Peanut Butter, Banana, Chocolate Baked Oats, Oh My!

Peanut Butter, Banana, Chocolate Baked Oats

Here's another recipe for my Baked Oats!  I made it a little differently today so I thought I'd share what I did with the oats before I mixed & baked them.

Recipe:
~ 1/2 cup gluten free oats
~ 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
~ dash cinnamon
~ pinch Himalayan sea salt
~ 1T chia seeds
~ 3/4 small banana
~ 1.5T peanut butter
~ 1.5T mini chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients except banana & peanut butter in a bowl.  Pour into an oven safe bowl.  Slice the banana and layer the slices into the oat mixture.  Add the dollop of peanut butter right in the middle of the mixture.  Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.  Let cool for about ten minutes before eating.

I like my oats to be somewhat smooth, so I ground them in the food processor.  I do this in big batches (maybe 3-4 cups) and store them in an airtight container in the fridge.   Pulsing the oats in the food processor doesn't make them into a flour (although it's easy to grind them into a flour for something like a mug cake) but rather gives a finer texture in the baked oats when they're ready to eat.

My favorite brand of gluten free rolled oats

Here's what the oats look like in the bag

Here's the oats after pulsing in the food processor

Fit & Healthy Baked Oatmeal Bowl

Hey fit friends!!  Although I know it's really not the best time to grab my phone and plug into the digital world (i.e. fill my brain with social media mush), I often open Instagram before I get out of bed.  It's kind of my wake-up routine.  Open eyes, pick up phone, check email, check Instagram...and occasionally check Facebook.  Yeah...

As I was scrolling this morning, I saw a picture of someone's breakfast - baked oats.  It looked fantastic!!  I can't remember who's post it was (if it was yours, please comment and share your page) because it didn't really sink in just how good that breakfast would be until a few hours later, post-workout.  As my heart rate was dropping back to normal after an hour of ChaLEAN Extreme and TurboFire (Day 1 of my 90 day hybrid workout), I started thinking about food.  And the oats kept creeping back into my belly.  Er...into my mind.

I figured I'd just make my standard Overnight Oats recipe and, well...toss it in the oven.  Pretty much fool proof.  Preheat oven to 375.  I used a nonstick ceramic ramekin and didn't need to spray or grease it.  In a small mixing bowl add the following:

1/3 cup gluten free rolled oats (I like Trader Joe's brand)
1T chia seed
sprinkle of cinnamon
sprinkle of Himalayan sea salt
1/2 small banana, sliced
4 small strawberries, sliced
1-2T raw nut butter of your choice (I used walnut/cashew)

Add all, except fruit & nut butter, to mixing bowl and cover with unsweetened vanilla coconut or coconut/almond milk and stir to combine.  Add to ramekin and then layer the sliced banana and strawberries.  I added the walnut butter in the center instead of stirring to combine it.  Bake at 375 for 25 minutes.

This could be made so many ways!!  I think tomorrow I might try it with organic pumpkin and fresh organic blueberries, and in place of the nut butter, use raw slivered almonds.  Decisions!!  If you make it, please share and tag me on Instagram (@FitHealthyMommy) or Facebook (Fit & Healthy Mommy) - Please like and follow me as well!

Simple, short list of ingredients

Fruit - it's a tiny cutting board - it wasn't that much fruit!

Before baking

After baking

A spoonful of Yummy Goodness