21 Day Fix Approved: Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Bake

I LOVE oatmeal!  I love hearty oats, fruity oats, baked oats, cooked oats, old-fashioned oats, steel cut oats, oats, oats, oats.  That yellow container just isn't big enough for me sometimes!  :)  On those mornings that I wake up wanting a sweet oats breakfast, this recipe always hits the spot!!  I love that the recipe can easily be changed up to fit whatever fruit I have in the house, too.  Plus it's easy and bakes while I get my morning workout done!  Give it a try...you won't be disappointed.

What you need:

• 1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats
• 1 Cup Steel Cut Oats
• 2/3 Cup 100% Pure Maple Syrup*
• 1 Tbs cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 Cup berries (your choice...I made it with Strawberries today but have found it to be equally yummy with raspberries and blueberries...use whatever you like, and whatever you have available)
• 1 Cup chopped nuts (optional, I generally leave these out because I like to eat my nuts as a snack separately, but if you do not, throw them in)
• 1 banana, sliced**
• 1 Tbs pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 2 Cups milk (I used Toasted Coconut Almond milk today, but have used unsweetened vanilla almond milk in the past.  Whatever you have on hand will work.)

*The original recipe that I found used 3/4 cup of maple syrup.  I cut it back to 2/3 because it was quite sweet.  You can adjust it to your preference.  :)
**The banana looks pretty terrible after baking.  I like the taste of the banana in it, but you could easily replace the banana for additional berries if this bothers you or you don't like the baked banana flavor.

What to do:

1.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Spray a 9x13 with oil spray.  I generally use my misto with olive oil in it.

3.  In a medium bowl, mix together the oats, syrup, cinnamon, baking powder, half of the nuts (if using), and 1/2 of your berries.

4.  In another small bowl, whisk the egg, vanilla and milk together until smooth.

5.  Spread the oatmeal mixture into the pan, pressing flat into the pan.  Try to make sure it is as even as you can.

6.  Pour the milk mixture onto the top of the oatmeal.

7.  Top with the remaining berries, nuts and sliced banana.

8.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed into the oats.  

9.  Enjoy!  It's great warmed up later as well!  :)

Fix Counts:
Measure your serving out using your yellow container...

1 yellow
1/2 purple
1 blue **If you include nuts**