I had some bananas that were well past the eating stage, and usually I throw them in the freezer until I have enough to make banana bread. I decided I wanted to try something different. I’ve been seeing recipes for baked oatmeal lately, and I thought I’d see if I could find some sort of baked banana oatmeal recipe.

When I searched for it, I found there were many recipes for baked banana oatmeal, and I settled on using one from the Bored in the Kitchen blog. I had all the ingredients that it called for, and I liked that this one was in an 8 by 8 pan so I wasn’t making a huge amount in case it wasn’t good.

I shouldn’t have worried about it being good, though — it’s delicious. I left out the chocolate chips from the original recipe, and I decided to caramelize the top under the broiler for a few minutes after it was done baking. It came out of the oven looking very pale, and it wasn’t especially appetizing. A little brulee sugar and five minutes under the broiler solved that problem.

Baked Banana Oatmeal Brulee

Ingredients

  • 2 cups rolled oats
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 very ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1 tablespoon brulee sugar (very fine sugar)
Time Estimates

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 25 min

Total time: 35 min

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Prepare an 8x8 baking pan with nonstick spray or grease and flour.
  3. In a bowl, mix all ingredients except the brulee sugar.
  4. Pour mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through.
  5. Remove the pan from the oven, and move the baking rack up to the highest shelf, and turn the oven to broil.
  6. Sprinkle the brulee sugar evenly over the top of the baked banana oatmeal.
  7. Return the pan to the oven, and broil, watching very carefully, until the top is brown and caramelized, but not burnt.
  8. Allow to cool for 5 minutes. Cut into squares and serve.
Serves 4 big servings

My notes

  • This can be served as is, or put a couple of squares in a bowl, and serve with a little heated milk (or heavy cream) over top.
  • I think blueberries, dried cranberries or raisins could be added to this.

Have you ever made a baked oatmeal before? I enjoyed this so much that I’ll definitely be trying out different flavors of baked oatmeal. I’m thinking a maple and brown sugar version would be really delicious.

Robin Shreeves ( @rshreeves ) focuses on food from a family perspective from her home base in New Jersey.

Related topics: Healthy Eating, Recipes