Make-ahead breakfast idea utilizes steel-cut oats in loaf

Rosie Daykin says she realized she loved to cook at an early age. Her afterschool “baking bonanzas” attracted all the neighborhood kids, and it was a win/ win situation. “Their desire to eat cookies worked very nicely with my desire to bake them,” she says in the introduction of her new cookbook, Let Me Feed You.

The book is less about baking and more about feeding a family. It’s filled with recipes that are simple and appealing, including Fried Chicken for Impatient People Like Me and Old-School Potato Salad. With so many recipes that I wanted to try, it was tough to choose one to share, but this Great Oat Loaf immediately struck me as an excellent idea.

Daykin says she loves steel-cut oats but finds they take too long to make on a busy weekday morning. So, she created a make-ahead loaf that you slice into breakfast portions and quickly reheat in the microwave.

The Great Oat Loaf

½ teaspoon salt

2 cups steel-cut oats

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Place 6 cups water and the salt in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the oats and stir vigorously to combine. Return to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so, until the oats are cooked through. Add the ground cinnamon and stir again.

Remove from heat and gently pour the oat mixture into an 8-inch loaf pan. Smooth mixture with a rubber spatula. Cover with plastic wrap and let set in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight.

To serve: Turn the loaf out onto a plate or small platter. Cut off a nice thick slice, heat in the microwave for about 1 minute, and top with your favorite oatmeal fixings.

Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Makes 1 (8-inch) loaf.