Baked Oatmeal with Berries

Recently, I've gotten into oatmeal casseroles. I came across them while searching around in Pinterest. I get into work early and don't take the time to cook something at the house before heading into work. This limits my breakfast options to bagels, cereal, pastries, yogurt/fruit, and oatmeal. Most of these options are not very nutritious or not filling enough for me, so to save time during the week and to add in some nutrients I sometimes make oatmeal casseroles. This typically lasts me 4-5 days worth of breakfasts.

The recipe below is one of the casseroles I have made before. It's great on cold mornings - just heat up the leftovers and you have a nice warm breakfast after being out in the cold. It's also a good way to use up bananas that have gotten a little too ripe for your liking.

Servings: 5 * Calories: 254 * Fat: 4 g * Carb: 43 g * Cholesterol: 46 mg * Protein: 7 g * Sugar: 19 g * Sodium: 138 mg *  Fiber: 4g

Vitamins: A (3%), C (4%), Calcium (10%), Iron (11%) based on a 2000 calorie diet

Ingredients:

• 2 cups oats
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water
• 1.5 tsp vanilla
• 1 egg
• 1 banana (ripe preferably)
• 1-1.5 cups of berries of your choosing: blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries
• Optional additions: chocolate chips, extra brown sugar for the top of the casserole, sliced almonds.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

Spray a baking dish (I used 7x11 glass casserole dish) with cooking spray.

I opted to place the sliced banana pieces on the bottom of the dish. You can also add them later (I will mention when.).

In a separate bowl, mix together the oats, brown sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon. [I have read that baking powder helps to keep the dish from being too dense.]

Add half of your berries to the dry mixture. Mix well with a spoon and then pour the mixture into the baking dish. Be sure that everything spreads evenly. Shaking the dish lightly in a back and forth motion on your countertop usually does the trick.

Add the remaining berries evenly across the mixture. If you did add your banana in yet, place the banana slices evenly over the mixture.

Whisk together the milk, water, vanilla, and egg.  [I used 2% milk and instead of using so much milk decided to lower the calories and cholesterol by combining 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of water.].

Pour the liquid mixture into the casserole dish, ensuring that all of the oats are covered. Make sure everything is distributed evenly, otherwise sections may be dry after baking.

Bake for 30 minutes. 

Note: If fresh berries aren't available, frozen berries work well, too. Let them thaw in a colander to eliminate extra water. This can also be a cheaper option, depending on the time of year and where you live.