I could have never guessed a bedtime confession would lead to a recipe for savory oat risotto but, the world is full of inspiration, and you’ve got to take it whenever and wherever it arrives.
I was snuggled in bed one night reading quietly when Mike straighten himself and asked, “do you know what I fantasize about?”
Talk about a conversation starter!
I dropped my book and gave him my full attention. “Umm. No. But, you have my attention.”
Sighing a bit as he relaxed into his pillows, Mike confessed, “I fantasize about all of us getting up in the morning and having oatmeal for breakfast.”
Huh? After the build up, his response, was not at all what I was expecting. However, I wasn’t surprised.
Before kids, we used to start our days together, barely coherent, but, together. When I changed jobs, to stay home with our kids, Mike lost his morning companion. We do enjoy long weekend breakfasts with the kids. Weekday mornings, on the other hand, he gets up first and is out the door while the rest of us are still blinking the sleep from our eyes.
I laughed at the unexpected announcement but, fulfilling his fantasy of eating oatmeal together seemed pretty reasonable.
I have been cooking steel cut oats with savory ingredients for a few years after discovering I like preparing them risotto style by slowly adding liquid and stirring to create a creamy flavorful dish. However, I rarely make them because they take so long to cook and need to be attended to constantly.
I started making oat risotto in the rice cooker last spring. It worked pretty well until our rice cooker broke and Mike replaced it with a smaller one. This recipe needs room to grow. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize the size difference until there was a big puddle all over the counter.
Now, I make oat risotto in the crockpot, which, it turns out, works better than rice cooker. The oats cook up even creamier and more tender when simmered for a long time.
Imagine how rewarding weeknight dinner will feel when sitting down to creamy savory oats served with a leafy salad, dotted with ruby pomegranate seeds, and a few toasted walnuts. Now, imagine having guests for the holidays. You can brown the sausage a few days ahead then prepare a hearty fall breakfast with almost no time in the kitchen. Add some toasted pumpkin seeds and you’ll surely knock their socks off.
Slow Cooker Oat Risotto with Butternut Squash
Prep time 20 mins, Cook time 8 hours; Total time 8 hours 20 mins
Yield: approximately 7 (1 cup) servings
An easy recipe to serve any time of day, from a hearty breakfast to comforting weeknight dinner. I recommend using breakfast sausage for this recipe because it has a hint of sweetness and a milder blend of spices than Italian sausage. Breakfast sausage compliments, rather than competes with, the sage. Using the breakfast sausage also makes this dish an easy sell any time of day.
4 cups unsalted chicken stock (recommend Kitchen Basics, Unsalted Chicken Cooking Stock)
16 oz uncased chicken sausage (recommend Isernio’s Breakfast)
1 cup chopped onions
1 tbsp minced fresh sage
1 cup steel cut oats, dry
2 cups cubed butternut squash
1/2 cup dry Chardonay
salt and pepper to taste
Into a 4 quart or larger crock-pot, add the chicken stock then cover and set on high heat.
In a large skillet, brown the sausage and onions, break the sausage into crumbles as it cooks and sprinkle with a pinch each of salt and pepper. When the sausage has cooked through and is brown around the edges, stir in the sage and continue cooking for an additional minute.
Transfer the sausage and onion mixture to the warm crock-pot then add the oats, squash, wine and a few hearty grinds of black pepper.
Cover and cook on high for 8 hours. Serve warm.
Serving size: 1 cup Calories: 213 Fat: 4 g Carbohydrates: 25 g Sugar: 0 g Sodium: 500 mg Fiber: 4.5 gProtein: 19 g Weight Watchers Points Plus: 5
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
