Crock Pot Hot Cereal

If you know me at all, then you know I'm not a morning person. The funny thing about kids, well, they all seem like morning people. (My girl is anyway) and also, kids tend to want breakfast. And like most people, don't want the same breakfast every day. So, in my attempt to provide nutritious, EASY, cheap, EASY and different meals, I stumbled upon this great crock pot hot cereal recipe:

Crock-Pot Cereal
1 c. Oatmeal
1 c. Barley
1/4 c. unflavored tvp (tvp is available in the health food section at the grocery store and is sold as texturized protein granules.) It's a pretty cheap protein and you won't even taste it.
2+ tsp. cinnamon (more or less)

In the evening, stir together dry ingredients in your crock-pot.
add:
8 cups cold water
3+ tsp. vanilla

Stir gently, set slow-cooker to just under 3, or low on a crockpot. In the morning, stir and serve.

I usually half this recipe as it's usually just my daughter and I eating this. It's enough for 2 with a good bit leftover if you half it. This recipe is great because you can substitute any grain you have, it sneaks a great bit of protein into your breakfast, it's ready when you get up and you can serve it with any number of toppings. A few days ago I topped it with some applesauce I made and milk. It's also great with maple syrup.