Crockpot Oatmeal

We can be a finicky bunch. Oatmeal is a favorite breakfast around here, but if given the choice we will pick steel-cut oats every time--hands down! When we first moved to Korea, Hero found a recipe on-line that allowed him to start his oatmeal in the evening, place the pot in the fridge overnight and then finish in the morning after his run so he can have a filling breakfast before going to work.

For months I have been thinking about trying to cook oatmeal over night in the crock pot. Tonight is the night. After trolling the web looking for recipes, I learned the key to oatmeal cooked in the crock pot is the type of oatmeal used. Steel-cut oats reportedly achieve the best results. If you do not have any on hand, wait until you can get some. I promise, once you go steel-cut you will only use rolled oats in a pinch or to bake with.

You will need:

• 1 cup steel-cut oats
• 4 cups water, I have seen some recipes that call for as little as three cups, but we like our oatmeal moist.
• dash of salt

Once you have that it is up to your taste buds to determine what additional ingredients you add. Add dried fruits, nuts, spices...the book is open on this. For tonight's test run I have added the following ingredients:

• 1/2 cup milk for creaminess
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 TBsp butter
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Combine all your ingredients in the crock pot, cook on low for about 8 hours. 

Enjoy!