmeal (and pancakes and French Toast) just about every single day and always found myself sad, scraping my bowl when my oats were all gone.  I’m no stranger to licking my bowls either.  One thing I love about oatmeal is that it’s extremely versatile and you can flavor it virtually any which way you like.  Feeling fruity?  Throw in some berries or bananas.  Craving something more warm and savory?  Use cinnamon and pumpkin.  Want something really dessert like?  Add some crushed up cookies and a scoop of ice cream (YES, oatmeal is freaking delicious with ice cream)!

While I normally eat a huge egg scramble for breakfast now out of sheer laziness and habit, every now and then when I have some extra time or I prep a few breakfasts at the beginning of the week, I like to go ALL out with some oatmeal.  I don’t do it often, but you will sometimes see me create something totally out of the box.  Last month, I got an itch for a huge bowl of oats, I wanted something entirely decadent, and I was craving some chocolate-y goodness.  My shipment of SquareBars also happened to come in so obviously I had to put those to good use (especially since I had been out for quite some time) AND I have been obsessed with Emmy’s Organics Chocolate Sauce lately as well. Coconut, chocolate and more chocolate… yup, sounds like a brilliant plan to me.

** Use coupon code CORINA if you are interested in a little discount on the SquareBars site **

I ended up really going the extra mile and decided to prep a big batch of “German Chocolate Oats”.  I could eat one immediately that was warm and fresh, then eat the second serving a couple of days later (overnight/cold oats are AMAZING and are just as good the following days when the flavors really get to merge together)!

Simply put, these oats were rich, bursting with flavor and texture, and absolutely FILLING!  I still felt sad when my servings were gone, but also felt completely satisfied and ready to attack my day with a big bang and a TON of energy!!!  The bits of rich, melty SquareBars, coconut, and nuts added a nice little burst of texture here and there and the Emmy’s Chocolate sauce  rounded out the its decadence!

One thing I did with my oats shown here that I don’t show in the printed recipe was add 1/2 of a medium zucchini that was finely shredded.  I actually usually do this with my ALL of my oatmeal bowls to create more VOLUME (volume=more food for not a lot of extra calories=a very happy me).  Basically you just grate the zucchini and then add it to the pot when you are cooking your oats (oats, flavorings, liquid).  One extra step for the grating, but entirely worth it to make double the amount of oats you are eating, you get some micronutrients in with some veggie action, AND you won’t even know they are there.  Genius.  Protein packed and nutrient dense… this is a winner!

German Chocolate Oatmeal

Print recipe

Serves	1
Prep time	5 minutes
Cook time	5 minutes
Total time	10 minutes
Meal type	Breakfast

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 2 teaspoons dark cacao powder
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 1/4 cup Chocolate MuscleEgg egg whites
• 1/4 teaspoon coconut extract
• 1/2 scoop Chocolate PEScience protein
• 60 drops Coconut Sweet Leaf Stevia
• 2 pitted dates (** TOPPING **)
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut (** TOPPING **)
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened coconut milk (** TOPPING **)
• 1 tablespoon Walden Farms syrup or maple syrup (** TOPPING **)
• 1/8 teaspoon coconut extract (** TOPPING **)
• 1 tablespoon chopped pecans (** TOPPING **)
• 1 Cocoa Crunch SquareBar (** TOPPING **)
• 1 tablespoon Emmy's Organics Chocolate Sauce (** TOPPING **)

Directions

Step 1
	Prepare topping by adding dates, coconut, syrup, coconut milk, syrup, and extract in a small food processor. Blend until just combined. Cook over low heat while you prepare oats, stir occasionally.
Step 2
	In another small saucepan, combine oats, coconut milk, cacao powder, extract, shredded coconut, and stevia. Cook over low-medium heat for 3-5 minutes until oatmeal is soft. Turn off heat and slowly stir in protein powder. Add more/less liquid to desired consistency.
Step 3
	Place oatmeal in a serving dish, add chopped Square One bar, chocolate sauce, coconut topping, and chopped pecans.

Note

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION: calories- 392, protein- 23 grams, fat- 10 grams, carbs- 57 grams (without Square Bar or chocolate sauce).