When one is a blogger (and aren’t we all?) sometimes strange ideas come – often while on the treadmill at 6 in the morning. Like, why is it so often the case that in a store with only me and one other customer, that customer is always in the exact aisle, parked in front of the exact product I need? And, why does the fire alarm low-battery warning always sound at 2:07 in the morning? Or, why when I’m so very careful with the peanut butter does it end up all over the spoon, the countertop, my face, and my shirt? And, why is it that oatmeal – all creamy and soft when it’s hot – gets all thick and stiff when cooled? How could one put this characteristic to good use? Could oatmeal ever be a pie?! Would said concoction be considered dessert or breakfast?
And sometimes, one acts on these strange ideas and something good comes from it – and they feel compelled to share. This oatmeal tart one is a humble pie – but it’s homey and comforting and what could ever be wrong with pie for breakfast?
I’m super excited that this recipe was chosen to be included in the Spring edition of Chickpea Magazine. This is such a beautiful publication – full of photos, interesting articles and creative recipes (including a whole bunch from Alexander at In Vegetables We Trust). I hope you’ll check it out here (print and electronic copies available).


- 1 1/2 cups figs (an 8 oz package), stems removed, and chopped
- 1 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup crystallized ginger
- dash of cinnamon and ground cardamom
- 4 dates, chopped
- 2 tbsp. water
- 1 cup fresh or frozen, thawed raspberries (plus more for garnish)
- 1/4 cup fruit juice-sweetened raspberry jam
- 1 cup uncooked steel-cut oats
- 4 cups strongly brewed chai tea (I use Tazo brand; 1 teabag per cup of water)
- 1/8 cup chia seeds
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
- 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
- dash black pepper
- 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
- 1/4 cup dates, chopped and soaked for a few hours, then drained
- zest of 1/2 an orange
- 3 tbsp. pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp. non-dairy milk
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. agave nectar
- In a food processor, add the figs, walnuts, and dates and process until chunky. Add the remaining ingredients and process until fairly smooth.
- Pat mixture into a 10" tart pan (with removable bottom), bringing some up along the sides. In a small bowl, lightly mash the fresh raspberries, then stir in the jam. Spread the mixture over the crust.
- Cover and chill until needed.
- In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the steel cut oats with 3 cups of the chai tea. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight, or for about 8 hours.
- In the morning, add more tea to the oats if necessary. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low and simmer gently - adding more tea if the mixture becomes too dry. Stir in the chia seeds, spices, and orange zest. Cook until the oats are very soft, about 20-25 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in the bowl of a food processor, process the dates, maple syrup, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Pour in about half of the oat mixture and process until smooth. Pour the processed oats back in with the whole oats and stir well.
- Pour the oat mixture into the prepared crust, smooth the top and add additional strawberries, if you like. Put the pie into the refrigerator to set - this only takes a couple of hours.
- In a small saucepan, combine all of the sauce ingredients and warm gently. Keep sauce warm until ready to serve with the pie.
- To serve, slice the pie (a wet knife helps) and warm for a few seconds in the microwave. Drizzle with the warm sauce and sprinkle with additional sliced strawberries.
*This post contains affiliate links. For more information, please visit Legal Stuff.
Looks super delicious Annie. I love the chai spice…I drink chai spice tea all the time and blending it into an oatmeal pie?! Yeah…I’m on board with that!!! I bet the aromas are fantastic.
Looooove chai tea…
Oh, and my go-to spot for inspiration is probably late at night too….way TOO often I can’t fall asleep as night with my head spinning with ideas for recipes. It’s both exciting and exhausting and sometimes annoying, haha! Honestly, I have about 30 unpublished recipes that I’ve been “finalizing” forever….I just keep creating new ones and the other ones just sit there. It’s chaos!
Oh my gosh! I SO know what you mean! I have a running list on my iPhone of recipe ideas. Some of them are pretty old, but other ideas crowd them out. Pretty good problem to have, right?
This tart looks absolutely delicious, coconut, vanilla and chai? Perfect combo!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Seriously – those flavors were meant to hang out together.
Super cool idea! i agree. i get the most random ideas in the shower:)
Haha! I guess the shower, treadmill, etc., give us the space to NOT think about things like laundry, bills, errands, etc., so we are free to be creative :-).
This is amazing Annie. So creative and I bet delicious- especially with those yummy spices and crystallized ginger!
I get my inspiration late at night in bed usually. I have to keep a notebook on my bedside table for me to scrawl my ideas on.
Thanks, Emma! Funny how thoughts/ideas come, isn’t it? Often I’ll get bombarded with pure genius (hehe) right before I drift off to sleep.
I totally get random ideas everywhere too! I have a yellow pad of paper that I scribble things down on at the weirdest times. Glad I’m not the only one lol.
I love these flavour combinations. I think I’d like that coconut vanilla sauce on everything. I bet it’d be nice even in the summer on some fresh fruit. Great recipe -breakfast is always my favourite meal of the day!
See, you’re smart. You have a pad of paper with you – – all my ideas come when there is not even a scrap around ;-)! Yep, the coconut sauce is all-purpose!
Nom nom! Looks easy and delicious – bookmarked for next week’s dessert! 😀
Thank you, dear! The steps are a bit fussy, but yes, easy. And it’s comfort on a plate!
Aah it’s beautiful!
Thanks! It turned out kinda nice – despite the sort of inherent homeliness of oatmeal!
I love the look of this, so hearty and tasty, and with raspberries, too – delicious! I’m with Richa, my go-to spot for inspiration is the shower.
The raspberries really make it.
So – – do you sing in the shower :-)?
Raspberries are nearly always a good idea.
I wouldn’t like to inflict my singing on anyone nearby but I must admit I do occasionally sing in the shower, if I have the place to myself.
HA! Your PB conundrum is my chocolate conundrum. WITHOUT fail, I always get it somewhere on my face. The real question at times is how did I get it on my cheek..or FOREHEAD!? This pie…I can’t believe it. I ran out of my regular rolled oats this week, which meant I had to bust out the trusty steel cut hiding in the back of my pantry and MAN I forgot how good they were!! Time consuming, but GOOD! This pie…I need it.
Oh, chocolate – yes! Same thing!
This pie + coffee. You gotta.
When one is a blogger, I am alwaysamazed by how on the same page we all are- I too have been experimenting with this mysterious property of oatmeal! This looks wonderful!
Ah! Great minds… Looking forward to your oatmeal creations!
I haven’t come up with anything worth sharing yet- might be waiting a while 😉
Yum, sounds so fragrant! Will definitely try the sauce!
I know that chickpea magazine & I am a subscriber too! I love every issue! Your creation looks superb for it & I am so going to make it today! Yummm! xxx
Pingback: OATrageous Oatmeals Giveaway & Chickpea Veggie Soup « anunrefinedvegan
Pingback: Slow Cooker Dirty Chai « anunrefinedvegan