Some things are just too important not to share. And this is one of them.

The people at my house eat. A lot. Every day. Three times or more. And if the smallish people are in charge of feeding themselves, they only eat cereal, toast, scrambled eggs and fruit. Oh and the occasional smartie or sweet tart or Hershey's kiss that is found tucked in a corner of the pantry and when found is announced with cheers and wild leaping and then is of course quickly consumed. That is, if they are left to themselves.

Desiring them to have a bit more variety in their diet, and the fact that Parker hates putting anything into the oven, ("It's too hot and you have to lean down all the way INTO it!" In his defense, our oven is very low and quite abusive to the user.) I make breakfast for them. Most days.

If you are like me, prep time in the morning is important. It is nice to put breakfast on the table before 10:47a.m. But certainly not essential. My children have learned well the term "brunch." I tell them when breakfast is really late it makes it special and magically turns it into brunch.

But now, scampering back off that rabbit trail to the really important news. Baked oatmeal. Simple and yummy and quick. The recipe was given to me from the Dish who got it from Elizabeth who is now in the Czech Republic but still should be given credit for the spreading of breakfast cheer. This is also fabulous for those of you with allergy issues. It does have eggs, but is milk, wheat, soy, tree nut, peanut, fish and shellfish free. (Bet you were holding your breath wondering about those last two.)

Baked Oatmeal a.k.a Oatmeal Cake (makes it sound fancy)

The night before:
1/4 c. oil (any kind you want, I have been using grapeseed but it does make the pan sticky and hard to clean)
3/4 c. milk or rice milk
2 eggs
2 c. regular rolled oats

In the morning:
1/3 c. sugar or honey or maple syrup or 1/6 c. agave nectar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Some shakes of cinnamon and/or nutmeg.

You can also toss some chocolate chips or dried fruit in. I don't because cooked dried fruit reminds me of roaches.

Mix oil, milk, eggs and oats in a bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight. (This is the key, a quick mix up the night before.)

In the morning, add the rest of ingredients and mix it up.

Put into 8x8 pan (lightly greased, buttered or however you want to do it) and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. (remember to go down to 325 for agave nectar or other sweeteners that burn easily) This note I have says that you can also make muffins at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, but I neither the Dish nor I have ever done that so you are on your own.

Oh. And Caroline will eat it, but she doesn't really like it. But Parker and I do. We think it is yummalicious! And we are bigger and a majority. If you don't like it. Don't tell me. I don't want to know.

I just had to comment to tell you that I was extremely relieved to know there is no fish or shellfish in that oatmeal!!! Oh, and I love baked oatmeal.

Well, I for one am glad to hear there are no roaches in it. :-)

I have never, nor will I ever, eat it without chocolate chips. The Husband Dish will never ever eat it with chocolate chips. So you see, we are at an impasse. When I feel like making people happy, I mix it all up (without the "extras") and pour half the mixture into one side of the pan. Dot with raisins (Ew, yuck). Then I take the remaining mixture and throw a handful of chocolate chips, mix it up and pour into the remaining side of the pan. I MUST MUST MUST be very careful to not get any dead bugs...er, uh...raisins on my piece. It's the only edible thing to do.

But this is your blog. Not mine. I sometimes have a difficult time with that. :)

I'm so glad that you found that recipe and like it! We eat it every Sunday morning. It's really fun to experiment with. I've even forgotten the sugar (sprinkled in on after) and the baking powder (it does make a difference). Mashed banana, pumpkin, grated apple, coconut, wheat germ, anything can be added as long as you like it!

Miss you!