Support Your Immune System By Adding Oats To Your Diet With These Yummy Quaker Recipes

This Spotlight is sponsored by Quaker.

It's great that a lot of us are now whipping up homecooked meals more often, but let's be real, we're also constantly snacking and not really exercising.

Since we're now staying home all the time, we need to make sure that we're eating healthy, particularly when it comes to getting all the nutrients our bodies need.

Eating healthy doesn't have to be boring or bland. There are loads of superfoods that are not only packed with nutrition, they're also delicious!

Oats contain a wide range of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and are a great natural source of fibre, protein, carbohydrates, and minerals such as iron.

These various nutrients help with everything from maintaining a good immune system and repairing tissues, to maintaining good bowel movements and managing cholesterol levels. By eating oats, you're naturally adding all these vital nutrients into your system, without having to consume supplements or enhancements.

Iron helps your body create more white blood cells that help you fight against diseases that enter your body. These cells are like the frontliners of your immune system.

A lack of iron can lead to problems such as anemia and the sub-optimal production of red blood cells, as well as make you more prone to getting sick. That's why it's important to consume the daily recommended dietary intake of iron.

Having the proper amount of iron in your body allows it to generate and send out enough white blood cells to fight against infections. Keeping yourself healthy is not only important to you as a person, but also to those who are most important to you.

Easy to prepare, Quaker Oats makes for a delicious and wholesome first meal of the day. It's just the thing to prepare you for the hectic and busy day ahead.

Go for the classic 'just-add-milk' approach, or top off your bowl with some fruits and nuts for an extra burst of flavour and added crunch. Quaker Oats can also be baked into treats, and there are even lots of savoury recipes you can try, such as Oats with Sardines, Oats Fried Rice, and more.

Onde-Onde Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients: 130g flour, 20g desiccated coconut, 20g coconut milk powder, 130g Quaker Instant Oatmeal, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 125g margarine, 30g brown sugar, 50g grated gula melaka, 60ml canola oil, and 1 teaspoon pandan extract

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line two large baking trays with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, combine the flour, desiccated coconut, coconut milk power, oatmeal, baking soday, and salt. Set aside.
3. In another bowl, cream the margarine, brown sugar, gula melaka, oil, and pandan extract together with an electric mixer.
4. As you continue mixing on low speed, at the dry ingredients in, a little at a time.
5. Once a dough is formed, shape into small balls. If you want, you can sprinkle some desiccated coconut and gula melaka on top.
6. Bake for about 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack.

Quaker Oats Date Jewels

Ingredients: 5 tablespoons of Quaker Instant / Quick Cooking Oats, 20 dates, 1 cup of chopped peanuts, 1 cup of peanut butter (smooth), and 2 tablespoons of butter

1. Remove seeds from the dates. Put them in a warm oven (about 150°C) for 3 minutes to soften.
2. Heat the butter in a saucepan. Add the oats and stir until it toasts.
3. Add the toasted oats to the peanut butter. Pour in the chopped nuts and mix to combine.
4. Fill each date with some of the peanut mixture, dip in the chopped nuts, and serve.

Sweet Potato-Oat Donut (Kuih Keria)

Ingredients: 400g sweet potato with skin, 30g instant oats, 125g self-raising flour, 50ml milk, 250ml oil, 30g sugar, and salt to taste

1. Boil the sweet potato until tender and mash it evenly.
2. Mix the mashed sweet potato with the oats, self-raising flour, milk, sugar, and salt to form a smooth paste.
3. Divide into eight portions and form into doughnut shapes.
4. Heat up the oil in a deep frying pan. Once hot, fry the kuih keria on medium heat until they turn golden brown.
5. Drain the excess oil and toss in sugar to coat.

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