Breakfast!

As we are trying to reduce animal products to nearly none around here, breakfast seems the hardest meal hit.  Salad just doesn't cut it for breakfast (at least not for me) and fruit or smoothies on an empty stomach sometimes sends my blood sugar soaring.  I love hot cereal...it's warm and inviting in the morning and does seems to "stick to my ribs " more than your average breakfast.  However, cutting out processed foods means cutting out instant oatmeal or grits  - the two products that make hot cereal a reality on rushed mornings.


Last night I whipped out my trusty favorite slow cooker cookbook, Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook, by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufman, and attempted to make my breakfast a few hours in advance.  Their recipe called for 4 1/2 c. of water to 2 cups of thick rolled oats, slow cooked for 3 hours on high or overnight on the low setting. The morning proved that my crock pot isn't just for dinner anymore, but the recipe did need some tweaking.  Here's what I finally decided upon...

Slow Cooker Oatmeal

-2 c. thick rolled oats (I used Silver Palate's Thick & Rough Oatmeal - DO NOT use instant or quick oats or you will have a crock pot full of mush!)
-5 1/2 c. water
-Pinch of sea salt
-1/2 c. organic raisins (optional)
-1 T. cinnamon


Butter or spray your slow cooker crock  (I used my smaller 4 qt. model). Add all the ingredients and stir well. Cook on low over night  (6-8 hours) or on high for 3 hours.  You may need to add a little milk (I used almond milk) to thin it to your liking.  Add the sweetener or your choice (I used grade B organic maple syrup-- a bit more nutritionally worthy than Grade A) and enjoy!


 What to do with leftovers? Well, they sell frozen oatmeal at the grocery...why can't I do it? Well, the answer is that I can! Leftovers can be frozen for 1 month in individual serving sizes. Just thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat (preferably on the stove top, not microwave). Quicker than making from scratch in the morning!


or...


use this recipe to make leftover oatmeal muffins (just sub a few ingredients to make it healthier...whole wheat flour for at least half of the white flour, date sugar for half of the brown sugar, etc...)
http://www.food.com/recipe/leftover-cooked-oatmeal-muffins-318283

Enjoy your oats!