Overnight Oatmeal

Here is an easy way to wake up to a bowl of hot, nourishing oatmeal. It is important to use steel-cut oats; old-fashioned oats become too soft during slow-cooking.

Serves 8

Ingredients

8 cups water

2 cups steel-cut oats, (see Ingredient note)

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Preparation

1. Combine water, oats, dried cranberries, dried apricots and salt in a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker.
2. Turn heat to low. Put the lid on and cook until the oats are tender and the porridge is creamy, 7 to 8 hours.

Nutrition per serving (1 cup) : 193 Calories; 34 g Carbohydrates; 6 g Protein.

Tips & Notes

Ingredient Note: Steel-cut oats, sometimes labeled “Irish oatmeal,” look like small pebbles. They are toasted oat groats—the oat kernel that has been removed from the husk that have been cut in 2 or 3 pieces. Do not substitute regular rolled oats, which have a shorter cooking time, in the slow-cooker oatmeal recipe.

For easy cleanup, try a slow-cooker liner. These heat-resistant, disposable liners fit neatly inside the insert and help prevent food from sticking to the bottom and sides of your slow cooker.

From EatingWell Magazine:  Winter 2004, The EatingWell Diabetes Cookbook (2005)

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/overnight_oatmeal.html.

Slow-Cooker Moroccan Lentil Soup

Like most soups, this Moroccan lentil soup recipe gets better with time as the complex seasonings have time to develop. Make it a day ahead if you can—this easy slow cooker/crock pot recipe variation makes it a cinch to get the soup cooking while you do other things.

Serves 12

Ingredients

2 cups chopped onions

2 cups chopped carrots

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

6 cups vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 cups water

3 cups chopped cauliflower

1 3/4 cups lentils

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

4 cups chopped fresh spinach or one 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Preparation

1. Combine onions, carrots, garlic, oil, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon and pepper in a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker.
2. Add broth, water, cauliflower, lentils, tomatoes and tomato paste and stir until well combined.
3. Cover and cook until the lentils are tender, 4 to 5 hours on High or 8 to 10 hours on Low.
4. During the last 30 minutes of cooking, stir in spinach.
5. Just before serving, stir in cilantro and lemon juice.

Nutrition per serving (1 1/4 cups): 152 Calories; 28 g Carbohydrates; 9 g Protein.

Recipe from EatingWell Magazine:  January/February 2013

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/slow_cooker_lentil_soup.html.