Tag Archives: oatmeal

Yellow Cake Baked Oatmeal

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Chrissy Tiegen has yet to steer me wrong. I made this last weekend for Hubs and myself. I am a yellow cake fan and an oatmeal fan. Putting them together seems natural to me and I guess Chrissy. I usually make these kinds of dishes for a celebration. It was Sunday, so why not celebrate? It made a tad too much for the two of us. We enjoyed it ALLLLL week. I might make it again, making half the recipe and using an 8 x 8 pan.

I’ve made baked oatmeal before with hopeful glee that I will save myself from breakfast cereals. The other attempts were meh. This recipe includes fruit, oatmeal, eggs, milk and (cough, cough) yellow cake. How can that be wrong?

This is not a “do-the-night-before” recipe. Plan accordingly. It takes a bit of time as you heat the milk and oatmeal, and let it cool to thicken. You have to melt butter and let it cool. I used frozen peaches and let them defrost on the counter, then zapped them for a minute in the microwave.  Some of the slices were a little large and still hard. The combination of peaches and raspberries are perfection. Next time I might sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on top.

When cooked, this baked oatmeal has different textures, unlike other baked oatmeal recipes. If you have food texture aversions, you may want to think twice. As it bakes, the mixture separates. The bottom is a cakey, custardy mixture, while the top is oatmealy.  Chrissy says to bake it so the center is still jiggly and serve in bowls. I have enough jiggly things in my life, so I baked it a few more minutes. It was a little firmer, but still two separate textures. While this was cooking, I made bacon in the oven and timed them to be done at the same. I’m clever like that. You have to watch bacon in the oven, it’s a tricky creature. I used this recipe as a guide, but cook at the same temperature as the oatmeal. It’s not messy and the cleanup is so easy.

I brought the leftovers to work, for breakfast. The jello-like texture is great as it doesn’t slop around the container or your lunch box.  It’s a great way to start a work day. Why save everything yummy for the weekend?

Yellow Cake Baked Oatmeal

5 cups of whole milk

2 cups quick-cooking oats

2 cups yellow cake mix

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 stick butter, melted and cooled slightly

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 cups raspberries

1 large peach, frozen works too

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10 x 12 inch baking dish with butter. If you don’t have one this size, 9 x 13 works too. You can always pour 6 cups of water into the pan. If that overflows, the pan is too small. I used a ceramic baker that I use for my egg strata and it was perfect. Don’t stress  too much about it.

With a large microwave-safe bowl, combine the milk and oats and microwave on high, stopping once to stir, for 5 to 6 minutes.  Make sure the milk/oats mixture gets very warm. Give it a few minutes more if it’s not at least warm after the first  5 minutes. You want the oats to start cooking in the very warm milk. Let the oatmeal mixture sit on the counter to thicken for 10 minutes. You don’t want it to sit more than 10 minutes. The pressure is on!

Stir the cake mix into the cooked oatmeal until smooth, then mix in the eggs, melted butter, and salt.

Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish, then scatter the berries and peaches on top. You can use more than the recipes says, within reason. Bake until the center is just set and seems almost undercooked, 30 to 35 minutes. (It will jiggle a little, and when you spoon into the cake, it may separate into 2 layers)

I like to let it set for about 10 minutes before serving. It will cook a little more, and prevent the jiggles, and not scorch your mouth as you hurriedly spoon this into your face.

Enjoy!

The $250 Neiman Marcus Cookie

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Rumors, rumors, rumors. It was once told that the recipe for these cookies cost someone $250 from a Neiman Marcus clerk. The story supposedly has been debunked by the company. It made a good story, but it also makes a good cookie. The prep work takes longer than a regular chocolate chip cookie recipe. You blend the rolled oats in a food processor to make an oat flour. This cookie, cleverly, requires a “good” 4 ounce milk chocolate bar along with semisweet chocolate chips. Instead of grating the cookie into a melted grated mess, I chop it up with a knife. I find this to be the best method. I also replace the walnuts with raisins, that I’ve soaked in hot water. Totally optional, but I love raisins. I use a stand mixer as the dough is very thick. I have to mix it by hand for a bit, to get at everything left in the bottom of the mixing bowl. It’s a bit of a workout, but worth it. I keep some out in a container and freeze the rest. You will be happy to know, they taste great frozen too. Who has time to wait for a cookie to defrost? Not me! I like to fool myself into believing they are healthy. I mean, there are over two cups of oats in it, right????

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups rolled oats (not one-minute oats)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1 cup light or dark brown sugar

1 cup of granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

4 ounces grated or finely chopped milk chocolate bar

1 cup of chopped walnuts or raisins

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Blend the oats in a food processor or blender, to a fine powder. In a medium bowl,, which together the blended oats with the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, beating just until incorporated. With a rubber spatula, fold in the chocolate chips and the chopped candy bar, with the walnuts and/or raisins.
  4. Roll the dough into balls, about 2 heaping tablespoonfuls. Place them on the parchment lined cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time, until the edges of the cookie are set but the center still looks undone, about 10 minutes. The cookies will set up as they cool. Let them cool on the cookies sheets. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days (so I’ve heard). They can be frozen for up to 2 months (has never happened).

These make a great work snack, with that second cup of coffee. They will get you to lunch without hunger rumbles.

Enjoy!

Here is the recipe I have used.

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Egg White Oatmeal

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If your New Year’s resolution includes eating healthier, I have the perfect breakfast for you: Egg White Oatmeal. I know it doesn’t sound like pancakes and bacon. It’s better…for you! In researching this recipe, I found people make egg white omelets and put them on top of their oatmeal. Interesting but not my kind of breakfast. Some people microwaved this oatmeal, but I don’t like to cook in my microwave. I mainly use it to re-heat. I prefer to cook on the stovetop. You can make this oatmeal your own with your add-ins. I like a sprinkle of brown sugar and some dried apricots. You can add whatever you like: nuts, bananas, fresh fruit, or cinnamon.  The ideas are endless. Just keep in mind this takes about 15 minutes to make. Not a recipe to make when you’re in a hurry. It’s a perfect recipe for a cold, snowy day. I’m talking to you New England!

1 1/3 cup of water

2/3 cup of old fashioned rolled oats

4 egg whites or ½ cup of liquid eggs

pat of salted butter (optional)

½ tsp. vanilla extract

In a small pot, combine the oats and water. Bring this mixture to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until the oats have absorbed most of the water. Stir this mixture frequently!

At this point you stir in the egg whites and vanilla. Whip the oatmeal mixture with a fork until it’s well blended. Stir in butter if you’d like. I think it helps with the creaminess.

Continue to cook the oatmeal for another 4 minutes (approximately) at a simmer. Keep on stirring. The oatmeal should now be creamy.

When the water and egg whites have been absorbed, take the pot of the burner. This is when I like to add my apricots and anything else I have on hand. I put the cover on and let it sit for a few minutes. The heat helps soften any dried fruit.

This recipe is for one person. It makes a healthy amount of oatmeal and is very filling. The calorie count will vary depending on what you add in, but as is written, it’s about 300 calories. This should hold you over until lunch. The egg whites give you that extra protein your body needs, without the calories of the yolks.

TIPS: Make sure you have your add-ins ready before you start cooking. You spend a lot of time stirring and you wouldn’t be able to prepare the add-ins. If you want to make more than one serving, double the recipe. For consistency sake, I like to double the amount of water to the amount of oats. I don’t like to waste food, not even egg yolks. For this recipe I usually use the liquid egg whites that are in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. I also have on hand powdered egg whites. I like to make meringue cookies and the powdered eggs work great. You just have to remember to leave time to dissolve them in the proper amount of water. While your coffee is brewing is a good time for that.