Oh, Oats!

We had a fun class about using oats in your everyday life. They are great for breakfast, snack, dinner and of course, dessert!

Whole grain oats come in 4 different forms:

• Groats (whole grain)
• Steel Cut (whole grain that has been cut)
• Rolled (whole grain that's been steamed and then flattened)
• Quick Oats (whole grain that been steamed and then flattened even more so it'll cook faster)

I like to use quick oats for oatmeal for my kids. It's very economical (around 5 cents a serving). You can add just about anything to it. My kids like the following combinations:

• Maple syrup and brown sugar
• Fresh fruit or Freeze-dried fruit (strawberries, peaches, blueberries,etc.)
• Rehydrated dried apples with cinnamon and brown sugar

My husband and I like to eat Coach's oats (http://www.coachsoats.com/). They are toasted and cracked groats. You can buy them at Costco for about $6.36 a bag. I think I figured it to be about 11 cents per serving.

You can also use quick oats in your favorite hamburger, meatball or meatloaf recipes. Everydayfoodstorage.net has a great recipe for sweet and sour meatballs.

Patty gave me a bunch of great recipes, even one you can use in your 72 hour kit. I'm trying to figure out how to scan them and put them in my post so I won't have to retype them.