Pumpkin, unplugged

Last year I blogged about all of the yummy fall foods I enjoy making for the family. I featured my home made cranberry sauce, home made pumpkin butter, and home made pumpkin and wild rice soup! Well this year I have a new gem for everyone...............




drum roll please..........................

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Crockpot Pumpkin, Apple, Cranberry Oatmeal!!  

This is a photo sent to me by a friend I sent some too and they and their family loved it!

It is very tasty, it's actually vegan and everyone LOVES IT!!  I even gave some to some friends of the family, they loved it too!! I think fall cooking is definitely one of my specialties!!  This year I made enough pumpkin butter to give away to 15 friends and family members for them and their families! Last year was pretty close to that too!!

You must use a large pumpkin if you want to make enough for giving away.  I make a really huge batch. I have a large oval sized crock pot. I have never made a small amount. I set up my recipe for those who may want to just make a single batch, but you can double, triple, or quadruple it! I do not follow my recipe, I like a lot of flavor in my food and I will generally always add a little extra spice and sugar in any recipe.

I am actually unsure of the cooking time for this though, because I am not a crockpot expert. I know that the two crockpots I have are different brands but about the same size. They cook way differently than each other. This is not a crockpot recipe that you can walk away from for many hours. You need to keep stirring and smooshing it, so that the pumpkin gets nice and mixed with the other ingredients and it all cooks well.  I would say it is probably about 4 hours of cooking in the crockpot on low. It may take less or more in your crockpot.  You will know when it is done, if you cook often.  It will be a nice rich color, kind of a brownish orange. It will be be all melded together nicely. Just keep a tighter eye on it after the 3 hour mark

To find out how to bake a fresh pumpkin please check out my pumpkin butter post HERE. It tells you how to bake the pumpkin as well as to make the pumpkin butter. The link to find out how to make the cranberry sauce and pumpkin wild rice soup are there also!!


Pumpkin, Apple, Cranberry Oatmeal  (crockpot)


1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 apple peeled and diced small ( i used mcintosh)
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup pumpkin puree from freshly baked pumpkin (do not use canned!!!!)
2/3 cup craisins or cherry craisins  (i usec cherry)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup steel cut oats (uncooked, I use Mccans brand I like it best!)
4 cups water
1 cup brown sugar
half cup white sugar

4-7 hours on low in your crockpot depending on how your crockpot cooks.

My crockpot oatmeal recipe is an adapted recipe that came from another I found online. I had read the recipe comments and found that out of over 100 comments, most of the ladies were either mad or irritated that theirs did not come out like hers.  You have to make this oatmeal at least once in your crockpot to see how your crockpot cooks it.  This is a common issue I am seeing all over the internet with other crockpot recipes. You just can not say how another person's crockpot works with your recipe. So I apologize if I sound like I am giving you vague, half a$$ed instructions but seriously, it will work if you stay with it and stir it, as well as check it every hour or so.  After the 2nd time you make it, you will KNOW how long your crockpot takes and how you like it to taste, You may want to lighten the spice, you may want to add more just like I do.  Just experiment with it, make it as an extra thing you are making one day. DO not count on it to be a meal the first time or two you make it! Hey, this oatmeal is good enough to have as a snack! Crockpot oatmeal with steel cut oats is NOTHING, and I mean NOTHING like instant or stovetop oatmeal. This is oatmeal in the raw. It is a totally different texture, taste, smell, look, etc.