This post title may cause you to wonder if I went to the Florida State Fair last night…but no, I’m referring to the absolutely fantastically delicious breakfast I was treated to for my birthday when I was visiting Bill. (However, I am kinda interested in checking out the fair…this beach bum from the Jersey shore didn’t really experience much any cattle showing-horse riding-deep fried butter-kind of festival as a kid. Anyone want to join me?)
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But I digress…
I’m a big time oatmeal fan. I love me some oats in a jar, or a nice warm bowl topped with some fresh fruit and peanut butter.
So when Bill mentioned that his friend Byron made an amazing fried oatmeal, I was immediately intrigued. Well, I got to experience the delicacy when I was in Orlando for my birthday, and I was blown away. 
ooh baby! SO SO SO GOOD! It take a little bit of prep time the night before, but believe me, it is worth it! This recipe is totally credited to Byron- thanks for letting me share the kitchen with you!
Here’s how it works:
First, you start with Irish Steel Cut Oats.
You may be able to get away with some regular old fashioned oats, but the granularity of the steel cut adds just the right texture.
Here’s the secret: You don’t just throw them in the pot with water like you’re preparing a normal bowl of oats. Instead, toast them first in a fry pan with some butter. Get your pan nice and hot, melt the butter, and pour in a layer of oats. Let them toast for a few minutes, tossing a few times so they are thoroughly coated with the butter and evenly cooked. Be careful not to burn them!
See the color difference between the oats in the pan vs the ones in the tin? Toasting FTW!
Prepare enough oats for however many people you are serving. In our case, I believe Byron prepared 2 cups of oats. Secret #2: the oats need to be really thick, so don’t use as much water as the instructions on the tin tell you to. We used about 1/2 cup less than we should have.
When the oats are done, let them cool. Then, pour them into a loaf pan that has been coated with butter, or is lined with saran wrap. We went the saran wrap route. Stick the oatmeal “loaf” into the refrigerator overnight. 
The next morning, you’re all ready to fry up your oats!
Remove the oats from the loaf pan, and cut into 1/2 to 1 inch slices. Melt some butter in a fry pan, and when it’s nice and sizzly (that’s a technical term), place in your slices.
Fry up each side until it is golden brown and of course, the oats are heated through.
Now, Byron stressed the importance of the next three ingredients: 1) fresh fruit 2) real maple syrup (no Mrs. Butterworths, please!) and 3) creme fraiche. These three flavors perfectly complement each other and complete the dish.
We couldn’t find any creme fraiche at Publix, so with the help of Google, we learned that you could mix equal parts sour cream and whipping cream, leave it out over night, and voila! I was a little nervous about leaving dairy out overnight, but you know what? It worked great! It was creamy and a little tart, and paired so well with the fresh peaches and tangerines we bought.
Oh, and if you wanna take it up a notch, you can always set some bananas on fire
um hello!
This was a wee bit dangerous, but thankfully we all made it out of the kitchen without even singeing an eyebrow! The bananas were well worth it!
And of course, you must pair the meal with a mimosa! What extravagant breakfast is complete without it? 
