I think I’m pretty strange guys. I started getting excited for Summer way back in January and February. It was freezing, there was tons of snow, and I was just dreaming of sunshine and watermelons. I kept wishing it would arrive sooner than the months it would take to get there. Then it finally arrives and the first week was great but then immediately I’m dreaming of colored leaves, apple cider, and pumpkin everything. Wow, clearly I need to work on living in the moment a little more.

Don’t get me wrong though, I’m not saying I’m completely over Summer already. I’m totally enjoying all things Summer. What I’m saying is that I sometimes get ahead of myself. I also blame my seasonal disconnect with my time living in the Southern Hemisphere. Having opposite seasons for 4 years made everything feel a little bit jumbled.

Anyway, a few days ago I had a particularly strong wave of, what I like to call, “The Fall Feels”. This was probably because we had a really chilly morning a few days ago and all I could think about was a sweater and some oatmeal.

Now if you didn’t know this about figs, their season runs from early June to October. Another great tip about figs is that they do not ripen off of the vine so be sure to buy them ripe. This tip brings me to why I wanted to make this recipe in the first place. So I got this whole box of figs and they were okay, but just not that sweet. I knew if they were cooked they would be so much sweeter. I combined my craving for something cozy with the need to use these figs and voila!

Oh, and I know I said “warm” but I’ve also been enjoying this recipe cold when the days have been hot. Of course, I couldn’t resist adding some berries to the top to finish this off. You can top it with whatever you’d like and if you don’t have figs on hand this recipe also works with fruits like bananas or even apples.

Warm Fig & Cardamom Oatmeal

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes

A cozy bowl of creamy oatmeal goodness to brighten up any morning. This is the perfect way to use up this season's fresh figs!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups water
4-5 figs, stemmed and cut into small pieces
80g (1 cup) old-fashioned oats
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup milk (I use almond milk)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1 -2 tablespoons sweetener of choice, or to taste (such as maple syrup)
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

In a small saucepan, heat the water over low heat until simmering and add the figs. Cover and allow it to cook for about 5 minutes until the figs have begun to soften.
Add the oats, milk, salt, cardamom and cinnamon and cook, stirring gently, for about 5-10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed it oats are as thick as you like. Remove from heat and stir in additional sweetener if desired.
Pour into a bowl and top with any desired toppings such as fruit or nuts and enjoy!

ALL CONTENT IS MINE AND ORIGINAL! All of these food photos were taken with my Nikon D750 and my favorite Lens, the Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G. You can find out more in my INTRO POST.

And, by the way, to all the minnows out there, my intro post did a huge $0.21. The key to success on Steemit is to be consistent and persistent. Click on the link below for some great tutorials on how you can also succeed on the steem blockchain: