I equate instant oatmeal with wallpaper paste.  Even McCann’s version of instant oatmeal.

In general, I have texture-issues when eating more than a few bites of gloppy foods such as yogurt or oatmeal.  I have tried to convert myself into a steel ground oatmeal fan and learned to tolerate small portions of slow-cooked oatmeal.  For a stretch, I ate oatmeal every day before work, repeating mantras such as “It’s healthy,” “It’s good for my heart,” and “Jamie lost five pounds” to ease it down.

Therefore, I was left with a lingering box of McCann’s steel ground oats that I gave up trying to enjoy.  The last time I touched this box of oats was during last winter’s blizzard.  Jake and I were hell-bent on keeping our Meritage reservation, nearly getting stuck in a snow bank after a couple blocks.  I hoped that a steaming bowl of slow cooked oatmeal would soothe my disappointment after missing Meritage’s impeccable Moule Frites.  I was wrong.

My old housemate once shared her delicious version of baked oatmeal created with rolled oats, so I was inspired to create a version made with the remainder of my steel cut oats.

I adapted an adapted baked oatmeal recipe from Karl who writes the following blog:
http://beef4breakfast.wordpress.com/2011/03/07/incredible-baked-oatmeal-steel-cut-oats/

As a new food blogger, I would like to properly attribute recipes.  I was interested to read the following article regarding recipe attribution written by The Food Blog Alliance:

http://foodblogalliance.com/2009/04/recipe-attribution.php

Ingredients

  • 1.5 cups of steel cut oats
  • 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup of water
  • 1/2 cup of heavy cream
  • 2 tb of melted butter
  • 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
  • Dashes of cinnamon, ground ginger & nutmeg
  • Splash of pure vanilla extract
  • Fleur de sel 

As instructed, I soaked the steel cut oats, overnight.  The next day, I strained the oats and placed them in a large mixing bowl.

Next, I mixed the peeled and diced apples into the oat mixture.

In a small bowl, I whipped the heavy cream, water, eggs, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg and salt.  Then, I incorporated the wet ingredients into the large bowl of apple/oat mixture and poured everything into a pan greased with butter.

The instructions suggested baking the oatmeal at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.  After 45 minutes, my oatmeal had not achieved a golden brown crust.  I also noticed regions where the oats had become dried-out and hard.  Determine to salvage my oatmeal, I sprinkled the hard oats with water and added a small pan of water into the oven, baking for an additional 20 minutes.

I tried my best to scrape away the hard pellets of oats and was left with an edible product I didn’t hate.  The next morning, I sliced a refrigerated square of baked oatmeal and pan-fried with butter.

The “refrigerate and pan-fry” method seemed to eliminate the hard bits of oatmeal and achieved buttery caramelization.  You could top the oatmeal with milk, yogurt, or fruit.  I preferred the sauteed oatmeal plain, with a sprinkling of Fleur de sel.  If I attempted to create this dish again, I would soak the oats longer than 17 hours.

I would love to know if anyone else has successfully incorporated steel cut oats into a recipe, other than porridge.