Baked Oatmeal with Strawberries, Bananas, and Chocolate

I saw this recipe on Pinterest a while back, and it just looked so delicious.  Sometimes I need to cook breakfast for a crowd, like when we have family in town, so I am always keeping an eye out for new breakfast recipes.  You see a lot of breakfast casseroles that have eggs, meat, and cheese – and they are delicious!   Don’t get me wrong – I love a good meaty, cheesy egg casserole.  But sometimes it’s nice to have something you feel a little less guilty about, so I thought I’d give this one a try.

Everyone thought this was really delicious! The strawberries and bananas and give it a very fresh taste, and the orange zest is a surprising little bright note.  Then there’s the sweet side – the chocolate and brown sugar add just the right amount of sweetness (who doesn’t love breakfast that has chocolate in it?!).  The chocolate chips get all melty and ooey and gooey…  And, well the cinnamon gives it that taste of home and is just a natural companion to oatmeal.

I just made a few small adjustments in the recipe based on my own taste (a little less zest and a little more cinnamon because I love it).  I also used pecans instead of walnuts.  The original recipe calls for a 10 1/2 x 7 inch baking dish, which I did not have, so I used a 9 x 13 and just reduced the cooking time a bit since it was spread out thinner, and that worked fine.  I think a 2 quart casserole dish would be the perfect size.

Give this one a try this weekend!

Baked Oatmeal with Strawberries, Bananas, and Chocolate

Ingredients:

• 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup pecan or walnut pieces, chopped
• 1 cup sliced strawberries
• 1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 cups milk
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ripe banana, peeled, 1/4-inch slices

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray a 10 1/2 x 7 (or 9 x 13) inch baking dish with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together oats, sugar, baking powder, orange zest, cinnamon, salt, half the nuts, half the strawberries, and half the chocolate chips.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla.

Pour the dry ingredients in the baking dish and spread out evenly.  Top with remaining strawberries, nuts, and chocolate, as well as the banana slices.   Pour the milk mixture over the top of the oat mixture and wiggle the pan ever so gently to make sure all of the dry ingredients are covered.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the oatmeal is set and all liquid is absorbed.  It will be slightly browned.  If you want (like I wanted), you can sprinkle on a little bit more brown sugar and pop it under the broiler for a minute or two.  That creates a really nice little sugar crust on top of the oatmeal.  Just be careful not to burn it!