Toasted Coconut Baked Oatmeal

Oatmeal Fan? Coconut Fan? You’ll love this clean eating, sugar free Toasted Coconut Baked Oatmeal.

If you’ve been around this blog for a while you’ve heard me go on and on about this Baked Cookie Oatmeal. We consistently have it for breakfast once or twice a week and no one is sick of it yet! I got to thinking that it would be fun to have some other flavors of baked oatmeal, that we loved equally, so I could switch things up a bit. Enter my first flavor variation of what I’m sure will be many: Toasted Coconut Baked Oatmeal.

I worked on this recipe for quite a while before it was exactly what I was looking for. I wanted it to clearly taste of coconut, but only be lightly sweetened. It wanted it to taste “summer-y”. The texture needed to be light and airy, and it needed to look pretty.

The taste test: I was pretty sure the oatmeal tasted like coconut, and not a bowl of sugar, but I needed a second opinion. I let my husband try a bite one morning. He hates the taste of coconut. When he nearly spit out his mouthful of coconut oatmeal I knew the flavor was a success!

The texture test: I messed around with a few options here, and finally found a combination that works. Coconut flour is naturally dense, and is usually used in conjunction with eggs. Something about putting an egg into my oatmeal just didn’t seem quite right. I found a bit of baking powder helped keep the oatmeal light. It ends up having a texture similar to cake. I’m cool with breakfast cake.

After lots of testing and messing with the recipe I love this oatmeal. It is everything I wanted in a bowl of coconut oatmeal. I don’t find myself tired of the taste by the time I reach for the last few bites, but rather wishing I had more to eat!

So, what other flavor of baked oatmeal should I try next?

 Ingredients (makes 1 serving)

• 1/3 c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/3 c coconut milk (I use the canned variety, and stored the extra milk from the can in the refrigerator)
• 1 Tbs honey
• 1/2 c gluten free oats
• 2 Tbs coconut flour
• 2 Tbs coconut flakes, divided (sweetened or unsweetened, depending on your preference)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.
2. In a small ramekin (I use a 2 cup pyrex bowl) combine the applesauce, coconut milk, and honey.
3. Add the oats, coconut flour, baking powder, and half of the coconut flakes and stir.
4. Sprinkle with the remaining half of the coconut flakes.
5. Bake for approximately 18 minutes, or until the top of the oatmeal/coconut is golden brown and just a bit crispy.

This post is linked to Gluten Free Wednesdays! Check it out at Gluten Free Homemaker, Gluten Free Easily, and Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures.

Almond Joy Oatmeal

This is one of my current favorite breakfasts. It tastes just like the candy bar, but is totally sugar free! It’s actually a 100% healthy, filling breakfast. What a great way to start the day – with a warm bowl of oats that tastes like candy but is secretly healthy.

Let’s break down the flavors in this oatmeal. First, there’s chocolate. Chocolate for breakfast – I’m in.  Then there is coconut. I’ve always been a fan of coconut. Coconut with chocolate – even better! Remember when they came out with coconut m&ms a few years ago? I ate a lot of those.

Finally, the almond flavor. To be honest, until recently I could take or leave almonds. When I was working on my eBook last year I bought a bottle of almond extract for some of the recipes. There’s something about that strong almond flavor that just melts in my mouth. The GF Candy Cane Cookies from my eBook were one of my favorites. I enjoyed every single bite of those. Well, now I’m all about almond flavored things. Almond butter is a new found favorite ingredient for me. I made these mints (but un-vegan), and the almond chocolate ones were seriously amazing. I brought them on a weekend family trip. At the end of the weekend I traded the leftover mints with my mother in law for basically all of her remaining food + some incredibly soft toilet paper.

Anyway, I digress. Chocolate + Almond + Coconut + HEALTHY = winning breakfast combination.

Since I mentioned my eBook, can I insert a shameless plug here? If you read this blog and enjoy the recipes, please help me keep it going by buying a copy of the eBook! I have plans to expand this blog to a more sophisticated site with easier to read recipes, better site navigation, and a much nicer recipe index. All funds from eBook sales will go straight into improving the blog! Plus, you’ll have a few new cookies recipes! You can check out my eBook page, or go right to my Selz page to purchase it. Thanks for reading my blog, trying my recipes, liking my posts, and leaving encouraging comments! I appreciate all of your support!

As written, this oatmeal is sweetened only with banana. If you find that isn’t sufficient sweetness for your tastes, try adding 1 – 2 tablespoons of sugar.

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 c GF oats
• 1/2 c almond milk (or other milk of choice)
• 1/2 c water
• 1 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 banana, mashed
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 2 Tbs shredded coconut (unsweetened)

Directions

1. Combine the oats, almond milk, and water in a small sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium.
2. Stir in the cocoa powder, making sure it dissolves completely, and then the banana. Let cook, stirring frequently, until much of the liquid is absorbed (under 10 minutes).
3. Add the almond extract. Cook a few minutes longer, until the oatmeal reaches your desired consistency. Personally, I like to have nearly all of the liquid absorbed.
4. Sprinkle with the shredded coconut before eating.

Chocolate Coconut Oatmeal (GF)

Oatmeal is my breakfast obsession right now. It was only a few months ago that I discovered the idea of preparing oatmeal with mashed banana, but I was immediately hooked. This breakfast is healthy, filling, affordable, and there are tons of different ways to flavor it. How great is it to start off the day with a guilt free meal that will keep you full until lunch?! There’s something about just making a healthy choice that puts me in a good mood!

All of my oatmeal breakfasts start with three things: oatmeal, banana, and liquid (even just those ingredients, with a little cinnamon, is delicious on its own). These are real, healthy, whole foods. They are going to fill you up and give you strength and fuel for your day! The banana acts as a natural sweetener. The result is not going to taste quite as sweet as oatmeal sweetened with sugar but it is going to be significantly healthier. Once you eat banana sweetened oatmeal a few times you won’t want to go back! This banana sweetening technique is also a great way to sneak some fruit into a picky person’s diet.

My favorite oats are Trader Joe’s brand. Their regular rolled oats are $3.99 for a one pound bag and they are certified gluten free oats! I love, love, LOVE when I can eat the regular version of a given food and don’t have to pay extra for the gluten free version. I also use Bob’s Red Mill gluten free oats on occasion, which are equal in quality, but double in price. Bob’s Red Mill makes several varieties of oats, not all of which are gluten free, so if you use those just make sure the package says gluten free.

This recipe I’m giving you today is for banana oatmeal with chocolate and coconut. It’s like eating dessert for breakfast! This is one of just many flavor options for banana oatmeal. I’ll continue to post some of my favorite healthy oatmeal recipes here, but if you find you love this breakfast you’ll probably be eager to try other flavors more frequently. Check out The Oatmeal Artist blog for SO MANY different oatmeal variations. Or, get creative! Look around your pantry, pull out your favorite ingredients and add them to your oatmeal. Let me know what you come up with 🙂

By the way, I’m all about pairing my coffee flavor with my oatmeal flavor. You gotta try the Green Mountain Island Coconut flavor! Yum! Coconut coffee + coconut oatmeal = a really good morning.

Chocolate Coconut Oatmeal

Ingredients

• 1/2c gluten free oats
• 1/2c water
• 1/2c skim milk (or other milk of your choice)
• 1 banana, mashed
• 1 Tbs cocoa powder
• 2 Tbs coconut flakes

Cooking Directions

1. In a small saucepan combine the oats, milk, and water. Heat to a boil.
2. While the oatmeal and water are heating up, stir in the cocoa powder.
3. When the liquid is boiling, turn the heat down to medium and stir in the mashed banana.
4. Let the oats cook until they have reached your desired consistency. (I take mine of the heat once the mixture starts to stick together when stirred, but you can eat it more or less liquid-y).
5. Stir in the coconut flakes, and maybe top with coconut flakes, too.