Crockpot Apple Oatmeal

(adapted from Fix It and Forget It Cookbook)
2 cups milk
2 tbsp honey (or brown sugar to your taste, or agave nectar, or maple syrup or ....)
1 tbsp butter or coconut oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup old fashioned oats (don't use the quick cooking oats -- they get mushy)
1 diced apple
1/2 cup dried cranberries (or other dried fruit; a tropical mix with mango is interesting)
chopped walnuts or pecans (optional, but they really add a lot in texture)

Spray slowcooker with pam(That's very important!)
Mix all ingredients together in slow cooker. Don't worry about getting everything evenly distributed; you'll stir it up in the morning. Cover. Cook on low 5-6 hours.

You do not need to get up at 1 a.m. to turn this on. Go buy one of those little gadgets that can be used to turn a lamp on and off while you're on vacation (they're popular for turning holiday lights on and off too). Turn on your crockpot and plug it into the gadget. You'll wake up to a lovely fragrance!

You can do this with steel cut oats too. (Notice this uses a bit more liquid) Somewhere I have a recipe that uses dried apples--you make a mix of the dry ingredients and just add milk. Sooooo easy.