You know what the easiest part of my day is? Mornings. Especially school mornings. Things always go super smooth because my kids always go to bed on time the night before and fall asleep promptly, not keeping each other up or coming out to ask for drinks and Band-Aids (for, you know, all those bedtime injuries) and bathroom trips. I have a dog that lets herself out of the house to take care of business and she definitely does not go bark incessantly at her nemeses, the ugly terrier and the stump-tailed beagle next door. And my baby? He’s always super considerate about feedings and diaper changes and he’s great about waiting until everyone is squared away and awake and happy and dressed and fed so I can take care of his needs.
Yeah, that’s not my life. If it’s your life, I think you and I would lack a fundamental understanding of each other. I need all the help I can get in the mornings.
I found this recipe a few months ago on The Yummy Life and it has quickly become my favorite go-to breakfast for busy (and not-so-busy mornings). I have all sorts of variations in the works, so keep your eyes out for other fun overnight oatmeals over the next few months.
You’ll need steel cut oats, milk (I used whole; I’ve been reading some interesting research on implementing whole milk in a healthy diet), water, brown sugar, cinnamon, 2 baking apples (Fujis are sweet, Granny Smiths are tart), and salted butter. You can also add some ground flax seeds for extra nutrition.
Okay, here’s the thing with slow-cooker oatmeal–the first time you make this, I really, really, reeeeeally recommend making this for dinner on a day when you’re going to be around to keep an eye on things. Because every slow cooker cooks a little differently, there’s a possibility it won’t be done after seven hours or, more likely, there’s a possibility it could overcook. And then you’ll be sad and breakfastless. So it is really not the worst idea in the world to figure out how this recipe works in your slow cooker when you can control the situation instead of while you’re sleeping.
Anyway.
Steel-cut oats.
They’re the whole oats, just cut up. This means they’re much heartier, healthier, and more filling than rolled oats. It also means that cooking rolled oats like this will likely end in mushy goopiness.
So spray the slow cooker (well, the removable crock part, not the whole slow cooker–I know 99.9% of you are smart enough to realize that, but that darn .1% ruins it for everyone) with non-stick cooking spray and place the oats, brown sugar, ground flax, and cinnamon in a 3 1/2 quart slow cooker. You can go larger–a slow cooker up to 6 1/2 quart is fine–but don’t use the biggest, baddest slow cookers out there.
Chop up two apples (I love Fuji apples, but Granny Smiths would also work).
and add them along with the milk, water, and butter to the oatmeal mixture.
Cover and cook on low for 7 hours (keeping in mind that all slow cookers cook differently). Before serving, stir (or don’t…but I like to stir mine because I’m crazy like that) and serve.
Keep in mind that this is oatmeal and it’s probably not going to be seasoned EXACTLY how everyone at your breakfast table will want it straight out of the pot. It might not be sweet enough or cinamonny enough or creamy enough, so serve with additional milk, brown sugar, chopped walnuts or pecans (if you want ’em), and a sprinkling of cinnamon or apple pie spice. I also sprinkle mine with a little salt rather than cooking it with the salt–I’ve found I use less and notice it more (in a good way) when it’s sprinkled on top of the oatmeal.
Overnight Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 baking apples like Fuji (sweet) or Granny Smith (tart)
- 1 ½ cups milk I used whole
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 cup steel cut oats
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seed
- Kosher or coarse salt for sprinkling when serving
- Toppings: Brown sugar, cinnamon or apple pie spice, raisins, chopped pecans or walnuts, milk, etc.
Instructions
- Spray a 3 ½-quart or larger slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Combine all the ingredients except for the salt and additional toppings.
- Cover and cook on low for 7 hours. Serve with additional toppings.
Notes
- Nutritional information was calculated without the use of toppings.
Questions & Reviews
trying this out tonight. i dont have a slow cooker so im trying it with my pressure cooker!
We make this recipe all the time… love it! Also, I always scan the first paragraph or so before I get to the recipe and it makes me laugh – it’s refreshing someone else doesn’t have perfect mornings every day 🙂
If I use a 2 qt. slow cooker will it work if I use the original recipe or do I need to cut it in half?
I put this recipe together last night in the crock pot, and left a note for my 10 year old son to eat this for breakfast. In parentheses I put that the recipe was from “Our Best Bites”. He later informed me today that when he saw that breakfast was oatmeal, he was going to skip it and eat cold cereal instead. He then finished reading my note and saw that it was your recipe, so he changed his mind. He said that if it was from “Our Best Bites” it must be good, since up to this point we love all your recipes we’ve tried! He said it was really good, but he’d like more apple chunks in it next time…yeah he said “next time”!!
Made this for today and it turned out great. So much better than other versions I’ve tried. My favorite part might be the salt AFTER cooking … Yum!!! Great tip :-). I also have a bigger slow cooker but I just doubled the recipe for oatmeal all week 🙂
I make steel cut oats like this about once a week in the fall/winter. It always cooks longer than 7 hours. And forget whole milk- I USE CREAM!:) 2 cups water and one cup heavy cream- I promise it is awesome!
Is it ok to omit the flax seed? Not that I’m against flax seed or anything, but we don’t have it at our grocery store, and I’d rather not pay for the shipping to purchase it online…
yep 🙂
Thanks! do I need to adjust the liquid amounts if I omit the flax seed?
I make something sorta like this and it is just fantastic using agave nectar or brown rice syrup, apple juice, cranberries. Excited to try this out…steel cut oats rock!
For those of you living near a Winco, you can buy steel cut oats in their bulk section for about 60 cents per pound. I buy their 25 lb bag and it costs me 14 dollars. WAYY cheaper than any where else I’ve found.
I LOOOOVE steel cut oats and make them regularly. Even better and quicker than a slow-cooker is a pressure cooker! I have an electronic pressure cooker with a timer and all i have to do is put everything in the night before, set the timer and voila! Perfect oats right at breakfast time. Also, if I forget, I often blend up steel cut oats in the blender until they resemble a really course flour. This cuts WAY down on cooking time. Then i throw them in a pan with water, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and simmer for about 8 minutes. So good!
I love my electric pressure pan! I was wondering, how long do you pressure it? Do you use high or low pressure?