I’m not sure why but this morning just felt like and oatmeal kind of morning. The fall air is crisp and cool, but not so cool that I can’t have the windows open a bit to let some of that divine air in. I just love the smell of fall. And the look of the leaves, unraked (lol) in the backyard. So yea, oatmeal seems right.
Mmmm… This is basically dessert oatmeal, just saying. It’s delicious! I suppose if you want it to be more “plain” or “healthy” you could omit the apple topping but why would you want to? Steel cut oats are first toasted in butter then simmer in a water/milk mixture until the liquid is absorbed, dried cranberries (or raisins) are added and then the whole thing is topped with a syrupy, sweet and spiced sauteed apple mixture. I could eat this for any meal of the day or for dessert!
Before I stirring it up, so you can really see the topping! Nom nom nom
This apple topping would be heaven over a bowl of vanilla ice cream I’m thinking too…
If you do choose to serve these oats without the topping, I would recommend adding some sugar to them or topping them with something else a little bit sweet since there is no added sugar in the actual oats. Also, I realize that this is a longer wait than for those microwave packets you can be eating within a couple of minutes. You will need a good 45-60 minutes to get these oats ready, although most of that time is just waiting for them to cook. But it is worth it! The texture of them is far more satisfying than those gummy quick oats.
***PRINTABLE RECIPE (STEEL CUT OATS WITH SPICED APPLE TOPPING PDF)***
Steel Cut Oats with Spiced Apple Topping
(Recipe from America’s Test Kitchen: Family Cookbook)
Ingredients for the oats:
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1 cup steel-cut oats
- ¼ tsp. fine kosher or sea salt
- ¼ cup dried cranberries (or raisins), optional
Ingredients for the apple topping:
- 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1 ½ lbs. apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped
- 1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
- 1/8 tsp. ground ginger
- ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
- Pinch of fine kosher or sea salt
Directions for the oats:
- Bring the water and milk to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium heat
- Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat and toast the oats in the butter until golden and fragrant, stirring frequently, about 2-4 minutes
- Stir the toasted oats into the simmering liquid and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer gently until almost all of the liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes
- Stir in the salt and continue to simmer, stirring frequently to prevent any scorching on the bottom, for about another 10 minutes, or until the oatmeal is thick and creamy
- Remove from heat and stir in the cranberries or raisins, if using, and let sit for 5 minutes
- Serve with apple topping over the top (or stir in brown sugar or maple syrup if not using the topping)
Directions for the apple topping:
- Melt 1 tbsp. butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat
- Add in the apples, brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon and salt and stir to combine
- Cook until the apples have softened and browned, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, and turning down the heat if necessary to prevent a bubble-over
- Serve over warm oatmeal (or over ice cream! Yum!)
Filed under: apples, breakfast and brunch, cranberries, Fruit, fruit, fruit sauce, oatmeal, sauces and condiments
