This morning I decided to make oatmeal and and have breakfast with Martha. Her May issue just arrived, and it's particularly gorgeous this month.
But first, the oatmeal. It's about as simple and old-fashioned as you can get, and I love it when it's prepared as follows:
Fro Fro's Basic Oatmeal
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
Dash of kosher salt
3/4 cup Quaker Oatmeal (the regular kind, not the quick-cooking kind)
1 heaping Tbs. brown sugar (preferably Hain's Organic)
2 tsp. Wheat Germ
Optional toppings: bananas, strawberries, raisins, etc.
1. Heat the milk, water and salt over med-hi heat until it's just boiling. Keep an eye on it because it can overflow all of a sudden if you don't watch it.
2. Add the oatmeal and simmer, stirring occasionally until it's the consistency you like. I personally like my oatmeal "well done," meaning the overall consistency is creamy but the oatmeal itself is ever so slightly al dente. (Not cold and soupy like it was at JoVino the other day, btw.)
3. Stir in the brown sugar and wheat germ, and optionally top with fruit.
As I enjoyed my oatmeal, here's what I found of interest from Martha this month:
Special delivery for jewelry
"Giving Mom earrings on her big day? For an unusual presentation, pin them through a beautiful, fresh green leaf that can double as your gift card. Choose a large, dark variety -- one from a hosta, a lily of the valley, or an iris, for example -- and write your note with a thin-tipped paint pen in a light color." You know, Martha gets a bad rap for doing things that are too impractical for normal, busy people. This is such a simple idea and if I can remember to do it next time, it'll make my gift that much more special.
Natural plant markers
"Unsightly sticks and flags look like tresspassers in your herbs. Instead, make them tags that appear as though they belong in your landscape. Find several flat, smooth stones, and label each one with the name of a plant using alphabet stamps and dye-based (permanent) ink, both available at craft stores. Then nestle each stone near its corresponding plant."
Spectrum of sweetness
I adore bright colors, and this was Martha's "Color Issue." The entire issue was gorgeous, and this feature in particular. It's pages and pages of desserts in bright hues like red, yellow, blue, green and purple. You have to see it to appreciate it. As much as I adore the Web, in this case, nothing beats the gorgeously printed page.
Coming up oranges
All about plants in one of my very favorite hues. There's a two-page spread of flowers with an accompanying glossary which will be very helpful when I want to tell my gardener what I want. (Yes, I have a gardener. I love Martha. I don't want to be her.) My favorites are the Ace Summer Sunset Dahlia, the Summer Trumpet Creeper, the Rosa Austamora and the Impatiens Fusion Sunset.
Now that I've finished my breakfast I'm off to pack for a weekend in Napa. Come back on Monday to read all about it!
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