Baked Triple Berry Oatmeal

If you’re like me, you like the taste, heartiness, and health benefits of oatmeal, but aren’t big on the squidgy texture. Baked oatmeal is the perfect solution. 

Here’s what you’ll need: 

• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• ½ cup oat flour (or whole wheat)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 ½ cups milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ½ cups mixed berries
• ¼ cup chopped pecans
• 2 Tablespoons butter 

First thing, go ahead and preheat your oven to 350° and butter an 8x8 pan.

Put your oats into a mixing bowl.  I happened to have ground flax seed on hand, so I added a tablespoon.  It is absolutely optional, though. 

Add the rest of the dry ingredients. 

Stir that until everything is evenly distributed. 

Measure your milk and add the egg and vanilla.

Whisk that together and pour it over the dry ingredients. 

Stir until everything is incorporated and add the berries.  I used ½ cup each of blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries.  I happened to have fresh strawberries, so I used those rather than the frozen ones.  Either will work just fine, though.  In fact, probably any kind of fruit, (apples, peaches, cherries, whatever) fresh or frozen, will work.  You just want a total of 1 ½ cups. 

Gently stir in the berries and pour everything into your prepared pan. 

Slice 2 tablespoons of butter into thin slices and spread them over the top.

Into the oven for about 40 minutes.  It should be golden around the edges and just starting to brown on top. 

The longer you allow it to cool, the better it will stay together.  Then just cut it into squares and enjoy!  And the best part is, any leftovers can be reheated in the microwave in about 30 seconds, so it’s instant breakfast. 

What food textures do you have issues with? 

Basil Lemonade - Summer has Arrived!

Now that Memorial Day has passed, it’s time to pull out the white pants, bright colors, and sandals.  Not that I’m a fashionista.  If I manage to make it out the door with my apron off and shoes on the right feet, I consider it a success.  Fortunately, I can find my way around a kitchen better than I can a closet.  This fresh squeezed lemonade with a hint of basil in the background is the perfect way to escape the heat.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 ½ cups lemon juice
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 8 cups water
• Fresh Basil

Be sure to give your basil a good rinse before you start… unless you like bugs in your lemonade. 

Put the sugar and 2 cups of the water in a saucepan over medium heat. 

Continue to stir until the sugar is completely dissolved and bubbles are forming on the sides and bottom of the pan. 

Turn off the heat and throw in the basil. 

While that’s steeping, juice your lemons.  (If you don’t have a press juicer you can use a reamer, but you might want to strain out some of the pulp.)

When you’ve finished with that, your basil should be nice and wilted and the syrup will have the gorgeous aroma of basil.  It has served its purpose now, so go ahead and remove it from the pan and discard it. 

First into the pitcher goes the lemon juice. 

Next is the remaining 6 cups of water.

And last but not least, the basil syrup. 

And there you have it, beautiful, refreshing lemonade.  Now into the fridge to get nice and cold. 

Serve over ice and garnish with a couple of lemon slices and basil leaves. 

What’s your favorite thing about summer?