Spiced Overnight Oatmeal for the Holidays

As a host at Thanksgiving, having a house full of guests and dinner to prepare can be anxiety inducing even for the most proficient of home cooks. You will be grateful to wake up to this big pot of creamy overnight oatmeal, prepared Thanksgiving eve and cooked in time for the earliest risers, while staying warm for those who sleep in.

You’ll have plenty of time to free up your slow cooker for last week’s Leek, Mushroom and Walnut Stuffing recipe.

Ingredients    
4 apples, cored and chopped into ⅓ “ V shaped wedges (peeled if preferred)
2 cups steel cut oats
4 cups almond milk
2 ½ cups water
1 cup raisins
½ packed cup light brown sugar or maple syrup
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
2 tbsp butter, chopped (optional)

Mix all the ingredients together in your slow cooker

Cook on low for 8 hours overnight and serve hot with added maple syrup and extra warm milk or cream if you’re feeling decadent.

tasty toppings

• sprinkle with toasted almonds and orange cranberries
• stir in a tablespoon of your favourite nut butter, layer sliced banana on top
• add a tbsp each of blueberries and pecans before drizzling with maple syrup

Looking Ahead
As promised in an earlier post, next week we bring you our smouldering Bonfire Meatballs using our slow cooker tomato sauce

Zen Toolkit
While you’re chopping your apples take a moment to reflect on what you are thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Line up your spice jars and set out dry ingredients the night before or skip this step and purchase our Sweet & Spicy “Zen Blend” filled with organic herbs and spices – everything you need to simplify your slow cooking experience.

Zen Moment
Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.

– Henry Van Dyke