Shake up breakfast with savory oatmeal with eggs, pesto

If your oatmeal is stuck in the sweet zone, this recipe is an alluring invitation to break away. Sure, a bowl of the hot cereal is reliably good with, say, a drizzle of maple syrup, fresh fruit and a sprinkle of cinnamon, but that is just one half of the story.

Oatmeal goes savory, too. Just like other whole grains, such as brown rice, quinoa, buckwheat and cornmeal, it is versatile enough to go in either flavor direction. Exploring the grain’s savory side opens a vast new realm of meal possibilities. Oats pair especially well with savory ingredients that can stand up to the grain’s deep, earthy flavor — mushrooms, onions, root vegetables (carrots, beets, parsnips and celery root), peppers, winter squash, herbs and sharp cheeses, for example. For a memorable and satisfying dinner, try cooking steel-cut oats as you would risotto, using any of those add-ins.

This recipe brings savory oatmeal to the breakfast table with vegetarian toppings that have bacon-and-egg vibes. The bacon-like half of that duo comes from sliced shiitake mushrooms sautéed in olive oil until brown and crisp, then sprinkled with smoked paprika and salt. They are placed, along with a fried egg, atop a bowl of hot oatmeal, which has been seasoned with parmesan and swirled with a spoonful of basil pesto.

You can use any cut of plain oats, prepared any way you like, with or without milk, but omit the salt since the parmesan cheese and toppings fill that role. If using prepared pesto — which I freeze in ice cube trays so it is easy to thaw a little at a time — the meal is relatively quick to prep, and can be easily adapted to a single serving or scaled up for a larger group.

It’s a nourishing breakfast (or lunch or light dinner) that brims with mouthwatering flavor, provides steady energy for your morning and is sure to shake up your notion of what oatmeal can be.