Rating: 4 stars
23 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 6
  • 4 star values: 13
  • 3 star values: 1
  • 2 star values: 1
  • 1 star values: 2

Here is an easy way to serve a crowd a hearty breakfast before facing the elements for a day of winter sports. You can assemble it in the slow cooker in the evening and wake up to a bowl of hot, nourishing oatmeal. The slow cooker eliminates the need for constant stirring and ensures an exceptionally creamy consistency. It is important to use steel-cut oats; old-fashioned oats become too soft during slow-cooking.

Source: EatingWell Magazine, Winter 2004

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Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

Directions

Instructions Checklist
  • Combine water, oats, dried cranberries, dried apricots and salt in a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker. Turn heat to low. Put the lid on and cook until the oats are tender and the porridge is creamy, 7 to 8 hours.

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  • Stovetop Variation

  • Halve the above recipe to accommodate the size of most double boilers: Combine 4 cups water, 1 cup steel-cut oats, 3 tablespoons dried cranberries, 3 tablespoons dried apricots and 1/8 teaspoon salt in the top of a double boiler. Cover and cook over boiling water for about 1 1/2 hours, checking the water level in the bottom of the double boiler from time to time.

Tips

Ingredient Note: Steel-cut oats, sometimes labeled “Irish oatmeal,” look like small pebbles. They are toasted oat groats--the oat kernel that has been removed from the husk--that have been cut in 2 or 3 pieces. Do not substitute regular rolled oats, which have a shorter cooking time, in the slow-cooker oatmeal recipe.

For easy cleanup, try a slow-cooker liner. These heat-resistant, disposable liners fit neatly inside the insert and help prevent food from sticking to the bottom and sides of your slow cooker.

People with celiac disease or gluten-sensitivity should use oats that are labeled “gluten-free,” as oats are often cross-contaminated with wheat and barley.

Nutrition Facts

1 cup
188 calories; protein 6.1g; carbohydrates 34.2g; dietary fiber 8.8g; sugars 5.5g; fat 3g; vitamin a iu 225IU; vitamin c 0.2mg; calcium 29.7mg; iron 1.6mg; magnesium 2.4mg; potassium 197.4mg; sodium 79.8mg; thiamin 0.2mg.

2 starch, 1/2 fruit

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