Baked Oatmeal

I'd like to introduce you to our newest favorite way to eat oatmeal. A friend of mine put this recipe on her blog. (Thanks Kristin!) Most baked oatmeal recipes call for eggs and butter - as does this one - but leaving it out omits 27 grams of fat and 272 mg. of cholesterol! I've never tasted the "original" but the "McDougallized" version is SO delicious, I don't even want to know what I'm missing. Even though this is technically breakfast no one's going to arrest me for having a 3 o'clock snack - This tastes better than ANY fat free oatmeal cookie! Mmmm! And all my kids like it...all except picky hubby who prefers most of his food very plain.
Without further ado, here it is:


Baked Oatmeal

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced or grated

2 cups regular or quick oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 Tablespoon ground flax seed meal
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt

2 cups soymilk ( I always dilute my soymilk, so I used 1 1/2 c. soymilk + 1/2 c. water)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon pure maple syrup

In 8 X 8 square or round 2 quart dish, lay apples on bottom. Pile on oat mixture to cover. Carefully pour milk mixture over oats to cover. Sprinkle with course sugar. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. The last 5 minutes I like to broil the top so it gets real crispy -but we like crunchy over here. You can have fun trying other fruits, nuts, or spices as well. Please share your creations!