My disease-busting oatmeal recipe plus an important soapbox moment

Today I’m happy to share my disease-busting oatmeal recipe!  This hearty breakfast is packed with anti-inflammatory, anti-disease, health-promoting goodness.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Organic gluten-free oats soaked* in 1 cup filtered water overnight
• Ground Flaxseed (start with just a little and work your way up to 1 tbsp)
• Pecans, walnuts, or other nuts
• Raisins 
• Fresh or frozen blueberries (or other berries)
• Cinnamon, Ginger, Cloves (just a tiny bit of cloves or the flavor will dominate)
• Drizzle of Honey or Maple Syrup (optional)
• Plant-based milk (enough to top it all off)

1. Soak* the oats.  
2. Add additional water as needed and warm oats up either on the stovetop or in the microwave.  
3. Mix in the other ingredients.  
4. Enjoy!

*Notes on “soaking” the oats - this “cooks” or softens them without actually cooking them.  To soak oats, cover ½ cup oats with 1 cup water the night before, or at least several hours before. Soaking increases your ability to digest them and allows the nutrients in the oats to be absorbed more easily.  You can cook oats without soaking by just adding water right before you cook them on the stovetop or in the microwave, but the benefits of soaking them are well worth taking the extra time the night before when possible.

With just this one bowl of warm goodness, here’s what you’ll get - 

Oats contain soluble fiber, can lower cholesterol and stabilize blood sugar, and are surprisingly high in vitamins and minerals.

Flax seeds are high in essential Omega-3 fatty acids, specifically alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which is extremely heart-health friendly.  They contain soluble and insoluble fiber and can be a natural cure for constipation.  They also contain powerful cancer-fighting lignans.

Pecans and walnuts also have a good amount of fiber and help lower bad cholesterol and blood pressure.  Both contain powerful antioxidants and vitamins.  Walnuts are another great plant-based source of Omega-3’s.

Raisins contain iron and can prevent anemia, are high in fiber, can lower blood pressure and stabilize blood sugar, are high in antioxidants, and surprisingly, can improve dental health through their antimicrobial properties.

Blueberries are a well known “superfood.”  They are very high in disease busting antioxidants, are anti-inflammatory, contain lots of fiber, protect against heart disease, improve blood sugar levels and cholesterol, and are great for bone and skin health  There are many other benefits blueberries provide including their positive impact on brain health/preventing cognitive decline.

Spices pack a powerful disease-busting punch.  We’ve already looked at the amazing health benefits of spices, specifically cinnamon, cloves, and ginger here.  For a quick review, let’s just say they are LOADED with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. 

*And now for the aforementioned important soapbox moment…*

If you are happy to see a positive theme with the amazing health benefits of the above ingredients, I’ve got even better news for you.  The reason why all of the above are anti-inflammatory, antioxidant rich, disease-fighting, nutritional powerhouses, is because PRETTY MUCH ALL REAL, WHOLE FOODS ARE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, ANTIOXIDANT RICH, DISEASE FIGHTING, NUTRITIONAL POWERHOUSES.  This is why in order to heal and stay healed, or better yet, to never even have the need to heal in the first place, it’s absolutely vital to eat an abundant variety of these life-giving foods; and why at the same time it’s so important to just say no to the life-sucking fake foods that cause all of the damage in the first place.

Real food = real health.

I hope you enjoy this tasty disease-busting oatmeal!