Oats With Tomato Sauce

Oats With Tomato Sauce

Oats with tomato sauce is a typical recipe of cuisine from Salento Italy and nearby Basilicata Italy. It is simply delicious and nutritious

A traditional peasant dish, we are not accustomed to considering oats as everyday dishes. Once upon a time, however, this was not the case – and oats with tomato sauce became a typical dish of the Salento culinary tradition, widely demonstrating this fact. Oats with tomato sauce is actually one of the recipes from history and tradition that historically used whatever ingredients were available to people at the time.

Oats with Tomato Sauce – called ‘cranu stumpatu cu lu sucu’ in Salento dialect – is a traditional recipe from Puglia, but it also comes from the neighboring Basilicata and uses one of the few foods accessible to poor farmers: oats accompanied by a simple tomato sauce seasoned with basil and grated pecorino cheese.

The Recipe: Oats with Tomato Sauce
Ingredients:

2 cups whole oats, 

4 cups tomato sauce, 

2 white onions, 

½ cup of grated pecorino cheese, 

Basil, 

Extra-virgin olive oil, 

Salt, 

Red pepper flakes

Directions:
First soak the whole oats in cold water for about 12 hours – this essential step allows the oats to absorb water and softens them for cooking. The next day, the oats will be ready. Cook them for about an hour in a pot with salted water over medium heat, stirring frequently. While the oats cook, make a quick sauce with tomato sauce and basil. Add some lightly fried onion. The trick to preparing oats with the tastiest sauce is to making another onion sauté where you stir-fry the cooked oats for about 10 minutes before seasoning it with the sauce, making it completely absorb the water. After transferring the oats to a dish, pour the sauce over them and sprinkle with pecorino cheese before serving.

Sweet Potato Veggie Burger

Sweet Potato Veggie Burger

Ingredients:

2 sweet potatoes 

1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 cup carrots, grated
1 1/4 cups whole oats
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1 egg
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
salt and pepper, to taste

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Directions

Preheat oven to 400º F.

Cut sweet potatoes in half and place them cut side down on a baking sheet. Place in oven and cook for 30-40 minutes, or until tender.

Once cool, remove skins from potatoes, chop into pieces and set aside.

In a food processor, blend oats until they are a fine powder. Remove and set aside.

Add kidney beans, onion, sweet potatoes, carrots and cilantro, and pulse for 10 seconds. Then add in spices and salt and pepper.

Add egg and pulse for another 5 seconds, until semi-smooth.

Slowly pour in ground oats until mixture holds together.

Divide mixture into 4-6 burger patties.

Heat vegetable oil in a large pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, place burger patties in pan and cook each side for 3-4 minutes, or until golden and warmed through.