Overnight Banana Bread Oatmeal

This recipe is pretty basic, forgiving and will make you feel as if you woke up in a Bed and Breakfast. Wishing you many warm memories with your family this winter!


1 Cup McCann’s Irish Steel Cut Oatmeal
4 Cups of water
1-2 Mashed over ripe bananas
¼ Tsp. Salt
1 Tbs. (or less) Butter
1/2 Cup Chopped toasted Walnuts or Pecans (Optional)
1 Crock Pot Liner
1 Tsp. Vanilla
Brown Sugar (Optional)
Cream or Half & Half


Arrange Crock Pot liner inside Crock Pot. (You may also use butter or cooking spray to grease your Crock Pot.)
Add Oatmeal, water, bananas, salt, butter, and ¼ Cup of nuts to the crock pot and stir till combined.
Set Temp to low heat right before bed and allow oatmeal to cook 8 to 9 hours.

In the morning, add vanilla, brown sugar (if needed) to taste, and a little bit of cream or half and half. Scoop into bowls and garnish with the remaining toasted nuts.

This recipe is pretty basic, forgiving and will make you feel as if you woke up in a Bed and Breakfast. Sometimes I will switch out the water for apple cider or orange juice. Any type would work; you may just need to dilute the sweeter ones with a bit of water. I don’t always use bananas either. Dried berries or frozen fruit works well here too, as does apple sauce. Use your imagination to create your own favorite varieties. Last night I made this with some Pecan Pumpkin Butter in place of the fruit and nuts. It was pure comfort in a bowl and my home smelled incredible when I woke up. I imagine other butters, jellies, and jams would be equally as good.


*This recipe was created in my own kitchen while developing variations on the basic slow cooker technique for cooking steel cut oats.

Crockpot Irish Steel Cut Oatmeal

~This recipe is super easy and the oatmeal is a treat to wake up to in the morning. I like to play with a variety of ingredients to create different flavors.

Some of my favorites include:
Bananas, Cinnamon, and Brown Sugar
Blueberries and Cream
Strawberries and Cream
Cinnamon and Rasin with Brown Sugar
Orange Cranberry
Peaches and Cream
Gingered Peach

Steel Cut Oatmeal for the Crock Pot Recipe
by papergoddess
3-4 servings
time to make 6¼ hours 5 min prep
1 cup steel cut oats (DO NOT substitute old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats)
4 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup dried fruit (raisins, prunes, apricots, dates) (optional)
Serve with
milk, to taste
sugar, to taste
cinnamon, to taste
maple syrup, to taste

1. Place all ingredients in a 2 quart slow cooker.
2. Cover and cook on LOW 6-8 hours.
3. It might form a "crust" around the outside. Just scrape it down with a spoon and stir it inches.

The original recipe may be found here:
http://www.recipezaar.com/101101

Roasted Red Pepper Grits

The White Dog Cafe in Philly is one of my all time favorite restaurants. The first time we ate there, I had these grits. Since then, I have made them many times, for breakfast, brunches, or a side dish for dinner. They are always a hit and I promise you will be hooked your very first bite.

When I am in a hurry, I find that a Roasted Bell Peppers in a jar work equally as well and are just as delicious.

Enjoy!


ROASTED RED PEPPER GRITS

2 medium red bell peppers
1 large onion
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup quick-cooking grits
4 cups whole milk
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco, or to taste

Roast and peel bell peppers. Finely chop onion.

In a food processor or blender purée roasted peppers until smooth. In a large heavy saucepan cook onion in butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in grits and add 2 cups milk in a stream, stirring. Simmer mixture, stirring, until milk is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Stir in remaining 2 cups milk and simmer, stirring occasionally, until milk is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Stir in water and gently simmer (do not cover), stirring occasionally, until grits are soft and thickened, about 35 minutes.

Stir in roasted-pepper purée, Tabasco, and salt and pepper to taste. Grits may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered, in a buttered 11-inch gratin or other shallow baking dish (about 6-cup). Reheat grits in a 400° F. oven until hot, about 15 minutes.

Makes 6 servings.

Gourmet
You Asked For It; White Dog Cafe, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
March 1998

Link to this recipe may be found here:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/r...ews/views/14966

What is your oldest recipe?

You know the one that you have made at every age and every stage of your life. The recipe that is so dog eared and tattered that it looks like an archeological find. The recipe that you could never bear to retire and is so tried and true you could make it with your eyes closed, the kind of recipe that is so close to your heart it could be considered a friend...

For me that recipe would be Betty Crocker's old recipe for Crepes. My mom used to make these for us when we were children. She served them to us with apple sauce and or cinnamon and sugar. We ate these in the best of times and the worst of times. No matter how bare our pantry was, mom always seemed to have these ingredients on hand. This recipe was my inspiration to learn how to cook and was the first thing I ever made. It was the first thing I have ever prepared for my husband and I still make them often. They have grown up a bit as I prefer to serve them with a fairly potent homemade Grand Marnier Caramel Sauce, but the basic recipe is still my old stand by. Just thinking about them makes me wonder what one recipe has stood by your side since the beginning.



Good Old Betty's Crepes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbls. sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups milk

2 tbls. butter, melted

1/2 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

Mix together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Add the remaining ingredients. Mix with a beater or by hand with a whisk until smooth.

Lightly butter a 6-8 inch non-stick stir fry pan, or crepe pan. Heat over medium heat until bubbly. For each crepe, pour about
1/4 cup of batter into skillet. You may need slightly more for a crepe pan. Immediately rotate pan so a thin layer of batter covers the bottom.

Cook crepe until light brown. Run a wide spatula around the edge to loosen, turn and cook the other side until light brown.