Umpqua Oats

Oatmeal is one of my deepest loves. It's easy to prepare, healthy, and oh-so-versatile. Throw delicious in there too :) I love eating it but don't have a lot of time in the morning to cook and eat a large bowl, so anytime I can find it in a convenient form, I'm a happy camper.

Thank you to Tara over at A Daily Dose of Fit for hosting a fantastic Umpqua Oats giveaway recently! I was a lucky winner and was shocked to receive this many containers of tasty oatmeal on my doorstep. The story behind Umpqua Oats is great: two moms needed a fast, portable, and healthy breakfast for their kids, but didn't want to serve something processed and full of junk. They were inspired by sugary instant oatmeal packets and created their own healthy, natural instant oatmeal products as a result. I love it! 

So many flavors to try! Oh hi there, kitchen in my apartment.

I opted for the Not Guilty version: dried apple, dried blueberries, flaxseed, and chia seeds. This version did not have sugar added (all the others are sweetened with sucanat sugar).

Here are the uncooked oats:

Add boiling water, and two minutes later, voila!

The oatmeal was thick, chewy, and definitely tasted healthy. It was a little bland on its own, so I added half a scoop of vanilla protein powder to sweeten the deal. That helped. Hubby tried Take a Hike: oatmeal with hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, and dried apricots. I tasted it and WOW...it was fabulous! I can't wait to try the other flavors. Hooray for a fast and healthy breakfast :)

Thanks again, Tara and Umpqua!