apple walnut steel-cut oats

Continuing on with my adventures in steel-cut oats, I decided to use up some of the left over apple juice from my Spiced Apple Cocktails. I also learned a couple of lessons since making my first batch of steel-cut oats (pumpkin spice oatmeal). Most importantly, a little bit of salt and a little bit of vanilla extract go a LONG way, flavor-wise. Although I am usually opposed to using anything but water to cook the oats (it increases the calorie content), I wanted to use up my extra apple juice and it really makes the flavor pop.





Total Recipe cost: $2.64
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Cost per serving: $0.66
Prep time: 5 min. Cook time: 35 min. Total: 40 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
1 cup	steel-cut oats	$0.70
2 cups	apple juice	$0.87
1/4 cup (4 Tbsp)	chopped walnuts	$0.32
1 tsp	cinnamon	$0.05
1 tsp	vanilla extract	$0.29
1/2 tsp	salt	nada
1 medium	apple, chopped	$0.41
TOTAL		$2.64

STEP 1: In a medium pot (2 qt), bring 2 cups of apple juice and 2 cups of water to a boil with a lid in place.

STEP 2: Once the liquid is boiling, add the steel-cut oats, cinnamon, vanilla and salt. Stir to combine then turn the heat down to low and simmer (without a lid) for about 30 minutes or until the desired thickness is achieved.

STEP 3: After the oats have thickened to your liking, stir in the chopped apple and walnuts.

STEP 4: Either eat immediately or divide into 4 reusable containers and refrigerate until you are ready to eat. Simply microwave each portion for 1-1.5 minutes when you are ready to eat! The individual portions will stay good in your refrigerator for up to one week.

NOTE: The first time I bought the steel-cut oats they were an impulse buy and I paid no regard to price. Since then I have been checking prices everywhere I go. The best price I have seen so far (which is the price I quoted for this recipe) was to buy them from the bulk section at the grocery store (a national chain store). The steel-cut oats purchased this way are $1.39/lb and one cup weighs approximately 1/2 lb. So, buying them in bulk shaved off about 10 cents per serving. Not huge but every little bit counts!

A bigger price cut would come from the apple juice. I happened to buy a large gallon sized glass jug of organic apple juice when I made the cocktails (another convenience buy) which cost $6.99. This past week I saw a plastic gallon sized jug of unfiltered apple juice (although not organic) in a weekly sales flyer for half the price. We pay for convenience, people :)