Oops

One of the greatest things about G-d is that He always gives people second chances. You see, G-d realizes that everyone messes up sometimes. Nobody's perfect. Why, even the Almighty Himself did some things He had later regretted. And so, being so great and all, He had arranged a way for people to come back ("Teshuva") from their mistakes and misdeeds, to repent, to make amends, to say "I know I did something wrong and I'm sorry".

This week's parasha lists all kinds of sacrifices. A simple, every day sacrifice. A thanksgiving sacrifice. A "I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by" sacrifice. And an "oops, my bad" sacrifice.  There is even a sacrifice for those who sinned intentionally but now regret it and want to repent. So you see, there is always a way back and it is fully mapped out. No need to wallow in our mistakes forever.

And while some sins are very big and difficult to make up for, some mistakes are relatively easy to correct. And they're all called "Chet". Which means "missed". As in "you missed the mark when you shot that arrow". I always feel so warm and safe when I think of this. It's as if G-d is always assuming that we all mean well. We all aim to be good.  It's just that sometimes we miss the mark. It's nice that He thinks so well of us, isn't it?

I once bought a box of instant oatmeal. Why, I cannot say. It was on sale and it sounded like a good idea at the time. Then I came home and tried it and it was awful. How much sugar can one possibly put into such a tiny package of oatmeal? Oy.

Anyway, there I was, with 7 more packages to go and no way to eat them or return them. What could I say? "It's too sweet"?. I needed to find a way to fix my mistake.

I did some research, changed a few ingredients, experimented a little and voila! Oatmeal quick bread that my kids devour every morning for breakfast. I won't call it the healthiest breakfast, but it is way better than sugar coated cereal or some of the "pastries" kids like so much, that are equal parts high fructose corn syrup and preservatives.

(Note before we start: This is for 3 loaves. If you cut it in half, you will get 1 super large loaf which will overflow the pan. And you can't cut it in thirds. So I make 3 loaves and they freeze nicely in Ziploc bags and I thaw them overnight in the fridge and everyone's happy).

Instant Oatmeal Quick Bread

4 packages instant oatmeal*

2 cups flour (white or wholewheat)

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup apple sauce*

1 cup oil (or melted shortening)

1 cup milk (soy milk is fine if you want to use it)

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup chocolate chips*

1. Pre-Heat oven to 350F.

2. Mix together first 4 ingredients.

3. In a separate bowl mix next 5 ingredients.

4. Combine wet ingredients with dry ones. Mix only until all dry ingredients are wet.

5. Add chocolate chips.

6. Divide between 3 oiled bread loaf pans.

7. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.

8. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Then on racks until completely cooled.

* So far we tried 2 versions:

A. Using Banana Bread Instant oatmeal, apple sauce and chocolate chips.

B. Using Apple Cinnamon Instant Oatmeal, pumpkin puree and dried cranberries (my kids don't like raisins).

All other ingredients stay the same.

Both versions were wonderful. Just use the amounts in the original recipe and change the ingredients to your liking. If you have any questions, you know where to find me....