Fruity Baked Oatmeal with Crunchy Cinnamon Almond Topping

From Oh She Glows by Angela Liddon.

Ann:  I really like Angela's oatmeal/fruit recipes and this is no exception.  My picky Cael (2 yrs old) has to sniff and taste test everything with barely the tip of his tongue before he will let it pass his lips, and he downed this stuff while I watched with my jaw on the table.  Yes I will make it again, maybe even tonight.

It is like a hybrid between baked oatmeal and a fruit crisp. The crunchy cinnamon almond topping really made the whole dish. I also highly recommend a drizzle of maple syrup…it tied in all the flavours very well. When I make baked oatmeal I like to make a large batch so I can enjoy it for a few meals! It is a really quick breakfast that reheats in a flash. It reheats really well with a splash of milk. I even love it cold straight from the fridge!

Ingredients (4 servings)

Oatmeal

• 1 cup + 1/3 cup regular rolled oats
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 large banana, chopped
• 1 apple, peeled and chopped
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 1.5-2 cups non-dairy milk (I used 2 cups but you might need less depending on the volume of mix ins)
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

Crunchy Cinnamon Almond Topping

• 1/4 cup raw almonds
• 2 tbsp regular rolled oats
• 1 tbsp Sucanat (or other dry sugar)
• 1 tsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tbsp non-dairy milk

Instructions

• 1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease a 4 cup baking dish.
• 2. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, chia seeds, chopped banana, peeled and chopped apple, raisins, pinch of salt, and cinnamon. Now stir in the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla. Pour into casserole dish and set aside.
• 3. In a food processor, or by hand, process (or chop) the almonds. Now add in the oats, Sucanat (or sugar), Maple syrup, and milk and process until just combined. Sprinkle this mixture on top of the oatmeal mixture.
• 4. Bake in the oven for 26-30 minutes at 350F, uncovered. Watch closely during the last few minutes of baking so the topping doesn’t burn. Remove from oven and serve immediately. Drizzle with maple syrup. Will keep in the fridge, covered, for about 3 days. To reheat, simply, place in a bowl and add a splash of milk and heat in the microwave for a minute or so.

Easy Little Bread Recipe

From 101cookbooks.com by Heidi Swanson.

Ann: In my heart I want to make bread every day, or at least often, but I'm intimidated because I don't have a mixer and I don't want to knead away my few precious moments of Me time while my boys nap. Then I came across this recipe and I whipped up a loaf for dinner tonight. Easy, tasty and will be on my table again.

1 1/4 cups / 300 ml warm water (105-115F)
2 teaspoons active dry yeast (one packet)
1 tablespoon runny honey
1 cup / 4.5 oz / 125 g unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup / 5 oz / 140 g whole wheat flour
1 cup / 3.5 oz / 100 g rolled oats (not instant oats)
1 1/2 teaspoons fine grain sea salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted, for brushing

In a medium bowl, sprinkle the yeast onto the warm water and stir until the yeast dissolves. Stir in the honey and set aside for a few minutes, until the yeast blooms and swells a bit - 5 - 10 minutes.
In the meantime, mix the flours, oats, and salt in a large bowl. Add the wet mixture to the dry and stir very well.
Brush a 8-cup loaf pan generously with some of the melted butter. Turn the dough into the tin, cover with a clean, slightly damp cloth, and set in a warm place for 30 minutes, to rise.
Preheat the oven to 350F / 180C, with a rack in the middle. When ready, bake the bread for 35-40 minutes, until golden and pulling away from the sides of the pan. I finish things up by leaving the bread under the broiler for just a heartbeat - to give the top a bit deeper color. Remove from oven, and turn the bread out of the pan quickly. Let it cool on a rack so it doesn't steam in the pan. Serve warm, slathered with butter.
Makes 1 loaf.
Adapted from Gran's Kitchen: Recipes from the Notebooks of Dulcie May Booker.
Prep time: 10 min - Cook time: 35 min

Apricot Granola Bars

From Veggie Life, Winter '02-'03

Granola bars need little bits of a lot of different items, but they are all so healthy it blocks out the brown sugar...right?  Maybe someone out there can suggest a better substitute so the healthy feel is unadulterated, agave perhaps?  Oh ya, and the butter...well, just see disclaimer page.

1 c old-fashioned oats
1/3 c wheat germ
1/3 c whole almonds, unblanched
2 T pumpkin seed kernels
2 T sesame seeds
1/4 c honey
1 T walnut or peanut oil
1/3 c brown sugar
1/4 c melted butter
1/4 c raisins
1/4 c chopped dried apricots
Cooking spray or oil

Preheat oven To 225 degrees.  In a mixing bowl, combine oats, wheat germ, walnuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds.  Add 1 T of the honey and the oil.  Toss to mix well.  Spread mixture on a nonstick baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, stirring often, until toasty.

Raise oven heat to 350 degrees. In same mixing bowl, combine remaining honey, brown sugar, melted butter, raisins, and apricots.  Stir in toasted mixture and mix well.

Line a 9-inch square baking dish with foil and lightly spray or oil.  pour in granola mixture and smooth with a spatula. Bake 13 to 15 minutes, until golden. Remove from oven and cool completely in pan. When cool, tip out granola, remove foil, and cut into bars. Store in a container with a tight-fitting lid.

Nut Butter-Cinnamon-Raisin Granola

From The Low-Cholesterol Oat Plan by Barbara Earnest and Sarah Schlesinger.

This granola is soooo yummy, it's like eating cookies for breakfast. I always add in a chopped apple and use almonds rather than peanuts, but I really don't think you can go wrong with this one.  Every time I make a batch of this stuff I have to divide it equally into two separate containers so my husband and I are sure to get even shares.

2/3 c unhydrogenated peanut butter or almond butter
2/3 c honey
1/2 t cinnamon
1 t vanilla extract
3 c old-fashioned rolled oats
1 c oat bran
1 c raisins
1 c unsalted peanuts

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Combine peanut butter, honey, and cinnamon in a saucepan over low heat and stir until they are all liquified. Stir in vanilla.

Combine all remaining ingredients and stir in the peanut/honey mixture, coating evenly.

Spread granola onto a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes.  (Then the recipe says to leave the pan in the turned-off oven for 1 1/2 hours.  I never do this because I like mine soft.  If you prefer crunchy granola then follow this step.)

Keep refrigerated in an airtight container.

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

From The Book of Whole Grains by Marlene Anne Bumgarner.

1/2 c nuts
1/2 c honey
1/2 c oil
1 egg (see Disclaimer)
2 large bananas
1 3/4 c rolled oats
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
1 t salt
1/4 t ground nutmeg
3/4 t cinnamon

Grind nuts or chop them finely.  Mix honey, oil, egg, and bananas.  Add to the nuts and mix well.  Stir together flour, salt, and spices.  Combine with the rest of the ingredients to make a relatively stiff batter.  If too thick to spoon out easily, add a few teaspoonfuls of fruit juice; if too thin, add more flour.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a lightly oiled cookie sheet.  Bake at 400 F about 15 minutes. Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

Blueberry Banana Pie Vegan Overnight Oats

This recipe came from Angela Liddon's blog Oh She Glows.  She has other variations of vegan overnight oats that I plan on trying because this was good.

Inspired by Super Natural Every Day’s Baked Oatmeal.
Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 2 cups non-dairy milk
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 3 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 small bananas, peeled & chopped
• 1-1.5 cups fresh blueberries
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Homemade Granola sprinkled on top before serving

Directions: Mix in a casserole dish and place in fridge overnight. In the morning, give it a stir and enjoy cold with a sprinkle of granola on top. Keeps in the fridge for 2-3 days.