Overnight Steel-Cut Oats

Worlds away from the dreadfully common gloppy bowl of oatmeal, slow cooked steel-cut oats are delightful and satisfying in an attention-captivating sort of way. It's the remarkable texture of individual oat grains that seem to pop in your mouth with every chew that make it so standout-good. Of course all this goodness comes at a price. The exquisite texture of properly cooked steel-cut oats is the reward for 45 minutes of gentle simmering. A hefty price in this fast-paced world. It's an investment I made regularly because I love a great bowl of oats that much. Then a visit to my parents rocked my oat-devoted world. I was served a wonderful bowl of steel-cut oats, but there was no long slow cooking investment to pay. How did they do this? This glorious slow food that demands patients before reward can be quick and convenient? Not as quick and convenient as pouring a bowl of Cheerio's, I grant you, but quick enough to make it a reasonable way to start any morning, even a busy morning.

Makes 3 servings

1 cup steel-cut oats
4 cups water
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Toppings such as milk, sugar, dried fruit and nuts as desired

Before heading off to bed for the night, put the steel-cut oats and 4 cups of water in a medium-sized sauce pan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover the pan and leave to soak overnight. The next morning, stir in ½ teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or frozen.

Toppings are as endless as your imagination. Here are a few of my favorites.

• Brown sugar, pinch of cinnamon, dried cranberries and toasted pecans.
• Honey, pinch of freshly ground cardamom, dried apricots, toasted almonds.
• Brown sugar, pinch of clove, sliced bananas.
• Substitute Alderwood Smoked Salt for the kosher salt; it's like breakfast was cooked over an open campfire.