Nourishing Breakfast Challenge: BAKED OATMEAL

Okay, this is the recipe for our Baked Oatmeal and Yummy Granola. It is so easy to mix most of it together the night before and finish it in the morning and bake it. We love this. The children like it with no additions, but Brian and I really like it with dried cranberries and almonds in it. I just sprinkle the cranberries and nuts on a small corner for us. Raisins are good in this too, making it taste like an oatmeal cookie.

The recipe below makes a 1/2 sheet pan size. They are thin bars that some of the children put in a bowl and pour raw milk over and some of them eat them like a bar, though they don't hold together all that well.

Now this could be tricky. I double this because we make the Yummy Granola out of this recipe, as will you for this challenge. (more on this lower in this post) That is for our family of 10. So, we eat about 3/4 of one pan the first morning for breakfast, then the rest we crumble and dry for granola. We get about 1 gallon of granola after it has dried. This might be a ton for you if you have only a few children, so you are going to have to adjust accordingly. Please email if you have questions on the amount. We think the granola is delicious and it does last a few weeks. Well, technically it does, just not around my husband and children.;-)

Remember, you have to double this recipe because you are going to use it for Yummy Granola, or if you have a small family, you might be able to get by with a single batch.

Baked Oatmeal
(Soaked recipe)

Mix in a large bowl and soak overnight:

1 cup softened butter ( I use 1/2 butter and 1/2 coconut oil, but I didn't want you to have to mess with coconut oil)
1 Cup Sucanat (or brown sugar)
6 cups Rolled Oats
1 tsp. Salt
1 T. Cinnamon
2 cups yogurt or Kefir ( I use Kefir)

In morning add:

4 eggs
4 tsp. Baking powder
1 T. vanilla

It is easier to just use your hands to mix this together. Spread into prepared cookie sheet (½ sheet pan) and bake @ 375 for 30-40 minutes

You can add dried fruit or nuts. Serve with milk, raw if possible. This recipe can be easily doubled.
　
If this is not clear, please ask!

Yummy Granola

After you have served breakfast from the Baked Oatmeal(you bake both pans), when it is cool, have your children help you crumble it all up. Spread it out on as many baking sheets as necessary to get roughly a single layer.

Turn your oven back on to around 200 degrees and put the pans in. It does take a long time at this low temperature to 'dry' the granola. Possibly several hours.

If you are tempted to turn it up to make it go faster, just know that I have burned it every time I have done this. If you decide to bake at a higher temp., proceed with caution and be very attentive. Check frequently and stir it often if you go higher.

When it is completely dry and cooled, put it away in air-tight containers. That's it! Super easy, super nourishing. Most granola recipes are made with raw oats, which, as we are learning, have nasty phytates in them!

When you serve the Yummy Granola, I obviously recommend raw milk. Now I realize this is not feasible for all of you, so regular milk is fine for this challenge. Or, better yet, serve it with organic plain yogurt and some fruit.