By Mid-January and I have been reading the South Indian cookbook I ordered last summer and marking pages with sticky notes. I am drawn to the way the spice combinations work: turmeric for color and depth, mustard seeds that pop in hot oil to release their nuttiness, curry leaves that smell nothing like the curry powder I know and everything like something I want to understand better. I went to the Indian grocery in Montgomery on Saturday morning with a list that covered half a notepad page.
I made a coconut milk dal this week: red lentils simmered with ginger and garlic and turmeric and finished with coconut milk and a tadka of mustard seeds and curry leaves bloomed in hot ghee poured over the top. The whole apartment smelled like a place I have never been but want to go. Ate it over basmati rice with a spoonful of the plain yogurt that cuts the richness. It took forty minutes total and I made it three times this week to understand it better.
I called Gloria to tell her about it and she asked me to describe what dal tastes like and I said it is earthy and creamy and warm and a little bit bright from the lemon at the end. She said that sounds like soul food with different spices. I thought about that for a long time. She is not wrong. The principles of nourishing food translate across traditions even when the specific ingredients do not.
I want to cook for Gloria from more traditions. I want her to taste what I am learning. She is the one who taught me that food is how you say something that words do not reach. I want to say new things to her this year.
What struck me most about Gloria’s observation — that dal is soul food with different spices — is how true it is of so many humble, warming dishes. This orange oatmeal is one of them: inexpensive, quick, deeply satisfying, and brightened at the end by citrus in the same way my dal is lifted by lemon. It is the kind of recipe I want to make for her on a slow Saturday morning, the kind where the food does the talking before either of us has said much of anything.
Orange Oatmeal
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes | Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 2 cups whole milk (or water for a lighter bowl)
- 1/2 cup fresh orange juice (from about 1 large orange)
- 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
- 2 tablespoons honey or pure maple syrup, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Fresh orange segments, for serving
- Chopped toasted walnuts or pecans, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Warm the liquid. Combine the milk and orange juice in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally. Do not boil.
- Cook the oats. Stir in the rolled oats, cinnamon, and salt. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring frequently, for 7 to 8 minutes until the oats are tender and the mixture has thickened to your liking.
- Finish with flavor. Remove from heat and stir in the orange zest, honey or maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Taste and adjust sweetness as needed.
- Serve. Divide between two bowls and top with fresh orange segments and toasted nuts if using. Serve immediately.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 320 | Protein: 10g | Fat: 7g | Carbs: 54g | Fiber: 5g | Sodium: 180mg