Baked Oatmeal

This is a real stick-to-the-ribs yummy winter breakfast. Make it in the large casserole dish and you've got an easily warmed-up breakfast for several mornings! No photos for this one. As yummy as it is, brown food just doesn't photograph very well.

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats (don't use instant oatmeal)
1/2 c chopped walnuts (optional, but yummy!)
1/3 c sugar or maple syrup
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of sea salt
2 cups milk (or soy or almond milk)
1 large egg (or 1 large banana, mashed)
1 1/2 tbsp butter (or oil or applesauce)
2 tsp vanilla extract (vanilla essence)
2 ripe bananas, sliced
1 1/2 c blueberries or other berry

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 and grease an 8" square pan. (Double recipe for the 9x13" pan.) 
In one bowl mix the oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and half the nuts. (If using maple syrup, add that to the wet ingredients instead.)
In a second bowl, mix milk, egg, half the butter and the vanilla.

Place the sliced bananas so they cover the bottom of the baking dish. Sprinkle 1 c of the berries over the bananas. Sprinkle the oatmeal mixture over the berries.Drizzle the liquid ingredients over the top. Gently shake the baking dish to make sure the milk sinks in. Toss the remaining berries and nuts over the top.

Bake for 35-45 minutes until browned and 'set'. (It will be like the bread pudding or the crisp when it is set.) Serve with warmed maple syrup if you want it really sweet.

The (optional) ingredients above are for the vegan version. It is a little 'banana-y' with the extra banana, but not too bad. We make the vegan version as it is usually what we serve when we have vegans staying.

White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032