LWOM: Berry Oat-fait in a Bowl

In today’s edition of Literary Wit and an Oven Mitt, we’re throwing aside the mitt and going bear paws all the way…and it is a beary, berry long way indeed to All the Way…

“What’s a long way?” asked Pooh, who had been poking his nose into a jar of honey to see if there was anything left in it. He recalled that there had been, or at least there had been last Monday, before lunchtime, because his stomach had had that funny feeling in it that meant it was time for a small smackerel, and he had poked his head into the jar just like he was doing now to see if there was any honey, and there had been, then.

“Why, all the way, I suppose,” I said.

Pooh’s nose disappeared again into the pot as he considered this for a moment. “And are we there yet?” he said at last. “To All the Way?”

“Possibly. But then again, just as possibly not.”

“It’s awfully dark if we are,” said Pooh, who was exploring The-Place-That-Could-Be-All-the-Way very thoroughly. If you wanted to do it, you could do it, too. All you’d have to do is this, like Pooh:

“I’m not sure I like All the Way very much,” Pooh said when Piglet had shown up (for Piglet was there too, you know, only he is a Very Small Creature and easily missed, but we shall tell you about his story next time) and–

“Why should I be Easily Missed?” said Piglet in a squeaky voice.

“Yes, shouldn’t Piglet have an adventure as well?” Pooh asked with a bit of dizziness in his voice, for he had been hitovertheheadwithahammersothatthejarwouldbreakandgethimoutofsuchaDarkAlltheWay, which was what I was going to tell you before I was interrupted.

“We’re sorry,” said the tubby bear, very humbly shaking bits of broken pot out of his ears.

“I only wanted an adventure,” Piglet said, before he added very quickly, “But only if it’s not in a Very Dark Place like All the Way.”

“Very well,” I said. And so, before we return to what we were coming to before we got here, Piglet had an adventure like this:

And so Piglet won the battle, saved the village from destruction, and everyone cheered, “Three Cheers for Piglet!” And then he ate a big bowl of berry oatmeal parfait so he would grow big and strong, and that was how it ended.

“That was quite a lovely story. Thank you very much,” said Piglet, and walked away humming a little victory song to himself.

“Did you say,” Pooh said, digging a paw hopefully into his empty jar and coming up with only a pawful of air, “that breakfast was served?”

“That might have been it, you know.”

“Breakfast is my favorite meal.”

“And do you like Oatmeal? And parfaits?”

“Do they have honey in them?”

“Yes. And berries.”

For bears are very fond of berries, too, you know. Or at least, this particular bear was.

Pooh paused. “Yes, I like them very much. At least, I think I do. What did you say they were called again?”

“Berry oatmeal parfaits with nuts and dried fruit in a bowl.”

Pooh considered this for a moment, then said thoughtfully, “That is far too many words to put in my mouth, especially when there will be honey and berries in it already. We shall have to come up with a better name.”

“What about just ‘oat-fait’?”

“That will do very well,” Pooh said.

And so it did.

“And you should too,” said Piglet, who came back just to check if everyone was still clapping and cheering, and a little disappointed that they weren’t.

But he did stay to have a bowl of berry oat-fait, and thought as he ate another spoonful that it would be very nice if he could eat enough oat-fait so that one day he would grow big and strong enough to have his own adventures, just like Pooh.

This post is part of the Lit, Wit, and an Oven Mitt (LWOM) series here at Wallflour Girl, where Ala takes a popular or classic literary character and uses him/her/it to tell a story about her recipes.  Ala is an English literature graduate student with a strong interest in children’s literature, Victorian lit, and everything in between, beyond, bubbly, or burgundy. Ala does not own the rights to any of these characters or original literary texts, although she does own a really cute Winnie-the-Pooh balloon-shaped stuffed-animal. This series is intended to offer you a glimpse into her world through our shared love for food. Please let Ala know what you think of these stories–she’d love to hear what you think (and I’m sure Pooh would, too. And Piglet, who is still humming his victory song, of course.)

Berry Oat-fait in a Bowl

Serving: 1 bowl

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup milk (or soy milk)
• 4 strawberries, frozen or fresh
• 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 3-5 tablespoons honey (adjust to taste)
• Blueberries and assorted toppings (nuts, dried fruit, etc.)

Directions:

1. Combine water and milk/soy milk in a small pot. Add strawberries and bring to a boil over medium heat. (Your strawberries will bloat if you cover the pot, which is fine–but just prepare yourself for it! I spazzed out when I saw 4 enormous red creatures burbbling in my pot of reddened water…I had forgotten that I had added strawberries, and swore that giant fungus leeches had occupied my pot. Not the case.)
2. Add oats and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
3. Cover and allow oatmeal to sit for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a small bowl.
4. Stir in Greek yogurt and honey. Add blueberries and other toppings as desired. (Alternatively, you can layer this in a parfait cup for a beautiful presentation–oatmeal, honey yogurt, toppings, repeat!)
5. Serve for breakfast and grow big and strong, just like Piglet.