Slow-Cooker Apple Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal

Fall has finally arrived in Kentucky, which means almost all of my favorite foods: pumpkin, apples, chili, pumpkin, soup, winter squash, apple cider, apple cider donuts, pecan pie, pumpkin pie, did I mention pumpkin?  Plus, you can wear your big cozy sweaters and flannel to hide your food baby when you devour oodles of comfort food and desserts.  Win and win.

To ring in the season, today's recipe combines all of the wonderful autumn ingredients that could realistically be put into oatmeal.  I made this recipe in my slow cooker, but I'm planning a similar recipe for the oven, so never fear if you don't have one.  Although you should get one because they are awesome (Christmas is just around the corner!).  I love my slow cooker as much as my food processor, which if you read this blog, you know I love dearly.

Start your lovely cool morning off by waking up to delicious, seasonal oatmeal.  Practically guaranteed to make the day better!

Slow-Cooker Apple Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal

Time: 15 minutes + 8 hours cooking
Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup water
1 cup steel-cut oats (not instant)
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
2 Honeycrisp apples, cored, peeled, and diced
2 TBS brown sugar
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup pecan pieces

Directions:

Spray the bowl with cooking spray.  Combine all of the ingredients in the slow cooker.  Cook on low for 8 hours overnight.  Stir before serving.

You may need to add more milk/water for the desired consistency.  Additional sweetener may also be added - I prefer maple syrup.  If you really want a hearty breakfast, add a spoonful of almond butter on the side (trust me if you've never tried nut butter with oatmeal - best thing ever).

Oatmeal stores in the fridge and reheats well - I usually add milk and sweetener to each individual serving after I reheat it.

Tip for the slow cooker: Reynolds, etc. makes slow-cooker liners to completely eliminate the mess of cleaning!  You can find them in the ziploc/storage aisle at the grocery store.