You guys kill me! Myrtle spurtle!! My husband's German mom was a great one for discipline with a wooden spoon. That spurtle looks like the Scots version - I know I'd run if my mom waved that thing around!

Serious oatmeal eaters know that only steel-cut will do. Those of us who don't want to wait 20 minutes for it to cook, just bring it to a boil the night before, turn off the flame and put it on the back of the stove overnight. It's ready to just warm up in the morning. I've been eating steel-cut every morning for almost three years now and I'm still not tired of it. If you don't want to pay McCanns prices, check out the bulk bins at your health food store - it's about 79 cents a pound.

When we were in Scotland a couple of years ago, the hotel had a huge electric kettle of it on the buffet table along with honey on one side and whiskey on the other. Just a wee drap, mind!!