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It would be an apt description to call my husband a "musher" even though he has never trained, led or raced a dog team of huskies. Simply put, he likes to wake up on a chilly January morning to a pot of hot coffee and prepare a big, steaming bowl of homemade oatmeal or, as our family has called it for generations, "mush."
He makes his mush by dumping a cup of steel-cut oatmeal (a bargain at 25 cents per cup in bulk) into a cooking pot on the stove. He adds water, raisins and chopped fresh fruit, such as an apple or pear, and then tosses in a pinch of salt and cinnamon. The mush is ready to eat in about 30 minutes, just as he opens the sports section of the morning paper.
This has been his daily routine for years, until he recently started a new job as an assistant superintendent of a school that opens in the wee hours of the morning and is located on the opposite end of town from our home.
The new early wake-up call prompted a happy discovery: slow-cooker oatmeal. Now, he tosses the ingredients in our slow cooker at night and sets it on low. The healthy mush is hot and ready to enjoy the moment he wakes up. It's a musher's dream come true.
If your family likes oatmeal, give this easy and super-cheap version a try.
SLOW-COOKER OATMEAL
Makes 4 servings.
1 cup steel-cut oats (not quick cooking or instant oats)
3 cups water
Pinch salt
Dried fruit to taste, such as apricots, raisins and
1/2 cup chopped fresh fruit, such as apple or pear
Cinnamon to taste (optional)
Let your kids measure and pour ingredients in slow cooker before they go to bed. Stir. Cover. Set cooker at low heat. In morning, stir and serve. Vary toppings day to day with brown sugar, cinnamon sugar, honey, nuts or chopped banana. Or add milk.
Alternative cooking idea: Try the recipe using rice cooker, if it has a porridge or cereal function that cooks oatmeal. Place ingredients in bowl and refrigerate overnight. Pour contents into cooker in morning. Turn on. Cook for 25 minutes.
Donna Erickson's award-winning television series, "Donna's Day," is airing on public television nationwide. Watch it in the Twin Cities at 7:30 a.m. Fridays on tptLife on channels 13 and 17. Sign up for Donna's e-newsletter at donnasday.com. Her latest book is "Donna Erickson's Fabulous Funstuff for Families."
