Oats for More Than Oatmeal: 9 Ways to Get Creative with Oats in the Kitchen

Over the past decade or more, oats have moved from the doldrums of oatmeal only to a featured foodstuff for health-conscious eaters. They are a very affordable, gluten-free grain that packs a serious helping of complex carbs, magical compounds, and tremendous versatility.

Oats have been overlooked for far too long as nothing more than porridge. Not only has oatmeal evolved to something much more impressive than instant packets with artificial flavors, but oats have now burst onto the plant-based milk scene, garnering as much (or more) love as soy milk and almond milk.

But, the hits don’t stop rolling there. Oats are extremely easy to work with, and they can be a big, healthy part of a plant-based diet. That’s beside the point that they make certain recipes work better. Oats are often the right ingredient, not just a more nutritious substitute for something.

Getting creative with oats is well worth the effort.

1. Oat Milk

Making oat milk at home is easy and inexpensive. Unlike nut milk, oat milk doesn’t require a lot of soaking or time. In less than an hour, those simple rolled oats for the supermarket can become milk. It can be funked up with a bit of vanilla extract, cacao powder, or maple syrup.

2. Oat Yogurt

For folks looking to incorporate more fermented foods into their diet, oat yogurt is a great addition. It’s a simple and sweet recipe that provides the quality probiotics folks are after without chemical additives or preservatives often found in store-bought products. Blend up oats as if making oat milk and let it ferment for a few days. Then, refrigerate it.

3. Burger Binder

Burgers are the best, and whatever meat-eaters may think, it’s not all about the beef. Much more so, a good burger is about the experience. Making plant-based burgers at home is simple. It’s a matter of choosing a good burger bean—black beans, black-eyed peas, garbanzo—and an effective binder like…oats!

4. Oatmeal Cookies

Oatmeal cookies have long been a favorite for connoisseurs. They add a textural, flavorful, and nutritious element to homemade cookies. Oats work wonderfully with dried fruits, e.g. oatmeal raisins cookies, and nuts. They also work phenomenally in raw cookie recipes.

5. British Flapjack

A flapjack in Britain is not a pancake (that’s a crepe) but something more akin to an energy bar. It’s packed with good carbs, quality fats, and plentiful protein. Another way of looking at is something much like a granola bar, even delving into the array of nuts, fruits, and fun that granola bars come with. Oats are the bulk of flapjack.

6. Vegan Haggis

Traditionally, haggis is a Scottish sausage that is bound by oats. In reality, oats are awesome for making vegan haggis and other “sausages”. As with burgers, it’s a matter of finding a good bean or pea and binding it with oats in roughly equal parts.  Shape the sausage as desired—patty, links, or otherwise—and cook it up.

7. Oat Crackers

Crackers are fun to make at home and provide a much more satisfying eating experience than store-bought crackers. Oats can be combined with other grains (seeds, legumes, or nuts) to make crackers, or they can be the key ingredient to very basic but incredibly flavorful crackers.

8. Pie Crust

For the gluten-free folks out there, oats can also be used to make gluten-free pie crusts, too. Rather than rolled oats or steel-cut oats, oat flour is the choice for a nice smooth crust. Then, it’s more or less about adding fat (vegan butter or coconut oil works well) and keeping it flaky.

9. Fridge Deodorizer

To get experimental with oatmeal in the kitchen, they can be put into an open mason jar or repurposed box a la baking soda and spaced strategically to help control odors. Like baking soda, oats are good for all sorts of household tasks, including absorbing smells and moisture.

In short, oats are cheap and readily available for bulk shopping. They can be used for much more than oatmeal. They are gluten-free and a healthy whole grain. If you haven’t already, it’s time to introduce more oats into your home-cooked, plant-based creations.

Related Content:

• 10 Protein-Packed Overnight Oatmeal Recipes
• 10 Dessert-Like Baked Oatmeal Recipes with Chocolate
• Oatmeal Doesn’t Have to be Sweet! Try These Savory Oat Recipes
• Playdough to Shampoo: 5 Unusual Ways to Use Oats Around the House
• 10 Oat Meals That Aren’t Oatmeal

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