C-c-c-c-c-old enough for you baked oatmeal (with pumpkin)

It's no fun getting out of your toasty bed when the temperature outside is barely hovering above minus 25. Even my car's grumpy on mornings like that.

But what makes the cold somewhat more tolerable is a warm breakfast to start your day. The great thing about this recipe is that it cooks away in your crockpot WHILE YOU SLEEP. That's right -- cooking while you snooze. What could be more efficient?

 

 

Pumpkin and oatmeal may sound like an odd combination, but with it's nice mix that means you'll be getting a serving of veggies and extra fibre in your morning meal. The addition of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg turn this into a warm-spice concoction that will make your kitchen smell like you've made a pumpkin pie.

 



If you spend a bit of time compiling the ingredients before you hit the hay, you'll wake to a hot and hearty meal in the morning. All you have to do is make some coffee, and maybe sprinkle some walnuts and cranberries on top of your bowl o' oats.

Baked Pumpkin Steel Cut Oatmeal
From The Kitchn

serves 4 to 6

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 1/2 cups steel cut oats

1 cup pumpkin or squash puree

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

2 cups milk

2 1/2 cups warm water

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat the oven to 375°F. In a 3-quart (or larger) saucepan or Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-high heat. (Your burner shouldn't be on at full blast, but the butter should melt quickly.) When the butter foams up, stir in the oats and fry them, stirring frequently, for about 3 minutes or until they smell toasted.

Push the oats up against the side of the pan, and drop the second tablespoon of butter in the now clear center of the pan. Dump in the pumpkin puree. Fry it in the butter, only stirring after about a minute. Stir in the sugar and spices and continue frying the puree for another 3 to 4 minutes, or until the color darkens slightly and the raw smell disappears. It's OK if a few dark brown spots appear as the puree sticks to the pan.

Pour in the milk and whisk everything to combine. Whisk in the water, vanilla and salt. Put a lid on the pan and put it in the oven. Bake for 35 minutes. Take the pan out of the oven, and carefully lift the lid (be cautious as steam will billow out). Stir the oatmeal. It will look quite loose still, but the oats should be al dente and tender. The oatmeal will thicken rapidly as it cools.

Eat immediately with a drizzle of cream or milk and maple syrup, or let cool and then refrigerate. Heat up bowls in the microwave or on the stovetop.

• Slow Cooker Method: Follow the stovetop steps, then transfer the toasted oats and pumpkin to a slow cooker -- make sure you grease the insert with cooking spray to make cleanup easier. Whisk in the milk, water, vanilla, and salt, cook on LOW for 8 hours or overnight.

Tips:

• Be sure to buy just canned pumpkin and not canned pumpkin pie filling for this recipe. I dumped the extra pumpkin into bags and poppped them in my freezer to use another time.
• Even with the cooking spray, some of the oatmeal stuck to the bottom of my slow cooker. The cooked on bits were still yummy, but a bit of elbow grease was needed to get the pot clean.
• Add extra milk or water (1/2 to 1 cup) to the pot before cooking if you like a looser porridge.
• My favourite steel cut oats are McCann's from Ireland, but they tend to be expensive and difficult to find. President's Choice sells their own steel but oats, but the grains come from the U.S.A. A trip to the dollar store a few weeks ago resulted in the discovery of some Quaker steel cut oats, grown in Canada and processed in Peterborough, Ontario. Yay!