Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Recipe: Oats With Cacao, Chia Seeds And Cherry Flavoured Magnesium

March is an in-between time of year in the kitchen. It’s a time to shelve the hearty stews and casseroles that looked so right in October.

These soaked oats are great transition fare. Served chilled or at room temp, soaked oats are what I choose when piping hot oatmeal seems too wintry.

Plus, you’ll be set for the morning when you bring together the handful of nutritional powerhouse ingredients in this recipe.

• Oats offer one of the healthiest forms of fiber, protective against heart disease and more. They digest slowly, releasing steady energy for hours. Less well-known is the fact that oats contain an impressive antioxidant profile, with vitamins and minerals a-plenty.
• Cacao, too, is an antioxidant heavy-hitter and over-delivers in the mineral department. Cacao is cocoa’s less-processed, raw alter-ego. While both are solid nutritionally, cacao retains more of the nutrients found in the plant’s natural state.
• Chia seeds are a fabulous plant source of Omega-3s, which are highly anti-inflammatory. They help treat the short-term discomfort of day-to-day inflammation (joint pain and digestive issues, for example), while preventing chronic inflammatory disease (like arthritis).
• Adding Natural Calm to the mix lends a hint of sweetness and delivers a morning dose of much-needed magnesium.

You can whip this up when you prepare your nightly cup of Natural Calm. Then, set it in the fridge or on the counter overnight and wake up to a pleasant surprise.

Without further ado, the recipe!

Ingredients

• 1 c. very hot water (boiling will do)
• 1 tsp. Natural Calm in Cherry flavour
• 2/3 c. rolled oats
• 1 tbsp. cacao powder (substitute cocoa if you wish)
• 1/2 c. almond milk, or other plant-based milk
• 2 tbsp. white chia seeds
• Stevia or honey to taste

Instructions

1. Pour oats into a heat-proof bowl.
2. Add Natural Calm to a measuring cup, then gradually pour in hot water. Add the hot water with Natural Calm to the oats. Allow to cool.
3. In a separate small bowl or cup, whisk together the cacao with the almond milk until smooth. Blend in 1-2 tbsp of the hot water from the oat bowl if the cacao is difficult to saturate. Add the chia seeds to the cacao mixture.
4. When oat mixture is warm to the touch, stir in the cacao-chia seed mixture. Mix well and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
5. On serving, add stevia or honey to taste.

It should look something like this.

This satisfying bowl of oats will give you a boost of sustained energy and the magnesium your nerves need to stay steady for hours!