Wednesday, September 9, 2009

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.

17 comments:

Nicole said...

What are the dimensions of a 1/2 sheet pan? Is it a 9x13?

I am so glad - I talked with my husband about starting this challenge after seeing what recipes you had in store - you see, he dislikes oatmeal, and the texture of eggs - but he said that he would agree to try whatever I made for the challenge, if he could have a bowl of cereal as "back up" just in case!

I'll head to the grocery store tomorrow, and will make this breakfast for Friday. Looking forward to it!

Michelle (She Looketh Well) said...

Hi Nicole, the 1/2 sheet pan is 12x17 ish. I get them from restraunt supply stores. Also, the challenge is for next week. You may certainly make them this week, but I am posting the recipes, lists and schedules this week and starting Monday we do the challenge. Make sure your husband has a cereal he loves, just in case;-) Very sweet of him to give it a shot!

Hope that helps

Camille said...

I love new recipes...thanks for sharing! :)
Blessings,
Camille

P.S. Are you feeling better these days?

Michelle (She Looketh Well) said...

Bless your heart Camille, you are such an encouragement to me. Today was a pretty bad day,but I have had several very good days. It is hard to remember that the ups and downs are part of the healing. thanks for asking and praying

Camille said...

Sorry to hear your day wasn't the best physically. I will seek to remember you in prayer more often...the Lord is so good! What a blessing to know He is in complete control of it all...hang in there! :)

P.S. I am soaking my BIG bowl of oats, etc for the baked oatmeal I plan to cook in the morning. (I doubled it as my family eats lots and I wanted to also try the granola). I am not in your "contest", but I am enjoying your recipes. We've had the steel cut oats about 3 or 4 times already...my family LOVES them!!

Ellen said...

Michelle, praying for you!
I was wondering...with the yogurt...do you mean plain? I am so glad you are posting the recipes and I look forward to trying them..I have been wanting to make changes and breakfast is a great way to start!

Cheesemakin' Mamma said...

Thanks for posting this. I hadn't seen this recipe in the book yet. Looks yummy and really simple.

Michelle (She Looketh Well) said...

Ellen, yes, it is PLAIN yogurt. Get one with the least ingredients and fillers as possible. does your store carry Stonyfield Organic, that is my favorite brand, just buy the 32 ounce size.

Nicole said...

ok, am writing down the recipes for this week, and I am wondering:

Do you soak the steel cut oats, and baked oatmeal, at room temperature, or does this go into the refridgerator?

Thanks!

Cheesemakin' Mamma said...

OK, I tried the baked oatmeal recipe. I soaked the oats in raw whey (I always have a ton of whey since I make cheese). I divided the mixture into two stoneware cookie sheets. Baked it at 375 for 28 minutes and man did I burn it! What did I do wrong? Is it the whey or, should I just turn down the heat and not cook it as long? Any ideas?

Camille said...

"Cheesemakin' Mamma"...I got your comment in my email inbox since I subscribe to "updated comments". I hope Michelle doesn't mind my answering. Could it be that Michelle normally doubles the recipe and bakes in two pans? That's what I assumed so when I made it I doubled it for two pans...a single recipe (as written) would be baked in ONE pan. Does that make sense? Is this right Michelle?

Michelle (She Looketh Well) said...

Cheesemakin Mamma, the recipe for Baked Oatmeal does not have whey in it. Were you soaking plain oats and then drying them? I have never made it with whey, I think the yogurt in this recipe does double duty. One, it is just plain old part of the recipe, to make it bar-like. Two, it acts as the acid medium. Does this make sense?

Yes, the recipe is for a single batch, but I always double and make in two 12x17 pans.

Let me know exactly what you did, so I can see what to adjust.

Thanks

Cheesemakin' Mamma said...

Thanks for all your help, guys! From everything I've read, naturally soured whey is supposed to be a wonderful thing to soak your grains in. I made a single batch. I used all butter, but I'm wondering if I should have used all coconut oil (coconut oil doesn't seem to burn like butter does). I split this recipe between two regular bar, stoneware pans, which looked like a good fit. I baked it at 375 and took it out at 28 minutes when I realized I'd burnt it. It's a great recipe and I'd like to try it again, maybe with all coconut oil and a lower heat?

Unknown said...

I missed out on this challenge last week due to our family vacation. It was a great time but I am sad that I missed this. I will be trying these recipes though. Thanks for sharing. I am hoping you are feeling better.

Gombojav Tribe said...

Meg's final post:

http://gomboblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/breakfast-challenge-day-5-by-meg.html

Jenny said...

Thank you so much for the recipe for the granola. i just started soaking my oatmeal to make baked oatmeal (a differnt recipe). I then wanted to make granola but it seemed soooo overwhelming to begin soaking another thing since I am so new to this. But this is super easy since it is something I already do and make.

Candee said...

What is the reason for soaking the oats over night? I love granola and want to make this more for the granola. Can I just mix everything up and dry it in the oven?