Mark Bittman's Week of Oatmeal

If you've been following along with Mark Bittman's Opinion column over at the New York Times, you know that Oatmeal has been more than just a hot morning treat, it has also become a hot topic.

Image from McDonald's website

First, let's deal with How to Make Oatmeal... Wrong. Last week, Mark Bittman wrote an Opinion column about McDonald's addition of oatmeal to their menu. He was pretty clear about how he felt about this new, seemingly nutritional, addition to the menu of one of the most vilified food establishments in the country:

"From a marketing perspective, they can do almost nothing wrong; from a nutritional perspective, they can do almost nothing right, as the oatmeal fiasco demonstrates."

He went on to discuss the true cost (in medical bills!) of eating McDonald's oatmeal and discussed other oatmeal products (Quaker Strawberries and Cream Instant Oatmeal) hiding behind the same misleading nutritional assumption: "oatmeal = healthy, always." He was on a roll, and I completely understood where he was coming from when he felt the need to e-mail McDonald's to ask why. Their response was not surprising, but Mr. Bittman's response in his blog in the days that followed might have been to some:

"I’m going to make an attitude adjustment: I think it’s a good thing, or at least not a bad thing, that McDonald’s is doing oatmeal." (read the complete response in his post Three Follow-Up Thoughts (and One Recipe))

He wrote an opinion piece on oatmeal, he wrote a blog post in response - for many that would be enough oatmeal discussion for the week, but not Mark Bittman! When I caught a segment of the Today Show this morning I realized that Mr. Bittman might really have oatmeal stuck in his brain! He came on the show to demonstrate 5 different techniques for using oatmeal.

I battled with the the html embed code to try to get this video clip right here before your very eyes, but it has decided it does not like me and does not want to cooperate. For now, here is the link for Mark Bittman's 5 Ways to Jazz Up Your Oats on the Today Show. (I will return here when I have conquered the embed link!)

And here are the recipes posted on the Today Show website:

Mark Bittman's five delicious ways to make oatmeal Oats are nourishing, inexpensive and easy to cook. Mark Bittman, author of "How to Cook Everything," shares his delicious recipes for an oatmeal-filled breakfast.

 I am personally most intrgued by the Leftover Oatmeal Fritters that he was handing out with that soy sauce!

Let me know if you've tried any of these recipes or if you have your own opinion about McDonald's efforts in serving up a healthier breakfast option.