What about a nice warm bowl of oatmeal…bland, you say? Not how I make oatmeal. I first buy a box of McCann’s oatmeal and do nothing else but add water. It is the best-tasting oatmeal right out of the microwave. Or you can boil water and add it to the oatmeal.

Then I show some real ingenuity. I take McCann’s Maple and Brown Sugar oatmeal packet and add bananas to the hot oatmeal. I don’t put the bananas in the oatmeal while cooking. It gets too hot and “mushy.”

In the original or plain oatmeal, I add fruit that I combine in a small culinary chopper or Cuisinart and then swirl in the oatmeal. Or I heat any flavor jelly or jam and stir it into the oatmeal. I like plain oatmeal, but I like it better with fruit, nothing wrong with fruit. I go for strawberries, blueberries, peaches, blackberries, or any fruit you would like.

It is the time of year to enjoy a warm bowl of oatmeal. Tell me if I forgot an ingredient, nuts, brown sugar, or your favorite addition.