Irish Oats

I love Irish oats! Those are the kind that are chopped once cross-wise instead of completely slivered. The Irish oats retain more of the bran of the grain and are more chewy and nutty.  I love reading about how folks put a cup of oats and some water in their slow-cooker and then wake to aromatic and tender grains. I tried it and my slow cooker is not cut out for this idea. I started the oats out on low, but when I saw they were bubbling up a storm I turned the setting to "keep warm" An hour later I noticed there was not enough water and I added more. by 9:00 when I went to bed, visions of a house fire were dancing in my head so I unplugged the oats and left them in the scalding hot pot on the counter overnight. I still had ready oatmeal in the morning, albeit room-temperature at that point. Thank you, microwave! I have to say, the Irish oats do take a bit more time, but not hours. I think 30-45 minutes would be just fine. The slow cooking left them very similar to quick-cooking oats, which seems to be a waste of a good Irish oat. But my bowlful was saved and enhanced by my fabulous homemade applesauce!  Allspice and ginger and not much agave are my secret ingredients! LOVED this breakfast!

I'd get a different crock pot, but I'd rather save up for a Breville Juicer like Kris Carr uses -- I love my smoothies that I make with the high-powered blender, but the green ones turn out a bit, er, chewier than I'd like, so green juice over ice would be lovely. I know, I'm an oddball in my preferences -- I like my oats chewy, but not my juice!