Baked Oatmeal With Roasted Banana Compote

I've been seeing the baked oatmeal thing over the last couple of years and decided, with the kids home from school this week, I'd give it a go.

I tried a recipe out of our paper, but there's tons of them out there.  I figure the base is the same, then you can throw in whatever spices and goodies you like.

The only thing I'd change about this recipe is the baking soda.  It left a funny aftertaste every once in awhile, so I don't know if I didn't get it mixed in good, or what.  I'd just leave it out next time.

The banana and nut topping was delicious.  But you could just as easily throw some fresh or dried fruit and nuts on top when serving it up.

Here's the recipe with my notes:

Baked Oatmeal
Printable Recipe

3 C old-fashioned oatmeal, uncooked
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda (I'd leave this out next time)
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
2 C milk
3/4 C real maple syrup (I subbed 1/2 C of the fake stuff)
1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a 2-quart baking dish.  

In a large bowl, combine the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt.

In a separate bowl, whisk eggs.  To the eggs, add the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla.  Whisk well to blend ingredients completely.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir well.  

Pour the oatmeal into the prepared baking dish and carefully slide the dish into the oven.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.  The oatmeal is ready when it is golden brown on top and the center feels firm to the touch.  To truly test doneness, wiggle the baking dish.  The oatmeal will jiggle slightly but should not slosh around.

Roasted Banana Compote
(I cut this recipe in half)

6 large, ripe bananas, halved lengthwise
3 Tbsp granulated sugar
3 Tbsp lightly packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp kosher salt
1/2 C chopped walnuts (I used pecans)
1 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Arrange the sliced bananas, cut side up, on a rimmed baking sheet.  

Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl.

Scatter the chopped nuts on top of the bananas then sprinkle the sugar mixture over the top of everything.

Dot the butter on top.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, stirring occasionally so that the nuts don't brown too quickly.  When the compote is ready the sugars will be thick and caramel-like and the bananas will be kissed in spots with a gorgeous golden brown color.

Remove baking sheet from the oven and stir the bananas until they bread apart and the walnuts are well dispersed.  The more you stir, the smoother it gets, so if you want some chunks, go easy.

Leftover compote can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Note:  I cooked the bananas at the same time as the oatmeal.  When the oatmeal was done, I cranked the heat up to 375 and baked them for about another 6 or 7 minutes.  That way, everything was done at about the same time.

Here's breakfast at my house:

I put what was left of the compote on top of the leftover oatmeal and we've just been heating up single serve portions this week.

Good stuff, kids.

For those celebrating tomorrow, have a happy Thanksgiving!

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