Clean Eating Gingerbread Oatmeal Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you sweeten oatmeal without sugar? ›

High-sugar toppings like chocolate, syrup, and dried fruit

As Best points out, "some of the worst ingredients that are mistakenly added to healthy overnight oat recipes include chocolate sauce, sugar, syrup, and dried fruit."

Healthy Ways To Eat Oatmeal

For example, you can season your oatmeal with a touch of maple syrup, along with anti-inflammatory cinnamon or ginger and fresh fruit. Add nuts, seeds, or nut/seed butter for healthy fat and bonus plant protein.

Cook until the milk is absorbed and the oats are thickening. Add cinnamon, ginger and vanilla and cook until oatmeal is thick. Serve hot and garnish with coconut or chopped nuts.

If you need to add a sweetener besides fresh fruit, opt for a natural one like maple syrup or honey. They're still high in sugar and calories, but at least they come with the benefit of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

"If you eat oatmeal prepared in the right way, without sugar or additives, every day you can get many benefits to your health such as: having a high fiber intake, reduce cholesterol, maintain satiety and regulate your blood sugar levels," says nutritionist Mariana Perez-Trejo.

Want to keep your heart healthy? Eat oatmeal. Research shows that a daily bowl of oatmeal can lower your levels of total cholesterol and artery-clogging bad cholesterol. (High cholesterol levels can be a contributing factor to heart disease.)

Some people may prefer to cook oats with water, especially those who are lactose intolerant to avoid any digestive issues. For those who can consume dairy, using milk can enhance the overall flavor, protein content, and creaminess of an oatmeal bowl compared to using water.

Avoid using ginger together with other herbal/health supplements that can lower blood sugar, such as alpha-lipoic acid, chromium, damiana, devil's claw, fenugreek, garlic, guar gum, horse chestnut, Panax ginseng, psyllium, Siberian ginseng, and others.

What should ginger not be taken with? ›

Possible Interactions

Blood-thinning medications: Ginger may increase the risk of bleeding. Talk to your doctor before taking ginger if you take blood thinners, such as warfarin (Coumadin), clopidogrel (Plavix), or aspirin. Diabetes medications: Ginger may lower blood sugar.

Eating oatmeal with cinnamon can bring several benefits according to Ayurvedic principles. Oats are considered nourishing and easy to digest, providing sustained energy without taxing the digestive system. Cinnamon, in Ayurveda, is believed to enhance digestion, support metabolism, and balance blood sugar levels.

Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice, mace, cardamom and star anise are commonly associated with sweetness. These spices are often used in baked goods and pair especially well with fruit dishes. Vanilla extract can also make food seem sweeter, perhaps due to its aroma.

And using flavored ones like candied pecans or holiday spiced walnuts adds a little sweetness and sugar along with a lot of fat and flavor. From honey roasted chopped almonds and peanuts to candied pecans and walnuts to chocolate covered sunflowers seeds, try adding a sprinkle to your bowl of oats.