Baked Oatmeal goes Bananas!

With the cooler weather we've had recently, I have fallen back in love with a childhood favorite: oatmeal! However, after a couple weeks of eating the same old oatmeal every day, I decided to jazz it up a bit this morning... inspired by a couple black bananas sitting on my table.

Since high school, my all-time favorite breakfast was a baked oatmeal recipe from a bed and breakfast. Unfortunately, it is far from vegan. Not to be undone, I looked it up this morning, determined to create an equally delicious version. Normally, there is a custard-like layer beneath the crusty oatmeal top, and I was a little unsure how to recreate that since I did not have silken tofu. Then I saw the black spotted bananas on the table. Voila! Magic! Instead of having a separate custard layer, the center is very custard-like while the top and edges are slightly crispy like an oatmeal cookie. mmmmm....

Here are pictures of the end result:



And my recipe:

1-1/2 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking oats)
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 c. soy milk
1/4 c. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 to 1-1/2 bananas, mashed
2 tbsp. flax seeds, ground
nutmeg to sprinkle on top as garnish (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Combine oats, baking powder, and salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine soy milk, canola oil, vanilla, brown sugar, banana(s), and flax seeds. Gradually pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until well combined. Pour into a greased 8x8 or 2 quart glass baking dish. Sprinkle nutmeg over the top and bake 35-40 minutes.

This would probably also be really good with chopped pecans... Feel free to experiment with this recipe; it's so easy and lends itself to so many variations. Should you try this, let me know what you come up with!