Monday, January 23, 2012

Baked Oatmeal with Fruit and Nuts

 I first discovered baked oatmeal about a year ago at Christmas when my sister made it for breakfast.  This year, we couldn't find her recipe but luckily we came across this one from Super Natural Every Day on a few different blogs.  Baked oatmeal is a great way to make oatmeal for a crowd, and it's also fantastic leftover.  I'm planning to make some to keep in my fridge for quick breakfasts throughout the week - it heats up well in the microwave and is great with a splash of milk on top.  I also like that the recipe is easily changed up to accommodate whatever fruits and nuts you like or have in the house.  For example, I'm a huge banana hater, so we subbed in chopped apple and peach.  Frozen fruit works well here; just make sure it's chopped into bite-sized chunks before going into the pan.


Baked Oatmeal with Fruit and Nuts (adapted from Super Natural Every Day)
Serves 6-9

2 cups rolled or quick oats (not instant)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, divided
1-1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1 egg
1/3 cup maple syrup
3 T butter, melted and slightly cooled, divided
2 tsp vanilla
Assorted fresh or frozen fruit (2-3 cups)

1. Spray an 8x8 pan with oil and preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Stir together the oats, half the nuts, the cinnamon, the baking powder, and the salt. Set aside.
3. Whisk together the milk, eggs, maple syrup, half of the butter, and the vanilla.
4. Scatter half the fruit in the bottom of the pan (we used chopped apple and chopped peach for the bottom layer).  Top with the oat mixture.  Slowly pour the liquid ingredients over the oats and tap the pan a few times on the counter to make sure it's evenly distributed.  Top with the remaining fruit (we used cherries and blueberries) and the remaining nuts.
5. Bake 35-45 minutes, until the top is browned and the oats are set. Remove from oven and drizzle with the remaining melted butter.  Tent with foil and let rest about 10 minutes before serving.  The baked oatmeal is delicious plain or with additional maple syrup.

8 comments:

  1. OH, wow....this looks like a wonderful breakfast!

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  2. This looks delicious! And I have all the ingredients on hand already!

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  3. delicious.can you make these with instant oats?i can't find rolled oats here.

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  4. @ Merin - I wouldn't use instant oats as I think the result would be too mushy, but I've used quick oats and they work just fine. :)

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  5. You've reminded me I have been wanting to try this. I wonder how well it work being assembled the night before and baked in the AM?

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    1. I would guess assembling this the night before would work out fine...my only concern would be the oats getting too 'mushy' - you might just assemble the wet and dry ingredients separately and then all you'd have to do in the morning would be pour wet over dry and sprinkle with some fruit.

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  6. could baked oatmeal be frozen into single serving portions and microwaved for fast and easy mornings?

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    1. I'm not sure...I haven't tried that. It does keep in the fridge for a reasonable amount of time (long enough for one person to eat through it, anyway!), and microwaves well from the fridge, so you can go that route if you want to prep on the weekend and eat through the week.

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