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serving bowl filled with cooked old fashioned oatmeal, studded with apples, dried cherries, and walnuts with a drizzle of maple syrup

Apple Cranberry Almond Oatmeal

Apple Cranberry Almond Oatmeal makes a wholesome breakfast with a fruit pie attitude. Start by cooking the apples in butter. Then toast the oats for big flavor and a bit of chew, a nice contrast to the tender apples and crunchy almonds. There's a hint of cinnamon and a splash of half and half for richness. This fruit and nut studded bowl of oatmeal is good straight up, even better with a pour of maple syrup.
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Author Margie
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 4 small servings

EQUIPMENT

  • 1 medium to large frying pan
  • 1 medium sauce pan

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Tablespoon butter
  • pinch salt
  • 1 medium apple peeled (or not), cored, diced
  • ¼ cup dried cranberries
  • 1 cup old fashioned oats
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
  • tiny pinch nutmeg
  • 2 Tablespoons chopped almonds
  • 1 ¾ cup water
  • 1 Tablespoon half and half
  • 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
 

  • Melt butter over low heat in frying pan. Add apples and a pinch of salt, cover and cook for about 6 minutes or until apples are tender. Ensure the heat is low to avoid scorching.
  • Add oats, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and almonds to the frying pan with the apples. Cook over low heat, stirring often, for 2 - 3 minutes until the oats are a toasty aroma and begin to color faintly. Stir in the dried cranberries. Turn off the heat.
  • In a medium saucepan, bring water and half-and-half to a boil.
  • Add the oat-fruit-almond mixture to the boiling liquid in saucepan. Simmer the oatmeal for 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
  • Serve with maple syrup if desired.

Notes

  1. The recipe yields about 2.5 cups of oatmeal or 4 small servings (scant 2/3 cup each). 
  2. Remove the peel from the apple or leave it on according to your preference.
  3. Dried tart cherries are a great substitution for the dried cranberries. Both have a sweet-tart flavor that complements the apples. Because the cherries are larger, I chop them up first.
  4. Chopped walnuts or pecans in place of almonds are both good options. Almonds are my current favorite as they seem to retain more crunch. I use roasted and salted almonds, roughly chopped. 
  5. I always have half-and-half in my refrigerator so that's my go-to. But heavy cream works also. If you prefer creamier oats, you might use milk in place of some of the water.
  6. Store leftover oatmeal in the refrigerator. Reheat leftovers in the microwave with a splash of water or milk to loosen the consistency.