Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal

It’s almost 2013 people. You know what that means? New Year’s resolutions. Now is the time to start looking through your many boards on Pinterest to find the healthy recipes that have escaped you during the holidays. The past month I have been all about the cookies and honestly, it’s probably getting a little out of hand. I get used to the cookies, cakes and cream cheese-based dips during the plethora of holiday parties, that I forget to eat healthy when it’s all over. We just got some snow in Chicago so I really need some warm, comfort food that won’t kill my potentially-maybe-i’ll-do-it-sometime-in-the-future health kick of 2013. That’s where the baked oatmeal comes in. Oatmeal was on my 2011 list of foods to force myself to like and guess what? I loved it. Baked oatmeal is way better than regular oatmeal. It’s kind of like a cakey oatmeal. It’s a I’m tricking myself into thinking I’m eating dessert for breakfast kind of oatmeal. I like it. And you will too. My favorite way to eat it is warm with a drizzle of milk and some brown sugar or honey. Yum. I also love that it will last me all week. All I do is refrigerate it and warm it up in the microwave every morning before work. It’s a perfect breakfast to bring us into 2013!

Ingredients:

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 apple, cored and diced

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

2 tbsp honey

2 cups milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. In a bowl combine oats, brown sugar, cranberries, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and baking powder until combined.

Then, halve, quarter and core the apples. Dice into small pieces.

Add the apples to the dry mixture and combine.

Pour oats into a greased 8×8 inch glass dish. In a separate bowl, mix together egg, milk, vanilla, and honey. Pour the milk mixture over the oats.

Bake in the oven at 350F for 25-30 minutes, or until the milk is mostly absorbed. Serve warm with extra brown sugar, cinnamon and a drizzle of milk.

Serves 4-6.

Source: Slightly adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod