As I said, I got the idea from Diana, who write a blog called The Chic Life. The original recipe for "Overnight Oatmeal" is from Alton Brown, and you can find it on the Food Network website.
This was my first time making steel-cut oats. I added in a little brown sugar, craisins, sliced almonds, and cinnamon. I also substituted the cream for skim milk. I cooked my oatmeal on warm all night because my crock pot cooks extremely quickly, and many reviewers complained that their oats burned. I just KNEW I was going to wake up to these delicious scents wafting up the stairways.
However, when we woke up, it was still pretty soupy. So I cranked it up to high. An hour later, it looked more like what oatmeal SHOULD look like. The flavor wasn't bad, either-- not too sweet-- which I was a little worried about. But something about the texture didn't work for me. I don't know if it was just the steel cut oats or what. I ate it anyway. I sliced some bananas into it, but it just didn't live up to my high expectations of the oatmeal. If you have ever eaten steel-cut oats, maybe you can tell me-- do they stay kind of firm and chewy? I was expecting soft oatmeal. I might try it again because I still have the ingredients, but next time I might not add in the craisins and almonds. I might try dried apples instead. And I might turn the pot to low around 3-4 a.m.
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| Simmering away... |
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| Still soupy... :( |
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| Done... but not quite right...? |
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| At least the coffee was good... (By the way, this is a tea bowl that I made with my own two hands!) |
I love the steel cut oats when they cook well. I just cook mine on the stove, and I start early. It takes forever, but they are worth the wait. My crock pot is too big, so I've never tried it in there. I keep meaning to get a little one so I can try the overnight. Do you ever read MckMama's blog? She does the crock pot ones, and hers look good.
ReplyDeleteJenn, I do not know that blog. Maybe I will look that up. The oatmeal was good-- but I just didn't love the texture. Next time I am going to cook stem stovetop and see what happens.
ReplyDeleteHere's her food link: http://mycharmingkids.net/category/main-meals/
ReplyDeleteShe kinda makes me nuts, so I haven't been on her blog in a while, but she does have good ideas for quick and healthy food.
Steel cut oats are a less processed version of rolled oats, so yes, they are more firm and a very different texture than rolled oats. I don't recommend doing rolled oats in the slow cooker - they don't have the right texture for it and I've heard many people say it didn't work. lol
ReplyDeleteI prefer the texture of rolled oats, too, but I like steel cut once in awhile to switch things up. :)