Layered Berry and Banana Baked Oatmeal

Okay, so I am sorry-not-sorry that I am sharing two oatmeal recipes in a row. These are just sooo amazingly delicious, and I wanted to post them before the fruits go out of season!

My grandma grew up in the Great Depression, and to this day, she does not waste anything. Absolutely nothing. Not an exaggeration.

While this can be an admirable quality that many of us could use more of, it's almost obsessive on my grandma's part. She's walks around her house in the dark to save on the electric bill. Air Conitioning is only for  when company is over. Moldy cheese or bread? Cut off the mold, and eat the rest. But the killer is that after meals, she sweeps the crumbs fallen from the plates onto the table during the meal into her mouth.

Nasty. 

I am not nearly that obsessive, but still,if there is a sane way to avoid waste, I try to take it.

So when I saw the bananas in the fruit bowl were on the verge of blackening completely, and the berries in the fridge were not getting any younger either, I decided to make them into a baked oatmeal.

And let me tell you, not wasting food never tasted so good (definitely a lot better than crumbs from a table)

Layered Berry  Banana Baked Oatmeal

2 Very ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1/4 tsp. Baking powder

1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

1 tbsp. Milk

1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/3- 1/2 cup blueberries

1/2 cup sliced strawberries

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease a single-serving ramkin.
2. Stir together oats, baking powder, and cinnamon. 
3. Add milk, bananas, and vanilla to the oat mixture. Gently combine.
4. In the ramkin, layer: strawberries, oatmeal batter, blueberries, strawberries, oatmeal batter, blueberries, oatmeal batter.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until center is no longer jiggly.

Enjoy!

<3 Danielle

Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal

Why, oh why is cherry season so short?

Why, oh why do cherries cost so much?

Oh the problems I have. When I do have cherries, I try make the most of them. However, usually my attempts are in vain, as I end up snarfing them down by the handful... oops!

But this year, I managed to save some for this oatmeal! And guess what? It was definitely worth it!

The juice from the cherries spread throughout the oats while cooking, letting off a subtle flavor that pairs well with the chocolate.

So if you have self control enough to save your cherries, try this out. It'll be worth it!

Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal
1/2 cup rolled oats
1.5 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 banana, mashed
12 cherries, pitted and chopped
1 cup water
1/2 cup almond milk, or milk of choice

1. In a small saucepan, heat all ingredients except for the almond milk until thickened.
2. Add almond milk, then bring back to a boil and let thicken again.
3. let cool slightly before enjoying!

Serves one

~Danielle

Blueberry Lemon Poppyseed Baked Oatmeal

Well do I have a treat for you! I went into making this without high expectations, but as soon as the first forkful passed my lips, I was in foodie heaven.

Normally, no matter what anybody claims, "hidden" bananas in recipes can be detected from miles away, even if your name is not Sherlock Holmes. And unfortunately, it seems, the less one likes bananas, the better they are at tasting them. Me? I adore them in recipes, as you may have noticed, but I only tolerate them plain, as the flavor os just mediocre, in my opinion. Does anyone else find the aftertaste disgusting?

Anyway, the banana is barely detectable. I say barely because although I could faintly taste it, the flavor blended in so well with the lemon and blueberries that it definitely would have taken home a medal for hide and seek. Does anyone else think hide and seek should be an Olympic Sport? Gosh, that would be fun to watch!

Back on track, Danielle..... okay, so all that to say, seriously, make this. You will not be dissappointed. IT'S LITERALLY THE BEST!

Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Baked Oatmeal
1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/4 tsp. Baking powder
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Poppy seeds
Zest of one lemon
2 tsp. Lemon juice
1/3 cup almond milk (or milk of choice)
1/2 large ripe banana, mashed
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract
1/4 heaping cup blueberries

1) Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit
2) In a small bowl, stor together first five ingredients.
3) Gently mix in almond milk, banana, lemon juice, and extract, in that order
4) Fold in blue berries.
5) Bake in a greased single serving ramkin until the center is no longer wet, anywhere from 20-30 minutes.

~Danielle

Dark Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

I've been having a baked oatmeal craze lately. It never used to appeal to me until out of the blue, I decided to give it a try.... and the rest is history!

Oatmeal is a crazy thing. It's so healthy, but so delicious. That is, if you make it the right way; and this, my friends, is the right way. Brownie-like on the outside, fudgey in the middle, it doesn't get better than this. 

Remember my chocolate pudding oatmeal? If you tried it, then you know it's delicious. Well this is the baked version, which is also delish.

So go ahead, give it a whirl. You won't be disappointed.

Dark Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

1/4 tsp. Baking powder

1 1/2 tbsp. Cocoa powder

1 small ripe banana, mashed

1/3 cup almond milk, or milk of choice

1) Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. And grease a single- serving ramkin.

2) Combine first three ingredients.

3) Stir in first the banana, then the milk.

4) Bake until no longer liquidy in the center, or about 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy!

-Danielle

Peaches 'n' Cream Smoothie

Hey there! How have you been? I've been awsome since I recently got two GIANT crates of peaches. Seriously, there are probably about 100 peaches in my house, awaiting their fate. Mwahaha. 

The thing about peaches, though is that they ripen rather speedily, so I had to figure put how to use them up within a week. It wasn't too hard considering how scrumptious they are, whether they're plain or in something.

Whether you are a peach purist, or of you like to put them in pies and cobblers and such, you'll looove this smoothie! The peach and the banana compliment each other well, although the banana's flavor is not really the star of the show. It's more of the supporting role.

Peaches 'n' Cream Smoothie

1 peach, cut into chunks and frozen

1 Banana, cut into rounds and frozen
1/4 cup almond milk
1/4 scant tsp cinnamon

Blend in a blender untill smooth. Enjoy immediately.

Comment below your favorite way to use peaches!
~Danielle

Salted Caramel Pretzel Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Soft Serve

Wow that title sure is a mouthful! Think of it as a warning about how you'll want to get as many mouthfuls of this bliss as possible.

The flavors and textures of this are mind-blowing. It's like a giant mouth party. And good news: eat your heart out; this concoction is guilt-free! On the contrary to "normal ice cream", this is loaded with fiber, vitamins, and protein.

The caramel extract is not really health food, so omit if you'd prefer, bit there's such a small amount in this and it add such fantastic flavor without all the sugars that I figure it is worth it.

Salted Caramel Pretzel Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Soft Serve
Makes 1 giant serving, 2 standard servings

2 Bananas, cut into chunks and frozen solid
2-3 Tbsp almond milk
1-2 Tbsp cocoa powder
1-2 Tbsp peanut butter
1/2 tsp caramel extract
1 handful pretzels, lightly crushed

1) Remove bananas from freezer and place in bed of frood processor. Process until very small crumbs.
2) Add almond milk, cocoa powder, peanut bitter, and caramel extract. Process again until a smooth soft serve has formed.
3) Add pretzel bits and whirl them into the mixture until evenly distributed
4) optional: return soft serve to freezer for 30 minutes to an hour to solidify a bit more, for more of an ice cream experience, and less of a soft serve one.

~~{~@  Danielle

Triple Thick Mocha Milkshake

Remember my healthy chocolate softserve? Well this magical mixture is an extension of that goodness. Milkshakes should aways be two things: extra large and extra thick. Yep, this one sure sets the bar high, as it also is chocolatey and healthy, two sets of mega bonus  points to the the Triple Thick Mocha Milkshake!

The ingredients are quite tweakable, although I cannot vouch for the results of variations using substitutions. You can't get much better than only 4 ingredients, now can you?

Frozen bananas

almond milk (more bonus points for homemade!)

Cocoa powder

Coffee extract, or substitute 1 tsp. Instant coffee granules

As the queen of crazy extracts, it would be rude to expect all my readers to keep up with my collection, so I will try to offer substitures as much as possible! Any way, whether you're using extract or granules, you are in for a treat!

Triple Thick Mocha Milkshake      makes: 2 small; 1 large

2 bananas cut into chunks and frozen until hard

3/4 cup milk of choice (I used almond)

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder

1/2 tsp. coffee extract (or sub. 1 tsp. Instant coffee granules)

Place frozen bananas and milk and extract.into a blender. Pulse until almost completely smooth. Add cocoa powder, and blend until the bananas have no remaining chunks and the cocoa powder is completey mixed in. Enjoy immediately or stick in freezer for up to a half hour.

~~{~@ Danielle

Chocolate Pudding Oatmeal

Chocolate pudding oatmeal. Mmmmm. This deliciousness is so creamy, chocolatey and rich, no one could guess that it's secretly a gathering of super foods. I mean really;

Oats

Almond milk

Cocoa powder

Banana

Who'd think that these simple ingredients could make such a mouth-watering quartet? The oats add texture, almond milk provides creaminess, cocoa powder brings flavor to the table, and the banana not only supplies the richness, but it also adds bulk.

As for nutrition, the oats and bananas both bear good-for-you fiber. The almond milk contains the protein. Studies show that cocoa can help promote a healthy heart. Bananas once again play two roles, as they also provide lots of vitamins and minerals.

Yay! Let's dig in!

Chocolate Pudding Oatmeal

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1 ripe banana

1-2 Tbsp. cocoa powder (depending on how strong one  likes it)

1 cup water

1/2 cup almond milk

1) Cut the banana into circles before mashing it very well with a fork, until no large chunks are left.

2) Place the mashed banana, oats, and cocoa powder in a small saucepan and stir well.

3) Add the water and place pan over low-medium heat and stir constantly until the mixture begins to boil 

4) Add milk and continue to stir until the 'sauce' thickens, although the mixture still looks pretty wet.

5) Cover the saucepan and turn off the heat, leaving the pan on the stove*. Let sit for 10-20 minutes, or until its thickened a bit more.

6) Enjoy!

*Do not leave on burner if using electric stove.

I seriously have this at least 4 times a week. Its so good!

Hope you like it as much as I do!

~~{~@ Danielle