Tasty Tuesday: Baked Oatmeal

This recipe was submitted by Shannon Wilkes, from Faith Mountain Farm in Creston. Remember, in a few months, we’ll list all the reader submitted recipes and vote on our favorite. The winner will receive a prize, so email your favorite recipes to me today!

Feeding a large family is hard enough, but buying a different cold cereal for everyone’s taste is just crazy! My daughter and I came up with this wonderful recipe for baked oatmeal. The whole family likes it (even the babies) and you can make a batch, stick it in the fridge and warm it up (or eat it cold) during the week for breakfast. It’s a hearty way to start the day and keeps the kids full at least until snack time. My husband likes to put a swirl of honey on his–what a sweet tooth!

Baked Oatmeal
18 oz. rolled oats
1 cup brown sugar (add more or less to your taste, or even go halves with honey)
1/4 cup melted butter
3 eggs
1 t. vanilla
4 t. baking powder
1 t. sea salt
1 t. cinnamon (add more if you like)
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/4 cup skim milk

Mix all ingredients together well in a large bowl. Pour mixture into a greased 13×9 casserole dish. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees; uncover and bake another 15-20 minutes until set in the middle (shake it and if it doesn’t jiggle, it’s ready!). Cut into squares and serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers for later in the week. Variation: sprinkle blueberries on the bottom of the pan and pour the oatmeal mixture over them before baking.

What is your favorite family breakfast?

Stay tuned tomorrow for our first Children’s Book Nook column, by Erin from Black Bear Books!